Promotional Materials For Your Website: From Simple Products To Offering Your Time

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Off-Site BrandingWebmasters tend to think in black and white when it comes to their websites. Build a great website, follow proper SEO guidelines, and hope for the best. While on-site optimization and social media engagement are both important, site owners can benefit greatly from off-site promotion.

The best way to get your name out there is to constantly push your brand. When I launch a new website I like to order simple products that will place my websites name in front of influencing people. Pens, koozies and chip clips are all great products because they are cheap and constantly used. I also like to incorporate my time as a service.

Websites that offer promotional products like these provide a cheap advertising solution that won’t break the bank while letting users know they care.

The trick with off-site branding it to get your products into the right hands. Here are a few simple solutions. [Read more…]

Best Antivirus Programs For Under $50

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Best Antivirus programsThe internet is full of interesting content. You can watch videos, browsing billions of photos, and even acquire some of your favorite software applications. Unfortunately with every website visit or software download users are also chancing a very real run-in with computer viruses.

As hackers continue to develop stronger attack methods it has become essential that users install and actively use virus scan programs.

Thankfully the best antivirus programs on the web often cost less than $50 to acquire and actively use.  Here are several of the best programs of 2013. [Read more…]

Serious Bloggers Need A Dedicated Internet Connection

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Comcast for Internet and CableI’m a pretty serious blogger. I currently run 20 websites, many of which receive hundreds of thousands of pageviews. A few years back I was running my fledgling business out of my living room and everything was just fine.

One day I realized I was spending a lot of time moving around files from my home business computer to my server. As gigabits flew from one location to another and I streamed Netflix to my big screen TV I realized my productivity was taking a hit.

If you are like me and you have a wife or husband and maybe a few kids at home you understand how a connected culture can slow your productivity. One kid is watching hilarious YouTube videos, another is watching a Vudu movie and your spouse is watching Netflix. In the meantime you are attempting to use your 20Mbps connection with very little success because multiple smartphones, TVs, tablets, and other devices are hogging a portion of your available bandwidth. [Read more…]

WordPress 10 Years Later: How An Open Source Platform Grew To Rule The Web

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Wordpress LogoCan you believe it was ten years ago that web developer Matt Mullenweg introduced WordPress to the world? At that time blogging was a dirty word typically associated with out of work lazy writers. Even guys making seven figures with their WordPress websites were considered out of work slobs. Heck my friends who make less money than me still think I need to get a “real job.”

Fast forward to 2013 and 52% of the top blogs worldwide use WordPress with more than 70 million websites operating thanks to the streamlined web software.

WordPress has not only helped non-programmers launch successful websites, it has also created a sense of community for both users and programmers alike. [Read more…]

Twitter Promoted Tweets Will Target Similar Ads You Saw On TV

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Twitter promoted tweetsTwitter is launching a new ad type that will target similar ads TV viewers have recently watched.

On Friday, the social network said it will offer targeted promoted tweets to users in order to provide a well rounded ad experience.

According to Twitter:

“Synchronized Twitter and TV ad campaigns make brand messages more engaging, interactive and measurable.”

Thanks to its acquisition of Bluefin Labs, the micro-blogging service now has the ability to closely monitor shared content in order to gain a reference point for television programming. The program works even if a user doesn’t explicitly reference the name of the TV show they just watched. [Read more…]

Twitter Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Available

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Twitter SecurityTwitter, on Wednesday, delivered on its promise to bring two-factor authentication to its massive micro-blogging network.

The opt-in feature requires users to receive an access code on their smartphone via SMS text messaging.

Earlier in the month, it was announced that Twitter employees were currently testing the Twitter two-factor authentication setup. The tests began after several high profile accounts including Burger King and The Associated Press were hacked and disturbing messages were posted to their accounts.

There are some limitations to the type of two-factor authentication being used. Specifically, many high-profile account users have multiple workers who access their Twitter account. Because two-factor authentication relies on an SMS text message to a single smartphone, it won’t work for multiple users.  [Read more…]

Parents Share Their Kids Online More Than Their Cats, Study Finds

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Charlie Bit My FingerWe know that everyone loves LOL Cat photos, heck iCanHazCheezburger has made a multi-million dollar business out of the practice. Yet the teams at  Magisto.com and PlayScience have found that parents would much rather share videos, photos, and stories about their children.

According to the study parents are three times more likely to share videos of their kids (27 percent) than a pet (9 percent).

60 percent of parents responded to the survey by acknowledging that they shoot at least three videos of their children per month. 44 percent of those parents said they share at least three videos per month.  [Read more…]

Google Glass Is Going Social With Facebook, Twitter, And Others

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Google Glass with Social

Google Glass, by design, is a social product. Customers wear the glasses everywhere and therefore, they have the option to easily stay connected on the go.

With that real-time connectivity, it was only a matter of time before social networks jumped on-board.

Announced at Google I/O, the product is now receiving social connectivity via Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and collaboration platform Evernote.

Before those social networks jumped on-board, Google Glass was already connected to mobile-only social network Path.

Each of the social networking options will be available as “Glassware,” the new name for Google Glass apps. [Read more…]

Social Media Is The New Face Of Disaster Response [Infographic]

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Social mediaSocial media keeps all of us connected in real time and thanks to its reach, disaster response is being given a big lift.

The team at USF’s Online MPA took a close look at disaster response to determine what effect it receives from social media.

The team quickly discovered that many agencies are now using Facebook, Twitter, and even Instagram to help facilitate rescue and relief efforts.

Researchers examined three specific disasters: The Japan tsunami, the Haiti earthquake and Superstorm Sandy. [Read more…]

Google Announcing Streaming Music Platform At I/O Conference Tomorrow

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Google MusicGoogle is about to enter the world of online streaming music. According to reports from The Verge and the Wall Street Journal the software giant will roll out the new feature for both Google Play and YouTube users.

While Google’s software platforms  ranging from Gmail and Google Maps to Google Docs and Google.com continue to receive praise the company has failed to keep up with its competitors in terms of media offerings.

To reach a level playing field with Apple and Amazon the company reportedly signed licensing deals with Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment. Those two media conglomerates make up a large portion of the mainstream music market and are considered must have partners for any serious online streaming partner.  [Read more…]