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GOOGLE Wants Fresh Content So Think Like A Window Dresser

2011-11-15T11:04:00.000-08:00

Yesterday there were a number of GOOGLE headlines that went something like this: "Ten Recent Algorithm Changes."(See links to other articles below) I don't know about you, but whenever I read the word 'algorithm' I start to shudder. So in order to calm myself I try to think of an analogy that I can relate to our clients and help put things into everyday language.

One of GOOGLE's changes is a new twist on fresh content. They believe that if you are searching for something on the web, then you probably want the "freshest" information. I could argue that a lot of my searches are for historical information, but we will talk about that another time. The reason I want to talk to you about fresh content is that this is a guideline that Webconsuls' team discusses with their clients on a regular basis, so now GOOGLE is again validating what all of us have really known for a long, long time.

"If you are trying to sell something, goods or services, you need to think like a window dresser."

Do you know what a window dresser is? You don't have to live in New York City to understand the importance of the professional window dresser. I am going to venture a guess that in any city, town, village or hamlet the most interestingly dressed store windows get the best traffic and probably can boast the best sales.

Now let's think about window shopping. Old fashion window shopping is free! Do you see what I mean? The free part is you being able to take yourself or your whole family to a store…like Macys or to a mall and walk around and touch the items, try on the items, dream a little, put something on lay-away…and maybe, just maybe be so pleased by the user experience you will eventually make a purchase. Virtual window shopping is also free, but one can't "touch" or "try on the goods", so the content quality needs to be fresh and inviting.

"The success of window dressing and window shopping is dependent on fresh content."

This isn't rocket science. The word algorithm makes it seem so, but it is really social science. When a person is looking for information, goods, services, they now tend to look on-line. They can buy items from all over the country, continent, or world. So how do you get their attention? Simple! Be clear about what you are selling (in every sense of the word) and keep your content current and relevant. Let me tell you a story...

"Some 30+ years ago I lived and worked in Hollywood, CA area. My office was on Vermont Avenue and I lived on Barham Blvd. There was a wonderful gentleman who lived in my complex and owned a sundry store near the corner of Sunset Blvd and Vermont Avenue. My employer sometimes would ask me to go to the bank to make the daily commercial deposit, so one day as I am walking down Sunset Blvd I notice Sanford's little store. The window dressings were so old and dusty that I almost didn't walk in, but I wanted to say hi to my friend. When I got in the store what I saw was more dust, shampoo bottles with contents that had already separated and then I spotted Sandy behind the counter. I started to giggle and picked up one of the shampoo bottles...I asked him who would buy this stuff. He laughed and said: 'Judy, I am not in the business of selling sundries; I offer a check cashing service for a fee!' "

There was no window dressing that said "Check Cashing Service", in fact you had to creep around the store to discern that this service was the primary business. Do you see the irony in this story? I know you do. You might call this the "sales prevention department!" Again, it isn't rocket science.

So what can you do to make sure your content is fresh and refreshing?

Review your site for accuracy. Do this on a regular basis. Look for "dust"!
Remember to keep your webmaster informed about new products, locations, staff members, sales.
Take new photos.
Consider publishing press releases.
If you have a blog, check to see when you last published a post. Remember each post is considered fresh content by GOOGLE.
If you have a business Facebook page, be sure to have it linked to your business website.
Link all of your social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn) to your website.
Make sure your GOOGLE Places page is current. Read your reviews. Respond to your reviews.

And yes, there is this new thing called GOOGLE+ for business page. I will be back in a few days to give you a primer in this latest way to keep your content fresh.

In the meantime...pretend you are a customer, go window shopping on your website, then pretend you are a window dresser. You may not care about fresh content, but GOOGLE does. What changes would you make? How would you freshen up your virtual storefront?

Cheers to Blog World Expo Los Angeles 2011

2011-11-08T11:44:00.000-08:00

"Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got.
Taking a break from all your worries sure would help a lot.
Wouldn't you like to get away?
Sometimes you wanna go..
Where everybody knows your name
and they're always glad you came.
You wanna be where you can see,
the troubles are all the same.
you wanna be where everybody knows your name..."

Somewhere around 1982, Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo wrote these lyrics for the new sitcom "Cheers!" And for some strange reason when I think of Blog World Expo Los Angeles 2011(#BWELA) these lyrics just seem to fit. And yes I do know that many #BWELA attendees had not been born in 1982...but I am pretty sure they all know the lyrics and have felt the sentiment. Heck, I have even been to Boston's Bull & Finch Pub which served as the exterior for "Cheers!" To me the lyrics fit because while many people in the on-line world may know your name...there is a pretty good chance they can't pick you out in a crowd of 4000+, but it is a lot of fun trying and they really are glad you came.

This was my third time attending Blog World Expo having participated in BWE09 and BWE10. Many bloggers have already posted their reviews and I am going to link to a number of those below, but I just wanted to take a few minutes to give you my overview.

Blog World Team


Judy with Rick Calvert- #BWELA

I must start by talking about the Blog World Team. If you have ever planned an event - tea party, wedding, golf tournament, business meeting, Thanksgiving dinner...then you know just a tiny bit of what goes into pulling off an event of this magnitude. I am pretty sure by next week Deb, Lara, Allison, Julie, Nikki, Dave and Rick will be laying the foundation for Blog World 2012. Really? I am sure the infrastructure is already in the works for 2012. So to the Blog World Team I say thank you for a job well done, seamlessly presented and for making all of us feel welcome.

Exhibitors

We all like to go to conference exhibit halls. It really doesn't matter the nature of the conference, the exhibit hall is like trick or treating...you walk around meeting new people, getting a few gifts and if you are lucky you can learn about new software or hardware and take home something tangible to share with your co-workers or clients. This year I met up again with Brett Wilshire of BLOGGER. It was fun to reconnect with Brett and learn more about BLOGGER. I also stopped and talked to Tin Dizdarevic of ZEMANTA. I love Zemanta and have used it here on our blog and deployed it on client blogs for the last couple of years. It is just a great tool. My new find this year is POND5. It will be my mission to share information about POND5 with my teammates and clients. I don't know about you, but finding just the right photo/video/illustration for a website can be exhausting and I intend to really check out POND5.

Keynotes

I attended four Keynotes this year.

Jim Farley

Shani Higgins presenting Technorati's State of the Blogosphere was enlightening. Nice to know that 61% of bloggers are hobbyists! While Shani gave us a lot of statistics to chew on, it was Mikal Belicove of Entrepreneur Magazine that did as Jason Falls suggested in his session "asked better questions" of Shani. It was the exchange between Mikal and Shani that made the keynote powerful.
Brian Solis made us all feel welcome by offering us a free copy of his latest book "The End of Business as Usual" and Brian certainly did a great job of interviewing Jim Farley - Group Vice President, Global Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford Motor Company. Jim has a great story including the fact that his grandfather was the 389th employee hired by Ford Motor Company. Jim's message: "Let people speak...listen...speak like them!" Enough said. I will make it a point to visit Ford Social and I will read Brian's book.
Mitch Joel handily moderated the keynote session Building a New Media Empire with Lisa Stone, Deanna Brown and Michael Stelzner. A couple of great quotes from this session: "If you see a hole - you can build a business", "the most successful people write about what they love", and "provide service and band together!"
Jordan Cooper is funny and I am glad I got to enjoy his comedy as he introduced the closing keynote.

Sessions

When you purchase a two-day ticket, as opposed to the full conference - you risk missing meaningful and powerful sessions. Next year I will not make this mistake. That is not to say that I did not enjoy the sessions I attended, but a number of people that I wanted to hear and meet spoke on Thursday and I arrived Friday morning. In all I attended five sessions (there were hundreds!). Hmmm...

Jason Falls talking about B.S.

"The Use of Digital Application and Tools to Change Behaviors to Improve Health" was interesting, but probably would have been more so if I were in the medical field. But still good to know that the health field is trying to make the most of social media.
Jonathan Fields interviewed Chris Brogan and Leah Segedie in a "Lifestyle Makeover Roundtable". This was a very intimate (small group of people) and personal discussion about going through a lifestyle makeover. There was great audience participation.
Jason Falls' session "This Is All Such B.S.: How to tell and what to do when you're being had in blogging, social media and beyond..." The title is enough to make you want to hear what Jason has to say. Jason had a lot to say but the big take-away was: "Ask better questions and do your own work!"
I happened upon "How Dad Blogging Can Bust the Fatherhood Stereotypes" featuring Bruce Sallan, Jim Lin, Ron Mattocks and Kevin Metzger. And yes, I know, I am not a father...but I had a great father and I wanted to listen to what these Dad bloggers had to say. Sadly this session did not have a lot of participants. It would have been better in a smaller room, but the content was over the top powerful. Each gentleman offered such wonderful insights and they were well prepared...I became so involved with listening that I forgot to take copious notes. But at the end Ron Mattocks gave me a gift of his book Sugar Milk and he signed my copy. I have started reading it...when a book can make you laugh out loud, then you know it is going to be great.

Live #blogchat

Mack Collier leading #blogchat at #BWELA

Live #blogchat was my fifth session. I have been participating in the on-line Twitter #blogchat for over a year. Every Sunday at 8:00PM Central time people get together on Twitter to chat about blogging. So to be part of Blog World's live #blogchat with Mack Collier was much anticipated and Mack did not disappoint his live audience. The topper was Mack's invitation for all of the live audience members to introduce themselves with their Twitter profile names. So much fun to meet @Sherree_W, @wordsdonewrite, @BruceSallan, and @kikolani and to sit next to @allison_boyer in this live #blogchat. Great event!

Meeting People

My favorite part of Blog World Expo is meeting people who I have come to know through their blogs/websites or twitter. For example, I have written about 501 Mission Place and finally I was able to meet Rob Hatch who is on the 501 Mission Place team. Also I was able to meet Chris Brogan, Jacqueline Carly, Mack Collier, Julien Smith, Justin Levy and get re-acquainted with Darren Rowse.

So here's to Blog World Expo and stopping by the Sheraton Hotel's bar where many knew my name, but few knew my face!

Allison Boyer, Judy Helfand and Julie Bonner

Webconsuls Recognized As Google AdWords Certified Partner

2011-08-22T10:50:00.000-07:00

Webconsuls has recently been recognized as a Google AdWords Certified Partner. This certification is given to companies with Pay-Per-Click managers who currently run successful Google AdWords marketing campaigns and have also demonstrated in-depth AdWords knowledge by passing multiple professionals exams created by Google.

Google has created the Certified Partners Program for businesses that are looking to use Google marketing as a business tool to create more business but don’t have the knowledge or time to successfully manage an AdWords campaign. The Google stamp of approval lets potential businesses know about companies with a high level of expertise and a significant amount of history in the medium.

Our PPC Specialist Keith Hansen is our Certified Google Partner. Before joining our team over four years ago, Keith was a Yahoo Search Marketing specialist. He was trained from the inside of the industry, a real advantage in this very competitive marketplace. As a result of this new certification, Webconsuls and Keith will have access to next-level Google training and resources, as well as $100 in promotional credits to new businesses who are interesting in trying Google AdWords to promote their business goals.

Let us create a PPC/Google AdWords marketing proposal customized to your business goals and web site so you can see how it works and what it brings to the table. Here is some basics on the value AdWords provides, and why it is so successful:

You set the cost- we can work with any budget.
Reach 84% of internet users.
Track-able to the penny- ability to know what works and what doesn’t towards optimization.
Complete Control- come up on Google searches for the keywords your target audience is searching.
Find searchers looking for your service/product!

Read more about Pay Per Click campaigns here and feel free to leave a comment or question. Keith will be happy to join the conversation.

GOOGLE Places Swept Clean of Reviews - Or Was It?

2011-07-26T10:27:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

The street sweeper just drove through your GOOGLE Place page. And it might have been swept clean of reviews. Go ahead...mosey over to your GOOGLE Place page. You will notice a few changes. The most important visible change is, according to GOOGLE:

"Based on careful thought about the future direction of Place pages, and feedback we’ve heard over the past few months, review snippets from other web sources have now been removed from Place pages. Rating and review counts reflect only those that’ve been written by fellow Google users, and as part of our continued commitment to helping you find what you want on the web, we’re continuing to provide links to other review sites so you can get a comprehensive view of locations across the globe."

Ok, here is what GOOGLE is saying: Let's say that you own a country inn and you have a GOOGLE Place Page. Up until July 21, 2011, the number of reviews displayed to the right of your GOOGLE Place Page result on the search engine results page would have been the sum total of all reviews: Google users + Trip Advisor + Bed and Breakfast + Yahoo users. Now the number of reviews displayed will be the total of GOOGLE users, and if NO GOOGLE users have reviewed your property then it will just display the words Place Page. Now you really need to take the time to reach out to your customers, clients, guests, shoppers. If they are GOOGLE users encourage them to write a review. And should they write a review (good or bad) respond to the review.

Like I said at the beginning of this post...the street sweeper went down your GOOGLE Place and if you are a business owner you might want to make sure the street sweeper didn't change the look of your property too much. You know what I mean. Think back to where ever you have physically lived before. Did the street sweeper come by once a week, maybe every month? Remember the street signs that would say "No Parking 9:00AM-Noon TUESDAY STREET CLEANING"? Did you ever forget to move your car?

The GOOGLE Places update that took place last Thursday happened quickly and without warning. It might have been nice to know the street sweeper was coming. What do you think?

Places, Everyone! GOOGLE Places, That Is

2011-06-14T14:42:00.000-07:00

Image via CrunchBase

Were you ever in a school play, pageant, band, or orchestra? It could have been grammar school, middle school, college, Summer Stock, regional community theatre, or Broadway...do you remember the "director" calling out: "Places, everyone!" In grammar school it was the Benedictine (O.S.B.) nuns who tried to control me and in high school it was Mr. Van Vleck who taught drama. I am pretty sure I annoyed him.

Today I saw a Tweet that said something like this: "Google Places just got better!" I was intrigued and I thought I need to write a post about whatever is new at GOOGLE Places, because I keep trying to stress to our clients the importance of GOOGLE Places. Suddenly, I thought maybe I can get everyone's attention by calling out "Places, Everyone!" GOOGLE Places, that is.

This is what is new with GOOGLE Places.

'Starting today [June 13, 2011], Google Maps search results in the U.S. and Great Britain will include some of the phrases which are most frequently used to describe those places. These phrases come from sources all across the web, such as reviews, web pages and other online references, and they can help people quickly identify the characteristics that make a particular place unique. It’s like an opportunity to ask the business owner or its patrons “What’s good here?” or “What do most people get here?” '

I also learned that if you want to stay on top of all things about GOOGLE Places, then you can:

Subscribe to the GOOGLE Places Blog
Follow GOOGLE Places on Twitter @GooglePlaces
And if you have even more free time you can review GOOGLES' Blog Directory and subscribe to other GOOGLE Blogs.

Have you claimed your GOOGLE place? If so, do you update it regularly to keep it interesting?

A Thank You Makes You Smile

2011-05-02T16:54:00.000-07:00

Do you send thank you notes? Not email thank yous, not thank you phone calls, I am talking about old-fashioned thank you notes or letters. Here at Webconsuls we often receive phone calls or emails thanking us for a job well done. It is great to feel appreciated. Most recently we received a unique thank you card that I want to share with all of you. It was the kind of thank you that makes you smile.

The hand-made card came by U. S. Mail from our client Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Mid-Coast Maine. Take a look, a thank you from some of their "littles" - the children.

Click on the photo - it will get larger!

Sending a thank you or receiving a thank you will always put a smile on your face. Years ago I saw a Marx Brother's movie A Day at the Races. There is a funny scene filled with thank yous. Enjoy!

So tell me...do you send thank you notes?

BING Business Portal - It Is Time To Claim Your Listing

2011-04-26T18:35:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

It has been a while since we talked about BING. Lately clients have been asking more questions about BING. Sometimes they think it is an entirely new search engine and then they realize that prior to two years ago they knew BING as Live Search, Windows Live Search or MSN Search. In July 2009, Keith Hansen wrote a post about Microsoft & Yahoo agreeing to a search partnership. In the last few months a few clients called to verify why their Pay Per Click charges referenced BING, instead of YAHOO. On April 11, 2011, BING launched their Business Portal beta, which is:

"a new service from Bing to help business owners create and control their online listing, making it easier for their customers to find them on Bing. With it, owners can even create deals and promote the offers on both the Bing desktop and mobile experience – for free. The BBP will replace the Bing Local Listing Center (LLC), and all existing listing on LLC have been seamlessly migrated to the Bing Business Portal."

So now it is time for you to claim your listing(s). Don't worry, it is free; but it will take a few minutes. And BING wants you to know that by claiming your listing your business will have a better chance of being found on BING and you will be able to highlight your strengths and create campaigns that you can even publish to your FACEBOOK account.

OK, like I said: You need to claim your listing...so start by going here and See How the Bing Business Portal Can Help Your Business Grow. Follow the step by step instructions and if you have more involved questions you can visit BING's Business Portal Frequently Asked Questions.

Let me know how you do or feel free to contact me if you have more questions.

Google News: Algorithms, JCPenney and Overstock.com

2011-03-01T10:09:00.000-08:00

Image via CrunchBase

GOOGLE makes news every day. If you don't see the headlines hot off the presses, you may catch them later via a TWITTER feed, a Nightly News program, a cable news program, a co-worker, a client, a FACEBOOK page, or even GOOGLE's Official Blog. February 2011 was flush with GOOGLE news. News about algorithms, JCPenney and Overstock.com. Each bit of news is vital for you to understand how it relates to your business efforts regarding search engine optimization and your search results.

Let's start with algorithms...

Do you know what an algorithm is? According to Wikipedia: "In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning." All you really need to know for this conversation is that GOOGLE uses many algorithms to deliver SEARCH results to those that use the GOOGLE search engine. Oh, and one more thing: GOOGLE is constantly reviewing and tweaking their SEARCH algorithms.

Everyone dreams of being #1 out of 2 million+ results, or at least everyone dreams about being on page 1. Right? I am not talking about being #1 for your business name, most businesses can accomplish that feat with a little time, good content and responsible search engine optimization. No, what I am talking about is being #1 or on page 1 for a really competitive, albeit generic, keyword or keyword phrase. The fact is there is a lot of competition for most businesses' wares and services, unless of course you have a very specific niche with no competition. I will not belabor this, but instead invite you to read GOOGLE's entire announcement for their latest algorithm update, that really deals with what they call "content farms". Here is an important highlight:

"Many of the changes we make are so subtle that very few people notice them. But in the last day or so we launched a pretty big algorithmic improvement to our ranking—a change that noticeably impacts 11.8% of our queries—and we wanted to let people know what’s going on. This update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites—sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful. At the same time, it will provide better rankings for high-quality sites—sites with original content and information such as research, in-depth reports, thoughtful analysis and so on.

We can’t make a major improvement without affecting rankings for many sites. It has to be that some sites will go up and some will go down. Google depends on the high-quality content created by wonderful websites around the world, and we do have a responsibility to encourage a healthy web ecosystem. Therefore, it is important for high-quality sites to be rewarded, and that’s exactly what this change does."

What about GOOGLE and JCPenney?

We all know JCPenney, the store. Heck, I used to live in a town where the only "department store" was JCPenney. We didn't have a Macy's, SEARS, K-Mart, Walmart, Bloomingdales, Nordstroms...somehow we managed and what we couldn't find in the store itself we purchased from the JCPenney catalog. Did you know it was founded in 1902? That is a lot of merchandising. But this month the New York Times reported to GOOGLE that JCPenney's website was violating GOOGLE's "link scheme" policy. GOOGLE investigated the claim and after finding the claim to be true, then took action against JCPenney.

"On Wednesday evening[in early February], Google began what it calls a “manual action” against Penney, essentially demotions specifically aimed at the company.
At 7 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, J. C. Penney was still the No. 1 result for 'Samsonite carry on luggage.'
Two hours later, it was at No. 71.
At 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Penney was No. 1 in searches for 'living room furniture.'
By 9 p.m., it had sunk to No. 68.
In other words, one moment Penney was the most visible online destination for living room furniture in the country.
The next it was essentially buried.
PENNEY reacted to this instant reversal of fortune by, among other things, firing its search engine consulting firm."

And now about Overstock.com...

I have never bought anything from Overstock.com, but then I am not much of a shopper. How about you? I see their television ads and I have visited their website a number of times when I was trying to find an obscure item. This story also has to do with links, but particular link types and how GOOGLE's algorithm considers .edu links. The fact is GOOGLE views both .edu and .gov sites as trusted and authoritative. Now it seems that Overstock.com was "gaming the system" and GOOGLE took action.

"The incident, according to Overstock, stemmed in part from its practice of encouraging websites of colleges and universities to post links to Overstock pages so that students and faculty could receive discounts on the shopping site. Overstock said it discontinued the program on Feb. 10, before hearing from Google, but said some university webmasters have been slow to remove the links."

The bottom line to all of these incidents is that we'd all like to think there was some fairness in the wide world of the World Wide Web. If you own a business it is natural that you want to do well and you probably want to be able to sleep at night. Right?

My thoughts about GOOGLE's actions are: A few years ago, I saw a movie, "The Winslow Boy", and in the closing scene a defense attorney states: "I wept today because right had been done." When questioned by the defendant's sister, "Not justice?" to this the attorney replied, "No, not justice. Right. Easy to do 'justice'. Very hard to do 'right'." GOOGLE tries to do right.

My thoughts about businesses that attempt to game the systems: Mark Twain said it best. "The glory which is built upon a lie soon becomes a most unpleasant encumbrance. How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and how hard it is to undo that work again!"

It would be great to hear from you. What do you think about GOOGLE's attempt to level the playing field?

Chris Brogan Wants A Pony Like Jack Snyder Wanted An Elephant!

2011-02-19T14:16:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Do you wait for the mailman? I am talking about the US Postal Service employee. I think we all do this. We hope that the mail will include something more exciting than a bill. Today Chris Brogan published a video post "A Look In the Mail Bag." Did you watch it? Chris shared what I guess is a typical day's mail, it included books to review, toys like a Carol Roth doll and an early edition of a Chevrolet Camaro model car...the list goes on, but he also received a toy pony from Jamie Eriksen of SEMA. Apparently Chris has a habit of telling people that if they ever get famous he would like a pony! As I watched Chris hold up the plastic toy pony I wondered what Chris would do if someday someone who became famous actually had a real live pony delivered to him.

It could happen you know. Chris Brogan wants a pony, not unlike how Jack Snyder wanted a baby elephant. Sales contests are still popular in the business world. We have probably all been involved in a sales contest, it really starts in school when they ask you to sell magazines, or cookies, or wrapping paper. It is for some good cause and if you sell the most you win a prize. From these we grow into sales jobs. Sooner or later all jobs are about sales. And sooner or later there will be a contest. Prizes vary for sure. I once had a friend who won an all expense paid trip to The Masters in Augusta. (He was delighted until he realized the income tax implication.) Even Chris is part of a contest. He helps people "sell" their stuff...and I am willing to bet that someday the pony is going to arrive, just like Annabelle arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, in 1966.

It was 1966 Crown Zellerbach (CZ) sponsored a Chiffon Tissue sales contest. I think, as the story goes, a Crown Zellerbach employee who was in charge of the contest jokingly said the winning sales person had their choice between $3000 or a baby elephant! Try to envision what went on at CZ headquarters when the winning sales man chose the baby elephant and to make matters worse that winning salesman, Jack Snyder lived in Anchorage, Alaska.

Remember now, this is 1966. Alaska had only been granted U.S. Statehood in 1959. Even today many companies do not make their products available to be shipped to Alaska or Hawaii, so you can imagine what went on to get two year old Annabelle, an Asian Elephant, all the way to Anchorage. She made it, but the next problem is where she would live. She couldn't live with Jack Snyder and Anchorage did not have a zoo, so Sammye Seawell who owned the Diamond H Horse Ranch volunteered to house Annabelle in one of her heated horse stalls. Little 300 pound Annabelle arrived, Sammye fed her with a gallon bottle and for a while Jack Snyder would take Annabelle to his market everyday for his customers to enjoy.

By August 1969 the Alaska Zoo opened and Annabelle had a great new home, with both a heated winterized building and a beautiful natural outdoor enclosure. I met Annabelle when I moved to Anchorage in early 1983. She was delightful and she was a painter. She earned her keep as her paintings were sold in zoo's gift shop.

Annabelle lived to be 33. Her story never fails to make me smile. So today when Chris said he jokes about getting a pony I naturally remembered the famous sales contest "$3000 or a Baby Elephant!" I can't wait to see the pony!!!

How about you? What is the most interesting item you won in a contest or that you joked about wanting and actually received?

Waiting to see Annabelle 1984

Twitter Is My Virtual Birdfeeder

2011-02-11T14:02:00.000-08:00

Image via CrunchBase

I don't know how many times I have posted about Twitter on this blog. You can search our twitter label and read all of those posts and it will let you see the evolution of this social media tool and our/my approach to it. It is kind of interesting, but today I want to talk about how Twitter is my virtual birdfeeder.

This morning I read a very simple Tweet from @lizstrauss How to change your Facebook Page's Category. See it explained here.

This caught my interest and I quickly clicked on the link and realized that by "category" this news was about business Facebook pages. And that meant that I needed to really dig into this news. I tweeted back to Liz:

"thank you. I luv twitter 4 items like this. I'm like a dove sitting below a birdfeeder waitin 4 seed droppings."

From Liz's Tweet I went over to my personal Facebook page and saw an item from BlogWorld "Facebook Pages Get a Facelift." If you have a business Facebook page I hope you will take the time to read this post, Nikki Katz did a great job of summarizing this Facebook news.

In closing I would like to share a photo that I took today (from inside my house looking through a window). You can see our new bird feeder hanging from one of our Palo Verde trees. If you look closely you will see the small colorful wild birds taking seeds from the feeder, but just below you will see the doves and a squirrel enjoying the extra seeds that have fallen to the ground. It is a wonderful symbiotic relationship, not unlike what I enjoy with my Twitter friends.

Bird feeder- click on the photo to enlarge

I'd love to hear what you think about feeding the birds. How often do you learn helpful hints from simple little tweets?

Remembering the Challenger 1986 and More

2011-01-28T11:47:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

This past week has been filled with historic anniversaries like President John F. Kennedy's 1961 Inaugural Address and while this is a business blog, I think it is important to sometimes stop and remember the impact of these significant events. When I talk of impact I am not just talking about personal memories, but also how events shape our creativity and spark our willingness to take a chance. In today's world it appears we don't really have to rely on our personal memories or historical facts. Easy enough to "Google it" or search Wikipedia, as our brains have become cluttered with usernames and passwords.

I have written previously about my memory of Man's Walk on the Moon. It was a great day for Americans, important for all mankind, but we should today stop to remember a cold winter day, January 28, 1986, when we watched live as the Challenger lifted off from Cape Canaveral.

People of my generation were raised on the space program. It is our program. From the very early days families were committed to watching each endeavor on television. We were deeply saddened, horrified even, when on January 27, 1967 (44 years ago yesterday), the crew of Apollo 1 died in a cabin fire during a pre-launch test.

So it was on January 28, 1986, I was living and working in Conway, New Hampshire, and we were all excited that Christa McAuliffe of Concord, NH, was chosen to be the NASA's Teacher in Space. I for sure was going to watch the lift off. It was a Tuesday; I believe NASA may have decided to plan this take-off to occur on a school day so that students throughout the nation could watch the event on live TV (CNN). We had an old black and white television in our work lunch room. At about 11:00AM I walked downstairs and took a seat with my co-workers. There was a lot of excitement in the air. The news cameras actively panned the public observers at Cape Canaveral, including Christa's parents. And as we all watched the final countdown and lift-off the cameras panned back to the crowd and then we knew by the look on Christa's parents' faces something was terribly wrong. The trail in the sky was not normal...and they were gone.

In shock, we continued to watch CNN for a while longer. I reached for the phone and called Dennis. He was watching at home. I went back to my office and throughout the day my co-workers and I took turns monitoring CNN's coverage. And so the day went.

This February 1st we will stop to remember the 8th Anniversary of the Columbia disaster. Yes, I was watching live coverage on that Saturday morning, too. Like I said this is our program and it came to be because of a young president's challenge 50 years ago.

25 years...hard to believe. Here's to the crew: Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis and Judith Resnik.

I would love for you to share your memories...

T-Shirt Memory Blankets - Why Didn't I Think of That?

2011-01-24T20:30:00.000-08:00

Aaron with his Disney t-shirt 1983

We all have "aha" moments. Or better yet, we smack our forehead and say to our self "Why didn't I think of that?" This morning I had one of those moments. I passed by the television which at the time was tuned to MSNBC. A promo ad was playing for MSNBC's Sunday Morning show Your Business highlighting uBlanket. Take a minute and watch a video here.

See this video on Vator.tv »

Ok, so now you have watched the video and I hope you have visited uBlanket's website. 'Remember...Reduce, Reuse, Rethread - All uBlankets are MADE IN THE USA!'

It is such a wonderful idea, great gift for birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, showers, retirements...the list is endless and it is a functional, cozy memory blanket - a keepsake that tells a story.

I don't want you to think or assume that uBlanket is our client. They are not (yet), but I love what they do and I think they have a great business model. Plus, I get a kick out of how simple the idea is. Think about it, or better yet, get up from your computer right now and walk over to your clothes closet or dresser (I am assuming you are at home or imagine you are at home). How many of these "memory or souvenir t-shirts or sweatshirts" do you own? I am going to bet dozens to 100s.

Here's the thing. Yes, this is a great idea, but it is not original. You know how I know? As I wrote today to Brett Snowden, Co-founder uBlanket.com:

"about six years ago I was sorting through "stuff" with my younger son and we came across a bag filled with little t-shirts that had belonged to my older son. You know the kind of souvenir t-shirts that you buy babies and children when you are traveling, etc? Well, the older son stopped by the house and the younger son handed him the bag and told him to "do something with these shirts!" About four months later I received a package in the mail, a t-shirt blanket quilt made with the little t-shirts! Aaron and a friend had created the blanket."

But you see, an idea doesn't have to be original to be successful. It has to be acted upon. You have to think it through, plan it out, and do it! In this case it really seems that Brett Snowden and John Murch are doing it right. They are doing it green and they are helping the homeless, too. You can follow them on twitter @uBlanket and like them on Facebook.

Let me know what you think? Do you have an idea you have been thinking about? Or did you have an idea that you wished you had developed?

Do you see the Disney T-shirt on Aaron's Memory blanket?

Reviewing 2010 and Ringing In 2011

2011-01-03T18:26:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Webconsuls' 2010/2011 Winter Newsletter

If 2010 was nothing else, it was a fast year. It seems only yesterday Dick Fay and I were working on our 2009 Winter Newsletter and now here we are writing our 2010/2011 Winter Newsletter. We want to take a few minutes to: Thank our Webconsuls' clients, introduce our newest clients, highlight some marketing and software ideas, suggest two resolutions for you and support our not-for-profit clients who assist children in need.

Thanking our clients...

Webconsuls and our team appreciates our clients. We learn from each and every client by optimizing their sites, designing new sites, building blogs, coaching our clients on new software and responding to their marketing needs. As you may know, we have clients across the United States (actually in 11 states) and in two foreign countries, representing industries from hospitality to law, health care to home maintenance, real estate to retail, sports and recreation to performing arts. There is never a dull day.

Introducing our clients who joined us in 2010...

We invite you to meet our new clients and visit their websites.

Chiminy Cricket Chimney Sweep and Top Hat Air Systems

Clear View Business Solutions

George Mantell, DDS

Holbrook and Associates

Maneri Sign Company

Smile Design Dental Group

Sir Speedy Printing - Tucson AZ

Renee Ponder Herbs

Tucson Floor Specialists

Highlighting some marketing and software suggestions...

We know the internet is fluid. It changes daily. We try to keep our clients abreast of these changes by writing this blog, researching our clients' requests, providing news' feeds on our website, and publishing our newsletter. Over the past few years we have blogged a lot about social media/Google/Twitter. We have built blogs for our clients, we have worked with our clients to establish their Facebook business page. Additionally, over the past year...

Dick has been particularly active assisting our clients by adding shopping carts with either PayPal or Authorize.net functionality.
Dennis worked with clients to add a LIVEPerson feature for online customer engagement.
Malik, our lead designer and web developer, is also proficient in designing clients' e-newsletters using Constant Contact and Vertical Response.
Keith, our PPC specialist, works closely with several of our PPC clients to utilize phone conversion optimization software.
Alycia, our branding expert, has been focused on improving Client Web 2.0 and specific SEO-related enhancements.
Daniel, our Social Media tech continues to sharpen his YOUTube video creation skills. We are sure you will enjoy the video he created for Seaward Inn to commemorate their 2010 Sunday Morning Live Series.

Suggesting two resolutions for you...

The first is to start reading our Webconsuls' blog on a regular basis. As we said above, with our blog we communicate new information that we think is important to on-line marketing and social media.

The second is to start and maintain your own blog. Our clients with blogs generally receive more traffic than clients in similar fields without them. Blogger now allows you to easily monitor your blog stats. A blog is easy and relatively inexpensive to create. Routinely writing posts can be a challenge, but it can be rewarding with more virtual exposure, traffic, and new business. You might start by also reading some of our clients' blogs like - Delytes - A 'green' fine foods company or Attorney Carilyn Ibsen's blog or Attorney Will Bruzzo's blog.

Finally supporting our not-for-profit clients...

This year, as in years past, Webconsuls made a donation in honor of our clients to those not-for- profit clients who work to support children and families in need.

Olive Crest Homes and Services for Abused Children
Since 1973, Olive Crest has transformed the lives of over 50,000 abused, neglected, and at-risk children and their families.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Midcoast MaineThe vision of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Midcoast Maine is successful mentoring relationships for youth in Knox, Lincoln and Waldo Counties, contributing to better schools, stronger communities and brighter future.

The Promises Foundation Miriam's House
The Promises Foundation is committed to restoring hope for families by creating a safe environment for mothers and their children to grow and develop the tools they require to live meaningful and self-sufficient lives.

Forrest General Healthcare Foundation

The Forrest General Healthcare Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Forrest General Hospital. The foundation helps ensure that the hospital's vision of C.A.R.E. becomes a reality for the 17 county region that the hospital serves. Initiatives include the Inpatient Hospice Home Project, the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Renovation Project and the Spiritual Grounds at Pine Grove.

We wish you a healthy and prosperous New Year. Let us know if 2011 is the year you want to add some new features to your on-line marketing. We will be happy to discuss these opportunities and plan a strategy with you.

Sincerely,
Dennis, Dick and Judy

Google Weights Poor User Experience

2010-12-03T14:05:00.000-08:00

Image via CrunchBase

If you have a business website it is probably safe to assume that on occasion you might feel overwhelmned by GOOGLE. "How do I get my site to be #1 on the search engine results page (SERP)?" "How can I move up on GOOGLE Places?" "How do I deal with negative reviews that appear on the web?" In the past we have written a few posts about reviews and guest (user) experience. We have tried to give you our best business advice along with our best on-line marketing advice.

Are you wondering where I am going with this? Here's the deal. On November 28, 2010, I saw a New York Times tweet that said: A Bully Finds a Pulpit on the Web. I couldn't resist clicking over to the story and after reading this shocking article I then forwarded it to Dick and Dennis. On Monday morning my brother-in-law sent me a link to the article, he too was shocked. I kept wondering what if anything can be done about an on-line merchant that is so bold and conniving. Unconscionable is really the best word to describe this merchant.

Now comes the good news. GOOGLE decided to get involved. I don't want to speak for GOOGLE, click here and you can read their post about their algorithmic solution. It is fascinating and gives me hope that GOOGLE is really trying to provide a good service. As they said:

"We can't say for sure that no one will ever find a loophole in our ranking algorithms in the future. We know that people will keep trying: attempts to game Google’s ranking, like the ones mentioned in the article, go on 24 hours a day, every single day."

I would like to thank the New York Times for running the article about the merchant, Vitaly Borker, and I would like to hear what you think about this news. Leave a comment, won't you?

Get Your GOOGLE Place Page In Order

2010-11-09T06:49:00.000-08:00

Have you claimed your GOOGLE Place Page yet? Remember when I talked about GOOGLE Local becoming GOOGLE Places? In September I wrote about how GOOGLE Places was upgraded to a TWO-WAY STREET. Webconsuls subscribes to a number of SEO/SMO on-line newsletters and also makes SMO and SEO News Feeds available for our site users. One of our favorite newsletters is Planet Ocean's Search Engine News and we read with interest their current article "Must Do List for November: Create, Claim, Improve Your Google Places Page." Here is a bit of what they have to say:

"Google has rolled out Place Search which is a whole new way of displaying search results. This combines the natural and the local search algorithms and completely eliminates the traditional 7 pack and integrating it within the top 7 results. This is huge! The new algorithm relies heavily on Place Pages and it's clear that without a Place Page you may be left behind. Here's a location specific search that shows exactly what's changed:

"One thing to notice is that all the top results had very complete place pages that included pictures, reviews, links etc. As time goes by the consequences of the changes to local search will become clearer. The one thing we can tell you right now is you MUST have a complete Places Page for your business or you WILL be left behind in local search! Regardless how completed or not your Place Page is - make sure it is as complete as possible before December. This is the advice you pay us to hear...do yourself a favor and listen."

Ok, I am going to run through this information again.
Follow these steps:

· Go to Google Places

· Sign in with your business GMail address

· On the new screen click on LIST YOUR BUSINESS

· A new screen will appear and you will be asked to enter your non-toll-free phone number and then hit the button that says: Find Business Information

· Your current business address will appear and you will click on EDIT to update your listing.

· A new screen will appear where you will be allowed to give all of the pertinent information about your business.

· At the end of this process, when you hit submit, GOOGLE is going to call you within seconds to give you and PIN number to activate your account.

· It is very important that you be there to answer the non-toll-free number. This is one of their ways of verification of business ownership.

You may be wondering why we just don’t take care of this for you. We have found that this free Google service is better managed by the customer for a number of reasons.

Google frowns upon 3^rd party management of these accounts, as we are not the business owner.
While we could go in and perhaps enter all of the information correctly, we are not sitting at your phone to take the call from Google and to try to coordinate that with you or your employee can be very difficult.
Now that Google Places allows the business owner to respond to REVIEWS (good and bad) you really need to manage and understand this tool. We cannot respond for you.

Should you decide you need help with this, I would be happy to tutor you over the phone while you CLAIM YOUR PLACE and LIST YOUR BUSINESS. Let me know if you have questions.

Let's make it a goal: Get your GOOGLE Place Page in Order!

Your Parking "PLACE" (Page) Awaits YOU!

Go Right at 501 Mission Place

2010-11-04T07:56:00.000-07:00

Image by Michael Mistretta via Flickr

Today marks a milestone for Webconsuls' blog. Yes, today when I hit the "publish post" button you will be able to read our 501st blog post! Ironically today I want to introduce you to a new on-line community 501 Mission Place.

Over the past year I have written a lot about my on-line friend Chris Brogan. I try to learn from Chris and I like to share what I learn with our clients and our readers. Yesterday Chris Brogan unveiled his latest project: 501 Mission Place. Chris said it best:

"I’m so very pleased to announce the launch of our first Human Business Works community and education project, 501 Mission Place. This community is geared towards non-profits and charities looking to improve their efforts. From fundraising to the use of new marketing tools to in-depth interviews with the people out there on the front lines doing successful things to grow their non-profits and charity projects, the goal is to give you the tools you need to thrive in this ever-changing economic situation, where funds are drying up at the exact moment that you need them most."

Let's face it; we are all touched by not-for-profit 501c organizations. Whether you serve on a board, work behind the scenes as a volunteer, or benefit from their continued and varied efforts - eventually not-for-profit 501c organizations impact our lives.

If you have been fortunate enough to be intimately involved with a not-for-profit 501c organization, then you know how often you might ask: "What would be the best way to manage our fundraising?" It could be you have a new board, a young board, a tired board, needs that outweigh your current means, new regulations - the list goes on. How great would it be to know you have an on-line community with experts at the helm and fellow on-line community members who have a wealth of experience?

Do you know a not-for-profit 501c organization that could benefit from 501 Mission Place? I know I do and today I am going to personally reach out to our not-for-profit 501c clients and encourage them to visit 501 Mission Place.

What will you do?

My Friend

2010-10-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

My Friend

I have a friend from college whose name is not important but I think his life story is. I graduated in 1966 and he in 1967. His father was an exec at a large corporation and while his upbringing included private prep school, year abroad, and a private college he was an unpretentious regular guy.

After graduation he joined the Army and served in Viet Nam. He was an RTO or Radio Telephone Operator, so he carried the communications equipment for the officer in charge. On January 25^th 1969 his unit, Company C, 5^th Battalion, 60^th Infantry was on a reconnaissance mission near Thu Thua. They were ambushed and there was fierce fire fight. The commanding officer was mortally wounded and my friend took over and directed the maneuvers of his company. He exposed himself to the barrage of enemy fire and adjusted artillery supporting fires and tactical air strikes. For his extraordinary heroism he was awarded the Silver Star.

After leaving the military, with more than a dozen other awards including a Bronze Star and Purple Heart, he went to the Law School where he did very well and made Law Review. Following graduation he went to work for a prestigious law firm in San Francisco. He met a woman who would later be his wife and life partner. Here was a guy around 30 who had a very good job, was in love, and was a well decorated war hero. Life must have looked very good.

About this time I had a business trip to San Francisco and called his office to arrange seeing him for lunch or dinner. A co-worker answered and informed me that he had suffered a heart attack. Upon recovering he was advised that the practice of law was probably too stressful so he got a job teaching law. He taught for seven years and was so distinguished the school gives out the an award in his name each year. Unfortunately, at age 40 he suffered a stroke and had to give up teaching.

It has now been determined that his medical problems stem from exposure to Agent Orange while in Viet Nam.

For the last 25 years his intelligent caring brave man has not able to read. He lives in a retirement home. He is able to go the store, fix meals for himself, watch television. He can travel and goes to Viet Nam reunions to see his buddies. He also spends a lot of time with his wife, who has MS so bad she is confined to a wheel chair in the same retirement home.

In 2009 I and some other college friends met him in Chicago. We went to a Cubs game then drove to Milwaukee and caught a Brewers game. Last summer I was in the Midwest and was able to spend half a day and him and introduce him to my daughter and granddaughter.

Whenever I am with him or on the phone with him, he is positive and upbeat. He never bemoans his fate. He makes me realize how lucky I am. Of course, he has his health, which is very good given the heart attack and stroke; a great relationship with his wife; nieces and nephews who love and respect him; and friends who understand his sacrifice. I would guess that he considers himself luckier than many.

THE Can Be a Powerful Word

2010-10-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

Did the title of this post, "THE Can Be a Powerful Word", get your attention? Think about it for a minute. Now if I say: "It's THE Real Thing" or "When you care enough to send THE very best", I'll bet you can name what brand each statement refers to without blinking an eye. Am I right?

Branding is something every business needs to do. Establishing a brand can be taxing. You create a name, you create a product, maybe you get a patent, maybe you apply for a trademark, maybe you copyright your material, and maybe you are the product! And after all is said and done "the customer owns the brand" as Jeff Hayzlett informed us at Blog World Expo 2010.

I am not sure, but I suspect that the Mandalay Bay Resort management was thinking about their customers when (according to Wikipedia) "In 2006, the lettering at the top of the tower changed to 'THEhotel' to distinguish the property. Formerly, the lettering was identical to the 'Mandalay Bay' letters at the top of the original tower." You see the Mandalay Bay Resort opened in 1999; however, what is now referred to as THEhotel at Mandalay Bay opened in 2003.

Prior to the name change imagine the confusion a hotel guest faced: What do you tell the taxi driver, upon arrival you might not be sure which hotel tower to check-in at...or you may wander around in the casino and then make your way back to the wrong hotel tower. (Think Co-Op City in THE Bronx!)

As you know Blog World Expo 2010 was held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center. Happily I was a guest at THEhotel at Mandalay Bay. I can truly say THEhotel is a well designed beautiful hotel. Every room is a suite, no smaller than 725 square feet. And THE is the only word you need to know when you are trying to find your way around THEhotel. They don't have fancy or clever names for their on-site amenities or venues: THEpad, THEtp, baTHE (toiletries), THElounge, THEcafe, THEstore, THEcoffeebar. (click on the photo on the left) You see what I mean? Simple and understated. This customer owns the brand!

In closing, I would like to share something I rediscovered today about the word THE. Did you know: "that the pronunciation of the definite article 'the' changes, primarily depending on whether the following sound is a consonant or a vowel?" Before a consonant sound the pronunciation is thuh, before a vowel sound it is usually thee.

By the way, if you think I am off base when I say THE can be a powerful word, maybe I can interest you in UBS' latest commercial effort.

On the other hand, THE Google never did sound right and we are told in "The Social Network" movie that it was Sean Parker who advised Mark Zuckerberg and Eduardo Saverin to drop THE from ~~The~~ FACEBOOK.

BWE10 Chief Listening Officers Wanted

2010-10-20T12:17:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, October 14-16, I learned a little of how to be Webconsuls' Chief Listening Officer (CLO). Yes, the C-Suite at many companies does now include a CLO and happily I attended Blog World Expo 2010 to learn how to listen, engage, and as @lizstrauss says "manage the present and create the future." This is my second year participating in Blog World and I will tell you it was an entirely different experience in many ways. Here are my "outtakes" from this year's conference:

FOUNDATION
Familiarity can make conference attendance a little easier. The on-line registration process was simple. Blog World's Blog allows potential attendees to get to know more about Blog World and the key players at Blog World. In addition to their blog, you can also stay current and engaged by "liking" them on Facebook and following them on Twitter @blogworld.

I flew Southwest Airlines again this year direct non-stop from Tucson to Las Vegas. Last year I was a bit overwhelmed by their boarding process, but what a difference a year makes. I like Southwest!

This year the conference venue was the Mandalay Bay Resort and Conference Center. I cannot say enough good about Mandalay Bay. I hope to do another post just about this experience. It was great to be able to enjoy the conference and know your suite was just upstairs, a short walk and elevator ride away.

During the past several months I "met" Deb Ng, Blog World's Conference Manager, Allison Boyer, a Blog World Blogger, and Rick Calvert, Blog World's Founder via Twitter, Facebook and blogging. I set a goal to meet them in person.

Over the past year I have also met some very interesting people, like John McLachlan, so engaging them at Blog World was a major goal for me.

KEYNOTES and SESSIONS

Deb Ng did a fantastic job of putting together a diverse conference schedule. I hope this link stays live for a while so you can peruse what life is all about at Blog World. (Disclaimer: I took advantage of the Weekend Pass, so I was not in town for the October 14 events.)

Blog World sessions are designed by tracks. For example, if you are a TRAVEL blogger you can opt to attend only sessions that deal with the travel industry or if you are non-profit you attend sessions and learn from the social media experts on how to tweak your social media campaigns. But...you can mix and match.

I attended three of the Keynote addresses, but the most provocative was Friday morning's State of Digital Communications in Politics with Mark Penn, Karen Hughes, Hugh Hewitt, and Reid Wilson. This keynote was moderated by Blog World's founder, Rick Calvert. (I learned for the first time that Rick is a self-described "political junkie.") For a few minutes Rick had to do some masterful moderating!

I chose sessions that had to do with SEO and monetization. The Social Media and Corporate America was very informative. Where else can you listen to expert strategists like Jeffrey Hayzlett (think KODAK), Frank Eliason (formerly of COMCAST, presently SVP of Social for Citi), Bonin Bough (PEPSICO) and Scott Monty (FORD Motor Company)? I think it was Mr. Hayzlett who cautioned us to remember "the customer owns the brand" and you better have a "Chief Listening Officer" in your C-Suite (no matter the size of your company).

I enjoyed meeting C.C. Chapman (I have been reading his blog for about six months) and learning from him on the panel "How to Hire a Social Media Agency."

Liz Strauss, Carol Roth and Terry St. Marie (@starbucker) are very personable and they offered valuable strategies for building your on-line business, such as "Think BIG and value your time!"

Friday afternoon I attended the Monetization Super Panel (two hour session). Learning from successful bloggers like: Anita Campbell, Darren Rowse, John Chow and Jeremy Shoemaker was exciting. They talked about affiliate marketing, Commission Junction, and provided a road map of how one can monetize their blog. The next morning I ran into Darren Rowse walking through the lobby of Thehotel at Mandalay Bay. We had a nice conversation.

Socialization, Exhibitors and More

I did meet Deb Ng and Allison Boyer. This took a little time as there were over 4000 people attending the conference. You would be surprised how hard it can be to spot someone with PINK hair...hello Allison! I saw Rick Calvert a lot, but he was BUSY. I did not meet him personally, maybe next year.

I was able to meet and spend some good time with John McLachlan. You can see our photo here. We were able to attend some sessions together and had a nice dinner.

For the first time GOOGLE was an exhibitor, specifically BLOGGER. This was wonderful as Webconsuls is a BLOGGER house, that is we use and recommend the BLOGGER platform. Imagine my surprise to meet Brett Wilshire manning the BLOGGER/GOOGLE booth. Brett has been working on a question we posed about BLOGGER, so it was great to meet Brett in person. Also, I answered a BLOGGER survey and received a BLOGGER T-shirt.

I have a friend MaryAnn Martinez; she is a news reporter for Fox5News in Las Vegas. MaryAnn called me Saturday afternoon to tell me she had passes to see Shakira. Shakira's concert was Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Event Center(see photo below). Can you beat that? What a night!

Finally, while leaving Las Vegas, I had $7 in quarters that Dennis has given me prior to leaving Tucson. I played a slot machine at the Las Vegas airport and won $120. I put it in my pocket and waited for my flight home.

Ok, that is about it. I need to get back to work. If you were at BWE10, let me hear from you.

Hope to see you at Blog World Expo 2011.

New Twitter Home to Cuckoo Birds

2010-09-25T08:17:00.000-07:00

Twitter announced NewTwitter on September 14, 2010. They referred to it as a Better Twitter and they said it would be "rolled out" or coming soon to a nest near you. Yesterday, ten days into the roll out I received a message on my Twitter page: "Welcome to #NewTwitter!" I was shocked because after all, I only have 263 followers and I only follow 94 people. Come to think about it, maybe Twitter felt I was a good risk...couldn't screw up too much or impact too many users, not like @corybooker or @chrisbrogan.

While I like most of what I have seen with the new Twitter I do feel that my quiet little nest is now home to Cuckoo Birds. Do you know about Cuckoo Birds? Many of the cuckoo bird species will not build their own nest, but instead lay their eggs in the nest of another bird species and let the other species raise their young!

What does this have to do with Twitter? Well, with #OldTwitter if you RT something it is your image that appears in your followers' Twitter stream; however, with the #NewTwitter it is the original tweeter's profile avatar which appears in your stream. For example: I follow @johnschannel. He RT'd something from @shamelesshussy and instead of seeing John's familiar avatar in my stream (which I will read and take note of) I see @shamelesshussy avatar which is a kitten. Imagine a kitten in my Twitter nest. To tell you the truth, I don't have time to figure out if I want to read this Tweet now that it does not have John's avatar. I have to read the small print to know he RT'd it.

So that is why I think my Twitter nest is home to Cuckoo Birds, strangers who have been left there for me to nurture.

I really like the new Twitter and I invite you to watch this short dramatic YouTube video about it.

In the mean time, it is Saturday. Take a break and listen to Peter, Paul and Mary sing "The Cuckoo"...think about the important things in life and don't worry about your Twitter nest.

I would love your input!!! Let me know what you think of #newtwitter.

Rose Knows What to Do When Novelty Wears Off!

2010-09-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

How old are you? Do you imagine that you will still be productive when you are 82? Or do you hope to retire before you reach 50 or 60 or 70? I want you to meet my friend Rose. Rose works for The Seaward Inn located in Rockport, MA.You might remember hearing of Rose when I wrote about the Seaward Inn in October 2008.

For the record, I have never met Rose in person. I have only talked to her by phone or by e-mail. It was this past May that Rose sent an e-mail concerning a news story about The Seaward Inn that had appeared in the Gloucester Times. She wanted to make sure that the story was used on their website. I wrote Rose and told her it was handled to which she responded:

"You know Judy, at age 82 I find all this Facebook and Twitter so fascinating. Such a wonderful challenge for me. I love it. Thanks, Rose"

I wrote back to Rose:

"Rose, You make me giggle. Why would I ever know or think you are 82! I love everything you send our way. We so much hope you have a great season. Judy"

The other day my friend Chris Brogan wrote a blog about "When Novelty Wears Off." As usual, he posed some powerful questions about social media like: "What am I doing with XYZ technology? Is it pushing my business forward?" His questions reminded me of my friend Rose. Rose has lived through a lot, she is like Betty White. She is not afraid of new technology, but she knows her main business goal is to assist Nancy Cameron-Gilsey in running The Seaward Inn.

Ultimately, I think Chris is trying to caution everyone to keep their eye on the ball. To that end I would like for you to know more about Rose and how, over the years, she has kept her eye on the ball. Here, in her own words, is a little bit about Rose's career:

"The only thing older than the Seaward Inn is the Atlantic Ocean and me, believe me I am no prize. I have always loved promoting events, etc. and have had a big appetite for music, all kinds. Love the musicals, Phantom of the Opera being my favorite, but I love the music of Barry White as well. Then there is all the music of the 50's and 60's, The Beatles, Peter Paul and Mary and before that the Andrew Sisters ..and of course Elvis. I could go on and on about music.

Perhaps you remember my coffee shop some 25 yrs. ago, Rosie's Coffee Shop Plus in Brown's Mall. That was put together on a whim, another one of my thinking outside the box ideas...I had fun with it for about three years and then sold it. Took it on when Main Street was dying and the businesses all left the Mall and it had become such a sad establishment. My shop became the heartbeat of the Mall and I tailored my shop to accommodate the clientele like Gloria Stevens ...from special menu for dieters to the guys who pumped iron in the exercise club as well as the cops in the Police Station across the street. I've been a bookkeeper for years, having studied accounting through a Chrysler Dealership,.. worked at Boley's back in the 50's and then for Gloucester Dispatch and did bookkeeping on the side for various small businesses including the Outrigger at Rocky Neck. When the Cameron Sisters took back the Inn from leasing it, I came in to help Nancy start up the books and I've been at the Seaward Inn ever since.

I love the Inn, there is something very Special about it and when the economy tanked in Rockport I couldn't bear to see our beautiful dining rooms empty, so I talked Nancy into bringing in the music ...let locals enjoy the view and the Inn. She said we couldn't afford it but I told her where there is a will there is a way and I asked her to give me a budget and let me give my ideas a try. Well, the rest is history.

Sunday Morning Live has been successful far beyond my expectations. We have had some really great performers at the Inn. I screen all, choose from the best and try to bring as much diversity as possible to the SML Series for the season. It has grown, and with the help of Judy at Webconsuls, our webmaster in Arizona, and other media we are getting the word out there and have quite a following already.

You wanted to know something about me, well there it is, not very interesting, and believe me, you are not missing anything by not meeting me."

I don't know about you, but I am glad I met Rose. She is an inspiration.

I'll ask you again: "Do you imagine that you will still be productive when you are 82?"

Here you can enjoy a YouTube video of The Honky Tonk Women of Gloucester performing at The Seaward Inn, Labor Day Weekend, 2010.

Vacation in Paradise

2010-09-09T15:37:00.000-07:00

Take a Trip to Paradise

The summer is over so vacation travel should slow down. If you can, this may be a perfect time to visit paradise – the beautiful island of Kauai.

Kauai is both remote and accessible, American and laid-back, modern and rustic. As described on GoHawaii.com

From the soaring cliffs of the Napali Coast to the vast chasms of Waimea Canyon, Kauai embraces the senses like no other destination. Explore the island via land, sea or air to experience settings you’ve only dreamed about. Discover 50-miles of heavenly beaches from Poipu Beach to Hanalei Bay. Explore charming and historic small towns like Hanapepe and Koloa where no building is taller than a coconut tree. With so much to experience, “Hawaii’s Island of Discovery,” is begging to be explored.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words - here is one from Sea Cliff Hale

Or maybe Sea Cliff Hale is better described in the words of some who have stayed there:

We had an awesome wedding week here in this gorgeous home. So much more than we expected. View, turtles, snorklers, flowers, vegetation, butterflies! You have the house set up in such a comfortable way. Thanks so much. We really hope to return someday in the near future.
- The Peterson Family of Colorado.

Words cannot describe what a wonderful place this is and what a wonderful time we've had. The turtles have been fascinating. We will never stay in a hotel again! Many thanks.
- The Houston Family from Canada.

The sunrises were colorful and the turtle parade was the highlight of every morning and evening. A great home for family and entertaining. It was beyond our expectations.
-The Rooney Family from Illinois.

We enjoyed our stay at your lovely home tremendously. We had a family reunion here and all had great rooms and accommodations. The turtles were an extra treat for us all!
-D.R. Sacramento,

"My husband and I relaxed and had a very nice time at your home. The views and ambiance are true Hawaii. We plan to return next year."
-L. G. Palos Verdes, Calif.

"Your home was perfect for our vacation. The snorkeling, swimming, sea turtles and monk seals were extra special for us. Baby Beach was the perfect beach to nap on and sun bathe, and it is so convenient! We also loved barbecuing in the evenings with the sea turtles. Your home is a very special place in Poipu. Thank you."
-R.L. San Francisco, Calif.

"What a great home you have here in Poipu!! We love it and didn't ever want to leave the property. It is so private and quiet here and very, very welcoming. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful place with us."
P.F. Grass Valley, California

For more information on Sea Cliff Hale, visit the website at http://www.kauai-vacation-home.com/.

Kilauea Lakeside Estate is located in Kilauea, on the verdant north shore of Kauai. It is 10 minutes to the Princeville Resort with world class resort amenities. Why stay at a big resort when you can stay at your own private Hawaiian refuge. This luxury ecological hideaway is nestled on a five-acre peninsula of botanical gardens surrounded by a private twenty acre freshwater lake with a private white sand beach. The estate is landscaped with lush tropical foliage with over 150 varieties of flowers such as orchids, bromeliads, gingers and heliconias as well as mango, banana, papaya and over fifty other fruit trees. Adjacent to the Kilauea Point Wildlife Refuge and ten miles of secluded white sand beaches, the resort offers a variety of water sports including boating, kayaking, bass and catfish fishing, and a one-hole, three-par practice golf facility and putting green.

Again the words of those who have stayed probably describe Kilauea Lakeside Estate the best.

We can't thank you enough for all of your “aloha” hospitality. We have been to resorts all over the world and our one week at your resort was by far the best vacation we have ever had. “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.” The beaches across from your property were so secluded, and we especially enjoyed swimming and fishing in your lake. We caught many bass and catfish. Rowing on the lake at night was so romantic. We even drifted to sleep on the lake one night. All your personal suggestions were great. We'll be back for a longer stay next time.
H. & J. Bruno
Laguna Hills, CA

The pictures don't do justice to the property. It is so much better than we thought it would be. Loved the feeling of living in a botanical garden surrounded by water on all sides. Thank you for an unforgettable experience. We'll be back soon.
S. Lawrence
San Francisco, CA

No place on earth could be any better than this. Simply paradise. The trade winds will blow for a very long time with lots of pleasant memories on behalf of our group.
T. Moriarty
Indianapolis, IN

All honeymoons should be spent on this secluded paradise. Your private beach was soooo perfect we never wanted to go anywhere else.
C. & S. Jackson
Vista, CA

Kilauea Lakeside is truly the treat of a lifetime. We'll never want to stay in a condo or hotel again. We all felt the like kids on your Tom Sawyer's island. We kayaked from your dock and used the rope swings and tree houses nearly every day.

L. & M. Stuart
San Rafael, CA

And if that’s enough

For more info visit the website at http://www.kauaihoneymoon.com/

Google Places Finally a Two-Way Street

2010-09-03T06:05:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Don't you hate one-way streets? Up until a month ago Google Places' review feature was a one-way street. Clients/customers/guests/patients/vendors could find a business' listing in Google Places and write a review; however, the business owner had no way to effectively respond to the review. That all changed on August 4, 2010.

Old news? No. This is important news that warrants repeating, because in the scheme of things your business lifeline is your reputation. I don't care what kind of business you own and/or operate; repeat customers and customer referrals provide the most effective return on investment (ROI).

I have written about Google Places. Dick Fay has written about reviews and how to work with them. At least once per day I read a blog post about reviews, like Mack Collier's most recent post Think negative comments/reviews online hurt your company? Guess again.

Today I want to assist you in learning more about how to use this new review response feature to your advantage (HINT: all you need to know is at your fingertips in this link). And I am not just talking about negative reviews. Take the time to thank your clients who take the time to write a positive review.

Going forward:

If you are a Webconsuls' client and you need help claiming and verifying your business listing on Google Places please contact me. It is important that YOU claim and verify your listing.
If you are not a Webconsuls' client and want to learn more about our services, we make it easy for you to contact us. We look forward to meeting you.

Google is now letting us drive on a two-way street, let's see if we can convert every reviewer into an advocate or at least clear the bottleneck. Can we do it?

Backing Up Isn't Hard to Do!

2010-08-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Do you ever fall asleep at night with the TV on? I think we all do this on occasion, some more often than not. The falling asleep part is not so bad; it is the waking up in the early morning hours to a strange infomercial. Have you noticed how these infomercials seem to make sense at 4:00AM? The other day I woke up to a real commercial for computer back-up software. I breathed a sigh of relief because we already use this software.

Can we talk about backing-up our computers? This does not need to be a long discussion. I will say: "Schedule a regular back-up of your computer." And all you have to say is, "Ok, will do." You might think this is a no-brainer. Maybe you have already learned the hard way: your PC becomes infected with a virus, sudden electrical surge wipes out your hard drive, you lose your laptop, you drop your laptop. Actually the list is endless.

We come to know and expect that our websites are backed-up daily by our host, but what about all of those word documents, photos, logos, pdfs and gifs that are stored on our own computers. Just the other day we received this email from a client:

"Give me a call. Got a speed bump. Accidentally deleted my web page folder. Fortunately I have done full and daily backups. Did a (full backup) restore from 3/7/10, then tried daily restore up to yesterday. Unfortunately the back up software did not include the html folder (it is in the job description). So now I am left with a 3/7/10 folder with the old website links. I will be calling back up tech support this morning to see if we can salvage. If not, and there is no way to convert pdf files to word perfect, we need to do a global link change again. Fortunately I can work off the website to make needed changes and additions."

Malik Moosa, our web developer and designer, worked with the client and sent this follow-up message:

"I’m glad the files I had worked out for you. I would recommend copying those manually to a backup drive or on CD/DVD just to avoid and accidental deletions in the future."

Be prepared. Backing-up isn't hard to do. Dennis uses Carbonite. This is not an advertisement for Carbonite; it is a factual statement. He found it particularly useful when he had to get a new PC and he wanted to make sure that he had all of his files backed-up. Then he was able to do a restore. This is an on-line process, automatic, secure and reasonably priced. On my PC I use an external Seagate hard-drive. It is set to back-up my PC every day at 2:00AM.

Remember, not backing-up is like saying you didn't know to purchase flood insurance even though you live in a flood plain. How about you? What is your back-up plan? Did you have to learn the hard way?

Speaking of learning the hard way, I am going to leave you today with a YouTube video from Sex and the City, Season 4, Episode 56 - "My Motherboard, My Self"

Blog Comments are a Virtual Traffic Circle

2010-08-05T12:55:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

I remember the first time I encountered a "traffic circle". It was 1988; I was 39 years old and living in New Hampshire. A business associate told me to meet him at a car dealership near the "rotary" in Portsmouth (or thereabout). But there was one problem with his directions. By "rotary" I thought he was referring to a ROTARY(as in the organization) office building. When I finally found him at the car dealership I told him I didn't see the ROTARY to which he responded: "What are you talking about? You drove through the rotary!" Again I queried and finally he adequately described the nightmare that I had just been subjected to: A traffic circle!

So there you have it. Traffic circle, rotary or roundabouts - "a circular arrangement constructed at the intersection of two or more roads in order to facilitate the passage of vehicles from one road to another."

Recently someone (a client) asked me why I read blogs and why do I comment on the blogs I read. The obvious answer to the first part of this question is that I read other blogs to learn about the SEO and SMO industry, hoping to share the knowledge I glean with our clients and co-workers. I comment on the blogs that I regularly read if I have something to add to the conversation or if I have a question about the subject matter. The by-product of this process is that I develop social media relationships and links with relevance and reputation.

Here's how I visualize blog commenting as a virtual traffic circle:

A blog post is written
I am notified of the post via an email or RSS feed (it is ok to start into the circle)
I read the post
I write a comment and identify myself with a link to our domain address or blog address - "the intersection is constructed"
Other readers or the blog writer read my comment and perhaps click on the link to our domain address or blog address
New traffic comes to our site - a visitor who may read our blog or search for a service we offer
New visitor leaves a comment (with a link to their site) or sends us an email

Virtual Traffic Circle: "a circular arrangement constructed at the intersection of two or more blogs/websites in order to facilitate the passage of web traffic from one business to another."

Lately I have read a number of really interesting posts about blogs and blog commenting. Here are a few I would like to share with you. I hope you will take the time to read these posts. You will learn so much.

Drive Traffic to Your Site with a 6-Step Blog Comments Blueprint

Blogs As Loss Leaders

Value Your Blog Real Estate

Are Blog Comments Dead?

One last thought:

If you are not accustomed to traffic circles (real ones), they can be intimidating. You need to learn about them, understand them, know when to merge, know how to exit to your destination. The same applies to blog commenting and virtual traffic circles, don't you think? I would love to hear from you on this...merge into the traffic circle and comment!

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