There are five steps in social media we always recommend to new clients who are just beginning to branch out online. They are listen, assess, engage, measure, and refine/improve. The Art and Science of Listening While each step is important, the foundation to any online effort is listening. And it's the one step you can do without [...]

Read More: Eight Tools for Social Media Listening

In a recent international study by Experian Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service with the world’s largest sample of internet users, the home Internet usage of various individuals from eight different countries accessing Facebook during August 2011 has been revealed. Brazil, Singapore, US, India, New Zealand, France, Australia and the UK all have surprisingly different results.

Read More: A look at Facebook usage across eight different countries

Groupon just can’t seem to find its feet. Before it initially filed to go public, it was lauded as the top deals site on the web. In no time, it grew a substantial operation reaching thousands of merchants and millions of users. And then, with its first S1 filing, the honeymoon ended. Lack of profits, founders pulling big piles of cash out of the operation (via dividend payments following venture capital infusions) and merchant frustration were among the issues that surfaced.

Read More: The Latest from Groupon: Eight Brutal Facts