|
|
SEOptimise |
10 Tips to Improve Your Social Graph for Google Posted: 09 Jan 2011 12:01 PM PST It was great to present at the Sphinncon conference today alongside Kelli Brown, Tal Siach and Miriam Schwab – I’ve posted my slides and tips below to share with everyone online: The idea behind this was to provide actionable ideas based upon Matt Cutts’ announcement in December that social signals are a ranking factor. Here are the tips: 1) Use social media buttons – encourage your users to share content on facebook and twitter by using the social bookmarking button plugins. 2) Build a Facebook fan page – build a presence on Facebook where people can subscribe to updates and you can publish latest content. Ideally you’d want to build up a strong number of fans so that people can frequently “like” your posted links. 3) Use images – Facebook walls display photos far more frequently than other updates, such as statuses. So make sure when you publish links they contain an image where possible as this may improve it’s chances of being featured as top news on facebook homepages. 4) Fake it until you make it – firstly make sure you don’t overdo it and this doesn’t suit all brands. But on Fiverr.com you can pay $5 for someone with lots of friends to invite people to like your fan page. The idea here isn’t about targeting quality, it’s a numbers game so that you can get towards the tipping point which boosts the popularity and trust that people have when visiting your page in order to become a fan. 5) Promote via social bookmarking – while seemingly not a social signal itself, if you can promote your content via sites such as StumbleUpon, this is likely to indirectly lead to facebook shares/likes and retweets. Especially if you are already using the relevant social button plugins. 6) Create a branded Twitter profile & build relationships – firstly this gives you a platform to tweet your links. But by interacting with and retweeting other users you will greatly improve the potential coverage of retweets for your own content. 7) Use hashtags – a great way of finding popular discussions to contribute to is to follow the latest hashtags and trending topics. Again don’t overdo this and keep it relevant – but many people monitor and search the latest trending topics, so by tweeting about these it could be a good way of getting some extra retweets and picking up some new followers along the way. 8) Use great headlines, but leave space for retweets – make it easy for twitter users to retweet your posts by ensuring it is concise enough that it doesn’t need to be edited when adding an “RT @username” etc. And of course headlines are not only the first thing people see on facebook and twitter, but normally the only thing. Poor headlines means these won’t get clicked, great ones are gold! 9) Run social media competitions to give incentives – compared to Facebook advertising, the ROI of getting signups to a fan page should be greatly increased when running a competition. iPad giveaways have worked very well recently and it’s a great way of boosting your social media presence. Just make sure you read the terms and conditions as Facebook and Twitter do have rules on how these should be run. 10) Most importantly, have great content – the above tips are all very limited if your content is average. Look at top performing sites on Tweetmeme, such as Mashable, who consistently write great content with a social media audience in mind. Top lists, infographics, how-to posts etc all generally perform very well. © SEOptimise – Download our free business guide to blogging whitepaper and sign-up for the SEOptimise monthly newsletter. 10 Tips to Improve Your Social Graph for Google Related posts: |
You are subscribed to email updates from SEOptimise » Blog To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 |
[You're getting this note because you subscribed to Seth Godin's blog.]
Allison Miller, aged 14, sends and receives 27,000 text messages a month. Hey, that's only about sixty an hour, every hour she's awake.
Some say that the problem of our age is that continuous partial attention, this never ending non-stop distraction, addles the brain and prevents us from being productive. Not quite.
The danger is not distraction, the danger is the ability to hide.
Constant inputs and unlimited potential distractions allow us to avoid the lizard, they give the resistance a perfect tool. Everywhere to run, everywhere to hide.
The advantage of being cornered with nowhere to turn is that it leaves you face to face with the lizard brain, unable to stall or avoid the real work.
I've become a big fan of tools like Freedom, which effortlessly permit you to turn off the noise. An hour after you haven't kept up with the world, you may or may not have work product to show as a result. If you don't, you've just called your bluff, haven't you? And if you do, then you've discovered how powerful confronting the fear (by turning off the noise) can be.
Ten years ago, no one was lost in this world. You had to play dungeons and dragons in a storm pipe to do that. Now there are millions and millions of us busy polishing our connections, reaching out, reacting, responding and hiding. What happens to your productivity (and your fear) when you turn it off for a while?
Don't want to get this email anymore? Click the link below to unsubscribe.
Your requested content delivery powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 9 Thoreau Way, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA. +1.978.776.9498 |
Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis |
Posted: 09 Jan 2011 10:26 PM PST Here are a few of the many stories I am following: The risk of trade wars escalates as Brazil accuses the United States and China of currency manipulation. In turn, the IMF is upset at Brazil for imposing capital controls. In Belgium, the king wants to end the "unprecedented hell" that has left Belgium without a government for 211 days smack in the midst of a budget crisis. China is set for multiple rounds of credit tightening even though China's growth is weakening. Interest rates in Portugal and Spain suggest more bailouts coming up. Ireland is pondering the Iceland Solution and that has the IMF more than a bit upset. Brazil Finance Minister Warns of Trade Wars The Financial Times reports Brazil Warns Trade War Looming Brazil has warned that the world is on course for a full-blown "trade war" as it stepped up its rhetoric against exchange rate manipulation.Tensions Rise in Currency Wars In related news, the IMF is arguing against Brazil's imposition of capital controls as Tensions rise in currency wars. If the world's shell-shocked investors thought that 2011 might see an outbreak of peace in the currency wars, they were sadly mistaken. Not only did Brazil last week take more action to stem the rise in the real but Chile, one of the most free-market of emerging economies, has also unveiled a campaign of intervention against its currency.China's Trade Surplus Weakens The New York Times reports China's December Trade Rises, but Growth Weakens China's December exports rose by double digits, possibly fueling tension with Washington ahead of Chinese President Hu Jintao's U.S. visit next week.Those last two paragraphs also smack of trade wars. Currently, China is on the Congressional back burner, but that will change as soon as the US economy stalls even a bit. China Faces Intense Monetary Tightening Bloomberg reports Reserves Set for $2.8 Trillion Mean Tightening People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan ordered lenders to increase funds on deposit at the authority six times in 2010, as the yuan's interest-rate advantage over the dollar attracted capital that stoked inflation. The yuan may gain the most among currencies in the so-called BRIC nations, rising 5.4 percent by year-end, compared with a 0.8 percent drop for Brazil's real, a 0.3 percent increase for Russia's ruble and 5 percent advance for India's rupee, according to Bloomberg surveys of strategists.Unprecedented Hell In Belgium As Debt Crisis Escalates Bloomberg reports Belgium's King to Tackle Political Deadlock as Debt Woes Mount Belgium's king will make a fresh bid to end the 211-day post-election deadlock that has left the country without a full-time government and fanned concern that Europe's debt crisis will widen.The market has signaled it's all over for Portugal. Spain is next. Icelandic Way Out The Telegraph reports Iceland offers risky temptation for Ireland as recession ends Iceland has finally emerged from deep recession after allowing its currency to plunge and washing its hands of private bank debt, prompting an intense the debate over whether Ireland might suffer less damage if adopted the same strategy.To Ireland With Love Once again I implore Ireland to tell the IMF and EU to go to hell in response to the IMF's Trojan Horse offering. Flashback November 28, 2010: To Ireland With Love. Iceland told its creditors to go to hell and is better off for it. Ireland can and should do the same. For still more on the European sovereign debt crisis please see my Sunday post France, Germany Pressure Portugal to Take Aid; No Gov't in Belgium for 210 Days; Private Debt Placements in Portugal; Is China the Red Knight Savior? Also see Friday's post Italy The Invisible Elephant If Italy blows, the currency union has had it. Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com Click Here To Scroll Thru My Recent Post List Mike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific. |
California Budget Balancer Interactive Map from LA Times Misses the Mark Posted: 09 Jan 2011 03:32 PM PST I just took the interactive LA Times California Budget Balancer exercise. I vehemently protest. This was a blatant effort to force people into accepting a need to raise taxes. To balance the budget I made every possible program cut offered. It was not enough. To balance the budget I had to raise sin taxes and gas taxes. There are worse solutions of course, like hiking income taxes or corporate income taxes. Exercise Misses the Mark
California Agencies Look at this disgusting list of California Agencies. I sorted out some but not all of the more ridiculous ones. Does the state need a ....
California does not need ANY of those. Moreover I assure you I missed dozens more that could be cut back if not eliminated entirely. What the heck do those cost? And how much can be saved by my suggestions above. I propose the LA Times re-do their preposterous exercise meant to convey the idea that taxes have to be raised. They don't. In fact, I bet they could be lowered. Here is the LA Times Discussion Thread on California Budget Balancer For more ideas on how to Fight California Tax Hikes please visit the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com Click Here To Scroll Thru My Recent Post List Mike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific. |
Posted: 09 Jan 2011 01:24 PM PST It's exceptionally rare I agree with what Bernanke has to say. This is one of those rare times. Please consider Bernanke Rejects Bailouts "We have no expectation or intention to get involved in state and local finance," Mr. Bernanke said in testimony before the Senate Budget Committee. The states, he said later, "should not expect loans from the Fed."Themes For 2011 Municipal bankruptcies, and Cutbacks in US Cities and States themes number 1 and number 3 in Ten Economic and Investment Themes for 2011 1. US Municipal Bankruptcies Head to Center StageWhitney Overstates and Incorrectly States the Problem In regards to Bernanke's Meredith Whitney's estimate of "50 to 100 sizable defaults in 2011 amounting to hundreds of billions of dollars" I actually agree with Bernanke. The key word is "entirely". Mr. Bernanke described that as a "pessimistic view" that he didn't entirely agree with. I do not entirely agree with it either. A critical point is that by saying "entirely", Bernanke implies he agrees with some of it. While there could be 50 to 100 municipalities taking that action, many cities that take that action will be small. Moreover, as pessimistic as I am, I doubt we hit that total in 2011. Rather, I see this crisis spreading out over a fair number of years, not necessarily a big bang in 2011 specifically. Like Whitney, I do expect to see one or more major bankruptcies such as Detroit. I also see renewed interest by a large number of cities. I suspect Bernanke is bright enough to see the same thing. However, in many instances when cities do declare bankruptcy, one of the major goals will be to shed untenable public union pension plans along with union salaries, not necessarily bond obligations in general. Nonetheless, I expect this to rattle the municipal bond market across the board. The time to invest in munis will be after yields soar and after we get a better handle on which cities may go the bankruptcy route, and why. Whitney's estimate of "hundreds of billions of dollars" is where she is most likely to be wrong. Might hundreds of billions in unfunded pension obligations be shed by the time this crisis is over? Absolutely, and that is a major theme. After all, the state pension deficits are $3 trillion or more, and that does not include city, county, and local obligations. However, defaulting on pension obligations does not appear to be what Whitney meant. Addendum: "Jail4Bail" Writes "We haven't seen the cutbacks in operations that would precede any bankruptcy." Hello Jail, It won't necessarily happen that way. Cutbacks make the plans more solvent, prolonging the agony, while bankruptcies will eliminate the need for many cutbacks. Thus, the correct approach (and some cities will realize this in 2011) is bankruptcy comes first. Working out cutbacks and details come second. I expect this to happen in Michigan in particular. Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com Click Here To Scroll Thru My Recent Post List Mike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific. |
Sunday Funnies 2011-01-03 Living With Parents Posted: 09 Jan 2011 12:23 PM PST This Clarke and Dawe video on PIIGS bailouts and the European sovereign debt crisis went around long ago but is even more pertinent today. Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com Click Here To Scroll Thru My Recent Post List Mike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific. |
Posted: 09 Jan 2011 12:39 AM PST Portugal is the spotlight du jour in the sovereign debt crisis. Belgium is not far behind. On Saturday Reuters claimed Germany and France want Portugal to accept aid, citing Der Spiegel. Germany and France want Portugal to accept an international bailout as soon as possible in order to prevent its debt crisis spreading to other countries, German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Saturday.Absurdity of "Stopping the Spread" Statement This headline is making the rounds but nearly a day later I still cannot find anything about it in Der Spiegel. Mish Note: See Addendum for Der Spiegel German reference and a reader's comments I do have a few quick comments. Note the absurdity of the statement "Germany and France want Portugal to accept an international bailout as soon as possible in order to prevent its debt crisis spreading". The fact that Portugal needs a bailout is 100% proof the crisis has spread. So are rising sovereign debt yields across the board relative to Germany. The only exception now is France. Is this another Maginot line? Private Debt Placements Please consider Portugal making private placement of bonds Portugal is in the process of making a private placement of bonds to diversify its investor base, the finance ministry said on Friday without giving any details of the operation. "I can confirm that an operation is taking place but we will make no comment about the buyer," a spokeswoman at the finance ministry told Reuters when asked about market talk that China could be buying Portuguese bonds.Assuming the story is true (once again I have no reason to doubt it in spite of a lack of details), the only conceivable private placement at this moment is China. The lack of details this weekend suggests an attempt to paper over the crisis with bullsweet, hoping something will stick. It won't. Is Belgium next? Belgium Without Government For 210 Days Inquiring minds note 200 days on and still Belgium has no government 30/12/10 16:35 CETNo Government In Sight The Atlantic Sentinel reports In Belgium, Still No Government in Sight After numerous rounds of negotiations between the victors of this summer's federal elections, Belgium is still without a government. The two major parties, the Flemish nationalists and the French speaking socialists, have been gridlocked for months. Unless they manage to find common ground in the weeks ahead, the country may have to call another election.Belgium's CD&V Rejects Interim Government Proposal Bloomberg reports Belgium's CD&V Rejects Interim Government Proposal The CD&V, Belgium's Flemish Christian Democratic party, rejected a proposal from Didier Reynders, the country's finance minister, for a short-term government to address the country's budget deficit, the Belga news agency said, without saying where it got the information.Belgium cannot put aside its differences to tackle the debt crisis. Will the debt crisis wait? I think you know the answer to that. Link in case above video does not play: 200 days and still no government No Red Knight to the Rescue The International Business Times asks and answers an important question: Can China save euro? Answer is 'no' China has been shopping for European sovereign debt for some time. The so-called 'red knight' for the struggling Eurozone periphery has come in with timely aid for Greece, and offered support to Ireland and Spain.Five-Day Euro Chart click on chart for sharper image What's China going to do? Buy it all? Then what? Addendum: Reader Moritz comments ... Hi GuysActually that comment is slightly inaccurate in one respect. Only 30% would get into the Euro today if they had to do it over again. I cannot speak for the rest of the translation. I assume it is accurate. For a look at German court cases and the German sentiment numbers against the Euro, please see EU Commission Plans Haircuts on Bank Debt; Greek Yields Hit New Record; China Buys Spanish Debt; German Courts to Decide Bailout Constitutionality Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com Click Here To Scroll Thru My Recent Post List Mike "Mish" Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific. |
You are subscribed to email updates from Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 |
[You're getting this note because you subscribed to Seth Godin's blog.]
A cop with a Surefire flashlight doesn't have to say to her partner, "I'm sorry my flashlight isn't so bright." It's made without compromise for people who won't compromise.
There are high margins in the business of high-end flatware, for people who don't want to apologize for the lack of an asparagus fork when they have fancy company over.
One of the most vibrant segments of the stereo business is the category of products that are ridiculously expensive (and really good).
Where's the cell phone headset that will appeal to people who don't want to apologize for the quality of their cell phone connection?
People will go out of their way to buy and recommend products that don't require an apology.
Don't want to get this email anymore? Click the link below to unsubscribe.
Your requested content delivery powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 9 Thoreau Way, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA. +1.978.776.9498 |