VerveCast

Google has been getting a lot of press lately for the development of its new social venture – Google+. But the beastly company has been dipping its toes in other waters, too, including an online contest site. This is thanks to its acquisition of Slide, a social gaming company, and the reason the new site doesn’t really look like it belongs to Google.

Prizes.org launched this past weekend, and can best be describes as a social contest website. Basically, users create contests that involve solving some sort of problem, like answering a question or completing a particular task. The user then awards the best answer a cash prize that typically ranges from about $10-$50. The contests can be anything from naming a new restaurant or answering what the best dog food brand is.

You may remember Slide from the creation of Disco, another Google creation that lacks the Google look and feel. Disco is a group chat app for iPhone and Andriod.

So what do you think? Will you pay someone to help name your startup or to give you advice about the best vacation spot? Or will you be more the type of person to answer questions in hopes of winning the prize? Although I can’t see myself creating any contests, you might find me answering a question or two.

Z2 recently held a Social Media Event for one of our clients, and promoted the concept that you need to make your organization social from the inside out, utilizing a social media mindset in your processes and way of thinking rather than seeing social media as just another channel to sell goods to customers and promote your brand. Social media is as much about listening as it is about speaking… maybe even more so. If your social media strategy is a one-way message delivery mechanism, you should take a step back and think about the value to your brand of listening (and then responding) to what people are saying about you.