Is Your Non-Profit Eligible for a Google Grant?

The Google for Nonprofits Program offers qualified organizations access to free versions of paid Google products and special features designed for nonprofits.

These tools can help nonprofits find new donors and volunteers, work more efficiently, and get supporters to take action.

Google for Nonprofits members have access to the following products:

• Premium branding capabilities on YouTube channels
• Free AdWords advertising to promote your website on Google.com through keyword targeting.
• Free Nonprofit Edition of Google Apps.
• Free licensing for Maps API Premier
• and more.

Your organization must be a registered and recognized 501(c)(3) in the United States.

• Organizations must be recognized by the IRS as tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations formed for charitable, educational, religious, literary, scientific, or other tax-exempt purposes.
• Organizations that rely on the group 501(c)(3) exemption of a central (“umbrella”) organization can apply to Google for Nonprofits as a "related organization."
• Organizations, such as churches, that are automatically considered tax-exempt must still obtain recognition of 501(c)(3) tax exemption from the IRS to qualify for the Google for Nonprofits program.

Also make sure your organization is updated on GuideStar.org, the go-to source when people search for information on a non-profit.

Interested?! - follow this link to Google for more information and the application

IS YOUR WEBSITE COMPLIANT WITH THE LAW?

Some industries have specific rules they must adhere to for all their advertising and marketing, both offline and online.  The Healthcare industry has specific marketing regulations, codes and guidelines. Lawyers and legal associations must follow Bar Rules. In California,  this includes Rule I-400.

Any website, blog , internet site or application (app)  that wants to stay in good standing with search engines, must follow their specific terms and conditions. The two largest, Google and Yahoo, have these webmaster guidelines prominently posted, updated and available.

There are also State and Federal laws governing how ALL websites must behave to insure the privacy of their visitors.  There are additional laws (below) that are specific to protect the privacy of children. The following list does not cover all the internet privacy laws currently in force, or being proposed. You are advised to be knowledgeable of the laws that apply to your business – Federal, State and your specific industry.

• CALIFORNIA – Online Privacy Protection Act of 2003 – California Business and Professions Code sections 22575-22579. This law requires operators of commercial web sites or online services that collect personal information on California residents through a web site to conspicuously post a privacy policy on the site and to comply with its policy. The privacy policy must, among other things, identify the categories of personally identifiable information collected about site visitors and the categories of third parties with whom the operator may share the information. The privacy policy must also provide information on the operator’s online tracking practices. An operator is in violation for failure to post a policy within 30 days of being notified of noncompliance, or if the operator either knowingly and willfully or negligently and materially fails to comply with the provisions of its policy. This law takes effect July 1, 2004.

• Assembly Bill No. 370 (AB 370) amends Section 22575 of the state’s Business and Professions Code. Section 22575 requires the operator of a website that collects personally identifiable information on consumers residing in California who use or visit the site to conspicuously post its privacy policy on the site.  (The operator of an online service must make its privacy policy available by any reasonable accessible means.)As amended by AB 370, Section 22575 requires such an operator to include in its privacy policy a description of how the operator responds to do-not-track settings in consumers’ browsers. The law describes such settings as “signals or other mechanisms that provide consumers the ability to exercise choice regarding the collection of personally identifiable information about an individual consumer’s online activities over time and across third-party Web sites or online services.” An operator can satisfy the new requirement “by providing a clear and conspicuous hyperlink in the operator’s privacy policy to an online location containing a description, including the effects, of any program or protocol the operator follows that offers the consumer that choice.” The law also requires an operator to disclose in its privacy policy whether, when a consumer uses the operator’s website or service, other parties can collect personally identifiable information about a consumer’s online activities “over time and across different Web sites.”

• CALIFORNIA NON PROFIT COMPANIES – California Ed. Code § 99122
  Requires private nonprofit or for-profit postsecondary educational institutions to post a social media privacy policy on the institution’s Internet Web site

• CONNECTICUT Gen. Stat. § 42-471
  Requires any person who collects Social Security numbers in the course of business to create a privacy protection policy. The policy must be “publicly displayed” by posting on a web page and the policy must (1) protect the confidentiality of Social Security numbers, (2) prohibit unlawful disclosure of Social Security numbers, and (3) limit access to Social Security numbers.

ADDITIONAL LAWS TO PROTECT CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

• Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (“COPPA”). COPPA imposes certain requirements on operators of websites or online services directed to children under 13 years of age, and on operators of other websites or online services that have actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information online from a child under 13 years of age.

• Calif. Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 22580-22582 (2013 S.B. 568, Chapter 336) (Effective 1/1/2015.)
  California’s Privacy Rights for California Minors in the Digital World Act, also called the “eraser” bill, will permit minors to remove, or to request and obtain removal of, content or information posted on an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application. It also prohibits an operator of a Web site or online service directed to minors from marketing or advertising to minors specified products or services that minors are legally prohibited from buying. The law also will prohibit marketing or advertising certain products based on personal information specific to a minor or knowingly using, disclosing, compiling, or allowing a third party to do so.

 
Laws regarding making false and misleading statements in website Privacy Policies

• NEBRASKA  Nebraska Stat. § 87-302(14)
  Nebraska prohibits knowingly making a false or misleading statement in a privacy policy, published on the Internet or otherwise distributed or published, regarding the use of personal information submitted by members of the public.

• PENNSYLVANIA 18 Pa. C.S.A. § 4107(a)(10)
  Pennsylvania includes false and misleading statements in privacy policies published on Web sites or otherwise distributed in its deceptive or fraudulent business practices statute.

Your privacy policy should be specific to  your website, blog, app, etc. and not simply copy of someone else’s. Your privacy policy should be as unique and specific as your business.

Is your website compliant? Contact us to discuss your specific industry website, your goals and needs. Click to e-mail us or call 800-569-8279

Additional Resources:

SBA and Privacy Policy
FTC
Cal Gov
FTC Privacy and Security

Adapting to The Change to Gmail Tabs

How do you feel about the changes to your Gmail inbox. Do you like how Google has separated your emails into specific tabs and made determinations on your behalf which emails go into which tab?

Some of your important and favorite emails may no longer be considered "primary" emails. Equally bad, your clients may not be aware that your emails are being filtered to one of the other tabs instead of your primary box.

It would be nice if Google allowed you to make your own custom tabs, however, they have limited you to only 5 of their designs described here in Google's words:

• Primary: Messages from friends and family, as well as any other messages that don't appear in other tabs. Also messages from senders that you have previously starred.
• Promotions: Your deals, offers and other promotional emails. 
• Social Messages: From social networks, media-sharing sites, online dating services, gaming platforms and other social websites.
• Updates: Notifications such as confirmations, receipts, bills and statements.
• Forums: Messages from online groups, discussion boards and mailing lists.

You can  instruct Gmail to automatically send emails from certain senders into particular tabs.

• Right-click on this email (if it has been filed under the incorrect tab heading), hover over the "Move to Tab" option that appears in the pop-up box, and select the tab where you want it to be.
• Alternatively, you can drag and drop to your choice of tab.

Gmail will then ask you if you want it to "Do this for future messages from [email@example.com]?" Click "yes" and future emails from that address will auto-filter into the Primary tab.

Google Ads

Included in your "promotions" tab in-box will be targeted ads that are designed to appear more like email than an ad. The idea, of course, if for you to click on it and hopefully buy something. These are ads from Google advertisers, which has been selected for your inbox based on keywords the advertiser selected match similar words or phrases in your emails.According to Google "Ad targeting in Gmail is fully automated, and no humans read your email or Google Account information in order to show you advertisements or related information"  It's all handled by Google's algorithms. The only way to stop these ads, at present, is to delete the "promotions" tab, however, the ads may show up in another tab in the future.

On the Good Side

If you like the idea of mail being sorted for you into specific tabs so you can more quicky filter through them, you may like this new layout. You can choose which tabs your emails will be sorted into. If you take a look at the promotions tab you might recognize many of email blasts and newsletter subscriptions. This can be helpful to have them all in one place so you can easily delete the ones you don't want and see the ones you do.

Disabling Tabs 

If you dislike the new tabs functionality and want to return to the traditional inbox layout, click the "+" icon to the right of the tab heading, un-check every tab box (apart from "Primary" which is a default) and your inbox will revert to the old design., for now, or until Google decides to make this new layout permanent for all Gmail accounts.

Help Your Customers Get Your Emails

To assist your customers in seeing your emails, send them the instructions or a link to this blog post, so they know how to filter your emails to land in the primary tab.

One thing we all know for certain, is that there will be always be change.

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives.
It is the one that is the most adaptable to change."

~ Charles Darwin

When should you redesign your website?

Everyday at least one of my clients receives an email from someone stating they their website needs to be updated, and the unknown email sender is the best person to do it. Everyday new people enter the arena of webdesign. some take a software class, others an online class and some buy a program of templates.

I am asked, how often should a website be updated? And what is the difference between a web designer and website development?

 First, your website should be updated when:
1.) You have broken links, missing images, difficult navigation, outdated content or outdated firm image.
2.) Significant changes are made to search algorithms and your site results are beginning to decline
3.) You've added new personnel or new products/sservices
 4.) You have new success stories that your potential clients can learn from or be inspired by
5.) You have received acknowledgements or have articles newly published in significant journals.

When not to update:
1.) Someone guarantees you top placement in search results if they redesign your entire website. To guarantee something it to promise for absolute certain that it will happen. According to Google, there are black-hat techniques that can get your website in the top results - for a short time. However, long term success cannot be guaranteed. And black-hat techniques can come back to haunt you, including getting you black listed from search databases.
2.) You're bored with the look. Being pretty isn't always necessary. If your site is still bringing in new clients and referrals, it may not need a complete overhaul. You may need simple changes to colors and layouts to please your eye without losing the effect the content is making.
3.) You don't know if it's really pulling in results.  Before deciding your entire site isn't working, be sure to check the analytics and see what pages or content areas are drawing traffic. By analyzing your traffic reports, you will see your website's strength and possible weaknesses.
4.) Because the new kid on the block or the email you just received told you to do it. If someone is telling you that your website is broken, and they are the only ones to fix it - think before acting. If someone approached you with that logic on another areas of your business or personal life,  - not knowing you or your objectives - would you immediately hire them?

Many persons selling web services are offering their opinion, their companies opinion and the limitations of their designs. Some will use a marketing service, ( ie Yext, Citygrid, etc) to show you your results. If so, double-check these results. Many times these reports are incorrect, plus these are for-fee services, so the more their report indicates you need them, the easier it becomes to sell you their service.

A good web developer will use unrelated opinions, ie: other web developers who don't work or are paid by them, and focus groups. Always ask how they derived their assessment of your website and web presence.

Sometimes it's time to refresh your look. It's always time to keep your content current.

Analyze what you have before you agree to an overhaul, when a simple refresh is all you need.

Think of the big picture and long term.

If you've been told that your website needs an overhaul or you feel the need for changes, let's talk. Click to email us. We'll listen first, look at your online presence and then offer our recommendations.  One size does not fit all.The solution for you should be unique to your business and goals. Maybe you only need a refresh.

Have you ever wondered how search works?

Have you ever wondered how search engines actually work to deliver you the results you seek in the blink of an eye? The following link is an interactive inforgraphic by Google to give an insight into what happens between the request of a search query and the retrieval of results.

As you watch this, note how often "freshness" and "content" are mentioned. http://www.google.com/insidesearch/howsearchworks/thestory/

Keeping the content on your website current and updated regularly with helpful and relevant information is very important. So if your website hasn't been updated in a while, regardless of how attractive it might be or how important you think that information is, it may be time to tweak, add to, change or restructure your website for better results.

If you think  your website needs an overhaul, let's talk. Click to email us. We'll listen first, look at your online presence and then offer our recommendations.  One size does not fit all.The solution for you should be unique to your business and goals. 

So What You Do Best

Whether you are a solopreneuer or you are a growing enterprise, marketing is essential if you want to keep pace and grow in today's marketplace. The Internet is a powerful marketing tool - when used strategically and correctly. A few common mistakes that can hurt you, might include:

A website that looks like everyone else, with common content.
      When your website looks like everyone else then how does your potential clients see you as any different. This mistake s usually made by using the same template you liked on someone else's site, or using a web company with limited knowledge or access to templates.

Entrepreneurs who post personal activities on their social media profiles.
     Most entrepreneurs (hopefully) know it's important to keep a balance between personal and professional activities. however, what you think is a cute joke or "no harm" comment just might show up in a search by a potential client and it could turn them away. I know one professional who loves to post "funny" jokes on her not-really-private profile, that are demeaning or poke fun at certain groups or behaviors. Not only will this send away potential clients in these groups, it will also alienate those who don't support these same attitudes.

Entrepreneurs who control it all 
     Some people do love to brag how they can wear all the hats, however, that well-known  figure of speech  "Jack of all trades, master of none" is used in reference to a person that is competent with many skills but is not necessarily outstanding in any particular one. This person is a generalist rather than a specialist. In your business, you should be the specialist. It is important that you have an understanding of what the Internet can do for you, however, the playing field is changing multiple times a day.  The learning never ends. What you are doing today may not hold up to the search engine algorithms, or the changes in various social media policies and offerings.  The biggest mistake in doing it all yourself is how much time you take away from what you do best -your business.

The worst mistake is to stop marketing
     Every day new entrepreneurs are entering the already competitive marketplace. Although the Internet is growing in persuasive power every day, it is only one component that should be included in your overall marketing plan.   Some entrepreneurs stop marketing because they think they have enough clients for now; then things slow now and panic ensues.  Marketing through print, personal networking, speaking engagements, associations and events should also be in your marketing arsenal. Each one is powerful, however, putting them together in a strategic marketing plan can be even more effective for you.

Whether you are looking to attract clients or referrals from other entrepreneurs, the image they see on the Internet will play into their decision about you.

So do what you do best, and trust your assistants or outside consultants to assist you in maximizing the potential of the Internet.

Cheap yet costly SEO mistakes

How important is it to monitor your internet presence?

Unfortunately many individual and businesses assign the task of their website and internet marketing to an employee in their company or hire a service, and then just assume it will be fine.

Unfortunately, employees get distracted with other firm matters, or leave the company for another job; and with the ease of web templates, just about anyone advertising themselves as an internet marketing expert can give the impression that they know what they are doing.

What could possibly go wrong?

This week when monitoring the internet presence of a few potential new clients, I discovered a handful of dangerous yet preventable errors. Unfortunately this errors are more difficult to correct once they are online. With the change in search algorithms changing regularly, what worked yesterday may now seriously work against you today. What I discovered aren't tactics that a knowledgeable webmaster or internet marketer would use, especially since the introduction of Penguin and Panda.

 * Black-Hat Techniques.
Be cautious of companies that promise immediate first page Google ranking. “Black hat webspam” is referred to as techniques where the intent is to look for shortcuts or loopholes that would rank pages higher than they deserve to be ranked according to webmaster guidelines. Use of Black Hat webspam, once discovered by Google and other search engines, can get your site penalized and potentially de-listed. Short term exposure on the first page, could result in log term penalty.

* Bulk directory service.
This weekend as I did my internet research on a few new referrals, I found one company listed on several sites, but with a wrong phone number. In fact it was the phone number of the company they hired to provide their SEO. Their company name, address as well as the photos were correct, however someone calling the number listed would not have reached them. This happens when a bulk listing service is used. The bulk listing service uses the account holders phone number to verify the listings on directory pages such as: yellowpages, yahoo local listings and other popular online directories. The solution if you use a bulk listing service, is to have an account set up exclusively for (you) the client by the SEO company, and have the bulk service company phone verify your actual phone number. It's an extra step that involves someone at your office answering the phone and listening to a computerized code; however, those few minutes could save you from lost clients calling the wrong phone number. You also want to make sure that you are being listed on only legitimate sites and not content farms, which will also work against  you. The SEO company can still manage the account, however, the account is one of your internet assets. ( I've written about the importance of your ownership of your internet assets in another post.)

* Paid Inbound Links:
Years ago, cross linking (you list my website on your site, and I'll list yours on mine) was a popular way to increase traffic and give the impression of a site being popular. That tactic was quickly disregarded by all search engines and cross-lining was soon replaced by purchased inbound links. For a fee you could have your company and website listed on numerous worldwide sites which would offer a guarantee of high volume traffic to your site. This volume, again, gave the impression that your site was popular and therefore would rank high in search results. With the release of Penguin, these kinds of marketing ploys are considered web spam, an artificial inflation of the relevance of your website. Google penalizes sites for being deceptive and your site may not only lose it's ranking, it can also lose it's place in Google's index. People tend to forget that Google owns the database that indexes the search results. If you are no longer in the database, then your site will only be found by someone with your specific web address.

* Article Sites. 
If you enjoy writing, article marketing was once a long-standing highly used tool to post your same content several different sites with a link back to your website. This practice no longer has the search popularity it once had and at worst, it can cause your site to be penalized by Google and therefore not show up in search results. There are a few legitimate, well respected sites to post your informative articles and receive search benefits.

 * Content Farms. 
No time to write? Thinking about hiring someone to write your articles for you, or reposting someone else's article, blog or news story to add content to your site? These are all considered farming by Google's algorithm Panda.  Ghostwriters have a similarity in their writing and seldom provide unique content to their clients. Instead they rewrite certain phrases, leaving the bulk of the article or blog appearing very similar to the one they wrote for someone else. Using someone who writes exclusively for you is second only to you writing your own articles. According to Google's webmaster guidelines, Panda is designed to reduce rankings for sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful.  Google likes original, timely content that is informative, educational and useful to the reader. You can take a news story and comment heavily on it, providing a new perspective or in depth analysis, however, simply reposting the original story will cause your site to be considered a farmer, and of low value to searchers.

* Over Optimization
Optimize and SEO are buzzwords that have been chanted by many internet marketers with such a passion that many attorneys repeat these phrases as the holy grail fro their website, yet without any real understanding of what is it and how it can help or hurt your site. One method of over optimization is taking a keyword or phrase and over using it or repeating too many sentences on several pages or multiple sites. Repeating your tag line is one thing, repeating your area of practice over and again is over-kill. There are several other over-kill techniques that can cause your website to fall below the search engine approval. To get the best attention fro search engines, websites should be written for the reader and not for search engines.

It is important to your online success and identity to stay alert of any exposure on the internet. Not only to make sure your contact information is correct, but to make sure that the person's posting about you are known to you; are doing so with your permission and/or are in your employ.

The longer something is on the internet, the more difficult it is to remove. I once heard that the more times a lie is told, the more people believe it, it soon becomes assumed as the truth and more difficult to correct.

It's easier than you may think for someone to post erroneous information about you or post information that helps them to steal your clients or your personal identity.

Conducting a regular Google search, or using Google alerts is important, however remember there are several other large search engines that also may be storing information about you. Be alert, be proactive and be in better control over your internet assets.

Learn what you need to know about business & money - for free

Continuing your education while running your business is essential for your success. The following are free online resources to assist you in furthering your knowledge and gaining information to assist your business growth:

• MIT Sloan School of Management – MIT Sloan is a world-class business school long renowned for thought leadership and the ability to successfully partner theory and practice.  This is a subsection of the larger MIT OpenCourseWare site.

• Investopedia Financial Investing Tutorials – A plethora of detailed lessons on money management and investing.

• U.S. Small Business Administration Training Network – The Small Business Administration has one of the best selections of business courses on the web. Topics include everything from starting a business and business management to government contracting and international trade. Most courses take only 30 minutes to complete.

• My Own Business, Inc. – Offers a free online business administration course that would be beneficial to new managers and to anyone who is interested in starting a business. This comprehensive course is split up into 16 sessions covering topics like business plans, accounting, marketing, insurance, e-commerce and international trade.

• UC Irvine OpenCourseWare (Business) – Rapidly with the addition of nearly 10 new courses every month. Many of our OCW offerings are directed at working adults seeking continuing education, with the option to enroll in instructor-led, for-credit courses, related to the OCW content.

• Kutztown University of Pennsylvania – The Kutztown University of Pennsylvania’s Small Business Development Center offers more than 80 free business courses online. Kutztown’s courses are individualized and self-paced. Many of the courses feature high-end graphics, interactive case studies and audio streams.

• Boston College Front Row (Business) – Boston College Front Row is a Web site that offers free access through streaming media to tapes of cultural and scholarly events at Boston College.

• Financial Management Training Center – The Financial Management Training Center provides several free downloadable business courses for people who need to learn the finer points of financial management. All courses offered can be taken online; courses include full exams as well as evaluation forms for people seeking Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits.

• The Free Nonprofit Micro-eMBA – Free Management Library’s Free Nonprofit Micro-eMBA Program is an especially great resource for students wishing to learn more about nonprofit management, but most of the lessons also apply to general business management. Completion of this program will not result in an MBA degree, but enrollment is free and the material is well structured.

• Bookboon Free Business e-books – Hundreds of free business books online in PDF format.

• TheStreet University – If you’re just starting out as a stock and bond investor or need a refresher’s course, this is the place to learn what you need to know.

• OpenCourseWare Consortium – This site provides a portal to search through hundreds of free courses or to add new courses you know about to the database.

• iBerry – Check out this site for a huge directory of open courseware organized by school and subject matter that can point you in the right direction for any type of learning.

• Self Made Scholar Directory – Free online directory of web-based classes and courses.

Wishing you awesome and continuing success.

Solve the Entrepreneur Puzzle

Two reasons to write your business plan:


STUDIES SHOW: 85% of the people that do not take the time to plan their businesses or career will not reach their desired level of success or will fail altogether. Of those that do take the time to write their plan, 85% will succeed.
STUDIES SHOW: 40% of people with a strategic plan will double their income and profits within two years of writing their plan.
With a strategic plan, greater than 70% of these people will exceed their own expectations within the next 5 years regardless of economic conditions.
"A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be. " ~ Wayne Gretzky 

Why "Likes" Alone Are Not Enough

They’re only one piece of the puzzle.

Just because someone liked your business page doesn't mean they are reading your posts, or after the new Facebook algorithm update, they may not even be seeing your posts.

Page "likes" are only the beginning of the relationship. Social media and networking is about building relationships and not just advertising yourself.

When you posts are "shared", it is usually an indication that someone not only liked what you posted, but wanted to share it with their network of friends as well.

Your marketing goals should include posting interesting and relative content on your page and sharing other people's posts. When you share theirs, they become more interested to see what you are posting. If you share someone else's post, they might be motivated to come back and comment on your shared post, which then keeps your page name in front of their network, and their network's network, and so on, and so on....

Simply put:
1. Post great content that people want to tell their network about.
2. Share content that you find interesting and you want to tell your network of friends and fans about
3. Make comments with substance and invite continued interaction.
4. Comment from your business page, not your profile, if you want people to be drawn to your business page.
5. Repeat

Wishing you awesome and continuing success.

Sumner M. Davenport is a Solutions Consultant.
Best Selling Author and Keynote Speaker
Solutions, not just answers.
Solutions are not one-size-fits-all.
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Success with QR Codes

QR codes are being used in creative ways on business cards, company brochures, signs, apparel and at fundraising events to promote instant giving.

A Chili’s fundraising campaign for childhood cancer resulted in 291,000 QR code scans that appeared on coloring sheets and table tents created specifically for the effort.

“With the ever-growing presence of technology in our guests’ daily lives, Chili’s utilized this up-and-coming trend as a unique way to reach our supporters of St. Jude,” Ms. Flowers said. “With more than 290,000 QR codes scanned throughout the campaign, this medium proved to be an effective and tech-savvy way of encouraging guests to donate.”

Read more at: Mobil Commerce Daily

Read previous blog post: QR codes or Scan tags – Using them? and how are they working for you?

Why Website Content is So Important to SEO

Content, content, content....a word that seems like nagging to many of my clients.

The major search engines are focusing on creating the best possible user experience, which means sites that offer relevant (new, creative and unique)information stand to gain the most visibility.

This following image provides a graphic explanation of the importance of content. To see the enlarged size, click here.

How Online Retailers Make You Spend More

Eliminate the paper - app alternative to business cards

Ditch that pile of biz cards, and use Hashable to exchange contact information instead. Type in a person's email address or Twitter handle to exchange contact info. Hashable automatically tags these contacts with location and date so you can find them later – and Hashable will send you an email with a list of everyone you met at the end of each week to make follow-up easier.


Track your meetings, calls and other events. For your private use, or coordinate with your friends, coworkers, teammates.


And for those of you Hashing it up from Twitter – they've created a whole slate of event tags to make things even easier. Any time you Tweet with someone using any of the event tags – Hashable will pick it up. By using these tags from Twitter, you can sort your contacts in Hashable to find the people you met at each event.






This is not a paid advertisement no affiliate link. We receive no compensation for telling you about this app.

Security on Facebook, app to scan and protect your account

Recently a number of people found malicious and offensive posts on their profiles and pages. Unfortunately these posts were not from the persons indicated. Some form of hacking had taken place.

An excellent article was written in March on PCMag.com on two apps that can protect your Facebook account.

One app, Norton Safe Web for Facebook is bundled with the Norton products, but anybody can use it for free. It scans your Facebook page's links and reports any bad ones.

If you're concerned about dangerous links (and you should be), there is also another app recommended and more info in this article at PCMAG.com .

Happy and safe networking

Let your challenges spur your creativity

Walt Disney had a passionate desire to pursue a career in commercial art, which is how he began his original experiments in animation. He started by producing short animated films for local businesses in Kansas City. By the time Walt had started to create The Alice Comedies, which was about a real girl and her adventures in an animated world, he ran out of money. His company at the time, Laugh-O-Grams went bankrupt. 

Instead of giving up, Walt packed his suitcase and with his unfinished print of The Alice Comedies in hand, headed for Hollywood to start a new business. It was Walt Disney’s enthusiasm and faith in himself and others that took him straight to the top of Hollywood society. Walt Disney's dream of a clean and organized amusement park also came true when Disneyland Park in Anaheim opened in 1955.


Wally Amos opened his first Famous Amos store, with cookies based on his aunt's recipe which he baked himself. Within 10 years his sales had grown to more than $10 million. Due to financial troubles, Amos was forced to sell the Famous Amos Company, and trademarked name "Famous Amos".

Turning adversity into opportunity, Amos launched a new cookie venture, The Uncle Noname's Cookie Company. With America's tastes shifting towards healthier foods, the company focused on fat-free, nutritious muffins at that time. Uncle Noname ultimately became Uncle Wally's Muffin Company in 1999. The muffins are sold in more than 3,500 stores nationwide.

Dr. Seuss’ first book was rejected by over 27 publishers. He had a fleeting thought to burn the manuscript. Instead he sent it out one more time.”

"As you begin to move forward in the direction of your vision, you may encounter delays. Every delay is not a denial. It simply means that you are getting something that you're gonna need to go forward" ~ Michael Bernard Beckwith

Google Branding With Charlie Chaplin

Have you visited Google today? Google is known, among other things, for their branding strategy of consistently updating their Google logo on their home page. Colorful images, clever layouts and even animation.

Today they celebrate English comic actor and director, Charlie Chaplin's 122nd birthday with a short Chaplin style video doodle; which amuses you and cleverly places Google's logo into the era. From the first frame to Charlie reading a Google newspaper, to the more obvious Google logo set up by the painter. At the end of the video you are forwarded to a Google search results page with everything Charlie Chaplin.

Other businesses can learn from this branding approach. It takes creativity and planning. Although the majority of searches are made from Google, one might think they don't need to continually market themselves. Google is smart enough to know that marketing your brand should never stop.

Using creativity to bring people to your website, could increase your consistent traffic. Let people ask" "I wonder what they have on their website today that will educate me, amuse me, motivate me, etc." and "what will I miss, if I don't visit?"

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Seeking Small Business Case Study Profiles

For a new television show that will air in the St. Louis metropolitan area, Susan Solovic is looking for small businesses who are facing a particular business challenge and would be willing to be profiled.

You must be comfortable talking about your business challenge. The profile segments will be shot at your business location and then business experts will discuss your challenge and offer advice during the time the show airs.

Please submit the name of your business, location, years in business, your name
and title and the nature of the business challenge with which you are dealing.

Email your submission to: query-9ub@helpareporter.com

Deadline: 07:00 PM EST - 6 April

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Seeking Entrepreneur Success Stories

Seeking Entrepreneurs who are willing to share their entrepreneur success stories as well as their thoughts on Gen Y and entrepreneurship for an online Entrepreneur Publication.


Email: query-139i@helpareporter.com


Deadline: 07:00 PM EST - 5 April

Been verified or privacy danger?

You may have heard the TV ads offering yo the chance to do a background search on someone, a friend, a potential date, etc.

We looked into BeenVerifed and became more alarmed than excited.

1. An associate ran the free background check on herself and found that the criminal record of her ex-husbands daughter was tagged as her.

2. My information was 12 years out of date and reported me as listed on several social sites, I've never visited.

3. They post two different versions of their Terms & Conditions. The T&C from their home page link, has different wording than the one posted through their sitemap link.

4. Their privacy policy states they now have permission to telemarket you, even if you are on the do-not-call list.

5. Their privacy policy states " even where a Member unsubscribes from all of our lists, we cannot guarantee that such Member will never receive another mailing from us".

6.  Their privacy policy states that "we must gather personal information from Members through our Registration Form. The Registration Form may or may not require submission of the following information: (a) e-mail address; (b) full name; (c) company name; (d) date of birth; (e) a Member-specified password; (f) mailing address; (g) credit card information; and (h) any and all information associated with the Searched Subject (such as name, address, social security number)"

They did not clarify if this social security number requirement is necessary when you search yourself. They would then have all your financial and identifying information for potential identity theft.

7. More from the Privacy Policy: "Any personal information that you submit at the Site remains your property. However, by submitting that information to us, you grant to us the right to use your personal information" . The even reference sharing your mobile phone number and email address with their partners.

8. They have a long paragraph as to whom they are going to share your personal data with and take no responsibility for how those people then use your data.

9. They state: "You may not use any of our information as a factor in establishing an individual's eligibility for personal credit, insurance or assessing risks associated with existing consumer credit obligations." 

You know people will.

10. The offer a free trial with a $2 authorization on your credit card, a state:"Authorizations are immediately voided and canceled upon signup." What if you don't sign up? $2 may seen like a so-what charge, however, $2 from hundreds of thousands of people sure adds up. You wouldn't take the time to challenge them for the refund, and they have added a protection clause for themselves in (one of) their T&C, stating you cannot support a class action lawsuit which might have the potential clout to stop the pilfering. 
note: On another blog a user posted: You can have a 7 day "trial" period if you join with a $50 membership fee!"

11. They now have a i-Phone app so you can conduct background check on the go. On another blog, one posted commented that this is great for the busy stalker.

The bottom line:

You can't prevent these type of companies from scraping the internet to gather public records on people, and then selling it.

You can be aware of what part you play in the picture when you sign up for these services.


Privacy is a constant and growing concern.  Online privacy even more so.  


Simply, take time to read the T&C and Privacy policies of the websites you sign up for. Be aware enough to make every effort to stay away from supporting those sites that could be a problem for you in the future.


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Delay is not the end.

"As you begin to move forward in the direction of your vision, you may encounter delays. Every delay is not a denial. It simply means that you are getting something that you're gonna need to go forward" ~ Michael Bernard Beckwith