SOB Business Cafe 06-25-10
Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | 1 Comment
Welcome to the SOB Cafe
We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.
The Specials this Week are
Copyblogger
Are you evil enough to join us?
OK. Here are 7 dastardly, fiendish, and just plain frickin’ evil tactics to get ONE MILLION DOLLARS.
Or more customers. Whatever.
Conversation Agent
Geolocation services are not about giving us something to do, as Joe Chernov writes, although I think that’s a pretty good insight. They’re also about giving us something to talk about. That something is status, it comes with the territory.
Need a Little Advice?
If you’ve got a small business – be it brick and mortar or a home business – there’s a very real need to present yourself to the community. There’s many ways to accomplish that task – and it’s a task you will do over and over.
Jonathan Fields
I’ve invested a lot in understanding the psychology of persuasion and learning how to present facts and interactions in a manner that will be more likely to persuade somebody to my point of view.
I’m actually far more effective at this in print than I am in face-to-face conversations, which is probably why, for years, I’ve resorted to print as my prime tool for both expression and persuasion. It also is one of the things that has led me to be reasonably successful writing copy.
The Intersection of People and Process
I thought about the passion that was inspired by several groups imageseeking our Crowd Sourced advice on how they might want to move their efforts forward. We focused on Vitamin Angels.
We didn’t have much time to come up with ideas so I used a model that I have been using for a few years for capturing customer evidence. In this case I was thinking of Stephen Covey’s “Begin with the End in Mind” mantra.
Halogen Software Blog
When Sterling Cooper’s new management, personified by Lane Pryce, criticizes the ad agency’s creative department for being a bunch of lazy alcoholics, Draper defends his team with a statement I’ll never forget:
“You came here because we do this better than you, and part of that is letting our creatives be unproductive until they are.”
Related ala carte selections include
Jason Falls
But there was one subtlety that I noticed watching the U.S. vs. Algeria on Wednesday that made me almost as ill as watching my country’s team’s defense allow counter chance after counter chance from their opponent. It wasn’t probably noticed by many others, though I’m certain the director of the broadcast was likely fuming over it as well.
Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
I’m a proud affiliate of
SOB Business Cafe 06-18-10
Filed Under Business Life, Great Finds, Marketing, Successful Blog, Trends | Leave a Comment
Welcome to the SOB Cafe
We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.
The Specials this Week are
brandsavant
Keep in mind, however, that only 7% of Americans are even aware of location-based services. That’s the small number that Foursquare and others in the space might really be thinking of, because that’s a fixable number. That’s a number that will grow, and when it grows, the import and business reach of these location-based networks will grow with it.
Justin Kownacki
If they love you, their adulation becomes addictive. You learn what they like, what they respond to, and what makes them appreciate you more. Naturally, you’re inclined to pursue those reactions because they make you feel good, and that means you’re less likely to experiment with anything outside your audience’s comfort zone.
Marketing Profs Daily Fix
When they were last at your business, the light above the register hadn’t blown out yet, and it was pleasant and bright. The front door didn’t squeak each time it shut. The WiFi sticker on the window hadn’t been peeled and torn by that little kid. The floorboards hadn’t been scraped and marked by the mop bucket.
Now a week later, these small changes add up. Individually, each change is hardly noticeable. When seen all at once, they leave a poor impression.
How do you maintain the quality of the experience for your customers?
Mack Collier
Here’s the twist that makes this event so interesting to me; The 15 customers Dell will meet on the 15th are customers that have issues with Dell, and want to voice those issues to the company. The 15 customers Dell will meet on the 17th are evangelists of the company. So over the course of 2 days, Dell will be meeting with 30 of its most passionate customers, from both ends of the spectrum. I think this event is also an example of the next evolution of social media for companies.
Vandelay Design
Because web design and SEO are closely related, it’s a topic that designers are frequently asked about, but there is often a lot of gray area about what is the responsibility of the designer and what is within the designer’s power. While many clients want the designer to create a website that ranks well and attracts targeted visitors, SEO is really an ongoing process that involves much more than the design and coding of the site.
Janet Clarey
There are those who write cautiously on the web and those who don’t. What’s your style? I try to write what I’m thinking and write it like I’d say it if I was sitting around having coffee with you. Sometimes wine
One Organized Business
I entered a crazy hectic working relationship on a project that practically sucked the life out of me. It was definitely stressful from beginning to end. I did manage to find the positive in the situation though. I learned that I need better boundaries when partnering with people, and I also learned that I really like the way I do things!
Related ala carte selections include
Danny Brown
One of the folks that I’ve been fortunate to get to know through social media is John Haydon.
Hailing from Cambridge, Massachusetts, John’s someone that inspires me every day. He’s an outstanding ambassador when it comes to social media for social good; a great social media blogger; and a key part of the 12for12k community.
Neatorama
via @ChrisBrogan
Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
I’m a proud affiliate of
SOB Business Cafe 06-11-10
Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | Leave a Comment
Welcome to the SOB Cafe
We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.
The Specials this Week are
Freelance Writing Jobs
None of these strategies are any great secret. They’ve been recommended by top bloggers and social media strategists for years. In fact, the last strategy is something I used to do on a regular basis but stopped for a while. Once I began implementing it again, the effort paid off.
the BrandBuilder
We had to put our golden retriever to sleep this weekend, our friend of fifteen years, our family’s faithful guardian and companion, and one of the kindest, most loyal and giving souls I have ever met. True to her breed, Sasha was a courageous, tender and selfless until the end.
John Haydon
Setting a Facebook Page can be one of the most confusing tasks – for most people.
Not just you.
The starting point is hard to find, selecting your Page category can be tricky, and even finding your Page once it’s created can be a chore.
Un-Marketing
Recently I surpassed the 50,000 tweet mark.
Holy monkeynuts.
That’s roughly 5,000,000 characters of typing, assuming an average of 100 characters a tweet.
And it’s been worth every one of them.
Seth’s Blog
There may be no bigger opportunity online for bootstrappers than finding people who would benefit from being connected and then connecting them.
Not so they can waste time sending digital love notes back and forth, but so they (and you) can create value for others.
Marie Forleo
I’ll be the first to admit I feel like a failure. Often.
You’d be shocked and likely want to shake me silly if you knew how much money and time I’ve wasted on “information products” and “business systems” that didn’t work.
Related ala carte selections include
Social Times
Ridiculous? Or Genuis??? via Jim Kukral
Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
I’m a proud affiliate of
SOB Business Cafe 06-04-10
Filed Under Business Life, Great Finds, Successful Blog | 3 Comments
Welcome to the SOB Cafe
We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.
The Specials this Week are
WorkLifeNation
But there is swelling support to help you achieve what social media expert Chris Brogan calls “escape velocity.” “The ability to leave a situation that isn’t helpful or desired.” It’s the path less traveled where you’ve got your feet planted in the financial security of a steady job, while igniting the journey toward doing work that you’re passionate about.
Chris Brogan
Yesterday, my blog was not my job, so I didn’t write one. Today? I have two speeches over the next few days. That was my job first, and then this post.
America’s Best Business Practices
I have written many articles on this blog about the huge benefits of using social media in marketing. So please don’t mistake this article as some type of put-down for social media. It is not. I believe that social media has leveled the playing field to some degree between big business and small business. Nonetheless, as with many great things, it can sometimes go wrong.
Shamable
Web traffic for the sake of traffic is meaningless. This is why I don’t advocate always targeting a “top blogger” in any vertical. It makes zero sense to chase big numbers, just as shotgun marketing did — just ask our friend, the banner ad.
Operation Safe
I have been looking at a few blog posts that share what kind of tweets someone should make, and wondering what the right balance for a non-profit like us should be. I won’t claim any magic formula but this is what is working for us.
JR’s Internet Marketing Strategies
Overall, dofollow is obviously the best type of backlink because it passes link juice from one site to another and counts the anchor text for keyword relevance, but, do not discount the nofollow completely!
Related ala carte selections include
Oatmeal.com
via @ChrisGuillebeau
Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
I’m a proud affiliate of
SOB Business Cafe 05-28-10
Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | 3 Comments
Welcome to the SOB Cafe
We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.
The Specials this Week are
ChrisG
I nearly called this article “Everything I know about blogging I learned from comic books” but I was afraid too many people would take it literally, ha. In fact, there might be an element of truth to it. My formative reading material was dominated by muscly, spandex-clad guys and gals fighting crime and shooting laser beams out of their eyes.
Ramblings from a Glass Half Full
It seemed a bit silly to me when I first got this suggestion, but in this moment of despair I figured writing something down might just be that little step that Tom Peters was urging me to take in his column.
So I picked up my pen, and started to write. I outlined my dream -to be a leader, making a real difference for a business. I also noted the kind of leader I wanted to be.
Well, wouldn’t you know it, within a year I had a new job, and not too long after that, that dream I had put on paper came true. Every bit of it.
CIO Update
The real conundrum facing business today is not which tools to use but whether to work within an existing social network or build one central to the brand. With few exceptions, success usually lies in doing both or in creating a hybrid of the two.
McCurry’s Corner
So my question is what makes an educational presentation excellent? Is it the quality of the education content? Is it in the presenter’s delivery? Or, is there some special formula that really contributes to getting audiences engaged? What do you think? Here are some of my thoughts…
Adventures in Philanthrophy
You are influencing the people who read your blog posts religiously. You are informing the decisions of the people who have you on twitter lists. You are shaping the people who interact with you on facebook. Just because that’s not your intention doesn’t mean it’s not true.
Authentic Path
The truth? Building a successful online presence takes time and work. It also takes a willingness to get real, to become authentic.
Related ala carte selections include
Congratulations to WGN and Nancy Loo!
So, after nine years of competing against “WGN Morning News”, I’ll be helping the team to keep beating my former station. I admire the show and everyone on it (hello Larry, Robin, Pat, Paul, Valerie and Ana) and I am proud to become one of “Chicago’s Very Own”.
A Skilling Snuggie wrapped the deal!
Contract negotiations are always a fascinating process to me. I’ve been through a few now. Salary numbers are thrown back and forth between agents and news managers. My demand for a Tom Skilling Snuggie nearly quashed the deal.
Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
I’m a proud affiliate of
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