Sharing and friendship, both strengths of the site/service, are also its biggest weaknesses. Many (including myself sometimes) are compelled to thumb something up because we want our friends to succeed and for their content to do well. Sometimes, though, they ask too much.

The case in particular that I’m talking about is visualized to the right and received tons of positive reviews and thumbs up. The content itself was probably interesting, but the way the page was laid out made me want to thumb it down. I didn’t, as I do not believe in thumbing down any content based upon the formatting of the page, but I refused to thumb it up or even look at the actual content. Why?

Take a look (click for full image) or refer to my notes below.

1. Asking for Thumbs – I’m not a fan of asking people to thumb something up or review it unless there is a great reason such as a charity or something else that needs exposure badly (even then I normally wouldn’t). Tell people what is interesting about the piece that you are sending them. If it’s something that is important to you, explain why in your request. If it’s just a blog post and you want exposure, describe why your friends may find it interesting. Ask them to take a look. Don’t say “Thumb up and review this.”
2. Pop-ups – When my pop-up blocker kicks in, that’s not a good sign. Why would anyone put a pop-up advertisement on their site in 2009, especially if they’re targeting a tech-savvy social media reader.
3. Pushing Content Down Because of a Banner Ad – Some themes are built without the space for a banner ad. In this case, there’s a ton of wasted ad space in the header. Either put the ad someplace where it can be seen without being a hindrance to the content or don’t put the ad there at all. Wasting space AND pushing content down because of a banner add is, well, wasteful.
4. Misspelled Category – Spelling mistakes happen. I’ve misspelled words in blog posts. I’ve misspelled words in titles, even. A category is important and will be seen on most pages of your site. Don’t misspell those.
5. Big, Huge Adsense at the Top of Every Post – I understand that Google and gurus recommend this (still, I think) as a way to “optimize” the use of Adsense for revenue, but it’s still annoying to a social media cr0wd. If it MUST be up top, use a thin bar, not a 300X250 box.
6. Meaningless Bio Widget – If the author is named Admin, they don’t have a picture, and they don’t have biographical data, there’s no reason to have the “About the Writer” box on top of the sidebar.
7. Lots of Views, Few Comments – When a story has over 5,000 views and no comments, either the author doesn’t approve comments, there were no comments, or all of the comments were bad. All 3 options are bad.
8. Content Below the Fold – Remember the big, huge Adsense? What about the big banner ad pushing down the content? Well, thanks to those layout choices, there is no content above the fold.

Please forgive me for being judgmental. The content may have been incredible. Sadly, I’ll never know.

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Read more StumbleUpon Tips on this blog.

Over the last several months, we’ve worked with some, interviewed others, and came to the conclusion that there are some out there that are real. Some. The rest, probably 95 out of 100, know very little about how to truly design social media campaigns and manage a proper social media strategy.  This is a huge problem as several corporations and small businesses we have talked to lately are skeptical of anything relating to social media.

They tried it with this company or that company and they didn’t see the results.

Before we join the chorus of “we’re the best” that makes it seem like we’re just like everyone else, let me state something very clearly. Our results are predefined. Our methods are discussed openly and honestly. We do not collect a penny until AFTER the results are rendered.

Do I have your attention?

For the first year of existence, Hasai chose to stay hidden. Social media and its many components are sensitive topics. Companies do not necessarily want their customers or competitors knowing that they have hired a social media firm, so we decided to “not exist” except through referrals and word-of-mouth.  As the company expanded over the months, it became clear – there are ways to protect our clients without staying in the shadows.

Too many companies are popping up that offer the same thing that we offer. Then again, a Daewoo and a Bentley both drive down the street. They both have 4 wheels, doors, windows, and an engine.  The difference is that one does it right and one did it wrong.

Read through the site. We are carefully crafting what we can and cannot say in a way that will protect everyone involved while still offering the opportunity for companies to find us.

You’ve found us. You’re already ahead of your competition.

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Read more about Social Media Strategy.