andrewcareaga

Out there in the higher ed social media sphere, you’ll run in to all types of people. But when it comes to scouring the web for interesting, useful stuff, aggregating it and sharing it with the rest of us, you won’t find anyone better than Mark Greenfield.

Mark’s Delicious bookmarks are a fantastic resource. Connect with Mark’s Delicious feed, and you’ll connect with great resources about education, social media, marketing, etc., all reviewed and vetted by a seasoned marketing and web pro.

Mark is one of the few higher ed influentials out there who knows how to use social bookmarking as a connector to those of us who spend more time blogging and tweeting than bookmarking. He’s also one of the few true experts who manages to expand our knowledge base without inserting his ego into the mix. Thanks, Mark, for sharing all this great information in a straightforward, spin-free manner. We could use a lot more of that these days.

(Follow Mark on Twitter — @markgr — to get his latest finds.)

Happy Friday! Why not take some time today to pay it forward in your social mediasphere? Here are five ways you can do that:

Comment on a blog. Spend a few minutes surfing some of your favorite blogs (or better than that, read some not-so-familiar blogs) and then post a comment on a post that especially resonates with you. Since the idea here is to pay it forward, the comment should be positive or constructive, but sincere. And make it meaningful — something more than, “Great post, Johnny!” (Note: I’m not purposely trolling for comments here.)
Retweet — sincerely. On Twitter, the practice of retweeting has become a big part of the experience and has become the Twitter version of paying it forward. People retweet articles and blog posts they like, so that other members of their networks can get in on the action. But as often as many people retweet (RT) posts, I get the feeling some folks aren’t really reading the contents; they’re just forwarding the links the way your Aunt Gracie forwards emails about Microsoft money giveaways or Neiman-Marcus cookie recipes. So, don’t be one of those people. Don’t gratuitously retweet. But do retweet those posts or articles you find worthy of the act.
Give a Facebook friend the thumbs up. Use Facebook’s “like” application to let some of your Facebook connections know you like or appreciate their status post.
Give props. If you’re on the popular music site blip.fm and hear a song you like, give that DJ props. Better yet, reblip the tune. (Reblipping is the musical version of retweeting.)
Send an email. Remember email? OK, technically it doesn’t fall under the social networking rubric. But still, it’s a good way to connect with some folks. How about dropping a line to someone today to congratulate that person on a job well done, or even just let that person know he or she is in your thoughts?