Wisconsin Police Search for Democratic Senators

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The reasons for creating an online store on Facebook are obvious: it has 30 million users in the UK alone, offers can be spread virally and it’s where people are spending large chunks of their online time.

Neither does creating an online store have to be expensive. Applications, such as Storenvy and ShopIgniter, make it relatively simple to add a store tab to your Facebook page.

Perhaps the key reason why creating Facebook store is a no brainer is because Facebook delivers a social shopping experience that is very difficult to replicate.

Trying to build a social shopping site outside of Facebook would be an expensive, slow and risky challenge. Not only do you have to attract users in their millions, but you also have to persuade them to start spending as much time on the site as they do on Facebook.

The fact is that Facebook has such a massive head start on its rivals (with 600 million users and counting) that it could dominate the world of ecommerce, let alone social shopping, in the years to come.

Facebook. Are you on it? Comment below or ‘connect’ above to discuss how this applies to you and your organization…

Not only does Secunia Personal Software Inspector provide extensive details on the software installed on your computer, it also gives you direct links to update programs that are older and potentially not secure.

The interface mixes professional layout with a text-heavy, spartan design. At the top right of the program window, users can choose a Simple or Advanced layout. Under Simple, Secunia provides basic information about the installed program statuses, with a chart to gauge their security over time and a simplified listing of any errors. Clicking on an error leads you through the proprietary Easy-to-Patch program update process, which automatically excludes more challenging updates. The Advanced layout tab exposes more details and more updates. It also checks your Microsoft XML, your Adobe Flash player installation, and others programs, looking for mission-critical holes and their respective updates. Installed programs get flagged as Patched, End-of-Life, and Insecure, with the most recent reported threat noted with a colored bar and a mouse-over label on the right column.

A big part of my ‘anti-Norton’ security suite. Try it!

Posted via web from The e1evation facebook page

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiCn6y6JU8o
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Recent studies have found that some small business owners mistakenly think they don’t have enough time, money or other resources to invest in Facebook promotions. It doesn’t require a full-time social media coordinator nor much of a budget, if any.

The adage “keep it simple” goes a long way here, and with that in mind, here are ten ways for small businesses to maximize their presence on Facebook with minimum resources.

You can follow the ‘via’ link above to get the 10 tips. Comment below or ‘connect’ above to discuss how this applies to you and your organization…

Woot! I can’t imagine what would have happened if Apple would have picked a competent partner like Sprint…

Posted via web from e1evation, llc

A cynical look at today’s new coverage. Is this why the mainstream media is dying? [Warning: language]

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtGSXMuWMR4&feature=player_embedded

What opportunities does this present for bloggers? Comment, call or contact me to discuss how this applies to your business…

Jeopardy Winnings: Ken Jennings & Brad Rutter

“So you’re thinking about jumping into social media. You’ve read a whole slew of blog posts, news stories as well as examples of how social media has helped businesses like yours cut costs and market more effectively. So now it’s your turn. But have you really thought it through? Have you laid out the groundwork, reasons, measurement and more before you make the leap? Or are you just jumping in, because everyone’s telling you that social media isn’t for toe-dippers? Whatever your train of thought, here are some things you might want to run through first before jumping in.”

You can follow the ‘via’ link if you want more of Danny Brown’s perspective. Comment below or ‘connect’ above so we can talk about how this applies to your business…

Image representing Facebook as depicted in Cru...
Image via CrunchBase

There are some changes in the wind and it’s best to be prepared…

Facebook’s latest scheme – to share your private data with anybody they want, whether or not you agree ahead of time to let them do so.

That’s according to a Facebook blog post this week that’s a clear attempt to head off another potential PR nightmare stemming from increasing privacy concerns surrounding the world’s largest social network. Source: Facebook’s Latest Scheme: Give Your Private Data to Anyone They Want | Twittown

Check your settings right away!

Facebook recently announced some forthcoming changes to its terms of service that mean it might be worth another look at your privacy settings.

The new privacy policy means that Facebook can share your details with “Pre-approved third-party websites and applications”. Now, you might be totally fine with this but many people still think of Facebook as a ‘walled garden’ and aren’t aware that Facebook set much of their information as available to ‘Everyone’ a few months back with a slightly confusing privacy wizard that users were asked to complete.

With this in mind, it’s well worth another look at your privacy settings. There are a lot of options to check through, so here are some less obvious ones you might miss… Source: 5 Facebook Privacy Settings You Should Check Right Now

You’ll have to go to the source for the settings you need to change…

Isn’t blogging for 40 year old political malcontents living in their parent’s basement? Not at all. Smart companies are using blogging as the glue to bring their internet content together and drive their social media outposts. Late last year, I wrote…

“Here’s the real payback, however, and the real reason why these corporations do it: HubSpot says that companies that blog get 55% more visitors, have 97% more inbound links, and 434% more indexed pages [which are valuable from a search perspective]. Better yet, customers who are engaged by a corporate blog and social media spend 30% more than their disconnected counterparts, according to MarketingSavant Dana VanDen Heuvel…” Source: Why a company must have a blog… | e1evation, llc

For those who are skeptical, read on…

“With tens of millions of blogs online today, major corporations have started to recognize the value of a corporate blog for communicating with customers. However, corporate blogging is far different than the more traditional blogging that most of us encounter on a daily basis. Corporate blogging brings its own unique set of challenges and opportunities that must be considered and addressed by the company in order for its users to have a positive experience.

…Probably the most significant reason for companies to manage a corporate blog is the communication benefits it can provide. As a higher percentage of the population uses the Internet for researching and buying products and services, companies can often benefit from having a more direct line of communication with customers and potential customers.” Source: Corporate Blog Design: Trends And Examples – Smashing Magazine

According to the source, the five reasons why companies should blog are:

  • Communication with customers and the public
  • Demonstration of corporate responsibility
  • Reputation management
  • Promotion of products and services
  • Provide executives and/or employees the chance to communicate openly

To this I would also add…

  • Search engine optimization
  • Public promotion

If you want to read more, go to the source. In the meantime, I’m going to post a couple of examples of great corporate blogs to illustrate these points. Here they are in no particular order…

GM…

The GM Fastlane Blog is a great example of corporate blogging because GM has clearly realized that regurgitating press releases is not what blogs are made for. GM talks a lot on their blog about their cars and trucks and the design choices they make while creating them, but they also throw in interesting treatises on current hot-button issues, such as alternative energy.” Source: 15 Companies That Really Get Corporate Blogging

Social media maven Dell…

“Though Dell’s corporate blog rarely strays from Dell-centric news, the company posts with a great conversational voice, often breaks news on their blog (which keeps people coming back), and listens and responds to customers. Dell also posts regularly (1-2 posts per day at least) which keeps content fresh and encourages repeat visits.” Source: 15 Companies That Really Get Corporate Blogging

Lenovo

“The great collection of blogs from computer maker Lenovo demonstrate that the company really understands blogging. Lenovo intersperses posts about its product line with musings about business, design, life, and technology. Definitely don’t miss the Design Matters blog, which should be a must-read for any designer.” Source: 15 Companies That Really Get Corporate Blogging

Amazon Web Services…

“What could be more dreary than commoditized data processing and storage services? While that might sound boring, the AWS Blog does a great job of highlighting cool things that are done on top of Amazon Web Services. Lately they’ve put up posts about how AWS are being used by the New York Times to provide online access to 150 years of archives and by the little ShareThis widget that you’ve probably seen on hundreds of thousands of blogs around the web. Lots of charts, graphs and other fun stuff for nerds on this blog.” Source: Nine Company Blogs That Are Fun For Anyone to Read

And the list goes on. imho, smart companies will use this tool as part of what I call a ‘Perry Como’ approach to PR [you know “accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on the affirmative, and don’t mess with Mr. Inbetween]. Looking for more? I suggest the Alltop list of corporate blogs

Questions? Feedback? Leave a comment, call or contact me so we can discuss how this applies to your business…

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The Top 8 Websites To Find Maps Of Bike Paths Near You

You can follow the ‘via’ link above to go to the source if you want to drill down on loads of free resources you can use to track the social media space.

Hmmm. Looks like everything you need to know about social media you may have learned in kindergarten. Not quite, but this confirms some of my preconceived notions…

“There are hundreds of ways to exploit social media to help your business or to build your personal brand but one that should stand head and shoulders above any other is the simplest of them all and has been around for as long as we have been on the planet….help other people. It sounds really really easy and you probably don’t even think it warrants you reading the rest of this post but if you stop and think about it for a second do you really help others? Do you consistently go out of your way to help others and put their needs above yours?

Let me let you in on a little social media secret: helping others is the key and any work you put in to help others will come back to help you in the long run 10 times over. The beauty in this day and age is that it is so easy to help others through social media now. You just have to want to.

It’s not going to happen in a week or even a month (although it can) but if you make it your mission to help people online in whatever way you possibly can it will always come back and make your day when you least expect it. I am not just talking about re-tweeting somebody or linking to them in your blog but actually going properly out of your way and helping somebody else to achieve their goals. Not your goals, their goals.” Source: Why you should help others to help yourself in social media

btw, few people do this better than my buddy Dana VanDen Heuvel of MarketingSavant. Go to the source and read the rest of the article, but check out Dana’s site too if you haven’t done so — it’s one of the best you’ll ever find on the topic of thought leadership and internet marketing…

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An obituary printed in the London Times

My #2 son passed this on to me. Even if it’s ‘urban legend’, it’s good…

“Interesting and sadly rather true. Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

– Knowing when to come in out of the rain;

– Why the early bird gets the worm;

– Life isn’t always fair;

– and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you can earn) andreliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place.

Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate

teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch

and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun screen or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn’t defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers;

I Know My Rights

I Want It Now

Someone Else Is To Blame

I’m A Victim

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.”

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