Here is the list of noteworthy and interesting blogs/sites for this week!

1. Web Ink Now-  Written by David Meerman Scott, this blog deals with everything Web 2.0 from viral marketing to blogging to press releases, eb00ks and other online media.  You can also follow David on Twitter.
2. The Client Side Blog- Rates as a “Top Ten Must Read” by Marketing Magazine, this blog is written/managed by Michael Seaton and it is extremely interesting and well written.  It covers ideas, thoughts and stories related to the world of marketing and is certainly worth stopping by.  You can also check out Michael’s profile on LinkedIn.
3. Experience Economist-Managed by David Polinchock, this is the blog site for Brand Experience Lab, and it deals with issues revolving around advertising, branding, technology and marketing.  You can also follow David on Twitter.
4. Neuromarketing- Written by Roger Dooley, president of Dooley Direct, LLC, this blog combines neuroscience research with social networking and  marketing to come up with really fascinating discussion topics on neuromarketing and how it plays into marketing and sales areas.
5. Speechification- Written by Russell Davies, Dan Hill, Bobbie Johnson, Steve Bowbrick and James Bridle, this blog focuses on speech radio, podcasting nad other elements of airwave media.  You can also follow speechification on Twitter.

Tweets about this post:
David_Williams_ at 2009-07-02T16:26:20Z: Who Said That? http://ewkqo.th8.us

Craigslist has gained considerable notoriety over the years as being a great, free service that people can use to do things such as: find jobs, post jobs, sell goods, meet people as well as find out what activities are going on in the area.  However, there are some pretty annoying things about Craigslist, which I have broken down as follows:

5 Pet Peeves About Craigslist

1. Flagging- On Craigslist, you have the ability to “flag” someone’s post if you feel that it is either offensive or if it looks spammy.  This is fine until someone flags something that you put, which was legit.  I haven’t quite figured out if there is a way around the flagging situation so that you can appeal it.
2. Scams-There is nothing more annoying than applying for a job only to realize that the job is a sham.  In a lot of cases, the job posts will look legit until you receive a follow up email from the post indicating that it is really nothing more than some scam artist trying to make cash off of unsuspecting people.
3. No Contact Info-Whether you are posting job information or are trying to sell an item, you need to remember to put ample contact information.  In some cases, people will forget to even put an e-mail address, which leaves the other person who is looking at the ad with no way to get in touch with the host.
4. Linking Out-This deals mostly with job applications on Craigslist.  When you are applying for a job and are reading through a job posting, often times, companies will put a link in the job ad, directing you to go to their website and apply.  However, many job applicants never make it to that step because it seems suspicious or requires more effort.  As a note to employers who are looking to post information on Craigslist, it may be worth it to consider leaving that link out for the time being.
5. Not Enough Info- When you are trying to sell something or are posting information about pretty much anything on Craigslist, you need to give people enough information to go off of.  For example, if you are trying to sell a car, make sure that you include a picture and the specs of the vehicle.  Additionally, make sure that you SPELLCHECK what you are posting.  There is nothing more annoying than a post that is littered with spelling mistakes!

Tweets about this post:
David_Williams_ at 2009-07-01T10:14:25Z: 5 Pet Peeves About Craigslist http://dsysq.th8.us

The idea of a community accessible only via my computer screen sounded cold to me at first, but I learned quickly that people can feel passionately about e-mail and computer conferences. I’ve become one of them. I care about these people I met through my computer, and I care deeply about the future of the medium that enables us to assemble. -Howard Rheingold, The Virtual Community

According to Howard Rheingold, author of the book The Virtual Community, virtual communities form ‘when people carry on public discussions long enough, with sufficient feeling, to form webs of personal relationships’.  Since the Internet craze began back in the mid 1990’s, virtual communities have exploded in the form of forums, online conferences and more, and we have technology to thank for it all.  Without technology, virtual communities would not be possible.  It is because of technology (as Rheingold states in the Introduction of his book), that virtual communities area able to bring ‘enormous leverage to ordinary citizens at relatively little cost.  Another definition of virtual communities that Rheingold submits is as follows:

Virtual communities are social aggregations that emerge from the Net when enough people carry on those public discussions long enough, with sufficient human feeling, to form webs of personal relationships in cyberspace.

That being said, there are several communities that I found just by using Google, which are virtual communities directed towards women.  Check them out, ladies!

5 Awesome Virtual Communities for Women

1. GirlGeeks.org- an online community for women and girls who are interested in technology
2. iVillage.com- a community geared towards women and dealing with health, beauty, pregnancy and entertainment news
3. Women Online Worldwide (WOW)- an online community specifically for women and women’s issues
4. CafeMom- an online community for women giving advice and support for moms as well as moms-to-be
5. bizwomen- A subsidiary of bizjournals, Bizwomen seeks to connect women business execs and entrepreneurs in order to provide support, learn, grow and exchange ideas.

If you are interested in reading Virtual Communities, it is available for free online here.

Tweets about this post:
shaunamclean at 2009-06-30T16:42:01Z: RT@BoxcarCreative RT @David_Williams_5 Awesome Virtual Communities and Sites for Women http://m77to.th8.us
BoxcarCreative at 2009-06-30T16:40:21Z: RT @David_Williams_5 Awesome Virtual Communities and Sites for Women http://m77to.th8.us
David_Williams_ at 2009-06-30T16:32:08Z: 5 Awesome Virtual Communities and Sites for Women http://m77to.th8.us

When advertisers run an ad campaign on television, they may get 30 seconds or so to get a viewer’s attention. It’s a form of one-way interaction (since a person cannot interact with a television) and it’s an interruption that most people choose to ignore.  When  you turn it around and start comparing advertising on the Web, it’s slightly different.

A Few Notes About Interruptive Advertising:

When you’re watching television, you are typically watching it to relax and be entertained.  When you are using the computer, you are typically using it to relax, be entertained, communicate with others and quite possibly gain knowledge.  Therefore, when you throw advertising in in the form of commercials, pop-up ads, or banners, it’s an interruption- an annoyance.  However, most people accept television commercials the same way that Internet users accept banner ads and pop ups: they are a tradeoff and something that can be ignored.

Evans cites Myspace as an example stating that most people know and understand that the reason Myspace is a free service is due to the presence of advertising….EVERYWHERE.  The reason that the majority of social networks online (i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) are free is due to the presence of ads, so I guess the ad people must be doing pretty well.  However, if you’re anything like me, you never click on the PPC ads on the sidebar which begs the question that Evans brings up:  If you knew that no one was watching, would you still pay for the ad?

On the Internet, the only real way that your advertising message receives any attention is if people are interested to begin with.  If you depend on iterruptive advertising to earn revenue, then you might as well pack up your bags now.  This is why so many ad campaigns have turned towards social networks and microblogging services such as Twitter.  The thinking is that if you generate enough of a buzz about your product/service to a targeted audience, then eventually you will succeed in having people purchase that product/service.

Participation is Everything

On the Internet, the social media element demands your full attention and presence.  According to Evans:

On the Social Web, if your profile isn’t up-to-date, if you’re not commenting, if you’re not making connections, you don’t exist.

The Main Points According to Dave Evans

• Social networks lend themselves to direct participation.
• Participation and transparency are central to success on the Social Web.
• You can tap existing social marketing applications that operate within leading networks.
• You can use white-label platforms to implement your own community and support services.

Tweets about this post:
David_Williams_ at 2009-06-29T23:19:42Z: Social Media Marketing, An Hour a Day: Social Platforms http://tkdw5.th8.us

With the increase in workplace stress not to mention elevated obesity levels within the United States, it seems like more and more people are prone to having heart problems.  Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) can happen at any time without warning.  That being said, it is becoming increasingly popular for companies to register their employees for CPR classes or CPR training in an effort to both educate them about how to administer CPR as well as train them for possible emergency situations.  The following are a list of statistics that the American Heart Association (AHA) has posted in an effort to bring awareness to CPR training and its rising importance today:

CPR Facts & Statistics [source]

• About 80 percent of all out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur in private residential settings, so being trained to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can mean the difference between life and death for a loved one.
• Effective bystander CPR, provided immediately after cardiac arrest, can double a victim’s chance of survival.
• CPR helps maintain vital blood flow to the heart and brain and increases the amount of time that an electric shock from a defibrillator can be effective.
• Approximately 95 percent of sudden cardiac arrest victims die before reaching the hospital.
• Death from sudden cardiac arrest is not inevitable. If more people knew CPR, more lives could be saved.
• Brain death starts to occur four to six minutes after someone experiences cardiac arrest if no CPR and defibrillation occurs during that time.
• If bystander CPR is not provided, a sudden cardiac arrest victim’s chances of survival fall 7 percent to 10 percent for every minute of delay until defibrillation. Few attempts at resuscitation are successful if CPR and defibrillation are not provided within minutes of collapse.
• Coronary heart disease accounts for about 446,000 of the over 864,000 adults who die each year as a result of cardiovascular disease.
• There are 294,851 emergency medical services-treated out-of-hospital cardiac arrests annually in the United States.
• There are about 138,000 coronary heart disease deaths within one hour of symptom onset each year in the United States.
• Sudden cardiac arrest is most often caused by an abnormal heart rhythm called ventricular fibrillation (VF). Cardiac arrest can also occur after the onset of a heart attack or as a result of electrocution or near-drowning.
• When sudden cardiac arrest occurs, the victim collapses, becomes unresponsive to gentle shaking, stops normal breathing and after two rescue breaths, still isn’t breathing normally, coughing or moving.

The Importance of CPR Classes

Even if your employer hasn’t mentioned anything about taking CPR courses, you can still check on your own to see what is available.  Knowing how to perform CPR, whether you are at work or at home may mean the difference between life or death for you or a loved one.  Additionally, possessing the knowledge of how to perform CPR can help you to stay calm and make wiser decisions during an emergency situation, not to mention give you added confidence.  If you are unsure where to register for a CPR class, start with your local community college, as many of them offer CPR courses periodically.  You can also check at your local supermarket or in your local newspaper.

Here are the noteworthy blogs and sites for this week!

1. Keith N. Hampton- Hampton is an Assistant Professor in the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania.  His blog mainly deals with social networking, social media, community and societal issues.  A great read! You can also follow Keith on Twitter.
2. A Friend in Every City- This blog discusses global social networking and its effect in the workforce.  It is based on the book A Friend in Every City, which was written by Penny Power, Thomas Power and Andy Coote.  Feel free to pick up a copy!
3. Apophenia- Managed by Danah Boyd, an Internet scholar, social media researcher and Fellow at the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet and Society, this blog deals with computing, technology, social networking and youth culture.  Extremely well-written and worth checking out.  You can also follow Danah on Twitter.
4. Writer in Residence- Cornwall- Written by Andy Coote, this blog deals with business networking, marketing and communications.  Stop by and have a look!
5. Ecademy- This is a really neat site that helps business people connect to one another- sort of similar to LinkedIn

At Hummingbird Creative Group, we use the acronym SOAR to represent helping our clients to “Strategically Orient their companies to Achieve marketing Results.” In an economy like this, each of us should step back and brainstorm about new products and services we might offer based on insight gathering from clients and prospects to position our companies for success. Insight gathering is simply doing market research including competitive analysis, brand analysis and interviews to establish core facts, values, character and the market’s perception of your offerings, opportunities, targets and referring audiences. Interviewing customers and prospects through the use of case studies and surveys can help you understand what you are doing right, or wrong and how you could change what you are doing to better meet needs in the marketplace. Other things you might want to do to help you Strategically Orient your company to Achieve marketing Results include:

1. Take time away from your everyday business activities and analyze what you can do differently, such as pricing services differently to meet client needs or developing a new product or service that can help your customers get through this tough economy.

2. Write down your strategy before its implementation. By having a road map of what to do and how to achieve it, you are more likely to make it happen.

3. Explore and learn new media, such as Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media outlets. These are inexpensive ways to spread the word about your company, and they can compliment traditional media efforts such as TV, radio and print media.

4. Make sure that your website is positioned correctly to reflect your competitive advantages and other branding messages. You might want to add a client area to your website, increase search engine optimization, or even redesign your site to reflect what you now offer.

5. Join organizations where you can be seen and heard by other businesses and develop positive one-on-one relationships to grow and nurture what you’re building through other mass media activities.

6. Consider outsourcing your branding efforts by hiring a marketing firm with capabilities to do strategic planning, writing, design, interactive and new media planning. Outsourcing is usually about the same cost of a full-time employee who might have only core competencies in one or two of these areas.

Most importantly, do not stop marketing and advertising your company during this time! Strong, consistent brand messages and graphic elements will wake up your brand and help prospects and customers keep your company top-of-mind. Continue to build your brand awareness so you will stay top-of-mind no matter what the economy holds!

Tweets about this post:
LaneCasteix at 2009-06-26T13:44:49Z: RT @AnAverageJoe: Making Your Brand SOAR in a Tough Economy http://6on3d.th8.us

In this day and age, more and more people are operating their businesses from the comfort of their own home.  If your business requires you to have regular contact with people out-of-state or even overseas (internationally), then your phone bill can be pretty high.  That being said, there is a company called ProxyComm which was modeled on the principle of providing generations of people and business owners alike with the best possible communications services.  Founded by John and Sunshine Peterson, ProxyComm combines the telecommunications industry with the technology industry to  offer advanced communications services to untapped markets.

ProxyComm Products

ProxyComm offers  fantastic call routing and unlimited domestic and international calling plans that are unlike any other calling plans in the market.  Some of the things you’ll get with the ProxyLine service include but are not limited to:

• An additional line for your existing phones
• UNLIMITED nationwide calling
• Great features including: Simutaneous Ring, Advanced Voicemail, Call Screening, Call Recording, Live Call Transfer and Free Directory Assistance

ProxyComm Features

When you’re trying to run and operate a business, the type of phone plan as well as phone features you have suddenly become very important.  After all, the last thing you want to hear is that one of your clients (or potential clients) couldn’t reach you.  Therefore, ProxyComm offers the following features (with more to come!):

• Do Not Disturb- Set your ProxyLine to send calls straight to Voicemail or to accept calls normally.
• Simultaneous Ring- You can haver your ProxyLine ring on up to 4 phones.
• Personal Number Administration- Log in to your account through our web portal and manage your account and service options in real time.
• Caller ID Control- Program your inbound and outbound CallerID numbers used by your ProxyLine through the Personal Number Admin tool.
• Call Recording- Ever wanted to record a call for playback later?  Now you can receive recordings as email attachments just like with voicemail messages.
• Advanced Voicemail- ProxyComm Voicemail includes many advanced features such as a folder storage system, broadcast and forward capabilities, and separate “busy” and “not available” messages.
• Email Notification- Have your voicemail messages sent to you as a sound file attached in an email where you can listen to your messages on your computer, forward them or save them!
• Free Google Directory Service- You get unlimited, free directory listings, powered by Google!
• UNLIMITED Calling- You can use your ProxyLine like a calling card for unlimited outbound calling.  Callers will see your ProxyLine number in their CallerID display, and you will save on long distance charges with our unlimited nationwide calling or with our unlimited International plans.
• Call Screening- Your ProxyLine service comes wth an optional call attendant to answer  your phone and screen your calls with a name announcement.
• Call Transfers- Transfer live calls between any two phones- cell phones or landlines.  Need to run and take the call with you?  Just transfer it from your landline to your cell phone!

From a marketing standpoint, advertising is as natural as putting your pants on in the morning; you don’t even think twice about it.  However, to other people (the consumers), advertising is one of the most annoying things.  It’s an intrusion on our privacy and an unwelcome interruption.  That being said, Evans poses the question: If you couldn’t interrupt people, how would you reach them?

Marketing is tricky.  On the one hand, as a marketer, you want to create a buzz about your product or service with the hopes that it will lead to an increased revenue.  At the same time though, you don’t want to turn possible consumers off by aggravating them.  This is where online marketing comes into play.  Many more businesses are turning to online marketing and advertising because let’s face it; this is where most people spend the majority of their time.  Additionally, studies have proven online marketing to be more cost effective overall than other traditional means of advertising (i.e. television, radio, newsprint).

Building Your Online Reputation

Even if you were at the top of your game and widely recognized as a leader in traditional forms of marketing, switching over to online marketing means having to start from scratch; it means that you have to work on building your reputation all over again because ultimately, it’s your online (not your offline) reputation that drives your desired results on the Social Web.  So how do you go about building your reputation online?  You begin with a quantitative break down how popular you are in some of the following categories:

• ratio of blog comments to your blog post
• unique visitors
• dwell times (how long any one person stayed on your site)
• assessing social commentary about the content on your site (do people like it or hate it?)
• assessing the social commentary related to your product or service (is your website helping or hindering this?)

Other questions that you’ll also want to be thinking about:

• What are you doing to generate awareness about your product, brand or service?
• What channel  is your top performer in terms of return on investment (ROI)? How was it measured?
• Are your strongest touchpoint experiences driven by marketing (the expectation you set) or operations (the product or service you deliver)?

By continuously reviewing and tuning your content based on its use, you are continuously enhancing your relevance to specific audiences and thereby building your social reputation. -Dave Evans

The Main Points According to Dave Evans:

• Social media is most different from traditional media in that it lacks the option to force an interruption:  Your message has to be invited in.
• Social media is fundamentally measurable.
• Social media can be organized as follows:
• Platforms: This includes social networks along with white-label community and forum applications.
• Content: This includes ratings, reviews, photos, videos, podcasts, and similar content that is created and shared on the Social Web.
• Interactions: This includes the little bits of information that flow around through feeds, email, and SMS that tell participants what is going on across the Social Web.

Tweets about this post:
Barbiero at 2009-06-23T12:05:22Z: Social Media Marketing, An Hour a Day: Social Media Channels http://nppt9.th8.us

If you are replacing a wall sconce or a ceiling fan in your house, chances are you’re going to probably look it up online first before heading out to a store.  Not only is shopping online usually cheaper (in a lot of cases), it is also much more convenient!

That being said, when it comes to the Internet and Internet marketing, it seems like everything depends on what Google thinks of your site. And in order to up your ratings on search engines like Google, there are many different elements involved.  For instance, you may consider redesigning your website partially or entirely to be more user-friendly and appeal to the masses.

As part of your ‘web-site makeover’, you may want to consider figuring out what other competitors there are in your industry. Then, come up with key words to focus on sprinkling throughout your content so that it becomes more recognizable by search engines.

Regardless, many companies have seen their business take off despite these rough economic times, and a lot of it has to do with Internet marketing as being something that is valued by business owners around the world.  One such business that is seeing positive results from Internet marketing is LightsOnline.

A Little Light Goes a Long Way

From home lighting to ceiling fans and bathroom lighting, LightsOnline.com has a naturally marketable product.  However,  prior to their involvement with Internet marketing, no one would have even known that they even existed!  Our own Fred Wood (who does a lot of work with programming) did the programming for the 15K item shopping cart.  Both he and David  Williams (SEO expert) have been hard at work with the LightsOnline website and have actuallyhelped to take them  from no-mans-land to 218 on Google for one of their key word phrases- quite an accomplishment for a company that wasn’t even on the map!

We wish LightsOnline continued success as their business continues to succeed.  Additionally, this just goes to show how valuable Internet marketing can be to any business wishing to gain some attention!