My Pitch Log Mashup, Vol. 4

Either these pitch logs are getting popular or someone’s handing out my email address. The last week and a half have been overly active in the pitch pile. I’m still planning to bring you some interesting tools and ideas from my trip to South by Southwest, but I needed to clean out my inbox, so here’s another rendition of the Pitch Log.

As a reminder, this is volume four the pitch log effort. See Volume 1 here. Volume 2 is here. Click here for Volume 3.

And if you’re interested in pitching me something, increase your chances and read the “How To Pitch SME” page. If you’re wondering why your pitch didn’t make it on my list, see the, “How To Pitch SME” page. If you’re still not sure, re-read the, “How To Pitch SME” page.

My Pitch Log Mashup, Vol. 4

Affiliate This!

I ran into Chris Drinkut at South by Southwest. He’s the Director of Communications for NetSpray which is a neat online marketplace where you can buy or sell items and even be an affiliate (all for free), selecting items for sell to promote on your blog. I logged in to test it out and placed an ad for a MacBook Pro on my personal blog just to see how easy it was. It took me about five minutes to set it up and if someone clicks through and buys one, I get commission. Pretty easy way to get an affiliate link that might pay you.

The only drawback I saw is that since anyone can sell on the site, you get a lot of eBay-type used crap. I first thought about throwing an ad from the heath and fitness category on Twit2Fit.com, but saw most of the items there were diet pills. Still, it’s easy to use and if you are selective and targeted in the ads you present to your blog audience, you might make some extra cash. I’m sure the selections will grow with the popularity of the site. Check them out if you’re interested in finding ways to monetize your website.

Dimdim Upgrades

For companies that are looking for virtual meeting software or platforms, Dimdim just released version 5.0 which they say provides more functionality and less headaches at a fraction of the price of the big boys. I’ve never used a web meeting service beyond WebEx and GoToMeeting which can be pricey and cumbersome for smaller conferencing needs. Dimdim seems to offer a full range of features for a reasonable rate. Plus, they’re open source, so developers can add cool stuff to their platform. If you’ve used them, let us know in the comments what you think. I’ll certainly check them out next time I’m looking for that type of service.

I’m On Fire … Wildfire

Received some outreach from the Wildfire Promotion Builder application that seems to be pretty interesting. It provides turnkey solutions for large and small companies to create and manage online promotions, including contests, sweepstakes and such without having to invest a ton of money in microsites and apps for Facebook, etc. With Facebook connect integrated, it’s got some easy viral spread incorporated into it and it comes with all sorts of metrics, too. Worth looking into.

Glue Sniffing

Laura Giaimo at GetGlue was sitting beside me one day in the blogger lounge at South by Southwest. I was telling someone else at the table that the lounge was a great place to be if you like to learn about new tools and sites because people come there to pitch their wares to bloggers. To sort of prove a point, I turned to Laura, who I hadn’t met, and said, “So what do you do?” She showed me GetGlue, which is pretty cool.

GetGlue is essentially a browser add-on that provides you with a top bar of information when you’re on sites like Fandango or Amazon that uses Facebook Connect to show you what products, movies, books, etc., your friends have purchased, reviewed or commented on. It’s kind of a personal referral shopper assistant. If you buy a lot of stuff online and rely on your friends for recommendations, you should download this tool and check it out.

Magnified

I also met Steve Rosenbaum, CEO of Magnify.net at the same table in the blogger’s lounge. Magnify.net offers video community building, contest and branded hosting/players for companies. I’ve not used them, but they’re high on my list to try if a client need comes a long. I certainly like what Steve had to say about the company and have poked around on their website looking for ideas for some clients I have. If you’ve used them, let us know in the comments what you thought. Steve seems to be a sharp guy with a good product, and one that it appears won’t cost you an arm and a leg like some video platforms would.

Tweet … Works!

Another chance meeting at South by Southwest was when I ran into Mike Langford at a party. He’s the CEO of Tweetworks, which allows you to form or join groups of Twitter users to chat about specific subjects or in private groups. You can post your Tweetworks messages to Twitter but don’t have to, can start your own group or join one of hundreds already there. I even found a group of homies from the ‘Ville already there. Nice third-party app that makes Twitter make more sense to some. Check it out and join a group or two.

What’s All This Social Marketing?

Michael Stelzner’s is one of those blogs I’ve been reading a long time. He’s put together a pretty interesting report on social media marketing. It was compiled after surveying almost 900 marketers about the state of the industry. Some findings include the top 10 questions social media marketers are asked, challenges they face and so on. It’s a great read for the social media thinker in your organization or business. You’ll find some interesting nuggets of information and reinforcement in what you’re doing in social media by reading it.

Please remember, once you have looked into any or all of the above, come back and share your thoughts. The Pitch Log Mashup is intended to be a thought starter and a resource. Your input is welcome and needed.

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