Dennis J. Smith

Get Real-Time Facebook Updates On Your Desktop

January 17, 2011

I love it when I find a cool new social media tool that I can share with friends and others. Facebook Desktop is one of those social media tools that notifies you in real-time when friends post something new to Facebook, updates their status, comments on your photos and more. All this without the need for a browser and its not intrusive when it notifies you. Notifications show on the right side of your screen briefly and then fade out of sight. If you miss a notification you can have it replay the last five updates. Users can also pause updates or adjust settings accordingly to lessen the amount of updates. You can download Facebook Desktop to your desktop free of charge. It installs within a few minutes.

Keep On Top Of Your Social Media Game With Nutshell Mail

January 4, 2011

Feel like you are struggling to keep up with your social media? Don’t get buried in status updates, pokes, mail and Tweets. There’s a whole lot of services out there that make it easy to manage social media. The one I like the most is Nutshell Mail from the makers of Constant Contact. Setting up an account is easy and you can use Facebook Connect, MySpace or Twitter to start your account. It’s perfect for a small business or even for personal use and its free! Nutshell sends all your social media updates, likes, tweets and more to you in a convenient e-mail. You get to set the frequency of when you receive that e-mail. It’s also very customizable so you pick what information you want to see. Below is an example of the e-mail you receive to keep you on top of your social media. Think of it as a snapshot of all your social media sites. No logging into several sites because Nutshell Mail takes care of all that for you. If someone has commented on any of your sites you can respond right from the email. It support Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yelp, MySpace, YouTube, Foursquare, and CitySearch. See it in action today by creating your own free account here. Know of another other great social media tracking tools? Feel free to comment and let other know below. Content by Dennis J. Smith Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media Available on Amazon.com in Paperback and on Kindle

Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media For Less Than $3 Bucks

December 31, 2010

I have found a great place to store, share and sell PDF’s called Scribd.com. I have converted my book “Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media“ to PDF and you can download a copy within minutes for less than $3 bucks. There’s over 75 pages of 4.5-star rated information on how you can promote your business with social media. Start off 2011 with a great deal and build your social media plan today! The document can be read online or you can download it to your PC to view at your leisure. It’s available in other formats if you’d like the skip the PDF and go with a traditional paperback book: Available at: Amazon.com ““ Paperback Amazon.com ““ Kindle Edition Barnes and Noble.com – NOOKbook (eBook)

Google AdSense Plugins

December 4, 2010

Google AdSense Plugins What is Google AdSense? Google AdSense is a program from Google that pays website and blog owners to display specific ads on their sites. It is free and you can track your earnings with online reports. The ads are usually targeted to match the relevant content on your site. How do I get started? Visit http://www.adsense.com and Newbie Central for new users to get started and for more information about AdSense. If you have an account with Google you are just a few steps away from Google AdSense. If not you just have to enter a little information to get started with creating ads. I highly recommend that you watch the videos provided by Google. There are several books available to learn more about AdSense and there is lots of information online. AdSense Ad Create Your AdSense Code Once you have an account set-up you can start creating the code that will generate your ad or ads. There are different sizes of ads you can generate and it is important think about ad placement in your blog. Placement of your ads is essential in the amount of revenue they generate. Review Newbie Central for more information on the placement of your ads. AdSense Plugins Several plugins are available to choose from when it comes to displaying ads on your WordPress blog. Search for “AdSense” from the Plugin menu of your WordPress dashboard to generate a list of available AdSense plugins. Click on “Details” for more details on each individual plugin and “Install Now” to install the plugin of your choice. There are also several WordPress themes that have settings to display AdSense ads along with other types of ads. Do a search on Google for “AdSense Ready WordPress Themes” for a list of themes ready for AdSense. I suggest you install a few plugins and see what works best for you. Take your code you created above and copy and paste it into your plugin. Each plugin will be different so read the instruction for the plugin you choose. List of some of the many plugins available for AdSense Things to keep in Mind AdSense policy allows for no more than three AdSense ads displaying per page. Encouraging others to click on ads is a violation of AdSense policies. Don’t risk losing what might be a lucrative stream of revenue. Read Newbie Central so you are aware of policies, best practices and have the knowledge of what works best. Have a favorite AdSense plugin you are using? Please feel free to comment below and share your AdSense experience. Need a WordPress Blog? Contact IgniteHost website and WordPress blog hosting and get started for less than $5 a month. More resources: Google AdSense ““ AdSense Website AdSense Official Channel on YouTube ““ AdSense Videos WordPress Themes ““ AdSense Ready WordPress Themes Newbie Central ““ Information for AdSense Newbies AdSense Blog ““ Inside AdSense Blog Content Provided By Dennis J. Smith

Track Social Media With POSTLING

November 28, 2010

Like many out there you might be finding it tough to manage your Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, blogs and various other social media networks. I’ve had the same problem myself and have finally found a solution that I like. Postling was created to simply the process of managing your social media networks. I no longer have to check each one of my Facebook Fan Pages for comments. Postling lets me know when someone comments on one of my several post. That way I stay on top of interacting with my followers and build engaging relationships. Publish From One Location With Postling you can post right to your Facebook Fan Pages, WordPress Blogs, Blogger accounts, Twitter, Linked in and more. There is no need to go to each one of those locations to post something new or update your status. Do it all from Postling and save time! You can also schedule the date and time you would like your post published at. I know from experience what a great time saver this is when managing your social media networks. Dashboard The Postling Dashboard gives you easy access to all your social media networks. Update your status, respond to comments, track keywords and more. Try Postling There is a free version of Postling with full features you can can try for 14-days. The premium version lets you monitor social media sites like Twitter for keywords. This can be beneficial for those looking to target a certain type of customer. It can also be set-up to look for chatter about your business in case you receive negative feedback or even kudos. You don’t have to login to all your social media sites because Postling will e-mail you a recap of comments, reviews and keyword tracking results. Just click on reply in the e-mail and respond back to any comments right away. What a great time saver and an easy way to stay on top of the game. Head on over to http://www.postling.com and get your free account today or upgrade to premium and enjoy all the benefits. Do you use something different to manage your social media? Feel free to leave a comment below and thanks for reading! Postling on Facebook ““ Postling Fan Page

Nook, Kindle, iPad: New Chapter for Books

November 28, 2010

From CBS News Electronics stores are encountering a dramatically expanded selection of gadgets offering to replace books. John Blackstone reports on the popularity of eReaders and eBooks this holiday season. See why Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook and other eBook Readers will be the hot item this holiday season. Download Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media Kindle at a Glance New, High-Contrast E Ink Screen with Pearl Technology 50% better contrast. The clearest text and sharpest images with latest E Ink Pearl display. Read in Bright Sunlight Unlike LCD screens, Kindle’s screen reads like real paper, with no glare. Read as easily in bright sunlight as in your living room. Lighter Than a Paperback At only 8.5 ounces and 1/3 of an inch thin, Kindle is lighter than a paperback and thinner than a magazine. Free, Out-of-Copyright Books Over 1.8 million free, out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books are available such as Pride and Prejudice. Learn more Holds 3,500 Books We doubled Kindle’s storage so you can carry up to 3,500 books. Massive Selection Over 750,000 books, including 107 of 111New York Times Best Sellers, plus audiobooks, periodicals and blogs. For non-U.S. customers, content availability varies. Check your country. Read Everywhere with Whispersync Your Kindle books can be read on your Kindle, iPhone, iPad, PC, Mac, Android device, and BlackBerry. Our Whispersync technology syncs your place across devices, so you can pick up where you left off. Read-to-Me With Text-to-Speech, Kindle can read English-language content out loud to you. Buy A Kindle from Amazon.com

Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media Now Available On Amazon Kindle

November 26, 2010

Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media is finally available for sell in Amazon Kindle format. The Kindle version is priced at just $2.99 and you can download it within minutes. If you don’t have a Kindle that’s not a problem because it is available for PC, iPad, iPhone, Android and more by downloading the appropriate free software. See the links below. If you want the latest Kindle you’ll find them on Amazon.com and I’ve heard the older version is going to be on sale Black Friday morning. Learn how social media can help you promote your business or cause on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, WordPress and other social media venues. Join the Facebook Fan Page to stay up-to-date on the latest social media news. Please feel free to leave reviews or comments below and share this with others. Buy a Kindle Reader ““ Amazon.com Kindle for PC ““ Download Kindle for Android ““ Download Kindle for iPad ““ Download Kindle for iPhone ““ Download Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media – Download the Kindle Version Stay tuned for the iPad and Barnes and Noble Nook version of “Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media” coming soon. Dennis J. Smith Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media ““ A Beginner’s Handbook

Book Trailer–“Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media

October 29, 2010

Promote your Business or Cause using Social Media is a handbook for beginner’s interested in using social media to grow a small business or take any cause to the internet. Learn how to create a blog, start a blog radio show, upload videos to YouTube, Tweet on Twitter and build a fan page on Facebook with social apps and even eCommerce. Purchase your copy today for just $7.95 through CreateSpace or Amazon.com: CreateSpace ““ Order Now Online Amazon ““ Order Now Online -Available in Paperback and Kindle – Learn how to add a shopping cart to your Facebook fan page and sell product right from your fan page. – Learn how to get your own personal Facebook URL. – How to get started with WordPress and your own blog. – Twitter Tips! About the author: Dennis has been creating websites and browsing the web since the days of Netscape 1.0 while living in Seattle, Washington. His technology background goes back to the days of the Commodore Vic 20 and 64, Pong and Pac-Man. He later turned his passion for technology and web design into a love for Internet Marketing, blogging and now Social Media. He is the owner of IgniteHost and GreenHostUSA website hosting, search engine optimization and social media consulting located in Boise, Idaho and writes the tech blog GigaDroid.com for the popular Android phones. During his free time he enjoys road trips back to Seattle, exploring Idaho, microbrews, great coffee, sharing his knowledge with friends and Facebook acquaintances.

3 Social Media Tools To Grow Your Business

October 15, 2010

Here are 3 tools that are free and will help you grow your business through social media. There are many other applications out there and they appear and disappear as social media changes and evolves. I like these 3 listed below for their ease of use and little set-up time. Please feel free to leave a comments about the tools you use or if you use these. RSS Graffiti for Facebook Simplify your social media marketing with this free application available on Facebook. RSS Graffiti will automatically publish your RSS feeds to any of your Facebook Fan Pages. Setup is easy and and takes less than 10 minutes to establish. You can schedule how often RSS Graffiti updates your wall, set publishing limits and can even publish to Twitter. I use it to publish articles from my WordPress blog to my Facebook Fan Page. Then Facebook automatically send out a Tweet to my Twitter followers that alerts them of a new post on my blogs. Payvment E-Commerce Storefront If you are looking to sell product online with little upfront cost Payvment is the answer. Payvment is a free shopping cart application for Facebook Fan Pages and uses PayPal to process payments. Set-up is easy and most can have a storefront up and running in 1-hour or less. Visit the Facebook Fan Page of Pioneer Soap Works to see what an actual storefront is like. All In One SEO Pack WordPress Plugin This is a must have tool for any business with a hosted WordPress blog. All In One SEO is a free plugin that optimizes your blog for better search engine results. This application gives you better control over the optimization of your post, pages and site home page. Therefore your chances of moving up in search engine results increase. Easy enough for beginners yet fully customizable for those with a little more SEO background. Content by Dennis J. Smith ““ Social Media Author

New Look and Features Coming To Twitter This Fall

October 4, 2010

If you use Twitter to promote your business get ready for a a change this fall. Many people like Twitter because its minimalist design and easy of use. But as the site grows Twitter is looking for was to maintain its lead as a social media powerhouse. Do you visit the website or just post your Tweets? Here’s a video Twitter release to YouTube showing some of the upcoming changes: What do you think about the planned changes? Helpful? Here’s more information on the upcoming changes provided by the folks at Twitter. New design You will now find @mentions, retweets, searches, and lists just above your timeline ““ creating a single, streamlined view on the left of the screen. On the right, you can see the features you’re familiar with, including whom you recently followed and who recently followed you, favorites, and Trending Topics. View photos, videos, and other media content Now, it’s easy to see embedded photos and videos directly on Twitter, thanks to partnerships with DailyBooth, DeviantART, Etsy, Flickr, Justin.TV, Kickstarter, Kiva, Photozou, Plixi, Twitgoo, TwitPic, TwitVid, USTREAM, Vimeo, yfrog, and YouTube. Discover related content When you click a Tweet, the details pane shows additional information related to the author or subject. Depending on the Tweet’s content, you may see: @replies, other Tweets by that same user, a map of where a geotagged Tweet was sent from, and more. Mini profiles You can click a @username to see a mini profile without navigating from the page, which provides quick access to account information, including bio and recent Tweets. Follow @Twitter Rollout timing These changes will roll out as a preview over the next several weeks. During the preview, you’ll be able to switch back and forth so you have time to grow accustomed to the way things work. Eventually, everyone will have the updated version of Twitter.com. So what do you think? Think Twitter has something good coming down the pipeline or do you think that things should be left alone? Feel free to contribute and leave a comment below. Posted Dennis J. Smith with content by Twitter

Author: Dennis J. Smith