Saturday, October 30, 2010

Link Building - Hit on your vendors!

One simple way that I can think of to build links is to hit on all my vendors.

If you've done some graphics work for me, before I've even paid your bill, I have sent you an email with a quote endorsing your work and suggested that you post it on  your website. And, I've included the link back to me that I want.

My graphics people feel that I'm being helpful to them by providing them credibility to help with their marketing. And I'm getting links.

To like or share, to tweet or to follow?

I've put together a reasonable social media strategy across my range of sites. I'm now interested in optimizing it.

In places where I put up Facebook icons, I've had to decide whether to ask them to:
- like our facebook account
- like our web page
- share it to their Facebook account

On Twitter, I have to choose between an icon that:
- tweets a suggested message
- follows our tweets

Does anyone have any insight or methodology or case studies on how to compare the benefits or optimize at this level?

Friday, October 29, 2010

Private domain registrations hurt email deliverability

I read (on The Institute on Social Internet Policy website) but I'm not sure that I believe that:
...one of the first things many email delivery and anti-spam specialists will do when presented with a “is this spam?” situation, is do a WHOIS lookup on the domain - either the sending domain, or the domain being advertised as a link in the email.


And guess what happens if that WHOIS returns nothing but “this domain is privately registered”, with no way to really determine who is behind the domain - with nobody willing to take responsiblity for the domain - nobody saying “if there is a problem, the buck stops here”?


You look like someone with something to hide.

And if you have something to hide - or even look like you have something to hide - your email isn’t going to get delivered. After all, if you aren’t willing to put your name to your business, then why should you expect an ISP to deliver the email from that business.


They won’t, and you shouldn’t.


Private domain registrations. A bad idea for legitimate email sending businesses.


What do you think?

Thursday, October 28, 2010

A Book Worth Reading

I've been told and so I'm making a note of it that this is worth reading:


The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture

by John Battelle
 
I'll sample it on my Ipad and see if its worth it.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

I know Bob! His business advice is good.

I just got this email (paraphrased and edited) from Bob Reiss.  I met him maybe a decade ago when he gave a talk at a local HBS business group about how he had taken advantage of the Trivial Pursuit craze long ago. It was great stuff.

I've just posted my first two You Tube  videos with the hope it'll help a Small Business audience. Check it out!