To follow the series, visit EngagingConversations.com and become a fan on Facebook!

To follow the series, visit EngagingConversations.com and become a fan on Facebook!

To follow the series, visit EngagingConversations.com and become a fan on Facebook!

(PRWEB) August 1, 2009 — Epsilon Concepts, a Los Angeles web development company specializing in custom social networks, has unveiled the Los Angeles Digital Directory at http://www.ladigitaldirectory.com. The LA Digital Directory is a tech and entertainment oriented directory of jobs, job seekers, gigs, projects, vendors/agencies, freelancers/consultants, internships, recruiters/employment agencies, and events. For a limited time, The LA Digital Directory is also giving away one Kindle for every 500 premium listings and for every 1,000 free listings.

The LA Digital Directory focuses on providing screened local high quality listings moderated by professional editors from technology and entertainment. There is no clutter, no spam to sort through on the LA Digital Directory. The directory focuses on bringing the best people and businesses together from Los Angeles and Southern California. Additionally, you can subscribe to RSS feeds for each category via your blog reader so you automatically receive new listings as they are added. The directory is very easy to use and easy to search. Future planning improvements involve integrating social media with the directory and a mobile version. Premium listings with rush inclusion, social media distribution, premium labeling, and premium placement are only $50 per month while standard listings are free, allowing anyone to take advantage of this directory as a phone book of sorts for LA’s burgeoning tech and established entertainment communities. By providing a current directory of all things digital and entertainment in LA, the directory aims to organize the tech, entertainment and social media scenes in Los Angeles.

The LA Digital Directory is also heavily marketed online and at LA-specific tech, entertainment and social media events by the partners and their team. By adding a free or premium listing, individuals and businesses can thereby have their listing pushed through social media channels like Facebook & Twitter, included in search engine results and promoted through LATimes.com, direct mail, event sponsorships, Google & Facebook PPC, etc… Epsilon Concepts will also be looking to partner with key Los Angeles tech events and organizations to promote the LA Digital Directory. CEO Robby Berthume adds: “Advertising on LA Digital Directory allows you to reach the right people and companies in LA’s tech and entertainment worlds, which are rapidly blending in many ways. We attend the events, partner with promoters and do the networking so you don’t have to do the legwork. With LA’s unemployment issues and businesses carefully monitoring expenses, the directory allows individuals and vendors to make the best decisions with high quality local listings. With no middlemen and no clutter, this allows them to fill that job, find that recruiter, place that project or find that internship quickly and easily.

To follow the series, visit EngagingConversations.com and become a fan on Facebook!

Previous events were frequented by press and area start-ups, techies and social media gurus.  This year, Francisco has introduced an all day session complete with talks by the likes of serial entrepreneur and co-founder of TechCrunch 50 Jason Calacanis, former TV host and online entrepreneur Brooke Burke, social media and PR expert Brian Solis and Grammy Award-winning musician and entrepreneur Chamillionare.  In all, 19 speakers from a variety of backgrounds have been confirmed to give talks on topics ranging from early stage investing to monetizing social media to startup ecosystems to opportunities and challenges of user generated content.  Additionally, 10 companies, known as “Showoffs”, were selected out of hundreds of entries to showcase their websites and provide pitches and Q&A during the event.

Twiistup cost $297 for an event pass including the daytime sessions and Thursday evening party.  A pass to get into the party only cost $79.  Tickets can be purchased at http://www.eventbee.com/view/twiistup6/events and you can RSVP and see who else is going at the Facebook event page.

Moon Berthume was launched this month by partners and digital business gurus Sam Moon and Rob Berthume as an offshoot of their digital agency, Epsilon Concepts. Rob Berthume founded Epsilon Concepts in 2000 and Sam Moon joined in 2007. Epsilon Concepts is a profitable digital agency based in downtown Los Angeles, California that provides design, development, and consulting for web, print, mobile, branding, and social media. Through Epsilon Concepts, the partners completed over 250 web production and marketing projects for start-ups, small businesses, and Fortune 500s and they saw the need to build out a separate, focused agency specializing in search engine and social media marketing. Having produced numerous successful web projects in a variety of industries, the partners knew the time was right to create the Moon Berthume brand and put their names on the line with each marketing initiative accepted.

Moon Berthume effectively leverages the economies of scale and talent pool available through Epsilon Concepts. Backed by Sam Moon, Robby Berthume and a group of diligent and experienced marketers including link builders, copywriters, search engine optimizers, social media gurus, bloggers, and PPC managers, Moon Berthume can and has provided quantified results for numerous start-ups.  You can read about the Moon Berthume Paradigm here.

Moon Berthume specializes in search engine marketing, social media marketing, and traffic generation for social media related start-ups as well as established brands and web properties. They can also handle other various aspects of digital marketing. Acting as consultants, if they can’t do it, they probably have an expert within their network and can find the right support for your needs.

Check out Moon Berthume online at http://www.moonberthume.com and subscribe to Moon Berthume Monthly.

Below is the press release we are releasing on behalf of our client, Where To Get Engaged, Inc.

Los Angeles, California, May 12

Join WhereToGetEngaged.com for Free by July 31, 2009 & Automatically be Entered to Win a FREE HONEYMOON GIVEAWAY

WhereToGetEngaged.com (WTGE) is a social network, directory and search engine that will undoubtedly change the “recession-proof” bridal industry forever. Focused on key decision and conversation points like The Ring, The Proposal, and The Wedding, WTGE is a new concept in social networking as well as the bridal industry. By connecting users, vendors, and manufacturers across an easy and intuitive platform, WTGE is a gateway for effortlessly exploring and connecting while sharing life’s most celebrated moments.

Getting engaged can be an overwhelming process for the future groom. Finding the perfect ring and planning a memorable proposal can be tricky at best. WTGE provides a powerful localized search engine to find and interact with vendors crucial to the process, from the ring to the honeymoon to married life. Built for guys just as much as brides, it combines an intuitive directory with the latest in social networking and interactive functionalities. From the guy planning the engagement (perhaps using WTGE’s helpful “stealth mode” feature) to the bride planning the wedding, it connects friends and family around life’s most memorable events while making it easy to find the best local vendors and learn about the top manufacturers and brands in the industry.

WTGE is unique in that users, vendors and manufacturers all get easy-to-setup social profiles packed with features like locations, products, photos, videos, blogs, events, favorites, wishlists, reviews, ratings, social profile URLs, messaging, and more. In fact, the site is growing in features and usability on a daily basis while being pushed and marketed heavily across the United States! Some of the biggest brands in the industry are already on board, including Hearts on Fire, Verragio, Benchmark, A. Jaffe, RITANI, and Saturn Jewels! Best of all, instead of annoying users with ads and spam, WTGE is a social network without “in your face” marketing. WTGE brings together the integral players in the jewelry and bridal industries in a seamless and transparent fashion, making it easier than ever to learn about, interact with, and freely engage with helpful vendors, manufacturers, and users! The name “Where To Get Engaged” wasn’t chosen simply for engaged couples – it stands for engaging in communication, engaging in business and engaging in community.

Where To Get Engaged, Inc. was founded by CEO Christopher Simonetti, who leveraged his decades of experience as a top jeweler to team with Los Angeles digital agency Epsilon Concepts to plan, design, develop and market a unique and compelling website that harnesses social media for local businesses and quality manufacturers around the country. In his words, “Where To Get Engaged began as a ‘catchy’ marketing slogan for my jewelry store; owning a retail jewelry store for over 20 years, I know exactly how relevant this concept is. Men walk in my store everyday knowing that they are ready to propose and knowing it will be something she’ll remember forever, but have no idea how to make it perfect. The deeper we dove into the concept, the more we realized that engagements and weddings touched nearly every business category. My goal is to create a social network that will connect customers with the best local businesses and vendors and helps them find the information and products they are looking for. But we won’t stop there, even connecting vendors with manufacturers and manufacturers with vendors!”

WTGE is free for users and vendors. Premium accounts are available for vendors, with extended features, premium placement and added exposure across a variety of social media channels. WTGE believes social media is the most current and affordable way to reach in-market customers. For far less than a Yellow Pages ad, vendors can reach and engage with more customers than imaginable. Best of all, it’s quick and easy to setup and maintain a compelling profile allowing vendors and manufacturers to show product, keep customers updated on events and build their brands. It’s easy, it’s dynamic, and it’s only going to get better from here!

Key Links:

HOME PAGE: http://www.wheretogetengaged.com
SITE TOUR: http://www.wheretogetengaged.com/tour/
FAQs: http://www.wheretogetengaged.com/pages/frequently-asked-questions.html
HELP: http://www.wheretogetengaged.com/tutorials
BLOG: http://blog.wheretogetengaged.com
FREE HONEYMOON GIVEAWAY: http://www.wheretogetengaged.com/promotions/sign-up-to-win-the-ultimate-vacation-getaway.html

- @epsilonc

This week, I want to continue the discussion by attempting to answer the following question:

Why should I care and how can I use it?

You may not be an early adopter, but the fact of the matter is that you’re sleeping at the wheel.  Even many of the “early majority” has been on Twitter for a few months now.  It’s time to sign up, if only so in conversation or while watching a news report you know what the heck “Twitter” is when you hear about it and don’t sound like an ignorant fool.  I mean, come on people, it’s not that hard of a concept to understand (if you still don’t get it, re-read my first post and/or watch the video at the bottom of this one). If you’re already on Facebook or MySpace, you have no excuse.  It won’t take much extra time and it integrates well.  If you don’t like it, just cease the tweats, simple as that.  Before you spit out the brussels sprout maybe you should let your taste buds decide their opinion first, it might be personally and/or professional healthy and perhaps even enjoyable in the process.  So stop waiting around for a formal invitation, point your browser to Twitter.com and get on it.

Here’s 10 valuable ways you can use Twitter immediately

1. Interact with the media and “the man”
What does CNN’s Rick Sanchez, Barack Obama, the US Congress, Ellen, The Today Show, and The New York Times have in common?  Twitter!  Listen up and talk back, the media and “the man” has never been more accessible.

2. Follow your favorite celebrities, athletes, and brands
There are countless celebs on Twitter, to the point where some are predicting the fall of tabloids due to Twitter.  Brands and wanna-bes have flocked to Twitter in droves as well. From C-list to A-list, from Athletes to Musicians, from JetBlue to Whole Foods Market, Twitter is exploding with fame and hot air.  Twitter provides celebs like 50 Cent, MC Hammer, Ashton Kutcher, and John Mayer with an easy to manage, easy to run platform for fan engagement.  It’s far less hassle than MySpace and a lot easier than Facebook for celebs to use and not screw up.  It’s a simple, portable way of staying engaged with the largest group of people while not creating a management headache and without sacrificing direct content control or paying hefty fees in the process.  Therefore, to Simon Cowell’s dismay, Twitter is tearing it up amongst today’s celebs and you, the user (unless you’re famous) benefits.   Now you can openly stalk your idols.  Maybe instead of the NBA fining Cuban for tweating about the refs they should instead think about paying guys like him and Shaq to keep up the free promotion and for keeping the NBA in the news and in conversations.  After all, any press is good press, right?  Not exactly…

3. Kill your boredom and maybe even learn something in the process
Bored?  Twitter takes web surfing to a whole new level – it’s like moving from surfing to windsurfing.  Suddenty you have a sail and some wind to guide you.  What a difference! Track conversations and content, snag fresh and hidden links, and get a feel for the undercurrent of opinion and rhetoric.   Your eyes my glaze over at some point, but until then you can justify the screen-staring by thinking about the educational value all of those links and ideas are going to provide you with.

4. Arrange local “TweetUps” easily
What’s the easiest way to meet up with peeps?  Call out a TweetUp or announce when you’ve arrived somewhere.  You can leave it vague, invite everyone, or pick and choose.  Either way, no more lonely nights whether it’s a pick-up game or Thirsty Thursday.  Mobile, geo-centric tweats make it easier than ever to prevent solo movie theater nights.

5. Integrate Twitter with your existing social media persona without any substantial extra work
Before you reject Twitter because you’re already on social media overload, hear me out.  Twitter won’t take that much extra work.  Do you change your Facebook status or post links to mySpace or delicious?  Tweat these!  Better yet, connect the platforms and eliminate all manual labor from the equation.  With your tweats hooked up to Facebook, you can update both at the same time.  With your blog hooked up to Twitter, you can post each new blog post as they come, automatically.  You get the idea – Twitter is a screwdriver in your toolbox.  You still need the hammer and nails, but boy does a screwdriver come in handy.

6. Expand or detract relationships
There is a difference between followers and friends.  Some of us reserve “Facebook friend” status for real friends we have an offline connection with.  Others accept and seek out friendships and think of Facebook friendship in much looser terms.  To them, a hobby, group, or friend in common is plenty an introduction.  Many of us open ourselves to lots of friends, but still limit certain sections of our profile, like drunken photos.  Twitter gives you a second option in expanding or detracting relationships.  Think about it.  If you send out frequent tweats, it’s a great way for loved ones to really peer into your life and stay in touch with your thoughts and happenings.  Or maybe it’s a profile you can give out to those you don’t want to be Facebook friends with, like a second skin for the strangers (or customers, you get the idea).

7. Build a personal brand and platform
Why do you need a personal brand?  You may have a job or company now, but you never know when shit might hit the fan (pardon my French).  Whether you’re a nobody, an aspiring author, or maybe a 15 year old musician, Twitter can help you begin to build your personal brand.  Building a personal brand involves creating a story (and it should be authentic or risk flopping) and promoting it.  Building a personal brand has never been easier with the Internet and social media.  Maybe your ideas are lame or you don’t need the book contract or record deal now, but why not leave the door open?  By building a personal brand and platform via Twitter, it’s there when and if you need it.   Twitter is like a megaphone.  Imagine yourself in a large, empty opportunity with an open mic.  Now fill those seats with followers and let it rip, but make it meaningful.  Remember, reputation is build in a lifetime and lost in a tweat-second.

8. Promote your business, broadcast sales, and engage in market research
Twitter is all the rage for businesses.  Whether you’re a small business (like this chiropractor or this restaurant) or a Fortune 500, your peers are either already there or are moving in for the kill.  Become a “vocal point” in your industry.  Post sales, promotions, and events.  Distribute links, reports, and articles.  Be a voice.  Answer questions.  Learn from customers, prospects, and market segments.

9. Stay abreast of your industry in real-time
What’s going on in the bridal industry?  Perhaps if you were following a few hundred voices in the industry you would have a better answer to this question?  Whatever your industry, followers find you based on what you post.  So focus in on your hobbies and market and unite with others who care about the same things.  It’s a great way to keep tabs on the ever shifting sandstorm of professional and public opinion.

10. Stay more closely connected with friends and loved ones
As opposed to weekly or monthly calls where you catch up and skip the details, Twitter allows you to engage and be a part of their day-to-day lives, whether the thought of it peaks your curiosity or irritates your senses.

Other popular uses for Twitter include breaking up a relationship, broadcasting a plane crash (colorfully), and telling the world you broke your hip. Let’s summarize: if you can text it, you can tweat it.  If you can tweat it, others will read it and, if you’re cool enough, perhaps even follow you.

Twitter isn’t all peaches ‘n’ creme, though.  Here’s why, in 3 points

1. Clutter, Spam, Abuse & Misuse
What would Simba be without Scar?  Batman without the Joker?  Everyone needs an enemy.  Spam and clutter, unfortunately, is the enemy of the web.  Whether it’s e-mail, links, social networking, videos, you name it – spam affects it.  Wherever there is freedom, there is abuse.  Where there is a system there is an abuser of a system.  Before getting too deep into philosophy, just take heed.  Not every Twitter profile is legit, not every tweat is meaningful, and not every follower is worth following.  Get Rich Quick schemes aren’t limited to e-mail.

2. The Fat, F’ugly Fail Whale
Twitter gets overloaded every now and then. With its breakneck growth rates and ever-multiplying traffic, it’s not always online to accept your tweats. When it breaks, I introduce you to the “Fail Whale” as it’s known.    While this happens rarely, it still happens more often than all of the other websites I frequent.  It’s a bit annoying sometimes, after all, what if my plane crashes and I’m not able to tweat about it? It’s a problem Twitter is no doubt working hard to address.  Meanwhile, the whale calms me and enrages me at the same time.  Not sure how that works…

3. Stupid Tweets & Tweet Overload

It’s easy to get carried away.  There is a heck of a lot of garbage and downright lame tweats out there in tweat universe.  People spew really boring crap either because they are trying to reel in new followers, are that full of themselves, or are simply boring, dull, and uninspired to begin with.  I don’t want to always know what you are doing, right now 24 hours a day.  I want to hear what you are doing, in general (for more on this, re-read Part 1).  Is that really such a hard concept for people to grasp?   On Twitter, it’s too often quantity over quality and not the other way around.  Keep your twitter-holicism in check, will you?  Didn’t your mom teach you to think before you tweat?

Still hung up on the concept?
I present to you “Twitter in Plan English” courtesy of CommonCraft

- @epsilonc

I admit, I wasn’t the first to join this “microblogging platform.” But I did realize pretty quickly that Twitter wasn’t all hype.  I determined it deserved a place in my social media arsenal months ago after realizing that it wouldn’t really take me much extra time and it would be a valuable tool and resource that could easily be integrated into my existing social media presence.  To me, Twitter + Facebook + Delicious + Blogging is the holy grail of social media.  The best part is that they all work together remarkably well. In my case, instead of changing my “Facebook Status” I tweet my status and it automatically updates my Facebook account.  So it didn’t really create any additional work, but opened up my rants, raves and riffs to a wider audience.  And when I write a good blog post (or at least when I think so), I can tweet it and it broadcasts the link to my Twitter followers and Facebook friends.  And if I run across a helpful link or want to note a blog post I wrote, I add it to my Delicious bookmarks, which automatically shows on my blog (using a WordPress plugin) and Facebook account (Facebook app).  It’s easy to see how these things can work well together. The web is truly like legos at this point, it’s just a matter of putting them together. It all helps expand my sphere of influence and opens myself to feedback and new ideas without creating a management nightmare in the process.

I think Twitter gets made fun of a lot because it famously asks the question “What are you doing” before giving you 140 characters to explain (just see the video below).  It’s important to remember that “tweeting” (posting a message on Twitter) isn’t simply about telling your followers what you’re doing (e.g. getting ready to take a shower, eating M&Ms, listening to Phil Collins, etc…).  I like to think it’s also talking in much more generic, broad terms.  As in, what are you doing with your life, your business, your passions.  What are you thinking, seeing, feeling and finding?  If Twitter was only made up of a bunch of people sharing the mundane factions of their life, I doubt it would be elevating in fame like it is.  It’s not always about sharing for the sake of sharing, it’s about sharing when it’s remarkable, when it’s worth talking about.  Tweeting is like sending a text message to a large group of people, instantly.  And sometimes getting texted back.  But it’s portable (you can tweet from your computer or cell phone and the service can be utilized via various apps, SMS, RSS, etc..), free and provides a platform for a wide audience.  Following people like Shaq, Lance Armstrong, Ryan Seacrest, and 50 Cent is like getting a live feed of text messages from them.  Pretty cool, if you’re a big fan.

Moving on…

So what is it, exactly?

Technically speaking, Twitter is a microblogging platform launched in 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams. The service allows anyone who creates an account to write and read 140 character updates, also known as “tweets.”  These tweets are shown on the author’s profile for all to read (unless the user only allows followers to read his tweets) as well as on the home page of the user’s followers.  It allows you to search and follow other Twitter users, send direct private messages and broadcast public replies.  It’s not only about 1 person, it’s about a community, conversation and feedback.   Twitter is often referred to as the “SMS of Internet.”

Why should I care and how can I use it?

We’ll answer this question and more in next week’s post!  Stay tuned!

Below is a recent funny video mocking Twitter. It’s entertaining and brings up some funny points, but keep in mind it’s oversimplifying a lot of things rather than highlighting the complete story around why Twitter is valuable. Obviously, this is because it’s a video mocking Twitter not a documentary explaining value propositions.  There is a reason Twitter is considered to be worth more than a quarter billion dollars at this point and why it’s 3rd behind only Facebook and mySpace in traffic. After reading next week’s post you’ll understand why this video isn’t a reason to stay away from tweeting.  Remember, there is more to Twitter than what you are doing, in the narrow sense of that phrase. And keep in mind this video’s success was no doubt propelled when numerous users spread the link through Twitter.

- @epsilonc