Seth Godin on Social Media

Social Media is a "Big Deal" right now. But can you REALLY monetize it?
Seth Godin says it all. (Read what I say after the video).

There is one person who has taught me how to really monetize your social media by always staying within your "brand." You connect. You make real friends. It takes time, just like nurturing any realationship. I will introduce you to this fabulous teacher in a future blogpost. Watch for it.

The Story of the Star Spangled Banner

It's the 4th of July and here in the U.S. we celebrate our Independence Day. So today I'm being a bit patriotic....

Many of you know we are a VERY Patriotic family. In fact, my husband has even written a book "Founding Fathers -- Uncommon Herores" (http://uncommonheroes.us/book.html)

I thought you might like this video about the the story of the Star Spangled Banner as much as we did.



Happy 4th.

Hold Your Company Annual Meetings at an Exotic Location.....Here's How:

Here's a great tip from me and my partner, Kari VanNoy at "Just A Minute, LLC." We decided to go to San Diego for our company annual meeting. Here's how you can do that, too.



Here's how to hold your annual meetings at any exotic location you would like:

1. Login to your account at http://www.JustAMinuteLLC.com and create a resolution to hold your annual meeting at the location you have chosen. Be sure to include the date of the meeting.

2. Talk to your CPA or tax strategist to make sure you make the most of your business tax deductions.

3. After your meeting login to your account at http://www.JustAMinuteLLC.com and create your annual meeting minutes.

That's all there is to it! We make it simple for you.

Until next time,
This is Kari VanNoy and Linda Allen making every minute count at Just A Minute, LLC

Social Networking and YOU

Five Ways You Can Build Your Reputation With Social Networking
By Bob Jenkins

Are you using social networks to build your reputation online? Whether you already are or you are just getting started with sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Ning, building your online reputation is your biggest responsibility.

Here are five ways to make sure you do it right.

8-Point Website Check-up for 2009

As 2009 begins, it’s a great time to check your website to make sure everything works and is up-to-date.
Here are the 8-Points to Check:

1. Make sure your copyright is current. Change all the © 2008 at the bottom of your web pages to © 2009. All copyright symbols should be followed by the year, your company name, followed by “All rights reserved.” For example, mine reads: © 2009 Business Recipes, LLC. All rights reserved.

2. Check for any dead links. No one likes to get that dreaded “404” message when they click on a link from your site. You can go through each page and click on each link. Or you can do it the easy way: go to http://www.dead-links.com/ and get a full report of all dead links on your site.

3. Check all your pictures. Make sure all pictures have an active link (no white boxes with red x’s in them). If you should see a white box where a picture should be, be sure the link to the picture is actually on your server. If not upload that picture. If the picture is there, then make sure the link is spelled correctly. In addition, be sure all your picture have alt tags. This will help with search engine optimization.

4. Check your opt-in forms. The best way to do this is to get a new email address from hotmail or gmail (most autoresponders don’t allow the same email to subscribe more than once, and you probably are already subscribed with your current email address). You should receive an email shortly. Make sure it doesn’t go into your “junk” email. If it does, check your autoresponder message with a spam filter and correct it if necessary.

5. Test all your order forms. Be sure to go past the place where you put your credit card information. You may have to ask your merchant provider for a Test credit card number you can use. If that’s not available, then you may need to use a card that is not on file with your merchant account. Paypal wont’ allow you to use your own Paypal account, so you may have to ask a friend to purchase the product and then give them a full refund. This way you can be sure that the purchase process works all the way through to the “thank you” page or if the product is a digital download , you can make sure that works, too.

6. Check your privacy statement and legal disclaimers to make sure they are up to date. If you don’t have them yet, now is a good time to add them. It’s the law.

7. Check your server speed. This is a really fun and eye-opening test. Type this into your browser: http://www.hostpulse.com/hosting/networktools/speedtest.asp then type in your URL into the box and press “go.” You will get the results in a minute or two. If your site is listed too far down on the list, call your host and ask them to test their speed and correct any problems there may be.

8. Be sure you have an analytics on your website. I like to use google analytics….and it’s free. Go to http://www.google.com/analytics . And here’s the important part….use it to analyze your site. You may be leaving money on the table.
Now your website is in great shape to make 2009 your best year ever!

Until next time,
Linda Allen
www.biztips4you.com
www.twitter.com/lindaallen