If you’re like us, you’re obsessed with Pinterest. You get excited when you find pictures you love and pin them to your online bulletin boards with a sense of pride that they are yours.

With so many photos on the two-year-old social scrapbooking site — and countless more added each day — it’s common for some to only get a handful of re-pins. Meanwhile, other images pick up so much popularity that they go virtually viral, getting pinned from one board to the next.

SEE ALSO: 7 Tips for Planning a Wedding on Pinterest | Pinterest Becomes Top Traffic Driver for Retailers [INFOGRAPHIC]

Here are 15 of some of the most popular pictures on Pinterest — all of which have raked in more than 15,000 re-pins each.

Are any of these pictures on your boards? If not, go ahead and pin them, or leave some suggestions in the comments about your favorite pins.

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/EUWNyzaJ6zw/

Leo Widrich is the co-founder of Buffer, a new way to publish tweets and Facebook posts at better times for more impact. He writes more about social media tips and tools on the Buffer blog. Follow him on Twitter @LeoWid or subscribe to his Facebook updates.

When Twitter recently launched the newest version of its iPhone app, the company focused on streamlining and simplifying the user interface.

Ryan Sarver, head of Twitter API, said, “In a world where Facebook and Google are competing on features, Twitter wants to focus on being simple.”

However, even as the official Twitter app keeps it straightforward, developers are providing more in-depth Twitter capabilities on other apps. I took a look at various Twitter iPhone applications on the market today. Learn how you can expand your Twitter capabilities using these apps.

1. TweetList

TweetList can greatly enhance your tweeting experience on your iPhone. A full-fledged Twitter client, the app comes with other advanced features, like ReadItLater and Instapaper to save and read things later on.

Why is it worth checking out?

People in the marketing and social media industries accumulate a steady stream of followers, many of whom they follow back. As time goes on, it becomes much harder to keep up with the quickly flowing streams.

Twitter lists are a great way to organize your followers conveniently in one place. TweetList helps you do exactly that in a focused and aesthetic way.

How can you get the most out of it?

TweetList comes with a list swipe function. You can conveniently swap between all lists and catch up with your focused circle of top thinkers.

While I can easily reply to mentions and DMs or view my stream from my desktop, lists are harder to tackle. Whenever I am on the move, I can pull up TweetList, cycle through my lists and engage with different sets of people in my network more easily.

2. Flipboard for iPhone

Only a few weeks back, Flipboard unveiled its brand new iPhone app. I anticipated it would just be Flipboard for iPad in a smaller format, but I couldn’t be more wrong. The adjustments between the iPad and the iPhone app are fantastic, and truly reflect the different reading and scrolling habits of users.

Why is it worth checking out?

If you primarily use Twitter to consume content, Flipboard is made for you. You can browse by lists or individual Twitter accounts, or pick one of the browsing tools from Flipboard. I especially enjoy the “Flipboard Picks” for consistently quality information.

How can you get the most out of it?

You can use Flipboard’s Twitter search function both for tracking events and monitoring a keyword. The app allows me to browse and engage with articles by keyword, for instance, “CES2012.”

Bonus: To access top Twitter news, try Summify’s iPhone app. This app only presents a limited number of posts (five, by default), so you’ll never be overwhelmed with too much content at once.

3. Boxcar

Boxcar lets you connect to email, major social networks, RSS feeds and lots of other services. In return, the app sends you messages as push notifications, whenever something newsworthy happens on your connected services.

Why is it worth checking out?

Many Twitter apps send push notifications for mentions or new DMs, but the notification capabilities of Boxcar are unmatched. You can set up any of the following notifications.

New tweets from individual people: Don’t want to miss certain updates from a few select people? Add them to Boxcar and receive push notifications whenever they tweet.

Twitter lists: Get notified of any new messages from your connected Twitter lists.

Twitter search: Receive a nudge if any of your saved searches tweet.

Twitter trends: Choose to be notified only if there are any changes in the current Twitter trends.

How can you get the most out of it?

I don’t actively use Boxcar as a primary Twitter client, but more as a personal Twitter assistant. You set up key things to be notified about and then view the messages only. Plus, Boxcar separates notifications into different inboxes for easier filtering and review.

4. SocialDash and Tweeb

I always had a hard time finding good Twitter analytics iPhone apps. Tweeb and SocialDash helped me gain a better understanding of how well I am performing on Twitter.

Why is it worth checking out?

Tweeb focuses on hard Twitter analytics such as followers, click-through rate, retweets and mention rate. SocialDash, on the other hand, provides more soft analytics insights, such as Klout Scores, Peerindex rank, etc.

If you only have a few minutes to check stats, the two apps are a great way to take a quick peek. SocialDash’s handy “compare” feature lets you compare the social scores of any two users. ?
At the same time, Tweeb’s “summary” page gives you a great overview on whether your click rate and follower rate has been improving or slowing down.

How can you get the most out of it?

Although most Twitter apps have fantastic UXs, they still take longer compared to web interface usability. Having some analytics to help me make the right decisions can be very helpful, especially on my mobile phone.

Whenever I become overwhelmed with mentions and replies and I only have limited time to reply to a few, I check the person’s social scores using SocialDash.

Also, use Tweeb to improve the copywriting on your tweets or to check on the number of clicks per tweet. Oftentimes, I’ll then schedule the tweet again for later.

In 2012, new apps will allow us to harness Twitter’s power from the iPhone more efficiently. What are your favorite ways to use Twitter on your iPhone? How would you use the above apps to improve and streamline your Twitter presence?

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, SimmiSimons

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/P8V9_RcG-aw/

Steve Rubel is EVP of global strategy and insights for Edelman, the world’s largest public relations firm. Rubel studies the future of media and helps clients unify their communications strategies across traditional, emerging, owned and social channels.

Modern technology can’t actually fix the weather — at least not yet. However, social networking and mobile devices can certainly help us cope with mother nature when she shows her wrath. In addition, they may also play a role in how scientists crowdsource data to develop long-range forecasts. (Maybe it can help to explain why it’s 60 degrees here in New York in February.)

Bonnie Schneider, a meteorologist who appears on CNN and HLN, has written a new book called Extreme Weather, in which she details what’s behind all the wild weather we seem to be having lately, and how to best prepare.

In the following QA with Schneider, we cover how to use mobile technology and social networking to prepare for and cope with unusual weather events. We also discuss how she increasingly uses social media in her work.

QA with Meteorologist Bonnie Schneider

It seems like every day the media writes about an extreme weather event that we hadn’t seen before. What’s going on? Is this just our perception, or are we witnessing real climatological change?

Last year was an incredible year for extreme weather. According to NOAA, last year 552 people were killed in tornadoes. That tied 2011 with 1936 as the second deadliest tornado year on record. There are climatologists that point to a warming climate bringing about an uptick in extreme weather, as well as scientists who regard extremes in weather part of climatological cycles.

From a societal note, our population has significantly increased in the past 50 years or so. Many communities are more densely populated, and therefore, more people are at risk for a dangerous weather event to impact them directly.

In your book, you detail how to best prepare for floods, tornadoes, snowstorms and more. How should we prepare our mobile gadgets for such events? What services are essential?

There are many. FEMA has an app that offers disaster safety tips and an interactive emergency checklist. In a new and free app called SOS from the American Red Cross, Dr. Mehmet Oz and Sharecare make it even easier for the average person to help in an emergency. It provides real-time emergency care instructions and an expansive resource guide for emergency care information in order to help save lives.

However, I want to emphasize that people should not rely solely on their cellphones in the time of an emergency. During disasters, cellphones don’t always work. This is especially true when traveling to campgrounds and remote places. A NOAA Weather Alert Radio that’s battery operated is more reliable to alert you to severe weather.

The book has a chapter specifically on using social media in extreme weather events. What are some tips we should consider either ahead of time or in an emergency?

The main point on using social media tools in extreme weather events is to not wait until the event happens to learn how to use them.

In the event of a natural disaster, Twitter, for example, may be the fastest and most accessible way to get and receive information. This was evident for many during the earthquake and tsunami in Japan last March 2011. During extreme weather situations, following and posting with hashtags on trending topics like #tsunami or #wildfire are helpful to follow to gather information quickly.

Communicating via your cellphone sounds basic, but in preparation for a natural disaster, make sure everyone in the family knows how to text and how to upload pictures and send them. Family members’ phone numbers can be grouped together in a special list so you can reach everyone at once. Lists are also a good idea on Facebook. You can make lists of your family members on your “friends” list with the same intention of reaching more people quickly. Geolocation apps are also helpful in order to quickly post where you are.

Also, in creating a family disaster plan, social media comes into play. It’s recommended that each family member knows and is comfortable with what their role is in the event of an evacuation on short notice — that includes how to use social media. You want to avoid someone saying, “We didn’t know how to reach you.”

How did Facebook play a key role in helping you find great anecdotes to include in the book? What kind of advice would you give authors in this regard?

Years ago, when I was writing the proposal for this book in order to sell it to a publisher, I was researching specifically for my sample chapters. I wanted to interview people with real life survivor stories of living through the devastation of a natural disaster. But the question was: How would I find these people? I knew my book would cover all types of weather from all over the country. So this would not be an easy task.

After a tragedy occurs, like a destructive tornado or a hurricane, often a Facebook page is set up where survivors can share stories and comment on other people’s experiences. At that time, I was on a Hurricane Katrina page and one woman’s comments stood out to me as especially compelling. I sent her a message on Facebook about my book.

This was years ago, but I still remember her response: “If you are indeed the real Bonnie Schneider, I will help you with your book. If you are some kind of impostor, I won’t!” Well, that made me laugh, and of course, I wanted to interview her even more!

I would advise authors to not be afraid to message people you don’t already know to introduce yourself and request an interview. The worst they can say is no.

I also know that you are now using social media to more actively engage your audience. What tips can you share?

I had a fan page with nearly 9,500 fans, and then another page that was a mix of friends and fans. I’d reached the 5,000 friend limit and had over 1,000 friend requests pending that I couldn’t accept on that one. Facebook explained to me that I should change this page to the subscriber option in order to reach more people. I did that, and it seems to be working. On that page, I’ve maintained the 5,000 friends and now have over 60,000 subscribers. Many are international.

In terms of engagement, I’m sure most people who use Twitter already know the more you tweet and the more people you follow, the more followers you get in return. I use weather-related hashtags, and I’ve tweeted back and forth with other television meteorologists. Some I’ve never met in person. I regularly tweet with my followers too.

In terms of engagement tips, I think questions are great for status updates, I can get a lot more feedback when I post a question. Also uploading pictures works well.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, joruba, Flickr, Stuck in Customs

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/aCmfZxErYso/

So you just got a Facebook friend request from a woman you don’t know. Maybe she’s already connected to some of your friends, maybe she isn’t, but she has about 700 friends total. She seldom updates her profile, but tags her photos like crazy. She went to a college relatively close to her high school. She isn’t too interested in entertainment, but she is interested in both men and women.

If that sounds like your dream friend, sorry — it also sounds exactly like the average fake profile set up by malicious users intent on spreading spam and malware once they’ve friended you.

Security research firm Barracuda Labs studied 2,884 active Facebook accounts, looking for key differences between average real user accounts and fake accounts created by hackers and spammers. Check out the results in the infographic below.

Of course, it’s hardly surprising that malicious users are using pictures of cute-looking women (note the fake profile pics in the border) with exotic sexual interests to reel in the unsuspecting. But the other details are likely to raise an eyebrow.

For instance, if the user’s college was 300 miles from their high school rather than 600 miles, that makes them more likely to be fake. We’ve no idea why this should be. Perhaps malware makers think that’s a believable pattern of movement.

The excessive photo-tagging makes some kind of sense — it’s the kind of thing a malicious user can do quickly to make multiple profiles seem active interconnected. Evidently they should be adding more updates and entertainment interests too.

Have you ever friended a fake profile? Time to ‘fess up — in the comments.

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/IkuF51dguRQ/

The online storm surrounding Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s decision to pull funding from Planned Parenthood came to a close on Friday when Komen reversed its decision.

Score another point for social media.

On Tuesday, the Komen Foundation announced new funding criteria that would severely restrict grants set aside for Planned Parenthood to provide mammograms for low-income women. Planned Parenthood’s CEO alleges that the Komen Foundation pulled support because of political pressure from anti-choice groups.

Planned Parenthood issued a statement Friday thanking the public for its support and pledging continued partnership with Komen.

“With the outpouring of support over the past week,” it said, “even more women in need will receive lifesaving breast cancer care.”

In an apology letter posted to Komen’s website and Facebook, Komen said it was “distressed at the presumption that the changes made to our funding criteria were done for political reasons or to specifically penalize Planned Parenthood. They were not.”

Twitter and Facebook users once again directed a national organization’s policy.

Komen said on its blog on Friday that it initially retracted funding from Planned Parenthood because of an investigation against the organization — not for political reasons. However, Komen says it has changed its internal rules to only restrict funding to organizations that are undergoing criminal and conclusive investigations.

Planned Parenthood is being investigated by Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., for possibly using federal money to pay for abortions.

Komen posted a video on its Facebook page with Founder and CEO Nancy G. Brinker giving some “straight talk” to viewers. In the three-and-a-half minute clip below, Brinker says the de-funding of Planned Parenthood was mischaracterized by some.

“We have the highest responsibility to ensure that these donor dollars make the biggest impact possible,” Brinker said in the video. “Starting in 2010, I initiated a comprehensive review of our grants and standards — this isn’t unusual — we’re always looking at our policies and procedures to be sure that we are doing the right thing for our supporters and the women we serve.”

During the past three days, “Planned Parenthood,” “Komen” and a meme saying “Still Standing With Planned Parenthood” with an arrow pointing to the username have circulated Facebook. The word “Komen” spiked in popularity on Tuesday night when the story first broke, according to WebProNews and Trendistic.

“Social media can play a significant role in organizations’ communications and community building, particularly for nonprofits like Komen and Planned Parenthood whose donor and advocacy base are active on social networks,” said Allyson Kapin, founder of Women Who Tech. “This past week we saw Komen’s community revolt after hearing the news that Komen was planning to take away Planned Parenthood’s funding for breast cancer screening services. And it was not pretty. They broke all rules of community engagement.”

Below are tweets and posts that sum-up the past few days of controversy:

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Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/N5UsUkFXcGI/

Two international cancer prevention groups think the online community can — and should — take a stab at the worldwide cancer epidemic. In honor of World Cancer Day, Feb. 4, Stand Up To Cancer and the Union for International Cancer Control are launching a Facebook app that they hope will create a digital buzz that will reduce the spread of the disease.

The World Cancer Day Facebook app asks you to commit to make a change in your life — or help a friend make a change — to prevent cancer. Most of the preventative behaviors the app suggests are the standard adages associated with healthy living; eating green vegetables, exercising regularly, avoiding cigarettes and alcohol and wearing sunscreen. You can also pledge to help a friend quit smoking, learn about cancer or donate money to cancer research.

Both Stand Up 2 Cancer and the Union for International Cancer Control hope that the app, video and social campaigns will help raise awareness about behaviors that prevent cancer. The groups claim that one in three cancer deaths can be avoided through lifestyle changes like those the app addresses.

The app also allows you to make your pledge in honor of someone in your life who may have suffered from the disease or be affected in some other way.

“On World Cancer Day, we can unite people globally to take a stand against it through social media,” says Stand Up To Cancer co-founder and ABC correspondent Katie Couric. “Working together, we can end cancer’s reign as a leading cause of death.”

Last year, nearly 67,000 people donated their Facebook status for World Cancer Day. The campaign hopes the new app will increase that number.

Other aspects of the digitally focused World Cancer Day campaign include the #WorldCancerDay hashtag on Twitter. The two organizations also put out a star-studded video (above) featuring Natasha Bedingfield, Kate Bosworth, Jimmy Fallon, Jennifer Garner, Seth Rogen, Emma Stone and more.

Do you think Facebook status updates are a good way to generate awareness? How should social good campaigns best use Facebook? Let us know in the comments.

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/1iAqTbRzqDg/

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.

Companies that rely on a visual or photographic web presence often find it difficult to convey their media on Twitter. Take, for instance, apparel brands that need to get social media eyes on their merchandise, or a design firm that seeks exposure. How can these types of businesses ensure that Twitter followers see their wares?

Ecommerce or design companies may prefer Facebook, due to its inherently visual and expansive nature. However, businesses these days can’t afford to bypass Twitter entirely — especially because many people keep their Twitter feeds open all day long.

Read on to discover four pillars of “visual tweeting,” or how to make sure that your Twitter followers get the picture.

1. Twitter Voice Should Be Consistent and Relevant

Obviously not all businesses can afford to hire a social media manager who monitors and shares across social channels full-time. However, try to keep the same individual tweeting most of the time so that your Twitter account’s voice and style remains consistent.

That said, people come to visual-centric brands for a reason. They follow these types of companies and individuals in the hope of discovering new clothing, products, design tips and inspiration in general. Therefore, be sure to provide that very thing.

Amazing new borderless display from LG. Now this looks like the future. cl.ly/D0TS

— Mike Rundle (@flyosity) January 2, 2012

Remember these two tips: Be descriptive and be relevant. If you want to share a new collection of animal print blouses or a fancy new gadget, explain as much about the product as you can in 140 characters. If you include detail, like in designer Mike Rundle’s tweet above, people will be more inclined to click when they’re intrigued by the prospect of a visual payoff. Then, either link or embed an image at the end of your description.

Inexplicable craving for Lucky Charms – does this ever happen to anybody else?

— Topshop (@Topshop) January 5, 2012

On the other hand, if your Twitter account represents a visual brand, don’t get too personal to the point of being off-topic (read: Lucky Charms?). People are following your business, not your personal account, for a reason. It’s a tough balance to strike, especially because people want to feel that a brand is relatable and human. A good rule of thumb is to keep every tweet related to your visually-pleasing products or personal brand, but to kill two birds with one stone by injecting a fun or off-beat voice at the same time.

2. Favor Native Images

Now that you’ve got a tweet’s description down, it’s time to attach an image. There’s no rule that says you must embed your images into your Twitter feed, but now that Twitter allows you to do it, why not make it easier for your followers?

Third-party photo apps like Instagram, TwitPic and yfrog allow you to attach images to a tweet that can be expanded immediately within a Twitter feed, so the user doesn’t have to jump to a photo app’s website. Keep in mind, however, that these apps perform differently on mobile. For instance, on Twitter’s iPhone app, Instagram kicks you out to a separate page, but you’re able to view a TwitPic image directly underneath the tweet. Perform a test-run to determine which app suits your business best.

3. Pageviews Are Paramount

Although embedding images into tweets is convenient and visually pleasing, you’re likely still clamoring for pageviews, and therefore, will want to link out to your site as often as possible. That means you’ll have to be more strategic than ever.

15% OFF for type lovers at @FontShop until Friday. Use ‘Veerle15? in the promo code field. fontshop.com

— Veerle Pieters (@vpieters) January 4, 2012

Try putting attractive language at the beginning of a tweet that your followers can’t resist. Designer Veerle Pieters advertises a sale using caps lock, and then directs people to her site.

The Doctor is in. ow.ly/8jCMX

— NASTY GAL (@NastyGal) January 5, 2012

Above all, don’t be vague or else people won’t click through to see your product or design, ultimately losing you valuable pageviews. For example, women’s apparel company Nasty Gal may have a distinct and irreverent voice, but its tweets often do little to introduce attached links. How are we supposed to know that “The Doctor is in” refers to a blog post about Doc Martens?

4. Backgrounds Still Matter

Although more and more people are accessing Twitter profiles via simplified mobile design or dashboard applications like TweetDeck, you might still consider customizing your Twitter.com profile background.

Take a tip from Etsy, which set up a contest for users to submit a background design. Winning designs were featured as Etsy’s Twitter profile background for one month.

Or create your own background that reflects your product or design aesthetic. But be sure to take into account Twitter’s new profile design, which locates the tweet feed on the right-hand side of the page, and lists and suggestions on the left-hand side. Therefore, don’t let important images fall underneath your profile’s opaque boxes. For instance, can you spot the elusive third model in Topshop’s background above?

Instead of obscuring important information, create images that account for the placement and width of the Twitter feed, like designer Grace Smith, whose left-hand mini-bio adds a smart touch.

How do you or the brands you follow optimize a tweet to reflect its visual content? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, SteveByland

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/_WRaNhyRNvQ/

If there’s one thing we learned after Facebook dropped its S-1 to file for an IPO this past week it’s that the company makes a lot of money through advertising.

However, zero came from mobile advertising. That’s about to change, according to a report from DigiDay that quotes Razorfish‘s mobile head as saying the company is working with Facebook on “mobile and cross-platform rich-media ads.”

As more of Facebook’s audience turns to mobile, it’s no surprise the company is seeking ways to monitize off of those users. However, mobile advertising has proved a tough nut to crack. Aside from search ads, users seem to find advertising on their mobile phones to be an intrusion. Can Facebook develop mobile ads that won’t annoy its users? Do you think mobile ads will change the Facebook experience? Let us know if the comments.

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/MTgcoSGkJBA/

News of Facebook‘s IPO swamped the Internet earlier this week, when the company’s 213-page S-1 document went up on the SEC’s website, promptly crashing it.

In addition to confirming previous reports that the filing was imminent, the document contained numerous interesting facts that many have long been wondering, such as the company’s revenue, how much Mark Zuckerberg makes, and who the company’s highest-paid employees are.

There were also several key company insights disclosed, such as the factors that Facebook considers to be risks.

Additionally, Mark Zuckerberg himself wrote a letter to potential shareholders, in which he said that Facebook was created for a “social mission – to make the world more open and connected.”

It’s a fascinating look at Facebook, but also a massive document full of legalese and complicated facts. We’ve done our best to break down the most important figures and bits of information, but now you can test yourself: how well do you know the Facebook IPO? Take our quiz below and let us know in the comments what questions you have.

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/jvJCKo_2y4U/

Macala Wright is the publisher of FashionablyMarketing.Me, one of the leading fashion and retail industry business websites. She is a retail consultant and business strategist who specializes in marketing consulting for fashion, luxury and lifestyle brands. You can follower her on Twitter at @InsideFMM or @Macala.

In 2010, branded content was one the largest trends among retailers and brands. In 2011, branded content shifted to branded entertainment. Now, in 2012, we’ll look toward content cultivation and aggregation.

By creatively using Pinterest and Tumblr, brands are becoming enthralled with consumer curation, primarily because these types of curated sites create non-linear paths to purchases.

First, retailers post visually appealing images and ideas that are accessible to the online user/consumer. Then, consumers post those images to curated sites. From there, retailers can build brand awareness by directly linking to product pages and encouraging purchase conversions.

“We’re demonstrating the power of peer-to-peer shopping search,” says Buyosphere’s Tara Hunt. “Algorithms are a long way off from picking up nuances that a person can. And personal taste is full of nuance.”

The future of ecommerce, search and social marketing is now tied to personality-influenced consumer curation. Here are 10 product discovery and sharing sites worth paying attention to.

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Launched in December 2011, Mulu is a social platform for sharing the things you love and making the world a better place at the same time. Mulu allows users to make product recommendations, ask for suggestions and earn money for themselves or a social cause they want to support.

Mulu CEO and founder Amaryllis Fox says, “Zooey Deschanel and HelloGiggles are using their Mulu to support 826 LA, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.”

Stipple leverages cloud services to power interactive commerce and content inside of web images. When people mouse-over a “Stippled” image, pins display useful information about the people, places, products and prices shown. The company’s patent pending technology syncs these commerce and content tags to images within its network.

“Brands lose tens of millions of dollars in revenue each month simply by not tagging their products in web photos,” says Rey Flemings, founder and CEO of Stipple. “Editorial images generate billions of pageviews, and if your product is in a photo, but people can’t find out what the product is, then your brand loses marketing value and revenue.”

Founded by digital pioneer and author, Tara Hunt, Buyosphere is the Quora for fashion, interiors and retail.

Want to find “the best iPad cases for under $100 bucks?” Instead of searching through thousands of irrelevant images, Buyosphere allows you to ask the question to its community, and then your peers make recommendations (with direct product links). Even better, Buyosphere was built with brands in mind — the companies are encouraged to actively participate on the platform. 

Launched in December 2011, Stylmee is the first iPad app that allows users in the fashion and interior design communities to create virtual 3D boutiques. Users are able to “design” their boutiques with custom flooring, fixtures, furnishing, accessories and apparel from their favorite retailers and brands. For every action, users earn points for their activities and can cash them in for retailer rewards.

The app combines online shopping and product sharing (via Twitter and Facebook integration) with social game mechanics in order to increase brand engagement. For brands and retailers, the application offers the ability to directly showcase the latest collections and obtain feedback and exposure through game mechanics. Products are viewed and judged worthy of placement within members’ personal boutiques.  

Considered Pinterest’s primary competitor, Svpply allows site members to keep track of the things they want to buy, and to browse a personal feed of products from across the web, curated and filtered by the people and stores they find interesting. Users with blogs can embed their Svpply activity via widgets and retailers can integrate an “add to Svpply” button on their ecommerce sites.

Lyst is a social shopping and product bookmarking site specifically targeted to fashion. The site allows users to follow their favorite designers, boutiques, bloggers and stylists for updates in their personally made style feeds. “Lysting items is a form of self-expression,” says Chris Morton, CEO of Lyst in an interview with Business Of Fashion. “The act of publishing their lysts also enables users to build their reputation within the online fashion world.”

A hybrid of Lyst and Svpply, Nuji allows users to save items they like from any online store using the platform’s web bookmarklet tool. Users can clip apparel from retail websites they like and purchase the items later. Plus, they can follow interesting users and earn rewards and discounts from retailers by tagging their favorite items.

For aspiring interior designers and overall design enthusiasts, Olioboard is an easy way to communicate complex artistic concepts visually. Use it as a brainstorming tool or simply to visually organizing thoughts.

Users are able to share, embed and email their creations to their blogs, as well as shop retailer products within the site. Olioboard plans to launch iPad and mobile apps mid-2012.

Olioboard was created by web design company Keele UX Inc. “Our main goal for Olioboard is to provide a design and decor-focused creative tool that essentially allows members to get inspired and ‘try it, before they buy it,’” says founder Sheilah MacSporran.

GetVega is list-creating service based entirely on visual content. GetVega users access the platform for product comparisons and reviews, create lists of products, and write reviews. Users can also use it as a social (or private) bookmarking site. Currently, the site is generating an impressive amount of content, from visual cookbooks to theme bars in Paris to the best guitarists. Users even create the proverbial “bucket list.”

Once a public list is created, other users can contribute (see: the quest for the best chocolate) and rate the quality of a list and its contents. With a much broader audience than just fashion, GetVega offers retailers the chance to create context between their brands and their customers’ lifestyles.

Styloko is the new kid on the block when it comes to product sharing and discovery. The site is hybrid of Pinterest, The Cools and what Google Boutiques wanted to be. Styloko is worth paying attention to because it caters to fashion, art and industry insiders – those with advanced knowledge of not so mainstream products.

The site allows users to add items they find to boards, upload images via the site’s mobile app, and set up specific sale alerts for the brands they follow.

The app combines online shopping and product sharing (via Twitter and Facebook integration) with social game mechanics in order to increase brand engagement. For brands and retailers, the application offers the ability to directly showcase the latest collections and obtain feedback and exposure through game mechanics. Products are viewed and judged worthy of placement within members’ personal boutiques.  

Considered Pinterest’s primary competitor, Svpply allows site members to keep track of the things they want to buy, and to browse a personal feed of products from across the web, curated and filtered by the people and stores they find interesting. Users with blogs can embed their Svpply activity via widgets and retailers can integrate an “add to Svpply” button on their ecommerce sites.

Lyst is a social shopping and product bookmarking site specifically targeted to fashion. The site allows users to follow their favorite designers, boutiques, bloggers and stylists for updates in their personally made style feeds. “Lysting items is a form of self-expression,” says Chris Morton, CEO of Lyst in an interview with Business Of Fashion. “The act of publishing their lysts also enables users to build their reputation within the online fashion world.”

A hybrid of Lyst and Svpply, Nuji allows users to save items they like from any online store using the platform’s web bookmarklet tool. Users can clip apparel from retail websites they like and purchase the items later. Plus, they can follow interesting users and earn rewards and discounts from retailers by tagging their favorite items.

For aspiring interior designers and overall design enthusiasts, Olioboard is an easy way to communicate complex artistic concepts visually. Use it as a brainstorming tool or simply to visually organizing thoughts.

Users are able to share, embed and email their creations to their blogs, as well as shop retailer products within the site. Olioboard plans to launch iPad and mobile apps mid-2012.

Olioboard was created by web design company Keele UX Inc. “Our main goal for Olioboard is to provide a design and decor-focused creative tool that essentially allows members to get inspired and ‘try it, before they buy it,’” says founder Sheilah MacSporran.

GetVega is list-creating service based entirely on visual content. GetVega users access the platform for product comparisons and reviews, create lists of products, and write reviews. Users can also use it as a social (or private) bookmarking site. Currently, the site is generating an impressive amount of content, from visual cookbooks to theme bars in Paris to the best guitarists. Users even create the proverbial “bucket list.”

Once a public list is created, other users can contribute (see: the quest for the best chocolate) and rate the quality of a list and its contents. With a much broader audience than just fashion, GetVega offers retailers the chance to create context between their brands and their customers’ lifestyles.

Styloko is the new kid on the block when it comes to product sharing and discovery. The site is hybrid of Pinterest, The Cools and what Google Boutiques wanted to be. Styloko is worth paying attention to because it caters to fashion, art and industry insiders – those with advanced knowledge of not so mainstream products.

The site allows users to add items they find to boards, upload images via the site’s mobile app, and set up specific sale alerts for the brands they follow.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, tetsuomorita

Article source: http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/SocialMedia/~3/JaL5h9Pp5dM/