Big Brother – Facebook Style

My friend Ben Hillman is an animator and graphic artist who has his own firm in New York. He possesses an acerbic wit and very definite political opinions. When he learned that Facebook’s Mark Zuckerman was a proponent of (and investor in) the Keystone Pipeline and drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Reserve, he developed a little graphic to display his ire:

Ben posted this on his wall on Facebook. Shortly thereafter (less than a minute) I saw the post and shared it on my wall. It appeared on my wall for less than one minute. There was a page refresh and then it was gone. It was also removed from Ben’s wall as well. 

The take away is this: Everything you post is being monitored by Facebook in real time. You have no privacy. They will censor your political and social opinions.

Finally, Mark Zuckerberg is an thin skinned douchebag.

For some interesting reading on the same subject, click here.

The censor of the graphic is mine. We’re trying to run a relatively PG blog here. For the actual, uncensored NSFW graphic, click here - Ed.

Crutch Phrase | Urban Dictionary

April 29: Crutch phrase

An overworked figure of speech, such as, inter alia, “at the end of the day,” or “it is what is,” or “thinking outside the box,” or “leverage our resources.” Crutchphrases are a common refuge of speakers who have difficulty articulating ideas or concepts without reflexively using jargon and cliché. Often relied upon by powerpoint-user speakers who simply repeat what is already printed on the Powerpoint slide.

The use of a crutchphrase is often an open admission of an unwillingness or inability to think, let alone use language effectively.

“At the end of the day,” the speaker droned, “we have to think out of the box if we are to successfully leverage our resources.” Note the split infinitive.

“But,” protested a listener, “you’re not making any sense at all, you’re just babbling a bunch of crutch phrases!”

“It is what it is,” replied the speaker, retreating to the safe territory of a crutch phrase. 

Every presentation I pray I don’t fall prey to these, easy, useless words. It’s  so hard to stay fresh – Ed.

Weekly Economic Update | LAEDC

THIS WEEK’S HEADLINES:

• First Quarter GDP: Moderate Growth
• California Housing Market: Inventory Dips Below 3-Month Supply
• Global Economy
• Events of Interest
  • May 15, 2013: LAEDC International Trade Outlook

Weekly Economic Update | LAEDC

THIS WEEk:

California’s Budget Position in March

HEADLINES:

• Retail Sales Weaken in March
• Wholesale Prices Retreat by 0.6% in March
• Events of Interest
  • April 23, 2013: Economic Outlook for the San Gabriel Valley
  • May 15, 2013: LAEDC International Trade Outlook

What the Rolling Stones Can Teach You About Business | Inc.com

In December, my wife, Elaine, and I attended a 50th-anniversary concert of the Rolling Stones at Brooklyn, New York’s new Barclays Center. They’re often referred to as the Strolling Bones these days, and with good reason. They’re old. You can’t help noticing how weathered their faces look. So it’s all the more amazing to watch Mick Jagger, at 69, strutting around the stage just like he did half a century ago. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. He and I are about the same age. “Why is he doing this?” I asked myself. “He doesn’t need the money. What is it?”

Then it hit me. I dropped down into my seat and started to laugh. “Why are you laughing?” Elaine shouted over the din. “I just figured out what’s been driving me all these years,” I shouted back.

As I told her later, I’d had an epiphany. I’d suddenly understood the meaning of the word passion. Mick Jagger, I realized, keeps doing what he does for the same reason that I keep doing what I do: because he has to. Performing defines him. He has to do it in order to feel alive–which is also why I start and build businesses.

Read More.

Yahoo Buys Coolness From Teenager for $30M | Wired.com

There’s no logical explanation for Yahoo’s reported $30 million acquisition of Summly, an app created by a 17-year-old Brit that launched five months ago. The team and technology are unexceptional and the app itself will be shut down. What Yahoo really gets for its big check is momentum and buzz.

In other words, Yahoo bought Summly to appear cool again.

Read More.

eBay: We Tested Google Advertising & It Didn’t Pay | MarketingVOX

eBay has been one of the largest advertisers on Google, but that might not be the case for much longer. It decided to do an A-B split test to determine how many of those clicks they would have eventually seen even without those paid placements; even going so far as to go dark in 30 market areas to provide a control. In a study conducted with eBay Labs along including fancy degree holders from Berkeley and U. Chicago, it showed that it only made back about 25 cents on the dollar spent.

The study shows that brand ads – and by that they mean ads that focus on the brand names of the products to be theoretically purchased, rather than “branding” ads – can be efficiently effective for potential new users to the retailer, but tend to be unnecessary for those who are already familiar with the retailer. eBay, more than most, would suffer from a high familiarity ratio, thus making its relative efficiency low.

One thing the full version of the study appears to miss, however, is that very high clickthrough rate experienced by an ad due to a specific brand reference that is common to the search term may have another financial benefit to the advertiser: increasing the “quality score” of the ad campaign, and thus reducing the expense of other clicks in the campaign.

eBay bids on a universe of more than 170 million keywords. It spends more than $50 million a year on online advertising.

Read More.