This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum , where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business. Dina Kaplan co-founded Blip.TV , a video sharing platform for independent web shows, five years ago. In those five years, Kaplan has seen her business grow from a really small niche of video bloggers who were producing original video shows, to thousands of users using the site to host their own shows and upload produced videos.

Well, this adds a whole new meaning to the term “butterface.” The Midwest Dairy Association has just launched a new Facebook app called “ Butter-Fy Yourself ” that allows you to — get this — create and share of image of yourself that replicates the butter statues of state fair fame. If you’re anything like me — who hails from a town in Connecticut where people are mortally afraid of butter — you’re probably not aware of the illustrious history of the butter statue

The social gaming giant FarmVille has teamed up with Green Giant to put Farmville Cash coupon stickers on select produce in 4,000 stores nationwide.

Hot on the heels of the Coca-Cola Facebook scam , which promised to reveal the “truth” about Coca-Cola (but in reality simply aimed to get a hold of your personal info), are two more spreading via Facebook status updates. The first one contains the message: “OMG!! Guys, you have to see this: This mother went to jail for taking this pic of her son,” with a link to a page that tricks you into sharing the story with your Facebook buddies.

Mashable’s Spark of Genius series highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, see details here .

Mashable’s Spark of Genius series highlights a unique feature of startups.

Meaghan Edelstein has gained national media attention through her blog, I Kicked Cancer’s Ass , which she started to document her battle with end stage cancer.

Umberto Milletti is the CEO of InsideView , which brings intelligence gained from social media and traditional sources to enterprise and B2B sales.

Earlier this morning we posted some photos from iPhone 4 lines around the U.S.

We’re packing our bags and heading your way, Seattle! CEO Pete Cashmore, COO Adam Hirsch, Co-Editor Ben Parr, Social Media & Tech Reporter Jolie O’Dell, East Coast Events Director Brett Petersel, West Coast Events Director Karen Hartline and Social Media Manager Vadim Lavrusik are coming to the event, and we’re definitely ready to meet and greet the entire Seattle community. Drinks, hors d’oeuvres and some special surprises from our sponsors will make it an event you won’t want to miss