Microsoft Calling The Kettle Black

In Europe, Microsoft asked regulators to look into Google’s antitrust grounds. They are accusing Google of “trying to entrench its dominance on the web.” With Google moving into mobile, Google haters are claiming that this has halted competition.

According to Brad Smith, an executive with Microsoft, he stated that they are accusing Google of having “engaged in a broadening pattern of walling off access to content and data that competitors need to provide search results to consumers and to attract advertisers.” This is the first time that Microsoft formally alleges antitrust violation from a competitor.

The suit continues on with ways that search engines compete against each other with indexing and providing quality results, increasing advertising and distribution. According to Smith, “Google maintains a 95 percent share of the European market” as well as manipulates the algorithm to prevent competing websites from ranking in search results.

This will be very interesting to watch as Microsoft as this is the first time they are looking at it from another perspective.

New Facebook Functionality: Facebook Questions

Part of a series of rollouts that Facebook is making involves something that is, in my opinion, quite cool (but I haven't found anything online marketing that isn't cool). Currently in beta, Facebook is launching a tab called "Questions" which allows you to directly ask Yes/No questions on your page. Also by hovering over each question, you can see how many votes are for each answer. Here is how a question will look on your Wall:

Be sure you're logged into Facebook first and then go to http://www.facebook.com/questions . Once there you will be presented with a green button which will autoinstall the application into your account to then use.

What I like about this application are basically 2 things. 1) Extremely easy to install and 2) Increases the amount of interactions I will be able to have. Interactions = increased social media experience which will open up other doors like better search results in the future.

The Duel of Google + 1 and Facebook Like Button

Beginning today, search users can opt into the new Google Lab experiment, Google +1. Similar to the Facebook Like button, by selecting the +1 button, you give something your public affirmation. Google further explains, “Your +1's are public. They can appear in Google search results, on ads, and sites across the web. You'll always be able to see your own +1's in a new tab on your Google Profile, and if you want, you can share this tab with the world. It may take a while before you see the button in search results, and it may occasionally disappear as we make improvements.”

This is Google’s attempt to making itself more social. In essence, you are vouching to others something is worth checking out. I too joined the experiment today to learn more. I’m curious to see if this even stands a chance competing against the Facebook Like button. Hopefully it doesn’t turn into an experiment like Google Buzz. Let the duel begin!

Facebook Profile Image Tip

The typical Facebook page uses a square image of 180 x 180 for the profile image. However, the majority of companies are unaware that Facebook allows the profile image’s height to range in size. There are many benefits to adjusting the height of an image. For example, you can own more of the real estate on the left-hand side navigation and actually advertise within the profile image. But I do not think that’s the best reason to adjust the height of your profile image.

The number one reason to use a different height for your profile image would be for the benefits associated with the left-hand side navigation. For instance, if you go with an image size of 180 x 180, you will be able to include 8 links in your left navigation. If you increase the height of the image to 180 x 540, then the number of links displayed in the left navigation decreases. If you decrease the height of the image to 180 x 120, then the number of links displayed in the left navigation increases.

My recommendation - test your image size and get the most from your left-hand side navigation. If you only have a few links in your left navigation then use a longer image such as 180 x 540. If your left navigation is key to your Facebook page’s success and you have more than 8 links then use a shorter image such as 180 x 120.

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents Live Website Analysis: Improving the User Experience

Join Tim Ash, CEO of SiteTuners.com, and Margie Schneider, VP Operations of TenGoldenRules.com, as they present, “Live Website Analysis: Improving the User Experience.” This highly-anticipated presentation provides you with the opportunity to submit your website for a live website analysis.

This presentation will explain the following topics:

• How to adhere to web convention standards via live demonstration
• Actionable tactics to improve the user experience
• Recommendations for optimizing your website for the Search Engines
• Best Practices for overall website usability

Tim is the founder and chairperson of ConversionConference.com the first international conference series focused on improving online conversions. Tim is a contributing columnist to several publications including ClickZ, Website Magazine, DM News, Visibility Magazine, Search Marketing Standard, Search Engine Marketing Journal, and Electronic Retailer Online Strategies magazine.

Margie has been involved with the interactive medium since 1994. She has participated in everything the Internet has to offer: developing, designing and delivering web sites; online advertising and promotion; search engine marketing: SEO, PPC, community and electronic communication. Her specialties include: social media, search engine optimization SEO, PPC management, online reputation management, project management, personnel management, strategizing web development and design solutions; as well as experience marketing across all media types.

Want us to review how your website measures up to web standards? Submit your website for a Live Website Analysis! To submit your website, please join the Live Website Analysis Webinar Group, and post your website submission within the group. Visit the group here: http://bit.ly/WebsiteAnalysisGroup

This free webinar will take place Wednesday, April 6, 2011 12:30pmEDT – 1:30pmEDT. To register and for more information please visit: Live Website Analysis: Improving the User Experience

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents Build Your Network: Online and Offline Strategies

Join Jay Berkowitz, CEO of TenGoldenRules.com, as he presents our Wednesday Webinar, “Build Your Network: Online and Offline Strategies”. Learn all about how to successfully network and the tools you should employ to stay on people’s radars.

This presentation will explain the following topics:

• Why do we network? What are the benefits of it?
• Understanding how to get started with networking
• Useful tools for networking both face-to-face and online
• How to efficiently organize your database of contacts
• Give freely without expecting anything in return

This free webinar will take place Wednesday, March 30, 2011 12:30pmEDT – 1:30pmEDT. To register and for more information please visit: Build Your Network: Online and Offline Strategies

TrafficWave - OceanSwell TEAM Update (#70)

Is online MLM an investment?  Of course it is!  Take Global NPN for example.  Let's say (for example) that you earn $200.00 a month with your recurring affiliate sales.  That is $2,400 annually - pre-tax, of course.  To earn $2,400 annually from a conservative investment of savings - let's just say 5% - you would need to have accumulated almost $50,000 in cash. 

Think about that.

$200 a month in online income is roughly the same as having $50,000 invested in treasury bills.  THAT'S why online business is worth the time and effort.  You're creating your own pension!  To think of it another way... how long would it take you to save up $50,000 to invest?  Would it take a long time?  For most people, the answer is yes!  That's why it's so silly to complain about 'how long' it takes to create dependable, online cash flows.  You'll either do it or you won't.  But 'how long' it takes is relative to 'how long' it would take you to amass a cash fortune that could throw off interest income that you could live on.  At least, this is how I tend to look at it.  For example, I can earn close to $30.00 an hour in my work (depending on a number of factors).  My wife works too, and so we do alright.  In fact, we just moved into a bigger house.  But I've calculated that my online business activities pay around $3.00 and hour - that's right, about 1/10th of what I earn at my regular job.  So why do it, right?  Don't you ever ask yourself that question:  "Why the hell am I still doing this?"

It's because of the AWESOME long-term earning potential.  Remember, once your online cash-flows are up and running, they tend to stay there and grow!  What if you earned $1,000 a month online?  Again, that's the rough equivalent of having almost 1/4 MILLION ($250,000) invested in treasury bills.  Are you starting to see the light?

So my point today is to remind you of why you're in this business and the incredible power that the affiliate programs of both TrafficWave and Global NPN possess.  And despite anything you've heard or read, Team OceanSwell is here to stay and we are simply going to continue to function the way we've always functioned.  I may tweek the letters in the core AR series now and then (as well as our ads), but you are in the Rotator (these days, a revolving URL) so long as you are a member.  And that's a good investment in your future.  Never, never forget that!

As for February's $40.00 bonus recipient, that award goes out to Ms. Maria Melas (TW username 'Houstongreek').  Maria has been a Team Member for over a year and has been promoting very aggressively lately.  Congratulations, Maria!

Irony in My Social Media?

I use Social Media....well, who doesn't? And for me, that means logging into Facebook now and then to peruse my news feed for the latest. Facebook is actually how I keep in touch with the "real" news - so, I don't mean just my friends latest status or industry updates. Because I'm a fan of Pages like Mashable, NPR, The Daily Show (yes, I said it) and other "newsy" type sites, I find it's a very convenient way to stay in touch with what is going on in the world.

The other day as I was scrolling through my newsfeed, I happened upon something I found amusingly ironic. Well, it was amusing to me, anyway. If you look closely at the image (which is a screenshot from my iPhone viewing of my newsfeed) you'll see a news story from NPR explaining how the West is making the world sick by promoting a diet full of unhealthy food - and then right below that - a post from Dunkin Donuts about their latest food offering. This latest food offering happens to be a BIG breakfast sandwich featuring two slabs of texas toast, two fried eggs, four strips of bacon and a big ole slice of cheese to top it off.

I had to chuckle. Oh, the irony. :)

Facebook Now Targeting Status Updates with Ads

As the targeted advertising noose becomes tighter around everyone's neck, today Facebook announced that it was going to target ads based on a person's status update. For instance, if their update referenced golf for example, the reader would be targeted with ads specific to golf.

Is this good or bad? From the advertiser perspective the reason why Facebook ads convert significantly better than any of the media sources I have tested is because of the laser targeting that you can use to generate conversions. The idea of casting a "wide keyword net" which is separately ranked by algorithms that are only being guessed over to determine what works and really only known by Big G is going away.

From the user perspective it is just one more bit of privacy that has been surrendered in order to use the Facebook website. A lot of times when trying to find a business contact I will type in that person's name as well as the state and often times the search result are these "People Finder" websites that will charge me a nominal fee for the information they have gathered about that person. One of the major datasources they use to collect the information is Facebook and other social media websites.

There Are Options To Using Web Browsers!

There Are Options To Web Browsers!

We all that when you buy a PC your computer already contains Internet Explorer, but everyone does have an option to use another browser. Firefox 4 was just released and has been downloaded more than 5 million times in less than 24 hours. As of this blog the Firefox counter has over 16.5 million times and continues to grow. According to Mashable, when IE9 was available it had reach only 2.35 million downloads. How’s this, in America, California leads in downloads over New York by over 300,000 downloads. Having these options allows users to surf the web more intelligently and have a better experience. Personally I’ve tried Chrome, IE, Safari and Firefox and really enjoy using Firefox for many reasons. Want to see some of the benefits, here is a great tool to learn Firefox and why you should be using it too.

The Future of Marketing, 3D Style

For the business world, the implications of the new Xbox Kinect technology go far beyond gaming. Microsoft launched Kinect, the motion-controlled add-on for Xbox in November. Sales of the device have far exceeded expectations. Mashable reports that the initial forcast for sales of the device were around 3 million units in the first few months, but instead rocketed to 8 million. The technology behind Kinect senses motion, voices, and even facial expressions. It is also able to distinguish one person from another.

The marketing presentations to individualized promotions, businesses can tailor the shopping experience to the customer. Consumers will be able to interact with products through a three-dimensional experience. For example, clothing retailers could offer shoppers the ability to try on their products virtually, using their actual measurements to determine fit. Customers will be able to see how an object will look in their actual living room before they purchase it. This technology will bring online shopping to a whole new level.

For a product designed to entertain, the Xbox Kinect has the ability to revolutionize the marketing industry. Consumers will no longer be confined to point and click purchases. Businesses will now be able to bring the experience of shopping in the store directly to the individual customer. Welcome to the Jetsons era.

Back Again...A Minor Change to Facebook Fan Pages

A friend of mine just sent me a little note to let me know the About section is back. If you have a company Fan Page you can now add 3 lines "about" your company/product ...right on your Fan Page. We're not sure why it went away in the first place but it's back so check it out!

LinkedIn Reaches Milestone: 100 Million Members

Yesterday, LinkedIn reported they have officially reached 100 million members worldwide. In celebration, LinkedIn posted 100 member stories explaining their individual experiences with the platform.

LinkedIn is currently used in over 200 countries and territories around the world. Interestingly, it is experiencing its fastest growth internationally with 56% of their users being outside of the United States. Dominating the social business sector, LinkedIn now reports professionals are joining the site at faster than one member per second. Not bad for a social media site catering towards the niche of business professionals!

When using LinkedIn, be sure to establish your presence within the platform and amongst your peers. You can do so by participating in LinkedIn Answers, updating your status often, and if appropriate, linking your LinkedIn and Twitter accounts to provide further updates on your LinkedIn profile.

Check out this neat Infographic LinkedIn put together illustrating their growth statistics.

Please share your tips for effectively using LinkedIn within the comments below.

10 Golden Facebook Status Updates

There’s nothing better than logging into Facebook and seeing a funny status update from one of your friends. Over the years, I’ve seen status updates that literally had me laughing out loud. My goal today is to make you laugh with one of the 10 status updates I’ve listed below:

1. Facebook account for sale, Friends included.
2. is wondering what the person who discovered milk was doing with the cow
3. I love to give homemade gifts. Which one of my kids do you want?
4. I woke up on the wrong side of Facebook.
5. is poking himself
6. ❒ Taken ❒ Single ✔ Pimpin
7. Scratch here ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ to reveal today's status.
8. is unemployable due to personal stuff I put on my Facebook page
9. This is FACEBOOK, quit posting your nasty twisted-kissy-faced-Myspace-angled photos. Thank you.
10. I was such an ugly kid. When I played in the sandbox the cat kept covering me up.

I hope at least one of the 10 status updates made you laugh. If you have a status update you would like to share, please comment below. Please keep the status updates you share tasteful and appropriate. I’m looking forward to seeing how creative you can be…

Apple Said Yes

According to a post today at the MacRumors.com's forum, Apple is paying a lot of attention to iPad 2 returns - and this worked out in at least one consumer's favor.

The forum post notes that Apple store staff have been asked to report the reason for any iPad 2 returns - ostensibly so that Apple can be alerted to product defaults or other issues by troubleshooting the returned devices.

One returned iPad 2 came back with a note on it that read, "Wife said no". Apparently this was escalated to some higher ups at Apple - and the person who returned it was sent a free iPad 2 with a note that read, "Apple said yes".

This is definitely amusing and cute. I'm not sure it's true - but it does sound like something Apple might do. If nothing else, it's a great "web" rumor - and it's spreading like wildfire!

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents Preparing Powerful Presentations Part 2

Join Jay Berkowitz, Founder of InternetMarketingClub.org, as he presents Part 2 of “Preparing Powerful Presentations”. As an accomplished presenter and International keynote speaker, Mr. Berkowitz has compiled a highly sought after compilation of established presentation methods.

This presentation will explain the following topics:

• Recommended (beginner and advanced) references for learning presentation techniques
• Understanding how to take your game to the next level
• Proven tips for efficiently following up and converting your follow ups to business and job opportunities
• Recommendations for practicing and presenting your PowerPoint presentation
• Best practices for incorporating multimedia into your presentation
• How to utilize engagement devices
• Various methods to keep the audience engaged and fast-track their learning
• Exercises to engage the audience (i.e. handouts)

Jay Berkowitz is an author, an educator, an International keynote speaker and an award-winning thought leader. A senior online marketing professional with over twenty five years of marketing experience, Mr. Berkowitz has managed marketing departments for Fortune 500 brands: Coca-Cola, Sprint and McDonald's Restaurants, and he has developed online and offline strategies for AT&T and leading health and fitness website eDiets.com.

This free webinar will take place Wednesday, March 23, 2011 12:30pmEDT – 1:30pmEDT. To register and for more information please visit: Preparing Powerful Presentations – Part 2

Get More People to “Like” Your Business

Looking for a new way to attract more attention to your company? A combination of e-mail marketing mixed with social media may be just what you have been searching for. A promising new trend in internet marketing is creating cross promotions between email campaigns and social media networks.
As an example, one Ohio pet food company created an email-based promotion offering a $20 coupon that requires customers to sign up to the company’s newsletter and “Like” them on Facebook. The hook, according to Mashable, is that the coupon could only be activated when the Facebook fan page reached a particular number of fans, encouraging coupon holders to spread the word. The company found this promotion to be extremely successful in widening their fan base.
Another way to take advantage of this matching of mediums is to cross-promote contests and prizes. Your company’s email newsletter, for example, could announce a product giveaway on its Facebook page to encourage new fans. These are just a few of the ways that businesses can take advantage of the pairing of email marketing and social media. These days, a business can use all the “friends” it can get.

Social Media May Save Your Life

Would you ever post for someone to come and help you in a time of need on Facebook or Twitter? In Minnesota, a 15 year old was too scared to call the police from his cell phone as his mom’s boyfriend was beating on her. So, at 2am, he posted, “would somebody please call 911 — my mom’s boyfriend won’t let her use the phone this is serious.” One of his friends had actually called the police who responded and arrested the man, potentially saving the woman’s life.

So I ask, had you ever been in a situation where you couldn’t call anyone, but texted or reached out to the 695 closest friends you never talk to but on Facebook for help in a scary situation?

Twitter Can Predict the Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures

I was at lunch the other day and saw a segment on CNBC that discussed a study that came out in October 2010 about how a scientist measured the Dow Jones Industrial Average comparied to Twitter. His findings were that based on the sentiment of the Twitter comments (positive comments vs. negative comments) he could accurately predict which way the Dow would move up to 3 days in advance.

The reason why it made the news within the last few weeks was that there is now a stock fund being formed based on this trading theory.

I believe this was the first time I have seen a social media tool in the news being used in this way. What I think this means is that social media will be used as a predictor for many other things. For instance, will worldwide sentiment be able to predict the prices of oil or other commodities such as orange juice? Over the Christmas holiday all I was reading about was how merchants were trying to predict their holiday sales and how that would impact the overall economy. Now forecasters don't have to wait, they can just measure Twitter sentiment.

Facebook Adds Tagging to Comments

For those of you who are not familiar with “tagging” in Facebook, let me be the first to explain it to you. Facebook gives you the ability to tag people by using the @ symbol. For example, if I’m updating my status and I want to include one of my friends in the update I can type the @ symbol and a list of my friends will display. Once you find the friend you want to tag, select your friend, and they’re now tagged in your status update.

Until last week, you could not tag people in the comments section of anything posted on Facebook; you were limited to status updates and wall posts. However, you now have the ability to tag people in comments. I think this is brilliant on Facebook’s part. You now can include any of your friends in a comment you make on Facebook. Think about how many more interactions that will be created due to the new tagging feature. LOL, I’ve used the new tagging feature numerous times already to goat my friends into discussions.

@Facebook, thanks for the new super cool tagging feature, not sure if my friends feel the same…

Jump on the Social Coupon Band Wagon

First, we had Groupon, then came Living Social and now Facebook is jumping into the one-day deal social coupon business. According to an article on Bloomberg.com, Facebook is planning to test the coupon idea in order to increase ad revenues & engage local businesses. The test will launch in five select cities including Austin, Atlanta, San Francisco, San Diego & Dallas.

Facebook will employ it's own staff to sell the deals to local businesses and offer coupons via partners like ReachLocal, GiltCity, homerun.com and PopSugar City. The service will expand the Facebook Deals functionality that is already built into Places. It's still not clear if Facebook will employ a minimum number of purchasers before offering the deal yet. The current strategy according to Emily White, Facebook's Director of Local Operations, will be to focus on those offers that users are inclined to do with friends - dining, concerts and outdoor activities.

Maybe that part in the movie where Zuckerberg stole someone else's business idea isn't so far-fetched after all? Or maybe it's like everything else on the world wide web, find a business model that works and make it better. Who wouldn't want to find a way to get on the action in an industry that is expected to reach $3.73 billion by 2015?

Statistics on Twitter’s Growth: Harnessing Twitter’s Reach for Your Business Needs

As part of their five year anniversary, yesterday Twitter blogged about the massive amount of growth they have experienced since inception. From the first tweet, through now well over a billion tweets, there is no denying Twitter’s growth. There are many ways to utilize Twitter for your business and harness its reach, depending on what your objectives are with the social platform.

Below are a few statistics Twitter released to illustrate its growth trends:

#tweets

• 3 years, 2 months and 1 day. The time it took from the first Tweet to the billionth Tweet.
• 1 week. The time it now takes for users to send a billion Tweets.
• 50 million. The average number of Tweets people sent per day, one year ago.
• 140 million. The average number of Tweets people sent per day, in the last month.
• 177 million. Tweets sent on March 11, 2011.
• 456. Tweets per second (TPS) when Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009 (a record at that time).
• 6,939. Current TPS record, set 4 seconds after midnight in Japan on New Year’s Day.

#accounts

• 572,000. Number of new accounts created on March 12, 2011.
• 460,000. Average number of new accounts per day over the last month.
• 182%. Increase in number of mobile users over the past year.

#employees

• 8. 29. 130. 350. 400. Number of Twitter employees in Jan 2008, Jan 2009, Jan 2010, Jan 2011 and today.

Are your customers hanging out on Twitter?

If so, at a minimum you should at least “listen” using tools such as Twitter Search. You want to be where your customers are, interacting with them. Although it’s easy to use Twitter as a broadcast channel, remember it’s important to add a human factor to your communications.

Happy Birthday Twitter from @erikabarbosa!

Image credit: Rosauraochoa

Social Networks Impacting the World

In January, when the power shift in Egypt occurred, the Egyptian government made a point of "shutting down the Internet" which in this case meant directing telecom providers to stop their connections in and out of the country. The main reason was that social media networks like Facebook and Twitter were aiding in the organization of rallies against the government.

Fast forward to last week when an 8.9 earthquake (and the resulting tsunami) ravaged Japan. In a message sent Friday from the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo to U.S. citizen in Japan, the Embassy encouraged Americans "to continue your efforts to be in contact with your loved one(s) using SMS texting and other social media (e.g. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc.) that your loved one(s) may use."

In fact, some people have given up Facebook for Lent so it's even impacting how some practice religion. Would you be able to make the sacrifice of not using a social network for 6 weeks? I think that some of my friends did not see me online for that long they might start checking hospitals.

As powerful as these networks have been at changing lives, let's not overlook the most important item of all. It gives you a reminder when it's Mom's birthday.

...and it was ALWAYS just a matter of time.

It's official. Print is dead.

OK, maybe that was just a tad dramatic, but with the Pew Research Center report released today showing online news readership and ad revenue had, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE HISTORY OF NEWS, surpassed its print counterpart in the U.S - I'm sticking with "print is dead".

As the subject line notes, in my opinion it was always just a matter of time. And although I don't feel happy that this likely means even more lost jobs at newspapers, TV stations and magazines; I do know that it is a positive thing when it comes to how we get, share and consume information.

After all, how can you read a newspaper and then share it with all your friends, getting their comments, swapping ideas, etc? Can you "join the conversation" on the 11 o'clock news?

The Pew Research Center report notes that 41 percent of Americans now get "most of their news about national and international issues" from the Internet - which is a 17 percent jump from last year. Only 40 percent claim to get it from offline sources.

The full "State of the News Media" report can be read here, if you want something to cite in your next powerpoint presentation.

As for me, I'm going to go back to reading the news for today. Online.

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents Preparing Powerful Presentations

Join Jay Berkowitz, CEO & Founder of TenGoldenRules.com, as he teaches powerful presentation methods in this week’s webinar, “Preparing Powerful Presentations.” After traveling the world, presenting on numerous Internet Marketing disciplines, Mr. Berkowitz has compiled a presentation of leading presentation techniques.

This presentation will explain the following topics:

• Cutting-edge strategies to create engaging PowerPoint presentations
• Proven Methods for creating compelling storytelling
• Tips for successfully engaging your audience
• How to utilize impactful images within a presentation
• Sell without selling

This free webinar will take place Wednesday, March 16, 2011 12:30pmEDT – 1:30pmEDT. To register and for more information please visit: Preparing Powerful Presentations

Google Places: 5 Reasons To Claim Your Listing

Google Places is a great way for your local business to harness the power of the web. Your free web listing includes a business address, hours of operation, email, web address, photos, videos and even customer reviews.

1) It's Good SEO

Your Google Places listing is just one piece of your SEO puzzle considering that these listings usually appear at the top of local search queries such as "best italian food". Having your local business appear at the top of the results for your location and category is a good thing. Your Google Places listing also gets you a red push pin on Google Maps allowing users to click on the push pin to see more information about your business.

2) One Word: Mobile

According to the Official Google blog, by the end of 2011, over one billion people will be connected to the web via a mobile device and over 50% of Americans will own a smart phone. Users who find your listing can click to call instantly or get turn by turn directions via Google Maps.

3) Social Rules

Your listing will usually have a star rating and a link to customer reviews. What better way to encourage someone to visit your business? Everyone is talking about it and the news is good!

4) Video

Video is playing a very important role in online marketing these days. Google Places will allow you to post up to 5 videos (and 10 photos) for free. Testimonials, reviews, tours of the business and interviews with your staff are all great ways to invite new customers to check you out.

5) Analytics

In addition to Google Analytics, your page account collects important data about who's looking for you such as top search queries and clicks to your site. It's not as robust as Google Analytics but useful nonetheless.

Have you claimed your Google Places listing? Get to it!

Are You Tweeting About Mac & Cheese?

Although you typically see this type of campaign on Facebook rather than Twitter, I’m happy to see the marketers behind Microsoft’s “Laptop Hunters”, explore the potential of Twitter via “Mac & Jinx”. As part of a new program that has been quietly rolled out, whenever two individuals use the phrase “mac & cheese” in a tweet, they each receive a link directing them to “Mac & Jinx”. Mashable explains, the first one to click the link and provide Kraft with his/her address receives five free boxes of Kraft’s Mac & Cheese and a t-shirt.

As a fitness advocate, I am not crazy about the idea of promoting “mac & cheese,” but I do like seeing companies branch out their marketing campaigns to Twitter. Twitter is frequently undervalued as some may say it is overshadowed by the big giant, Facebook.

Have you tested a similar Twitter marketing campaign with your business?

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents Press Release Tactics Your PR Agency Isn’t Using

Join Michael Gustman, Account Manager at TenGoldenRules.com, as he presents, “Press Release Tactics Your PR Agency Isn’t Using.” This webinar will teach you advanced press release tactics that public relations firms are not aware of. Not only will you learn about why you should be publishing press releases, but also how to maximize your efforts for each press release you send using the various wire services.

This presentation will explain the following topics:

• Understanding proper use of Strategic Keyword Placement
• Proven Methods for Interlinking within releases
• Advanced Press Release Tactics
• Best practices for press release success

Michael Gustman is a graduate of West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Relations and has completed his MBA at Nova Southeastern University.

While at the MWW Group in New Jersey, he was exposed to clients such as Bally Total Fitness and assisted with the “Get Fit Brooklyn” campaign, which attracted much national media. Mr. Gustman later joined one of Florida’s largest independent PR firms. He quickly rose to become one of its leading publicists, securing placements for his clients in local, regional and national media, including The Wall Street Journal, INC. Magazine, as well as the Sun-Sentinel and NBC-TV affiliates.

Currently, Mr. Gustman is an Account Manager at TenGoldenRules.com, a strategic marketing consulting business based in Boca Raton, Florida. Mr. Gustman is also the current President of the American Marketing Association in South Florida.

This free webinar will take place Wednesday, March 9, 2011 12:30pmEST – 1:30pmEST. To register and for more information please visit: Press Release Tactics Your PR Agency Isn’t Using

Google Farmer Update - Rocking Your SEO World?

This week Google announced a major change to their search algorithm. According to the official Google blog, this change impacts 11.8% of the organic results. How does the change impact your SEO strategies?

Well, for starters, you should be publishing relevant, QUALITY information on your site. If you are re-publishing content, providing a low value proposition for users or just posting plain old low quality content, Google is going to take that into consideration. The idea? Reward the web ecosystem residents that provide valuable content to users with better rankings. Of course, this news is being met with mixed reviews.

In my humble opinion, this is a good thing. As I step deeper into the depths of internet marketing I see alot of marketers trying to "work the system" or find a way to beat Google at it's own game. Remember the JC Penney story from a few weeks back? As a user, it's ridiculous to me that Penney's would rank #1 for the term "rugs". It makes me question the validity of my own SERP results. I have a friend who is so jaded, he won't even look at the first two pages of Google. He's convinced the whole page has been "jerry rigged".

When I'm searching for information, I expect quality results. I applaud Google for taking the business of search seriously. If I am searching for "best places for brunch in Miami", I have an expectation that the businesses I find actually serve brunch. I don't want to click on a link to some slick willy marketing guy's website about his dog. Oh, look, his dog likes to have brunch in Miami. Yeah, real relevant.

Say Farewell to the Facebook Share Button

After a newly released update from Facebook, we must all now say farewell to the share button as we know it. The former Like button used to simply have a link appear in your recent activity whereas now, selecting the Like button will display a full story with a headline, blurb and thumbnail on your wall. Malorie Lucich, Facebook Spokeswoman, states while Facebook will continue to support the Share button, the recommended solution moving forward is, Like. This change applies to both third-party sites and on the developer documentation site.


Personally, “Like” and “Share” are two different functions for me. I “Like” things more frequently than “Share”. Will my willingness to Like something as a user now change? Absolutely. In contrast, for advertisers – this could be an additional means for increasing traffic to your website as this change will ultimately give additional, prominent exposure to your Facebook community.

How do you feel about this change?