Social Networking’s Free Marketing Plan

My brother’s band recently released an album and to help promote their music, they are offering a free download when you tweet about the offer. This is a great way for new musicians to get their music to a bigger audience. It is normally pretty easy to give away things for free, so why not get people talking about your product, service, etc. with a simple tweet or Facebook post? This also helps businesses, bands, or even production companies gain better insight about what they are offering by tracking the popularity of the free item. If several people are interested in a free download, you can gain an idea of their response to a full album release, pricing the album appropriately for the audience and the artist.

Is it the Game or the Gamer?

A recent article posted by USAToday suggests that the issues around video games begin with the player, not the content. Studies are now showing that the focus should be on each player’s personality. If your child is already one that is aggressive and violent, those kinds of video games may only encourage those actions, which is why those players should limit their violent video game content. Several studies are being conducted about the affect of video games on their players. Patrick Markey of Villanova (Pa.) University presented his research at a meeting of the American Psychological Association. "Video games are not simply good or bad for everybody," he says. "But for some individuals who have certain dispositions, if they play video games they're much more likely to be negatively affected." (Jayson, Sharon.)