Forrester Revises Social Technographics Ladder: Women Make Up 52% Across All Categories

Forrester recently released the latest version of their social technographics report, a ladder-shaped classification of online social behavior. The original report, released over two years ago, included six categories (ignoring inactives, those who did not participate in social media). At the bottom of the ladder, spectators observed social media (blogs, reviews, etc.) without participating, and at the top, critics wrote reviews and creators blogged and uploaded video. But a crucial category was missing: active participants of social networks. That category was newly dubbed "conversationalists" in the latest version of the Forrester report.

Conversationalists are 56% women- the highest female concentration amongst the social technographics groups.They have an average household income of over $80,000, and over 40% are college educated. Although conversationalists have the highest concentration of women of all the categories, women make up 55% of joiners, and most of the other categories hover around 50%.

Webutantes Featured in WE Magazine

Thank you WE Magazine for including me in their 101 Women Bloggers to Watch in 2010 list. Webutantes was selected out of hundreds of entries in a list that included Fresh eVenture and Geek Girlfriends, as well as some amazing non-technology related blogs.

Some of my personal favorites are:

Fabulously Broke in the City A city girl provides personal finance advice for women
Tout-est-des-roses  Sustainable style blog
Org Junkie Tips and tricks for living a simpler, more organized life
Somewhere i have never travelled An aptly named book review and personal blog
Solo Travel Girl Chronicling the adventures of a woman travelling alone

To see the entire list, click here.

Clorox and Toys R Us Take Charitable Programs to their Facebook Pages

Some key elements of a successful social media campaign are engagement, relevance and uniqueness. Two major brands have adopted that philosophy in their latest Facebook Page campaigns. Clorox Clean Up and Toys R Us are reaching out to moms through charitable programs. Although these companies have traditionally been involved in sponsoring clothing drives and donating to children's programs, particularly around the holidays, this is the first year that they are promoting these activities, and incorporating moms' support, on their Facebook pages.

Clorox Clean Up has created an application on their Facebook page where users can nominate a local non-profit program for children. The application, called Bright Future, allows fans to nominate their favorite local non-profit until November 29th. The charities will compete for one of five $10,000 grants and the winning organizations will be featured in People Magazine.

Toys R Us and basketball legend Shaquille O'Neal have been working together on the Toys for Tots holiday drive for several years, and this year, they've expanded the program on Toys R Us' Facebook page. Toys R Us has promised to donate $1 of toys for every new Facebook fan. Once a user becomes a fan, they are encouraged to publish the story to their newsfeed in order encourage friends and family to join the campaign as well. So far, over $25,000 were raised, and Toys R Us' fan count is up to over 350,000.

I think these campaigns are a win-win situation: They promote the brand and corporate social responsibility. What do you think? Should companies use charities as a marketing tool? Comment below.

How To: Throw a Cocktail Party on a Budget

Andrea Wyn Schall has spent more than a decade planning some of the biggest A-list parties in Hollywood, including the Screen Actors Guild Awards®. She is the author of Budget Bash – Simply Fabulous Events on a Budget.


The holidays are fast approaching and before we know it, another year will have passed us by. So before the year’s end, why not celebrate the present with friends and family at a cocktail party that is easy and fun to pull together? Send out invites, pick a theme, and create your menu. Put together a party checklist, and you're ready to go!

Invitations
After deciding on your budget, determine your guest list and then check out one of the many on-line invitation websites to help you create and manage your guest list. MyPunchBowl and Cocodot are both great sources for high-quality party invitations. They provide various invitation templates, help you create and manage your guest list and RSVPs, and also offer plenty of theme ideas and other resources.

Theme
Once the invites are in the “mail”, begin to cross off other items on your party checklist. Why not try a 70’s theme? For music, use Pandora’s iPhone application to stream disco music or share playlist ideas with friends on 8Tracks. Check out budget décor items from Oriental Trading Company or Party Supplies Hut for must-have extras like a mirror ball, door beads, disco paper plates and napkins. Don’t like disco? Blogs like Create My Event and Thoughtfully Simple offer inspiration and DIY tricks.

Food
Select an hors d’oeuvres and cocktail menu that will appeal to everyone’s palette, avoiding known allergens such as nuts and shellfish. For your bar, try to include a signature drink and plenty of nonalcoholic beverages as well.

Some suggestions for easy to make, budget-friendly appetizers:

Mushroom Rolls
Honey Lemon Chicken Skewers with Vegetables
Sun Dried Tomato and Olive Tapenade Bruschetta
Seared Beef Tenderloin Mini Sandwiches with Mustard-Horseradish Sauce
Red Salmon Dip
Mini Peppermint Cheesecakes with Chocolate Chips
Lemon Cookies

With your checklist completed, your 70s party is ready to go. Don’t forget to have fun and do the hustle!

To find more helpful party planning tips, menus and recipes, advice, pictures and more go to Budget Bash – Simply Fabulous Events on a Budget.