That's Not What It's For: Another Facebook Article



Like John Coffey, I couldn't hep it



Common mistakes that come with the comment "That's not what that's for," are all over the place. When you decide to work on a car and grab a flathead instead of a phillips you hear, "That's not what that's for." When you're getting ready to brush your teeth, if you were raised in a house that didn't have much money, and you grab the Arm & Hammer because you're out of toothpaste, and your kid looks at you like, "WTF?" You hear it then. When you're in the bed and you slip up and hit the wrong.... okay nevermind, you get the point. That's Not What It's For is so common that often no one realizes when this is really the case.

Yesterday an interesting thing happened on Facebook. A conversation was started that generated a ton of likes on seperate Facebook walls. The conversation began with this quote: Clean out your Facebook closet. There are people doing incredible work, but you can't see it because there is too much garbage on your wall. Also, if someone is doing something that looks like it took time to do, is artistic, is positive, or is thinking out of the box... make a comment. Honestly, you never know how that might help a person throughout that day. Big shout out to all the people pursuing various dreams. 

Is Facebook Really Good For Small Biz?

Social Media, for those who aren't keeping up, consists of any form of media based in technology that allows you to maintain contact with people at anytime you feel like reaching out and touching someone. The old adage from the phone company has never been more true. Social Media: Twitter, Tumblr, Myspace, Youtube, Facebook and now Google+ all allow their users to drop in at anytime and pick up on a conversation taking place in a group, on a wall, through a Tweet and now in a circle (Google+) In marketing circles having a Facebook page is now a required form of guerilla marketing that will allow you to reach more people simply based on the sheer numbers on these various forms of social media. I've been thinking lately though, is this really a good thing for small biz? I mean, you can post to Facebook and get an immediate bump in web traffic. You can even advertise for free, but with the fact that so many people are fighting to be seen in Social Media there is a problem taking place that has to be rectified by the various outlets. While Social Media was the place to go to build a following many small biz people are finding themselves utilizing Facebook as a primary source of information for their fans, followers, and potential clients.

Now this is not a problem, but it is. See the time a person invests into getting traffic to their Facebook page pays off for a company like the NBA, or ESPN, or AmEx. Why? These brands have customer loyalty, a following and the ability to drive people to their sites through extensive marketing in traditional media forms. No matter what the NBA posts on Facebook, they will have visitors who go directly to their websites. Their foundation was not established through the various forms of social media. Let's focus on Facebook. Facebook holds a person's attention and the short blasts of information, the ability to hold discourse and to share pictures in a central location for the common person and the business person is too attractive. It is so attractive that let's say Small Biz guy A posts something about his company, chances are that the people they expect to visit their webpage will only look at it on Facebook. Facebook uses the App Networked Blogs and in all actuality the person remains on Facebook where the blog/website is presented in a frame.

Redefining the Labyrinth: Track 5

Redefining the Labyrinth was a project I began while teaching at a local Memphis High School. With the current uproar about all that is wrong in the Memphis City Schools, I thought it would be interesting to post the work generated by four high school seniors, who are products of a system that everyone assumes is not capable of developing and producing productive students who can compete in this socioeconomic culture. I edited the book and contributed essays to give the book a shape and form, but it was the work of the students that allowed for the completion of this work. The artwork was completed by the student author DeVarius Fisher and the idea to make the name of each chapter an allusion to a song in Hip-Hop was a collaborative effort. I will post each student essay here on the blog. There is also a Question and Answer section in the book. If you would like to purchase a copy click here. 

 

 

 

 

 

Track


5


Featured Artist: DeVarius Fisher


Trapped: The African American Nihilist

African Americans often have a misplaced affinity for the images of the hood. These influences affect the way we speak, act, and live. This is an issue that is primarily shaped by the things that happen in entertainment. While entertainers say that these images do not affect people, it is the root cause of how we assert ourselves in society. The media market displays images that do not inspire or give hope, they only contribute to the behavior of everyone which leads to nihilism.