Category: Best practices

When to Post on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest

When trying to get found on the internet, leave no stone unturned. Learn not only how but when to share:

There are many tools you can use to gauge your timing. HootSuite’s functionality enables you to automatically schedule your Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn updates based on your followers’ engagement patterns. A great app I just discovered called SocialBro analyzes the timelines of your followers and creates a “best time to tweet” report that tells you when you should be tweeting to maximize retweets and replies. Topsy, an app that has been around for a few years, performs social network trend analysis. Timing+ helps you decide when it’s best to post on Google+ by evaluating your historical post data. SocialFlow uses real-time data to understand the constantly changing interests of your audience and maps your content to the windows where you’ll get the most attention.

via When to Post on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest (Infographic) – Yahoo Small Business Advisor.

Remember to post anything really good to your blog first and then share it from there…

0

#SXSWi 2014 Recap: High on Hashtags…

Jimmy Fallon’s riff on hashtags is fast becoming a social meme. In case you’ve been living under a rock, here it is…

This week at SXSW, some folks were looking beyond Fallon to crack the code. Conclusion?:

Hashtags help discovery of trends, topics, sentiment.

Go to the source: #SXSWi 2014 Recap: High on Hashtags | Search Engine Journal.

I believe that smart people use #hashtags not only to label but DISCOVER the best content. Ask me why in the comments…

0

Do Not Build Your ‘Brand House’ On Rented Land…

English: House for sale near Ardlethen

Facebook, Google+ and other social networks are great tools, but in this week’s edition of This Old Marketing with Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose, they reference a ‘readworthy’ article that I’ll be referencing from now on. Here’s a sample:

Quick: Name one successful publisher that built its brand on the back of a social platform? Can’t do it? Neither can I, unless you count sites like UpWorthy. And those flying near the social network sun risk getting seriously burned. There’s a reason publishers don’t build on top of social platforms: publishers are an independent lot, and they naturally understand the value of owning your own domain. Publishers don’t want to be beholden to the shifting sands of inscrutable platform policies. So why on earth would a brand?

Go to the source: To Be Clear: Do Not Build Your Brand House On Land You Don’t Own | John Battelle’s Search Blog.

I’ve been using this ‘concept’ of rented land in my courses for years so I’m sure it’s not original. John Batelle’s article is definitely worth the read. You can download Joe and Robert’s podcast here.

1

Is your website ‘responsive’?

By ‘responsive’, I don’t mean to you reply to comments. Rather, does your website display properly on any device your readers might be using…

The wikipedia defines responsive web design like this "Responsive Web design (RWD) is a Web design approach aimed at crafting sites to provide an optimal viewing experience—easy reading and navigation with a minimum of resizing, panning, and scrolling—across a wide range of devices (from mobile phones to desktop computer monitors)."

Click images to enlarge:

While Google doesn’t ‘search for pretty’ [as I am fond of saying] it’s critical that your content will look good and be easy to use not matter on what device it lands!

Perhaps the beginning of the year is a good time to revisit your site from all the devices you use and make sure it measures up. If it doesn’t let’s talk…

0

Alternative to Macbook Pro?

Looking for an inexpensive alternative to a Macbook Pro with Retina Display? Get a Chromebook for a tenth of the cost and use VNC to connect for those few times you actually have to run an app off your Mac…

1

My current list of WordPress plugins…

Here’s what I depend upon for my self-hosted WordPress site. Do you have any good ones I’m missing? What and why?

12-4-2013 11-30-39 AM
Click the image to enlarge…
0

Looking ahead to 2014!

English: Google Plus logo

Looking ahead to 2014!? Is it too early to think about that already? Not if you’re a content marketer! I mean think about it — most of your competition will spend the month of December partying like the Grasshopper in the classic fable. It’s time to think now about being more intentional with your search engine marketing and social media and decide if you’ll be an Ant or a Grasshopper…

Looking ahead to 2014 I think the content marketing world will fall into two categories; those who are dominating search through effective use of Google Plus and those who are scratching their heads. In which category would you like to be? Don’t get me wrong! All of the basics still apply but now is a great time to review what you’re currently doing and thinking about adding Google Plus to the mix. Here are some thoughts I have on the subject:

Here’s the link to the Traphagan article — and sorry, it was Search Engine Land. By the way, I may turn this into a series depending on the feedback I receive so let me know what you think in the comments!

0

Filter bubbles; what they are and how to create them

A few years ago, Eli Pariser did a now famous TED talk on the concept of filter bubbles. Here it is in case you haven’t seen it yet:

Now as a consumer of information this concerns me on some levels but as an internet marketer, it gives me all kinds of reasons to love any tool that allows me to create my own filter bubbles for myself or my clients and to use this to my/our advantage. I have come to believe that the best tool for creating these bubbles is Google+. Here’s Rand Fishkin of Moz talking about how it works:

Here are some of the world’s greatest Google+ practitioners [and Hulk Hogan] discussing how to put Rand’s insights into practice:

Does it work? It’s scary how well it does! If you agree with me that the number one benefit of using the internet for thought leadership is to get found when people are looking for you or what you do, Google+ is now the most important tool for you to understand and leverage. It’s all happening here…

1

Are you overwhelmed by email? Use ActiveInbox!

I’m a huge fan of Gmail, but using ActiveInbox makes it even more useful for me! What is ActiveInbox? It’s an extension for Chrome that incorporates David Allen’s Getting Things Done [GTD] principles right in your inbox. Here’s a video of the new features coming online…

Questions? Feedback? Please comment below…

0

Want to get found on Google? Focus on Google+!

English: Google Logo officially released on Ma...

Want to get found on Google? As an adjunct professor for Search Engine Marketing and Social Media instructor at Northeastern Wisconsin Technical College and a personal digital coach in the same space, I spend a lot of time helping people get found in Google’s ‘Zero Moment of Truth‘ — the ‘space’ where people are googling their options before making a buying decision. I’ve been thinking about the importance of stepping up in Google+ for quite some time and Rand Fishkin’s post on Friday really got me thinking. Here’s a collection of thoughts on the topic…

http://storify.com/toddlohenry/want-to-get-found-focus-on-google

0

Does your inbox look like this this morning?

9-30-2013 8-21-37 AM

If not, you might want to schedule [or reschedule] some time with me, the ’email whisperer’. I can show you how to apply Getting Things Done [GTD] principles to your inbox and help you get back in control with an intro session starting at $79…

You can’t run with the big dogs if you can’t get out of your inbox! Connect with me and let’s get started today via GoToMeeting…

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

1

Seth Godin has a great thought for those of us who think about our businesses on a Saturday morning:

There’s always a defect, always a slow drip, somewhere. Every plan, every organization, every venture has a glitch.

The question isn’t, "is this perfect?" The question is, "will this get me there?"

Sometimes we make the mistake of ignoring the big leaks, the ones that threaten our journey.

More often, though, we’re so busy fixing tiny leaks that we get distracted from the real goal, which is to go somewhere.

via Seth's Blog: All boats leak.

0

I’m looking into the Amazon Associates program and I thought I’d share what I found with you…

I’m looking into the Amazon Associates program and I thought I’d share what I found with you…

http://storify.com/e1evation/monetizing-your-blog

0

Steve Dotto has some thoughts on managing Google accounts:

One thing it seems we can never have enough of, is of course, Google Accounts. Hey they are free!

However, managing multiple accounts concurrently can be a pain. Mixed up logins, a huge waste of resources, not to mention time spent logging in, logging out.

In this video I take a look at 4 ways to manage your Google accounts better, from the sumple and obvious, to the sublime.

via 4 Ways to Manage Google Accounts – Lifehack.

Unfortunately none of Steve’s solutions are as good imho as being able to log into Chrome as different users and go easily back and forth between accounts. You can see what I mean here:

Get more instructions and insight on the issue here…

0

…to boost your Search Engine Optimization [SEO] and increase the odds that you’ll get found! You could implement these fast and free steps TODAY and change how you use Twitter forever…

…to boost your Search Engine Optimization [SEO] and increase the odds that you’ll get found! You could implement these fast and free steps TODAY and change how you use Twitter forever…

…to boost your Search Engine Optimization [SEO] and increase the odds that you’ll get found! You could implement these fast and free steps TODAY and change how you use Twitter forever…

http://storify.com/e1evation/4-ways-to-optimize-twitter

2

heidi_cohenWhen Heidi Cohen speaks I listen. Here are her 12 most popular posts of 2012:

For marketers, 2012 was dominated by social media’s evolution beyond its high growth phase, the explosion of content marketing, and the growth of smartphones, tablets and other connected devices. These three trends influenced how we see the world, connect with each other and shop.

We live in a four-screen world where we’re always connected, even in the bathroom!

With a smartphone always within reach to snap and share shots, 2012 was the year of the photo. Further, we now have mobile commerce, couch commerce, social commerce and showrooming.

Here are the top twelve Actionable Marketing blog posts of 2012 as voted for by you, our readers. (If you’re interested, here are the top twelve Actionable Marketing blog posts of 2011.)

Full story at: 2012: Social Media, Content Marketing and Mobile | Heidi Cohen.

0

The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing, right? Here’s a minimalist workflow for content and thought leadership marketing that will help you get found when people are looking for you and what you do in the coming year…

tlwwflow

The beautiful thing about this simple workflow is that you have to do the reading anyway in order to maintain your expert status — why not turn it into thought leadership marketing? Also every tool is free and completely cross platform and it could all be executed from a $199 Chromebook. I explain here:

How could I explain this more clearly or make this post better? Comment below or use the contact form above…

6

…from Pawan Deshpande of Curata:

Note: I recommend the thinking about curation but not necessarily the tool Curata. Comment or connect to talk about how this applies to your situation…

0

Sometimes, I think I post more about how much I love Twylah than the folks at Twylah do. Whether that’s true or not, I’m a huge fan and the main reason why is Twylah is the only social networking tool I know of that actually adds Search Engine Optimization [SEO] to your domain simply by tweeting. Still, if the DNS manager of your domain host is unfamiliar territory you may not be getting the maximum value out of Twylah and Twitter. I talk you through it here…

So, in summary, the three things you must do are:

  • Use Twylah
  • Add the Twylah widget to your WordPress sidebar
  • Host Twylah on your domain

Questions? Feedback? Comment below or connect with me so we can talk about how this applies to you and your situation…

Related articles
0

Ever heard of the Pareto Principle? Mostly likely you have but may not know it by that name. “The Pareto principle (also known as the 80–20 rule, the law of the vital few, and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.” In the ‘e1evation workflow‘, 80% of my results come from having mastered just three tools. Why is this important? My clients include thought leaders like author Nilofer Merchant, author and professor Philip Auerswald, author and professor Timothy Kastelle, consultant Gretchen Jahn and professor and TED Fellow Nina Tandon; people like that don’t have the time or patience to learn an infinite number of tools — they need to know the three that will yield the most effective results…

I teach them [and all my clients] that if I could only use three tools for effective content marketing there is no confusion in my mind as to what they would be:

Why? No other combination of tools covers the basics of content marketing better. Google Reader helps me find great content that deepens my expertise. WordPress and Twylah help me document my expertise by turning everything I create or curate into content marketing with Search Engine Optimization [SEO] value for my domain. Let me explain…

Here are all the tools I use in the ‘e1evation workflow’:

And here are the 20% that yield the 80% of my results:

Questions? Feedback? Comment or contact me to talk more about how this applies to you and your situation…

Related articles
4

Going back to our Getting Things Done [GTD] decision diagram for a minute…

The in basket I’m using more often than not is Google Reader. When I see ‘actionable’ content, I decide where is the best place to share that content using the following diagram:

I focused in an earlier post about sharing via Twylah and other tools — today the focus is on curation and blogging as a means of Getting Things Done [GTD]…

How do I decide that something is bloggable? Well here are some guidelines that I use…

  • When I come across content that is so brilliant that I could have written it myself if I would only take the time. Seriously, when I come across really good content that I want to expound upon and call out to my clients and readers…
  • When I find a great illustration or infographic
  • When I find a great YouTube video
  • When commenting on this content gives me a change to share something about my brand by agreeing, disagreeing, adding or subtracting…

You get the idea, right? Anything I find on the Internet is fair game as long as I remember to do three things:

  • Block quote and indent the content I am curating
  • Provide a link back to the original source
  • Be ready to move the content if requested by the owner

I firmly believe that when you curate effectively everybody wins. The original author gives exposure to my readers. My readers get a different perspective. Finally, my post is easier to write and I get the Search Engine Optimization [SEO] benefits from the content I curate…

Here are some thoughts from Suzanne Bird-Harris and a few others on the rationale for curation and some ideas on how to structure a curative post along with a screencast on how I do it using Windows Live Writer, a free blog editor from Microsoft…

Personally? I think curation is one of the best ways to supplement the original thinking on my blog. Here are some thoughts on curation in the blogging process…

Personally? I think curation is one of the best ways to supplement the original thinking on my blog. Here are some thoughts on curation in the blogging process…

Personally? I think curation is one of the best ways to supplement the original thinking on my blog. Here are some thoughts on curation in the blogging process…

http://storify.com/e1evation/thoughts-on-getting-things-done-gtd-in-curation

Here’s the diagram from the video…

4

Start a Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑