You know your friends well enough to know the language they will use and content they are most likely to share. You can also probably discern the same for the majority of your Twitter followers. When you get a spammy DM (direct message) similar to the one above, stop it right away. . Take these two actions: #1 – Do not ever click on the links – despite your curiosity. 2 – Advise your friend to change their password – via a channel other than Twitter. Many of us do not check our DM’s. How embarrassing is that? Help your friends and followers stop Twitter DM spam. MORE >>

? We all know the story of Gary Vaynerchuck ( @GaryVee on Twitter), and how he grew his parents’ wine business by sharing his dynamic personality with the world through social media and his WineLibrary TV video website. And if you don’t, check out the Social Mix 2012 conference web site for more information). But Gary is not the only person to use the power of social media and our generation’s love of booze to grow an incredible personal brand. She’s also a sucker for a good Mojito cocktail. How do we know all of this about Dee? Q – Why did you decide to become a Cocktail Deeva? MORE >>

As many of you know, ExactTarget just released a new report ( Retail Touchpoints Exposed ) that deals with the many consumer touchpoints of a brand from email, mobile, social, and even in-store marketing. wanted to give you a better idea of the findings of the report by displaying the many infographics contained within the physical report. We tracked 100 retailers over the course of 30 days. We analyzed over 2500 emails and over 3500 social media messages over Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and YouTube. Needless to say, the research is intense. Enjoy. View more presentations from Kyle Lacy MORE >>

People.  PLEASE READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE before you tweet! Be sure that you understand what information you’re sharing. It’s important. Recently, Twitter published a blog post indicating that they are going to create a feature called “Expanded Tweets” In the post, they clearly indicate that: “When you expand a Tweet linking to a news article by The New York Times , The San Francisco Chronicle or Der Spiegel Online , you can see a preview with the headline, the introduction and sometimes the Twitter accounts of the publisher and writer. Cheers! –Sean. MORE >>

When it comes to business marketing, there is an important distinction to be made between local and location. Local businesses have a distinct advantage due to their physical location – proximity to a population of potential buyers. Yet, ever business can capitalize on local, because in addition to location, it is affected by a number of influences - including consumer interests, social behaviors, and all types of human interactions. The Primary Location Advantage is Time. Time is a valuable commodity that you can effectively use to be more local to the markets you serve. MORE >>