Who Are The Top 50 Social Media Power Influencers  2013?

Who are the Top 50 Social Media Power Influencers for 2013?
You could answer that question by saying, of course, they are the people who most influence the biggest brands or have the best selling book or who have been around the business a long time.
But social media is a very democratizing form of communications and to assess influence you really need to know who is first among equals.

That means assessing who has a real following – real in the sense of real people and not just bots, real also in the sense that the following is active in social media and not just a passive consumer.
Being able to get to that essence, of people whose peers are actively involved with them, is why I chose Peek Analytics as the tool to measure influence.

There are also some basic criteria for involvement – experts must be creating their own content, and it has to be about social media. See more on the criteria here.
On the scoring, Peek Analytics gives people a score called Pull. If an individual has a Pull of 10x, that means that the audience the individual can reach is at least ten times greater than what the average social media user can reach.

If you want to measure your own Pull, you can do that by following this link.
Some observations on the upper part of the list….

The Top 10 Considered
In the top ten this year all the influencers have a pull of between 2,000 and 3,000. This represents influence among a group of peers, whether those peers are in Washington, Palo Alto or Peterborough.

#1. Leaders are more motivational.  We are seeing a lot more inspirational messaging via Twitter from this group than we did last year – almost as if social media is relegated (or elevated depending on your taste) to motivational relationships. This is becoming an essential part of being a social media leader.

#2. It is more gender balanced. The Top 10 this year is equally divided between men and women. Last year it was skewed towards men.

#3. It is easier to access. There is a bigger spread of scores here in the top 10 that in the remainder of the top 50 (1000 – 2000). Those scores are interesting for two reasons.
The first is that it still looks as though once you hit the top flight either you automatically get more (and more active) followers or your position reflects an ability to cultivate that type of group.
But secondly the data also shows that the 40 people from 11 – 50 are very tightly grouped and any of them could rise quickly.
#4. There are more self-starters. And finally the top ten last year was skewed towards people who had a strong institutional base – an employer who allowed them time to do social media. The group below are much more skewed towards self-starters who have made social media their business, or who are advising on how to make social media your business.

The Top 10….

# 1. Sean Gardner. Sean, who also writes at Huffington Post, comes in at number 1. Sean blends social media insight with inspirational messaging, a trend we’re seeing across social. @2morrowknight.

#2. Ann Tran. Number 1 on the women’s list, Ann writes primarily about social media in the travel and hospitality vertical @anntran_

#3. Jessica Northey. It’s a trend this year, leading influencers whose base is in a specific vertical. For Jessica it is music. She also says she’s moving away from blogging towards Google +. @jessicanorthey.

#4. Mari Smith. Mari is a leading Facebook marketing expert and one of the top 10, overall, from last year. She’s also the author of The New Relationship Marketing. @marismith.

# 5. Aaron Lee. Aaron has been strong on Twitter for a long time now, and has a useful website with professional-grade advice but which can also inform people at the beginning of their social media careers. @askaaronlee.

 #6. John Paul Aguiar. An eclectic mix of blog advice, Twitter and other social tools, John is in business to help people make money from social. @johnaguiar.

#7. Liz Strauss. Liz runs successful-blog.com. She’s currently taking on the challenge of cancer. Best wishes. @lizstrauss.

#8. Warren Whitlock. Host of Blog Talk Radio’s Social Media Profit Show, like John, Warren’s focus in on social media for profit. @warrenwhitlock.

#9. Ted Coine. Along with Shawn Murphy, Ted runs the Switch and Shift blog.  @tedcoine

#10.  Pam Moore. Covering Facebook, Google + and the business of social. @pammktgnut.

11 – 25. This group has a pull of between 1500 and 2000. More tightly condensed than the top 10, any one of them could improve that score over the year to come.

#11. Jeff Bullas. An eclectic mix of social media tips and online marketing advice from Jeff and a stable of guest writers. @jeffbullas.

#12. Renee Blodgett. Deep seated social media marketing expertise with a long chain of references and endorsements from mainstream media.  @magicsaucemedia and @weblogtheworld.

#13. Ted Rubin. A broader remit than many on the list, Ted puts social media in the context of the wider evolving business environment. @tedrubin.

#14. Eve Mayer. Officially a LinkedIn expert writes about a diverse range of social media issues and tools – Pinterest, Instagram, Google +. @linkedinqueen.

#15. Glen Gilmore.  Glen is a practicing attorney and teaches Digital Marketing, Crisis Communications and Social Media Law at Rutgers University Center for Management Development. @glengilmore.

#16. Paul Barron. Paul is a social media expert in the restaurant trade where he runs the successful TV channel, Turn and Burn, and the website digitalcoco. @paulbarron.

#17. Dan Schawbel. Dan’s work focuses on the use of social to build your personal success. Author of Promote Yourself: The New Rules For Career Success. @danschawbel.

#18. Kim Garst. Advice on a mixture of social media tools: Google Hangouts, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram etc. @kimgarst.

#19. Lori Ruff. LinkedIn specialist who recently launched a new advisory service to guide companies on the use of the LinkedIn platform. @loriruff.

#20. Ann Handley. Ann manages the content factory that is marketingprofs, a site that is producing better and better social media content, as well as being a content marketing expert in her own right. @marketingprofs.

#21. Chris Brogan. Chris is CEO&President, Human Business Works: courses to grow YOU! @chrisbrogan.

#22. Gary Vaynerchuck. CEO and Co-founder of the social media & brand consulting agency, VaynerMedia. An authority in the branding and social media world who started out in the wine vertical. @garyve.

#23. Chris Voss. Chris hosts his own radio show, probably expanding now to a much wider remit. @ChrisVoss.

#24. Pam Dyer. Marketing manager at SolutionsIQ, Pam covers a variety of social media issues and trends in depth. @pamdyer

# 25. Laura Fitton. An online marketing generalist Laura is also a recognized expert in Twitter. The main reason for inclusion, apart from her ranking, is that she is a co-author of Twitter for Dummies. @pistachio.
So to the final 25.

#26. Calvin Lee. Calvin runs Mayhem Studios, a design practice in LA but has become perhaps better known for his social media work and social media advocacy. @mayhemstudios

#27  Jessica Merrill. Jessica blogs at blogging4jobs, an HR/recruiting site and joins the many other experts on the list who are applying social to a specific activity. @blogging4jobs.

#28. Bonnie Sainsbury   An eclectic range of themes around social, including one of the few on the list directly addressing mobile. @bsainsbury.

#29. Jonathan Naferrete. Jonathan is an Instagram expert. He doesn’t blog text very often but does post images – he’s also a photographer. @jonathan360

#30. Lilach Bullock, a social media marketing consultant with a strong following and some nice comparison work that looks at Pinterest, Facebook, earned media and more. @Lilachbullock can also be found at socialable.co.uk.

#31. Steve Farnsworth. Pretty eclectic mix of content from Steve who is Chief Digital Strategist at Jolt Digital Marketing. @steveology.

#32. Deborah Lee. British adviser with eclectic social media interests but a particular focus on Twitter. @debsylee

#33. Neal Schaffer. Social media consultant and adviser, Neal’s Windmill Marketing site is a good resource for the whole range of social media tips, particularly around LinkedIn. @nealschaffer

#34. Mike O’Neil. Linked expert Mike O’Neil runs the Integrated Alliances website and provides corporate LinkedIn training. @mikeoneilrocks.

#35. Jay Oatway. Author of Mastering Story, Community & Influence: How To Use Social Media to Become a Socialeader @jayoatway

#36. Jeff Barrett. On the PR side of social, Jeff writes regularly for the Washington Times in addition to running the agency “Status Creative”. @barrettall

#37. Scott Stratten. Eclectic website with topical pots on social media, especially Twitter. @unmarketing.

#38. Marsha Collier. Marsha is the author of 40 books, many of them in the social area, particularly around social media and customer service. A lot of her dissemination work takes place via Twitter and those books. Increasingly, we notice, she is taking her trade onto Google +. @Marshcollier

#39. Lori Taylor.  Lori writes an eclectic blog covering Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and general social media tips but her main work is in social media and direct response. Lori appeared in last year’s Top 50. @lorirtaylor

#40. Viveka vonRosen. Viveka is primarily a LinkedIn expert, though we’ve noticed her Twitter distribution is much more diverse than this. @LinkedInExpert.

#41. Yacine Baroudi. Yacine is broadening his scope from social media to internet of things, a journey that many in social will have to take. @yacinebaroudi.

#42. Sandi Krakowski. Sandi is a Facebook marketing expert and works on that fine line between social media and spiritual inspiration. I interviewed her about that work here on Forbes.com. @sandikrakowski

#43. Susan Cooper. Susan is a social media generalist but with a clear vertical focus in music. “I currently handle social media marketing, consulting and strategy targeted for musicians, entertainers and select businesses.” @buzzedition

#44. Christine Korda. Christine is VP and in charge of blogger relations at shesconnected and an active mom’s blogger. @christinekorda.

#45. Don Crowther. Socialmedia marketing, with some useful content on the latest trends. @don_crowther.

#46. Dede Watson. General tips on how to do social. Dede has maintained a strong following over the past 12 months. @Dede_watson.

#47. Erik Qualman. Author of Socialnomics and a runs the multi-contributor blog of the same name. @equalman.

#48. Michael Hyatt. Author of Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World, and runs a comprehensive advisory website. @michaelhyatt.

#49. Darren Rowse. Darren is Problogger, one of the best sources on how to blog for profit. @problogger.

#50. Christopher Penn. On the PR side of social Chris is also co-founder of PodCamp. @cspenn.


http://www.forbes.com/sites/haydnshaughnessy/2013/01/30/the-top-50-social-media-power-influencers-2013/

The Most Talked About Social Media News

Everyone who uses Social Media Sites to provide an income should always keep an eye on recent news and what the business community are up too!

Social Media is here to stay and we should all learn and develop our skills to keep updated - Read on SEO's are catching on!

Indeed, the past year had so many surprises from the world of the internet, particularly from social media platforms. Every professional SEO Company along with its SEO strategies had to go through changes and adjustments.

Here is a quick review of the most talked about social media news for 2012.

PINTEREST, the fastest growing pinboard, has recently allowed brands to create business accounts. In fact, even the personal accounts of users can already be converted into business accounts. This time, they would have to agree to a new set of terms and conditions set by Pinterest.

This move is said to be because Pinterest now wants to help businesses provide content and then pin easily. There will already be a verification badge for brands that sign up that will make locating them a lot easier.

Aside from this change, Pinterest also made itself more available as an app on Android and Ipad. Plus, it also updated its version of the iPhone app. This has made it possible for android users to pin their favorites through their Android tabs and phones.

It was also last year when Facebook acquired the very popular INSTAGRAM. After 5 months after the deal was announced, it finally became official that the two huge companies have joined together.

The deal was made possible after reaching a negotiated amount and stocks worth $1 billion.

“We’re so excited to bring Instagram to Facebook and see what we can create together,” said Mike Schroepfer, vice president of Engineering at Facebook.

Twitter this year also received a suggestion from Evan Williams who is its former CEO and co-founder. He said that there is a need for the social media site to have a new means of measuring its members’ reach other than just follower count. Late last year, Twitter made some changes and created a new header design.

Google+ rolled out a number of features. Among these are a new navigation ribbon, cover photo, hangouts page or directory, conversation cards, explore page, and more. There is also the Google+ share button.

Instagram also launched this year its online profile for its users. Now, it looks a bit like the Timeline.

“We’re launching Web profiles to give you a simple way to share your photos with more people and to make it easier to discover new users on the Web,” said Instagram in a blog. And with Facebook acquiring Instagram, it also changed its privacy policy making it possible to share data with Facebook.

Search engine optimization services continue to change to meet the demands and needs of companies online.

http://www.premiumseosolutions.com.au/blog/social-media-news/most-talked-about-social-media-news-2012/

Ten of the best ... ways to make money from your desk

Is money too tight to mention? Jasmine Birtles suggests some ways to earn extra readies in your lunchtime

Use your time online to make money.

1. Get paid to surf the net

You surf the net all the time so why not make money every time you click on "search"? Yahoo powers searches which pay a small amount every time you run one – it is willing to do so because it wants to break down Google's domination. There is a search at Moneymagpiesearch.com. If you recommend your friends you will also make commission on their searches. The payments are small but we know people who have made around £30 in two months by searching regularly. You can choose whether you receive your money through PayPal or by bank transfer.

2. Take part in online surveys

Again, this is pocket money while you're on the internet, but it can be fun too. It is simply a case of answering questions about a particular product or company, or about your shopping habits. Be careful which surveys you use – some are fraudulent. Among the best of the genuine ones is panelbase.net, which will pay between 50p and £3 a survey, Valued Opinions, which pays between £1 and £5 a survey, and Ciao-surveys.co.uk, which pays up to £5.

3. Get paid for social networking

You can make money by keeping in touch with friends, and making more friends, on social networking site Yuwie. Set up a profile, write a blog, upload photos and videos and do what you usually do with any networking site. The difference with Yuwie is that it pays you to do all these things using advertising revenue. The amount you get paid depends on the number of times you and your friends view your pages. If you have lots of friends the views mount up and you can make some worthwhile cash.

4. Recycle your mobile

Have you got a useless old mobile in your desk drawer? Most of us have at least one hanging around the office or house, so make money from yours. Send it to Mopay and make between £2.50 and £200 depending on its make and condition. Even rubbishy old battered models can be worth a few quid if they can be sold on for spare parts.

5. Sell adverts on your blog

If you are a regular blogger and have built up a bit of a following, you could make money selling advertising around your posts. You can make cash quickly by putting Google Adsense on it. If you get enough traffic you make money every time people click on the ads. Blogs are also great for selling any products you have, promoting your services (it could be anything from sales training to web development or maternity care) and selling eBooks you have created yourself.

6. Sell your photos

If you have a nice collection of digital photos you could sell them over and over again through online agencies. Send them in to one or more agencies and any they like they will upload to the site. When people buy them you get a commission; you could end up getting paid for years to come. Picturenation say many of their photographers make hundreds of pounds a month, and some are simply good amateurs. Also try Fotolia and iStockphoto.

7. Rent out your stuff

Everyone knows about selling stuff on eBay, but how about renting it and making money over and over again? Sites like RentNotBuy.co.uk and RentRino will let you advertise anything from a baby bath to a ball gown. It is a new phenomenon, so it could be a while before anyone rents your power tools or your DVD player, but if you have a spare minute upload your details and later on you could make some regular cash.

8. Complain to gain

We don't complain enough in this country, which is one of the reasons why service can be so bad. However, those who complain constructively have worked out they can even make money through it. A well-crafted, reasonable letter including a request for financial compensation can make you money. Write to a company's CEO explaining the problem and set out the amount you feel you should receive in compensation. If it is refused write again, and even write a third time if necessary. Usually by the second or third letter they cave in and give you about half of what you were asking for.

9. Answer text questions

If you're a bit of a trivia king or queen you could make money by answering people's text questions. It is flexible work and you just have to be a bit knowledgeable and quick at searching the net (make extra by following point 1 above). On average, question answerers make about £10 an hour. The questions vary enormously: you could get anything from "Where's the nearest pizza place?" to "Who won the 1962 world cup?" and "Will I ever find love?". Visit ansanow or Textperts to see if you are quick enough to be part of their teams of knowledge hunters.

10. Get cashback

If you use your lunch hour to buy essentials, make sure you get paid to do it. Shop around first to find the best deals, then look on cashback sites to see if you could get money back by buying through them. Start with sites that give you instant cash just by signing up, such as Rpoints, which gives you £5, Cashback Shopper, which gives you £5, and ecashback, which gives you £2.50 immediately.

  http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/mar/12/make-money-on-the-internet