Why technology doesn’t matter
In marketing – the concept has and will always be the mission to get your message and your product /service to the masses.
This weekend I find myself test driving a Google Nexus 7 tablet and admittedly switching back to the iPad mini now and again. Not that it has relevance… But I realized how easy technology makes our lives.
Its getting easier and easier to do just about anything online or offline. Its getting to the point where its less about what tech skills you have (like SEO IN 1999) and more about what kind of impact you leave.
Its not about how many friends you have on Facebook. Its not about how many people follow you on Twitter. Not even about the level of engagement you inspire (although that is an indicator)… Its about how many people would care If you didn’t show up tomorrow.
Its about how many would miss you. The Genuine connections being made. That’s why in April I’m doing something that will be the most humbling thing I’ve ever done.
I’m going to make my life story and how I got here public. Not one soul, not even my parents have ever been told the whole truth. There at one time was shame attached ton the truths. I’m proud of who I am now… So its going to be a real connector piece.
I hope it inspires others. Keep watch.
Reasons to Jailbreak an iPad Mini
I bet your wondering the same thing I did when I first got my iPad. Would it be of any use or value to Jailbreak it? I mean beyond the childish tweaks that make it look different, is there any real extreme value to it?
First a few myths…
Jailbreaking a device can break it.
On an Android device, this is likely QUITE true. However on an iOS device they’re so heavily locked down that litterally hooking it up to iTunes and doing a restore distroys the jailbreak. You can’t really hurt your iOS device by jailbreaking it.
Jailbreaking is illegal
Apparently from what I hear laws are now preventing you from doing it to phones, but tablets are still legal for jailbreaking.
Jailbreaking voids your warranty
It’s true, it does… however a simple reset of the device removes the jailbreak, so who cares?
Jailbreaking is technical and hard
Actually, with the most recent one available, it’s super super easy and has only one or two steps total.
So… if it’s as harmless, easy and care free…. what’s the BENEFIT of jailbreaking your device?
(remember this is MY list, there are TONS of reasons for jailbreaking)
#1. Dimmer
The iPad is quite bright at night when your wife is sleeping and hates anything glowing in the room. There’s a dimmer that dims it even lower than the factory brightness and allows it to almost be like a Kindle.
#2. SPEED!
Turning off animations can dramatically increase the speed of your device. It really rocks, I can’t say enough how much this simple tweak makes me love my device all the more. Also, there’s a thing called NitroJava? Anyway it’s only available to iBooks and App Store, but another tool called Nitrous gives all your other apps (Like Facebook) a javascript boost! This tool makes Nitro available to all other apps.
#3. Apps
Yes if you wanted to pirate software, you could with a jailbroken device. There are free programs like vShare and AppCake that let you download free IPA files and install them. I’ll tell you why that sucks though and why It’s actually less frustrating to just get the original app and pay for it. Hacked apps seem to crash more. They also don’t come with updates, because of course Apple shows no history of you owning it. Thus means when super cool new features come out you’re made aware of all their juicy goodness but you can’t have it unless you scrounge the interwebs for an updated IPA or pay for the darned app.
Hope that helps… I wish there were something out there like this when I hunted for the answer to that question.
You’ll probably ignore this critical advice
The title is strong, but so is the subject. Let me share with you the weakest point of all your online interactions, and what could easily get you hacked if your not careful.
I could spend hours on a post like this but I don’t have time right now. The fact is that if someone gained access to just one of your passwords, that one login would likely have enough information to help that hacker get into other things. Hacking isn’t complicated. The movies make it out to be, but it’s not. Often it’s as simple as using a random password guesser tool on something like WordPress (which allows almost unlimited tries without locking you out due to the volume of attempts). If your password is a simple one like a word plus the number one or something a password guesser could probably guess your password in under 6 minutes.
Scared yet?
If you’re not I’ll keep going. Truth is that identity theft is a real world threat these days. However, as an online marketer I’d say some of my biggest fears would probably be things like my email list, my database, my servers or perhaps even my payment gateway. I’d hate to wake up and find out i’ve already made a withdrawl from Authorize.net and not to my own bank account, or that someone’s scraped all my email addresses off the server and of course sent a mailing out promoting junk in my name.
So, regardless we all agree security is important, right?
So what if I said you should have a password that’s 32 characters in length that uses numbers, letters and symbols? Would you be able to remember a password like that? Me neither! Well, my cousin Michelle alerted me to a piece of software that works on EVERY platform that does this for you. In FACT, it’s so easy that once you have your passwords stored within IT, it sync’s them over dropbox (using a secured encrypted file) to all your other devices. That way if someone got access to your dropbox they’d have to know the password to decrypt it.
Regardless, this is incredible, I bet you can’t wait to get your hands on it.
The tool works on Blackberry, Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows phone, Windows OS and Mac OS. It works on everything. You have no excuse.
It’s called KeyPass.info and it’s completely free. The perfect iPhone app for this software costs $0.99 but i don’t mind paying for good software that does this.
Put a few of your critical things into this and you won’t regret it.
Google and Interflora – the SHORT verison
I don’t know if anyone reads this, so if they do this will be a quick way to find out. I haven’t written here much except things that were about me, and this post is surely more about YOU (sort of).
In recent news there was a penalty to a website by Google and some have been spinning it into some dumb thing about how Google doesn’t like Advetorials. What a load of horse crap! Google would rather see something that educates users FIRST before trying to make a sale. Google would rather see a magazine article style piece than sales pieces.
I really respect Dave Naylor as an SEO columnist. He’s proven his strength many times and often gets things from the horses mouth. In the case of Interflora, what really happened was Interflora was essentially giving out paid links. Google penalized them for this. Supposedly the paid links weren’t really for cash but if people blogged for them they got flowers? Anyway, I don’t think that it’s completely about that either. Perhaps overall unnatural linking. The SEO community likes to get it’s knickers in a knot and this issue certainly got them into doing that.
Why I suggest the iPad mini
I won’t have time to write a really long post… But let me list some tablets I’ve owned over the last two years.
Asus T91
Coby Kryos
Chinese MID tablet
Galaxy Tab 10.1 aka PT7510
Galaxy Tab 7″ aka PT1000
Le Pan II running ICS
Lots of androids… Many unlocked and rooted and all the goodness that comes with the ability to have unbridled access to the hardware.
Every one of them had hardware and design things I didn’t like. Every one was hard to type on. Every one of them left me feeling like I was compromising some where.
I’m typing this on an iPad mini and its incredible. Marketers dream. I sometimes write two page emails with it and tackle all kinds of jobs I wouldn’t dream of with any other device.
WordPress – The double edged sword
Lately more and more people I know on WordPress are getting hacked. It’s no wonderful secret – it’s embarassing and honestly it’s never pretty but it’s happening. Sometimes, it’s because the website was never updated. WordPress updates certainly protect you from SOME malicious code.
Sometimes, it’s because there’s a bug in the plugins your using. I know some plugins are really well written so this doesn’t happen very often, but others are hardly what I would consider ‘well supported’ and the updates are few. Some plugins have a nasty bug that allows you to upload other things beyond images, audio and flash files. Files like PHP or Javascript files, that contain exploits.
What’s fuelling these hackers to hack WordPress sites?
While most often it’s caused by what are known as ‘script kiddies’ which take malicious code they find on the internet and use it on unsuspecting websites… ‘script kiddies’ don’t actually know how to code all that well or look for exploits, and as such they’re not the root issue.
The real issue is that the hacking community doesn’t like WordPress or internet marketers in general. The reasons for this are too far and deep to explain, (buy me a coffee and I’ll dissect it for you) but the gyst is that they do not like marketing in general, and so this is one way of attacking.
Why I still LOVE WordPress
WordPress has so many advantages it can’t be abandoned or ignored… Instead we have to protect it with all our might. WordPress dramatically drops the price of getting a custom website built with a CMS back end (allowing the user to update the website themselves).
WordPress has thousands of plugins, tools and resources available to add just about any feature you want to an existing site without paying much extra for the feature. It’s easy to backup, It’s nicely organized in the back end and in the code (compared to Drupal or Joomla, sorry guys!).
WordPress is EASY to make look just about however you want.
Anyway… While nothing beats a strong security audit from a professional, one tool that does wonders in preventing attacks is called WordPress Firewall 2. I’d recommend you go put it on all your sites right now. It won’t allow an attacker to upload a weird file name.
Secondarily, if you’ve already been attacked or THINK you might have .. Try Exploit scanner or Sucuri Sitecheck.
Information Overload and Specializing
This week, one thing that frustrated me was how many PDF files I have sitting there waiting for me on my Samsung Galaxy Tab. Every night I get a glance at a handful, but no time to read one in it’s entirety.
Yes, I glean a lot from glances, but people who know me know that I’m an all or nothing guy who’d rather be an expert in the subject or never read the book. Well, It continues to dawn on me that I can never be an expert at every online marketing subject.
Pinterest being one of them. I have learned A TON about Pinterest in the last few tablet experiences. For example…
- There are automated tools that let you follow people who pin things with certain keyword tags
- There are tools to unfollow those who don’t follow you back
- There are communities of viewers you can target by subject or keyword
- There are Pinterest bots written entirely for management of these things
Pinterest has huge potential if your marketing to the great beyond. I mean, the general public and not just folks who live in Langley or Vancouver.
But this also gets me thinking that as a consultant, the most valuable thing I can bring to the table is enough knowledge to craft a strategy, and enough wisdom to outsource to folks who ARE subject experts in these things.
But far greater than all this, I also realized I need to start charging more money…
When budgets are small, I just can’t justify getting ‘lost’ on a client’s analytics, their competitive analysis, their fellow competition in the same market on social media and really get to know the space. The budget barely has room for some folks to do little more than execute the line items on the invoice… and I’ve learned SO MUCH about some people’s markets that make running their campaigns profitably way easier.
I think to really take GOOD care of clients, we have to budget some time just to analyze where where we’re at, where we’ve come from and where we’re going next. Everyone on vacation stops and looks at a map now and again and it’s certainly a good idea in a marketing campaign as well.
Why My INSANE SEO Hasn’t Made Me Rich
Years ago I heard a joke and it explains how nerds think… So before you start knocking me, you’ll understand some background….
Goes like this…
One day a programmer found a talking frog… and put it in his pocket.
Down the road he took the frog out to play with it and listen to it speak. The frog said “let me go, and i’ll give you any magic wish you want… if you let me go” the programmer smiled and put the frog back in his pocket.
The second day, the programmer took the frog out of his pocket and the frog said “Listen, i’ll give you the girl of your dreams, just let me go..” the programmer smiled and put the frog back in his pocket.
On the 3rd day the programmer took the frog out of his pocket and the frog said “Hey, i’ll give you a million dollars, would you just let me go?!?” The programmer smiled and said.. “With the money I make, i’ll have a million dollars and a hot girl some day… but a talking frog.. now THATS COOL!!!”
Why I Once Ignored A Talking Frog….
Programmers often do things that could make insane money but … well it’s just because it’s cool, it’s not really about the money – but playing with technology… Years ago I stumbled across an SEO technique called SILO SEO. Like a nerd with a talking frog, I decided to try this amazing new secret a friend of mine told me who claimed to have friends at Google and seemed to always know more than the rest of our team at IMC. I have a feeling she wasn’t lying, as she was always very secretive and tended to stick to herself and did a ton of video blogging with other well known SEO’s.
Anyway… I built a test pilot case for this hypothesis to test it… Not really to make a million dollars and certainly not to sell it to others – but really just to play with technology. I still remember when blogs first came out and I had a blogger blog ranking for competitive terms using some parasite techniques… Back then I never really got into SEO for the huge money, but more for the fun of the game. The chance to play with new technologies – like a kid with a new Playstation 3.
Skip ahead – someone emailed me today (privately) that they have a new WordPress Theme that encorporates PROPER SILO SEO. This to me, was fascinating. I reflected on my last talking frog (SILO SEO website) and how amazing it was. I googled it…
IT STILL RANKS!!!
In a semi-competitive niche against a ton of other sites, with no new content and no new inbound links… it’s still ranking YEARS later.
So…
I guess I could have told others about this, built these for big companies I had the priveledge of working with over the years and made tons, but instead I just smiled and said cool!! A talking frog, and went on with life… Nowadays I would have exploited it just as I have with the new findings in Google Places and Video marketing and other things… But back then I was just a nerd…
Imagine what i’ll do with this new WordPress theme!!
When Facebook Becomes a Living Hell
For some, social pressure has creeped back into their life like a villain in the night. It snuck thru an open window, someone casually left open on a hot summer’s night just trying to cool the house off…
For some people, Facebook is a great way to make sales as a local business. For others, it’s a way to enjoy jokes and pictures of our families and their children… But… For some it holds an even darker existence. Gossip, blackmail, lies and accusations. Betrayals and more.
Sadly, this darker existence is like a bad train accident. You shouldn’t be looking at it, but you can’t stop yourself…. It’s distracting, it’s emotional, it’s frustrating and it can turn into a real genuine hell.
–
This behavior isn’t new… But the ability to carry this crap around in your pocket IS new. Never has there been a more connected society… Never has information and people been closer to our fingertips… and it can be a rewarding exciting amazing experience… It can also bring on incredible depression and distress.
ARE YOU AT RISK?
I’d like to say this can happen to anyone, but really… There are some people who are more at risk than others….
Those in the risk category are:
- Folks with highly addictive personalities
- Folks with low self esteem
- Folks with low self control
- Highly emotional folks
- Women in general
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
#1. Recognize – Here’s the thing, the first thing is to recognize that your NOT getting a GOOD feeling when you open the Facebook app, or when you go to Facebook on your computer. That’s a sign. Another sign might be when you feel your heart drop when you see a private message notification…
#2. Limit – It’s also not a good idea to check Facebook more than a couple times per day at the most. I know for some that sounds crazy – but believe it or not, expert organizers recommend the exact same thing for email. Once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Anything past 2pm can wait till the following business day.
Being a REACTIONARY person is not good. It not only sets a tone with your clients and customers but it also sets a tone with your friends and distances you from successful people who are proactive types, rather than reactionary types.
Albert Einstien once said.. “Experts solve problems, Geniuses prevent them.”
#3. Weed - There are some people you should simply not allow in your news feed each day. They should not be a part of your social media diet. Let’s just say if they were fast food, some of your friends might be the mouldy stuff at the back of the fridge. They’re caustic, cancer causing and spew fourth nothing but negativity.
You don’t have to unfriend them but you can certainly have them not show up in your news feed by adjusting your Facebook settings or adding them to a restricted group of people.
You matter. Your energy levels matter, and your attitude durring the day matters.
#4. Ignore – Remember that no one person’s opinion of you, your possessions or your work is worth wasting your day over. Don’t let a hair dresser’s opinion effect your ability to fix a car. I remember when my wife’s Engineering brother knocked making money online… and selling on eBay.. he told her there was no money in it. I reminded her he was an engineer. He’d probably tell you there’s no money in stocks or investments too.
Are you making the universe angry?
Whether you believe in God or the universe, Karma or something else isn’t relevant here. Let me say this… You can easily figure the answer to this question out in a few easy ways…
#1. Do your plans tend to work out for you?
#2. Do you regularly get GOOD ideas?
#3. Is your work fulfilling?
I came to some huge conclusions this week and I know these conclusions aren’t necessarily going to be popular with everyone. One thing I noticed is that people who do a job they hate SUCK. They suck our time, our energy and they frustrate the heck out of us. They drag their feet, they don’t support quality, they aren’t friendly etc… As I said in my last blog post about keystone habits that also can cause a ripple effect in an organization. Bottom line though, the other day while going thru the niche exercise with someone in trying to find a market they could serve that they LOVE, I realized just how horrible it is when people go after a market or take a job just because it pays well.
It’s funny – does anyone ever ask themselves….
Dollars and cents are important to various aspects of life, and I know we all need to do jobs in our lives we don’t enjoy that teach us things, but I believe God designed us for a purpose. Each one of us has a special purpose and a special message. It sounds kind of cheesy if you don’t believe in a creator God or universal being that has our best interest at heart… But…. don’t loose me yet, I have something else really interesting to show you.
Ever noticed how PASSION produces a better result?
When you see someone slumped over the cash register, or not interested in taking your order at a restaurant, it can be frustrating. Ever notice how MOST singers often write the best music in the first years when they LOVE what they do…. as they get more annoyed with the road, and stressed by the pressure to produce #1 singles (because it’s financially beneficial to the label) their creativity drops??
Ever notice how Google’s top products come from the 20% time people get to work on their own projects? In fact, half of Google services come from this 20% time! Time when a person’s free to pursue their passions and things that they take an interest in. Ever noticed how people gravitate toward people with passion. When I was a kid, the guy across the street was always tinkering with a Toyota Landcruiser or a Jeep adding new gismos and buying new tools or wiring up some other new fangled invention. People used to come over just to see what he was doing next, in his little workshop. His workshop was like a room of treasures to me.
I mean… who can’t think of a million examples of passion producing great songs, paintings, products (like Apple products) or amazing inventions?
People want to deal with passionate people and passionate people produce GREAT results…
What are you passionate about? What bothers you? What disturbs you? When you see something going dramatically wrong, what types of things do you WISH you could fix.. change… stop.. prevent… destroy… Or build..? What are you DOING about it?!
and… Are you pissing off God/the universe by NOT following that Passion? You – were created for a purpose.
What kind of result do you think that’s going to produce?
