What We've Been Doing the Past Week: Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts for Stony Point & North Rockland

Hurricane Sandy Aftermath. Photo Courtesy of Thomas McGuire

One of the things on people's short list during a hurricane crisis is NOT this: "Golly, I wonder how my website should look tomorrow."

Maslow's hierarchy of needs never included internet access. It includes the most basic of life-sustaining components, such as food, water and shelter.

We realized this even before Hurricane Sandy hit the east coast. So, after ensuring that Rockland Web Design customers' websites, hosting, email and customer relationship management services were up 100% of the time during the crisis, we turned our heads to helping those in need.

We soon learned what an unbelievable need it would be.

Phase 1: Volunteering at Stony Point Ambulance Corps

Sunday night some of us headed down to the Stony Point Ambulance Corp...which was designated temporary shelter for people who would inevitably need to leave their homes while the Hurricane was visiting New York.

In a matter of just 24 hours, many families -- over 60 people -- arrived for food, shelter and clothing. Some even needed to be airlifted from their homes as the waters from the Hudson River increasingly overflowed. We remained at the Ambulance Corps for 5 days, helping our new friends to gather donations from the North Rockland Community, hand out food, and assist in organize meetings between the Town Officials and the residents of the area. It was a daunting but humbling task, and because of the experience I feel even more connected to this wonderful community that I've called home for nearly all of my life.

Nancy Pena Kohout entertains the children of families
affected by Hurricane Sandy

So many businesses and volunteers helped in the effort, which is ongoing. As an example, Dana K9 Scent Detection came in with dogs to make sure that all the donations were safe for distribution to the people affected by the storm. John K. Grant donated 50 brand new pillows. B's Nest Deli brought breakfast and lunch every day, Pizzarena brought italian food every night. Nancy Pena Kohout entertained the chlidren with games and music each evening.

There is much more, I've thanked a few below, but I will write another blog post with the list of as many people / businesses that I can remember.

As things started to get a little more manageable, I turned on my trusty laptop, got a hold of one of my buddies that does database administration, and worked with him to build a comprehensive volunteer and donations database, one which will help to get the right help in the right hands. More on that further on in this blog post.

 

Phase II: Volunteers, Donations and Benefits

The initial safety efforts are winding down, but the cause to help the families that have been permanently displaced from their homes is just beginning. In addition to the temporary shelter that has been kindly provided by the Stony Point Center, we have begun to participate in the organization of several benefits that will raise money for the families. These include donations, gift cards, benefits and fundraisers that will spring up over the coming weeks.

The first step was to set up a central location where all donation and volunteer efforts could be garnered. As we have a close relationship with the members of the North Rockland Chamber of Commerce, we figured this was a logical place to start. 

Please share this website with your colleagues: www.helpnorthrockland.org : Sponsored by the North Rockland Business Alliance (Chamber of Commerce), this is a collaboration with the Town of Stony Point to raise donations and volunteers for direct aid to the families, as well as hold several fundraisers and events that will help ease the distress caused by Hurricane Sandy:

Donate to www.helpnorthrockland.org

• Direct Relief Campaign: Raise $10,000 in direct aid to the families displaced by the Hurricane
• Volunteer Database: Collect volunteer names and information, route volunteers to suitable tasks that need to be performed
• Donation Database: Collect data on types of donations that have been given to the town, cross-reference with those who need certain types of supplies (i.e. diapers for children, clothing for adults of various sizes, gift cards for those needing specific groceries)
• Benefits: We have several benefits that are forming:

Benefit Friday 11/9! Click for details

• Lynch's Restaurant: An elegant evening at Stony Point's newest restaurant, which will feature fine cuisine, live music and more. 
• Hi Tor Bowling Benefit: Bowl all night at this family-friendly event. Percentage of revenue will be donated to the benefit. 
• 2 more in the works...we can't say where yet though. ;-)

• Donation Canisters: We are placing donation canisters all over North Rockland, in support of our effort to raise $10,000 initially. Finally, we have begun talking about helping with a Thanksgiving Dinner which will be specifically for the families affected by the Hurricane. This is also in the nebulous stage of planning, but has a lot of energy behind it. So we are hopeful!

For real-time updates, you can visit: 

• North Rockland Community on Facebook: Run by Diego Aviles and Ellen Donovan, this is the place to get up to date info on Hurricane relief efforts, gas availability, benefit and volunteerism info, and more.
• Rockland Chamber on Twitter: Yes, I know you probably don't use Twitter. Just keep it in mind for the near future, ok? ;-)

I'd like to thank the Academy...

I should emphasize that this is definitely, definitely not something that we are involved in alone - we are just helping out. As I like to say, we're simply happy to be at the table with so many good people. I'd like to thank several of them here, and please forgive me if I forget a few names:

Stony Point Volunteer Ambulance Corps (Mark Engelman and Chelle Cordero)

You tweaked my perspective on life a little more. Thank you for opening up the Corps to so many wonderful people. You provided leadership for people that you didn't even know! Your team over there is amazing, and I hope to be working with you in the near future. (By the way, Chelle is an accomplished author. Please check out her website http://chellecordero.com/

Supervisor Geoff Finn:

Supervisor Geoff Finn, Town Board Member Luanne Konopko address
some of Stony Point community that were affected by Hurricane Sandy

Working the channels between the displaced families, government agencies such as FEMA, and volunteers from all over North Rockland. It was certainly a difficult line to walk, since there are so many requests and positions to fulfill in a short period of time. But he was able to do so with both a heightened energy and grace that impressed me. I'm still not sure how you did it all, but you have my kudos for your efforts without a doubt.

Also a very warm thank you to Executive Assistant Bernadette Kilduff for communicating our nutty ideas to Mr. Finn when he had a moment to breathe.

Town Board Member Luanne Konopko:

Luanne works tirelessly even when there isn't a crisis. In my opinion, she is a non-stop humanitarian who cares about her town, and backs it up with action. In addition to her efforts on the Economic Development Committee and several other efforts to revitalize Stony Point, she was on the front lines every day during the height of the crisis, and kept an open ear to any needs that had to be met. She's still out there working, so if you see her, thank her. If you don't, please take a moment to read this, it's a direct result of her efforts.

(By the way, Luanne...I have your DVDs and books that you left for the people at the shelter to watch. I think we saw you in The Incredibles - lol)

Diego Aviles and Ellen Donovan:

Diego and Ellen drove the social media channels with unbelievable skill. On the North Rockland Community alone, over 2000 people in the community were kept up to date on the latest developments related to the Hurricane, donation efforts, volunteer efforts, the gas crisis (thankfully a temporary one), and are currently communicating all the various benefits we are collectively attempting to promote. Thank you so much for your help...and for your guidance on how to choose the right courses of action.

The Stony Point Center:

Kindly opening their doors to the displaced families after the hurricane, Rick Ufford-Chase and staff such as Paula Sandusky are doing a phenomenal job in ensuring that the families are comfortable as they begin the process of rebuilding their homes, lives and families. In my opinion, the Stony Point Center was the perfect, peaceful retreat for such an endeavor. Notably, they cleared two buildings that were slated for corporate conferences in order to accomodate the families. Beautiful.

The Families:

I think it's important to thank those who directly dealt with their adversity. Regardless of the circumstances, I feel blessed to have been in the midst of such brave people whose struggle to return their lives to some sort of normal, is just beginning.

Over the past week, I've seen incalculable strength in the eyes of these people who have lost the most. One person that was with us was so grateful for even the most basic of amenities, a hot meal, a place for her family to stay, even a hug. You can see she is a caring soul. And she is just one of many.

Even now I want to cry, because her gratitude was a blessing to all of us; it helped me to remember how lucky we are, and how far we still need to travel for others. (Yup, 'scuse me while I get a tissue)

Lionel Mathis and Robert Manfredi

Every once in a while we meet up with people that simply have the same heart and mindset as ourselves. Lionel and Rob were two people who fit that description throughout the Hurricane Crisis. The three of us worked unbelievably well together,  and jumped head-first into any tasks that needed to be performed. As a cohesive unit, we performed tasks as basic as cleaning the floors and distributing food, to organizing donations from the community and now spearheading the benefits that are popping up all over North Rockland!

We met over the weekend to watch the football games, and I have a slight suspicion that we will be working together in the coming months, and perhaps on other endeavors after this work is done. =)

The North Rockland Facebook Community:

If I mentioned everyone that I got to know throughout this crisis, I'd be here until the next election! But you all know who you are, and I look forward to working with you more over the coming months.

Keith Doran from Total Technology:

Thank you for assisting me with the creation of the volunteer & donation database. It is begin put to good use. You got my vote for DB Administrator for any organization, any day of the week.

Anonymous:

There is a very dear friend of mine in particular that I know wishes to remain anonymous. If I convince her to let me write her name here, I'll update this post. But she was there from the very beginning, to the very end of our relief efforts. To her I want to say thank you so much for participating, and showing how much you care about others.

Most Importantly:

Finally, and most importantly I'd like to thank God for being there for all of us through this crisis. We can't do anything without God's help.

Back to work! =)

How to Work at the Beach

Ok, the picture in this post isn't exactly the beach. It's the Hudson River, which is approximately 5 minutes from my house. Yeah I do feel blessed having access to this, especially on the weekends. During the week I'm typically in my office dreaming about being there...

But today I woke up, saw the beautiful weather, and got inspired to go down to the Hudson with my big bag of technology - to see if I could pull off setting up shop there for the day. It worked!

Now, this is not going to work in every line of work. I imagine if you are a surgeon, you might have trouble getting your patient to agree to have a brain transplant while geese are pooping nearby. But if you're lucky enough to have chosen a field where technology helps to make you mobile, then read on.

Truthfully, I needed a lot less than I thought I did. It reminded me of the time I went on a Boy Scout camping trip, loaded up with every possible piece of equipment. I started crying after 5 miles of hiking, and the lighter, faster scouts were kind enough to carry my excess stuff.

So here is what you will need (I think):

1. Laptop - No getting around this one. Even though you might have a cool iPad or tablet, there is nothing more work efficient than a laptop with all your essential programs loaded up on it.

You should also have a mouse and mousepad, as well as a backup battery or two. As an alternative, some locations have power outlets. Make sure you check with the park reps and ask if you are allowed to plug in.

2. A wifi connection - Another absolute necessity. If you have a 3G or 4G data plan you might be able to tether it to your laptop, but there are other ways as well. Sometimes if you are lucky the location has a wifi signal, or a local coffee shop might be close enough to utilize. Either way, make sure you are using any wifi signal you find WITH permission.

3. Mobile phone - Now, you should plan to not make a lot of phone calls if you are at the beach, especially of you have limited minutes. But certainly you want to ensure that you can call your most important clients. Below I will discuss some alternative ways of communicating during your day at the beach...

4. Other communication tools - here's the important stuff.

There are TONS of great programs that will help you stay in touch while you are working at the beach. Here are just a few of them:

A. Skype: If you have a basic US plan (for just $2.99 a month) you can call anywhere in the US. Use this instead of your cell.

B. Google Voice: Use it for incoming calls, route them to your cell or to your Skype number so you can answer them easily. When you return to your office make sure you switch your routing back to your normal phone number.

C. Email: um, this is Captain Obvious, but it had to be said. Oh also Facebook messaging and Tweeting is good. But try to manage all of it in one place, you don't want to keep going back and forth between your laptop and mobile device answering stuff, it is inefficient.

D. Web based team productivity tools: there are great tools for getting your work done with others in the mix. I personally like Manymoon for project management, Zoho CRM for tracking potential deals, and Dropbox to sync important files with colleagues.

5. Optional devices - I gotta say, my life has changed since I got an iPad. It really makes the web...fun again. Even now I am writing this blog post in Starbucks in New City after my awesome workday. So I do recommend that you get a tablet and see your computing life in a different way. And it will help you get work done while you are mobile.

6. Shade - As I quickly learned, it is important to find a shaded area to do your work, since the sun will quickly make you squint over your screen. So bring an umbrella or find a shady spot. Also this may help if for some reason the weather turns against you.

7. Food and drink - because you don't want the parks department to accidentally rake over your lifeless body after you die from starvation for being too work-driven to even take a 10 minute food break.

...not that this happened to me.

8. A plan - you should plan to NOT do certain work at the beach, simply because it won't be effective to do so unless you are back at the office. So before you get to your new spot, have a simple agenda that outlines only the important things you need to, and can accomplish while there.

9. Notification - You should let all necessary colleagues and clients know you will be working outside of the office. You should also - often and early - let your friends know that you are working at the beach, especially the ones that questioned your decision to build your own business, AND are currently stuck in an office or cubicle. :-)

10. Zen - This last one might be something you find at the beach, or perhaps it will find you. But if you go to the beach, lake or any other spot that will be enjoyable, make sure you get up every once in a while and observe the beauty around you.

Even while you are working, listen to the sounds around you. Look up at the ocean or river sometimes. This is what it's all about. No matter if you're crunching numbers, designing websites, performing brain surgery, managing a workforce or writing a law brief, for those small moments that you take in all that is beautiful about the world...you are free.

The Power of Prayer - Business Owner's Edition

Foggy future? Read on...

I don't admit this often, but sometimes money is tight.

I imagine some of you out there reading this can relate. =)

But something magical happened to me a while back, the story of which I'd like to relate to you. In telling you this, I am opening up a part of me that I do not share with the world very often, mainly because it brings up raw feelings of childhood. But since what happened in the scope of this story is so amazing, I had to share it with anyone that might benefit from it, and possibly allow it to enrich their lives.

(As a disclaimer, I was not, nor was my Family ever seriously impoverished, but we had to struggle to make ends meet. There are people that suffer much worse than we did. In comparison, I was the equivalent of a spoiled brat. Just sayin so this story is in the right context.)

So here we go.

A while back I had a serious cash flow problem in my business. I wouldn't necessarily call it a product of the recession, since I try not to pay attention to that. But I had several bills that were increasingly overdue, and needed to be paid or else the whole setup of dominos would fall over in one cataclysmic kersplat. You get my point.

Account receivables were pretty bad. I'm sure you know the feeling when business is flat, but the expenses just keep on coming in like a tidal wave. It is a feeling that is like few others, for me a mix of frustrated, paralyzed and resentful that could easily cause some to just give up and let it all go to poo. Yes, poo.

This one week I had to raise several thousand dollars in a single day. Nothing was really happening that day thus far. It was all quiet, and I was all at the end of my rope. My chest was so tight I thought my heart was going to explode inside of it. I needed to see a light at the end of the tunnel, and I needed it fast. I did have one appointment though...

So a potential client came in to do his scheduled appointment for an initial consultation on his website. It wasn't a signed project, and I didn't expect it to be a big, profitable project. However I did see it as a possible starting point to the rest of the day. If I got through this and it went well, perhaps I could generate some internal momentum to get some things done that would at least save me from total disaster. At this point, partial disaster would be just lovely.

I should also side-note to you that although I am no Saint, I do have a pretty cool Faith in God. Not Bible thumping, but I try to pray each day in a Spirit of being thankful, ask for a blessing before meals, and on occasion read some Scriptures. (GenXers and GenYers: Check out the version of the Bible called "The Message". It is plain English, down to Earth, and sometimes kind of funny. Wikipedia explanation here.) I know it's annoying for most, so I keep it pretty low-key (my friends to tend to bust my chops, but it's all good) I also do believe in miracles, but recognize that those huge "parting of the Red Sea" ones don't really show up too often, like every millenia or something. But perhaps little small, tweaking, unnoticeable "nice, thank you God for the bird that is singing in the window this morning" miracles can and do happen. They are just much more personal.

Anyway, so just before the appointment began, I got down on one knee in my home office, and opened up a quick dialogue with God. I basically said, "God...I need help. I'm on my last thread of Hope. Please - whatever you can do...would be awesome." Note the lack of Hail Mary recitals.

This pic chosen because he
has long hair and he looks cool.

As I closed the prayer, I happened to remember a lyric from a U2 song: "If you wanna kiss the sky, better learn how to to kneel. (On your knees boy)". And at that moment, it gave me some serious comfort, which was counter to the situation at hand. Nothing in the physical realm had actually changed. I was still deeply in short-term debt, and I needed something to happen. But I definitely felt different, as if a weight had been lifted from me. My chest felt a little more relaxed, and I was comfortable enough to do the appointment without feeling the need to close or pressure the client in any way shape or form. (By the way, that high pressure crap doesn't work. Here's why.)

So I went and did the appointment with the potential. Everything actually worked out fairly well with the consultation, and the client was ready to initiate. So I wrote up a contract and set up the terms, which are typically 2/3 at inception and 1/3 at website launch, plus any additional work done that is requested. I proceeded to explain all details of the contract to the person, and he opens his wallet and asks, "Do you mind if I pay you cash up front for the entire thing?"

(Every business owner that accepts checks or credit cards knows that there is a small waiting period when you deposit checks or process cards, ranging from 1-4 days.)

I was flabbergasted. Although this wasn't the entire amount of what I needed to raise, it definitely got things moving in the right direction. Thankfully I was able to maintain external composure and said, "Sure that would be fine. Thank you and I will generate a receipt for you." My original instinct was to cry and hug him, but um, that might not bode well for the client's confidence in getting the project done effectively.

I relate this story because I have a feeling I'm not the only one who has experienced something magical like that happen. If you are a businessperson, or even a person that has to deal with income and expenses a lot, you probably have had a few times where you didn't know how things were going to work out. Somehow, as you look back, was it as bad as you anticipated it would be? Did you hope for some resolution to the problem? Did something cool happen? I hope.

The rest of the day - as well as the week - went quite well. I was able to generate enough money to take care of the most immediate concerns, and the rest I was able to effectively renegotiate for more time, because by that point my belief in one single idea had become more powerful than all the fear I had experienced before. My belief in that single idea helped to "tweak" the physical world, but more importantly it helped to change my outlook on what was going on in the present, and what could possibly happen in the future. It was such a simple idea, but I had to embrace it again for the first time like a little boy that somehow knows without being told what it is. And it is an idea that I hope that will help you in your Earthly travels, especially when you are ready to give up on your last glimmer of hope. It's a very comforting idea...

God is watching. =)

LinkedIn 201 Workshop - Saturday Nov 12, at 2 pm

Our second LinkedIn Seminar will be at the Haverstraw Library this Saturday November 12, from 2 to 5 pm. Last week we had our first annual workshop on this topic, and went into the basics of creating a profile, filling out your profile, connecting with your business associates, and joining groups. (Please click here to download the PDF file for LinkedIn 101.)

This week we will be looking at the various applications that you can use through LinkedIn, such as Box.net, Slideshare, and other useful tools. We will also cover LinkedIn mobile, to allow you access to your connections from the road, as well as further discussing the psychology of posting to your profile.

Closer to God...through technology?

A good friend and business associate of mine recently started creating podcasts of individual chapters of the Bible, and posts them at his website scriptures.podbean.com. I must say, he has a great voice for reading out loud. Everything is very clear to understand and enjoyable to hear...not an easy feat to say the least.
It also prompts an interesting phenomenon in our culture today, the use of technology to give and receive Religious and Spiritual messages. I find it very encouraging that people are using computers, phones, websites and more to stay close to God, regardless of Religious affiliation.
I'm no Saint. I have done my fair share of stupidity during my existence thus far, and I'm sure that I'll do more. But cool this like my friend's website help me to stay on target with the fundamental (not fundamentalIST, mind you) beliefs that I grew up with as a kid: 1. Believe in God 2. Obey God. Simple as that. The rest is training.
Here are some other things I use to stay on the Path:
+ RSS Feeds: I can keep up to date with my friends podcast, right from my phone.
+ YouVersion: Mobile Bible App you can download for your iPhone or Android device.
+ Facebook: There's a few good people that I've friended that update their statuses with Spiritual messages. Always good to see them amongst the 8000 messages about people doing laundry and some think our country sucks and blah blah.
+ Email subscriptions: I subscribe to some nice websites, like Tres Dias, Guideposts.
Again I must emphasize that I'm nobody special, and this post isn't intended to brag or push anyone. However it is to let you know that if you do have a basic belief in God (or even if you just feel the presence of a Higher Power...), and you want to stay reminded of that Faith, Presence, or stay on your rightly guided Path, consider using one or more of the tools described as above.

Wordpress 101 Whitepaper Available for Download

For all of you who came to the Rockland Web Design Wordpress Seminar, we thank you. =)

In conjunction with our free seminar at the Haverstraw Public Library on September 17, 2011 at 2 pm, we have created a 38-page presentation which will act as a supplement to all the cool stuff we'll be talking about in the seminar.

You can download the Wordpress 101 guide here.

Stay tuned for more of our seminars. You can view some upcoming seminars by going to Rockland Web Design's site here. Also, if you have suggestions for other seminars, please let us know by calling us at (845) 877-7333.

Quick blog post: Our Freebie Website offering for new businesses is gaining rapid steam! If you need more information on this great package for startup businesses with a very very small budget (nothing wrong with that, we've all been there), give us a call at (845) 877-7333.

Twitter: The Almost-Forgotten Social Network

In between all the buzz about Facebook going IPO next year, LinkedIn gone public this year, and Google launching a new Social Network called Google+, we've nearly forgotten about our little friend Twitter.

Nearly.

Slowly but surely, over the past few years I have been following people here and there via @rocklandweb, primarily for entertainment purposes such as @DeathStarPR, @DanielTosh, and other funny users. But I also follow up on how Rockland Web Design's clients are growing and building their respective businesses. Primarily I do this using my laptop, but every once in a while I'll follow someone via mobile updates. Today I followed HP's Social Media exec brynaatp to see if I could get a hold of one of those tasty $99 HP Touchpads. So if Bryna posts at 3 am that they are getting a shipment in at 4 am that morning, I'm right on it!

For those of you that don't tweet via your mobile device but might have an interest, below are some really really easy ways to do so. Mind you, you do not have to follow everyone via your mobile, only specific people! This makes things a little more manageable.

You can find more information on using devices with Twitter here.

Twitter commands

Do more than Tweet! Send these commands to Twitter:

FOLLOW username

Start following a user

UNFOLLOW username

Stop following a user

ON/OFF

Turn all Tweet notifications on or off

ON/OFF username

Set Tweet notifications for a user on or off (you'll still be following them even if you set it to off)

GET username

Shows you the latest tweet from any user

RT username

Retweet a user's latest tweet

FAV username

Favorite a user's latest tweet

D username your-message

Send a direct message to a user

The @Font-Face Lift - An Easy Way to Pretty Up Your Website

I don't know about you, but if I see one more website with an Arial or a Times New Roman font, I'm going to deeply stick a razor into the biggest vein on my arm.

Not that I don't find them useful. For many years, Arial and Times New Roman were the de facto standards for "web-safe fonts", which is a fancy way of saying that these were fonts

that would show up on pretty much any browser no matter what you're using: Firefox, Safari, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer (or as we call that last one - the scourge of mankind that will not die). You could be in Yemen, on a foreign browser created by a Taliban warlord that just harvested and tested opium poppy seeds, and yup...Arial or Times New Roman!

Then there were a few fallback fonts: there was Verdana, which always sounded like a classier font, but the truth is that it is simply a fatter Arial. So if you ever

read a Verdana font that says "do i look fat??" respond back immediately with a vehement "of course not, sweetie."

Comic Sans: Honestly, my favorite font. I always thought it went well with our cartoon logo. But of course, it is cartoonish. So it might not be the best font for, say...a funeral home. You don't wanna go to find out when your loved one's services are about to transpire at Wally's Wild Water World .com or something. Go bury your loved one and get 15% off the mega water slide.

I'm probably getting a little irreverent at this point so I'll say for the record now;

I apologize if I have offended anyone. But I am pretty stoked about something I just saw on one of our client's blogs, which is a completely new font! You can see it here: www.vacationonyourmind.com. BTW Rockland Web Design can't take credit for that one,

Kathi Handt has a very talented relative that was able to set it up that way in her Blogger account, which unbeknownst to me is a new setting in the system. When I heard about this I checked it out and changed my own blog font.

So a little background just in case you are getting confused why this wasn't able to happen in years past: Every computer (including the one you are on) has a set of fonts installed inside. Then, when that computer goes to a website, the page that shows up tells the computer what font to use to display the text on the page. The problem of course, occurs when a certain font (such as Futura, Gothic or Amazing Grace) is not installed on a computer. Then all that shows up is nothing, or in most cases the backup font. Guess what that is? Yup, Arial or Times. Ugh.

What changed? A seldom-used technique called @font-face. I won't bore you with details, but essentially it makes the font in question hang out on the website, and when somebody goes to the aforementioned website, the pages will temporarily install that font on the computer that is being used. Pretty simple, huh? Unfortunately, few people used it up until now.

But designers are starting to catch on. And when something reaches a critical mass and starts getting used more, it reduces the cost needed to install on a website. This means that now, if you have a website, you can probably have an @font-face setup installed for just a few hours of work from your friendly neighborhood Spiderman (um, web designer). Wallah! Instantly, your website looks a little less vanilla, a little sexier, and more likely to attract people to stick around.

The reason why you want to do this is that it is a very easy way to change your entire website with very little effort. And when you change, update and modify your website often, it is a great way to have your customers coming back for more! Aesthetics definitely count, and if you pay attention to them, you won't end up with yet another customer leaving because he subconsciously got turned off by a fat arial. Rather, he (or she) will stick around - Amazing Grace is on the screen, and it is quite the bedazzling @font-face, one which certainly encourages a few extra clicks over to the shopping cart, contact form, or phone to give a buzz.

The Meaning of Customer Service

You know, for many years I have heard people boast about "customer service" in their business being the thing that sets them apart. And I always thought that something like that should be pretty freaking Captain Obvious. But I'd like to share with you a story that will open your eyes a bit; it certainly has done so for me...

A few weeks ago I dropped into The Chuggin Rhino after work for a well-deserved drink. (They are located on the corner of route 45 and 202 in Pomona, just down the block from the Rockland Boulders Stadium)

I sat down at a table by myself, and the waitress promptly came over to take my order. I ordered my usual Sam Adams draft and a burger that is the size of a small country. (I've had them before at the Chug...they're good.)

Anyway after a few minutes I got kind of restless and wanted to read the newspaper. I asked the waitress if she had one in the back, and she said "Let me go check." A minute later she asked which one I wanted, and I said the Journal News. Then she was gone for about 5 minutes...

When she returned, she gave me what looked like a new newspaper. So I asked her "Did you go out and buy this?" She said yes. I was astounded - later I asked her why she did this, and she said that the owner, John Rodriguez has always emphasized making the customers feel as comfortable as possible. She also said that she knows that some customers don't always feel like talking to other patrons and there is usually a newspaper there. On this day, it seems someone discarded it already, so she went out and got a fresh one for me. (She also joked with a wink that she knows it increases her tip. She was very right and deservedly so!) I thanked her for being so courteous.

A few minutes later, I went outside to make a phone call. When I returned, I noticed that the burger I was eating was gone. Before I could ask questions, a waiter came back with it, put it on the table again, and explained that he put it under a heat lamp to keep it warm, while I was outside making my call!

Wow.

I'll tell you this: From this experience alone I have recommitted to the practice of giving good customer service for everyone who needs work from Rockland Web Design. For many years, I focused on various elements of building the foundation of the business: marketing, design process, seo, social media, administration, infrastructure, and a whole lot of other things that segment my time. And a lot of it involves numbers, numbers numbers.

But I've come to realize that numbers alone do not make a successful business. Everyone that encounters us has to come away from the experience with that same "wow" that I got at the Chuggin Rhino that day. They should all be smiling like they just got the best...burger of their life!

I won't be following up with a post on how we pride ourselves on customer service. I just hope we simply perform more acts in the future that allow us to continually improve, and be able to smile at our customers when they thank us at the end, responding with a "...no worries, hope to see you again soon."

I hope you do the same in your business. Especially if your business prides itself on customer service.

Wordpress 101 Whitepaper Available for Download

For anyone who wants to use Wordpress to better promote their online business, we've created the de-facto guide for using it!

In conjunction with our free seminar at the Haverstraw Public Library on July 28, 2011 at 3 pm, we have created a 38-page presentation which will act as a supplement to all the cool stuff we'll be talking about in the seminar.

You can download the Wordpress 101 guide here.

Stay tuned for more of our seminars. You can view some upcoming seminars by going to Rockland Web Design's site here. Also, if you have suggestions for other seminars, please let us know by calling us at (845) 877-7333.

9 Ways to Spot an Email Virus or Dangerous Attachment

I just got a great email question from my friend David Reinhardsen of Hudson Photo Works. In it, he was trying to figure out if a chain letter email he got was legitimate. The text that was passed along read like this:

...You may receive an apparently harmless e-mail titled "Here you have it" If you open the file, a message will appear on your screen saying: 'It is too late now, your life is no longer beautiful....Subsequently, you will LOSE EVERYTHING IN YOUR PC, And the person who sent it to you will gain access to your Name, e-mail and password...

I responded that a good way to check if an email chain is valid would be to verify using snopes.com. They are a good independent source to determine if you're getting your leg pulled, or worse yet - something else. :-)

In this particular case, the chain email was indeed a hoax, as verified here: http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/lifeisbeautiful.asp

However it's always good to be safe rather than sorry. Generally it is a good idea to be careful of attachments and web links from strange places. When you get an email from someone, if there is an attachment or a link in the email, pay close attention to the following (color coded for your viewing pleasure):


1. Is the item addressed just to you, or to many, many people?
2. Is the link or attachment's contents clearly explained?
3. Were you expecting something from that person?

4. Do you know the person who emailed you?
5. Is the link or attachment's contents clearly explained?

6. Is the text of the email very vague, like "Check this out"
7. Is the text misspelled like it was done by a 1st grader?

8. Is the file attached an executable file (does it have a .exe. extension)
9. If you put your mouse over the link, does the address it shows look like a really, really weird link, like xdflihsefon.ne.efg.gu? (That's just an example)

The darker the color on the numbered items above, the more likely the danger. Items 8 and 9 are very dangerous!

If one or more of these things occur, stop before you open up the link or attachment. in that case, the best practice is to contact that individual (call or a new email - not reply back) and find out what is going on with that attachment.

As always, try to use your gut instinct.

Death to Internet Explorer 6

For those of you on Internet Explorer 6, we encourage you to check this website out - straight from Microsoft:

http://ie6countdown.com/

Before I start ranting and raving like a lunatic, I'd like to thank Ryan Trotz, developer extraordinaire for pointing me to this website.

We at Rockland Web Design HATE (with a passion) Internet Explorer 6. It's 10 years old, and Internet Explorer 7, 8, and now 9 (for Windows 7) have come out. If you're worried about security, don't be -- the new browsers are just as secure (or more) than this legacy browser that does not even have support from Microsoft anymore. Imagine driving around an old car that doesn't have any parts available for it when something goes wrong on it. THAT is IE6.

Worse, web designers across the globe have to backwards code all their designs with the premise that someone, somewhere will be using this browser. It's nothing against them, but the downside for the customer is that new, innovative features that can be used in a website cannot be added, because IE6 will not support those new features.

If I sound passionate about this, you better believe it. One prominent developer recently indicated to me that he spends 20% of his time coding backwards for this awful, awful bane of our technological existence.

Anyway, PLEASE consider upgrading if you haven't done so already. Here are a few links to some fantastic browsers out on the market that you can put on your PC for FREE:

• Google Chrome - My favorite. It is light, fast and very customizable.
• Mozilla Firefox - This browser is the popular alternative for Internet Explorer
• Internet Explorer - If you are worried about switching to another browser, don't. Just upgrade to one that was created during this decade! LOL

I really hope you click on one of those links. For now we will support IE6. But one day in the near future, the time will come when we can finally put that terrible web browser out of its misery...and ours. And on that day, I shall have a cold, frosty Sam Adams in celebration of a Brave New World.

Search Engines, Our Puny Human Brain...and Jeopardy??

Last week, a giant leap forward in the world of technology occurred. No, Call of Duty: Libya Edition has not been released yet. I'm talking about the Jeopardy exhibition match between IBM's new mega computer, Watson, and former Jeopardy masters Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. While our carbon-based brothers put up a good fight, ultimately Watson and the programming geniuses at IBM walked away with the 1-million dollar grand prize, which will go to two charities.

What I found interesting was Ken Jennings' dissertation thereafter on Slate.com about his experiences with the IBM Super Computer on Jeopardy. He brought up a word that I find to be extraordinarily important in the world of Search Engine Optimization, and just good writing in general. That word is contextual.

Contextual information is data which unravels the overall or general meaning of a given topic.

So, for instance if you hear the word cheesy, you might think the term is referring to one of my awfully-timed jokes (I pray you are never a victim of my attempt to make you laugh......), until I brought up the term lasagna. Now the word takes on a whole new meaning; you've detected a pattern in the topic and begun to unravel the overall context of the root word or discussion.

In the case of his article on Watson and Jeopardy, Jennings stated that he saw very similar patterns between the ways that Watson unravels and responds to clues and that of his own methods:

That machine zeroes in on key words in a clue, then combs its memory (in Watson's case, a 15-terabyte data bank of human knowledge) for clusters of associations with those words. It rigorously checks the top hits against all the contextual information it can muster: the category name; the kind of answer being sought; the time, place, and gender hinted at in the clue; and so on. And when it feels "sure" enough, it decides to buzz.

Contextualization is soooo important for both humans and machines. It allows both the ability, as Jennings noted in both himself and Watson, the ability to get to that main point, and respond accordingly.

A funny thing to also note above is Jennings' view of how humans and machines think very much alike. Granted, there is a significant speed advantage for the computer, but the point is that if enough time were allotted, both human and machine would arrive at the same conclusion, especially since the machine is patterned after human engrams.

(Human engrams...anybody remember the M-5 from Star Trek? Daystrom? Sorry, cultural reference...)

Watson was a major step forward in the advancement of computers, but it is also a wonderful opportunity to glimpse into the mind of a machine that is geared toward searching for answers. Now, let's take a step back and think about search engines for a moment; are not Google, Yahoo, Bing and other engines geared to do pretty much the same thing? You type something in the search box, and Google will seek out the best possible answers to your query, all in a matter of milliseconds.

So what most people do in order for their site to rank well is to add content, and lots of it. Nothing wrong with that, but the writing is geared toward getting it ranked well by the engine, not developing the proper context of the article for the humans to consume and gain knowedge. This is all wrong, since as we noted above, the computer was developed with the likeness of the human, not the other way around.

I'm not saying this like this is new to all of us, I'm saying it more as a reminder. A lot of times when we are writing for our websites, blogs, social profiles, and other search-engine related material, we are writing with the hopes that the machines will pick up our information and present it to somebody sitting in their suit or pajamas and invite them in. The problem is that we've lost touch with the more important one to write our stuff for ---the actual human being seeking the information. Humans are not looking for a stupid search-engine optimized article with tons of keywords and weird heading tags that don't even seem to make sense, they're looking for a real article on how to solve their real problem.

Stephen Chapman of ZDnet today described an unsavory version of this as "article spinning", where you basically regurgitate an article you find on the web in your own words. The purpose, again, is to placate the search engines, with no regard for the humans that ultimately stumble upon it. It's a really awful practice, and the funny thing is that the net result is that it's not even useful. The humans that ultimately land on such a page won't even stay long enough for the content to matter, anyway.

When you write your content for the web, write as if you're talking one on one with somebody. It takes some knack, I admit. but if you can refine your practice, the most difficult part of adding unique content to your site will be 90% complete. Then go back and edit a little bit, sprinkle a few good keywords in there for the search engines (Maximum 5% keywords range), and adjust the tags of your site accordingly.

Above all, the most important endeavor is to make sure you've gotten the main point of your article across to the user - the context of the writing should be crystal clear, so that when the user moves on to a new topic, the one just observed is completely understood from your point of view.

In conclusion, don't try to think like a computer. You already are one. Since computers are trying to be built like you, there's no need to try to impress it. Rather, think like the human that you are, have an opinion, and welcome the opportunity for others to benefit from it when they visit your blog, website or social profile.

Social Media's ROI: CHANGE.

For the last 5 years, I've heard the question "Where's the ROI" used in conjunction with Social Media more often than "Where's the Beef" back in the 1980's.

The problem is that most people try to take platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn, and use them for some sort of direct Business or Financial gain. But as you've probably seen over the years, that rarely works.

Some have used the platforms as a branding tool. While this certainly has value, if the branding conversation is one-sided (i.e. the business throws a few posts per week at its followers, but doesn't directly respond to reply questions or discussions), then the net result can be a perceived lack of authenticity. This can kill a brand faster than a bad Groupon commercial:

I remember about 5 years ago I was talking with a trusted mentor of mine in the web development community, and I told him that Facebook was going to be a very important platform, and we should develop and integrate our websites in conjunction with it. He responded that he just doesn't see the value of Facebook and other Social Media, and it would be pointless to change anything we are doing, or try to develop any sort of interface that would be useful for our customer base at that time. In a rare divergence of opinion with him, I decided to use the platform to try and better connect with my community - obviously there was a business purpose, but I endeavored to do it in a more authentic, upfront manner than just putting up a post and expecting the world to respond to it. To this day, when I log on, I try more to see what others are doing rather than focus on posting my own things.

This week we've again seen just how effective Social Media can be as a communication tool. As a result of Facebook and Twitter, Egypt's Hosni Mubarek was removed from power. What happens next is anybody's guess, and hopefully the transition will be as peaceful as can be. But the point has been made, that when people organize around any cause that is near and dear to their hearts, significant change can be the result.

As a businessperson, this may not directly affect you, but you can certainly garner some interesting conclusions on what has happened in Egypt, and how powerful Social Media's influence can be in creating change:

1. If you are not listening to the voice of the people whom you serve, you and your business can become obsolete in short amount of time. Think about it...did we even consider Egypt just a few short weeks ago? Yet on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc., people were organizing and discussing issues, and came to the collective conclusion that it was time to change the system.

2. Even people with limited resources are able to connect, organize and ignite change using Facebook. Thus it makes more sense than ever to always keep these powerful voice in mind as you are growing your business.

3. On the Internet, money does not equal power. The will of the people equals power. Thus, you cannot directly attribute ROI to every online endeavor, rather steer your business in the direction of what best serves your audience.

4. Keep tabs on new innovations. My guess is that the Mubarek government had very little idea that such a revolution could occur in just a matter of weeks. When they realized, they tried to shut down the Internet, which backfired. In addition to listening to the voice of the people, it is very important to stay current on the latest technological innovations. Try out a new service each week, just to see if there is any value to it. If there is, it might help you, your business and your client base. (One that I recently became interested in is Convore - check it out)

I often talk about the reverse 80/20 rule, in which 80 percent of your time on Social Media should be spent listening, serving and conversing with others on random things that build connections with your friends and audience. The other 20 percent of the time is used on the ROI-building activities, such as discussing new services, advertising events, and other endeavors that are profitable. While the 80 percent may not bring direct results, it does wonders for you and your business in terms of reputation.

You may not ever have to deal with a revolution as monumental as that of Egypt, but you can certainly be a part of the community that creates positive change. To do this, consider embracing some of the ideas mentioned above. It will change your business, and more importantly...it will change you - in my opinion, for the better.

Finding Business Value in Those "Stupid Facebook Games"

I hear it over and over again...

• "I don't have time to waste on Facebook games"
• "There's absolutely no point to playing Facebook Games"
• "I can't stand getting 800 Facebook Game invitations"

Yeah, I admit it is kind of annoying after the 742nd time you get invited to play Mafia Wars, or other games that at the core hold no interest to you. Quite frankly, after playing Farmville on and off for a few months, I finally got to the point myself thinking "What's the point"?

After all, I ended up getting in a monotonous routine everyday of checking my farm for 15 minutes, harvesting the crops, planting new seeds, adding new farm equipment, making sure all the neighbors were visited. It was almost like I was married. :-D

So I took a hiatus, and ended my Farmville days for a good 4-5 months. I thought that I was done. But then my good friend Heather convinced me to jump back in the fold with a new game, Cityville. It's basically the same concept as Farmville except you are in control of building an entire city.

Along the way you deal with a variety of easy challenges, such as supplying the local business vendors with goods, collecting rent, building infrastructure, working together with your friends to help their cities, and making sure your consumer population is kept happy as much as possible.

Sound anything like what you do in business each day?

As crazy as it sounds, I have found real value in playing this silly game for a little while each day. (And I owe it to Heather for convincing me. Yes, Heather you can rub it in for as long as you want)

In addition to the game being a much needed quick break from the normal pressures we deal with at Rockland Web Design, it has also helped as a small set of reminders of the all-important basics in building one's business (or city - LOL). See if you find any below that might help you:

• Planning: As your business grows, you need to continually plan ahead to make sure everything continues to run smooth, and it is growing the way you want it to grow.
  
  
• Organization: Every once in a while you can notify your friends about special coin bonuses and other things that you can post to your wall. Because I don't want to annoy people that are not playing the game, I decided to create a special list in Facebook just for my friends that play CityVille. It only took about 10 minutes to build, and now I don't bother anyone but people that play the game, and are happy (I hope) to see updates on my wall.
  
  We have a great video tutorial on our free Rockland Web Design Help Forum which shows you how to build lists in the new Facebook (as of Dec 2010. It'll probably change in 6 months).
  
  
• Logistics: Sometimes you'll run low on supplies. You need to have shipments arrive or farm crops harvested to supply your local businesses, to keep customers happy.
  
  
• Energy: If you do too much yourself, you'll run out of energy. (Sound familiar?) So you need to pace yourself, or try to get other neighbors to help you.
  
  
• Helping others: When you visit and help other neighbors, you can actually gain energy, experience and a few extra dollars. It is probably one of the most important reminders of the game, that if you do unto others as you would want them to do unto you, it will benefit everyone in a Good way.
  
  
• Growing: You'll also gain cash and property rewards (sorry, only virtual) for your efforts. But don't get too hung up on that part. As even Donald Trump said in "The Art of the Deal", he was never really that interested in money, except as a scorecard.
  
  
• Fun: Sometimes if you give yourself a break and distract yourself with a silly game like this, it actually makes you feel better. Imagine that. :-) Oh and also it might make you more productive. A recent study by the University of Melbourne indicated that using Facebook or Twitter at work can help you and other workers more productive by 9%.

If you see anything in the list items above that might hold value to you, I encourage you to try out CityVille, or perhaps another game offered on the platform. Of course, I do urge a bit of caution --- anything not used in moderation can be detrimental. Here are a few quick tips before starting:

1. Talk with a few of your trusted friends about their favorite games. If you hear of one that may entice you, check it out.
   
   
2. Be careful of your privacy settings. As you probably know, many Facebook game makers (notably Zynga) take lack of Privacy to a terribly new level. Before starting, go to the Account >> Privacy Settings in the top right corner of your Facebook account and change or remove anything you don't like.
   
   My best rule of thumb for privacy on Facebook is to never put any info (Your real birthdate, private email address or private phone number) on the platform that you don't want the world to know. I know it sound scary, but it isn't as long as you follow that simple rule.
   
   
3. Don't sign up for games that make you look bad. Not that I have anything against people that play Drug Dealer Shootout Part III (no that is not a game, stop looking for it), but I don't want to play something that might post to friends that I do business with. Thus, I don't play such games.
   
   If you are in the public eye, just be careful what you sign up for. You never know when a fundamentalist radical, um...person might let the whole world think that you did something bad, even if you didn't.
   
   
4. Sign up for the game. Again, when you are told that the game will access some of your information, be careful not to give away anything you don't want to hand over. If you feel too uncomfortable, don't sign up.
   
   
5. Follow the basic game instructions. You'll likely be walked through a few quick tutorials on how to add friends, perform tasks and gain bonuses. This will be the enjoyable part, so just go with the flow. Likely you'll want to add some neighbors; seek out those that are already playing the game, or are cool with you inviting them. Don't send to people that you feel are not interested, it will simply piss them off.
   
   Oh and a side note - you don't need to pay real money in most of these games. Yes the game will go slower, but again it is just a game. Work with your neighbors to achieve goals and you will advance anyway. (Disclaimer: I am not saying the game makers do not deserve money, they worked hard to develop it. If you truly enjoy the game, consider visiting the company's site and looking into making a small monetary, one time donation.
   
   
   
6. Give yourself a time limit when playing. Again, everything in moderation. I recommend about 15 minutes. Set some sort of timer, because these games can hook you for hours if you are not careful.
   
   The browser Google Chrome has a great extension that you can add, called StayFocused, which automatically shuts off any website after you use it for an allotted amount of time. You can tweak the settings, add websites that you want to go easy on, and other things. It's very useful, and it keeps you disciplined to what you configured for your brain. :-)
   
   
7. Know when to end. At some point, you're going to start to get the feeling that you've mastered the game, you've learned all there is to learn, and there is really no point to playing anymore. Unlike real relationships - which God willing will always have a new dynamic to them until the day we leave this existence - we must remember that this is merely a game.
   
   Thus, at that point you should really consider packing it in. In this case, do the polite thing and let your friends know that you are calling it quits. Then, if possible see if you can delete all your settings in the game, so that you don't leave any personal information with a company that has come to an end of its usefulness.

I hope this blog was useful to you. I always try to find some sort of reason for why we do the things we do. Some businesspeople will still look at this post and say "Are you nuts? There is still no ROI! Where's the ROI??"

To this I say that the investment you make is a little bit of your time, and the return is a new experience that, like many others that we encounter, help us to see life just a little more different than we perceived it before. After all, isn't that where the fun is?

Try it out. You might smile a little more today.

An Email to a Friend about Facebook

A week ago I got an email from a good friend and business associate who asked some questions about Facebook. He wanted to understand how to effectively communicate on the Network, in a way that was both efficient, and more importantly, effective. I asked him if I may republish my email to him, and he agreed. I hope it is helpful to you as well.

---

Tom:

I notice you’ve made a lot of “friend” suggestions on Facebook to me recently. I was wondering if you have a particular strategy regarding the people you suggest?

I have a basic strategy, but I admit it is not a whiteboarded/heavily planned one.

I have several lists of friends. Personal, business1 (people I've personally met that do business in the region), business2 (they are business oriented but I don't know them personally), acquaintences, etc. When I sent suggestions to you , I sent ones of people that were on the business1 list. Further, I didn't send everyone I know to you , as I understand that not everyone might be a mutually advantageous friend on Facebook.

But sometimes I will recommend a friend or two that is simply an interesting soul. I believe Facebook is a place to expand horizons in many directions, including non-business. Even this can help business down the road. Remember Facebook started out as a college socialization tool. (by the way maybe we can all get together and go see "The Social Network"!)

I still don’t really get how I can use Facebook strategically (LinkedIn is an obvious tool for me).

Think branding and strategy, not instant sales and tactical activities. They are important too, but it's more about being an active participant in various communities, be they business, charitable or otherwise. If you participate, they remember you...

There are certain ongoing activities you should perform on a daily basis, such as:

1. Post status update (80% interesting articles, wise ponderings, interesting life experiences that you think people might comment back on) and 20% business message (hey I hope to see you at the networking group this week, etc.)

2. Comment on other people's posts: VERY VERY VERY important: after you post a status update, go to your Facebook news feed and comment / like other people's posts. It comes down to the rule "people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care". Only comment on things that you genuinely have an opinion on, or you can simply click the like button if you like the post. Feel free to be a little humorous, quirky or unique. This is welcomed with most in the Facebook community.

If I were in a retail business or a B2C business, I could be “friends” with just about anyone. But I get confused by friend requests from people who I may have little or nothing in common with. If someone sends an invitation NOT from a suggestion of a friend (you) and I don’t know them and don’t seem to have common interests, I ignore it.

Believe me, I do get selective with adding people I don't know. Sometimes I'll send a message back asking who are you, how do I know you, why do you want to be friends, but generally speaking I don't put a heavy guard up unless I think they are potentially unsavory as a Facebook friend. You can generally get a feel for this by simply looking at what type of stuff they post on their wall, prior to friending them. If you see that most of their stuff is centered around making it to level 127 of the game mafia wars, run. :-D (Not that there's anything wrong with Mafia Wars - lol)

But when someone fitting that profile sends an invitation at the suggestion of a friend, I feel a little uncomfortable.

Feel free to always ask the person who originally sent the friend suggestion.

How do I maintain a balance between personal and business relationships on Facebook?

One word: lists. Start with a personal and a business list. If you are a more private individual, begin by simply communicating with your close family and friends, not business associates. If you use Facebook first to communicate back and forth with family and close close friends, you will eventually be comfortable with expanding outward into the Facebook business community, with a more well rounded understanding of how to effectively communicate with that demographic.

This is actually backed up by one of the ultimate core books "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", in which Stephen Covey states that we need to first work on our circle of influence (the people places and things that we can help make a positive difference in), and only then will our circle of concern (that which we WANT to be able to change) expand. If we apply that to Facebook communities, we should first be genuine with those we trust, and then we will be able to be genuine and comfortable with others.

Thanks for the great questions!

Tom

Social Media: Creating a Good Routine

Good morning! (Wanted to start with that...)

So I'm sitting outside with my laptop responding to a few emails, etc. this morning, and I got a message from a friend mentioning that she is starting up with doing a little Social Media, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. She has a great website that encourages people to navigate successfully through their midlife years with a variety of tools such as e-books, audio interviews and blog posts. Check her out here at http://www.midlifeunlimited.com/.

Anyway, since I am very big on Social Media I decided to give her some unsolicited advice about how to go about it successfully. Below is the message I sent her:

Social Networking: I recommend the book The Zen of Social Media Marketing, by Shama Kabani. I got it from the library last month and am just about done with it. Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are all discussed, and ties in the importance of your website as the place where you want to attract people.

15-30 minutes a day in the morning, you should start by posting a status update, and then reach out to your friends, colleagues, clients and consumers (in that order) by simply saying hi and responding to their posts. Then, every week make sure you have a compelling offer that people see on their social about you...such as a sale, a new product or service or a new blog post / whitepaper. Add the link to your website or blog to bring them there and talk about it.

Wow that was so good I think I'll expand on it in a blog. Go tohttp://blog.rocklandwebdesign.com/ in like 15 minutes.

Aside from the last admittedly A.D.D. and slightly arrogant line, the information is sound. See, the problem with Social Media is that it is so easy to get sucked into it the wrong way - and instead of connecting with like-minded people that you can help and they can help you, you end up playing Farmville for 49 hours a week, and become addicted to responding to people that are ROFLing while 'doing laundry'. Oh the mirth of it all.

So what do ya do? Well the advice above, broken down a bit more, goes like this:

1. Every week, start out with a plan to offer something new and compelling - a sale, a blog post, an e-book, a video, something that you feel will benefit others, and to a small degree, yourself. (Note: As I get older, I realize it is not a bad thing to offer something that benefits oneself - However it should always benefit others as well. If it is not a mutual benefit, do not offer it. Uh, did I stress that enough? :-))
   
   
2. Now - go to your favorite Social site: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and start off the day with a nice basic post about something that is going on in your life. I don't recommend starting off with the offer. Hold it in your hand, like a good curveball that you can use when the time is right. So put something out there that is fun and interesting - not just doing the laundry. Post it across all Social Networks.
   
   
3. Here is the important part: After you post, go to your news feed of where your friends and colleagues are posting, and respond back with genuine interest. You don't even have to say anything intelligent, you can simply 'like' their post, which is similar to voting in their favor. And truly empathize with people if they are having a difficult time. This should only take 10 minutes or so.
   
   
4. Throughout the day, you'll get a smattering of emails here and there, with post updates from those you've commented on. You don't need to respond to all of them - just hit delete - but if there's any that you want to further the conversation on, click on the link to reply back.
   
   
5. Sometime in the week, you will want to use your curveball. I can't explain exactly when the time is right...everyone has their own unique instinct to feeling out when it is right. All I can say is that when you feel the time is right, don't hesitate. As the late Patrick Swayze said in Point Break, hesitation will make your worst fears come true. Just do it, gosh darn it!
   
   So...curveball = post the message about your compelling offer. For instance, right now we are offering a new service at Rockland Web Design: Digitize Your Business Documents. However the time isn't right to mention it right now, perhaps sometime this week! ;-)
   
   Oh, one more thing...as Shama says in the Zen of Social Media (great book), "Always attract people back to your website." That is the end point where you want people to be.

I am so glad I saw my friend's message today. She gave me the inspiration to write this new blog post. I hope it is useful to her, and others that happen to come across it.

Tom Ossa

Rockland Web Design

(845) 877 - 7333

P.S. If you want an early preview of the Digitize Your Business Documents Service, contact us by going here. Mention your interest in the comments area. Thanks!