O Companies... Where Art Thou

When will companies step it up and realize that they need to jump on the technological bandwagon and start firing up some blogs.

Blogs are a great way for companies to build up customer support and rapport. If you can shop at a company that fully discloses (or appears to fully disclose) their daily activities, wouldn't you feel more comfortable shopping there? I forgot what company did this, but one company made a blog (believe it or not this was public) where employees could post however they felt about the company, different ideas they had about the inner-workings of the company as well as product ideas. One may think that this is corporate suicide, but the company started to see an increase in sales, increase in productivity and customer service points went up! It turned out, the consumer felt more comfortable knowing that the company was listening to all concerns and felt that the company had nothing to hide - all problems would get fixed.

Even if a company doesn't go to this extreme, it's about time they realize how amazing of a marketing tool this is. Just a simple blog will allow the company to build a stronger following as well. If more people invest time in reading a blog about a company, they will subconsciously, and consciously, develop a stronger bond to that company over that of a blogless competitor.

O Companies... Where Art Thou

Chow down on some sweet blogging...

Engaging and fun... heartache and triumph.... experience the Emperor... experience the Chow.

Do you know what Capoeira is? HINT: It's not a mixed drink...

Every time I went through the links on this course's web site, I couldn't help but think of Capoeira. Um... yea... that word... Most people have no idea what that is. So, why is it that I kept going through trying to read these links but kept getting pulled back thinking of Capoeira?

Well... first off, let me explain a little of what Capoeira is. Capoeira could basically be generalized as Afro-Brazilian dance fighting. Interesting. Well... Capoeira (keep track of how many times I say 'well'... it will be, well, interesting) was created by slaves as a chance to develop martial arts skills while disguising their actions as a dance involving instruments and song.

What was so great (and is so great) about Capoeira is the communication involved. New slaves introduced into society to assimilate into new social circles and prove themselves and/or have fun by advancing in the art. Not like in some martial arts, you don't advance by kicking the shit out of your opponent... no. Capoeira is a conversation in itself. The two people participating, or "fighting" work with each other with non-verbal communication. Moreover, the songs themselves reflect what is going on in the game, or "fight." Unlike in modern culture where people communicate so bluntly and succinctly through text message and IM, Capoeira is fluid and is done subtly through eye and body movement. That is why I am so in love with this martial art. It is a throwback to an older time where we communicated with body language and not finger-typing language.

Capoeira became a niche society as time progressed and is now one of the few sports that is practiced in every country in the world. Because so much of Capoeira is based on communication between the two people playing, or fighting, I doubt it will ever become an Olympic sport. Too bad. I invite anybody reading this to Google Capoeira and look into it. Or, if you know me, just ask me and I will be happy to teach you a few things.

[link for below article]

http://www.cracked.com/index.php?name=News&sid=2370

Where has all the rum gone? I mean, personality...

I know what you're expecting... "Morgan is in ITEC-333 so he is going to list facts and figures of the history of social networking blah blah blah"

Nawww... how about how social networking has changed our interactions from the early years until now.... "Niiiice."

I was checking out Digg.com and I saw an article on the front page called "7 Reasons the 21st Century is Making You Miserable." The seven are:

#1. We don't have enough annoying strangers in our lives.
#2. We don't have enough annoying friends, either.
#3. Texting is a shitty way to communicate.
#4. Online company only makes us lonelier.
#5. We don't get criticized enough.
#6. We're victims of the Outrage Machine.
#7. We feel worthless, because we actually are worth less.

This all resonated for me. I've talked with my dad who is obviously older than me (sorry dad, it's true) and he would talk about how all his interactions involved going outside and participating in activities which were ... well... active. Now, our social networks on the internet permit us to be "active" while sitting at home on our computer playing RPG games. Sometimes I find myself playing more Fifa or Madden than actual soccer or football! Until I got to college, my life was dominated by the outdoors. Now that I developed a new social network centered around technology, I find myself not needing to communicate as clearly or as with much tone. Simple answers to simple questions.

Another interesting point in the article talks about how we are loosing the art of real conversing. Through AIM and Facebook, people partaking in online networks don't have the need to have a real, one-on-one conversation with each other. Instead, it is done through quick responses to even quicker questions. With sites like MySpace and LinkedIn, you have people who have never met bond through virtual interaction. 93% of what a person says is communicated in ways other than words, e.x. body language, inflections. How are you supposed to really understand a person when all you get is 7% of them! Damn, I can't understand most people and I get the full 100!

All-in-all, social networks have detracted from more personable forms of communication from the early days, but as a community we will grow and understand these new forms of conversing while still getting the full 100 percent of what people mean... not just 7.

The Physics of Social Capital

It was interesting reading about "social capital."

Social capital refers to the collective value of all "social networks" [who people know] and the inclinations that arise from these networks to do things for each other ["norms of reciprocity"].*

When you look around you, it is fascinating to see that so much of American culture is based around one's social capital. Social capital is essentially one's social circle... and in America, social circles follow the rules of physics... the larger the mass, the greater the attractive power. Too often, people are not judged on the quality of their connections and networks but rather on the quantity. These people ignore the massive benefits that come along with social capital:

benefits flow from the trust, reciprocity, information, and cooperation associated with social networks. Social capital creates value for the people who are connected and - at least sometimes - for bystanders as well.*

I feel that quality social capital is also necessary to establish a proper network in life. Whether it is in business such as discussed with Rob Cross or in personal networks that establish a strong emotional base, quality social capital is at the root of everyday life and an important staple for a stable life.

*http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/saguaro/primer.htm