Your Facebook News Feed is Not Only Facebook’s, but They Own the Patent to It

Implications: The big buzz around the patent includes ‘implicit actions’. For example, if your friend became a fan of XYZ Brand, this implicit action is displayed in the news feed that Facebook now owns the patent to. Could this patent affect other implicit-oriented sites like LinkedIn (xyz endorsed abc)?

Become Facebook Friends with a Simple Bump

Implications: Just as we view media with our phones, connecting to social networks will be as easy as bumping phones together. The Bump team is working on a solution for Twitter as well.

Twitter’s Ad Platform Launching Soon

Implications: Instead of just searching for a topic, Twitter users will be presented with 140 character ads. If a consumer is searching for ‘hamburgers in Chicago’, Burger King may now have a real-time ad that reads: ‘$1.00 off a whopper now at our S. Mich Ave. location!’

Facebook Spreads its Wings to Austin, Texas

Implications: Tech talent doesn’t only reside in Silicon Valley…Austin’s becoming a hot bed for both tech talent, but also start-up incubation activity at UT Austin.

Case Study: How a Houston Café Uses Facebook

Implications: Numbers nerds will enjoy reading this study in how a local Houston café’s consumer loyalty increased after being more active on Facebook. Note: a small number of the café’s opted-in email subscribers became fans, however, the net change in loyalty of those fans increased the Net Promoter score.

Google Adds Location to its Search Refinement

Implications: Whether you are planning an event with influencers or need a top-notch sushi recommendation for a new city, Google has you covered. After inputting your search terms, select the ‘Nearby’ option in the side panel and find niche results to your location.
Examples to try:
‘post office’
‘italian restaurants’
‘Beauty blog’