Content Curation and Distribution is King

With the accessibility to so much information on the Internet, how do you find exactly what you are looking for? The science of content curation has made it so much easier to gather information on key niche topics that are important to you and/or your business. From cooking to technology to travel, curating info has increased our knowledge in a much more efficient manner. Curation is nothing new as you will hear in this podcast. It is a natural movement in our everyday lives, even when it comes to offline living.

Listen to 3 key leaders in the Content Curation world: Oliver Hsiang from StumbleUpon.com, Guillaume Decugis from Scoop.it, and Gary Griffiths from Trap.it explain the wonderful evolution of how our specific interests are delivered to us in a much more powerful and meaningful way. Add the social media and sharing element and wow; a delivery of premium crowdsourced information and education is distributed worldwide. Content Curation & Distribution is King!



This podcast will also be available on our website soon. Please visit SparkTechTalk.com for more featured podcasts.

Mobile Apps in the Enterprise

A recent survey revealed that three main metrics business decision makers would use to determine if mobile apps are successful in the workplace... increased productivity, reduced paperwork, and increased revue. And also 72% of small businesses use mobile apps in their operations. Here is the Infographic...

Source: zendesk.com via Todd on Pinterest

Social Business

What is "Social Business"? Social Business is a meta-trend comprising several component trends, including social media, E-commerce and social technology. Studies show that by 2014, the market for social enterprise tools, software and service is predicted to reach $4.6 billion worldwide. See the Infographic below for more information...

Source: socialcommercetoday.com via Culture on Pinterest

The Hectic Schedule of A Social Media Manager

Social media marketing has become a new marketing method for many businesses nowadays. In order to be a successful social media manager, he or she must take on a pretty demanding schedule of constant updates, meetings and tweets; all the while maintaining an effective online presence. Take a look at the Infographic below...

Source: dailyinfographic.com via Ashe on Pinterest

IBM Impact 2012 Conference April 29th - May 4th in Las Vegas

A giant conference for business and IT leadership is getting ready to happen in Las Vegas from April 29, 2012 to May 4, 2012. IBM Impact 2012 boasts 9,000+ tech and business leaders that will be coming to speak, teach, learn and share. 


Featured speakers include Walter Isaacson, the President & CEO of The Aspen Institute, and he will be speaking on "The Business of Technology" with a book signing immediately following the session. The "Engage, Extend and Succeed" session will be given by Katie Linendoll who is a winner of an Emmy and tech expert seen on CBS and CNN. Another great session will be "Freedom to Achieve Your Application Potential" which will be presented by 2 people: Don McMillan, who is a technology comedian, inventor, software development entrepreneur; and Jane McGonigal who is the Creative Director of Social Chocolate, Author of the New York Times bestseller "Reality is Broken," and a World Renowned designer of Alternate Reality Games, also known as ARGs. WOW!


Forbes will also be hosting a Business Leadership Forum with several incredible speakers including Mike Perlis, who is the President and CEO of Forbes Media.

The History of Marketing

The history of marketing came through different periods: printed advertising, television, telephone advertising, magazine ads, search marketing, email marketing and social media marketing. In 2012, marketers plan to increase their social media budget by 64%, and they also believe that social media plus blogs equal real customers and leads. So, take a look at this interesting Infographic below...

Source: Uploaded by user via Therond on Pinterest

The Growth of Social Media

Nowadays, 53% of employers research potential job candidates on social networks, and 43% of companies use blogs for their marketing. Take a look below at the Infographic...

Source: searchenginejournal.com via Brittany on Pinterest

Social Media Benchmark

There are 71% of businesses using Twitter as their social media platform, 56% of them using Facebook, 53% using LinkedIn, and 41% using YouTube. And more and more businesses will anticipate investing in social media in 2012. Take a look at the Infographic below...

Source: smbenchmark.com via A-Star Sports on Pinterest

Social Media in Small Business

88% of small businesses believe that social media does or will impact their businesses. And the main reason for them to use social media is to build their brand awareness. See the Infographic below...

Source: officearrow.com via Volkan on Pinterest

The ROI of Social Media

There are 74% of CMOs that believe they will tie social media efforts to hard ROI this year, and 96% are starting to look beyond sales goals and web metrics to identify the value of social marketing efforts. Here is the Infographic...

Source: orlandodigitalexperts.com via Consuelo on Pinterest

Mobile Phones Changing Social Media

For mobile phone users, the average time spent browsing via their mobile devices is 2.7 hours per day, and 35% of people use their mobile devices to comment on social networking sites. Take a look at the Infographic below...

Source: flowtown.com via Jay on Pinterest

Social Media Customer Service

Social media is changing the landscape of customer service. 44% of adults use the web to share grievance about products. However, 60% of companies don't respond to customers via social media, even when asked a direct question. See the infographic below...

Source: mediabistro.com via Hiten on Pinterest

Social Media Demographics

Nowadays, either for personal or business reasons, over 66% of online users are connected to one or more social media platforms. Here is a case study of social media demographics.

Source: wallblog.co.uk via Chris on Pinterest

The Future Social CEO

Is it time for the CEO to step out and get social? It is inevitable!

Source: cdn1.1stwebdesigner.com via G on Pinterest

Tech & Social Media Travel

Here is a great infographic that shows how technology and social media is changing and evolving the travel industry.

Source: mashable.com via Spark on Pinterest

What is Pinterest?

Source: infographiclabs.com via Joy Weese on Pinterest

Social Media Week 2012

Source: ig.socialmediaweek.org via Angela on Pinterest

SXSW, Spark Tech Talk & Asheville NC

Excitement is in the air as Spark Tech Talk gets ready to do a conference call about SXSW this week, with a quick release the week following. We have 3 great guests that will be speaking about their experiences, expectations, & the culture of South by Southwest.

In addition to that, we have some folks from our hometown of Asheville NC going to SXSW to give tech companies and start-ups a little taste of entrepreneurship in the North Carolina mountains. You can visit Asheville at SXSW on Monday March 12, 2012 at 5pm in the Soho Lounge.

SXSW - South by Southwest - March 9-18, 2012

Coming Soon: SXSW is one of the great conferences of the year where people come from all over the world to attend. This year the featured events are Interactive March 9th - 13th, Film March 9th - 17th, & Music March 13th - 18th.

Video: New Honda Robot ASIMO 2012 - All features and behaviors

Robots are coming on the scene heavy lately. We believe they will be living / operating among us in the next few years. Star Wars here we come!

Apple - iPhone 4S - TV Ad - Rock God

Check out this commercial by Apple about the iPhone 4S.

Ignite Asheville NC

Asheville North Carolina is about to have their 1st Ignite on Feb 21, 2012 at the Grey Eagle. Here is a quick video introduction to the evening.

SOPA and PIPA

The battle for Internet "freedom" is far from over. Here is a video that explains SOPA and PIPA a little more.