Word on the street now uncovered new features getting ready for release from Facebook that may include a “like” button very similar to what you’d find on Digg.com or big media sites. But that’s not the bigger idea we heard – the one we thought was huge was the possibility of having a persistent Facebook toolbar that other sites can integrate, very similar to Meebo does.
Facebook has been getting pretty scary with it’s privacy policy changes over the past few months. Some things sure make you wonder what’s going on at Facebook HQ and what is their real motive.
Don’t get me wrong, they’re in it for the money – any business would be there for the money – but there comes a point when you need to make a decision when you keep your soul and not sell it to the devil.
C’mon Facebook – Reality check. You sell your soul to the devil, you’ll loose your users. Yeah, it will happen. It’s history repeating itself – don’t you get it? Where did all the AOL users go? To MySpace. Where did all the MySpace users go? To Facebook.
Don’t let history repeat – be bold, but don’t sell out and don’t steal other companies products. License them. Partner. Do it right and you’re users will be loyal.
Have a thought about the recent news with Facebook? Leave a comment!
TreeSize Free – This FREE software for Windows allows you to quickly see how much space a folder or sub-folder is taking on your hard drive.
Anyone who is trying to manage disk space effectively will run into this problem at some point in their life, so take my advice and use a free tool like this one, and save yourself some grief.
The program works with Microsoft Windows 2000, XP, Vista, Windows Server 2003 / 2008, and the new Windows 7 (both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems also supported)
The interface is super easy to use – one simple click to drill-down into the folder you want to see.
Note: At the time of this post, I have not found any alternative to this application that was FREE. If you know of one, I’d be interested to know about it.
Search Engine Optimization and SEO Strategy can be overwhelming and very expensive. There’s a great deal of information to be found and absorbed on the internet. The big question is, who do you trust? Here’s two sites I frequently read that may also be useful to you: SEO Book
The site has video tutorials and tools that will help even the beginner.
Lots of great information for the novice to intermediate person wanting to do more about their Keywords or search engine ranking.
Two great articles everyone should read include Managing your Online Reputation – tips to control and guide what is being said about your company online and SEO Versus PPC – How They Can Work Together (PPC is Pay Per Click where an advertiser will “bid” on keywords associated with their advertisement being shown)
Celebrity Tweetup for Haiti to be at Park City, Utah during this month’s 2010 Sundance Film Festival (January 21st – 31st)
This Tweetup is where celebs rally their own twitter followers to make a donation to relief efforts – in this case, to those of the Haiti earthquake. As I understand it, everyone is invited to visit the station at the Tweet House up in Park City, Utah for this event.
The following was quoted from RadarOnline.com:
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this crisis,” LeVar Burton (Reading Rainbow, Star Trek: The Next Generation) who is co-hosting the Tweet House, told RadarOnline.com exclusively. “I know from experience that members of the entertainment community can be counted on at times like this, and my partners and I are dedicated to doing what we can”.
LaVar Burton has been on Twitter for quite some time – you can follow him at Twitter.com/LevarBurton
If you’re interested in the Sundance Fil Festival, follow them on twitter as well at Twitter.com/sundancefest
The economy has been in the toilet and everyone, including business, and everyone is watching every dollar spent and trying to stay alive. But as other businesses fall, the market share shrinks, making it even more important for your company to be online and attract new business. Being online with your own website is one of the most cost-effective ways to promote your company or organization.
Question: Does your company really need a web site?
Answer: Yes. Despite what others may say, this is the year 2010 in case you forgot and everyone who intends on staying in business will need to have an online presence. That does not mean you should go out and spend $15,000 on a website. It means you should have, at the very least, basic information and a means contacting your company or organization – even if it’s just 1 page from a free hosting provider. The public now expects that businesses and organizations will have a web site for more information.
The big yellow-pages phonebook is nearly dead. People increasingly use the web and their mobile phone to search for a service or phone number. If they don’t find you, they will find your competitor’s.
Question: What if my company only has 3 employees?
Answer: Yes. It doesn’t matter if you’re the only employee or you have 10,000 – the answer is the same. If you are not online then you’re competitor is and they’re taking your business too.
Question: Will having a website make my business money immediately?
Answer: You need to view having a website just like other common business tools such as a Phone, a Brochure, or Business Cards. Do those make you money immediately? They do help make your company more successful with communication and promoting yourself. Let’s look at this a different way- can your business survive without a phone? Of course not! Your website is similar to having a phone – it’s a must-have.
Here’s a good exercise: Go search for your competitors online and see just how many are already there. That’s what you’re competing with (and who is getting your potential business because you’re not online yet!) and if you don’t find many sites out there today, then consider yourself lucky.
In today’s world, you need every edge possible. That doesn’t mean you have to lose focus and drop the ball – you still need to be the front man selling your goods & services.
Look at it this way: What did people do before the internet? They turned to their local yellow-pages and those businesses that had a nice big ad were usually the ones you called first, am I right? That’s what a website will do for you – you’ll now be “visible” in the internet space but with more detail.
Let’s say, for instance, there’s a small hardware store of your local home town. They don’t use computers for inventory, but they do sometimes have specials or coupons which are advertised locally. For this business, it makes sense to have a couple of web pages that explain who they are, about the family business, where they are located/how to contact them, and a natural fit would also be a page where patrons can print out those advertised coupons and perhaps signup for weekly emails with more coupons.
Question: Is a website going to be affordable for me?
Answer: Yes. Well, mostly yes – here’s my explanation: For the vast majority of small businesses, non-profit organizations, or home-businesses, you may not need anything more than a couple of pages that you can maintain on your own. Many times people will have these grand visions of wanting more than they actually need. A good web design consultant will be able to see this and help manage the scope to something more manageable & realistic. There will be the occasional person who demands extra things that won’t really make their business money—but they do take time and resources to develop. This is why I say “mostly affordable” (for that last 10% of people who must have it all).
Don’t think of a website as something you have to pay for every year hundreds or even thousands of dollars – It’s like owning a car: You buy it once and make routine maintenance on it over the life of that car. Sometimes you will even find a web designer who will provide hands-on training so you can do the maintenance yourself, saving some money. Once you’ve bought your car, it will continue to serve you for many years to come – the same holds true for your website!
I would recommend you take the time to write down what you “need” and what you would “like to have”, then get a hold of at least three (3) companies and request a quote. Greenhost Networks would be my first personal recommendation for anyone wanting a website quote big or small – they are very reasonable and can often have your business online for under $400 (that includes the first year of hosting too!). They’ve also been very successful in ecommerce websites for even the smaller businesses who have a limited budget.
I hope you found this information helpful to you. Having a website is an important part of business – of YOUR business. If you don’t call Greenhost Networks for help, then please – call someone and get online today.
If you would like to see more personal experiences like this, please drop a comment below.
Is Rev. Pat Robertson an idiot or the new liaison for satan?
That’s what many people are talking about when he made that stupid comment on CBN yesterday. From the video, “Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it,” he said. “They were under the heel of the French … and they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, ‘We will serve you if you’ll get us free from the French.’
“True story. And the devil said, ‘OK, it’s a deal,’” Robertson said. “Ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after another.”
Here are 5 questions nobody is willing to ask Mr. Robertson but I think they should be:
Where did you get your information from, sir? What was the source? Was it a campfire story or something real?
You have your own show – so, how much money are YOU contributing to society in charity? It better be more than $10 bucks.
Wasn’t it you who said that “religion was man-made”? If that is true, then your statement about making a pact with the devil means the deal was made with man, right?
What made you the holy authority for God? YOU? Personally I think you’re spreading the gospel of Satan based on my own religious beliefs and private sources.
Aren’t you the jerk who said “gays caused 9/11”? Yeah, we thought you were.
The video of this embarrassing man is posted below for you to see and judge for yourself. Please post your comments below:
Since you’re going to be paying for Web hosting anway, why not save some money when you do? Use the promo/Coupon code IPHONE with any Dreamhost package for additional savings!
