Black Web 2.0

A little while ago I posted about Carol’s Daughter doing a live web chat @ HSN and how all of their efforts in social media is making shopping personal again, only from your computer v.s. and actual personal shopper.  Nordstrom is another example of a retailer being ahead of the curve.  This weekend while I was WWS (Web Window Shopping) I noticed that Nordstrom offers RSS Feeds a.k.a Fashion Feeds, it was the first time I had come across this though I’m not sure if this is a new feature or not, considering they have been blogging since late last year.  Their feeds consist of New Arrivals, Womens, Mens, Handbags, and a few others.  They also allow you to create your own feed based off an advanced search conducted on their site, go figure…it is integrated into the search results.  All feed items link directly to product pages and a user is literally one to two clicks away from completing and order. Sweet.  They also have a Twitter account which can be used to syndicate feeds via Twitterfeed; better yet they could take a que from the NYTimes, Google, and the many other companies using Twitter accounts as Channels for specific content.  The only missing operator in this simple equation is building a network of followers on Twitter who are specific to the product feed that is being syndicated.

Carol’s Daughter will host another live web chat today.  However this chat is slightly different than the last.  This time Lisa Price, Carol’s Daughter CEO will be conducting the chat from HSN (Home Shopping Network) and will broadcast it on her site.  Lately I have really been looking at how retail operations are including social media technologies into their strategies, Carol’s Daughter is no stranger to this but she is quite the exception as well.  I will be doing another post following this one about another well know brand that has taken the leap into social media.  The common factor between the 2:

The proactive use of social media to seek out who your customers are, what they like, make the shopping process even quicker in a way that makes shopping personal…from your computer.

The chat w/ Carol’s Daughter startes like now, you can catch it here.

Just when you thought Twitter was falling off due to its technical difficulties, Twitter gets a new kid on the block: Superhead.

Karrine Stephans recently joined Twitter, and instead of quietly setting up an account, it appears as though she executed a pub stint by announcing her Twitter membership on her website. I suspect she also posted a bulletin to her MySpace fans, and today I learned that she sent this message to her e-mail list:

It’s been a while since you all have heard from me. I’ve noticed everyone has been blogging and video blogging all over the place and it made me want to find a newer, faster, more fun way of communicating with all of you. So, I decided to invite all of you to Twitter! This way, you will receive updates throughout the week, most every day, right to your mobile phone or computers.

To join:
Go to http://www.twitter.com/KarrineSteffans
Click the RSS feed button or
Use your own Twitter account and become a follower of my posts.
It’s that simple.

See you on Twitter!
Karrine (more…)

Grammy Award-Winning singer, song writer, and producer T-Pain recently launched his much anticipated full digital independent record label Nappy Boy Digital. The label’s mission is to create a direct artist to consumer connection without the constraints of the traditional major labels. Nappy Boy Digital is an obvious next step for record labels who may have finally realized that the Internet is a friend and not a foe. But as I learn more about the label, I can’t help but wonder if T-Pain squandered this opportunity to make a lasting effect in the music industry. (more…)

At first glance eVIPlist.com may look like another Digg clone. While the site does use Digg’s open API its business and web strategy is far from the typical “rank news/info” model that we typically see from other sites using the same API. While similarities can certainly be found between eVIPlist.com and other sites such as GlobalGrind.com, a deeper look into the content will show otherwise.

eVIPlist’s content appeals to a “party-goer” demographic…I should say more of a XXL magazine type of audience. More importantly what also sets eVIPlist apart from other sites we have seen launched lately is its longevity. The site has actually been around since the web 1.0 days but in a different format, it launched under this domain in early 2001. Originally the site was a social network that was hugely popular in the Washington DC metro area, in this state the site connected party goers and successfully bridged the online/offline gap in that area. Most of you know that I am orginally from the DC area so I must say that the site in general holds a soft spot in my heart (I truly miss DC and was a member of the site nearly since its launch).

Anyway, the reason I write this is not because I endear DC; or to compare it to GlobalGrind.com and other sites; or even to review it (Urban 2.0 gave a good review over on their site). I write this to take a deeper look at how offline activites such as events and user generated content can feed off of each other sucessfully at a local and national level within the urban online space. (more…)

We recently reported that Allhiphop.com signed a 5 year multi-million dollar exclusive ad deal with Radio One’s Interactive One. On the surface the ad deal looked like a win win for both companies. AHH, gets rid of the burden of searching for ad inventory by teaming up with Radio One’s well connected urban radio ad sales division, while Interactive One further extends their internet ad reach. Sounds like a perfect match right? I am not convinced. (more…)

Super news takes a very funny look at the battle of the social networks.

Discovered via Baratunde

Today Carol’s Daughter conducted a bloggers roundtable on Ustream in lieu of a press conference, bloggers and influencer’s were invited to participate, Black Web 2.0 was fortunate to be one of the participants. (more…)

Interesting post on TechCrunch about Facebook publishing a guide to viral marketing on their site. See below for a full embedded version: (more…)

So if you haven’t heard yet Clutch Magazine is having their 1st Annual Blog Academy this summer. Along with others Black Web 2.0 will be partnering with Clutch to share social media tips on how you can succeed online in this Web 2.0 world. The academy will last for 2 months and will include how-to’s and advice. You can vote on what you want to learn over at Clutch. Oh I almost forgot the best part, It’s FREE!!!