Separating social media from sales-focused websites?

The first bullet-point on this blog post suggests that blogs (and, presumably, other social media venues) should be separated from sales-focused websites. The argument seems to be a good one -- "The focus of the .... blog is on engagement, not marketing."

http://smartblogs.com/socialmedia/2011/04/28/andys-answers-how-scholastic-developed-their-corporate-blog/

The link between social media and online purchases

This Mashable post indicates that few shoppers come directly from a social network to make an online purchase. The article questions the link between social media and online purchases. Of course, that does not mean that social media does not influence purchases just as it does not suggest that traditional word-of-mouth does not influence purchases.A lot of social media's influence is in the "middle of the funnel" where consumers evaluate and establish their preferences. It is difficult to link that directly to a click-through purchase. Thus, the shortcoming of social media marketing efforts!
http://mashable.com/2011/04/27/social-media-retail-purchases/

Thanks to Emanuel Rosen for posting this to Facebook.

Great statistics on social network trends

These are great statistics on social network trends --
http://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/social-networks/social-networks-2011-winners-and-losers-as-shown-via-search-volume/
Thanks to Vili Auvinen for posting it to our class Facebook group!

Five myths about the future of journalism from the Washington Post

This article about the "Five Myths About the Future of Journalism" from the Washington Post is quite interesting. Thanks to Emanuel Rosen for posting it to Facebook.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-the-future-of-journalism/2011/04/05/AF5UxiuC_story.html

CNN's 6 painful social media screwups

Check out this list of social media mistakes, courtesy of CNN:
http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/technology/1104/gallery.social_media_controversies/index.html

Thanks to Steve Dublin for calling this to my attention.

Statistics from Bazaarvoice

These are some great "Social Commerce Statistics" from Bazaarvoice:
http://www.bazaarvoice.com/resources/stats