With more than 845 million Facebook users, the evaluation by most experts is between $75 billion and $100 billion. What is Facebook truly worth? If the Facebook evaluation reaches $100 billion it would make Facebook worth almost half of Google and would make it the largest U.S. Internet based offering in history. Not bad for a company started in 2004 by a college dropout.

Facts about Facebook

• There are currently 845 million Facebook users worldwide
• In 2011 Facebook ad revenue accounted for 89% of the $3.8 billion generated
• Zygna, the makers of Farmville, accounts for 12% of Facebook’s revenue
• Zuckerberg holds 553.8 million shares, worth $28.4 billion, based on a company valuation of $100 billion, or $53 per share
• Zuckerberg owns 28% Facebook

The Facebook Effect

Will going public change the culture of Facebook? That is a possibility given that approximately one-third of the Facebook employees will become millionaires overnight as a result of going public. In that event some wonder if these same employees will have the same passion and drive they had prior to the impending financial windfall. Will going public negatively impact Facebook as we know it today?

The other big question is how will other tech startups be affected? Facebook going public could open the door for more Internet based startups being acquired. Zygna, another popular Internet based company, is predicted to go public this year as well.

Only time will tell what the trickle down effect of SEC filing, but one thing is for certain; once Facebook goes public it will never be the same. Being a publicly traded company brings with it not only a financial windfall for the social media company but also it’s own set of challenges and pressure to bring financial return to its investors each quarter. It will be interesting to see how Facebook innovates as a public company when it had the luxury developing the product on its own timetable.

Do you think going public will change the culture of Facebook for the better or the worse?

(Image: WhiteHouse.gov)

President Barack Obama is no stranger to interacting in the digital space, conducting town hall meetings on popular social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Now, Obama is bringing the dialogue to Google+.

Starting at 5:30 p.m. ET, the commander in chief will talk about his State of the Union Address in a live interview.  Mashable reports over 225,000 people sent in or voted on questions, and six of those participants will be invited to join the live conversation with Obama.

Tune in to watch the discussion on the White House’s Google+ page or the White House YouTube Channel.

The Internet is one tool that can be both convenient and vital in establishing your professional brand and marketing yourself. Whether you’re looking for new job opportunities, trying to establish new relationships or seeking new clients or customers, the Web is the prime place to thrive and make things happen.

When it comes to your brand presence on the Internet, it’s best to have a good foundation in place on which to build. Madame Noire offers five steps for getting started or refreshing your approach so that you can present the best impression possible on an international platform that can either make or break a professional.

Read more at Madame Noire …

(Image: ThinkStock)

How would you feel about the U.S. government policing the Internet? Well, a new bill, Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) would allow them to control content on the World Wide Web as we know it today. There are major concerns with the application of this bill that run must deeper than just blocking Websites. Imagine for a moment what this type of censorship would mean: any content you post to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or any other social network or website could be blocked and become unsearchable on the Internet because of a single link.

The underlining issue of protecting intellectual property is a real problem, which is supposedly why the bill has been proposed. For content providers law enforcement to fight online trafficking and copyrighting infringements sounds like a noble and justifiable reason to pass the bill. But, the collateral damage of this bill’s passage would be so immense that it would far out weight the value that it would provide based upon how the bill is proposed today.

The Impact of SOPA on Entrepreneurs

Let’s look even deeper at this bill, which would be stifling to entrepreneurs, who are the lifeline of the economy. Booz & Co. interviewed 200 prominent angel investors and venture capitalist about this bill and reported that 70% of them would be deterred from investing if anti-piracy regulations were passed. This would impact innovation and job creation in the U.S. Think about the impact to Silicon Valley and other tech hubs, as well.

What Would be the Long-Term Impact of SOPA?

• There would be fewer startups launching because of the increase legal risk.
• Social networks, personal pages and sites where people express themselves could become unsearchable and blocked on the Internet.
• Email providers could be forced to censor emails to scan for links users send or receive.
• Content you share in your social networks would be monitored and censored—this includes photos, videos and status updates.
• Increased censorship would possibility remove legitimate content that you are sharing.
• Payment-processing companies like PayPal could be forced to stop doing business with sites that have been blocked.
• Most U.S.-based hosting services would relocate outside the U.S. jurisdiction, which would result in lost jobs.
• Site owners would become liable for user-posted content, if they don’t do enough to stop users from posting “illegal” content on his/her site, which could become very costly.

Which Popular Sites Would be at Risk?

• Facebook
• Google
• Twitter
• YouTube
• LinkedIn
• Vimeo
• And countless other websites and/or social networks

What Actions Can You Take?

Send your Congressman a pre-written letter via the American Censorship website (click here).

Sign the ‘Stop the E-Parasite Act’ petition by clicking here.

Follow the Electronic Frontier on Twitter to stay posted on your digital civil liberalities @EFF.

Check out the TechCrunch procedure list of over 40+ companies against SOPA by clicking here.

(Image: ThinkStock)

It’s time to get your personal brand upgraded for 2012. We live in a day and time where first impressions are everything, so you want to make sure you put your best foot forward—especially if you’re trying to be successful in business for the New Year. The first interaction that most people will have with you will be online so we’re going to walk you through a personal brand checklist to get you on the right path for 2012 and beyond.

Category I: Personal Brand Building

• 1. Identify your passion
• 2. Identify your skills, talents and interest
• 3. Establish your elevator pitch
• 4. Identity your business values (i.e. this is important for aligning yourself with career options and employers that are a good strategic fit)
• 5. Establish your niche and own it:
  • A. Write a detailed description of the specific niche you want to own
• 6. Establish your Brand Promise (what you will deliver on)
• 7. Identify your Personal Brand Type (how you’re wired): Long-term
  • A. Builder (i.e. intrapreneur/employee)
  • B. Leaper (i.e. full-time/pure entrepreneur)

Click here to continue reading…

(Image: ThinkStock)

Category II: Creation of Your Identity

• 8. Identity whether you’re building a personal and/or small business brand online
  • A. Personal Brand: Focus on establishing personal branded social network accounts
  • B. Business Brand: Establish social network accounts that are specific to your business brand
• 9. Are you using your professional business name (i.e. Mike Jones versus Michael Jones)?
  • A. Social networks
  • B. Domain names
• 10. Research competitors with the same or similar name
• 11. Purchase your personal and/or business brand domain name
  • A. Use it as your online hub
• 12. Secure the social network URLs you want to have a presence in (listed below are some of the more popular social networks to join, but this is not an exhaustive list)
  • A. Twitter
  • B. Google Plus
  • C. Facebook (optional)
  • D. LinkedIn
  • E. YouTube
  • F. Slideshare
• 13. Establish Bio/About You: Should be presented as a story
  • A. Establish three bios: 160 characters (Twitter), paragraph and long-form version
• 14. Keep Social Network Profiles Consistent: Make sure you are consistent across all your social network channels
• 15. Social Network URLs—create custom URLs (at least for the Big Five: Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, and YouTube i.e. http://www.Facebook.com/HajjFlemings)
• 16. Avatar photo
  • A. Identify the look and style you want to communicate in your online presence
  • B. Set-up Link to Download: Upload a hi-res version into Flickr and provide links so you don’t have to email large files
  • C. Use the same headshot across all your social networks
• 17. Professional email address (Gmail or email with you domain name)

Click here to continue reading…

(Image: ThinkStock)

Category III: Social Network Basics

• 18. Social network profiles at 100% complete
• 19. Take down any photos or inappropriate content in your social networks
• 20. Privacy Settings: Properly set-up privacy settings in all social networks
  • A. Facebook
  • B. LinkedIn
• 21. LinkedIn 100%: Established 100% complete Linkedin profile
• 22. LinkedIn Resume: Uploaded a PDF version of your resume in LinkedIn
• 23. Linkedin Q +A: Answer questions to establish your expertise.
• 24. LinkedIn Groups: Identify and join LinkedIn groups for networking
• 25. Review LinkedIn profiles of people in similar positions (Point of Reference)
• 26. Establish a Google Plus profile
• 27. Google yourself—worst case you should, at a minimum, Google yourself every three months. I would highly recommend you increase the frequency, personally I Google myself weekly.
• 28. Online Reputation Management – Set-up Google Alert keywords
• 29. Customize Twitter background
• 30. Create video content
• 31. Build LinkedIn network:Reach out to second-degree connections
• 32. Access whether the perception of your online content equal the reality of who you are
• 33. Actively build your online network
• 34. Establish a maintenance plan to review social network profiles quarterly
• 35. Identify specific contacts within companies you want to work with or for

Click here to continue reading…

(Image: ThinkStock)

Category IV: Online Personal Branded Hub

• 36. Establish an online hub/blog
  • A. WordPress
  • B. Blogger
  • C. Create outbound links to your social networks
• 37. Integrate a great design—think like a designer
  • A. Photos
  • B. Blog template selection
• 38. Social Network Links: Create outbound links to your social network profiles
• 39. Localized Presence: Establish a presence in your local market
• 40. Work History/Experience—Linked with projects

Click here to continue reading…

(Image: ThinkStock)

Category V: Establishing Social Proof/Demonstrated Expertise in Your Area

• 41. Create a content strategy for your blog (how often you will publish content)
• 42. Create a content strategy for your social networks (how often you will publish content)
• 44. Create content that is on message and consistent with your industry or niche
• 45. Manage your links via analytic shortners (Bit.ly or goo.gl/)
• 46. Establish multi-media content: video, blog post, and photos communicating your expertise
• 47. About Page on Blog: Write your about page in the third person so that it is media ready and media links to your page
• 48. Create a media page on your blog
• 49. Listen on Twitter: Identify keywords or topics to listen and participate in the conversation

Click here to continue reading…

(Image: ThinkStock)

Category VI: Miscellaneous

• 50. Think in sound bites
  • A. Tweets: Tweet only 120-characters w/links
  • B. Creative short blog post
• 51. Business cards (Small Business Owners)
  • A. Integrate relevant social media links for connection: Twitter, Skype
  • B. Digital Business Cards: Bump and Hashable
  • C. Create a business card for job fairs/networking
• 52. Create opportunities to meet digital friends in the real world
• 53. Use third party tools to manage social networks: increases engagement, better management of online reputation, and great for listening online (i.e. Hootsuite)
• 54. Pull your credit score (all three reports)

Let’s look at a recent current event that effectively utilized a hashtag.

Case Study: #OccupyWallStreet

Occupy Wall Street is a movement that centers around the disagreement that main street has with corporate greed and the U.S. banking system. It all started on July 13th with a blog post on adbusters calling for its first people-powered movement on September 17, 2011 in Manhattan’s Financial District. Several weeks later, over 100 cities in the United States and actions in over 1,500 cities globally have been initiated by this movement.

Occupy Wall Street by the Numbers

• Launched September 17, 2011
• Raised $300K in the first 30-days
• Spread to 100 U.S. cities and 1,500 cities globally
• Twitter: @OccupyWallSt has over 100,000 followers

This type of traction is very difficult to create with the use of social media tools.

Mobile App and Beyond

A hashtag can be a powerful business tool that can be used to share and promote content and monitor conversations. Cross-pollinating your hashtag within your other social media channels (YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn) and linking it to a blog post or content on your company Website is critical for engagement.

Recently, Eyecon launched a new iPhone app called Eye-C Taglist that enables users to search and find hashtags easily from their iPhone. Since many people will be searching hashtags from their mobile device users will be able to perform very efficient searches.

While not every hashtag has the social and media legs of #OccupyWallStreet that’s not to say that proper use of one can’t raise awareness of your business, message or movement. The tools and resources are there, it’s on you to use them effectively.

Share with us how you are using hashtag!

(Image: Thinkstock)

Do you still have that Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook or Ning profile that has very few updates, outdated info or photos? Have you neglected to log in for weeks, months, even years? Shame.

According to a recent study by Search Engine Journal (SEJ), an interactive marketing consulting firm, 53% of employers research potential candidates via social media, (with 95% of companies using LinkedIn, in particular, for recruitment). That’s more than a good reason to blow the dust off that profile and refresh your professional online presence.

Update your info. Get rid of anything that is old, unflattering, or doesn’t tell the best story about you.

Reconnect with your network via groups and forums. Talk to people, not at people, even if it’s once a day from your phone.

Retweet/share industry news, resources or facts. Post relevant status updates (not so much on your baby’s first tooth or how your boo made you mad).

Use dashboards such as Hootsuite, TweetDeck, or Brizzly. You can update across platforms all at once, schedule tweets and manage your networks.

Purge, please. Maybe tweeting isn’t your thing or you simply have too many profiles on too many different sites. Clean house.

Simple: Just make it a point to evaluate your social media presence today.

A recent survey conducted by Internships.com of more than 500 people, most of whom were undergraduates, shows that job seekers have embraced the use of social networking with friends, associates, and new contacts to find employment and internship opportunities. Consider the stats:

• 79% are comfortable with employers reaching out to them directly through social media for jobs and internships
• 34% posted a general note on their Facebook wall asking for help
• 47% sent personal Facebook messages to at least 10 friends directly asking for help finding internship opportunities
• Undergrads are three times more likely to use Facebook than LinkedIn for help finding an internship

This story originally appeared in the September 2011 issue of Black Enterprise magazine.

Is your social media presence an accurate snapshot of what you represent? (Image: Thinkstock)

Not everyone had the fortunate opportunity to check into nearly every location en route to class via smartphone, accept a Facebook friend request from their not-so-favorite professor, or shamefully tweet about the adult beverage being indulged at 2am on a school night. (You forgot you were underage, right? We won’t go there.) But this is the reality living in an instant, technology driven society.

The numbers don’t lie. Young adults are using social media sites very similar to the way teenagers are using them, according to a Pew Research Center study. Seventy-two percent of online 18-29-year-olds use social networking websites, which is almost identical to the number of teens using them (73%). What’s acceptable as a teen, most certainly isn’t as an adult.

It’s the reason I started mapping out how I’d refine my social media presence after landing my first big job, but it’s still an ongoing project nearly a year later. Disclaimer: I have a clean social media record, but there’s always room for improvement (#imjustsaying).

I’ve toyed with the idea of setting up a professional Twitter account, but later asked myself, “If social media is supposed to be authentic and organic, why create a totally different account?” I’ve chatted with a few 20-somethings and most agreed. However, 52% of young adults admit they have two or more profiles—a 10% increase from 2008. If it works for you, then go for it, but I canceled that option out after heavy consideration. I also thought about keeping networking and professional, work-related interactions on my untouched LinkedIn account—that’s my next project—while designating Facebook and Twitter as  “friends-only” havens, but quickly saw that wasn’t going to work either. For one, you have to meet people where they’re at and within my industry people are using social media platforms to network, exchange ideas, and nail their next major story.

The message really hit home when I was networking at an after-work event and a young, public relations rep and I exchanged business cards. My eyes immediately landed on her Twitter handle, located underneath her phone number and office address. She then asked me for my handle. “Oh, snap!” I thought. I proceeded to give her mine, but wondered whether or not my last tweet sufficed as a good enough introduction to my character or what I stand for.

I’m gradually making progress, deleting silly albums made during undergrad and filtering pictures I’m tagged in on Facebook. As for my favorite site—Twitter—my page is still private, but I’m using it more so to socialize Black Enterprise’s content, weigh in on societal issues and, of course,  network. I’ve even gotten over my reservation to follow co-workers, recently adding two to my list.

I guess you’ve got to grow up sometime, and your web presence should reflect that. It’s easier said than done, but it’s necessary in this easily transparent world.