Selected by franchiseking

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  The Franchise King Blog

• Franchises For Sale! Huge Savings! Franchise Prices Slashed! Huge Rebates!

  The Franchise King

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:25 am

  Will 2010 be remembered as the year franchising as we know it, went totally down the tubes? Check this out; In an effort to boost sales of new franchises, a certain franchise coaching company has decided to offer rebates. (If you'd like to know more about coaching franchises, this is a must read I'll say it again. In an effort to boost the sale of new franchises, a franchise coaching company has decided to offer rebates. You know...

• My Franchise Business Advice For The Week Of February 8th, 2010

  The Franchise King

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:15 am

  This week's advice is for franchisees; http://www.flickr.com/photos/jayntguru/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 Make one new connection in your franchisee community. Go to your franchisor's corporate website, and pick a franchisee to call that you've never talked with. Call them and introduce yourself. Ask a question about their business. Find out how they're getting through this rough patch in our economy. Share what you're doing too. You never know; Maybe you'll come up with an idea together, that can get both of your businesses to the next level. Write for Discussion Boards: $1200 per week... …

• Constant Contact Announces The Recipients Of The Franchise Excellence In Email Awards

  The Franchise King

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:20 pm

  It was an honor to be asked by the great folks at Constant Contact to help judge the 1st Annual Franchise Excellence In Email Awards. We received some stellar entries, and the votes have been tallied... The Franchise Excellence in Email Awards attracted submissions from franchisors and franchisees across the country and spanned multiple industries. The winning entries were selected in the following three categories:  Best in Show 2009: AbrakadoodleThis award-winning franchise impressed the judges with its high open rates and significant subscriber growth by using best practices and…

• Will More Franchise Businesses Start To Open In Small Town USA?

  The Franchise King

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:43 am

  Most franchisors stay the course when it comes to searching for new franchisees, and even new franchise locations. They open new franchises in, or at least close to, major population centers. Personally, I've received inquiries from people who live in small tows, and even rural areas, who've wanted to explore franchise ownership ideas with me. (Not a lot of inquiries, but a few) Write for Discussion Boards: $1200 per week...  Administer a Web Business from Home:  $4000 per month... Transcribe Authors' Notes: $80 per hour... Find thousands of freelance jobs like these: Click here…

• 
  Mashable!

• Google Buzz: The Official Demo [VIDEO]

  Adam Ostrow

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:08 am

  Google has just unveiled its latest attempt to become more relevant in the social media space: Google Buzz. The product is integrated within Gmail and will be rolled out gradually to all of the webmail service’s users over the next few days.We’re still digesting all of the implications of Buzz (and will have more coverage throughout the day), but in the meantime, here’s the two-minute demo of the product in action both on the Web and via mobile that Google showed off during today’s press conference:What are your initial reactions? Another soon-to-be-forgotten Google social product? A…

• BREAKING: Google Goes Social with Google Buzz

  Ben Parr

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:21 am

  It’s official: Google has just announced Google Buzz, its newest push into the social media foray. This confirms earlier reports of Gmail integrating a social status feature.On stage revealing the new product was Bradley Horowitz, Google’s vice president for product management. While introducing the product, Mr. Horowitz focused on the human penchant for sharing experiences and the social media phenomenon of wanting to share it in real time. These two key themes were core philosophies behind Google Buzz.“It’s becoming harder and harder to find signal in the…

• Facebook Kills Lexicon, Focuses on Analytics for Page Admins

  Samuel Axon

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:20 am

  Facebook has removed its Lexicon analytics app, blogger Steve Rubel noticed last night.Don’t know what Lexicon was? That’s OK, a lot of people didn’t; it was announced very quietly, but it was a neat tool. You could use Lexicon to see how frequently, and when, certain terms were trending in status updates, just like you can use Google Trends to do the same with search terms.For example, our own Stan Schroeder was a bit perplexed a couple years back when the word “sex” had a massive spike in usage on May 30, 2008. It was the launch day of the Sex and the City…

• 7 Ways to Promote Your Offline Event Using Social Media

  Susan Payton

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:10 am

  Susan Payton is the President of Egg Marketing & Public Relations, an internet marketing firm. She blogs at The Marketing Eggspert Blog, and teaches marketing courses at Marketing EggSchool. Follow her on Twitter @eggmarketing.We all know about Tweetups and online events, but what about events that you didn’t specifically invite the Twitterati to attend? Conferences, meetings and parties are all events that might not have started online, but which can definitely benefit from online promotion and mention.Leverage your offline event with some smart social media marketing. Here are…

• WordPress To Posterous Users: Graduate to a Full Blog

  Jennifer Van Grove

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:57 am

  In an effort to remind you that WordPress can be just as flexible and e-mail-friendly as Posterous, the company has released a Posterous importer for users who want to “graduate” from the mini-blogging site to “a full blog with the features, flexibility and reliability of WordPress.com.”The new WordPress.com utility can be found via the Tools section within the Dashboard. All that’s required to run the import is your Posterous host name, user name and password, and it can import all of the following: posts, tags, comments and images.On the flip side, Posterous…

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  Small Business Trends

• 3 Reasons Contractors Should Register with Angie’s List and the Better Business Bureau

  Diane Helbig

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:00 am

  You may be asking yourself why both. Frankly, I wondered if these organizations competed with each other. So I set out to do some research and find out what the true value of each is to a contractor in today’s economy. Angie’s List is an online resource for consumers to find reputable contractors. Members rate their experiences with contractors and any contractor who wants to advertise on Angie’s List must have a rating of B. Angie’s List was and is set up from the consumer’s point of view. As stated in a US News and World Report article, Angie’s List is “an invaluable…

• Getting Bloggin’: Customers Trust Transparent Experts

  Lisa Barone

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  Every year Edelman releases its Trust Barometer report (Executive Summary) to measure consumer confidence in business and, if we’re taking a cue from Chris Brogan and Julien Smith, identify the biggest ‘trust agents’ helping them to make their decisions. This year the findings are getting some people wondering about the overall impact on social media. Social media has always “worked” because people trusted the advice and recommendations of people ‘like them’ over the cold marketing they were accustomed to. They trusted that their friends and people who valued the same things…

• Win a Copy of “Build A Green Small Business” Book

  Staci Wood

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:15 pm

  Everyone loves getting something for free, right?  Of course you do. So we’ve decided to implement a new feature here at Small Business Trends.  Each month we plan to hold a drawing and give away stuff to you. There will be something different every month.  Whatever it is, it will be something of interest to entrepreneurs and small business leaders. This month, we have 8 copies of the book, “Build a Green Small Business: Profitable Ways to Become an Ecopreneur” by Scott Cooney.  We’ll hold a random drawing and choose 8 people.  Each will receive a book.  This…

• Small Business Cash Flow Problems Still Not Declining

  Scott Shane

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:29 am

  Many small businesses continue to experience cash flow problems – the majority, in fact, according to a survey by the Discover Small Business Watch. That cash flow is an issue right now for small businesses might sound obvious to most of you that run your own businesses, but a worsening trend might not be. So here’s a chart that shows what has been going on with small business cash flow over the past three years. The figure plots the percentage of respondents to the Discover Small Business Watch monthly survey of a random sample of 750 small business owners who answered “yes,”…

• Musician Makes over $18k in 5 Days with Social Media

  Janet Meiners Thaeler

  7 Feb 2010 | 11:27 am

  I’ve always loved jingles. I’ve always wanted one for my web site. I found one that I thought was perfect for Ancestry.com once. I sung it to myself every time I heard their name. So I was inspired by a small business that started over the holidays. People like case studies about how small businesses succeed with social media. Here is an example of a business that was started with social media. It was started, get this: over this Christmas and New Year’s, by a musician in Sweden who has never had a business online. His name is Love Harnell and he’s a musician I found out about Love…

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  OPEN Forum by American Express OPEN

• Take Steps to Minimize the Pain of Small Business Taxes

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:28 am

  From Denise O'Berry: As we turned the corner into the New Year, that meant the start of the clock for tax filing season. Small business owners complain a lot about taxes. But the issue is typically about all of the filing requirements – all the things you have to do that give you major heartburn. There are so many tax related activities required for small business that the IRS publishes a small business tax calendar every year. It’s a really useful tool that is normally released during the fourth quarter of the year. It’s out of stock now, but you can still view a handy…

• Put an End to Lost Marketing Opportunities

  9 Feb 2010 | 8:16 am

  From Mark Stevens: The marketing myth holds that it's better to do something, even if it produces mediocre results, than to do nothing at all. Nonsense. Engaging in marketing initiatives that don't produce a high return on investment waste your money and, equally important, keep the money from being invested in far more productive uses. This raises an important but often overlooked point: The highest costs any business faces are not those traditionally accounted for--labor, materials, rent, etc.--but opportunity. What the company fails to capitalize on takes the highest toll. How does this…

• 8 Financial Considerations of Ecommerce

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 pm

  From Gregory Go: Selling products online uses the same basic principles and strategies as offline (or "brick & mortar") retailing. Provide a good product, at a reasonable price, with some exceptional customer service. Buy low, sell high. Repeat and profit. Online retailing involves the same principles, but the tactics and mechanics are different. Here's a look at 8 facets of ecommerce that will affect your retail business' finances and processes. 1. Lower prices When you’re the only widget seller within 10 miles, you can charge list prices. When you’re competing online in a…

• How to Avoid Gullibility

  8 Feb 2010 | 2:34 pm

  From Guy Kawasaki: Who among us have not fallen for a stupid idea, pitch, or proposal? At some level, we’re all gullible where “gullibility” is defined as “an unusual tendency toward being duped or taken advantage of.” Fortunately, Stephen Greenspan has written a book called Annals of Gullibility: Why We Get Duped and How to Avoid It. In the conclusion of his book, Greenspan explains how to become less gullible: Don’t rush big decisions. When we make big decisions in a rush or when we are exhausted, they tend to be bad ones. We have to decide few things…

• What Super Bowl Advertising Can Teach Your Small Business

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:48 pm

  From Rohit Bhargava: How many of you reading this article have an extra $2.6 million lying around to spend on a single TV ad? That was the price tag this year to place a 30 second spot during the Super Bowl on CBS. To a small business owner, several words probably come to mind when thinking about those brands that did spend this kind of money on a single ad. Irresponsible comes to mind. Wasteful is likely somewhere in there too. Certainly a word that probably doesn't come to mind at all is strategic. After all, it's tough to imagine a talking baby or a house made out of beer cans having any…

• 
  Rush on Business

• National Start a Business Month

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:08 pm

  This February is National Start a Business Month. To celebrate I am offering to form any Iowa incorporation or LLC for half the price during the month of February 2010.  It's my small way to encourage business start-ups and help out start up entrepreneurs.  

• Twitter Interview Today with Lance Godard

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Today I am excited to get a chance to participate in 22 Tweets with Lance Godard.  22 Tweets is an opportunity for practicing lawyers that tweet to share their stories and tell a little bit about themselves in a 22 question format. Lance has a terrific site (an ABA Journal Blawg 100 recipient) that features many interesting and insightful lawyers. I encourage you to check it out. Be sure to follow us this afternoon @22twts and @rushnigut.   

• Legal Guide to Starting a Business in Iowa

  5 Jan 2010 | 4:00 am

  A couple of years ago I set out to write a Legal Guide to Starting a Business in Iowa. Unfortunately trying to work, write a blog, coach baseball and write the guidebook didn't quite work for me. I started the guidebook but never came close to finishing it. So this year I have decided to blog the guidebook. At the end of the project, I'll have my book and hopefully Iowa entrepreneurs will have something that is helpful and informative.  The project may take several months so most of the information on the blog over this time will be very general in nature rather than…

• Wage and Hour Lawsuits: Your Business Could Be Next

  17 Dec 2009 | 4:00 am

  A couple of years ago I touched on how wage and hour lawsuits were on the rise. Since then Iowa's own Casey's General Stores got tagged for $11.7 million in a settlement.  But not even I could have predicted the potential $1,000,000,000 liability that AT&T allegedly faces for failure to pay overtime. Yep, that's a BILLION dollar claim! Naturally that kind of pie in the sky number might leave one to think, "It's never going to happen to me, my business is much smaller and I won't be a target." But when you look at the fact that experts believe approximately 70 percent of…

• Business Person's View on Lawyers

  10 Dec 2009 | 8:40 am

  An older post from Guy Kawasaki on the top lies from lawyers but worth reading. Kawasaki says at the end of the post that it wasn't his idea so lawyers shouldn't get upset with him.  However, most lawyers could benefit from reading the post.  An important take away is that if you say something, you had better follow through.  Of course every business person could probably heed that advice, not just lawyers.  

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  The Franchise Blog 4 Vets

• Food Franchises Continue To Attract Military Veterans As Franchise Owners

  The Franchise King

  1 Feb 2010 | 2:16 pm

  Military Veterans are an interesting bunch. They live a system. Some of them can translate this "systematized" thinking into franchise ownership. According to QSR Magazine; "Understanding how to work within an established system is one of many characteristics that make...

• Investing In A Franchise Is Not Like Investing In The Stock Market

  The Franchise King

  31 Jan 2010 | 5:30 pm

  There's certainly risk in both, but investing in a franchise has it's differences... For example, when you buy an individual stock, the more shares you purchase up front, the bigger the potential payoff. Of course, the more shares you buy,...

• Kitchen Tune-Up Ranked High Again

  The Franchise King

  26 Jan 2010 | 5:53 am

  Kitchen Tune-Up has been named one of the top 500 franchises in the United States, ranking #151 in Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500 . A home remodeling franchise concept offering a variety of cost-effective services to renew surfaces, add features, and...

• This Could Help You Secure A Franchise Loan

  The Franchise King

  12 Jan 2010 | 8:04 pm

  "This" would be a stellar, rock-solid, strong as steel, business plan... Wouldn't it be nice to walk into your bank, full of unstoppable confidence? If you walk in with a strong business plan, there should be no stopping you! So,...

• Franchise Email Marketing Awards

  The Franchise King

  10 Jan 2010 | 8:02 am

  The Franchise Excellence in Email Awards will recognize outstanding achievements in email marketing in three categories as judged by Constant Contact’s Franchise team. If you are a franchisor, and you feel that your email marketing is really strong, here's more...

• 
  Holy Kaw!

• Google Buzz's official demo [video]

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:25 am

  Google has just unveiled its latest attempt to become more relevant in the social media space—Google Buzz. The product is integrated within Gmail and will be rolled out gradually to all of the webmail service’s users over the next few days. While this development is still unfolding, you can check out Google Buzz’s two-minute demo of Buzz in action both online and via mobile. What are your initial reactions? Another soon-to-be-forgotten Google product like Wave, or a Facebook/Twitter killer? Full story at Mashable. Total Google coverage. Permalink | Leave a…

• Darth Vader’s original wimpy voice [video]

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:15 am

  Imagine a galaxy far, far away where Darth Vader sounded like any other British bloke strolling down the corridors of the Death Star. Before James Earl Jones provided the menacing voice of the Dark Lord of the Sith, English actor and bodybuilder David Prowse delivered the lines from inside the Darth costume. While George Lucas never intended for Prowse’s voice to make the flick’s final cut, it’s weird to imagine how different Star Wars would have been with a different Vader voice. Full story at Huffington Post. Tons of Star Wars tidbits. Permalink | Leave a…

• 7 things you didn’t know about condoms

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:14 am

  Rubbers. Raincoats. Inconvenient. Whatever you call 'em, condoms remain a must-have in the safe sex tool box. Long before the days of Durex and Trojans, men used animal intestines to protect their willies (that sounds lovely, eh ladies?) and still to this day use lambskin condoms for latex allergies and supposed extra sensitivity. Want to learn even more fun facts about condoms that will surely impress your friends and potential lovers? Check out Asylum's seven things you probably didn't know about condoms that includes tantalizing tidbits like: Vaseline + condoms = Disintegrated rubber and…

• Horror flick mirror scare mash-up [video]

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:25 am

  Horror movies love to rely on cliches to scare the bejeezus out of us, but does it really surprise anyone that the axe murderer is going to pop in the reflection of a mirror? Ok, yes, it still totally sparks a few pee-in-pants moments. Check out this mash-up of mirror scare moments (fair warning: don’t watch alone in a big, dark, scary house): Full story at Four Four. Boo! Tons of scary and not so scary movie news. Permalink | Leave a comment  »

• 7 things you shouldn't do on Valentine's Day

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:13 am

  Ah, Valentine’s day. February fourteenth marks that special moment in the year when Hallmark cashes in on our emotions and cupid gets busy shooting arrows. Whether you’re indifferent, excited, upset, or madly in love—there are seven things you just shouldn’t do on this lovey-dovey holiday. See a few do-not-do’s below: Go on a first date. First dates are hard enough, why add the extra pressure? Call your ex. Abort mission! On a day like this, it’s normal for your thoughts to drift to the one you used to be with, but you broke up for a reason. So, spare…

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  DailyFranchiseNews.com

• IFA Convention Still Rocks After 50 Years!

  Rhonda Sanderson

  8 Feb 2010 | 2:12 pm

  Ok this one is going to be long.  First of all I cannot say how wonderful it is to be one of the "old ones" in the IFA--some of the greatest people I have ever met are in franchising--yes this blogger had a life before entering the franchise community in 1982-but never have I met better people. So being treated like a rock star and getting lots of hugs in a year that I have been ill and things were not sunny-well that was just amazing.  And VP of IFA Debbie Moss never ceases to amaze me with how she and her team get the job done! This place and event are massive yet everyone…

• IFA Convention Still Rocks After 50 Years!

  Rhonda Sanderson

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:51 pm

  Ok this one is going to be long.  First of all I cannot say how wonderful it is to be one of the "old ones" in the IFA--some of the greatest people I have ever met are in franchising--yes this blogger had a life before entering the franchise community in 1982-but never have I met better people. So being treated like a rock star and getting lots of hugs in a year that I have been ill and things were not sunny-well that was just amazing.  And VP of IFA Debbie Moss never ceases to amaze me with how she and her team get the job done! This place and event are massive yet everyone…

• Hungry Howie’s Pizza Raises $100,000 For Breast Cancer Awareness

  Rhonda Sanderson

  2 Feb 2010 | 9:59 am

  Breast cancer hits close to home here at DFN. According to the American Cancer Society, 192,370 new cases of invasive breast cancer were found in 2009. In an article on QSRMagazine.com, Hungry Howie’s Pizza joined the fight this past October and helped raise $100,000 to support the cause. The company featured bright pink pizza boxes emblazoned with breast cancer awareness ribbons instead of the original classic Howie yellow boxes. For every pizza purchased, Hungry Howie's made a donation to the cause. Through this campaign, Hungry Howie’s supported the National Breast Cancer…

• South Florida Residents Turn to Franchising in Down Economy

  Rhonda Sanderson

  29 Jan 2010 | 11:04 am

  In a time where jobs are scarce, the unemployed are reinventing themselves by turning to franchise ownership. In a story by The Miami Herald this week, four local residents have not let the economy stand in their way from achieving their goal of running a business. Robyn Vescovi is a month away from opening her Tasti D-Lite franchise and believes a troubled economy won't keep people from indulging in the healthy frozen dessert. Raj Patel and his partner Rudy Puig recently opened the first Panchero’s Mexican Grill in the region and Lisa Simpson left her career in banking and to invest…

• FES Still Rocks

  Rhonda Sanderson

  22 Jan 2010 | 7:16 am

  Despite cold weather and a still shaky economy, the FES held at the Miami Convention Center last weekend was thick with people up and down the aisles. A few new "green" concepts caused some to stop and scratch their heads-but popular exhibits such as the Delightful Tasti D-Lite were surrounded with visitors who couldn't get enough of the tasty frozen treat for just about 80 calories a cup. Mr. Clean Car Wash returned and even though fairly new to the franchise scene, they worked it like veterans! Photos below.

• 
  How to Change the World

• How to Avoid Gullibility

  GuyKawasaki

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:45 pm

  We’ve all been sucked into doing something stupid, right? Fortunately, Steven Greenspan has written a book called Annals of Gullibility. In its conclusion he explains how to avoid gullibility, and I’ve provided a synopsis for you. Read the full story at the American Express Open Forum. More on psychology if you need the advice.

• How to Be Empathetic

  GuyKawasaki

  4 Feb 2010 | 10:24 pm

  By definition, good marketers are empathetic. That is, they have a capacity to understand and care for the needs of others. Bruna Martinuzzi explains how to be empathetic over at the American Express Open Forum.

• How to Not Be Annoying on Twitter

  GuyKawasaki

  4 Feb 2010 | 10:19 pm

  Amber MacArthur explains how to not be annoying on Twitter over at the American Express Open Forum. Sage advice for you to develop a great reputation and following on Twitter. More Twitter tips.

• The Elements of Guyle: British Blogging

  GuyKawasaki

  27 Jan 2010 | 10:06 pm

  Want to make your blog classier? You should blog like a Brit. I explain how to do this in ten easy steps.

• How to follow the Apple announcement

  GuyKawasaki

  27 Jan 2010 | 7:56 am

  Follow the Apple announcement at Apple.alltop. We aggregate over 200 sources there.

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  b5media: Franchise Pick

• Management Tips: Change to Survive

  Kori Ellis

  7 Feb 2010 | 1:22 am

  To stay in business in today’s economy, you must undergo changes to survive. Certain industries change more often and faster than others, while some stay more fixed. However, all businesses must change at times to stay competitive. Image: istockphoto Lead by Example Business executives and managers must be willing to change themselves, if they expect employees to change. Be prepared to make changes yourself and be able explain to your employees why those changes are necessary. Keep Your Employees in the Loop Nothing causes dissension faster than employees thinking they are being…

• Social Media Offers Revenue Insights

  Miranda Marquit

  27 Jan 2010 | 10:02 am

  New technology is providing a wide range of ways for people to make money. Social media is offering a special challenge, though, since it can be difficult to measure revenues and return on investment. This is precisely why three of the major social media companies, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, are offering new tools and features that focus on revenue implications. The idea is that you can measure — sort of — the financial benefit of some social media networks. And these three social media sites are chomping at the bit to prove themselves worth an investment, since they are…

• Which Companies are the Best to Work For?

  Miranda Marquit

  25 Jan 2010 | 7:48 am

  Every year, Fortune releases a list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. These are companies that offer great benefits, a good working environment and a corporate culture that focuses on employee appreciation. In this economic climate, the competition for good jobs is fierce, but if you can land a job at one of these companies, you could be in great shape. Here are the top 10 companies to work for, according to Fortune: SAS Edward Jones Wegmans Food Markets (never had a layoff in its history) Google (bonus: Google is ready to start hiring again) Nugget Market DreamWorks Animation SKG NetApp…

• Financial Markets in Turmoil

  Miranda Marquit

  20 Jan 2010 | 10:30 am

  Just when it looks like your retirement portfolio might recover after all, a day like today comes along. The financial markets are in turmoil today, responding to all sorts of news — mainly political news. In addition to disappointing housing market data, and the fact that Morgan Stanley’s profit failed to completely wow investors, a couple of unexpected events are shaping the market. And causing the bears to take firm control. With the way things are going, there is a reasonably good chance that the Dow will close down 200 points today. China tightens monetary policy Instead of…

• Set Business Goals for 2010

  Miranda Marquit

  13 Jan 2010 | 8:41 am

  One of the most effective ways for you to increase the chances that you will actually keep your New Year’s resolutions is to write them down. And, of course, having a way to track your progress helps as well. This is where the business challenge from Staples comes in. the stickK to it! Business Challenge encourages your business to set specific goals, and then work throughout the year to achieve them. The plan actually helps managers find someone to lead the effort, and monitor progress. Then that progress can be entered into the site. Businesses earn EasyPoints as they report their…

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  Franchise Talk

• Four Fountain Spa Adopts Franchisee Route In Mumbai

  Jack

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:19 am

  indiaretailing.com: The Four Fountains Spa (TFFS) is eyeing the franchisee model to expand its base in Mumbai. The company is a chain of affordable spas and has plans to launch four spas by the end of the year. TFFS has an existing chain of four day spas and one hotel spa in Pune. It has further plans to expand its footprint in Mumbai, Goa, Lonavala, Aurangabad and Manali. The average size of each spa outlet would be around 1,000 sq.ft and will be launched at Bandra, Malad, Goregaon and Powai region in Mumbai. While the existing spas in Pune are a mix of company owned and franchisee owned…

• UK’s First National Homebuyer’s Agent Franchise Launches

  Jack

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:54 am

  PR.com: With the demise of the high street estate agent, and homebuyers choosing to search for property online,The Buying Agents may just be the next growth area in the property industry. The traditional high street Estate Agent model is changing just as it has in the US and Australia over recent years where the majority of homebuyers already use a Buying Agent. There property vendors appoint ‘selling agents’ to sell for them while homebuyers appoint ‘Buying Agents’ to locate and negotiate on property purchases for them. According to The Observer around 63% of homes in the USA are…

• Organic Burger Chain Signs First Overseas Franchise Deal

  Jack

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:52 am

  Franchising.com: Elevation Burger, the wildly successful Northern Virginia based chain known for its tasty organic burgers and patented fresh cut fries cooked in olive oil has signed a multi-unit franchising deal with investment banker, businessman, entrepreneur, and Kuwait native Ali Ashkanani. The innovative burger concept is already expanding rapidly throughout the United States, with five locations open in Falls Church, VA; Arlington, VA; Austin, TX; National Harbor, MD and Baltimore, MD and over fifty new locations in development across Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Northern…

• Mr. Clean(R) Coming To Shine Chicago Cars; New Dimension In Car Washes Seeks Local Entrepreneurs

  Jack

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:48 am

  PR Newswire: Mr. Clean, internationally-recognized for his buff build, bald head and tough stance on clean, is coming to Chicago, aiming to make cars sparkle and customers smile. With 15 locations already under his well-branded banner, Mr. Clean Car Wash® is looking for franchisees in the Chicago market. Mr. Clean Car Wash is operated by Agile Pursuits Franchising Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Procter and Gamble Company (PG). Mr. Clean Car Wash aims to open 10-12 franchised car wash locations in the Chicago area, with each new franchise slated to employ about 40 people. That means…

• Franchise Owner Starts Earning From Day One

  Jack

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  The Franchise Magazine: Newly launched Safeclean franchise owner Ryan Dowling is hoping that running his own business will not only provide him with a good income but also with the independence he craves. “I previously worked in sales, however I began looking into franchising as I wanted to earn more money and to be in charge of my day to day life as well as in control of my future,” recalls Ryan. “When I came across Safeclean it immediately appealed to me because I would be able to earn an income from day one. Additionally, I would be able to work in almost all weather…

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  Franchise News Wire by Franchising.com

• Stratus Building Solutions Ranked Number One New Franchise By Entrepreneur Magazine

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:32 am

  Stratus Building Solutions, the St. Louis-based franchisor of building services and maintenance franchises, has been named the Number 1 New Franchise, the Number 3 Fastest-Growing Franchise and the Number 13 Overall Franchise in Entrepreneur magazine's...

• NiteLites Of Ft. Myers And Naples Honored With President's Club Award

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:30 am

  Innovators within the Landscape Lighting Industry, NiteLites of Ft. Myers and Naples received the distinguished President's Club Award for 2009 at the NiteLites National Sales Conference. Winners of the President's Club Award have shown tremendous...

• Bruegger's Celebrates National Bagel Day, Tuesday February 9

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:25 am

  Tuesday, February 9th is National Bagel Day, a day that Bruegger's Bagels, founder of the retail bagel concept and holder of the Guinness Book of World Records' title for largest bagel, takes very seriously.

• International Franchise Association Names Shelly Sun 'Entrepreneur Of The Year'

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:14 am

  BrightStar Co-Founder and CEO Shelly Sun received one of the franchising industry's highest honors yesterday by the International Franchise Association as its Entrepreneur of the Year during its 50th Annual Convention in San Antonio, TX.

• Houston's Massage Heights Opens Its 12th Location In Weslayan

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:11 am

  Weslayan Massage Heights in Houston opens its doors in time for the most romantic day of the year -- Valentine's Day. Massage Heights Houston opened its 12th Houston massage spa location on Friday, February 5th, 2010 in the Weslayan area of Houston.

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  NEO Biz Blog

• Employers; Get A Green Team!

  The Franchise King

  4 Feb 2010 | 11:11 am

  How green is your workplace? How green will you allow it to become this year? need some help? Kelly Spors, known for her business writing prowess at The Wall Street Journal, is contributing articles focused on green topics, and how they relate to small business, over at the locally owned Small Business Trends website. (Disclosure; I'm the Community Promotions Director) In a recent article, she suggested this; "Start a green team. Enlist employees most passionate about environmental causes to lead the charge by starting a club or committee that oversees workplace green initiatives. They might…

• The Union Club's 3rd Annual Summit on Leadership Coming In February

  The Franchise King

  27 Jan 2010 | 7:09 pm

  Mark your calenders for February 25th... The Summit on Leadership is an annual, area-wide gathering hosted by members of the Cleveland Business Leaders Committee of The Union Club. The primary goal for the event is to provide a concentrated and highly effective learning experience for the younger and senior leaders of Northeastern Ohio's business community. Here's who you'll be learning from, this year... Panelists:Howard W. "Hoby" Hanna IV, President of Howard Hanna OhioA.J. Hyland, President and CEO of Hyland Software OnBaseRichard W. Pogue, Senior Advisor of Jones DayOscar Villarreal,…

• VC's ARE Investing In NEO

  The Franchise King

  26 Jan 2010 | 6:01 am

  Some great news from Paula Schleis at The Akron Beacon Journal; Venture capitalists and angel investors poured $1.1 billion into Northeast Ohio in the past five years, supporting 183 companies and fueling some 40,000 jobs. The 2009 Venture Capital Report being released today also notes that while seed-stage investment in the country declined 38 percent last year, investor attention to Northeast Ohio start-ups climbed to its highest level in four years.More

• Northeast Ohio Auto Sales Down Big-Time In 2009

  The Franchise King

  18 Jan 2010 | 4:00 am

  Last year was the worst the industry faced in decades as the economy slumped, credit was tight and GM and Chrysler went through bankruptcy.According to The Plain Dealer, auto sales were down a whopping 23 percent. The folks I know in the car business tell me that it's been tough this month, too. They also tell me that from their side of the desk, the cash for clunkers program managed to do one thing; It slowed sales down for two months after it was over. I was also told that a lot of the "clunkers" were still in good enough shape to be used for basic transportation. Hopefully, auto and truck…

• The Nation's 10th Most Dangerous City Lays Off 60+ Police Officers

  The Franchise King

  11 Jan 2010 | 4:11 am

  Today is the day that Mayor Jackson lays off 60+ police offers, because of a budget deficit.NewsChannel 5 reports this, here. If my memory serves me, Jackson ran for re-election on the premise that he didn't have to lay folks off last year. (Please let me know if I'm wrong on this.)If it's true, where was the transparency? Why didn't he say that he may have to lay folks off in 2010?Maybe some of the folks that work for the Water Department should have been let go, to help out the "budget."

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  ReadWriteWeb

• How Google Buzz is Disruptive: Open Data Standards

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:31 am

  Google rolled out a social stream service today called Buzz. It looks on the surface like Facebook, FriendFeed and other stream reading and writing services. It will compete with Facebook and Twitter. Under the covers, though, this major product was built by a team of people taking a radical new approach to online publishing: Buzz is all about open, standardized user data. Google Buzz data can be syndicated out to other services using the standard data formats called Atom, Activity Streams, MediaRSS and PubSubHubbub. That couldn't be more different from Facebook. Google has taken open data…

• Mobile Health: Will Network Applications Help Us Get Healthy?

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:30 am

  Last week, we were at the mHealth initiative conference in Washington D.C. The keynotes were all about the impact mobile health applications are having in shaping the future of the health care system. Nothing demonstrates that more than the iPhone. In the 18 months since it was released, it has been perhaps the biggest thing to happen to health care electronic records, which has seen billions of dollars worth of investment in past decades. Mobile and wireless health applications directly impact the individual's health and have the promise of ensuring that when a patient leaves a doctor visit,…

• Foursquare Partners with Zagat, New York Times

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:17 am

  Foursquare has come out strong in recent weeks with partnership deals that look to put it at the top of the location-based app game. Last week, it announced a partnership with Bravo, the style and fashion-centric television network, and today it has come out with a partnership with Zagat, the restaurant guide, and the New York Times. As we wrote last week, Foursquare is competing in an increasingly crowded space, and these partnerships may help it attract a whole new audience and remain competitive against other services, like Yelp, just joining in the location-based arena. Sponsor According…

• Live Blogging from Google: Launch of Google Buzz

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:11 am

  This morning, Google is announcing some exciting new features for two of its most popular applications. Team Red, as we affectionately call ourselves, is present at the Googleplex in Mountain View, and we'll be live blogging the event, giving you, dear reader, a fascinating play-by-play. Stay tuned for updates! The event will begin at 10 a.m. Pacific time. Just refresh this post to see new content as events unfold. Additional on-the-fly research and images from RWW journalist Frederic Lardinois. Sponsor 11:11: The event is over! Time to chase people down and ask some more pointed questions.

• Europe's 17 Golden Rules for Keeping Safe on Social Networks

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:05 am

  Are you using your real name on your social network profiles? According to the European Union's Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), that's a big mistake. A new report, published to coincide with Europe's Safer Internet Day, details the dangers of using social networks and lays out 17 "golden rules" for keeping safe on social networks. The report's authors are especially worried about the proliferation of mobile social networks and, among other things, recommend that users turn off all location-based services whenever they are not absolutely needed. Sponsor The report argues that…

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  Social Media Marketing

• What's in a Name?

  Scott Monty

  27 Jan 2010 | 12:34 pm

  The iPad. Unless you were in a coma, you probably heard about the launch of Apple's new tablet. A larger version of the iPhone, at 0.5 inches thick, 1.5 pounds, $499 (base model) + a $29.99 unlimited data plan, it's pretty impressive. You can read all about the reveal and product specs over on Engadget, who covered it live.There's an interesting subplot going on here, though. The hype around the event was palpable - even the Wall Street Journal noted "Last time there was this much excitement about a tablet, it had some commandments written on it." Indeed, everyone was speculating about…

• 2010 Digital Marketing Outlook

  Scott Monty

  24 Jan 2010 | 8:22 am

  The Society of Digital Agencies - a group that serves as a worldwide voice of digital marketing professionals with a mission to advance the industry through best practices, education, and advocacy - recently sent me the results of a large survey they conducted. SoDA solicited feedback from over 1,000 digital marketing executives from agency and client-side worldwide and captured some solid insights worth sharing here.There is no question that digital marketing continues its upward trend. Certainly, when a company like Ford - from the historically lethargic automotive industry - spends 25% of…

• Have You Got an App for That?

  Scott Monty

  21 Jan 2010 | 9:21 pm

  It seems that app development is where it's at in social. According to a recent eMarketer article, mobile apps for social networks - in addition to phones - are under consideration by more marketers than ever before. As you can see in the graphic below, the leading platform for an app (unsurprisingly) was Facebook, followed by the iPhone.Fewer than half invested in mobile or social apps last year, but most plan to create one this year. Lest you think that this is simply marketers chasing the latest shiny object, or the boss claiming G.M.O.O.T. ("get me one of those!"), there's some solid…

• Social Media Predictions for 2010

  Scott Monty

  2 Jan 2010 | 2:35 pm

  I'm sure you've seen your fair share of social media predictions for 2010 by now. And while my posting is a little late, I hope I'm note treading too fine a line by waiting until 2010 hits before I make my predictions.Before I get into what I think will be worth watching this year, let's see how well I fared with the results from the predictions I made for 2009. Those included:Twitter will continue to achieve legitimacy. Check. There's no question that Twitter became mainstream in 2009. I won't rehash all of the examples, but suffice it to say that when your local news outlets are suggesting…

• Global Social Network Figures

  Scott Monty

  22 Dec 2009 | 7:43 am

  When any global company undertakes a social media strategy, there is an expectation that even company-wide initiatives will need to be customized for each region. Whether it's local customs, language or even the device on which the networks are accessed, it's vastly different all over the world. Facebook does not rule the world.Not yet at least. ;-)The growth of social networks globally is a sure thing. The question is, where are they growing and which networks are dominant in which markets? Last year, I shared some statistics. Naturally, things have changed.Here are some interesting…

• 
  Marketing Profs Daily Fix

• Trending ‘Functionall’

  Ted Mininni

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:28 am

  Reinier Evers founder of trendwatching.com can always be counted on to weigh in on new trends every month. As is the case with all prognosticating, there’s always the risk of being wrong. But in Evers’s case, I think he’s had considerably more hits than misses. Trendwatching’s latest caught my eye more than most. The headline screams one word: “Functionall.” The subhead: “Why simple, small & cheap appeals to all.” The definition of Functionall: Captures the phenomenon of simple, small and/or cheap products and services designed for low(er)-income consumers…

• MarketingProfs B2B Forum Ramp Up: What I Have Learned About B2B Marketing

  Kathy Bushman

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:36 am

  As part of my journey in developing the content for an educational conference, in this case MarketingProfs B2B Forum, I do a lot of research. I spend a lot of time on the web looking at competitive conferences (and non-competitive conferences) as well as reading many white papers, articles and blogs. We also take seriously any feedback that we’ve gotten from the attendees at our last event and we poll the MarketingProfs community about topics they need education on through crowdsourcing, discussions on our community sites and in the form of questions sent out as tweets. But most important…

• Guest Post: The 4 Pillars Of B2B Marketing-The Lifecycle Of a B2B Campaign

  Ann Handley

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:37 am

  By Achim Klor SterlingKlor Communications I recently read an excellent post by Paul Dunay on Social Media Today presenting the 4 C’s of B2B marketing. We’ve known about the 4 P’s of marketing for years: Product, Price, Place and Promotion. Paul argues the 4 P’s are primarily a B2C mix. The 4 C’s, however, (Content, Connection, Communications, Conversion) illustrate the marketing mix for B2B. Sounds great, but how should B2B organizations implement the 4 C’s marketing mix into their campaigns? I would like to highlight an approach that has served our B2B agency very…

• Interview With Seth Godin: Linchpin

  John Wall Christopher Penn

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:21 am

  In this Marketing Over Coffee brought to you by MarketingProfs: We talk with Seth Godin about his new book: Linchpin Marketing Over Coffee with Seth Godin Direct Link to File Show length 23:30 00:52 What’s Linchpin about? 02:30 How do entrepreneurial linchpins fit in to large organizations? 05:40 Who are the artists? 06:55 Can you get beyond Dunbar’s Number? Gary V. is using Twitter to add two zeros. 08:10 What is The Resistance? What is Emotional Labor? 11:22 Thrashing – a classic Marketing problem, and yes, Duke Nukem! Real artists ship. 14:16 Is there any future for mass media…

• How To Build a Brand Internationally

  Paul Williams

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:21 am

  Congratulations! Your company is successful locally, and now you want to share what you do with the world. In many ways, the process will be like re-starting your business. Many of the activities you performed to launch your initial business are the same you will employ in each of your new international markets. However, much of your time will be spent translating (literally and figuratively) to ensure you are locally relevant to your new customers. A Brand = A Reputation The term “brand” can be confusing. Think of a brand as a reputation. Building a reputation in any new market…

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  The Marketing Minute

• Examples of social media policies

  Drew McLellan

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:35 am

  In corporate America (and probably corporate World), rules get created when people make bad choices.  It's how child labor laws came to be and why we now have sexual harassment policies.  The few and the stupid are the catalyst to regulation.Which is why it's not a shock that companies big and small are beginning to institute social media policies.  After the Dominos pizza incident and the world famous FedEx tweet -- who can blame business leaders from wanting to protect themselves by setting down some rules?I've put together a long list of social media policy…

• Have you built a rock solid foundation for your personal brand?

  Drew McLellan

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:10 am

  Whether you work for someone else, are a serial entrepreneur or anything in between -- in today's world, you can't afford to ignore the idea of personal branding.A generation ago, employees often stayed with one employer for the lion's share of their career.  Today, most professionals will not work for several companies -- but they will most likely change their entire profession.And even in the unlikely case that you do find the employer of your dreams right off the bat -- you still want to distinguish yourself by standing out from the crowd.Enter personal branding.

• Nuggets of smart

  Drew McLellan

  2 Feb 2010 | 6:21 am

  I don't know about you, but one of my struggles is sifting through all the information out there to find the real nuggets of smart.  I thought, from time to time, I might point out some of the really smart stuff out there so you don't have to go digging for it.  I'd love to know if you find value in this sort of post.  (Just click on the bolded text to get to each offering) New study on customer gratitude:  Elaine Fogel talks about a new study done by the American Marketing Association that looks at the sales impact of generating a sense of gratitude in…

• The best Superbowl commercial of 2010

  Drew McLellan

  31 Jan 2010 | 7:43 pm

  Remember when the Superbowl was about the game?  Now it's the halftime show wardrobe malfunctions and of course, the commercials.  Here's one of my favorites from last year, to get you in the mood! (e-mail subscribers, click here to view) Want to get a jump on Sunday's new spots?  Don't want to have to wade through 60 minutes of football just to see what Budweiser, GoDaddy and Doritos have in store for us?Head over to MSNBC's site where they are hosting an Ad Showdown.  You can watch each and every spot and then in a nod to the NCAA tourney…

• Extinction is right around the corner...

  Drew McLellan

  27 Jan 2010 | 7:22 pm

  For getting lost, desktop computers and glaciers.  At least according to The Future Trends book called Future Files by Richard Watson.  (buy it by clicking here) As part of the promotion of the book, the author released the chart below.   It's an extinction timeline...predicting that newspaper delivery will be gone by 2012 and FM radio by 2027.  I promise you...you'll find this fascinating and its content will be your conversation starter for at least a week. If you're having trouble reading the timeline, you can click on the chart to open a…

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  Social Media Club

• #SMCEDU Chat: Social Media in the Classroom…What’s the Incentive?

  Yong Lee

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:41 am

  Social Media Club Education Connection (aka #SMCEDU) is a national initiative whose goal is to unite educators, students, and professionals to further the development of social media curriculum in our schools, enabling a wider network of learning and workforce preparedness. #SMCEDU is a part of Social Media Club, a nonprofit organization that is working to promote media literacy and connect people to share what they are learning about social media. Last week, Social Media Week wrapped up in five different cities around the world. I wrote about a panel event held in New York on Friday that…

• Social Media Week New York Panel: The Future of Social Media in Higher Education

  Yong Lee

  5 Feb 2010 | 7:42 pm

  On Friday, McGraw-Hill hosted a panel discussion on the future of social media in higher education. The panel included: Adam Ostrow Editor in Chief, Mashable.com Dr. Kathleen P. King Professor, Fordham University; Professor, Transformation Education, LLC Greg Verdino VP Strategy & Solutions, Powered; author of microMARKETING Mary Casey NYU Student and Founder of Jatched.com Vineet Madan VP Strategy & Business Development, McGraw-Hill Education The panel was moderated by Yianni Garcia, a marketing specialist at GradeGuru.com, tweets from the discussion can be found under #smwmcgraw.

• SMCEDU Chat – What Motivates Students to Participate AND Create Good Content?

  Yong Lee

  1 Feb 2010 | 1:25 pm

  Our #SMCEDU chat was joined by more new faces today (always exciting); our continued discussions are broadcasting some great ideas and thoughts! I’ve received wonderful feedback on the chats, and I believe as more contribute, the quality, breadth, and depth of our shared lessons will grow. I love seeing both students and educators discussing educational topics on equal footing. The professors involved in our weekly chats are gracious in not only sharing with their peers, but in answering the concerns of the students’ voice. It would have been especially gratifying to hear students…

• SMCEDU-RVA Hosts Social Media U: Fundamental Shifts in Learning, Sharing, and Collaboration

  Yong Lee

  29 Jan 2010 | 11:41 am

  Richmond, VA, proved once again to be a leader in advancing social media in education as the SMCEDU-RVA organization hosted Social Media U on Tuesday evening at the University of Richmond. Tuesday’s event, billed as an exploration of the “Fundamental Shift in Teaching, Learning, and Collaboration,” focused on the concerns of educators and the issues they face in incorporating social media into the classroom. Although education was at the center of the discussion, the audience was peppered with students and professionals seeking to grasp more understanding of social media as…

• Social Media Camp SF Schedule ++

  Chris Heuer

  28 Jan 2010 | 5:02 pm

  Big thanks to all the early participants who signed up on blind faith and to all the sponsors who are subsidizing our participation costs (especially for the lucky few who got one of the $5 tickets). We have been working hard to build a great single-track Social Media conference that will be the backbone of a strong ‘camp’. Each of the sessions below are designed to be 45 minutes with 15 minute breaks in between. Due to the layout of the building and proximity of the rooms to one another, we will be sticking to this schedule as best as possible. In under a week, with the support…

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  Business Week: Small Business

• Social Media Is Nothing New

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:45 am

  Nor is it anything to fear. The key is understanding how popular online tools make the difference

• Bankers Urged to Get to Know Borrowers

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:45 am

  Banks have been pulled in two directions over commercial lending. Now federal and state regulators are saying banks shouldn’t curtail credit based on negative trends in an industry or location

• An Employer's Retirement Plan Dilemma

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:45 am

  Experts offer ethical and legal advice to a small business owner who promised to contribute to employees' retirement plans but failed to do so

• No Job Growth for Small Business Spurs Recovery Doubt (Update1)

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:37 pm

  Small businesses are becoming the Achilles heel of the U.S. recovery by limiting growth and job creation.

• Greenspan Sees ‘Slow’ Recovery, Is ‘Concerned’ If Stocks Drop

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:11 am

  Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said a U.S. economic recovery is “going to be a slow, trudging thing,” and that he “would get very concerned” if stock prices continue to fall.

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  MarketingProfs - Smart thinking ... pass it on.

• Five Simple Link-Building Tips

  9 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  Link-building services are the most commonly outsourced aspect of SEO. The process involves finding qualified and thematically relevant one-way linking partners who will link to your website. Spammy, automated products often never cultivate valuable links and tend to do more harm than good. Doing it right means link-building by hand. ...

• Six Keys to Writing a Great Proposal

  9 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  :ooking for ways to create a proposal that sets you and your company favorably apart? Ways that capture the great things you have to offer? Here are six suggested best-practices intended to not only maximize your chances to stand out and land the job but also manage the risks.

• Innovation Matters: Balancing Sustained vs. Disruptive Innovation

  9 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  While we struggle to emerge from a full-blown recession, marketers know all too well that advertising and (unfortunately) innovation are the first budgets that are most likely to get cut. So how can marketers continue to innovate?

• 50% Click-Through Rates? Yes, You Can!

  9 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  You'd think that to get half of your subscribers to click through, you might have to give away a million dollars every month. Publishers Clearing House actually does give away millions of dollars, but that wasn't enough on its own to earn a significantly higher-than-average response rate on its email ...

• Revamp to Revenue: Five Ways to Turn on the Profits With Your Website

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  In the current economic climate, more business owners need to evaluate their website and revamp it to turn it into a presales tool, lead-generation machine, or even a revenue-producing cash cow. Can it be done? It just takes a few tweaks to turn on the profits.

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  Small Business Labs

• Low Cost, Easy to Use Technologies Changing Industries

  Steve

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:01 am

  A couple of good articles over the last few days on low cost technologies impacting industries in different ways. Apple Takes On Intel, from Forbes, covers Apple's use of their own chip in their new iPad tablet computer.  The article describes the trend towards cheaper and easier to use technology: "One of the fundamental rules of technology is that things that start out hard and complicated, able to be tackled by only a few people, eventually get easier to do, allowing more people to handle them." It then describes chip design as an example.  Instead of buying chips…

• Siri: A Cloud Based Digital Assistant for the iPhone

  Steve

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Siri is a new generation virtual, digital assistant that is meant to act just like a human assistant.  It understands what you say, accomplishes tasks for you and gets better at understanding what you want as you spend more time with it.    Initially available as an iPhone application, Siri can make reservations at restaurants, find movie times, provide weather forecasts and accomplish other relatively simple tasks.  Siri uses speech recognition software, so you have the option to speak or type commands. Siri is a new product with limited capabilities.  The…

• Good Summary of Small Business Hiring Sentiment

  Steve

  6 Feb 2010 | 10:25 am

  Jan Norman's On Small Business column in the Orange County Register has an excellent summary of various surveys on small business hiring plans.  It's no surprise that small businesses continue to be hesitant to hire. 

• Steve Rubel on Facebook Eating the Web

  Steve

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:49 am

  Steve Rubel's Facebook Could Eat the Web expands on a theme we've been examining over the last 6 months or so, which we call Is Facebook Taking Over the Web?   Since Steve is a communications professional, it's not surprising his title is better.  For those not familiar with Steve, he is an SVP at the giant PR firm Edelman and one of the most influential and thoughtful thinkers on the impact of social media and connective technologies on communications, media and marketing.  Key quote from his post: "In short, I believe Facebook…

• Baby Boomers Flocking to Facebook, Twitter

  Steve

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  eMarketer is reporting that the number of baby boomers using Facebook increased 107% from 2008 to 2009 and Twitter usage jumped 714%.  The chart below, from an eMarketer email, shows the growth for a number of social networking sites.    Other interesting observations about this data include:  - There are about 78 million baby boomers, so almost 30% of all baby boomers are on Facebook.  This is an impressive number and reinforces our view that Facebook may be taking over the Web.  - I'm not surprised to see Myspace losing visitors, but I am a bit…

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  Tim Berry: Planning, Startups, Stories

• Why Mirror Neurons Are Critical to Your Business Success

  Tim Berry

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:32 am

  Empathy is essential. Sure, that’s obvious for your life and your relationships, but also, although not so obvious, for your business. Empathy is putting yourself in the other person’s shoes: feeling what they’re feeling, imagining what it’s like to be them. Isn’t that the key to marketing and product development? Isn’t that also the single most important factor in leadership? Dealing with people? And business strategy? I think so. I posted Empathy as a key to business success here a bit more than a year ago. What’s new about it today is Gandhi’s Neurons: The Practice of…

• 5 Things Avatar Can Teach You About Development

  Tim Berry

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:30 am

  (Note: this is a guest post by Megan Berry (my daughter), social media evangelist for Mobclix. It was originally posted on the mobclix blog Avatar is a world-wide phenomenon and is currently the top grossing movie of all time*. How can you learn from its success and apply it to your own projects (even if they aren’t billion dollar movies). Technology Matters. James Cameron first wrote Avatar in 1994, but he ended up tabling it until 2005 because he felt the technology wasn’t there yet. Figure out what your idea needs and how you can make it happen. If your current idea won’t work well,…

• The Truth in a Graphic About High-Tech Distractions

  Tim Berry

  5 Feb 2010 | 7:30 am

  I just couldn’t resist sharing this. It’s called The Hierarchy of Digital Distractions, and it’s brilliant; and even better in full size, so you should click this link or on the picture to see the original. I got it from Ann Handley, @marketingprofs on Twitter. It’s from a site called Information is Beautiful, by David McCandless. And it certainly depicts, way too accurately, the way digital distractions stack up for me. (Image: by David McCandless, via Information is Beautiful) Share and Enjoy:

• Business Strategy in Action, or Reaction, Both, or Neither

  Tim Berry

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:29 am

  Apple vs. Kindle vs. publishers, oh my. Do you know the background? It’s all over the web. And I posted here this week about how Apple and Amazon.com and Macmillan are wrapped up in an ebook battle. And it gets better. As I write this, Wednesday evening, the news is that Amazon gave in and put Macmillan back into the mix, but at higher prices. But I just checked the site and my favorite Macmillan book, Thomas Friedman’s Hot, Flat, and Crowded, is listed there as available through third parties only. So go figure. I’m fascinated with all of this. Really, business strategy in…

• Planning Fundamentals 4: Its About Accountability

  Tim Berry

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:30 am

  (This is the fourth in a series of posts reviewing the fundamentals of planning, with an eye for how they’re changing over time. Part one was Form Follows Function. Part 2 was All Business Plans are Wrong. Part 3 was Cash Not Profits.) I predict accountability is going to be an increasingly important issue as we head into this new decade. The old-fashioned tools of accountability, mainly physical presence, as in hours in the office, or days on the road, are fading. If for no other reasons, it’s because the world can’t continue to support needless commuting, an average of 51…

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  Small Biz Survival

• Ways to deliver audio for tourism

  Becky McCray

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:08 am

  Imagine if your most enthusiastic and wonderful tour leader could guide every group of visitors. You know, that one person who tells the best stories, who makes it all come to life... what if that person guided every visitor? The next best thing might be to record them and share that audio with your visitors. The Shattuck, Oklahoma, Windmill Museum uses FM radio to broadcast "Windmill Willie's Story About Windmills." I think that is pretty cool. (I didn't tune in because I was headed to a meeting and just stopped long enough to snap this pic.) You've probably seen audio CDs used to promote a…

• Four ways to beat bigger competitors

  Becky McCray

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:02 am

  How can your small town business take on the bigger competitors? Whether you're facing the big boxes, the big city shopping, or the online big boys, you can try these four ways to beat them back. Tell your human story. Your business came from somewhere, was founded by someone, touches real people. When you tell your story, you build relationships. Your culture and place matter. You have a better connection with what your people want, how they like to be treated, and what touches their emotions than any big company can. When you have a competitive or better price, hammer on it. You have to…

• Mistakes: Missing menus

  Becky McCray

  7 Feb 2010 | 2:34 pm

  My friend Chaz French just emailed me from the road:  I'm at a take out falafel place that apparently does delivery but nowhere in here can we find a menu to take and they didn't come up in a web search for delivery in the area. If you aren't sharing your critical information with your customers, you're missing out on sales. Solutions: Take time for a quick information audit. How would a person new in town find your business? Are there basic info pieces, like menus, that you need to share? How is your online presence? Once you think it's in pretty good shape, be brave and ask a friend to…

• DARPA hard

  Becky McCray

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:04 pm

  DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, likes big challenges. They don't want to touch projects that are merely hard, or just really difficult. They only want to take on those that are so hard, so seemingly impossible, that no one else could solve them, no one else would ever invest in them. Challenges that big are called "DARPA hard." Bill Reichert, from Garage Technologies Ventures, told that story at the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds Conference in Oklahoma City. Look for your own "DARPA hard." Find the problems that are so hard, or so specialized, that you…

• The basket I forgot to put a title on

  Becky McCray

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:57 am

  Every week, I open a new Basket. I call it the Brag Basket, but it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. I started this so you can introduce yourself, share some good news about yourself, or congratulate a friend.  Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.  This particular basket is open from Feb. 5-7, 2010. How does it work? You write a comment on this post. You tell something great about your…

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  Dane Carlson: Business Opportunities

• Stimulus Cash At Work: Leetex Construction

  Rich Whittle

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:50 am

  From fighting forest fires to laying carpet in day care centers, CNNMoney.com takes a look at what 5 small businesses that got stimulus-funded contracts are doing with taxpayers’ dollars. Leetex Construction in Dallas won just over $2 million in stimulus contracts to renovate existing construction, primarily at Fort Hood, a nearby Army base. The projects, each of which took between two and three months, are nearly complete. Rick Karlos, Leetex Construction’s owner, added six employees: four to work in the field and two to manage the paperwork associated with the government…

• Inventor Wants Kids To Get Excited About Math

  Rich Whittle

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:40 am

  Sometimes mathematics gets a bad rap. Kids whine that it is too hard or boring. Parents get frustrated helping with homework. But a local man has invented a board game he said gets kids excited about the often-dreaded school subject, reports Durhamregion.com. The board game, created by Greg Soave, is called TACTICO! The game isn’t new; Soave invented it as a boy while he sat in his father’s ‘57 Chevy waiting for his dad, who was doing television and radio repairs. The game revolves around subtraction. Two players take turns removing game pieces (up to four per turn) from the…

• Set Your Sites On Mobile

  Rich Whittle

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:30 am

  When writing out your 2010 list of business resolutions, AOL Small Business says make sure to include a mobile-friendly Web presence. Here are three ways to get your act together: 1. Hire a Designer Not every small business needs to go out and drop a fistful of Gs on a mobile site, but for some it will make sense. At Accession Media, Katinger works with small and medium business customers who have complex e-commerce requirements. He estimates that many of his jobs start at around $10,000 and go up from there. He focuses on building a single Web site that covers both regular computer…

• Ingenious Marketing Strategy or Insane?

  Rich Whittle

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:20 am

  If you watch TV, you’ve seen the ad. Domino’s chefs are experimenting with a matrix of combinations of cheese, dough and spices — anything to counter some of the negative criticism that’s come their way. Domino’s reads some actual customer quotes, which are designed to make any television viewer’s eyebrows lurch upward: “Domino’s pizza crust, to me, is like cardboard.” And: “The sauce tastes like ketchup.” according to a story at AOL Small Business. Then, of course, Domino’s explains that they’ve reinvented their…

• Gift Card Trade Hits New High

  Rich Whittle

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:10 am

  As gift cards have risen in popularity over the years (a whopping $87 billion of them were bought last year, according to research firm TowerGroup), you could be forgiven for assuming that they’re the perfect, one-size-fits-all holiday gift. Apparently some of the people you gave those ultra-convenient cards to didn’t see it that way, reports WalletPop. Plastic Jungle, a clearinghouse where people can buy and sell their unwanted gift cards, says its Web site traffic has gone up by an astronomical 250% since Christmas. The bump is due to people unloading their gift cards for cash.

• 
  Bizsugar

• 12 Reasons Why Competition is Good For Your Business

  m4bmarketing

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:19 am

  Have you ever thought that marketing your small business would be easier without competitors? Most of us have at time to time. Whilst you shouldn't be fixated on your competitors, you can't afford to ignore them. Having competitors is healthy and this video shows one reason why - collaboration: 11 Vote(s)

• What To Do If A Competing Business Undercuts You In Price

  thursdayb

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:17 am

  What do you do when a competitor cuts prices significantly? This post says that cutting your prices is rarely the best option and provides some solid alternatives.14 Vote(s)

• Differentiate: The Ability to Stand Out In a Crowd

  iannarino

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:44 am

  Success in sales is dependent upon your ability to differentiate your product or service in a crowded field. More important still is your ability to differentiate yourself as a salesperson. This is accomplished first by possessing and developing the ten foundational success skills, and then by developing your own personal brand.18 Vote(s)

• Sales Tip A Day: Increasing the chance your prospecting letter will get open

  argentisgroup

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:18 pm

  How to increase the chances of your introduction or prospecting letter getting opened. Along with one other piece of information to further your chances of getting your introduction letter open.11 Vote(s)

• MoxieWorks : Small Business Gives Back

  MoxieWorks

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:15 pm

  With all of the talk about Haiti some small businesses may wonder what they could be doing to help out with that relief effort and all of the other causes that are dear to our hearts. Customers are already giving...10 Vote(s)

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  Chris Brogan

• Earn Your GED- Find Success Tomorrow

  chrisbrogan

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:30 am

  No, not your General Equivalent Degree. The GED to which I refer is “guest experience design.” What the heck am I talking about? I’ll tell you. Old words: customer service. New words: guest experience. Disney, where I am this week, has a concept called a Moment of Truth. A moment of truth is “any time a guest comes into contact with any aspect of a business, however remote, is an opportunity to form an impression.” Note that it’s “an impression.” It can be good; it can be bad. Why “guest?” Because guest is much more hospitable than…

• Pursue the Goal Not the Method

  chrisbrogan

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:30 am

  In the back of a town car hired to take me to the Kansas City International airport, talking to Jeff, a driver with two kids, self-proclaimed ADD, and a history of quitting rote sales jobs every few months, I realized something of importance to the story of what’s brought me to this place: I am a seeker of the goal, not the method. Now, to unpack. The Method Is What We’re Taught to Pursue We learn our times tables. We learn the 50 states (in the US, at least). We are taught all these rules, these patterns, these systems, these methods. Musicians learn their scales. Painters copy…

• Your Blog From the Prospect’s Point of View

  chrisbrogan

  7 Feb 2010 | 7:34 am

  When you use your blog to complain or report sideways about the industry at large, what message is that sending to your potential new clients? If you’re spending your time analyzing what other people in your space are doing, citing why they’re wrong, and providing your commentary about all the things they’re doing, what does your next potential customer come away thinking? Is your negative commentary helping them make a buying decision? I’ve rarely seen the tactic work in traditional advertising. You can graze them a little bit. For instance, I’m a bit fond of…

• Just Lucky I Guess – Kitchen Table Talks

  chrisbrogan

  6 Feb 2010 | 1:46 pm

  In this Kitchen Table Talks video, I just want to address all the nice folks who call me lucky, or who think I’m just sitting around being handed my lot in life. Can’t see the video? Click here. Direct link to the video “Lucky” is absolutely what I am. Here’s what I do to earn my luck: Write a blog post or two a day. Write a newsletter every week. Comment and connect with others daily. Answer and send hundreds of emails daily. Read voraciously. Work with the best clients I can find. Reach into new markets weekly. Travel extensively. Seems lucky to me. People…

• Some Of The Third Tribe Conversations

  chrisbrogan

  6 Feb 2010 | 1:02 pm

  I’m really enjoying participating in the forums at the Third Tribe site. I was just adding my two cents to a handful of forum postings, and thought that I’d show you what some of the topics we’re talking about are, so you’d have a sense of what’s going on. We don’t really share the contents, because the people participating there like having the chance to speak openly/candidly about their marketing challenges, but I don’t see the harm in sharing a few of the topic titles. Here they are: Favorite copywriting and marketing books? Third Tribe Blogroll? 2…

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  John Battelle

• The Tuesday Signal

  http://fmpub.net/contact.php?to=jb

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:20 am

  Tuesday, we hope, things will get back to normal after Super Bowl fever had subsided. Google is set to turn Gmail into a status updatin' machine, which positions it to compete directly with Twitter. I'll be posting this Signal an hour or so before the details emerge. I have an FM Board meeting this morning, (don't fear, it's all good...). So click this link for news of Google's Gmail moves.   Meanwhile, the past 24 hours has brought, as usual, all manner of linkworthy schtuff: Loopt and Mobile Spinach Team Up for Location-Based Deals (Mashable) I'm watching this space. Hence the…

• A Google Twitter Killer? Not Till Google Mutates

  http://fmpub.net/contact.php?to=jb

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:53 am

  That's the rumor (BI via WSJ). The idea is to let Gmail become your portal into status update.   It won't work, period, unless it connects to Facebook and Twitter. And so far, as I've pointed out before, Google won't do that, at least, not yet, and and certainly not in the way it should be done. Google is simply not understood by consumers to be a place where they can connect with friends and colleagues. If it intends to become that, it has some DNA mutation in its future. This one should be interesting.  

• The Monday Signal: Monday Morn. Advertising Quarterback

  http://fmpub.net/contact.php?to=jb

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:51 am

  Was it really as simple as that? Google CEO Eric Schmidt took to the blogwaves after the Super Bowl yesterday to explain Google's surprising decision to purchase an ad thusly: We didn't set out to do a Super Bowl ad, or even a TV ad for search. Our goal was simply to create a series of short online videos about our products and our users, and how they interact. But we liked this video so much, and it's had such a positive reaction on YouTube, that we decided to share it with a wider audience. If there's one thing Google's consistent about, it's the company's approach to PR: it always sounds…

• Updated: Google to Air "Search Stories" Ad During Super Bowl...

  http://fmpub.net/contact.php?to=jb

  6 Feb 2010 | 3:11 pm

  Remember when I wrote about the new "Search Stories" ads for Google's core search offerings?In that post, I noted "It's truly a brand campaign: Google is not selling anything here other than its own brand - that ephemeral sensibility that resides between its customers' ears." Well I've got a pretty reliable source who is telling me Google plans to hit the branded advertising big leagues this Sunday - the source says Google's "Parisian Love" ad (below) will air during the third quarter of the Super Bowl. Now that would be a true turning point for the brand - a brand that, for nearly ten years,…

• The Friday Signal: It's The Platform, Not the Bowl

  http://fmpub.net/contact.php?to=jb

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:35 am

  Friday is all about the biggest event in television marketing - the Super Bowl. This year (as I've noted here before) I'm struck by how many campaigns are integrated with longer term social marketing platforms. That's putting the investment to good use - promoting what I call a media annuity that will pay back all year long. However, much of the press and some of the marketing still gets it backwards - they see the Super Bowl as something that social media "builds buzz for." Nope. It's the other way round, folks. Your brand, which after all is what you're buying the ad for, right? - your…

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  Jason Calacanis

• Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Cover w/Brooklyn Decker 2010 http://bit.ly/9wvivT

  Jason Calacanis

  9 Feb 2010 | 10:35 am

  Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Cover w/Brooklyn Decker 2010 http://bit.ly/9wvivT

• Bush “miss me yet?” billboard is real… photos:

  Jason Calacanis

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:53 am

  A picture of a billboard featuring a picture of former President George W. Bush and the words "Miss Me Yet?" began circulating via e-mail on Monday, February 8, 2010. At first, many assumed that the billboard was a photoshopped image, however it was confirmed to be real and stands along I-35 near the town of Wyoming, in the state of Minnesota. Bob Collins of Minnesota Public Radio confirmed seeing the billboard along I-35. The mayor of Wyoming, Sheldon Anderson, said he has received a lot inquiries over the Bush billboard but said he did not know who set up the billboard or who…

• Water pollution in China is stunning & sad NYTIMES

  Jason Calacanis

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:50 am

  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/10/world/asia/10pollute.html?hp

• AUDIO: Howard Stern talks about becoming judge on American Idol http://bit.ly/abEjFr

  Jason Calacanis

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:31 am

  Howard Stern to replace Simon Cowel on American Idolhttp://www.mahalo.com/howard-stern-american-idol shock-jock Howard Stern confirmed that FOX was courting him to replace Simon Cowell on American Idol. During his show on February 8, 2010. Addressing the recent rumors that Stern may become a judge on Idol, Stern told his listeners, "There's not a better job on the planet than judging that f—-ng karaoke contest." He went on to say, "It might be possible, we'll see," and "They'd have to pay me a ton of dough because I already make a ton of…

• Brilliant: Super Gay Superbowl Photo–literally.

  Jason Calacanis

  9 Feb 2010 | 7:23 am

• 
  John Jantsch

• PR is Only Dying If It Isn’t Evolving

  John Jantsch

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:51 am

  SharePR is Only Dying If It Isn’t EvolvingThis content from: Duct Tape Marketing Marketing podcast with Brian Solis (Click to listen, right click and Save As to download – subscribe now via iTunes For this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast I asked Brian Solis, Principal of FutureWorks and co-author of Putting the Public Back in Public Relations, about the future of the PR industry as we know it. There’s plenty of doom and gloom surrounding the practice of public relations in the social web world, but Solis suggests, and I totally agree, that there’s a…

• 5 Questions You Should Ask Every Customer

  John Jantsch

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:33 am

  Share5 Questions You Should Ask Every CustomerThis content from: Duct Tape Marketing Constantly seeking feedback from your customers is a great way to learn how to market your business more effectively. If you’ve never done this before, do it immediately as it is one of the best ways to discover what you do that actually differentiates you from your competition. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worked with a small business that had no idea what its competitive advantage was until we heard it right from the mouths of happy customers. Seeking feedback is also a great way…

• Weekend Favs February Six

  John Jantsch

  6 Feb 2010 | 8:14 am

  ShareWeekend Favs February SixThis content from: Duct Tape Marketing I’ve added a weekend post routine that I hope you enjoy. Each weekend I write a post that features 3-4 things I read during the week that I found interesting. Generally speaking it won’t involve much analysis and may range widely in topic. (Flickr image included here is also fav image of the week) Image credit: Dr Swan Enjoy! Good stuff I ran across this week: Siri – An iPhone app that acts like a personal assistant – you can ask to find things by name – nearest Starbucks or by broad category –…

• Extending Your Presentations Through the Backchannel

  John Jantsch

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:18 am

  ShareExtending Your Presentations Through the BackchannelThis content from: Duct Tape Marketing The term “backchannel” was coined in the field of Linguistics in the 1970’s to describe listeners’ behaviors during verbal communication. It is commonly used these days to describe the behavior or conversation going on in social media while a speaker is making a presentation. In some conferences the majority of the people listening may be actively Tweeting throughout a speech. Like it or not, managing the backchannel has become a part of presenting, in person or online.

• Analytics from a Really Smart Guy

  John Jantsch

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:19 pm

  Analytics from a Really Smart GuyThis content from: Duct Tape Marketing Marketing podcast with Avinash Kaushik (Click to listen, right click and Save As to download – subscribe now via iTunes Avinash Kaushik, author of Web Analytics 2.0 is one of those rare people who can take a somewhat dry and mathlike subject of web analytics and make it sound easy and even fun. I got to spend a few minutes with Avinash for this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing podcast for some tips about this important, but often overlooked topic. Web Analytics can seem like a scary subject, but it’s…

• 
  Darren Rowse

• Blog Like a Cartoonist – Six Stunning Secrets to Help You Break Through Bloggers Block

  Darren Rowse

  9 Feb 2010 | 11:24 am

  And now for a guest post with a difference from Cartoonist Mark Anderson from Andertoons.com who created this comic to illustrate the writing techniques he uses to create his cartoons, and how they can help bloggers push through writer’s block. Post from: Blog Tips at ProBlogger. Blog Like a Cartoonist – Six Stunning Secrets to Help You Break Through Bloggers Block Share This

• Have a 37 Minute Coffee Break with Me [Audio Interview]

  Darren Rowse

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:43 am

  If you have a spare 37 minutes today to grab a coffee with me (or at least are doing something that will allow you to listen to something for 37 minutes in the background) check out this interview I did with Robb Sutton late last week. Robb’s also transcribed it for those who prefer to read. In the interview Rob asks me about a whole range of stuff including: my background in blogging my philosophy on lots of sites vs focusing upon a single (or just a few) sites the process of going full time (and my wife’s six month ultimatum) my shift in focus to e-books and membership sites a…

• What Is Your Blogging Goal for February?

  Darren Rowse

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:22 am

  A few days back I asked readers a question: What Have You Been Putting Off and What’s Holding You Back? Some of the responses to the question in comments (and via email and Twitter) revealed a lot of bloggers really wanting to step things up and get what they’ve been putting off done. So – lets set some goals – what do you want to achieve by the end of February? I’m not going to be calling you up to check up to see if you’re meeting your goals – but hopefully in putting them down publicly you’ll find yourself a little more spurred on to reach…

• 9 Tricks I Used To Triple My AdSense Earnings In 30 Days

  Daniel Scocco

  7 Feb 2010 | 6:34 am

  Guest post by Daniel Scocco from Daily Blog Tips. I have been using Google AdSense to monetize my blogs and websites for as long as I remember. In fact it was the first method I ever tried (I made a whooping $15 on my first month… back in 2005). Over the years I migrated to other methods (e.g., direct sponsors and affiliate marketing), which made AdSense become merely an inventory filler. I was still making around $1,000 monthly from it, but whenever I could I would use other methods over it. Then some months ago I started noticing an upward trend on the CPC of my sites, and I figured that…

• How I Got Some Paying Sponsors Without Really Meaning To

  Darren Rowse

  6 Feb 2010 | 6:21 am

  A guest post by Josh Hanagarne. World’s Strongest Librarian was about four months old when I got interested in sponsors. I’d read the articles about how to do it, and none of them sounded that plausible for me and my situation. For one, my traffic wasn’t impressive, certainly not to the point where sponsors were approaching me. And, while my blog has become slightly more focused in its first ten months, it wasn’t targeted at any group of readers in particular, so I wasn’t sure how confident niche advertisers would be. It’s a little more focused now, but I can’t really think of a…

• 
  Brian Solis

• The State of Social Media Around the World 2010

  brian

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:09 am

  If you were to look at Social Media the United States and many other parts of the world, you would believe that the world of Social Media was flat, dominated by social continents including Facebook, Twitter, blogs, YouTube, and Flickr. As we zoom in, we visualize other established and emerging social services that depict provinces and outlying settlements of our social atlas.Upon publishing the original Conversation Prism, which was the culmination of a year’s work documenting and organizing the social web by usage and conversational patterns, the world responded by creating…

• The Roles of Facebook and Twitter in Social Media Marketing

  brian

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:14 am

  Social Media marketing is rapidly earning a role in the integrated marketing mix of small and enterprise businesses and as such, it’s transforming every division from the inside out. What starts with one champion in any given division, be it customer service, marketing, public relations, advertising, interactive, et al, eventually inspires an entire organization to socialize. What starts with one, a domino effect usually ensues toppling each department, gaining momentum, and triggering a sense of urgency through its path. And, it also marks the beginning of our journey through the ten…

• Mobile Internet Market to Eclipse Desktop Internet

  brian

  3 Feb 2010 | 4:42 am

  Sounds like a sensationalistic headline, but if you read Morgan Stanley’s latest series of reports on the Mobile Internet, you’ll walk away with the same impression.Morgan Stanley’s global technology and telecom analysts documented the rapidly changing mobile Internet market to provide a framework for emerging trends and direction.To set the stage, Morgan Stanley forecasts that the mobile Internet market will be at least 2x the size of desktop Internet when comparing Internet users to mobile subscribers.According to the report, Apple’s iTunes + iPhone/Touch ecosystem…

• The Human Algorithm: How Google Ranks Tweets in Real-Time Search

  brian

  1 Feb 2010 | 4:57 am

  In 2009, Google struck a deal with Twitter, rumored at $15 million, to integrate tweets into keyword related Google searches. And last month, Google also integrated real-time search technology to surface blog posts and news content as they hit the Web – dramatically improving the previous five to 15 minutes its spiders would take to crawl the Web. I should also note that Collecta also offers the ability to search the real-time Web, but its results also include popular networks within the social Web. Between Google and Collecta, Twitter Search is starting to show its age.The opportunities…

• Who is the ME in Social Media?

  brian

  29 Jan 2010 | 4:11 am

  Good friend Stowe Boyd recently shared a quote by Gabriel García Márquez, “Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life.”Indeed, quite simply many of us live life allowing specific, trusted individuals to know us in one or more of our personae. Our moral compass as well as outside influences affect how we balance our three lives. The size and permeability of our personal dividers vary in the separation of each life and resemble doors that open and close based on our desires. We nurture each individually with slight coalescence, but concentrate on…