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Airlines are loving Twitter.

Just for fun, we built a site to track what Airlines are doing on Twitter.  Using the Twitter API and Google Graphs, we can monitor how many followers airlines have, as well as what they're tweeting.



http://airlinesontwitter.com/

We chat to Bruce Clay about the future of SEO, Google and Social Networks.
Bruce Clay runs one of the largest SEO companies in the world today.
Watch the video

Here we chat to Rand Fishkin, SEO Moz founder, about the future of Google, Social Media and Social Networking
Watch the video...

We interviewed Dennis Yu from Blitz Local, a few weeks ago at SMX Sydney, about the monetisation of Social Media campaigns.
Watch the video.
Some really interesting comments in here...! 

Candymaker Mars Inc. recently launched a massive Social Media campaign, cutely titled "Interweb the Rainbow". 

Rather than use one Social Network over another, they launched a full-on assault, using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia.

Its Twitter account initially was bombarded with off-color tweets. But the online campaign also has drawn more than 1 million fans to Skittles' Facebook page, where they are trading thoughts on everything from Skittles-infused vodka to whether the tart candies are tastier than M&Ms.

The cleverness of the campaign is largely coming from its integrated and interactive approach to Social Media. First they created some catchy videos, then they stormed each Social Media site, turning their skittles homepage into a live feed from that social network.

Check out some of their videos
 

We interview Sydney locals about their use of Social Media and Social Networking sites
 

So, the US has a new President.  And one that is well aware of the potential of Web 2.0.

By targeting Gen-Y through the use of new Social Media platforms like Facebook, mySpace, youTube and Twitter, Obama has succeeded in effectively spreading support for his campaign across the Internet.

Make no mistake - Web 2.0, Social Media and Social Networking are a very real force in the world of PR. Harness those forces, and you will see very real results.

Obama has done just that. From social networking to his blog to his Fight the Smears campaign, Obama has made his Web 2.0 presence known. He has over 1.5 million friends on MySpace and Facebook, and he currently has over 45,000 followers on Twitter. This personal activity in social networks allows him to quickly get the word out across multiple platforms.

Obama has spent millions on his online campaign - from generating revenue indirectly by working out conversion ratios using GoogleAdwords, to sending campaign movements via SMS, and drumming up community support in online communities.

Chris Hughes, one of the founders of Facebook, knows a thing or two about social networking, and has been heading up Obama's campaign. Obama's wooing of the social networking whiz may not have made headlines at the time, but it's been a major factor in Obama's success.

On Oct. 21, for example, Obama raked in more than 84 million views for his YouTube videos while McCain posted 22 million, according to TechPresident, a site that charts Web 2.0 election statistics. Over the past six months, 13,702 Meetup members have used the site to organize offline groups and events to support Obama, while 1,472 members are using it to rally around McCain.

For the seven days ending Oct. 22, Obama was mentioned 10, 291 times in the blogosphere, according to Technorati - which tracks blogs - compared to 3,924 mentions for McCain.

And Hitwise - which tracks Web traffic - noted that Obama was pulling in 67% of all Web traffic directed to presidential candidate sites while McCain was pulling in 32% of that traffic.

Obama has also continued to dominate on Facebook, with 2 million Facebook supporters on Oct. 9, compared McCain's 564,000 for McCain. The Democratic candidate also leads on MySpace, with 749,000 supporters as of Wednesday compared to McCain's 190,000.

Google has just published a patent application for Network Node Ad Targeting, in which Google hatches plans for identifying the most influential of a circle of friends and providing this 'influencer' with 'financial incentives from advertisers in exchange for permission to display advertisements on the member's [social network] profile'.

Doing so will 'provide advertisers with the option of targeting either all members in the community or advertising only on the profile of the influencer, thereby targeting the entire community,' explains Google. Who says you can't buy friendship!

SHIFT Interactive is a Web 2.0 design agency in Sydney Australia. We specialise in harnessing what the Version 2 web technology provides including:

• Viral marketing Sydney Australia
• Flash Games Sydney Australia
• Corporate Blogging Sydney Australia
• Viral Video Campaigns Sydney Australia
• Web 2.0 Sydney Australia
• Social Media Sydney Australia
• Social Networking Sydney Australia

Viral marketing and viral advertising refer to marketing techniques that use social media and social networks to produce increases in brand awareness and product sales through digital viral processes, analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses.

It can be word-of-mouth delivered or enhanced by the network effects of the Internet.  Viral marketing is a marketing phenomenon that facilitates and encourages people to pass along a marketing message voluntarily.  Viral promotions may take the form of video clips, corporate blogging, interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, brandable software, images, or even text messages.