The Keys to Internet Marketing » Web 2.0

Twitter: DMs Used To Spread Twitter Virus

Charly Leetham — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:31:06 +0000

Yet another virus is sweeping Twitter – this one a little more dangerous than the others. Mashable reports:

We have received multiple reports that a new, convincing, and dangerous worm and phishing scam is making the rounds on Twitter. Hacked accounts are sending DMs to users and stealing their login information. In fact, one of our own has received one of these direct messages.

They go on to state that the virus is dangerous because the login page is believable and the DM’s are being received from people you know.

Avoid being caught – If you receive this DM, Do Not click the link. Ignore the DM.

For full details, see WARNING: Twitter Worm Spreading via Direct Messages

Royalty Free Video Backgrounds

Charly Leetham — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 22:30:06 +0000

Video is certainly becoming the ‘way of the web’. The price of Video Cameras has reduced to a price that just everyone has one, tools like Camtasia make screen capture tutorials easy to do and software like WordPress and Audio Acrobat make it incredibly easy to share your videos.

However, if you’re like me… ‘jazzing up your videos’ to be the next level is a challenge. I’m not particularly graphical in nature (thank goodness for my graphic designer) and trying to create my own backgrounds or graphics are a challenge.

I was so pleased when I saw this package… Media Shock FX…

Media shock FX comprises 45 High Quality Video Background Animations. They are 30 seconds long and have a resolution of 640×480 Pixels (29.97 fps).

Take a look at the great royalty free video backgrounds here.

Also included in this amazing package is Screen Snap FX – Screen Capture Video Recording Software. Screen Snap FX is a quick and easy way to record your screen and provide demonstrations, tutorials etc.

Screen Snap FX saves video files in standard AVI (Audio Video Interleave) format, which you can then edit in most current video programs.

If you are creating videos for your website, Media Shock FX is a fantastic addition to your library.

4 Ways To Improve Your Site Search Engine Rankings… Through Link Building

Charly Leetham — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 22:07:38 +0000

I was reading the latest issue of the Net Effect (Stompernet) today and there was a great article about link building. I’ve often wondered about these paid link submission / link building services. You know, you pay an amount of money and you’ll get 300 links back to your site.

Now, I knew that Free For All (FFA) sites are frowned upon…. so why would link building packages like this be any different. So I haven’t personally used the services myself.

However, on reading this months Net Effect I see that they have some cautions to consider when using these services. What they do say is the following:

Backlinks are a MUST to improve the rankings of your site in the Search Engine Results
You don’t need hundreds, or even thousands, of backlinks to your site though
You need highly targetted, high quality, well placed links back to your site.

Sure, you can pay for backlinks to your site — just be careful about where those links are from and how they link to your site.

Many link building services will offer to submit your site to directories. The team from Stompernet advise the following on using directories:

Aside from the major directories like DMOZ, Yahoo! and Best of the Web, very few get any real traffic today. In my [Jerry West, Stompernet Faculty Member] testing, I have seen a HUGE drop off in the quality of directories that are currently available. Many directories are being sold to marketing firms and the current listings are either being dropped or the links are worthless. Google has also removed the “submit your site to directories” in their Webmaster guidelines, so Google is “cooling off” in giving value to directory submissions.

So, if you’ve found a service that offers only directory submissions as their submission service – it possibly isn’t worth the effort – do your homework. You can manually submit your site to DMOZ, Yahoo! and Best of the Web without much effort.

In following posts, I’ll discuss these services a little more. For now, I wanted to share some great strategies that I’ve found work really well for my sites… and are relatively easy for anyone to implement….

1. Use the blogging facilities on high ranking social networks
Use the correct anchor text to link back to your site. The anchor text — the text that shows as the link — should have your keywords in it.

Link to pages on your site, not just your home page.

Sites that seem work really well are Ecademy and, if you have a BlogTalkRadio show, the Blog Talk Radio blog.

2. Article Marketing
Using articles, with the Author resource box correctly set out, is incredibly effective. The best directories to post on are:

EZine Articles
Qassia
Associated Content (and you can earn some money here)

You should take one article and post variations of this article to these directories. That way you avoid any duplicate content penalties.

If you want a wider distribution, I use the Free submission service for Article Marketer as well.

3. Blogging
My favorite! Create a blog and generate high quality content. Use your blog to link your sales pages or website.

Better yet! Make your website on the blogging platform.

To really juice up your blogs indexing, if you’re using WordPress, install Ultimate Plugins Smart Update Pinger and notify these directories at least when you add a new post:

http://topicexchange.com/RPC2

http://rpc.blogrolling.com/pinger/

http://www.blogdigger.com/RPC2

http://www.bitacoles.net/ping.php

http://rpc.wpkeys.com

http://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping

http://rpc.britblog.com

http://pingoat.com/goat/RPC2

http://bulkfeeds.net/rpc

http://api.moreover.com/ping

http://www.blogpeople.net/servlet/weblogUpdates

http://ping.fakapster.com/rpc

http://www.blogoon.net/ping/

http://bblog.com/ping.php

http://rpc.tailrank.com/feedburner/RPC2

http://ping.bitacoras.com

http://ping.feedburner.com

http://ping.weblogalot.com/rpc.php

http://pinger.blogflux.com/rpc

http://blogsearch.google.com/ping/RPC2

http://api.feedster.com/ping.php

Of course, one of the great strategies is to take your blog posts and write a short article about it and submit it to the article directories, directing readers back to your blog post for the whole story.

If you’re not sure how to install your blog and don’t want to pay someone (like me) to do it for you, check out WordPress Unleashed….

4. Create Squidoo Lenses and Hubpages
Another favorite of mine…. I’m not as active on Hubpages, but I really like Squidoo.

Create a Squidoo lens about your topic and link back to your website, pages or blog. Squidoo ranks well in the Search Engine results and I found that my site was often found for my lens before it was found for itself.

Hubpages are the same — they use a different interface and system.

These are just 4 things that I use to help the rankings on my sites and they are very effective. In my next post, I’ll talk about other methods I use including Social Bookmarking.

Please let me know what works for you by leaving a comment – you’ll also get the benefit of the backlink from my site.

Twitter: What Are Your Favorite Tools?

Charly Leetham — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:36:18 +0000

Last week I sent out a tweet asking people to share their favorite tools. I did this because – technology moves on. There are always newer and, sometimes, better tools being developed and during my search for a client, I found a few new tools that looked fairly cool.

Not knowing what else I had missed, I thought I would ask the Twitter community what they liked and used and see what came out of the wood work. I’ve also included the Twitter id’s of the repsondants for you to follow if you want.

My Faves:

TweetLater

This cool little tool is a bit like an autoresponder for Twitter. You can use it to deliver information on a scheduled basis.

I’ve been using this for a while. I find it a great tool to use to remind my followers of my scheduled events. When I set up my events calendar, I add the ‘tweets’ to TweetLater and schedule them to go at predefined times.

Of course, I don’t recommend that you use the scheduling feature to send your general interactive tweets – that really defeats the purpose of a ‘social network’.

TweetLater also has an ‘auto follow’ feature that you can use to follow anyone who follows you…. This can be a bit problematic if you are followed by a Spammer. Use with care.

@KimBeasley recommends checking your Followers once a week and following those that look interesting – a much better idea overall.

Tweet My Blog

A WordPress Plug-In by Soran Jordansen and John Merrick that will ‘tweet’ your blog updates. Incredibly easy to use.

Tweet This

Another WordPress Plug-In that allows your site visitors to Tweet your posts, just like they would digg or stumble it….

This Plug-In allows you to select which short URL service you want too. You can chose the shortest one available or your favorite.

You’ll see in the bottom of this message my Social Bookmarking links and a link that says ‘Tweet This’ – well go on – Tweet away!

Twhirl

A desktop Twitter Application that lets you send your Tweets from your computer. Written on the Adobe Air platform the application apparently works on PCs and Macs. I like Twhirl because I can monitor several Twitter accounts, Friend Feed, Seesmic, Identi.ca and laconi from the same place.

Tweet Deck

I love the layout of TweetDeck. It is wonderful. You can see all Tweets, your replies and your direct messages in the one screen. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear to have multiple account support yet….

Whilst this doesn’t cover all of my faves, it covers the ones I use most on a daily basis.

Other faves that were shared with me include:

@transitenator shared Twellow as a favorite. Twellow is a Twitter Search Engine and Directory. I did a search for myself on Twellow and there I was! So I have now claimed my Twellow profile and updated it. Are you in the directory? Check it out!

@mzamp01 told me he liked TwitterFon because “It is a very basic Twitter App for the iPhone. Great for reading and replying, as well as tweeting”

@digijustin was using SocialThing, a new aggregation tool that is currently in Beta. I’ve requested my invitation to join!

@adamradman shared TweetBurner, a way to easily share links with your Twitter and FeedFriend followers and Twitzu - a way to announce your meetups and events.

@nbabyak likes TweetBeep - a neat little app that will alert you when a key phrase is used, when a particular person tweets, or even if the tweet originates within a radius of a physical location.

@kimbeasley shared a post with her favorite apps – lot’s of good ones there. As a productivity tool, HelloTxt looks pretty cool – it will allow you to update your status on several networks with one update – that sounds good to me!

With one simple Tweet, I learnt about several great tools that will help my productivity – I hope that it helps your Twitter experience too!

You can Follow Me on Twitter as @charlyjl and @howtovideos (get free hints and tips on ‘how to’ use your computer and the internet more effectively).

Do you have a favorite application? Add it in the comments with your Twitter ID!

What Social Networks Work For You?

Charly Leetham — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 01:13:09 +0000

Being a Social Creature, I love social networking. O.K, so I love networking and meeting new people and although it takes time, so do business mixers and generally developing business relationships.

Effective Social Networking is really about managing my time appropriately.

When I look to ‘play’ on a Social Network, I consider the following three questions and if I can answer them in the affirmative, then I believe the network is rights for me. The questions are:

Is this place the right place for me and my business?
Am I meeting people who I would be comfortable doing business with and recommending to others?
Is this the best use of my time?

Remember though, to be able to answer these questions appropriately, I need to invest some of my precious time in these environments to see what they are about.

I thought I would recommend 5 networks that, when used effectively, seem to be giving me most benefit, maybe they will suit you too. If you click on the links below, you will see my profile or invitation to join the networks and, if you do decide to join, you will automatically connected to me.

1. ECademy – even the free membership provides lots of benefits. A social network aimed at Business people. Add to that, I’m also seeing my results in the Search Engines, so it is worthwhile!

2. Ryze – specifically the Women Business Owners network. That was the main reason I joined Ryze. I only use the Free service and have great benefits.

3. Naymz – Excellent profiling site and when you get enough reputation points (which are easy enough to get), Naymz will provide a ‘top link’ on Google for your name. Great opportunity. Again, the free service is excellent.

4. FastPitch Online – The free service is o.k on FastPitch, but I upgraded to their premium service and have access to the Press Release Service. Since releasing my first Press Release last week, I have had several Google alerts for it. It works.

5. LinkedIn – LinkedIn is definitely a business network. I don’t use it overly much, but I do see Google alerts for my profile and the answers I provide to Questions. Easy to use and setup, the free service is worth considering.

If you think they will work for you – then come and join me there.

Leave your profile links to your favorite networks in the comments below and I’ll visit and connect with you too…..

Want a Share in $40K Worth of prizes?

Charly Leetham — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 06:25:09 +0000

Big Jason from Big Marketing Blog is in the Blogging Idol competition. Blogging Idol is a contest to see who can increase their blog subscriber count the most in July. He’s out to win it and he’s offering over $40,000 worth of prizes to help! To be in the running for the prizes, all you need to do is visit The Big Marketing Blog and enter.

Big Jason has persuaded Jack Humphrey of the Authority Site Center, one of the most influential social media experts in the world, to do a 1 hour webinar to show each person who enters how to use blogging and other social media to become an authority.

This is an awesome concept – it is worth studying just to see how Jason has created a buzz and what kind of a buzz it is.

Podcast: How To Use Facebook Strategically To Grow Your Business (Part 7)

Charly Leetham — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 05:35:59 +0000

Part 7 in my 7 part Podcast series……

Mari Smith is a Relationship Specialist, Internet Marketing Consultant, and Facebook Business Coach. Mari’s specialty is helping entrepreneurs to develop information products and systems, and to strategically grow their businesses using no and low cost online marketing techniques.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Mari a couple of weeks ago and she shared some wonderful information about using Facebook to develop your business. She also provides some very practical tips on how each of us can use Facebook in our own businesses.

The interview was over 1 hour long and I have divided into 7 seperate sections. This is Part 7 of “How To Use FaceBook Strategically To Grow Your Business”.

In this weeks Podcast, Mari talks about Facebook Pages, how they relate to your business and how you can use them effectively.

Enjoy this weeks Podcast.

You are welcome to connect with either of us however, when sending a connect request, make sure you introduce yourself and tell the person you want to connect to a bit about yourself.

Connect with me on Facebook

Connect with Mari Smith on Facebook
– remember to mention that you were listening to my podcast!

After listening to this series, if you want more informaton about using FaceBook to grow your business, Mari offers a complete multi media training package which provides Audios, Videos, PDFs, Checklists, Templates,
Interactive Forum… Everything! You’ll receive exact step-by-step instructions on how to do EVERYTHING on Facebook with the full range of multi-media formats to meet your learning style needs.

Mari Smith – Facebook For Professionals

Podcast: How To Use Facebook Strategically To Grow Your Business (Part 6)

Charly Leetham — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 05:25:53 +0000

Part 6 in my 7 part Podcast series……

The interview was over 1 hour long and I have divided into 7 seperate sections. This is Part 6 of “How To Use FaceBook Strategically To Grow Your Business”.

In this weeks Podcast, Mari discusses Facebooks Groups, how she chooses which groups she joins and how you can be a beneficial member of the groups you choose to participate in.

Enjoy this weeks Podcast.

You are welcome to connect with either of us however, when sending a connect request, make sure you introduce yourself and tell the person you want to connect to a bit about yourself.

Connect with me on Facebook

Connect with Mari Smith on Facebook
– remember to mention that you were listening to my podcast!

Mari Smith – Facebook For Professionals

Podcast: How To Use Facebook Strategically To Grow Your Business (Part 5)

Charly Leetham — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:15:07 +0000

This is Part 5 of my 7 part Podcast series…..

The interview was over 1 hour long and I have divided into 7 seperate sections. This is Part 5 of “How To Use FaceBook Strategically To Grow Your Business”.

In this weeks Podcast, Mari discusses how she handles the application requests and event invitations that can start to clutter your Facebook notifications. Mari also discusses how to use photos to generate interest amongst your community.

Enjoy this weeks Podcast.

You are welcome to connect with either of us however, when sending a connect request, make sure you introduce yourself and tell the person you want to connect to a bit about yourself.

Connect with me on Facebook

Connect with Mari Smith on Facebook
– remember to mention that you were listening to my podcast!

Mari Smith – Facebook For Professionals

Podcast: How To Use Facebook Strategically To Grow Your Business (Part 4)

Charly Leetham — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 05:08:35 +0000

Part 4 in my 7 part Podcast series……

The interview was over 1 hour long and I have divided into 7 seperate sections. This is Part 4 of “How To Use FaceBook Strategically To Grow Your Business”.

In this weeks Podcast, Mari reveals her preferred Facebook applications and how to setup your profile to deliver a professional business persona.

Enjoy this weeks Podcast.

You are welcome to connect with either of us however, when sending a connect request, make sure you introduce yourself and tell the person you want to connect to a bit about yourself.

Connect with me on Facebook

Connect with Mari Smith on Facebook
– remember to mention that you were listening to my podcast!