Two major companies announced an emphasis on new social media initiatives within hours of each other this past Monday. NBC announced its Fan It program, and Starbucks became the first company to offer nationwide discounts for “mayors” on Foursquare.

Harnessing the power of Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Foursquare, Fan It hones in on what people are already doing and rewards them for it. The idea is simple: “Like our shows. Earn points. Get rewards.” Once users sync their accounts with Fan It, they earn points by watching videos, sharing links, playing games and updating their statuses. Similar to Foursquare’s premise, viewers can redeem points for badges, exclusive videos and merchandise. The reason this idea works is because NBC is rewarding users for things they are already doing online, and as a result, reinforcing – and encouraging – network-specific content.

Starbucks, on the other hand, is using a more centralized approach. Focusing only on Foursquare, the coffeehouse chain unveiled the first-ever nationwide mayor special: “$1 off a new however-you-want-it Frappuccino blended beverage. Any size, any flavor.” Just like NBC, Starbucks is rewarding customers for something they are already doing (in this case, visiting the store), as they support their brand and create a stronger following.

If you are still wondering whether social media is a fad, consider this: The country’s oldest major broadcast network and the largest coffeehouse company in the world are using these tools to their advantage … can you do the same?

Image source: Mashable.com

Congratulations to Costa DeVault’s office manager Kristina Stepanova, who recently became a U.S. citizen. Kristina moved from Russia to Orlando at the age of 16 with her parents. She began working with the agency in 2006 and is currently pursuing a degree in digital communications at Valencia Community College. We asked Kristina about some of her experiences as well as what she’s learned after a decade on American soil.

What was one of the biggest communication challenges you faced when you came to America?

I find English fascinating and am fortunate to have learned it – but it wasn’t easy. When I first came to this country, I didn’t have a lot of people to talk to. Truth to be told, my first year here was long and lonely. Starting in high school was difficult too. I had to learn the manner of American speech in order to get to know people and make friends. Most of the time, I would just stare, wrinkle my nose, raise my eyebrows with a questioning expression and smile. I remember always concentrating hard – and sweating – trying to understand people. It was a real workout!

What are some differences in American and Russian communication styles?

The main difference is when Russians ask each other how they’re doing, they will most likely share the brutal truth. People are very honest there, and if someone had a bad day, you better believe you’ll hear all about it. Americans mostly sugarcoat their days with “happy” language.

After nearly a decade of living in the U.S., do you think your personality has changed at all?

Shortly after I moved, I set a goal for myself to not change drastically. I have seen a lot of people who changed so much after moving here. I liked who I was in Russia and didn’t see a reason to change. I arrived in this country with a strong sense of character and self-awareness. In the 16 years that I lived in Russia, I developed some principles and values that I was proud to have. One thing I didn’t want to let go of was an open-minded attitude; I think moving here with that mentality made it a lot easier.

What’s one thing that Americans can learn from Russians?

Find humor when things are rough. Historically, Russians have gone through a lot of hardship, but our people still found the courage to joke about it. I always found it fascinating.

What’s one thing that Russians can learn from Americans?

Smile more and remember to use good manners. You don’t hear a lot of “excuse me” on the streets of Moscow. Also, Russians should stop littering. It’s incredible how clean the streets are in America – it’s one of the things people notice when they visit.

Why did you decide to get your U.S. citizenship?

U.S. citizenship for me is a gift – an ability to see the world and a way to open the door to what I once found unreachable and impossible. You can’t get far with a Russian traveling passport. Americans are free to fly almost anywhere in the world without worrying about visa requirements. I believe Americans should really cherish this ability. Also, I am finally able to vote! People can’t grumble about their government if they don’t participate in it.

The other day, I had lunch with a friend who is in the process of searching for a job. She mentioned that she changed her e-mail address from a Hotmail to a Gmail account because she read on a career website that Gmail makes you look more tech-savvy and “with it” to potential employers.

I’ve always believed that you’re predominately judged by your username (e.g., it’s more professional to have your first and last name as opposed to “surfergirl80”), but I’m also guilty of prejudging domain names. For example, I’ve always assumed if you have an AOL account you’re about my parents’ age and/or still own a VCR.

After doing some research, I found that many of us have preconceived notions about this issue. PCWorld and Lifehacker articles have asserted that the e-mail provider you choose says a lot about who you are and what you stand for. According to these articles, your e-mail address can even tip people off to let them know if you’re a Mac lover (e.g., @mac.com, @gmail.com) or a Microsoft supporter (e.g., @hotmail.com, @yahoo.com).

Perhaps I should change my address from Hotmail to another one. After all, the consensus against Hotmail is that you look like you signed up for your first e-mail account in middle school and haven’t bothered to change it since (which in fact is true in my case). But for now, I’ll just stick with my trusty Hotmail account rather than trying to be trendy. Unless, of course, I was job searching.

Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics, has just released the sequel video to the popular Social Media Revolution.

Below are a few of the statistics that we found to be most surprising:

Jenni: Amazon sold more electronic books for the Kindle than physical books on Christmas.

Kelly: 1 out of 8 couples in the U.S. met via social media.

Ashley: Some universities have stopped distributing e-mail accounts. Instead they are distributing eReaders, iPads and tablets.

Danielle: 90% of people skip ads via TiVo/DVR.

Alexis: 50% of the mobile Internet traffic in the UK is for Facebook.

What did you find most shocking?

There are some teachers you meet and instantly know they are going to have an impact on your life. With others, the impression might not be clear until you’ve left the classroom. Whether we knew it at the time or not, they helped mold us into the people we are today. Below the Costa DeVault team shares their favorite teachers in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week.

Linda: “My favorite teacher was Dr. Gordon Shedd, one of my professors at Penn State, who made English lit “rock” – he really reinforced my passion for the written word. But, the ones who probably influenced me the most were my 12th grade English comp teacher, Mrs. Cornell, who gave you an “F” on your paper if you made even one grammatical error; and my 4th grade teacher, Miss Leasure, who told me that someday I would become a writer. She planted the first seed.”

Doreen: “My favorite teacher was Mrs. McKinney, my fifth grade teacher. She didn’t accept anything less than our best work. She demanded a lot from us because she knew we could handle it. At the time, I thought she was too strict. But now, I admire her for the discipline she instilled in me to give my all at everything I do. I am also a big fan of the late and great English professor Dr. Michael Raymond from Stetson University. Through reading and writing, he taught me the value of looking at things both critically and compassionately.”

Simone: “Dr. Scott Williams – a professor at the University of Florida – was absolutely my favorite teacher throughout my education. He took the time to mentor me, not just teach me. He truly inspired me by telling me that I’m going places, and by giving me the guidance and insight to show me why he felt that way. At UF, the classes seemed enormous at times, but he did a phenomenal job making us feel like his course was one-on-one. We kept in contact for a while after I graduated, and I would always be so excited to hear from him. In fact, this encouraged me to try and get back in touch! I have no doubt he’s continued to inspire other students, and I have high hopes that they’ve gone off to make a difference in the lives of others, because of him.”

Ashley: “Third grade was a special time for me, not only because we finally got to challenge the fifth graders in the campus-wide kick ball game, but also because of Mrs. Twiggs. Eccentric, creative and theatrical, Mrs. Twiggs encouraged me to express myself through stories and illustrations. I can trace my interest in the written word back to her class and her mutual passion for reading and writing. I’m not sure if others caught the bug like I did, but I still smile when I hear a Shel Silverstein poem and think of Mrs. Twiggs.”

Alexis: “I can’t choose between two of my high school teachers: Mr. Anderson, my 11th grade literature teacher, and Mr. Town, my 11th grade AP Environmental Science teacher. Mr. Anderson had a knack for keeping classrooms full of apathetic teenagers engaged in topic matter we didn’t always care about. There’s actually a group on Facebook for Mr. Anderson called “We love the genius that is Mr. Brian Anderson” … and yes, I am a fan.

Mr. Town has always been extremely passionate about the environment, and this translated into his teaching. His lessons always included actionable items that would reinforce greener habits in the future. He lived what he taught, residing in a solar-powered home long before it was mainstream, and growing most of his own food. He was recently awarded the Green Prize award and $25,000 from the National Education Association for his “Cool School Challenge” program, which helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions in schools across the country.”

Jenni: “During my sophomore year of high school, I was looking for a fun, creative class to break up a schedule filled with math and science and Mr. Hamsik’s photography course caught my eye. During our first class he proved to me that anything was possible when he taught us how to make a camera with a cardboard box, a needle and a piece of metal. He had a way of dispensing endless encouragement with just the right amount of constructive criticism – a mix that helped me better my craft everyday. Although I didn’t graduate college with a degree in photography, I did graduate with him by my side as he accepted the “Harold W. Pote Behind Every Graduate Award,” an honor he fully deserved.”

Danielle: “My favorite and most memorable teacher is my high school theater director, Mrs. Mueller. Wildly eccentric and standing tall at five feet nothing, she ran our department like a Navy ship. During rehearsal, she was known to throw her shoe in fits of desperation for complete focus. On the other hand, a tear in her eye or, what we referred to as, “the cackle,” was her greatest form of affirmation for performers. Even though I didn’t choose the path to the bright lights of Broadway, Mrs. Mueller and I still keep in touch. She is truly one of a kind … one I will always strive to impress and certainly will never forget.”

I’m a big Jamie Oliver fan, so when I got wind of his “Food Revolution” show, I was sure to set my DVR. In addition to already liking Jamie, I am a former chicken-nugget-school-lunch-loving “fat kid.” This made the show’s premise – changing the attitudes toward food in the “unhealthiest city in America,” especially in schools – doubly interesting.

As I watched the six-episode season, I found myself repeatedly thinking, “Wow, that’s a great tactic,” and “that’s a solid way to gain publicity.” And in the middle of episode two, I realized how I should have been viewing the program all along: as a public perception campaign. Cooking flash mobs and truckloads of solid fat aside, the core of this initiative is trying to change the way the city’s residents think and feel about food.

What I like most is that Jamie’s approach reached out to people at all levels of involvement. This included:

• Working with children in local classrooms to educate them about produce

• Empowering high school students by having them cook an entire healthy fundraising dinner

• Providing parents with a hard-to-ignore visual about what their children are actually eating at school

• Teaching a local family about effective grocery shopping and basic (non-fried) recipes

• Working alongside school cooks in kitchens and district representatives in offices.

I realize that this is a TV show, so editing and scripting impact what we see as the final product. But, even after six episodes, I felt that Jamie’s time was well-spent. It may not have been as decisive a victory as he expected, but through “grassroots” campaign tactics, he got his foot in the community’s door and secured funding to make sure his influence lingered even after he’d gone back to England.

If you watched the show, do you think his approach was effective? If you were on Jamie’s team, would you have done anything differently?