Findings: Major trends in 2010 Online Marketing: Across many of these predictions, we have identified the following trends suggested to influence Online Marketing in 2010: #social media #games #e-mail. This year we are adopting a new “tweet style” format, easier for you to focus on, comprehend and forward. Already released from the Trend Prediction Influencers Series: @ 2010 Social Media (published also at NYTimes / RWW, Mashable , Examiner ). real time #direct response #measurement. mobile #geo-location #video. niche. View more slides from TrendsSpotting. 2010 Tech and IT. MORE >>

read an article on Wendy Harmer’s Hoopla Polls Fake Story  by @gabriellechan that got me thinking about Nielsen polls, sentiment analysis and focus groups. And how totally outdated, outmoded and antique they seem compared to Big Data of social media. For members it works this way: Facebook looks at what you are putting in your status updates (say, “surfing”), what links you click on (“surfing video”), Business Pages you Like (“Ripcurl”) and what your friends also do (social graph behaviours). Well actually, we can. Sort of. MORE >>

People on Facebook divulge their opinions on a minute-by-minute basis, and they’re probably the cheapest and quickest focus group around. And people who are connected to organizations on Facebook are 60% more likely to recommend an organization to their networks anyway. Social media is not always about the direct sale, but it provides a great incubator for relationships and greases the skids for any future proposed transaction, even if they only like you as a friend. R OI doesn’t always come in the form of cold, hard cash. At least not directly. So, post away. MORE >>

Now in the social era, even the smallest of businesses can find success and achieve incredible gains without a single ad spend. Another advantage for small businesses is the opportunity to crowdsource ideas in lieu of focus groups. One example is Bethenny Frankel , a natural foods chef and Bravo TV star, who recently used her social channels to gain feedback on her upcoming snack bar. Not only does she get responses directly from the individuals who are most likely to purchase her products, she saves considerable time and money from conducting a focus group. MORE >>

Did we finally have a way around the famous opt-out process the giant social network uses? But it’s not a social network. And, because it’s a Google product, the search engine giant ranks content higher if it’s promoted through the platform than that on any other social network. It’s not the end all, be all because a Hangout allows only 10 people at once, but it’s a great way to create a panel discussion, an intimate webinar, instant video conferencing, training or education, live expert interviews, focus groups, or staff meetings. MORE >>