Half of women in 2011 said they regularly influence friends and family to buy or not buy a particular product or service, representing a 61% jump from 31% who responded that way in 2008, according to a white paper released in January 2012 by Fleishman-Hillard in partnership with Hearst Magazine.

Digital privacy involves three main stakeholders: consumers, the government and the advertising industry. Consumers are increasingly concerned about their privacy. Government entities in the US and elsewhere are looking to temper that anxiety through laws, regulations and pressure on the digital ad ecosystem.

The top 10 web domains by percentage of total time spent online accounted for 36% of total consumer attention in September 2011, according to December analysis from Compete. Data from the analysis indicates that this represents a small increase from 35% share of attention in September 2006, but a significant 20% rise from 30% share in September 2001.

Social-media marketing is getting boring -- at least by itself. It still largely sits in a silo and therefore fails to realize its full potential.

Need proof? Put down your Kindle and head to your local bookstore. There you will find volumes on the topic, many of which read like get-rich-quick schemes. That's a sure sign of trouble.

First things first, I’m no Facebook worshipper. In fact, I use all leading social networks for definitive needs. I use LinkedIn as a professional networking and hiring tool, Twitter as a means for marketing, YouTube for video promotions and Facebook for advertising and customer service. And I’ve to admit that I’ve liked whatever I’ve seen of Google+ so far as well.