Are You on FriendFeed?

If not, you should be…”Friendfeed is the business owner and online marketers best friend.”

Friendfeed is definitely one of the easiest ways to distribute your content to numerous social media sites at the same time.

Unfortunately, Friendfeed is one of the coolest applications online that nobody is taking advantage of.

If you are a business owner or online marketer who wants to drive more traffic to your website, you need to sign up for your free Friendfeed account today.

If Facebook purchased Friendfeed, don’t you think it’s worth taking a look?

Video Overview of FriendFeed

Set up a Free FriendFeed Account

1. Go to www.friendfeed.com and sign up for a free account. TIP: Use your first and last name when branding yourself or your business name when branding your business.

2. Update your profile. Update the description and upload a picture of yourself.

3. Add your Content to your FriendFeed account. You may add numerous feeds including the following:

• Your Blog Feed
• Twitter Feed
• Facebook Feed
• YouTube Feed
• LinkedIn

4. Start Adding Friends and subscribing to other feeds. You can start with my account. Join me at http://www.friendfeed.com/whoischristine Start adding people that have subscribed to my channel. There are over 200 people to start with : )

5. Start joining Groups.

BONUS: Here are three bonus videos to help you market your FriendFeed account.

– How to Add FriendFeed into an Outlook Email Signature

– How to Add FriendFeed to your WordPress Blog

– How to Add FriendFeed to your Facebook wall

Congratulations! You are one of the smart ones who is taking advantage of this awesome resource.P.S.

If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.  Thank you!

“Work Smarter, Play Harder!”

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Are You Familiar with Word Press Permalink Settings?

As a Blogger, You Should be…

By default, Word Press will publish your posts in the following format unless you set up your Permalink Settings.

Default          http://yourdomain.com/?p=123

If you called the title of your post “Permalink Settings”, the link would still look like the default one above.  This is NOT the best way to build your blog for search engine optimization.

You would rather your post be called http://yourdomain.com/permalink-settings instead.

Word Press gives you several options below, but again none of them are optimized for the search engines.

Day and Time                              http://yourdomain.com/2009/12/05/sample-post/
Month and Name                       http://yourdomain.com/2009/12/sample-post/
Numeric                                        http://yourdomain.com/archives/123

There is a final option called “Custom Structure”. This is the option that you want to choose. This option will enable the title of each post to act as the permalink instead of a number. In the empty text field simply enter  /%postname%/    beside  Custom Structure.

Instructions: To locate your Permalink Settings follow the instructions below.

1. Login to your WordPress Dashboard
2. Click on Settings > Permalinks
3. Locate “Custom Structure” > Enter the following into the empty text field      /%postname%/
4. Click Update Permalinks

IMPORTANT: If your blog is brand new or never been advertised you should thank your lucky stars that you got this information before you starting posting a lot of content.

If your blog has a lot of content already…you have a BIG decision to make. Do you continue advertising your existing links or do you change them to be search engine friendly?

There is a plugin called “Redirection” that you could install and redirect all of your old links that you are advertising to the newly  ‘optimized’ addresses.

Work Smarter, Play Harder!

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

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It’s All About the Content!

…but how do you build a ‘Content Distribution Network’?

Now it’s one thing to create good quality content but what if nobody knows about it or gets a chance to read it? All of that time and effort is now lost!

It’s time to get proactive rather than waiting for your readers to search for you.  Reach your target audience by setting up your distribution network!

A successful content distribution network will include multiple points of entry.

Here are 5 ways that you can start building your content distribution network
today:

1. Blogging – A WordPress Blog is the most advanced platform for distributing content through the internet. There are now multiple social media platforms that you can embed into your blog to gain an even bigger audience.

   • Embed Social Media into your blog (Twitter, FriendFeed, YouTube, etc.)
   • RSS Feeds
   • Ping
   • Blog Rolls  -  Joint Venture with other online marketers
   • Syndicate content to other websites/blogs
2. Social Media – Word of mouth is the oldest form of marketing and is still used to this day. Now with the power of the Internet and technology, voices can be heard instantly through multiple platforms of social media.  Here are some of the top social media platforms.

   • YouTube
   • Facebook
   • Twitter
   • FriendFeed
   • LinkedIn
   • MySpace
3. Email List - It’s time to use your list properly.  TIP: Instead of sending them to an affiliate link, send them directly to your blog for another page view. Your affiliate link should be placed within your blog post.

   • Create an opt-in form on your blog/website to capture your audience’s information. Send a newsletter to communicate with your readers on a daily or weekly basis via an auto responder.
4. Forums – Forums are extremely responsive and a wonderful platform to drive targeted traffic back to your blog or website. TIP: Find topics that you have written about and drive people back to your blog for more information.

   • Conquer Your Niche – This is a great community that is very responsive and credits you towards advertisements for reading and writing posts.
     
5. Media Relations – There is an endless list of platforms and organizations that are always looking for new content or a good story. Here are some resources to start with…

   • Article Directories
   • Press Releases
   • NewsPapers online and offline

The concepts here are nothing more than basic online marketing platforms but when you understand the power of leveraging all of the different distribution networks through your blog, you will have a distinctive advantage over your competitors.

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

Work Smarter, Play Harder!

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10 ’Cool’ WordPress Plugins for your blog.

Here is a list of some of my favourite wordpress plugins that I personally use and recommend. 

1. What Would Seth Godin Do - I love this plugin! This nifty plugin will encourage your readers to subscribe to your RSS feed.

2. TweetMeMe - Easily allows your readers to retweet your blog posts.

3. Broken Link Checker – Allows you to monitor your links on your blog. Easily see where the links are broken.

4. WP Super Cache – This is a great plugin for bloggers who have a lot of plugins activated.

5. Redirection - This plugin is great for monitoring 404 errors.
A full technical overview is listed on each individual page including installation instru

6. Sharecount for Facebook – The Sharecount plugin for Facebook shows the number of
shares on Facebook your posts get and allows users to share it themselves. This plugin is
based on the Backtype Tweetcount plugin.

7. CommentLuv – Plugin to show a link to the last post from the commenters blog by
parsing the feed at their given URL when they leave a comment. Rewards your readers
and encourage more comments.

8. Comment Redirect – Redirect commenters who just made their first comment to a page
of your choice.

9. LinkWithin – Displays recommended stories and associated thumbnails from your blog.

10. WP-stat-visitors – Track your blog visitors path. Based on WP-ShortStat. Find what
was the visitors path and timings in your site. This Plugin present some information on
each visitor at your site, including where did he came from, what was he doing and for
how long.

Click on the video below for a WP Plugin Installation Overview.

 
If you missed my previous post, here is a list of the 5 ‘Must Have’ plugins that I recommend and use on my own personal blog.

Additional Resources:

WordPress Plugin Directory:  http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

Work Smarter, Play Harder!

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5 ‘Must Have’ WordPress Plugins for your blog.

This was difficult to narrow down to, but if I had to go to a tropical island for six months and could only choose to keep 5 plugins for my blog, they would be…

1. WP-Spamfree – I was amazed at how much spam I started receiving through my blogs but as soon as I activated the Spamfree plugin, the spam stopped immediately. I highly recommend adding this powerful plugin.

2. All In One SEO Pack – This is a great plugin to help optimize your blog for all search engines.

3. Tiny MCE Advanced – I couldn’t live without this one. This little plugin will dramatically enhance your WP HTML editor by giving you more options.

4. WordPress Thread Comment – Blogs were created to be interactive. This is an enhanced version for your readers to leave their comments on your blog.

5.  Add to Any: Share/Save/Bookmark Button – Make your blog interactive
by enabling your readers to share your information through social media sites.

A full technical overview is listed on each individual page including installation instructions.

Click on the video below for a WP Plugin Installation Overview.

Additional Resources:

WordPress Plugin Directory:  http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

Work Smarter, Play Harder!

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A personal branded blog is crucial to your online business. A blog will give your prospects a chance to get to know you and trust you before they join your business.

6 ‘Must Have’ elements for a Personal Branded Blog

There are 6 Basic Elements required in order to start off with a successful personal-branded blog.

#1. Picture – You’ve heard it a million times that ‘a picture is worth a 1000 words’. Place your picture in an area that can always be seen. You want to remind your audience who’s site they are on.

#2. Profile Page - an ‘About Me’ page is the second element that should be added to your blog. Your profile should tell your audience who you are, your family, experiences, and what you offer.

#3. Contact Me Page – a ‘Contact Me’ page will help your audience contact you.

#4  Opt-In Page – an ‘Opt-in’ page will capture your targeted audience’s contact information. A free offer, report, e-book, etc. should be offered to entice your audience to opt in.

#5. Social Networks – add your social networks to enable your audience to follow you on the
networks that they belong to.

#6. Content – add quality content to your blog that your targeted audience is searching for.

Click on the video below for a complete overview.

Yours in Branding!

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

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What is a Favicon?

A “favicon” as described on Wikipedia is (short for favorites icon), also known as a website icon, shortcut icon, url icon, or bookmark icon is a 16×16, 32×32 or 64×64 pixel square icon associated with a particular website or webpage.

Why would you want to use a Favicon?

A favicon will help build your brand and your credibility online.

The image below shows Google’s favicon which is located to the left of the domain name in the address bar.

You can have your own image or logo appear beside your domain every time it is searched like mine below. Scroll down below for instructions.

How to Create a Favicon

Step 1 – Create a 16×16 pixels image in your favorite photo editing software. The image is extremely small like this one .  (If you do not have software, Google “free photo editing software” and you will be given plenty of choices to download.)

Step 2 - Convert image to an ICO file extension. Download ICOFX for free.

Import your saved image and Click on 256 Colors and 16 x 16 pixels in size.
Click on “Save As” and Save the image as an ICO file extension.

Step 3 - Upload the favicon to the root directory of your website or blog. Rename the image favicon.ico If you need help uploading your file see FTP instructions.

Here’s an 8 minute video that ties it altogether.

Resources:

Photo Editor Software – Use your favortite photo editor. If you do not have software, Google “free photo editing software” and you will be given plenty of choices to download for free.

Favicon Maker – I recommend IcoFX to create your favicons. It’s fast, easy, and free.

FTP Software – FTP software is required to upload your new favicon to the root directory of your website or blog. I recommend FileZilla because once again it’s fast, easy,
and free. Click here to watch a video tutorial on how to upload your files to your Internet Service Provider.

Congratulations on Creating Your First Favicon!  Way to Go!

Yours in Branding!

P.S. If you have found this post helpful please leave your comments below. I really appreciate that. If you are a Twitter user, I would be ecstatic if you retweeted this post.   Thank you!

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