With more and more people realizing the awesome powers and coolness of foursquare, more and more venues are being added, and more check-ins are being made! This is awesome, but, as a long-time foursquare user and fanatic, I ask that you pause a second or two before creating a nondescriptive venue; it just causes me and the rest of super user nation to headaches and added time when we see these things and have to fix them. Maybe you are new to the foursquare community, and that is great; please just keep these tips/recommendations in mind as you explore and create venues.

Home is Where the Heartache is

Many people do not want their homes listed as venues on foursquare while others are anxious to create and check-in to them. So, if you are part of the latter group, I recommend that you be a bit creative or at least remotely descriptive about your home. In recent weeks, I have seen more “My Home” venues than I’d like to. If your name is Sam and it is your home, just call it Sam’s Place or Sam’s Pad or Sam’s Home. Then, I highly recommend that you take the extra second to categorize your home venue as a home so that your exact address and location are not reflected visually on the venue map. I am not overly worried about people finding me on foursquare, and I still categorize my venue appropriately! And, as always, don’t get overly crazy about your home-based venues. Sure, if you have a home office for your small business and want to add it, go ahead, but let’s not add the bathroom, the bedroom, the bed, or anything else like that, for those are not valid venues. Please keep that in mind the next time you create a related venue.

Create Intersections In Lieu of Highways

While many will debate whether a highway should truly be a venue or not, merely having a venue solely named after the highway drives me bonkers.  Instead, foursquare users should use the intersection or exit as the name of the venue. For example, I see a few venues that are given the name I-75, I-75N, and/or I-75S. That is great except for the fact that spans over six states (Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida) and covers 1,786.47 miles. Merely naming a venue I-75 does not help the other users know if that venue is an appropriate spot to check-in or not. If I am at exit 269 and am stuck in traffic and really want to check-in, I would look for a venue that is either called 75 & Barrett Pkwy or I-75 Exit 269. Instead, I constantly see I75S, and I end up making a note to go fix it only to have somebody recreate the I-75S venue. Similarly, upon becoming a super user level 2, I noticed an extremely significant amount of venues named 575 (one of the junctions off of I-75 here in Georgia). After seeing that, I took a lot of time to fix these, merging many together so that there is only one venue near or at an exit. I researched each venue to ensure that the name matches a valid exit and the exact name at that exit. After completing these fixes, 575 was all set, but, within one week, I noticed more of the 575 venues popping up, and the frustration began anew. So, I just ask that you think twice before creating a venue and think three times before creating a nondescriptive venue like I-75S.

Conclusion

Keep checking in and creating valid venues when and where needed.  However, I ask that you think before you create a new venue; check to be sure that the venue information that you are adding is correct and descriptive! Does this bug you too? What do you think about these nondescriptive venues?

YouTube is the number two search engine, with a user base that is ever-growing and increasingly interactive! Additionally, YouTube has a fresh, new look that many find extra appealing! I love, for example, using YouTube to show more of my personality and hobbies; as such, I tend to upload a good amount of fitness-related videos on my personal profile! However, some of its current features are lacking just a bit, and I am confident that YouTube could (and should) easily correct and improve these for the greater good of its user base! I must admit that I am not the definitive YouTube authority or guru, so there might be some awesome work-arounds  to these concerns of mine, but they are not yet apparent to me.

Subscription Sorting

When it comes to subscribing to new or trending channels, I tend to do a lot of it, so it would be very helpful if I could easily sort through these numerous channels so that I can better ensure that I want to continue subscribing to each. Luckily, it appears that they have made it easier for me to mass unsubscribe if I need to, but I additional sorting functionality is key for me if I am to become a stronger and more active YouTube user. When I look at my channel subscription list, it does not appear that I have any options at my disposal, and that is quite surprising. I want an easy way to see which channel uploaded last and then be able to switch to view my subscriptions alphabetically! While we are at it, I would love a lot of sorting options; surprise me, YouTube!!

Subscription Groups

Once the channels are sorted out for me – wherein I can look at them alphabetically or by most popular or even by when the channel last added a new video – I want to be able to group them together. For example, I subscribe to a lot of fitness channels, and I also subscribe to a lot of technology-related channels. If I could organize these better and group them accordingly, that would be extremely helpful!

Improved Playlist Add Features

Just like my subscribing habits, I tend to make a lot of playlists. First, I sort out the types of videos I upload for my viewers, and then I make playlists to suit the various other videos I have found and want to remember in the future. Unlike Twitter and their 20 list limit, at least I am allowed to make as many playlists as I want, but have you ever tried adding a video to a playlist these days? Each time that I have tried to, especially in recent weeks, I can only see three playlists at a time, and I have to carefully scroll down to the appropriate playlist. Talk about a headache, especially for somebody who has a lot of playlists.

In addition to the headache of scrolling and adding to a playlist, what about the times when you forget if a video was added to a desired playlist or not. YouTube does not have a checkbox add like feature that identifies which playlists the specific video is already a part of right as I am trying to add it. As a result, I either have to open a new window from which I can pull up the desired playlist and figure out if the video in question has already been added or merely add it and figure it out later. This is just not cool, and YouTube should be able to simplify this process a bit more similar to how foursquare offers a checkbox list adding process

Wrapping Up

Well, I will keep my fingers crossed and look forward to more YouTube channel improvements as I strive to better organize my content and better enjoy my user experience! Are there any features that you want added into the YouTube experience that would make the entire experience that much better?

Empire Avenue continues to be the network that I like the most when it comes to understanding my placement and worth online. It helps me to better understand which of my social media profiles is doing very well and which might need a little more attention and time on my behalf. As I have mentioned before, Empire Avenue does not look to measure my “influence” over a topic or on a specific network; instead, it looks at my activity level and overall network power. In the past, I mentioned how I like to use Empire Avenue to buy virtual shares in online personalities and brands that I believe in and back. I have even met a great number of people on Empire Avenue and found the network to be well-suited to a variety of online measuring strategies. Empire Avenue users now have a new feature that allows them to market even more through the platform using Missions. Basically, Missions allow me to ask my shareholders that fall within a criteria of my choosing to go to a website of my choice and do something that I want them to do like following me on Twitter, subscribing to a newsletter, liking a Facebook page, or even reviewing a product online. In exchange for them doing this, I pay them a predetermined amount of EAVES (virtual money). Plus, now that the Missions feature is out of beta, everybody can give it a try!

While I have not created a bunch of Missions yet, I do like how I can narrow down who can complete my Missions! If I want to target a certain group, I can! For example, I recently used Missions to get the word out about a Facebook page for a client of mine. I was able to require shareholders to like my client’s Facebook page in exchange for 1000e. I limited the mission to the first 50 people who hold at least 50 shares in my stock and have a share price of at least 20e. If I am an author, I could target a related community on Empire Avenue that I am already a part of! Of course, I would like to see more criteria options wherein, for example, I could target people based off of their specific topic interests that they list on their profile or the stock exchange index that they selected! Certainly, I am sure those are currently in the works, and I look forward to those type of additions!

Sure, there is a virtual price to these marketing campaigns (Missions), but, unless you are buying additional virtual bucks with your real money, the price is really free because you are earning these virtual bucks (EAVES) via your online activity! So, build up some EAVES and give Missions a try or two! I’d love to hear how you used Missions to reach some social media marketing goals!

Okay, so you pull out of a venue and forgot to check-in. Or maybe you phone died while at the mall, so you put it back on the charger when you get in the car, open foursquare on your smartphone, and check-in to the two venues that you were just at. Well, I am not talking about you! Those situations are pretty understandable. But, what is not understandable is that person who has it out for you on foursquare, who might bully his or her way around in an effort to unethically and improperly gain mayorships. On top of that, this person decides to oust a loyal foursquare user who is playing by the rules, and he or she ousts this loyal user at a time when the business (venue) is actually not even open! That just takes the cake! At the same time, it seems that some of these cheaters are merely doing it because the current mayor is a heavy user. Look, I check-in a lot each and every day – sometimes, 20 or 30 times in a given day and sometimes just ten or fifteen. Let me set the record straight and say that merely checking in a lot does not mean that you are somehow cheating, but checking into three sit-down restaurants on the grid within 10 minutes is an indicator of potential drive-by check-in cheating (unless you are in the food court at a mall and are buying different food items from different restaurants for your family and/or friends). The [not so] funny thing is that many of these drive-by mayors are quite blatant about the check-ins and do so for many to see.

In my city, I happen to know of a foursquare user who seems to be the mayor of just about everything on a particular busy and heavily traveled road! This person suddenly goes to the same gym as I do each and every day; yet, I have never seen this person nor am I confident [for various reasons] that this person is even a member of the gym. Ironically, he worked out at that gym on Christmas, a day when that LA Fitness was not open to the public! Also, it seems that, since I actually do workout at the gym 99% of the days (regularly seven days per week) and have subsequently ousted this person on a few occasions, he/she suddenly appears to have decided to do business with the bank that I was the mayor of across the street; since he appears to bank there daily, I am now 4 days away from regaining the mayorship.

Look, this person and those like him/her are giving foursquare a black-eye. Also, as an avid foursquare user and venue manager for some of my clients’ venues, it is discouraging to see people doing this. For businesses, it is giving some slightly inflated analytical data to. To the average user, this type of behavior is giving us headaches and frustrations.

So, let’s play by the rules and have fun with foursquare. And, if you see somebody who is really ruining it for the foursquare community, shoot a tweet over to foursquare support, and they will investigate it. Lastly, I encourage your local foursquare community to band together to help reeducate some of these users and to monitor (and report) cheating activities when possible!

Now that 2012 has officially arrived, some of you might be working to open up a new business venture. If you are, you are probably looking into your marketing strategies as well as realizing that you need a website and a presence on social media. Knowing and realizing that ahead of time is really a great advantage because you can plan accordingly. First, it is important that you make your website domain something that is either directly associated with your business entity or your branded products/services. Once you find the available domain name, I highly recommend that you see if those related usernames are available on today’s more popular social media platforms. Additionally, you might want to look into less popular social media networks if they are more aligned with your brand’s target market! I highly urge you to lock in your desired usernames as soon as possible!

But… WHY?

Well, there are a few simple reasons why you should do this sooner rather than later.

1. Better Chance of Getting Your Best Username! With so many businesses out there today, waiting to lock in your desired username is simply too risky if you want to be highly competitive and first in mind of your customers. Plus, if you have yet to incorporate or decide on your business/brand name, it is advantageous to first check to see if your desired (brand’s) name is available on Facebook and Twitter!
2. Improved Chance of Consistency! If you already have username abc123 on Facebook [Pages], it is very advantageous to have username abc123 on Twitter. So, if somebody has liked your Facebook Page but wants to look you up on Twitter, chances are that they will attempt to search with the same username in mind! Have a universal username across various sites simplifies much of your marketing efforts because your customers and target market only need to remember one username versus trying to remember many.
3. Reserved for Future Use! So, maybe you do not think that you need to use a specific platform like foursquare, YouTube, or Twitter right now, but it is a great idea to lock in that username now so that you help put your brand out there. In addition, it will help you build your presence with the username that you desired (as I mentioned above) much quicker when the time is right. Lastly, on networks like YouTube, for example, it tells your viewers when you joined that network, and showing that you joined earlier tends to give you a little added consumer trust and validation than if you just signed up right when you needed the network.
4. Reduce Risk of Cybersquatting! So, you have a brand and are starting to tell people about it. Well, if you do not have a presence online, there could be some people who want to attempt to make a quick buck or two. Sure, cybersquatting is not legal, but some people will still attempt it and try to use loopholes in order to bully you into either buying the domain that you really wanted or the social network profile/page that you should have already locked down long ago. It is best to lock all of that down early on; in many cases, it is best to secure the online entities before you make big marketing pushes using your brand name, etc. Being proactive will save you a lot of headaches!
5. Procrastinating Doesn’t Pay Off! Again, be proactive and lock in your desired usernames! If you wait until tomorrow, you never know what might happen. You might have lost a potential customer or accidentally invited someone else to claim the username(s) that you most desired for your brand or business.

So, take a minute or two while you are forming your business or brainstorming about your brand to check the availability of the usernames that you are thinking about using in the future. Make sure that you align them with your brand and your domain name to better reach customers online!

As 2011 comes to a rapid conclusion, I reflect back on what I have achieved within each aspect of my life. While I find that I had some great success this year, it is time for me to renew my focus on the upcoming year. As always, I have very ambitious goals, and I look to achieving them. So, without further ado, here are my primary New Year’s Resolutions (by category):

Personal Life

Here are seven of my top personal resolutions/goals for 2012:

#1 Become a better man! I always strive to be the best person possible. No matter the title I have with a person – lover, boyfriend, son, cousin, grandson, godfather, best friend, workout buddy, colleague, client, consultant, peer, or anything in-between – it is important for me to continue do my part and my very best to be the very best I can be! At times, I am sure I will fall short of expectation, but it is my every intention to be a better man each and every day!

#2 Read More Often! I love to read a good book, especially non-fiction [business and/or technology] books! I always love the learning process, and reading is a great way for me to continue to gain more and more knowledge! However, there are times wherein I either do not have time to read or merely do not allot enough time to read. Plus, while I consider myself to be a good reader, I tend to read books slower than one might imagine (1 hour per 20ish page chapter), and I often have many different books that I am currently reading! In 2011, I wanted to completely read between 15 and 20 books, but, while I did a good amount of reading, I did not complete as many books as I had originally hoped, so I am challenging myself to read 15 to 20 books in 2012!

#3 Attain all of my 2012 Fitness goals! 2011 was a big year for me as I transitioned from healthy hobby to improved and healthy lifestyle. I went to the gym 6 to 7 times each week, and I found myself achieving a lot of my lifting goals. While I have come a long way, I still have a lot yet to accomplish, and 2012 is as best of a year to make a big dent in that. I plan to keep pumping the iron 6-7 times each week, but I need to add more cardio back into the mix! Since I did not run a race like I did last year, I spent less time on the treadmill, and I also did not hit spin class as often as I would normally like! Well, that has to change in 2012! Ultimately, I have high expectations and goals when it comes to fitness in 2012!

#4 Finish Writing The Book! I mentioned this last year, but I really need to work to wrap up this poetry book. I basically have this follow-up book completely written, but I just need to add some additional details and polish it up before sending it to the publisher! It has taken me too long, and I just need to step it up and wrap it up. I have high hopes for a spring or summer release. Once I get this book published, I will be looking to get into writing more about business and technology. Ideally, I will be starting with some more frequent free e-book or e-paper releases about social media and then just go from there!

#5 Make Progress on Ph. D.! I really was not able to make much progress towards my doctorate degree in 2011, but that needs to change as I move through 2012. While I do not anticipate being able to finish it up this year, I certainly expect to conduct a little more research and get closer to completing the degree! I have thought about changing institutions, but Kennesaw State University does not have a Ph. D. program (just a DBA). So, I might stick with Walden University but might also continue to keep my options open!

#6 Earn my A License from the USPA (for skydiving)! I had this listed in 2010, but it was not a top priority. While it is highly possible that I will not get a chance to completely earn my A (solo skydiving) license, it is important to me that I at least make strides towards achieving that! At worst case, I want to get back up in the plane and jump out a few times before we get to fall because I really miss skydiving.

#7 Vacation – Vegas, Orlando, & Cedar Point?! Well, in 2011, I was lucky to get away to Orlando with Elaine, Jamie, family, and friends, but we did not get a chance to make it up to Michigan to see my godchildren and close friends nor had the ability to either get back to Cedar Point or Las Vegas. Certainly, expecting all of these to happen within 2012 might be asking a bit much, especially with my busy schedule and other priorities, but I remain confident that we can check off a few of these. I figure that we should get the chance to go to Orlando again this summer after the new castle at Disney has opened, and I look to find a way to get up to Michigan and Cedar Point in one swoop, so that could be a spring weekend getaway! That leaves Las Vegas; maybe, I can get out there in early fall to see the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding contest and expo! Plus, I have always wanted to hit up Vegas for New Year’s Eve, so that might be another option, but time will tell!

Technology & Social Media

Sure, I could go on and on about some things I want to accomplish within the world(s) of business, technology, and social media (specifically), but I will tell you my top three biz/tech/SoMe  resolutions for 2012.

#8 Blog Post & Comment More Often! Let’s get specific. In 2011, I took extra time to really focus on writing and posting more. Overall, I did a solid job, but 2012 needs to be the year that I really step it up. I should easily be able to post 2-4 times per week across the various blogs that I write on (i.e. here, my fitness blog, my random thoughts blog, my writing blog, the 4sqDay blog, etc. While posting is great, and I continue to look for ways to do so, I also need to be more consistent on my commenting. I read so many great blog posts from inspiring and intelligent people, but there are times when I either do not take the time or simply do not have the time to construct the type of blog post responses that I would like to. If I do say so myself, I do a solid job of commenting back to those comments left on my blog by others, but, in 2012, I look to become more consistent with my commenting across all blogging platforms!

#9 Take & Post More Pictures! A picture is worth one thousand words! Those who know me best know that I love taking pictures. Whenever I go to an event, hang out on the weekend with loved ones, or even when trying to track my fitness progress, I love to capture those moments with a picture or two (or twenty). As 2011 came to a close, I seemed to be slacking a little bit, so I hope that 2012 is the year that I get back to capturing those moments. Ideally, I look to take pictures each and every week – some during or after workouts; some on weekends; some at tweetups, birthday parties, and other events; and some just because I can! As always, I look forward to visually sharing those memories with each of you through my various social media interactions!

#10 Reorganize & Re-Optimize Twitter Lists! In 2011, I continued my frustration over the current 20 list limit per Twitter profile. Unfortunately, either my concerns went on deaf ears or merely did not reach the right ears. I even blogged about it on at least four occasions, but nobody from Twitter replied in action. I have done all that I can in order to creatively reorganize those I follow on Twitter, but I still have difficulty getting it just right, so, if Twitter will not enable me to create more lists, I will have to do a much better job of being creative with my lists in 2011!

So, there you have it – ten resolutions to get me started! What are some of your resolutions for 2012? I’d love to hear your goals!

So, you recently realized the great powers and opportunities that foursquare possesses; that’s great! You’ve taken the time to claim your venue(s) and start listening to, engaging with, and offering specials to your customers – awesome! Now what? Well, it is time to look at the small details a little further and a little bit closer. Here are some things that I recommend you do on foursquare for your organization:

Identify Employees – you should take the time to identify any and all of your employees who have a foursquare account. Most people who are regulars at your establishment do not want your venue mayor to be one of your employees; they have to work there five to seven days per week, so it is tough to compete for the mayorship when they have that built-in advantage. This is especially true if your venue offers a mayor special; by allowing your employees to compete for the mayorship along with your loyal customers, you are just asking for your customers to drive-by check-in each day in an effort to keep pace with your employees’ check-ins. By identifying your employees, you disable them from holding the title of venue mayor!

Be Creative – customers, prospective and loyal, love a nice special, so make it worth their while to visit and check-in at your venue. If you are a car dealership, don’t just offer a free air freshener with purchase of a new car. If you do that, you would be better off not even having a special. So, do not slap your customers in the face. Instead, find creative and cool ways to interact with them. Pick out the best type of special for your company, your products/services, and your customers! Test what works for you!

Fill Out Venue Details – this would be number one here, but I figured this has to be common sense. Once you have successfully claimed your venue, you really need to take the extra minute or two to fill out every field within the venue page. Sometimes, your venue information will be incorrect; other times, the information will simply be incomplete. Be sure to provide the correct address, phone number, cross street, Twitter profile link, website link, and venue description. These few minutes are a worthwhile investment, so don’t slack here!

Participate – if you are a venue manager on foursquare, you should also be using the app on a personal basis too in order to understand how it works, how people use it, and how the app evolves over time. You should see how your venue page looks on the mobile app so you can better assess your next marketing campaign on foursquare. Of course, you can then participate with your customers who check-in via their other preferred social media channels like Twitter and Facebook! I encourage you to engage them accordingly! In addition, I recommend that you check out the latest conversations on Twitter about foursquare, especially the weekly #4sqCHAT chat (Monday evenings at 9pm EST – GMT -5:00). For the latest news about foursquare, I recommend checking out AboutFoursquare.com! It is filled with great stuff, and their weekly podcast is great for those who prefer listening over reading!

In conclusion, it is great to see that you have added foursquare to your organization’s or brand’s marketing strategy. Now, you just need to focus on building upon that by focusing on the little things that will differentiate your business from the other 600,000+ currently using the foursquare platform!

Dear Santa,

I write to you in hopes for another great Christmas. In years past, I have truly been blessed with so many intangible gifts. As we approach this Christmas, I have a few items, tangible and intangible, that I would love to receive. Overall, I am confident that I have been a good boy this year, so here goes! First, I ask for continued health – physical, mental, and emotion. I have been lucky to maintain a great level of health over the past 30 years, and I hope for continued health as we move into 2012. Second, I ask for continued and unconditional love. Last year, I got an extra early Christmas gift in the form of 4sqLoveStory; for this year, I ask for the next step. I hope to share even more greatness as the New Year approaches. I know that that is not something you have control over, but I figured you could put in a good word for me. Third, I ask for great health and prosperity for those close to me – for my loved ones, for family near and far, and for all of my friends, online and offline! Certainly, I ask for positivity and good deeds for all people on earth; since you have a bigger following online and offline than I do, I figured you might have a little more Klout!

Now that we have the really important stuff out of the way, I could use a few stocking stuffers if time and budget permits. First, would you ask those great folks over at foursquare to finally convert my profile to a follow/celebrity account? I have at least 165 friend requests that I currently cannot accept. Furthermore, there are more of my Facebook friends have recently become foursquare users. It would be great to be able to connect with them! Second, do you have any connections within the ranks of Twitter? For quite some time now, I’ve really needed more lists – being limited to 20 lists per profile is really cramping my style. Ten or 20 more lists would be a great start! Lastly, I know those people over at Research in Motion are busy trying to figure out their BlackBerry mess of sorts, but they still lack an Android app for their quality Tungle service! Like so many other people, I’m getting really blue in the face waiting for them to release this version of the app. If you could lend them an elf or two to help speed up the process, that would be greatly appreciated. Oh, and just one more thing… if you happen to swing by any business or technology (social media) authors’ homes before coming to my place, would you grab a copy of their books and ask them to sign them? You know how much I love autographed copies of awesome books.

Thanks again for listening, and I wish you safe travels this year!

Dwayne

Okay, so I am a perfectionist of sorts who really strives to use the correct phrases and words whenever possible. With that said, my body cringes when others consistently show a lack of basic language, grammar, and communication fundamentals. Now, jump into this technology-filled world and look around. People are on Twitter and Facebook using forms of shorthand like acronyms and slang (etc) to convey their message to their friends and colleagues. We have all seen the LOLs and BRBs out there, and some have used “B4” and “ur” in order to better stick within the message length restrictions on Twitter. I understand and appreciate that creativity, but we all need to take a moment to think about what our words and phrases are truly saying before we hit the send button. Case in point… IRL!

IRL (in real life) has become synonymous with everything offline. On Twitter, for example, you see people tweeting about how they are anxious to meet up with someone IRL for the first time. What they are really trying to say is that they have never met the specific Twitter friend in person but look forward to meeting (possibly at an upcoming industry conference). This really gets under my skin because I meet “REAL” people everyday online and via social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, foursquare, and Empire Avenue. I’m not playing some fictional game called social media or something; instead, I am engaging my audience, reaching out to new and great people and brands, and listening. I’m not alone in this line of thinking; Alexandra Samuel, the director of the Social + Interactive Media Centre at Emily Carr University, blogger for Harvard Business Review and Oprah.com, and the principal of Social Signal, reminded us to stop apologizing for our online lives. In that blog post Alex reminded us of the following:

There’s no denying the differences between life online and off. In our online lives we shake off the limitations of our physical selves, perhaps even our names and consciences, too. What remains are the fundamentals: human beings, human conversations, human communities. To say that “reality” includes only offline beings, offline conversations and offline communities is to say that face-to-face matters more than human-to-human.

With that said, I ask each of you to do me a favor. If you are online and tweeting or Facebook posting, think about what you are saying and the words you are selecting before you hit the send button. Unless you are specifically talking about the Indy Racing League, the acronym, IRL, has very little use in our online conversations, especially if we are trying to differentiate between our online and offline interactions. Instead of using IRL, think about using P2P (person-to-person), F2F (face-to-face), or IP (in person) – something… anything other than IRL! Am I wrong in my assessment or point of view?

Everyone is raving about one of the latest social networks Pinterest. So what is it, and why is it all of a sudden so popular? Pinterest is a virtual pinboard where you can organize pictures, ideas, and other things you find online into different boards. A lot of brides have been using Pinterest to organize their weddings, and a lot of couples have been using Pinterest to decorate their home. You can follow pinboards created by other people and find various images that make you smile, make you laugh, make you cry, and make you think. There are a ton of awesome crafts, inspirational sayings, and funny images to “repin” and “like.”

My favorite thing about Pinterest is the beautiful pictures, craft ideas, and absolutely hilarious photos. I have started a new board called “wedding obsession” with a lot of wedding and engagement pictures and ideas. I have also started collecting a lot of recipes from Pinterest and have even tried a few! Furthermore, I have boards for movies, books, things that make me laugh, and much more! Another cool thing is that, when you click the images, they will link to another site where they originally came from. This feature allows you to actually find out where the things in the picture came from so you can buy them for yourself. Pretty cool, right? You can create as many “boards” aka collections to place all your favorite photos in when you “repin” them to your followers. It is very cool and very helpful to organize all your thoughts and favorite pictures into different categories.

Two things you should know about Pinterest: you actually need an invite to join, and it can be VERY time consuming.

One: You can browse, but to actually start your boards, you will need an invite. Please let me know @laurenkgray if you would like an invite to Pinterest; I would be happy to send you one!

Two: Pinterest is more time-consuming than Facebook [for me]. I get on Pinterest, start reading, start pinning, etc. and before I know it, I have no idea where the time went. Make sure you monitor your time and delegate your time for this consuming site!

I promise joining Pinterest will be worth your time, and it is an awesome, creative site to be a part of! I really think this type of social sharing is the future of social media. People are getting tired of sharing just statuses and such; we like seeing pictures and videos. I expect Pinterest to fully blow up soon!

Lauren Gray is a senior PR student at Western Carolina University. Lauren serves as the PRSSA National Vice President of Public Relations as well as various other PR and marketing positions on her campus. She tweets @laurenkgray and also blogs at laurenkgray.com. Feel free to connect with her on Twitter for further conversation!