January is typically a time for New Year’s resolutions. But I typically don’t stick to them so I haven’t made any this year. Instead, quite by accident, I found myself gaining much self-satisfaction from cleaning up the social media tangle I find myself in.

It all started quite innocuously by being bored of the same update from several people on Twitter. I mean, really, we ALL read Mashable and the like. Why re-tweet it? So I stopped following them. Then I figured I should review who I was following:

• People who haven’t said anything in months? Unfollow.
• People who I followed more out of faux fraternity of being employed together rather than wanting to find out what they were really doing? Unfollow.
• People who post things that are just not interesting to me anymore. or ever. Unfollow.
• And worst of all, people without a real picture! Unfollow.

And Twitter is now an easier place. I still follow people I like, can find inspiration and new things from and find amusing. It also takes less time to catch up. And there’s blissfully few repeats.

And then came Facebook. Similar rules applied. Although oddly I found this a little harder. Maybe in the Facebook frictionless sharing world I would be outed as a serial unfriender? But after a few test unfriends, this didn’t happen. So I carried on. The net result again is a smaller, more defined, more real social network. There’s still work to be done. Especially when I peek at Linked In and see updates from people I haven’t got a clue who they are and think, “hmm, must be a recruiter.”

I’m not the only one who is doing this. It all started out as a bit of a rush. Collecting people, with the “friend”, “followers” or “connections” number being directly attributable to your social worth. Of course this is, and always was, bollocks. It’s quality, not quantity that counts. And while I’m very much in the “don’t know well” category from the infographic above, there are many who are cleaning up their networks for a variety of reasons. The net result though, is I’m enjoying my social circles again. It’s also why I’m highly reluctant to start another collection on Google Plus.

So if I no longer follow you or appear as your friend, it’s not personal, it’s just business.

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Digital Media is incomplete without the two B’s – Bravery and Budget. Latest article by me in Technology Digital.

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Brands today need to deviate from the conventional Social Media marketing path if they want to keep the consumers interested. Article by me in Technology Digital.

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The kind folk at Jays sent me some of their new a-Jays Four headphones made especially for iPhone, IPod and iPad mac stuff to try out. Which is incredibly timely as I have always hated the headphones that come with iPhones. They have poor sound, get tied in knots at the earliest opportunity and hurt your ears after more than half an hour of use.

The first major challenge with the Jays headphone are to actually get in the box. It’s like the Krypton Factor and I broke two pens getting into it. Not mine, Nick’s, who I share a desk with. Don’t tell him. Once in, the immediate thing you notice is that the wires are not wires at all. They’re more like ribbon which is designed to be pretty much tangle free. And after using them, stuffing them in my bag and pockets this week they haven’t tangled once. Hurrah. The sound quality is excellent. I have a pair of the big headphones at work, Panasonic ones, and the quality is on a par. But the Panasonic ones cost three times as much. Pretty impressive. The design deliberately follows the nuances of the iPhone 4 so Apple-ites will be familiar with it and the buttons work as you’d expect.

The second major challenge is the ear buds. This may be just me as I seem to struggle with keeping any in-ear elements actually in my ear. They slide out. A lot. Which is annoying as you can imagine. I need to play some more with the various size options which come with the pack but it’s pretty fiddly. I’m sure I’ll get there. I wish I had the black version though.

Change is the only constant factor in life and in the world of Technology; the businesses which realize this sooner, can only gain from it. Article by me in Technology Digital.

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Article in Technology Digital by me on why brands need to blend with other channels of interaction to create a bigger impact among their audiences.

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61% of UK consumers don’t want to engage with brands in social media. “Start the car!” as Bumble might say.

It’s inevitable really if brands just leap in to the social space and add nothing but beigeness. Most people don’t want a conversation with your brand. Less still a constant broadcast of why your brand is so great. Most were probably initially attracted by an offer or competition. But got bored by the poor content spewed out daily with little thought and little interaction when their audience have a question or a problem; missing the holy grail of social which is real-time engagement and adding value. I prattle on about this in this video (from c 2min 50) from the talk I gave at a recent Knowledge Peers event. It’s common sense really. How can your brand intervene helpfully in the daily lives of your audience? Switch your thinking from inside-out to outside-in. Think about that before you jump onto the next big shiny object.

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Utility prices have gone up silly amounts recently. Again. Utility profits have also gone up silly amounts recently. Again. So what we really need is an expensive DM pack with a specially commissioned London 2012 pin badge to celebrate to make us feel better about this. And the chance to win lots of other prizes just by being a customer. Because “Everyone’s a winner with EDF Energy Thank yous.”

No thank you to your thank yous. Please just give me lower costs and simpler tariffs. Don’t rip me off. That would make me a winner.  Yes, you make profits but not at the expense of your customers. That makes me lose and you win. I’ve been lazy at switching utility providers until this arrived. The art of business is understanding your target market. This shows a total lack of understanding in tough economic conditions.

No thank you. I’m switching.

I recently switched from Direct Line for an insurance product saving over £180 in the process. They matched this when I called to cancel and advised that my “loyalty bonus isn’t applied on the renewal letter, only when you call.” So you’d quite happily take my £180 as your own loyalty bonus? Why not apply it at renewal? I would have stayed. An odd loyalty strategy.

I am in the process of switching from BT too. The chap on the line was very insistent I wouldn’t be getting a better deal. “It’s your choice, Sir.” repeated 12 times. I counted.  Yes, it is. Stop blathering on and give me my MAC code.

Surely the best retention strategy in these times is to give economic value back to the consumer? We have the data capability. We just don’t seem to have the will.

A fascinating article on privacy, advertising and the use of your data on social networks and the new alternatives such as Diaspora and Unthink to the accepted norm. Where Hugh once said if you talked to people the way advertising does, they’d punch you in the face, he was talking about traditional ATL advertising and the shouty nature of the traditional 30′ spot. This quote from the article suggests that advertising in social media could possibly be worse; rather than just blurting at you in ad breaks, it snoops on you and brazenly flashes this in your face. Good food for thought to start your day with.

Imagine you’re eating out with your lady or a loved one; the restaurant is completely free from 12pm until 2pm. Free. Trouble is, your entire conversation is being recorded and watched closely. Every time you both mention something that suggests an interest in a product or purchase or place – an ad rep/TV/radio ad/leaflet appears in front of you and pitches away. Mention you’re interested in a mini break; cue the man from the travel agency peddling his wares. Your meal is free though, don’t forget. You can always ignore the ad man. How many of us would appreciate that constant eavesdropping? Few. Remarkable then that the digital world doesn’t quite suffer the same reaction. It all feels so remote and far way.

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I’m seeing a lot of boring and bland “engagement” from brands in social media. There’s far too much of “it’s Halloween, have a treat tonight with <insert brand here>” or “it’s the weekend, celebrate the end of another shit week with <insert brand here>” or “<insert how the weather is today> so why not celebrate/make the most of/not worry about it* with <insert brand here>” as if our life revolves around <insert brand here>. It doesn’t. It’s lazy and boring especially if it’s a stock “filler” in your social content plan.

The analogy of <insert brand here> walks into a pub, shouts <vacuous statement here> and walks out again without bothering to “engage” with your response holds firm. I don’t want a conversation with you about the weather – I can see what it’s like outside my window – unless you give me a reason to take advantage of it; e.g. give me a £1 off your tasty, winter beverage this cold day and then I may be interested. Otherwise, it’s just noise. Which is what social media was never meant to be.

It’s what Billy Connolly would call the attack of the beige. Be colourful. Be creative. Be interesting.

And I know this isn’t real (or is it?) but it’s colourful. Despite the product being beige.

[*delete as appropriate]