A location based social network is all about the check-ins and it looks like Gowalla failed to comprehend this essential fact. The result is that that this geo-social app is shutting down and while its founders and team will be joining Facebook, there is no doubt that the app failed and failed big time. On the other hand, its rival Foursquare went ahead of Gowalla a very little time ago. It was so far ahead in its check-ins as compared to Gowalla, that there basically was very little rivalry to speak of.

So, what went wrong with the geo-social app and that too, so quickly; after all it was only launched in 2009? The reason can be traced right back to the genesis of Gowalla, and its focus on design rather than functionality. As compared to Foursquare, there was absolutely no doubt that, it was far ahead when it came to design. It was visually appealing, offered good looking badges and all in all looked very pretty. But the problem was that it just looked pretty. It wasn’t a blend of form and function, but focused on just one core element – Design.

Another reason that contributed towards its failure was that it was based in Austin, which did not have the kind of urban density that helps a mobile social app build a better network early on in its life. It just couldn’t get the critical mass to power its popularity. It severely lacked the hometown advantage. Think about it for second. Why are you using a particular social app? It is because your friends are using it and so are their friends and so on and so forth. The point is that people use only that app that connects them with more people. This is essentially what Gowalla failed to do and set in motion a chain of events that led to its shut down.

Mistakes were made at the conceptualization and development levels and it suffered big time.

But that wasn’t it. Gowalla came across as a very complicated site to use. It tried to offer a whole lot of features very early on, which confused people. Instead of attracting as many check-ins’ as possible, it put many people off. Yet another reason contributing to its failure was that it couldn’t get the big brands to lend their brand equity. This also contributed to its downfall. The reasoning is pretty simple. Why would I want to join a geo social app, if I can’t find deals offered by the big brands on it?

Every expert, industry watcher or investor will have different reasons why Gowalla failed. But in its failure lies the kind of learning that will help founders avoid making the same mistakes that this location based social network did. It’s always important to focus on functionality rather than the only putting focus on visuals. It can be summed up in one simple sentence – Always remain true to your purpose.

Choosing a good domain name is very important especially for businesses as it is basically your calling card in the digital world. Sometimes, it will also make or break your business. Not only should the chosen domain name be recognizable but that name should also coincide with your business, the brand that you are carrying and the image that you want to portray. Here are some useful tips to choose a good domain name:

Short domain name

When you are choosing a domain name for your company, one thing that you need to remember is that it should be short, easy to spell and easy to remember. At the same time, it is understandable that trying to secure a domain name in those categories can be difficult especially for top level domain names, such as .org, .com and .net. In these cases, I would recommend you to try phrases that are meaningful such as Hotelbookings.com instead of hb.com. People shouldn’t have trouble remembering these sort of names. Examples of short domain names include apple.com, amazon.com and ibm.com.

Make it descriptive

The name you have chosen should be able to describe the function of your site clearly. However, what is even more important is that the general public will be able to get a sense of what the site is about from the domain name itself. With sites such as Amazon and eBay in mind, you might argue that this rule did not apply to them, as both the Amazon and eBay names do not give an indication of what the websites are all about. However, you must bear in mind that these corporations have vast resources to help them market and brand their name. If your brand isn’t that huge and don’t have the resources to create such a powerful brand, then it is best that you stick with the general rule.

Trademarked names should be avoided

Whatever domain name you have decided on, make sure that no one else has trademarked it. Trademarked names are basically names that have been registered as a copyright and therefore, they are strictly off limits. Company names function in the same capacity of that of domain names; they cannot be copied and are unique. This will not be good for your business in the long run especially when the names are similar to your competitor’s. There have been cases where such businesses have lost their rights because of conflicts that have arisen from the holder of the existing trademark.

Besides, you don’t want to be embroiled in any lawsuit or court case saga similar to the McCurry vs. McDonald’s case. You may think it’s cute or beneficial to register names of celebrities or name your website somethingiPhone.com but don’t be surprised when the lawyers come knocking down your door with a lawsuit.

Use keywords

Keywords included in your domain name would also greatly help your business especially if you are talking about search engine optimization purposes (SEO). This basically means that when people are searching particular keywords on a search engine and you want your website to appear first, then having specific keywords in the domain name would definitely help.

Make it simple

Give thought if people would misspell your domain name when they type in the web address and think of how your domain name would sound when you say it aloud or dictate it to a potential client. You don’t want your clients ending up at another site or having yourself put in an awkward situation by having to repeat your website address several times to them.

Come up with a domain name that is easy to spell and potentially error-free. You might also think that adding special characters or abbreviations to the domain name may seem unique but they are just not suitable. Just imagine if you have to dictate a domain name that is full of hyphens and numbers; it is likely that your potential customers wouldn’t even arrive at your website successfully. So make sure you come up with a domain name that will not confuse your visitors.

It just takes a little thought and effort in coming up with a good domain name. Not putting in enough effort will result in you having a domain that you could possibly regret registering. Having read the six tips above on how to come up with a good domain name, sit down and carefully come up with one that would be easy on the minds and lips of your potential clients.

IPhone Greetingz application is regarded as an application that helps you to send out cards in the most effective manner. One can find e-cards for almost every occasion that you can ever think of in iPhone e-card applications. This thing surely allows you to get a number of personalization options so that you can edit or customize your e-cards accordingly.

One can find four different tabs in iPhone Greetings application, and each and every tab has different information to give out, these tabs include:

• Home Tab.
• Greetingz Tab (Settings).
• Help Tab.
• Info Tab

Home Tab:

This is the tab which gives you access to personalize and send out e-cards to anyone you want. Home tab is known as the default tab of iPhone Greetings application.

Settings Tab:

This is the second most important tab in iPhone Greetings application. In the settings tab you can turn “On” the notifications, which means that you can set a reminder about any occasion or upcoming event so that you would be notified and send your e-card on time. Settings / Greetingz tab is regarded as very important tab, as it works as a reminder for you. In order to turn the notifications to “On”, all you need to do is to slide the slider to “On” and then set the time and date of the reminder.

Help Tab:

In this tab you will find step by step guidance with Screen shots and a small detail on how you can use iPhone Greetingz application and how you can send out e-cards with it.

Info Tab:

Company related information as well as URL of the product / website is given in this tab. You are allowed to give feedback about iPhone Greetings application or you can also access the website and overview company’s other products, you might find some other useful product for yourself in that section.

Therefore it has been concluded all such tabs have their own importance in some way or the other, as these tabs allows you to customize, personalize and send out your e-cards, set up the reminder so that you would be notified when to send out e-cards, get other products information and to get to know that how they can use iPhone Greetings application in the most effective manner. So buy this iPhone e-card sending application today and get the most out of every tab and feature that is provided.

Email lists are important especially for Internet marketers. Through email lists, Internet marketers can entice and motivate people to buy their products, services or even their ideas.

The importance of having a targeted email list has been reiterated over and over again. However, many Internet marketers are still clueless when it comes to the right way of marketing their email newsletters.

The following are several ways on how you can increase the number of people signing up with your website’s email newsletter.

Promote your newsletter aggressively

Aggressive promotion is just appropriate given today’s competitive Internet dominion. How can people sign up with your newsletter if they don’t know that such newsletter exists? Try different kinds of marketing strategies whether it’s online or offline.

Offer something of value – an eBook, audio book, podcast etc.

Another simple way of attracting more people to sign up with your email newsletter is by offering something of value. Most Internet marketers offer something like an eBook, an audio book or even a podcast interview just to entice people to sign up with their email newsletters.

Use your social media accounts to get more subscribers

Using your social media accounts particularly Facebook, Twitter and/or MySpace account is another sure way of increasing your opt-in rates.  It’s also important that you post regular updates on your social media accounts.

Start a YouTube marketing campaign

YouTube is one of today’s best video marketing platforms, why? – it’s free and it delivers fast results. Sign up with YouTube and start posting interesting videos regarding relevant topics within your niche.

Establish your expertise and credibility within your niche

Establishing your expertise and credibility is a matter of sharing your knowledge to people within your niche. You can establish your expertise and credibility by writing articles and syndicating them to article directories like Ezine and Build My Rank.

You can also do guest blogging or accept guest posts from fellow bloggers.

Don’t spam people in your email list with pointless emails

Spamming is one of the biggest mistakes when marketing online. It’s a mortal sin that should be avoided. Only send emails that are relevant or based on topics which interest your audience.

Create a LinkedIn profile for better networking

Creating a LinkedIn account is a great way to boosts your credibility and to expose yourself to shapers and influencers within your niche. Needless to say, you should optimize your LinkedIn profile and make sure that everything works well.

Make the sign-up process convenient for your visitors

One major reason why people don’t sign up with email newsletters is because it’s hard. Don’t make the process too complicated. Asking for a person’s surname or address shies him/her away from the sign-up process.

Try using pop ups – eye-catching and out-of-the-box

Pop ups are eye-catching and are considered out-of-the-box and you must certainly take advantage of such techniques.

Offer discounts and other additional incentives

Offering discounts and other additional incentives like “buy 1, take 1” promos and free gifts can go a long way in gaining the loyalty of people within your railing list. Remember, it doesn’t end in getting them to sign up with your list – getting them not to quit your list should be a bigger priority.

In blogging, back links simply mean tons of traffic going to your site. Some bloggers implement a plethora of strategies in order to get as many links possible to their site. But number is not the only factor when it comes to link building. There are great strategies and ineffective ones. Below are a few tips on how to make your link building efforts more effective.

The Do’s of Link Building

Build good relationships with other bloggers in your niche by visiting their site and leaving helpful comments. Your comments should be helpful, informative, and relevant. This is a great way of establishing yourself as an expert in your niche while getting some quality links for your site.

Submit articles to Web 2.0 sites like Hubpages and Squidoo. These sites allow you to submit content and create backlinks for your site. When writing articles; make it a conscious effort to constantly create quality content. Also consider other article directories such as Ezine and Goarticles. These may not have the same clout as popular sites but they are an easier source of links.

Consider submitting guest posts for popular websites in your niche. Simply contact the site’s webmaster and inform them of your desire to submit content.

Be an active member in web forums within your niche. Utilize effectively your forum signature by placing a link to your blog. You should also make use of answer communities like WikiAnswers or Yahoo Answers. This method allows you to create hundreds of links which could go a long way in boosting your backlinking efforts.

Submit videos to Youtube and utilize your social media accounts. A simple information or how-to video could get you a multitude of views that could turn out to be potential visitors to your site. Spending a few hours polishing your video is the best way of turning your videos viral hence, more traffic for your site.

Write high-quality content. This is quite simply the best way to get back links. Writing quality content makes it easier for people to tag your content creating backlinks in the process. Readers will gladly share your work though their own social networks or blog pages.

The Big Don’ts in Link Building

Avoid link farms and link exchange communities. Search engines, especially Google, consider those sites as junks: not a lot (if there are at all) quality links could come from them. So your effort in joining those kinds of sites is simply useless.

Don’t just jump into any article submission directory. Some of them are marked by search engines as low-quality so you won’t really get any visibility increase from them.

Don’t buy your way into popularity. Choose carefully what paid directories you submit your site to. If you don’t, you end up wasting resources that could have been used in other areas.

Don’t be over zealous in promoting your site over other people’s sites. People hate useless and irrelevant comments. They hate it even more if those kinds of comments are posted too often. You could end up being blocked from a site or alienating your followers.

Don’t get frustrated if you are not able to receive a response right away. It takes time to get a back link from a high PR site. Just like you, there are hundreds of bloggers waiting for a backlink from the same site. One request and a simple follow-up a week after is all that’s needed.

Don’t be too “salesy.” People want information. Let your readers be judge of your content.