Archive for January, 2011

Snoop Dogg: Master of Twitter Engagement

Monday, January 17th, 2011

Here at Cashmere, we’re taking the mantra of “Making Digital History” to heart on a daily basis. So we were very pleased to read this great post on Hypebot this morning on how to engage fans on Twitter based on the interaction of Snoop Dogg on Twitter, dubbing him the master of digital fan engagement through Twitter.

Click here to read the full article. And make sure you keep up with everything in Snoop’s world by following the Boss Dogg on Twitter.

Numark NS6 Has WNAMM and Twitter Buzzin’

Friday, January 14th, 2011

We were pleasantly surprised by the traction and the amount of positive feedback that Numark’s NS6 has been stirring up on Twitter while being showcased at Winter NAMM this week.

The NS6 is a four-channel Digital DJ controller with built in mixer and four decks of software control, compatible with Serato ITCH – an exciting new product for DJs and DJs in the making.

Other products that have been turning our heads at NAMM and buzzing up the Twittersphere are the Alesis StudioDock (the world’s first pro audio dock for the iPad) and the Akai SynthStation49 (keyboard controller for iPhone and iPod touch).

For pictures and more information about these products click on the below links:

Numark NS6

Alesis StudioDock

Akai SynthStation49

Tweets about the Numark NS6:

Cashmere Tech Wrap-Up

Friday, January 14th, 2011

MOST VIRAL BRANDS OF 2010 REVISITED

Back in September, Viral Ad Network released a cool infographic of the ‘Most Viral Brands Of 2010 (So Far)’.  Now that 2010 has come to a close they’ve revised their infographic from “So Far” to include the year-end official list of the most viral brands of 2010.  The Viral Ad Network infographics offer a pretty cool way to see how the brand standings have changed over the last six months since the first version was released, and they’re also a great way to celebrate some of 2010’s hottest brands.

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HOOTSUITE

HootSuite is an advanced social networking dashboard aimed mainly at professionals who need to leverage sites such as Twitter and Facebook for their business needs. HootSuite relies on a freemium business model. Its free version allows you to add five networks and supports Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Foursquare, MySpace, PingFm and WordPress.

HootSuite is best for actively managed accounts because its design focuses on streams, which are housed in customizable tabs. You have the flexibility to organize tabs by account, network or content, making it easier to monitor a specific type of feed more closely.

Click to visit site for more details

FACEBOOK JOINS THE AMBER ALERT NETWORK

Facebook on Wednesday joined the volunteer network of organizations that distribute Amber alerts, urgent all-points bulletins issued by law enforcement in serious cases of child abduction.

The announcement came on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the abduction and murder of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, for whom the alert program is named. Ms. Hagerman was plucked by a man from her bicycle, put into a pickup truck and later killed, in a case that has never been solved.

Facebook said it created 53 Amber Alert pages, one for each state, Puerto Rico, United States Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia. To receive alerts, Facebook users can visit the page for their state and click the “Like” button at the top. Alerts will appear in their news feeds, and they will be able to share them with friends. Facebook also said it would donate advertising to promote the new pages.

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SOCIAL MEDIA IN INDONESIA: EAT, PRAY, TWEET

What does the most populous Muslim nation do in its spare time? Increasingly, it swaps gossip online. Indonesia is now the world’s second-largest market for Facebook and the third-largest for Twitter, according to several web research firms. For industry insiders, however, the most exciting statistic is not how many Indonesians use social media, but how many still don’t. Of the 230 million or so Indonesians, fewer than 20% are connected to the internet.

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TWEETEFFECT

Twitter is a great way to keep in contact, distribute news and generally tell people what you are up to. The success of Twitter users is generally measured in the amount of people that follow your updates.

You get information on your Twitter profile as to how many people follow you and you get notified when someone follows you. However, there is no notification when someone stops following you and you generally don’t have any insight into when people follow or leave you.

This is where the TweetEffect comes in – simply enter your twitter name and it will analyze your 200 latest updates and flag those up that made people follow or leave you.

Click to visit site for more details

CicLAvia Eyes South L.A. for Possible Expansion Routes

Thursday, January 13th, 2011

Last Sunday, over 30 volunteers spent their Sunday afternoon exploring the various streets in South Los Angeles to begin to determine which might make the most sense for CicLAvia’s South L.A. expansion. Participants varied from seasoned bike commuters, to local residents some of whom hadn’t bicycled in a while, to Bicycle Kitchen “cooks” to the 213* Bike Ride crew which rolls group rides out of Boyle Heights.

The larger groups split into three smaller packs to explore separate streets. Following predetermined routes, participants rode South L.A. corridors kept an eye out for features that would work well for CicLAvia or any potential conflicts.

Among the most promising corridors were portions of:

Central Avenue – home to Los Angeles’ historic jazz scene
Figueroa Street – which boasts the Staples Center, L.A. Live, USC, Exposition Park and more
Western Avenue – a very central area, with lots of retail that could dovetail well with CicLAvia

The next steps for CicLAvia will be to review the day’s reconnaissance log sheets and work with local leaders to come up with some draft routes that could stitch many of these corridors and landmarks together, and then go back out to the streets for another ground test.

CicLAvia and its South L.A. allies are planning to do another exploration ride, hopefully in about three weeks time. Check the CicLAvia blog and the CicLAvia Facebook page events for information.

FINALLY! The iPhone 4 On Verizon

Wednesday, January 12th, 2011

Yesterday, after much speculation, it was finally announced that the iPhone 4 is making its way to Verizon.  The official iPhone launch is February 10th, but if you’re currently a Verizon customer and reserve your phone now, you’ll receive yours on February 3rd.  Prices start at $200 for the 16GB model and it features a modified antenna and a new hotspot application allowing users to tether their computers to the internet.

Here’s the rundown courtesy of Gizmodo:
-Although the antenna designed has been changed, it’s still to be determined if that fixes the reception issue
-Since the iPhone 4 operates on the CDMA network, it DOES NOT utilize the higher speeds of the 4G network
-The iPhone 4 comes with built-in hotspot functionality, allowing users to connect up to five devices simultaneously to its wi-fi network
-The Verizon iPhone 4 DOES NOT have GSM capability and will therefore only work in the 40 countries that have CDMA carriers

Some speculate that Verizon’s network isn’t ready to handle the massive influx of new users.  Only time will tell.  So will you be making the jump to Verizon for the iPhone 4? For more information, check out the link here.

Last night on The Daily Show, even Jon Stewart got in on the hype of the iPhone no longer being an AT&T exclusive. Check out The Daily Show’s hilarious skit on the iPhone-Verizon announcement.

Snoop Dogg Drops “El Lay”

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

Leading up to the release of Snoop Dogg’s (@snoopdogg) new album, Doggumentary, the Doggfather’s introducing his new music series #puffpuffpasstuesdays.

Every Tuesday, starting today, Snoop will be releasing exclusive, new content from Doggumentary through his Twitter, Facebook, and partner media outlets.

With the NBA All-Star Game in his own backyard next month, Snoop kicks things off with this track dedicated to the the City of Angels, “El Lay” featuring Marty James (@martyjames), produced by Scoop Deville (@scoopdeville).

Head over to Rap Radar now to listen to the newest single from the Boss Dogg, “El Lay” and keep up with the latest news and info in hip-hop by following Rap Radar on Twitter.

Don’t forget, Snoop Dogg’s Doggumentary is in stores this March!

Funk Legend Bootsy Collins teams up with Snoop Dogg

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

Iconic Funk bassist Bootsy Collins is coming out with a new album this year looking to connect music’s past with music’s present. The album, called The Funk Capital of the World, was inspired during Bootsy’s 2008 tribute tour to the late James Brown and his need to bring appreciation for some of music’s greatest talent. Cashmere Agency is proud to announce that Snoop Dogg is featured on the album alongside other hip-hop luminaries Ice Cube and Chuck D.

Bootsy was not shy on bringing in guest talent besides the Hip-Hop heavies noted above. The Funk Capital of the World boast a star-studded roster including Sheila E., George Clinton, Musiq Soulchild, Bobby Womack, Samuel L. Jackson, Jimi Hendrix, and Rev. Al Sharpton (say what?!) – and that is only about half the list.  With this kind of crew lending their skills, the album is sure to be something worth to checking out.

The full track listing for “The Funk Capitol of the World” includes:

1. “Intro”
2. “Hip Hop @ Funk U” (ft. Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, & Chuck D)
3. “Mirrors Tell Lies (ft. Jimi Hendrix)
4. “JB-Still the Man” (ft. Rev. Al Sharpton)
5. “Freedumb” (ft. Dr. Cornel West)
6. “After These Messages” (ft. Samuel L. Jackson)
7. “Kool Whip” (ft. Phil Ade & iCandice)
8. “The Real Deal” (ft. Sheila E. & iCandice)
9. “Don’t Take My Funk” (ft. Catfish Collins & Bobby Womack)
10. “If Looks Could Kill” (ft. Bela Fleck, Zionplanet-10, & Dennis Chambers)
11. “Minds Under Construction” (ft. Buckethead & (Z-Class))
12. “Siento Bombo” (ft. Olvido Ruiz & Ouiwey)
13. “Garry Shider Tribute” (ft. George Clinton & Linda Shider)
14. “Stars Have No Names (They Just Shine)” (ft. Nick Arnold & Chrissy Dunn)
15. “Chocolate Caramel Angel” (ft. Faith Daniels, Ronnie Racket, & Casper)
16. “Yummy, I Got the Munchies” (ft. Musiq Soulchild, Razzberry Hershey & Tom Joyner)

Bootsy will be at the upcoming National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) show,  January 12th- 16th, as well as the Hard Rock Funk Legends show February 28th in NYC.

Read more about Bootsy’s album here and check out Bootsy Collins’ official website.

Cashmere CES 2011 Recap

Monday, January 10th, 2011

The 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) came to a close yesterday, as tech companies from around the world showcased the best consumer electronics and gadgets that will shape the technology landscape in 2011.

Cashmere had a first-hand look at the spectacle that is CES, in particular the ION Audio and Skullcandy booths, along with some of the great products on display at CES 2011. To help you catch up, here’s a quick rundown of some of the many things we saw at CES 2011.

CES 2011

Last year, 3D televisions were huge, as every major manufacter was readying a 3D television.  That trend continues as more are being developed and some, lead by Toshiba, developing ” glasses free” televisions that has the same quality as sets that require 3-D glasses.

While 3DTV’s dominated last year’s CES, this year it was all about the Tablet. With the success of Apple’s iPad, developers are readying their tablets to capitalize on the growing market with the Blackberry Playbook and Motorola Xoom –which will run Android 3.0, aka Honeycomb– being the most anticipated.

ION Audio

The consumer electronics company showcased many new products that are compatible with Apple’s iPhone/iPod and iPad. Among them was the Piano Master, a 49-key MIDI compliant keyboard. The ION iPad app offers a library of instruments and sounds to play.

ION Audio generated considerable buzz with the debut of its iCade Cabinet, the peripheral that Huffington Post named “one of the Best Products of CES 2011″. The iPad compatible product is a mini arcade cabinet with single player joystick and buttons that docks the iPad into the cabinet to become the screen. Even the “dougie masters” themselves, Cali Swag District, had to stop by and check this gadget out.

Skullcandy

Skullcandy unveiled their new Fix in-ear headphones that are touted as the first ear buds that will never fall out of your ears, no matter the activity. Besides being the makers of some of the best headphones on the market, in the past, Skullcandy has been known to have awesome performers on the show floor for their booth. This year was no exception.

In order to promote their latest products like the Aviator Black, Agent Shoe Blue, and Icon Abel High Card, Skullcandy’s list of headliners included DJ Bless, Lee England, Jr., The Kid Daytona, Supernatural, and Mix Master Mike. Here is Mix Master Mike doing his thing on Skullcandy’s booth stage!

Cashmere Tech Wrap-Up

Friday, January 7th, 2011

PERSON OF THE YEAR 2010

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SOCIALOOMPH.COM

From scheduling tweets and automatically DMing your followers to publishing blog posts and social media updates, this site does it all. It can totally assist you with increasing SNP numbers and being more interactive with your fans/followers. Register for a free account, and get started.

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NEW GROUP MESSAGING SERVICE RIVALS BBM, GROUPME & KIK

Beluga is the newest challenger in the group messaging arena, rivaling Blackberry Messenger, Kik, and GroupMe.  Beluga is a hybrid of these messenger applications in that it allows users to send instant messages between different phone OSes, but differentiates itself in two ways: easier photo sharing and location mapping, plotting the users location on a map with other users in the area.  Lucy Zhang, Beluga’s co-founder and president wants “to build Beluga into what Gmail was for SMS.”

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KILLER FACEBOOK FAN PAGES: 5 INSPIRING CASE STUDIES

When Facebook re-launched its fan pages earlier this year, companies were thrilled. At last, there was a solid way to have a presence on Facebook, and users were actually responding positively. Within a couple of weeks it seemed as though every major brand had put up a page. However, very few are using them well.

The fan pages that are doing it right are the ones that are actively engaging with their fans. These pages have creative content, two-way communication, active discussion boards, videos and images, and a fun and casual tone to match the medium. Below are five mini case studies of brands that are doing everything right when it comes to Facebook fan pages, presented so that you can learn by example. Please share your favorite fan pages in the comments.

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Social Networks are Cashing In

Thursday, January 6th, 2011

LinkedIn, the popular social networking company that connects 85 million professionals, is considering a flotation as investors clamor to pour money into the new generation of internet firms.

A flotation is the first step a private company makes  towards going public before they conduct a initial public offering  (IPO) of stocks or shares of their company. The business-focused networking website was one of the first social-media websites to claim profitability. The company is not commenting on the float speculation but is reported to be considering a formal announcement in the first quarter of this year.

LinkedIn’s move comes amid other social media firms activity. Earlier this week, $500 million was pumped into private company Facebook by Goldman Sachs and Russian investment company Digital Sky Technologies upping the value of Facebook to $50 billion. Groupon, a social media company that offers users local business discounts, recently rejected a $6 billion takeover offer from Google, and instead seeks to raise $1 billion in new funds. Zynga, publisher of the addictive social media games FarmVille and CityVille, is also believed to be considering an initial public offering.

These trends display the power, potential, and promise that social media networks have with not only Main Street, but with Wall Street.