Google in my head
Google is turning up their Creepy Factor yet again, though anyone who didn’t see this one coming isn’t paying attention: Google is sifting through the photos and commentary on its blossoming social network so its Internet search results can include more personal information. Not that I trust Facebook with my information more than I do [...]
A marketing update
Not long ago we committed to a more significant marketing effort. We decided to buy radio advertising, an ad in one phone directory, and we placed flyers in student newspapers from several nearby high schools. I thought it might be good to follow up and report our findings so far. I should start by saying [...]
Avoid “Filter Bubbles”
This is an excellent, if troubling, presentation on just what the “personalized web” may inadvertently do for/to us: Unfortunately, for far too many people, this is a feature, not a bug.
Choosing between good ideas
I think I’ve mentioned before that when you open a business the salesmen come out like sharks around a whaling boat. The trouble is while some of the things they try to sell are obviously ludicrous to everyone but them, there are some ideas that actually do make sense. Take some of our recent “opportunities”, [...]
Plan for visibility
My first “grown-up” job was for a company that designed accounting, inventory, and point-of-sale software for tire stores. We worked hard to make a package that gave business owners everything they needed to know how their business was doing. While we could design custom reporting for clients, we ensured our reporting and bookkeeping were complete [...]
The three people to have in your business’ corner
I was talking business with a dentist friend of mine the other day, and we got on the topic of starting a business. In my case I started one from scratch. In his case he bought an existing practice. But we both quickly agreed that regardless of how you approach owning your own business, there [...]
Never con a con
I’m continually amazed by the number of people who come to this site to build their links by posting unrelated material in the comments. Remember, I’m a social media specialist. There are few link-building strategies, legitimate or shady, I haven’t heard of. When I leave comments I make sure they are relevant, add to the [...]
Creativity counts
Imagine getting these results from your social media advertising: – 4,911% one month traffic increase – 144,843 video views with 162 comments – 1,500 tweets – 120 blog posts in one month – Tweets from Guy Kawasaki, Kevin Rose, and Jason Calacanis – 7 national TV mentions What was the company that accomplished this? Grasshopper, [...]
You no longer control the message
Whether or not you engage in social media with your business, social media may be engaging you. People are interacting with and talking about your brand online. They control the message. You only get to participate in the conversation. This can be good or bad, as shown by two example. The first is a 2009 [...]
Social media statistics, skepticism, and strategies
On Deming Hill’s site I found an interesting article about why CEO’s hate social media. Particularly interesting to me was some of the data they posted as to its business benefits: Executives rely on market research to support and substantiate any designated course of action, and devour facts, stats, and data-points like shrimp at a [...]
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