BLUE GLASS BLOG — Ever since Facebook has introduced the new type of pages "Community pages" there has been plenty of talking around them: Facebook has been actively criticized for threatening brands that are building presence in the network. First let’s briefly and clearly define what community page really is. The Facebook Community Page is meant to be the collection of knowledge around some concept, phenomenon or aspect of life. What makes it dangerous for brands is that those aspects of life can be popular brands as well...

THE SOCIAL TIMES — Kia Motors has already conquered YouTube with their viral Kia Soul hamster commercial, and now they are taking things to the next level with a new YouTube talent search. Kia Motors, along with YouTube celebrity judges ShayCarl, Lisa Nova and SMOSH, are looking for the next big YouTube star in Kia’s ‘Who’s Next?’ competition. Contestants are asked to submit videos showcasing "a new way to roll", and Kia will fly two finalists out to Los Angeles where the winner will receive a generous $10,000 prize. Kia’s success with the viral Kia Soul video has inspired the company to move forward into the realm of social media, according to VP of Marketing & Communications at Kia Motors, Michael Sprague...

IMEDIA CONNECTION — It's only a matter of time before some marketing pundit boldly declares this to be the Era of the Boldly Declared Era. Our attempts to make sense of the rapid changes in consumer media consumption have spawned such era-defining labels as "Web 2.0," "Emerging Media," "Generation Facebook," "The Death of Print," and most recently, "The Splinternet." Historically, a mania for naming has been a sure sign of cultural anxiety, and in our industry, it's a sure sign that marketers are still percolating over the big questions: Will social media take over the world? Will streaming content kill broadcast? Will someone eventually click on a banner ad? Will society finally grind to a halt when there's nothing left to tweet about besides Twitter?...

TECHCRUNCH — WeShop is hoping to shake up the online shopping space with its platform that allows consumers to share purchase information on a free and anonymous basis. In private beta, WeShop allows consumers to pool their purchasing information which is available to other WeShop members. WeShop then analyzes and sells this data for vendors. Here’s the catch-consumers have to give WeShop access to your e-mail account or your credit card number. That way, when you use your credit card for a purchase or if you buy something online and receive an email receipt, WeShop will flag it and insert it into your profile...

FORRESTER RESEARCH — Many consumers find ratings and reviews helpful when doing product research online. Our Technographics survey shows that about half of US online men and 42% of female Internet users are using ratings and reviews at least monthly. Less than half of them are posting ratings and reviews regularly. But how do consumers value these ratings and reviews, and what do they do about not knowing who's behind the ratings?...