This is a guest post by Ashley Jane Brookes of HootSuite , the social media dashboard. Follow her on Twitter @ashjbee. Social media is no longer in its infancy and is no longer an optional task for businesses and brands. Indeed, building and engaging with audiences on established social networks is now a key part of business interaction. So, as social media grows into its awkward teenage years, the next step is for these companies to understand not only how to use it, but also how to derive value from it. Therefore, they need to be aligned with greater metrics. Opportunity. Conversion. MORE >>

This week we take a look at how much the top social media sites are valued at. Could this be the start of another tech bubble? While we’re waiting for their IPOs…we might as well see where they fall among the competition. Infographics infographic of the week Valuations MORE >>

On its blog earlier this month, the American Society of Business Publication Editors published an anonymous and despairing note from one of its members. In it, the magazine editor described a frustrating planning meeting with his counterparts in advertising sales. Though the editor had done thorough reader research in proposing editorial topics for an upcoming magazine project, the sales staff would have none of it: The topics I suggested would provide the basis for good editorial quality; however, our sales team deemed them too difficult to sell sponsorships. But that’s not fair. MORE >>

The popularity of this blog is mind-blowing. 2,000 unique viewers has been the norm. Only this past July did we have a month with 4,000 unique visitors. We’ve never reached 5,000. In September, we exceeded 6,000 unique visitors for the first time ever. September was the highest readership in the 6+ years of Fearless Competitor. And lifetime unique readers passed the mind-blowing number, 68,300! Thank you all. I’m honored. Keep visiting and we’ll keep posting……and we post on weekends too. Jeff Ogden, President. Find New Customers. Filed under: Fearless Competitor. MORE >>

Raise your hand if you love data. Now raise your hand if data presented like this makes you want to stick a fork in your eye: It’s colorful. It’s brimming with data. But HOLY HORSESHOE is it confusing! Having data is awesome. Using it to persuade others is powerful. Presenting it in a way that inspires eye-forking is criminal. Here are three simple design tips to help you make sexier, simpler charts that are sure to elicit applause and approval, not violence. TIP #1: Make friends with white space. Compare this version of a basic bar chart with the one below it. MAKE MEANING! Wrong. MORE >>