• Why should I use Twitter?
• Who should I follow?
• What should I tweet about?
• How do I have conversations on Twitter?
• How do I get others to follow me?
• How do I share photography on Twitter?
• How do I make money as a photographer on Twitter?

The white paper bundles the answers to these questions together in one easy to read format that provides a nice Twitter primer for photographers.  The blog also has a great post about how photographers can utilize social media.

Here is a link to the PDF report

What is this new press release format?

Bullet-points. A simple bulleted list of who, what, when, where, why and how (yes- those same techniques we learned in school, now with a twist).

The reason?

She said that each day journalists get so many press releases all they do is scan them and the easiest way to do that is with bullet-points. So often times, PR companies go to great lengths to get quotes and write lavish press releases. In reality, journalists rewrite the story and most newspapers require their journalists to get their own quote for the story.

So, if you insist on using the standard press release format, try writing simple bulleted list of the “5 Ws” before the rest of the release to help the journalist scan and then continue reading if they choose.

Remember, you want to make their life as easy as possible!

If you look at the top 10 issues facing companies looking to enter the social media space, you will see that ‘lack of social media literacy among workers’ (i.e. lack of social skills) is a top concern.  As a company you must answer a number of questions when putting together your social media strategy.  Do not fear though, there is a database of social media policies that other companies have already created.  Have a look and get started on creating your company’s own social media policy!

Once you have your Wordpress blog installed, you need to log in to the WordPress administration area from where you can write posts and articles, manage comments, change your theme, etc. To log in the WP admin panel, navigate to the WP login page or directly type the URL in your browser:

http://www.yourdomainname.com/wp-admin/

Writing a post in WordPress

Writing posts and pages is the core activity in WP. You can start your editorial experience by clicking the Add New button located in the Posts menu:

You can proceed with entering the desired content. Once you are ready, the new post can be published just by clicking the Publish button.

You are developing a blog network. You’ve taught a group of young, eager professionals how to follow conversations; engaging your blogger of choice. You have provided some tools they can use to follow discussions on Twitter.

The person in charge of the project wants results. You know the network is just off the ground and a series of successes are coming fast. You talked with the boss. He seems to be getting it but there are bands of people in your organization and its extended community who knows little about content management systems and almost zero knowledge about Wordpress. They want to understand Twitter and the social networks but even more they want success.

What opportunity you find depends on how much you can look at the situation from their point of view. How basic you need to be is a question mark but you can assume their baseline knowledge is very thin.

Your boss says he wants a breakdown, a “Social Media For Dummies,” exercise that will help people start feeling like they can help with the success of the project.

Now you see a small window for getting people to participate. You know the boss has a lot more influence in the company than you. You can now work together and build the foundation of a community that is working together to do the blog and social network outreach.

Your goal should be really simple. Just help someone catch one fish. It’s that feeling of a nibble that will get some of them really into using social web applications.

Simple truth: You want the boss to help spread the word. You want him to tell people in the community what to do. In the process, your boss will look good, the community will learn a bit more about the social media tools you use and perhaps take a small step toward using the technologies themselves. Even more, it will help get some people to check out all the hard work you have done.

So, here are some basic ways to get started. Remember, keep it simple.

• All you want the boss to do is tell the community to spread the word by sending emails to their friends and colleagues.
• Write a letter for your boss that will go to the community. Tell people exactly how you want them to spread the word
• Include a form email the recipients may send to their friends with all the basic information about how to spread the word
• Provide ways you can see how the campaign did. For instance, shorten the link to your blog using bit.ly. The service will track the link, giving you an idea of how the outreach is working
• Be clear about how you want the boss to tell people about Twitter.  The email should ask people if they have  a Twitter account. Include a link to the Twitter registration page.  The email should state that the recipient’s community should follow Twitter account you provide
• Use a signature when emailing or posting on forums. Most forums and email programs allow you to setup what is called a signature. This is information that is automatically added at the end of every post or message. Here you can add a link to the website you are promoting and maybe a tag line in your signature.
• Follow the same method for your other social networks: YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, LinkedIn and anywhere else where you have a presence

Forget the social media jargon. Just ask people to spread the word.

Key Elements of Online PR:
• Start sentences with keywords,
• Start and end blocks of copy with keywords
• Break quotes into 2 parts. (NOTE: Quotes on PRWeb will become callouts, so make them strong and memorable).
• 350-750 words total.
• Link to different pages within your site.
• Use credible references
• Be factual. No BS. Interesting facts are best.
• Don’t SELL! Share without hype. Hype is the bane of PR.
• Make it engaging, Do it regularly (2-4 times a month).
• Remember images, attachments, references (w/keywords)

All of this information in PDF form:WeClik-Perfect_Online_Press_Release

What Spam Filters Look For

Here are some of the most common items that receive points from spam filters:

• Images accompanied by little or no text
• Very long list of recipients
• Large or very long messages exceeding a recipient’s limit
• Attachments
• Colored backgrounds
• Large fonts
• Colored fonts
• Messages created with Microsoft FrontPage
• Punctuation in the subject line
• Words in ALL CAPS in the subject line
• Trigger words or phrases in the body or subject line, such as “click,” “free,” “guarantee,” “limited-time offer,” “urgent matter”
• The phrases: what are you waiting for, while supplies last, while you sleep, money back guarantee, million dollars
• Check the spam score of your email before you send it

The following articles will provide more information if you so desire:

• “Practical E-Mail Marketing Tips”
• “Avoiding the Spam Filters and Other Email Marketing Tips“
• “Best Practices for Email Marketers”
• “CLIP & SAVE GUIDE to Avoiding Spam Filters“
• “E-Marketing in the World of Spam“
• “How Not to Get Labeled a Spammer“
• “How Spam Filters Work“
• “Marketing Your Business through Email: Spam Filter Words“
• “Words and Phrases That Trigger Some Spam Filters“

Here is a sample email that should be spam filter friendly:

To: Blogger Email

From: Your Real Name

Subject: Partnership Opportunity

Greetings Blogger (Try to use real name if possible),

I was going over your blog / I saw your pictures / I like your post about / and I wondered if you would be interested in participating in the Search for the Ultimate Athlete.  We are pleased to be able to invite you to join our team as a snowboard contributor/ambassador.  By joining the SFUA blogger network you become part of a focused group trying to determine who the ultimate athlete is and report on everything that goes into that process.  We ask for contributions from you in the form of blog posts, pictures, videos, whatever!  The theme is what is the ultimate athlete, what does it mean, do you know anyone who could be an ultimate athlete.

Please take a second to check out our website searchfortheultimateathlete.com and think about being a part of our quickly growing community of people searching for the ultimate athlete.  If you would like to contact us my email is, phone #.

Best Regards,
Your Name

Managing Twitter Accounts and Posts

• TweetDeck is a great application for Windows, Mac, and Linux users which allows you to track any number of Twitter accounts by mentions, news, friends, and a lot more. You can also tweet directly from the dashboard.
• UnTweeps lets you unfollow folks who haven’t posted lately.
• My Cleenr is a similar app to clean your contact list up.
• HootSuite, a browser based Twitter account manager.
• Tweetlater and Twuffer both let you compose tweets and schedule them for later posting.
• Tweetie manages your Twitter account on your iPhone.
• Seesmic A desktop client to manage your lifestream from Facebook & multiple Twitter accounts.
• CoTweet platform that helps companies reach and engage customers using Twitter.

Twitter Analytics

• Back Tweets allows you to do a quick search to discover who is linking to you on Twitter (note — this will also include your OWN tweets).
• Tweetstats is an online tool which lets you visually graph all your Twitter stats (tweets per hour, month, timeline, reply statistics and more!)
• Twitter Grader lets you check out how influential you are.
• TwitterCounter gives you web statistics on your follwers and Twitter rank.
• Monitter lets you enter up to three keywords and see who’s posting on those topics in real time. Very cool application! Great way to find out who’s talking about you or your business as well.
• Tweetbeep: sends you emails tracking mentions of you, your products, your company, or anything else you like.
• Twitterless and Qwitter both tell you who stops following you and graphs your follower history over time.
• TweetEffect lets you find out which of your Twitter updates made people follow you or leave you.
• Just for Fun, Twitemperature lets you compare how “hot” or “cold” you against the entire Twitter universe.

Productivity

• Tweetcube lets you send files on Twitter.
• Twitter Backup, a browser based service to back up your Twitter accounts and tweets.
• TwitPay, a nifty service that allows you to use PayPal and Twitter together to make payments to other Twitterers.
• Twitpics lets you share photos on Twitter.
• Remember the Milk lets you send to-dos and reminders to yourself via Twitter.
• StrawPoll lets you create polls on Twitter.
• TwtTrip lets you plan your next trip on Twitter.
• Tweet What You Spend lets you track your cash and spending through Twitter.
• TwitWall is a blogging companion for Twiiter which allows you to embed videos, mp3 files, podcasts, and photos.
• TwtLong allows you to go beyond the 140 character limit and make longer posts.

Marketing and Promotion

• Twitsu lets you schedule promotional tweets, run contests, and offer special deals.
• TwtQpon lets you create and send coupons.
• Twittertise allows you to advertise on Twitter and track the success of branded communications with your customers.
• TwtBizCard lets you send a business card through Twitter.
• Twellow a directory of public Twitter accounts, with hundreds of categories and search features to help you find people who matter to you.
• twtQpon an online coupon creator that helps you to create and distribute coupons on Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites.

Searching & Finding

• WeFollow lets you search for Twitters based on tags. You can also add yourself to WeFollow to help build your follower base.
• Nearby Tweets instantly alerts you to Twitters who are in your geographic location.
• Twibs lets you list and browse businesses on Twitter.
• Mr. Tweet helps you find people and followers relevant to your interests.
• Twitter Friends Browser is a visual mapping application that lets you see your followers.
• TwitterVision is a graphical interface showing you, moment-by-moment, where the latest tweet is around the globe.
• TwtVibe is an event manager tool that helps you organize tweetups and make meaningful connections through social media.
• Twazzup search twitter. Get real insights.

Mobile

• Slandr a Twitter Mobile ClientSite
• iPhone  Twitter app list 29 Twitter Apps for the iPhone Compared
• Twitter apps for mobile devices Twits to Go: Top 12 Twitter Apps for Your Phone
• Android Twitter apps Top 5 Twitter Clients: Android Based Tweeting

Other Social Media Integration

• Wordpress Plugin Twitter Tools is a plugin that creates a complete integration between your WordPress blog and your Twitter account.
• TwitterFeed lets you feed your blog posts to your Twitter account.

Often, a public relations firm or agency will turn to stock photography for images on a web site they are developing.

That need not be the case. There is a better way that is free, spreads good will and provides your site with a collection of fantastic images.

Flickr is one of the best resources for great photography. Some of the world’s most talented photographers use Flickr to show their work.

In this example, we will show you how we use Flickr to develop relationships with photographers by asking them for permission and then featuring their work on a blog, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and multiple other social networks.

We start by looking on Flickr for photos of the sports that we expect to have in the competition.

For instance, we discovered a photo of a bike race in Portland by Rudy Joggerst:

In this case, we simply sent Rudy an email. We explained that we would like to use his photo for our web site. In exchange, we told him we would feature his work and give him credit.

Once receiving permission, we created a slide show with his images using an application called animoto. Animoto creates a video of the photos you upload. They offer a choice of music that syncs with the video.

Here’s the result:

Once published, we promote the photographer through an application called Tarpipe, which automatically distributes the photo back to a Flickr page, Twitter and Facebook. We’ll have more about Tarpipe another time.

We use Delicious to keep track of the link to the photographer’s profile page.

Delicious connects into social networks, further extending the reach of the photographer you feature. Friendfeed offers a simple way to pull in Delicious bookmarks. You may then extend the photographer’s link even further by connecting your Friendfeed account to Facebook. Check the settings tab in Friendfeed to see Delicious and the other services you may integrate.

The photo is tagged with a name that we recognize. For example, in Delicious, you may want to tag the photo according to the context for how it is being used.

The next step:

We download the images that we want to use for the web site. An easy way to store pictures is by keeping them on the server where your web site is being hosted. We mostly use Wordpress for the sites we develop. Photos get uploaded to the Wordpress site in the Media Library.

That about covers it. By following this process, you are getting great photos for your web site and giving attention to the photographers whose images they are graciously allowing you to use. You are generating more links and most of all, developing a network that will help you build a lasting community.

a favicon (short for favorites icon), also known as a website icon, shortcut icon, url icon, or bookmark icon is a 16×16 pixel square icon associated with a particular website or webpage.^[1] A web designer can create such an icon and install it into a website (or webpage) by several means, and most graphical web browsers will then make use of it. Browsers that provide favicon support typically display a page’s favicon in the browser’s address bar and next to the page’s name in a list of bookmarks. Browsers that support a tabbed document interface typically show a page’s favicon next to the page’s title on the tab.

How do you change one? If you have a CMS like WordPress there is probably a plugin out there for you, remember Google is always your friend.  Here are directions for changing your favicon in Joomla and changing your favicon in Drupal.

How do you make one? Here is an extended tutorial about how to create your own favicon from scratch if you are looking for something a little easier I really like favicon.cc.  If you want to use a favicon that already exists there is a great selection on favicon.cc or there are full icon sets available for download.

“Silk” is a smooth, free icon set, containing over 700 16-by-16 pixel icons in strokably-soft PNG format. Containing a large variety of icons, you’re sure to find something that tickles your fancy. And all for a low low price of $0.00. You can’t say fairer than that.

That’s all for today folks!