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Google’s new Image Swirl is still in beta, but shows the probable future of image search (and dare I say search in general at some point?) in the near future. Almost more like browsing a mindmap, after your initial search term is entered, you click the closest image to what you are looking for and drill into a new set of images. Image Swirl will learn from your new choice and drill in to more similar images each time you click.

Seth Godin posts a very good point. The best way to evaluate something someone is offering is to verify they are investing in it themselves.

If you are considering an internet marketing agency that doesn’t find most of their work through internet marketing initiatives, think again. If they can’t show you how they find most of their business online, why would you believe that they will be able to do better for your business online then their own?

1. 300,000 businesses have a presence on Facebook
2. Gary Vaynerchuk grew his family wine business from $4 Million to $50 Million using Social Media
3. He found $15,000 in direct mail generated 200 new customers
4. $7,500 Billboard provided 300 new  customers
5. $0 on Twitter produced 1,800 new customers (well.. someone had to spend some time “Twittering” it’s not exactly $0, because time costs but hey.. it wasn’t much in dollar terms)
6. Wetpaint/Altimeter found companies widely engaged in social media surpass their peers in both revenues and profits  (Companies with highest levels of social media  plus18% in sales, Company sales with least social media activity minus 6 %
7. Lenovo saw 20% reductions in call centre activity as customers go to a community (Social Media) website
8. Burger King’s ”Facebook Application investment of $50,000 received greater than $400,000 in PR media value (32 Million free media impressions, thats like reaching the combined populations of 19 States of the USA
9. Blendtec increased sales by 400% with “Will It Blend” YouTube videos
10. Dell sold $3,000,000 of computers on Twitter
11. Only 18% of traditional TV campaigns generate a positive ROI
12. “You can’t just say it. You have to get the people to say it to each other” – James Farley Chief Marketing Officer - Ford
13. 37% of Generation Y were aware of the the Ford Fiesta via social media before its launch in the USA
14. 25% of Fords marketing spend is on Digital/Social Media
15. They are the only US Auto company not to take a government loan
16. Naked Pizza set a one day sales record using social media (68% of sales from Twitter and 85% of new customers from Twitter)
17. VW goes 100% mobile for launch of GTI
18. “Social Media is not only for B2C”
19. Tweets for a cause sent out a Tweet from Atlanta to encourage support of Susan G  Komen for the Cure, the Retweets from @mashable, @G_man, @Zaibatsu and others caused the Atlanta chapter website to receive 11,000 visitors in 24 hours
20. Intuit introduced “Live Community” into their Turbo Tax products 2 years ago – Unit sales up +30% each year
21. Software company Genius.com reports 24% of social media leads convert to sales
22. Barak Obama – 5 million fans on Social Media – 5.4 million clicked on a “I voted for Obama Facebook Button” –  3 million online donors equals $500 million – 92% of donations were in increments of less tha $100
23. University of  Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre saw a 9.5% increase in registrations using social media
24. Web Host Provider “Moonfruit” with a $15,000 social media investment saw their website traffic increase 300% and sales 20% as well as being on Google’s first page for “free website builder”
25. eBay found participants in online communities spend 54% more $’s
26. Customer support cost is $12 via the contact center vs 25 cents via self-service
27. “Why are we trying to measure Social media like a traditional channel anyway? Social Media touches every facet of business and is more an extension of good business ethics” – Erik Qualcam
28. ”You can’t buy attention anymore. Having a huge budget doesn’t mean anything in Social Media… the old paradigm was “Pay to Play”. Now you get back what you authentically put in. You have to be willing to “Play to Play” – Alex Bogusky, Co-Chairman, CP& B
29. @equalman ” When I’m asked about the ROI of Social Media sometimes an appropriate response is … what’s the ROI of your phone?”
30. 71% plan to increase investments in Social media by an average of 40% because: You get “Low Cost Marketing” and “Get Traction” and we have to do it!

What is the CO$T of doing nothing? Do you really want to take that risk?