This guest post is by Ackley clarke
I’ve been asked to write about the six social media blogs that will dominate in 2012.
While it’s going to be well high impossible to satisfy everyone, I have tried to be objective about it by separating the choices into different categories and then choosing the blog or blogger with the most influence in each lot.
Mashable: Started as a one-man blog by Pete Cashmore, Mashable is now a giant blogging machine that looms over all things social media.
They break news faster than anyone else, and being covered by Mashable is a big deal for startups. Mashable is still very much relevant and if anything, is likely to be an even bigger influencer in 2012.
Brian Solis: It’s hard to overstate the importance of following Brian Solis and his “thoughts” on social media, convergence and blogging. One look at his flickr picture sets will explain why this man has so much influence. The Social Media Examiner’s annual listing of the top social media blogs this year described Solis as the “Grand Master” of social media.
Scobleizer: Robert Scoble is good at a lot of things, but what he does best is stir up the pot. He doesn’t hold back in his reviews and any company or startup at the wrong end of a Scobleizer post finds it hard to put out the fires, so to speak. Strong opinions and a tech background make his blog posts a must read for anyone in the same sphere.
The Anti-Social Media: Jay Dolan is the Onion of social media. His satirical posts on social media trends and news is getting an increasingly large following. The blog was launched only in 2010, but it already among the most popular social media blogs on the net, and the trend looks likely enough to continue in 2012.
Social Media Examiner: This is somewhat of a mainstream media blog that has managed to break out of the clutter. Their posts are pretty useful and solid, if not trail blazing, and they cover the news comprehensively. Their annual listing of the year’s top social media blogs is getting quite famous.
Soshable: Any blog which is No.1 on Google for “social media blog” deserves to be on this list. Apart from extraordinary optimization, JD Rucker’s blog is a lot more useful for businesses than any of the above listed blogs. Soshable is invaluable reading for a business trying to get a handle on what they should be doing on the social networks.
