Happy New Year everyone! Hope everyone’s full week back wasn’t too difficult. It’s 2011 and the social media world is already buzzing.

  • The International Consumer Electronics Show is this week. The Twittersphere has been full of tweets about new technology and gadgets. Search for #CES to see what everyone’s been talking about. We hear Lady Gaga, the new creative director for Polaroid, made an appearance…
  • Speaking of CES, several exhibitors are utilizing social media to gain attention for their booths. For example, electronics maker JVC used their Twitter page to offer prizes and had Facebook users who checked-in to the JVC Facebook Places booth entered into a competition to win products. Check-in applications were the fad for several companies.
  • Still searching for a job? Why not try uploading a YouTube video. Following the footsteps of several new stars, Ted Williams, a former Ohio homeless man, gained much recognition for having a “God-given voice.” Newsgroup, Columbus Dispatch uploaded a YouTube video this Tuesday, January 4th and by Thursday, Williams nabbed a job with Kraft Mac & Cheese. He’s been approached by the Cleveland Cavaliers and MTV. The video has since been copyrighted but has had over 11 million views.
  • Took a lot of photos during New Year’s Eve? Facebook users uploaded a record-breaking 750 million photos over New Year’s Weekend. That’s a lot of work-questionable photos.
  • Brewing up some marketing campaigns for the New Year? Mashable gave a “how-to” on launching a successful Twitter contest. A wise tip: a Twitter contest should go beyond promoting; it should encompass your business plan and take it beyond what was intended. And make sure to follow-up your campaign! Gather analytics at the end and see what deemed successful and what completely flopped. Social media is all about learning and adapting.
  • And last but not least, another media craze that has added “-apocalypse” to the end. BIRDPOCALYPSE. Over the past several days, hundreds of birds throughout the middle country have been falling straight from the sky. The bizarre incident is creating quite a media frenzy. Though reasons for the strange happenings are still being investigated, experts say a real apocalypse is unlikely.

We can’t wait for the next YouTube sensation, business acquisition/merger, or media-POCALYPSE! Till next week…