Watch Out for a New Scam on Twitter....

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

Probably not so many people in Japan have the same trouble with Twitter that I do  because, in Japan, Twitter is a new thing and still not that many people are using it (though it is doing well). Most Japanese follow Japanese people (of course) and, since Twitter is relatively new here, it isn't filled with so much noise like I've been noticing coming across Twitter from English speakers recently. I hope that today's short blog makes you consider and think about your own experiences.

I think that, if what is going on now with Twitter in the west continues to grow at the pace it seems to be growing, then Twitter will not be doing well in 3 years. If what is happening with Twitter in the west, starts happening here in Japan, then Twitter will have a very bad future very quickly.

I don't like what I am seeing from many Twitter users in the west.

I mentioned in a previous post how 60% of new Twitter users drop off in the first month and how that spells bad news for the future of the business. But today I'd just like to write a short blog about two things on Twitter that I really don't like and that I've been noticing more and more of in these last few weeks.

I'd like to think this information can be useful to anyone in marketing, bloggers, advertising, PR, Social Media, people who U-Stream, Pick, YouTube, video blog (vlog) and business in general people in Japan. Anyone who thinks or plans on using Twitter for any sort of promotion in Japan should think about this.

What's the problem? There seems to be a huge surge in what is being called "Twitter Junk Mail."  "Twitter Junk Mail and "Twitter Spam" seem to be different animals all together. Whereas Twitter Spam is malicious, Twitter Junk Mail is automated Twitter posts that are generated by computer and ask us to buy something or direct us to some sort of sales gimmick. Sometimes I will get 10 Tweets in a row, all within a few seconds of each other, all from the same person (no one can tweet that fast) and all asking me to buy something.

I always stop following those accounts immediately... Frankly speaking, I've been spending most of my time on Twitter recently canceling accounts that I followed. 

These things - from the west - seem to be exploding on my Twitter account. How about yours?

Most of these Tweets ask me to go see some new and exciting way to make money on Twitter. One recent one - that really motivated me to write this - was a sales method that guaranteed that I could get my Twitter followers up to 20,000 ~ 40,000 people by paying money. There have been several others that claimed that I could make $30,000 a month doing Twitter from my desk! They often ask me to watch a video or short presentation as to how I can make money convincing people to sign up for these pay-as-you-go membership drives. 

One of the pages that I clicked showed that if I wanted 1,000 new Twitter followers then it cost $400... If it were 2,000 new followers, it would be $500... The prices kept going up, with guaranteed results, to 50,000 followers.  

When I would check the Twitter page of the person who joined my group (why they joined my Twitter group is as much a mystery to me as it is to you) and told me about these wonderfully fantastic ways of making money with Twitter, I could see that they had, say, 8,000 followers and were following 8,000 other people. This, seems to me to be a sort of scam and defeating the purpose of Twitter.  

Why anyone would want to pay for a bunch of uninterested followers that have no connection or interest in them is beyond my comprehension. Also, what good is following someone on Twitter when you are also following 20,000 other people?

Junk Mail in your mailbox or Junk Mail on Twitter, what's the difference?

Is having 20,000 followers a sort of bragging right? Perhaps you could make money on this for a short time conning people who are unfamiliar with how this all works (yes, there's LOTS of those still) but this scam will not last long.

It's like getting high rankings on an Internet chart or something by sitting at a desk and clicking on your choice a few million times. Sure, the ranking is good, but it really means nothing.

The purpose of Twitter is to keep up on the latest news of your close friends and family and other topics that interest you. Following 20,000 other people and having 20,000 people following you seems like having a post box outside your home crammed and ready-to-explode with 20,000 pieces of crap direct mail that no one is ever going to look at.

Why would the postman keep delivering to a mailbox like that?

This reminds me of the early days of Myspace. I remember an artist named Cary Brothers coming to the studio a few years ago. Cary was a very nice guy and his music was contemporary.

Before he came to visit me at the studio his company record promoters (I think it was Warner Records) had told me that, "Cary Brothers was a sensation on the Internet and he had a million fans on Myspace!" 

That was his claim to fame and why they signed him. 

When I met Cary he told me that he had spent 8 hours every night, night after night, for over 5  years contacting people on Myspace and asking them to join his fans group on Myspace.

Now, not to detract from Cary Brothers at all as he was one of the earlier musicians to recognize what Myspace can do for an artist, and he is a very talented, intelligent guy (for at least recognizing that these record company executives still haven't a clue about the Internet), but I do want to trash the record company for being so dim about how Myspace works.

On Myspace, generally speaking, unless you are very famous, then you have to go looking for fans; they rarely come to you. What I mean to say is that Bono is not sitting at his computer trying to get people to listen to the new U2 record... But an unheard of artist like Cary Brothers at the time had to ask people to join him in order to get people to sit up and listen. Myspace is a reciprocal SNS service so it is generally as sort of, "You join my Myspace and I'll join yours."

That was in the early days of Myspace when everyone wanted tons of "friends." At that time, pretty much everyone accepted anyone as a friend.

So, I do not want to detract from Cary Brothers as he put in the time and made the effort to create a buzz... I hope that, if you are a good artist, and have great tunes, and you are willing to dedicate yourself fully to thousands of hours in front of a computer then you can get results... If you do, you vindicate the Long Tail.

But to think that someone on Twitter who has, say 10,000 followers, and is following 10,000 themselves is some sort of measure of popularity is, I think, nonsense.

In my opinion "Popular on Twitter" would be someone who has a huge number of followers and very few people they follow.  

Here's a good example of a serious, credible Twitter account:

Lew Rockwell has 3,625 Twitter followers, yet only follows 22 people 

Lew Rockwell has 3,625 followers and yet he follows only 22 people. These are the kinds of numbers that make sense. These other people who have several thousand followers and several thousand that they follow are here today, gone tomorrow. Trust me. 

This scam on Twitter, plus poor retention, is going to spoil Twitter's future. Can they do something about it? Or will they wind up another "Also-ran"?

I predict "Also-ran" like Myspace. 

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Keywords: marketing, Pick, Social Media, business, Twitter Junk Mail, Myspace, PR, advertising, Japan, Twitter, Japanese, Lew Rockwell, followers, bloggers, U-Stream, video blog, vlog, Youtube, Twitter Spam, 

Mike in Tokyo Rogers (me) New Music Videos Japan on U-Stream

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

I remember an old saying that prudish grandmas would say, "Don't jump into the pool until you learn how to swim!" Well how are you going to learn how to swim if you don't get into the pool?

How are you going to learn how to blog, video blog, or do Social Media until you jump into the water?

I do Internet marketing and SEO services in Japan now, but, in my former life, I was a TV and radio producer, director, and caster... When it comes to U-Stream, I am just getting my feet wet.  I've had a YouTube channel for a long time as YouTube is more like traditional TV, but U-Stream is different.

To learn how to do U-Stream well, I've been helping George Williams on his daily show for about 7 months now and started doing my own weekly do a weekly underground new music video show on www.georgewilliams.jp where you can find the weekly Top 5, where I find and play totally new and undiscovered cool artists and play them for you.

As I mentioned many times before, you need to consistently blog or video blog (vlog) at least 3 times a week to be successful on Social Media and using it to do marketing in Japan...

I make the video and, before it airs live, I use Twitter, Pick, Facebook, Mixi and my company web page at Universal Vision to notify people that it is about to air, then, after it is over and recorded, I do the same.  The link is here:

It's all a part of keeping on top of the game for Internet Social Media Marketing. There's no real rule book, it seems to me, the best ideas will come to you from just doing it and thinking up new and creative ways to market your self or your product.

So, instead of just waiting to start because you don't know what to do... Just jump into the pool! You'll learn as you go. The water is great!

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Keywords: video blog, Mixi, Social Media, Facebook, YouTube, Japan, Internet, U-Stream, Mike in Tokyo Rogers, Twitter, blog, Mixi, Social Media Marketing, Universal Vision, George Williams, Marketing Japan, vlog, New Music Videos Japan

Get High Google Rankings: Blog and Write Everyday!...

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

It is my purpose to get my name and the name of my company and service out to the public in the most effective way possible; and the best way to do that is to use the Internet. The Internet is targeted marketing and media and it allows me to focus my message to the audience; and it does it for free. I cannot think of a cheaper price than free, can you? 

I go to the Internet to get great information with a focused message; and I get that information for free. I hope that this is the same reason some of you good folks come to see me everyday. I'm trying to give you all tips on how to empower yourselves and increase your business in Japan everyday. 


One reader asked me how it was possible that I was able to get my name at #1 on a Google search if someone merely searched "Mike" and "Tokyo" (remember that there are millions of foreigners in this country and there's been many many famous Mike7s to come here; think Mike Tyson in Tokyo, etc., etc.) Well, let me tell you that you can do the same thing too! You can get high rankings on a Google or Yahoo search in the most cost effective way possible. But, just starting a blog or a vlog and letting sit there isn't going to do it.


You can either buy search words like BP did for "Oil Spill" etc., or, if you are on a limited budget, then you can put in the effort. Elbow grease is the answer, my friends!  


I believe that the only way to get great Google or Yahoo search results is to keep hammering away at putting out a lot of good quality stuff on a consistent basis. You must keep at the blogging and writing and to continually put up good quality, useful stuff, for your readers. You need to put up new information at least 3 times a week and you need to keep the message focused.


But how to keep the message focused? That could be tough, especially if there are so many topics that interest you. Like me. I'm interested in many things Japan. So I write for three different places; my blog, my company blog, and on wwwlewrockwell.com 


This blog (my blog) is targeted to foreign businessmen wanting to sell their products and services in Japan to the Japanese... Only. (If that seems obvious or absurd, realize that there are many foreigners in Japan trying to sell their products and services to the other foreigners living here. I do not deal with those). That's why this blog is called, "Modern Marketing Japan." 


On my company blog, Universal-vision.jp, I mirror items on this blog, but I also place Japanese language news releases there too. Here's a recent example. The final place that I try to blog consistently is at Lew Rockwell. Lew Rockwell is the most read Libertarian site in the world and ranked by Alexa in the Top 15 of the most read sites in the entire world. 


Blogging, making YouTube videos, Twitter, Myspace, Facebook, Mixi and doing U-Stream are all important but remember that just setting up a blog or a YouTube channel and then putting up new information on it once a month or once every two months is just not going to get you the results you need. You need to put up new blogs, information or videos at least three times a week.


As David Meerman Scott wrote in the bible of new media marketing, The New Rules of Marketing and PR, when he quoted the president of The Concrete Network;


"You need to think about how a series of one hundred news releases over two years will benefit your business and then commit to it, understanding that nothing is an overnight thing." 

Of course, this is all a part of my ever continuing opinion that, if you want to succeed in Social Media, Marketing and the Internet, then you must continually produce content by writing and on your own blog and give it away for free. 


Write a lot but keep messages focused... By the way, I have another new article on Lew Rockwell about silly things in Japan here.


I hope you get a laugh.




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60% of Twitter Users Quit in First Month

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers


Holy cow! Pay attention all you marketing, bloggers, advertising, PR, Social Media, people who U-Stream, Pick and video blog (vlog) and business in general people in Japan, I just stumbled upon this article from Nielsen Ratings that show some big trouble for Twitter down the road.

It seems that Twitter has a very poor retention rate for new users. In fact, Twitter's retention rate is worse than Facebook or Myspace and both of those Social Networking services are dying a slow death in Japan.


From the article:


Currently, more than 60 percent of U.S. Twitter users fail to return the following month, or in other words, Twitter’s audience retention rate, or the percentage of a given month’s users who come back the following month, is currently about 40 percent. For most of the past 12 months, pre-Oprah, Twitter has languished below 30 percent retention.


The problem with this retention rate is that it means that Twitter's long term growth is in serious question. It means that Twitter can only hope for a 10 percent reach. That's not good at all.


I have mentioned before that I think, in Japan, that Pick will blow away Twitter as Pick allows a photo to be placed right on the tweet (whereas Twitter forces the user to click a link)...


Could Twitter also face the problem that the entire Internet faced during the times of the dot-com bubble burst? That was when the Internet turned off lots of people because it was becoming too much of a tool for just selling things? Could Twitter be getting that sort of bad rap?


If Oprah Winfrey blabs about Twitter on TV and then, even she can't retain more than 60%... Could Twitter as a product or a service be in big trouble down the road here very soon? 

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Keywords: marketing, U-Steam, Google, blog, bloggers, tweet, product, Facebook, Internet, Myspace, Mike in Tokyo Rogers,  business, vlog, service, Japanese, Marketing Japan, Twitter, Social Media, Pick, Japan, TV, Japan's, advertising, blog, video blog, 

Write a Blog! But at Least Spell-Check!

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

I wonder if Barack Obama Twitters or, at least, does Pick, or any other Social Media? I guess he certainly must not blog himself. If he does, then, judging from his White House transcripts,  those must be nearly unreadable. And, if so, forget about his Facebook or Myspace... Those must be a total mess.

Marketing, blogging and doing Social Media is a must in this day and age.... Well, duh! You knew that already. You'd think that the president of the United States would know that too. You are about to be shocked by just how useless these people in government are!

But, I guess, Barack Obama is a moron, like his predecessor... Is Obama as dim as Bushy Boy? I think he is, but you be the judge.

Many people have asked me, "How do you blog so much?" Well, the secret, I think, is to - funnily enough - not to think too much. The secret to blogging often (3, 4, 5 times a week) is to write down what you want to say in your blog, Twitter, Pick, whatever  immediately on the fly - then spell check it - then upload as soon as possible.

You've got to strike while the iron is hot!

If you keep editing and re-editing your blog, it will kill the creative juices and slow down your productivity greatly.

So, when it comes to Social Media and Social Media Marketing, in Japan or your country, then the rules and hints to frequent blogging are to:

1) Write quickly while the ideas are fresh.
2) At least spell-check before uploading
3) Edit after uploading
4) Edit as much as you like using this method. Keep doing it until you get it right.

Simple enough.

Now, just for a laugh, I've got to show you the press release from the White House about president Barack Obama's latest comments. I know how hard it is to keep from making mistakes on a blog as I make them all the time, but you'd think the President of the United States could at least arrange to have work done better than a 4th grade level. Jeez, doesn't this guy have a proof-reader?

I'm not making this up. This is the White House press release. It is full of amateurish mistakes. I have highlighted the mistakes for you (if this is the level of work we get from the White House and Obama, then we are in serious trouble):

Obama: "We need to commit to fiscal adjustments that stabilize debt-to-GDP ratios at appropriate levels over the medium tenn. I am committed to the restoration of fiscal sustainability in the United States and believe that all G-20 countries should put in place credible and growthfriendly plans to restore sustainable public finances. But it is critical that the timing and pace of consolidation in each economy suit the needs of the global economy, the momentum of private sector demand, and national circumstances. We must be flexible in adjusting the pace of consolidation and learn from the consequential mistakes of the past when stimulus was too quickly withdrawn and resulted in renewed economic hardships and recession. For our part, we will pursue measures to SUppOit the recovery in private demand and return the unemployed to work. At the same time, we recognize the impoltance of setting a credible medium-term fiscal path: that is why my Administration will cut the budget deficit we inherited in halfby FY 2013 and work to reduce our fiscal deficit to 3 percent ofGDP by FY 2015, which will stabilize the debt-to-GDP ratio at an acceptable level in that year."

There are a bunch of other mistakes in this message, but I just copied and pasted one paragraph here for you. There are a bunch more at the original. Is this a joke, or what? I understand a simpleton like myself, making these sorts of spell-check errors, but the president of the United States of America? And in an official press release? Think about it folks, this guy is the leader of the western world!? Like I said, I'm not making this up... 

We're doomed. The insane have taken over the asylum.
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