Are you one of the many magazine readers who have been scanning up a storm while flipping through the pages of favorite publications? According to Nellymoser, a mobile marketing firm, the use of their QR codes by magazines has spiked by 228% over the last year.

QR code to view our packages.

What does this mean for the publications? “It’s clearly a great opportunity for the print industry to keep up with the ever-increasing use of technology,” said Online Marketing Strategist Caroline Melberg. “Since 40% of mobile phone users have smartphones – and that number is increasing – the use of QR codes will most likely continue to grow.”

BizReport.com reported on the findings, sharing that 2011 saw a major increase in the printing of QR codes. “In 2011 almost 4,500 QR codes appeared within ads and editorial of the U.S.’s top 100 magazines. The year started off with 352 codes in Q1. It grew to 1,899 in Q4, which is 439% growth,” reported Helen Leggatt of BizReport.com.

So if printing QR codes in a magazine has a positive outcome, is it better to add more codes per issue, or will that overwhelm readers? The information showed that the more QR codes that were added in a magazine, the higher the response rate.

“QR codes are a powerful business tool because their results are very measurable,” said Melberg. “It’s very simple to use a QR code creator that allows you to track the results to see how many readers are scanning the code. You can test the effectiveness of your ads by comparing their numbers to one another to see which ones have the highest response rates.”

Do you think QR codes are helpful? Do you think they will have longevity in the online marketing world?

Have you visited Wikipedia, Google, Craigslist, or one of the many other major websites today that are blacked-out? No need to restart your system – it’s an organized protest against a major bill going to the Senate that could drastically change the way that we all are allowed to use the Internet.

Wikipedia's protest against SOPA and PIPA

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith that was created to stop theft or piracy of content. The Protect IP Act (PIPA), according to Fast Company, is “…a bill designed to have a slightly broader sweep than SOPA with the intention of protecting goods that are copied by counterfeiters–anything from drugs to handbags.”

How would the passing of either of these bills affect you?

“If these bills were adopted, it would mean that no one could post another link on Twitter, Facebook, a blog, a website – anywhere online – without first checking to make sure that nothing on that site contained copyright infringement,” said Social Media Strategist Caroline Melberg. “It would change everything about how the Internet, social media and SEO work.”

Imagine having to check every single thing on a website before you linked to one of its articles. What if something was added later, after you had linked to it? Since links live “forever,” would you have to hire someone to go and check all your links frequently to make sure nothing had gone wrong with the website since you linked to it?

“In practice, it’s censorship of the Internet and how we do business today,” said Melberg. “This protest by many major websites is an organized exclamation to ‘Stop Piracy, Not Liberty.’”

Google's Protest

You might be one of the individuals in favor of SOPA and PIPA, thinking that we all need a law in place to protect original content and copyrights online. Are you aware that one already exists? It’s called the Digital Millenium Copyright Act of 1998, and it was put in place to help prevent piracy and copyright infringement online – the issues that PIPA and SOPA are challenging right now. The difference is that SOPA and PIPA go far beyond this with the potential power to “break the Internet,” according to CNN.

Remember the protests in Egypt that held riots in the streets? The Egyptian government shut down the Internet at that time, as if it was as simple as flipping a switch. Many Americans watched and casually thought, “That could never happen here.”

Welcome to reality.

What do you think about the blackout protests?

Posting too frequently on social media sites can annoy friends and followers, but if you’re not posting often enough, you might be missing your chance to stay top-of-mind to your target audience. If you’re the administrator for a company’s Facebook page, do you know how often you should be posting?

According to Social Media Strategist Caroline Melberg, the convergence between Twitter and Facebook continues. “The half-life of a Facebook post is now 3.2 hours, and the new Facebook Timeline feature means that amount of time will continue to shrink,” said Melberg. “No longer can a business post once per day to their page and expect that they will achieve the reach they are hoping for.  This means businesses will need to post more frequently to their Facebook pages to achieve the same reach as they did prior to Timeline.”

Just like Twitter, you can now start to think of Facebook like a “stream” versus a lake.  What you see floating by is dependent upon when you are sitting there, and different people will be sitting at different times. With Facebook Timeline, you’ll want to send more messages down stream in order to reach folks who watch at different times.

It’s also critical that you check your Facebook Insights to find out what the best times for you to post are – those times when you receive the most engagement. Be sure to monitor that on a regular basis, as we expect to see this change with Timeline.

While Facebook Timline was a major change, what do you think will be the next big change in the world of social media?

There’s been quite a bit of discussion about the reliability of online information that is compiled by individual users (think Wikipedia). Others scrutinize sites that allow users to share/upload files, music and videos freely. But who can really define whether these sites are doing right or wrong?

The Stop Internet Piracy Act (SOPA) is an effort to regulate all content online. It has been creating buzz because, if passed, the Act “…makes the streaming of unauthorized content a felony,” reported MSNBC.com.

The reactions to this proposed law are definitely being heard. Wikipedia, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare are just a few of the online sites that are threatening to “…take a ‘nuclear option’ and ‘go simultaneously dark’ in protest of the bill,” MSNBC.com published earlier this week.

There are those who support the bill and would like to see unauthorized content removed from all websites. Others rely on shared information from internet users on a daily basis. How about if you’re a student writing a research paper – can you cite Wikipedia as a credible resource for your information? Educational institutions and their professors/instructors have a wide range of policies for students using these crowd-sourced encyclopedias as a reliable source in coursework. Since users can change the content, who’s to say that what you’re reading on those sites is factual?

Try asking followers of The Colbert Report with Steven Colbert on Comedy Central. In 2006 he encouraged viewers to change the Wikipedia entries on elephants to state that their population had tripled in the last six months. So what happened? Roughly 20 Wikipedia articles on elephants were vandalized by numerous users stating exactly what Colbert had suggested – until Wikipedia administrators caught wind of what had actually happened, locked the pages and blocked Colbert from the site. According to Colbert, a made up thing or idea becomes true reality if enough people agree with you. He coined it as “wikiality,” and he was proving it.

Does SOPA silent free speech? Or does it help regulate false information on the infinite Internet?

We hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday celebration!

Do you know if your Facebook profile is in violation of any rules? What about your business or company page? While some people might not see any problem with bending a rule or two, Facebook is really stepping up to enforce their guidelines in 2012– and many users could lose their pages or profiles.

Did you even know that by setting up a Facebook personal profile, you are acknowledging that you will adhere to the following guidelines?

• Facebook users must provide their real names and information
• You will not provide any false personal information on Facebook, or create an account for anyone other than yourself without permission.
• You will not create more than one personal profile.
• If we disable your account, you will not create another one without our permission.You will not use your personal profile for your own commercial gain (such as selling your status update to an advertiser).
• If you select a username for your account we reserve the right to remove or reclaim it if we believe appropriate (such as when a trademark owner complains about a username that does not closely relate to a user’s actual name)

And more…

Here’s an example – if you meant to set up a company or business profile but accidentally set it up as a personal profile, Facebook is allowing you to switch the account to a business page to correct the accident. Another option is to delete the duplicate personal profile and setup the correct brand page. Facebook has also made it possible to merge duplicate company pages that you may have accidentally set up.

Please note that if you are planning to make many changes to a page, you probably want to make sure you’re confident in what you’re doing, or that you get help from someone who knows what he or she is doing. Just make sure that the person(s) handling the details of your account can advise you correctly. After all,  some of the changes you make to your account are permanent.

Facebook is simply trying to ensure safety and convenience for all users. Although the social media giant is making an effort to allow people to correct their mistakes, this may not continue forever. Eventually people, brands and companies who do not abide by Facebook’s rules or adhere to ethical standards could have their profiles deleted or blocked.

Guidelines provided by Facebook.com.

While we all get ready to ring in the New Year, Facebook has gotten an early start by launching their new Timeline design. As we mentioned this past September, Facebook Timeline provides users with a single place to display what has happened in their lives over the years since starting an account with the site.

“It’s a way to tell all the important stories from your life on a single page,” said Facebook Co-Founder Mark Zuckerberg.

The new design allows users to customize many features, and it even includes a map where people can input places they’ve been around the world.

There have been many mixed reviews on the new layout, but only time will tell whether or not Facebook users will accept or reject the new change. There’s a good chance that the design will simply take some getting-used-to before users forget that the change was even made and become comfortable navigating it.

Read more about Facebook Timeline on Yahoo.

What do you think of Facebook Timeline?

Oh, what the click of one button can do. A single click can cause an uproar of negative responses, uncover groundbreaking stories, or release an unlimited amount of information. In this case, we take a look at Ad Age‘s article about individuals and representatives of companies who seem to have simply clicked “Post” before thinking twice.

Are you always double-checking your details before posting content online?

From the offensive tweets of a spokesperson impersonating a duck, to the ‘Qwik’ fail of a new name and site for a DVD rental service, 2011 definitely saw its fair share of social media blunders. Twitter was a common site for many of the mishaps, including a short rant about the drivers of the Motor City that was posted on Chrysler’s own Twitter account by accident. One person on the list was even fined $500,000 for the contents of his tweet – that’s an expensive fee for a post that was 160 characters or less.

Keep in mind that what you post online can be seen as a direct reflection of your character. Most people don’t think that accidentally sending their next text to the wrong person or place could result in the loss of their job – and it’s likely that New York congressman Anthony Weiner didn’t think so either.

What can be learned from this entertaining list? Think twice and check your facts before posting anything online – especially if you’re posting on the behalf of another person or entity. If you wouldn’t be willing to have the information printed on the front cover of Time, don’t publish it online.

Do you have a social media policy in place in case you or your business made a social media mistake?

LinkedIn recently announced a change they will be making to their email notifications to make sure users get important messages as soon as possible. Previously, the default setting was to receive a weekly summary  email listing any InMails or Introductions sent to the user by other LinkedIn  members. LinkedIn has stated that the reason the previous setting was enacted was “due to an error on our part,” according to an email they sent to users.

How often do you want to hear updates from social networking sites?

“We received a lot of feedback from people saying they’d rather receive these messages  right away,” stated the email sent to members. “With that feedback in mind, we will be changing  your setting on December 14, 2011 so you’ll receive InMails and Introductions immediately rather than in a weekly digest format. If  you’d like to receive these messages as soon as they are sent, no action is  needed. However, if you’d like to change  how you receive these messages in the future, you can change your email preferences by selecting the weekly digest format.”

Will this change be convenient, or annoying? “I’m a little surprised that they’re changing it to a default setting, when it’s already an option to regulate notifications under the current settings,” said Social Media Administrator Chelsea Janke.  “If they’ve been receiving a lot of complaints from users, they’re probably just trying to be receptive listeners. It’s good to know that they’re taking feedback seriously.”

We’ve always received prompt responses from LinkedIn about inquiries, and it’s been clear that their support department is working hard to please users.

To learn more about changing your email  notifications, please visit the LinkedIn help center.

What do you think about the increase of LinkedIn updates? Is it helpful? Or is it a nuisance?

It’s time for the 2013 Weatherguide Facebook Photo Contest!

Freshwater Society invites you to submit your best photo of the first signs of winter for the 2013 Minnesota Weatherguide Environment Calendar.

The 2012 Minnesota Weather Guide Environment Calendar