Going viral today matters as much as having a hit record. But you don’t want to do it in the wrong way. Social media platforms are the world’s kiosk, and any artist would be foolish not to dedicate himself to building a viral presence. But as important as it is to gain new followers, it’s even more crucial to keep them . . . and keep them engaged. Here are five social media don’ts for aspiring musicians.   1. Don’t let your online profiles collect dust You’ve heard it said that idle hands are the devil’s playground. Or how about this one: if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to…

Twitter is still the most used social network by businesses. This surprises some, but the latest statistics showed that 77% of businesses were on Twitter versus 74% on Facebook. It’s not a big difference, but it’s still at least a little surprising to many who view Facebook as the big social network and Twitter as the other guy in the field. Twitter is easier. It requires less time. It’s more about communication than popularity and there are no algorithms that can make your efforts meaningless like they can on Twitter. I’m not suggesting that businesses should be on Twitter and not Facebook. On the…

Anyone who has been on Twitter as long as I have (6 years I believe) knows that the site has gone through major transformations in the past. Lately, Vine might be the only major change in a while but there was a time when it seemed like proper Twitter etiquette changed week by week. When I first started, links were magical and very few people posted them. Today, many accounts post nothing but links. This is a big mistake. If you post only links, you’re really not posting anything at all. Why? Because people aren’t really following you if that’s the case. Run some tests. Use bitly or goo.gl or other click…

It doesn’t matter whether you like Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga. The fact that the #1 and #2 most followed accounts on Twitter are about to flip positions is important for the sustained success of Twitter. The key to understanding why is in the audience. Today’s kids are tomorrow’s adults. One of the biggest reasons that MySpace was beaten out so easily by Facebook a few years ago was because MySpace did not grow its base up and down. It had a niche, the people who were in or just out of high school in the mid 2000s, and did not do enough to appeal to the next generation of young people nor the older people who…

Social media is growing so quickly. It seems like yesterday that Ashton Kutcher was trying to get to 1 million Twitter followers ahead of CNN. Now, the new magic numbers are higher. On YouTube, the next great milestone will be one billion views on a single video and “Psy – Gangnam Style” is now the top contender to hit the magic number first after passing Justin Bieber’s “Baby” with over 800 million views. According to Techcrunch: The video made its YouTube debut on July 15 and currently has over 5.3 million likes and about 320,000 dislikes. Bieber’s “Baby” – which had a nice run at the top of…

The dance world is a blazed with this latest dance craze known as the Gangnam Style with yet another YouTuber taking the world by storm, no, this time it’s not Justin Bieber or Lil’ Wanye, this time someone who we can relate to a little more has gone viral and has caught the attention of celebrities, having them tweet and even inviting them to their daytime show, like Ellen did. …

For those of you that don’t know, Klout is a way of measuring digital influence through social networking platforms. I’ll admit that I was fully engrossed in checking my score compulsively when I first discovered it and was more elated than a kid on Christmas when my score broke a certain number. Granted, it’s still a modest score, but I feel good about it. Or I did until I really sat down and really thought about it. Please note that, while I write this, I’m sure my Klout score is depreciating in value. Soon I’ll be back to a lowly ten. Klout and clout are really two different things. Klout is…

If you use Twitter regularly, there’s a good chance that you’ve seen something about Justin Bieber in your Twitter stream. Even if you’re not friends with any of the masses of teen girls who worship the young pop star, his name is mentioned more than just about anyone. What does it say about Twitter? About social media? About society? For Twitter and social media in general, it means that there is still a “growing up” process that is currently in process. Those who were watching the Bieber phenomenon in the early days (a mere 2 years ago) are likely aware that it was fueled by its own consumption. Justin…

I wish it wasn’t true. Hell, you wish it wasn’t true, too. But alas – according to website designer Dustin Curtis, who’s been rapping with the folks at Twitter ’bout some metrics, the Canadian eunich sensation Justin Bieber accounts for 3% of Twitter’s entire infrastructure. “Racks of servers are dedicated to him,” an employee informed Curtis. As a non-Bieberite (I’m sure the prepubescent hordes who follow him have their own cute little word), this is sort of depressing. So, somewhere in the US, there is a room full of machines dedicated around-the-clock to pushing word of the goings-on of an…

It is a dark day when I can wholeheartedly admit that a Justin Bieber song is tickling my fancy in any way, shape or form, let alone being listened to by me. Until yesterday, when this first exploded onto the scene, it was entirely unhip to own up to any degree of Bieberism, but Soundcloud user Shamantis has ensured, at least, that the Canadian eunuch’s music is good for something. Using Paulstretch, an audio editor that specializes in slowing regular music to a grinding halt, Shamantis has taken Bieber’s hit ‘U Smile’ and stretched it to 800% of its normal length – and the result, surprisingly, is one…