Naked Conversations, pgs. 211-232

’94-Web surfing emerged.
’98-Google search engine with algorithms.
Present-RSS feeds. (Don’t forget your aggregator.)
Future-You inside the monitor. Just kidding.

RSS feed buttons, those orange squares with white waves within them are the latest fad in Web technology. People can to thousands of RSS feeds.

RSS feeds are similiar to direct mailings that are developed by marketing teams in corporations across the world. Direct marketers, as the book mentions, can use this avenue of targeting.

iTunes then introduced podcasts in June 2005. The podosphere came about. VJ visionary Adam Curry had one of the first podcasts. His network produces 35 porgrams, as Naked Conversations reports.

Other media mega-moguls like the BBC network followed.

Doug Kaye says businesses would make more money if they gave away their podcasts. I agree. It’s a great way to lure an audience because they’re trying something on their terms, without monetary restrictions. Then when the company comes out with a product, the subscribers will want to buy their items.

I also agree with Kaye about companies not selling their database list to other companies for a profit. In the long run, it won’t be a profit because the subscribers will be irritated at these extra e-mails and Internet spam. That spam will lead for people to stray away from the company who betrayed their trust.

Videos are slowly emerging? I agree with the book because I’m taking a class on multimedia, while most still have trouble with their media like digital cameras and video development. I’m sure the younger generations will be more tech savvy; however, the older population will struggle with these new technologies.

Tagging is important for standing out. Nowadays, you type in one word in a search engine and you receive many results, so imagine you’re trying to be that needle found in the haystack. It’ll never happen without tags. I know from the STEM club meetings that tags are vital for prominence within a search engine. Andrew Venegas was able to have anything he tags be one of the top results on Google. Wow!

The final chapter offers a regurgitation of all the central concepts discussed throughout the book.

In all, the book was a stimulating read. It flowed with many facts, and its complex concepts were easy to understand. I particularly like the examples of companies and individuals because it gave words like podcasts, blogs and PR a face and identity. It wasn’t words anymore, it was history being retold in an informative, insightful manner.

It was a good read; much better than Cluetrain Manifesto.

Again, that’s just my humble opinion.