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Author: Janet Gershen-Siegel

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Social Networking/Social Media Tips

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on September 7, 2021

Social Networking/Social Media Tips

Social Media Tips? Yes, please! A while back, Grassroots Giving Group published some great Social Networking tips. I agreed with their ideas but would like to expand upon them a bit.

And they were essentially exploring when Facebook and Twitter (X) are useful. Here are some of their ideas.

Ideas

Here are a few quickie ideas.

Announcements

Don’t just announce upcoming or new things but also add links in order to drive traffic. Agreed! However, I would add a targeted landing page.

If you’ve got people coming in from Facebook, why not create a new landing page to personally welcome them (e. g. Welcome to our Facebook Friends!). The best part about that is that, since it’s a separate page, Google Analytics will track the clicks separately.

You’ve got a fighting chance of getting good metrics, so you’ll know whether your announcement of the opening of a new branch of the Widget Factory played better on Facebook or on Twitter.

Sending shortened website addresses on Twitter – use an URL shortener. Of course! But why not use one (such as from HootSuite) where you can get some click metrics? Using both a personalized landing page and an URL with click metrics can give you an even clearer idea of how traffic flows.

Oh, and they don’t tell you why you should shorten an URL on Twitter (even if the URL fits), but I will: to make it easier for people to retweet.

Planning

Here are some tips for better planning.

Planning in Advance

There’s nothing new here. You should keep up with things and plan in advance. Absolutely. And that means, when you’re hot and creative, write, write, write!

Keep drafts and ideas going, and also think about how you can expand on your own blog entries or others’ (such as this blog entry).

Get yourself a stable of other blogs/blog writers, news sources, etc. Who inspires you? Who interests you? And don’t repeat or steal, of course. Rather, expand and comment. These are perfectly legitimate ways to update your blog.

This Day in History

Commemorate occasions in your company! There must be something you’ve done that is good blog fodder. Of course, not every day is memorable, but it’s another way to keep the pipeline going.

If July 12th is an important day in your organization, make sure that the July 12th blog post and Tweets are ready to rock and roll, and they are updated to the correct year.

Heck, in HootSuite and SocialOomph (mentioned above), you can schedule Tweets. Why not schedule the Tweets for July 12th (or whatever your special day just so happens to be) and be done with them?

Quotes

They said, “Quotes!”

Quote Collection

I like this idea, and I think it can be used for a lot of purposes. This is not only quotes about your specific organization or its work, but even more generalized quotations.

Surely there is something from Shakespeare (“My kingdom for a horse!”) or the Bible that could work for you in some capacity or another. It can be another jumping off point for creativity.

Ask Your Audience Questions

I think this is more useful if you have a somewhat large and actively commenting readership. While a rhetorical question is lovely, I think it’s just better if you can get at least a little feedback. Otherwise, it feels like you’re just shouting out to the wilderness.

Staff Introductions

This is another great idea. While your site might already have staff biographies, that’s another way to get the readership acquainted with who’s making the product.

Notes From Your Day

I don’t know about this one. Your day, maybe. Mine? I guess this is, in part, centered around the event reviews I’ve done. But otherwise, my days tend to be spent, well, here, blogging. Which may or may not be thrilling to others.

But I can see where my coworkers could have some very interesting days. The process of invention is pretty fascinating.

Social Media Tips: Takeaways

So there you have it. Some pretty amazing social media tips for getting and keeping things going. And, while the post wasn’t, specifically, about blogging, it rings very true for that very specific – and sometimes challenging and elusive – task.

Oh, and you may also want to learn what the best lengths are for social media posts.

Finally, many, many thanks to the Grassroots Giving Group.

For more information, see the December 16, 2010 edition of Grassroots Giving Group.com’s blog.

Want More About Social Media?

If my experiences with non-platform-specific social media resonate with you, then check out my other articles about navigating our social media obsessed world.

It’s About Time to Start Demystifying Twitter, er, X

What can Twitter (I refuse to call it X) do for you, the independent writer? Let’s look at demystifying Twitter in all its glory.

Demystifying Twitter: What’s the Big Deal About 140 280 Characters?

Twitter is essentially a microblogging service. You broadcast your thoughts to the ether. Some of those thoughts, to be sure, are more interesting than others.

Many of us know someone who tweets about everything in their lives. It’s dull, it’s dumb, and you want to throttle them half the time. Their cheesecake is not fascinating. Their slow bus to downtown is not riveting. You don’t much care why they didn’t buy a particular pair of sneakers.

We may also know someone who’s a lot more fascinating. I’m not talking about celebrities, who have other sources for their cachet. Instead, I am talking about people who just seem to be more interesting, or at least their tweets are. Or at least they are funny or relevant.

Guess which one you want to be like?

Two Lives

On much of social media, when you are an independent author, you lead two lives. There is your personal life where you have friends and family, but there is also your professional or semi-professional life. Even if you never sell (or never want to) a syllable of your work, if you want to improve, you’re at least in the realm of semi-professional.

Demystifying Twitter: Two Twitter Accounts?

That might not be such a bad idea. One for yourself, for your political opinions, your questions about the universe, your tweets to customer service when something goes wrong …

The other? For writing. This can be for talking about what you’re doing, and even teasing it a bit. For reporting your NaNoWriMo progress, if you like, to your cheering section. Also, for the hashtags #amwriting and #amediting, too.

Demystifying Twitter: A Little More About Hashtags

Engagement is the name of the game on a microblogging social media platform like Twitter. You want to, you know, actually tweet with people. Soooo…. what do you do? Well, if you start following hashtags you like, then you will start to see the content that you like.

And that means your stream will be more fun, more inspiring, and more of what you want. Pretty cool, huh?

There is more, of course. I’ll get to it soon. So stay tuned!

Want More About Twitter AKA X?

If my experiences with X resonate with you, then check out my other articles about Twitter/X. While it’s now got a new name, and has changed considerably, a lot of these tips will still work—and often with other social media platforms as well.

Almost Everything But the Tweet

• Starting a Twitter Stream
† Demystifying Twitter
• Twitter, Social Media and Professionalism
† Conquering Twitter (verbal elements)
• Conquering Twitter (visual elements)
† Optimizing Twitter
• Conquering Twitter (metrics and timing)
† Conquering Twitter (offsite connections)
• Getting More Twitter Followers

And, if you’re a fellow writer, you may want to check out:
† PitMad on Twitter

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Twitter, Social Media and Professionalism

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on August 19, 2021

What is the Connection Between Twitter, Social Media and Professionalism?

Professionalism? This post riffs on Be careful who you hire to manage your business’ Twitter account, a post on Social Media Today. Since the original post is from 2011, it’s not 100% relevant anymore. But I still think the ideas are of value.

And yes, we all know it’s called X now.

In addition, in the original article, the author talks about, essentially, how to tell whether a Twitter feed is being handled professionally, or not. Hence following are their “5 Points to consider before hiring a service to manage your Twitter account.”

Professionalism: Check Their Twitter Stream

1. First of all, before you even look at the different tools for measuring a Twitter user’s level of influence (which can be misleading and in some cases manipulated) you firstly need to check the individual’s own Twitter stream.

† What type of language do they use? – agreed. Because branding involves, among other things, speaking the language of your customers.

Are you a hip hop record label? A travel agency catering to retirees? A diamond jeweler? All of these businesses have different customer demographics.

Hence there is no “one size fits all” here. However, this does not mean people cannot adapt to communicate properly with everyone they do business with. After all, you need not hire a child to market to children.

But the Social Media Specialist needs to get the message across so that the target readership is receptive.

Lazy Tweets

• Do they spam their own followers by sending lazy Tweets for example? #FF @Tweeter1 @Tweeter2 etc. – I’m not so sure I call this spamming. I think, at times, it’s useful to do this.

But overdoing it (and you’ll know it’s overkill if tweets like this, or quickie retweets, dominate the stream) is definitely not a good way to do business.

† How do they use their own account? Is it professional or sloppy? Do they Tweet late into the night and have no professional boundaries. Do they over mix professional with personal Tweets. – agreed. And with useful tools such as HootSuite, you can schedule tweets.

There’s no excuse for late night tweeting, and no need for it. If the stream is meant to engage internationally, it might be a good idea to split it up into more than one account, so that one stream is for North America and another for Asia.

Messaging

• Are their own Tweets all over the place so you are not able to pick up a clear message. – this is a good point, and not just when it comes to Twitter. A clear message is key – for a robotics company where I worked, the message centered around sales.

Messages promoted education and/or robots. NASA, for example, was only mentioned in the context of robotics, not in the context of space launches. There’s a lot of information out there.

Consider it to be a bit like a garden – usually it needs weeding and thinning, as opposed to fertilizing.

† Furthermore, do they acknowledge where they take their material from or just duplicate what they see their competitors do? – ah, this is big. It’s why the original source for this article is listed. And it is a big part of how the ‘net works, or at least is supposed to.

You post a blog entry. A competitor sees it. If they riff on it and post it and give you a link back, then that’s good for you. And you thank them and do the same in reverse and yeah, they’re still a competitor. But you’ve got common ground and in some areas you can cooperate.

Or they don’t acknowledge you. And everybody digs their heels in and the world becomes a slightly more miserable place. Hey, you make the call, but I prefer cooperation pretty much every time, myself.

Too Much Self-Promotion?

• Do their Tweets make any sense to you or are they just full of self promotion they hold no real value other than grooming their own ego. – true, but I think sometimes this can come from Social Media marketing folk not being properly trained.

If the marketing manager is unsure of how much promotion should be mixed in with information, the marketer might be similarly confused.

† How much negativity comes across in their stream – not everything is or should be positive, but I do get this. The idea is, well, are you promoting to people who want to buy your company’s organic brownie mix, or do you just sound petulant and whiny?

However, you can sometimes be too perky. But I think if there are errors in this area, they should probably fall on the side of more, rather than less, perk.

Professionalism: Which Business Accounts Do They Manage?

2. Ask to be given the name of one of the business accounts they manage, and go through this with a fine tooth comb. Keep an active eye on the account and monitor how they manage the business’ online profile.

• How many Tweets are there and what type do they send? – it’s a quantity and a quality game on Twitter. You need to get across some seven views before people start to consider buying. And consider Twitter’s international, 24/7 appeal – people may be checking at 4 AM your time.

This, by the way, goes against an earlier statement about the marketer not tweeting into the wee hours. No, they shouldn’t – but unfortunately, sometimes, that’s when the readers are online.

After all, if you’re tweeting for people playing World of Warcraft, they’ll be on at 4 AM. As for quality, that goes along with the above statements as well – are the tweets worthwhile, or are they dull self-promotion?

Engagement

† How do they engage with the client’s audience? – some of this is in the form of retweeting. Retweeting and replying have a place, as it is a give and take type of engagement. Is there professionalism behind the engagement?

• And how is the call-to-action placed and worded? – this is fairly self-explanatory. There is a difference between what looks like a hard sell, and what has more of a friendly “Hey, check this out” vibe.

Does the marketer know the difference? And is the difference readily apparent in tweets?

† In addition, do the articles relate to the client’s industry and audience? – this harkens back to my NASA example above. Content is necessary, of course, but irrelevant content is worse than no content at all.

Because it’s better that the marketer pump out less content if it’s not relevant, yes?

• Do they add any value? – the $64,000 question! Can you tell without having access to measurement tools?

Professionalism: References

3. Ask for a number of references and call them. This, of course, is excellent advice any time you’re hiring.

† How has the business level of influence grown? For sure if they cannot achieve this for themselves, then they can’t do it for the client. – try objective measurements if you can get them, like Google rankings, bounce rate, etc.

• What have been the benefits? – only your industry will have the specifics for this. Increased sales may or may not be the actual benefit.

After all, sometimes social media is used for damage control. If that can happen more efficiently and inexpensively – that might be the benefit.

† What difference has it made to your online brand? – again, this is a specific question.

• How good is the level of communication? – hard to say what this means without context. After all, the car dealer and the online cancer support group will have different needs in this area.

† What results has the business seen? – again, objective measurements are best, whatever you can get.

Professionalism: Metrics

4. Ask what Twitter measuring tools they use to provide their clients with monthly reports. Do they use anything else to measure how things are working (or not)?

• While there are some good free tools around they do not come close to paid analytical tools for managing Twitter accounts. – agreed, but sometimes that’s how things go, particularly if the person you’re considering has worked for startups or nonprofits.

† Ask what recommendations they have made to the client that have enabled the business to grow based on the findings. – these should be in whatever reports the person under consideration provides.

Professionalism: Time

5. Finally, ask how much time they intend to spend on your account over the week.

• How will this time be managed with all their other projects? – this is a good question for any sort of a freelance or offsite working relationship.

† What elements of account management does this breakdown in to? – again, this is not confined to social media; it’s a good question for any potential employee who’ll be working remotely, or not exclusively with you.

• How will they keep you informed and up to date with relevant Tweets and conversations? – reports? Emails? What is manageable and relevant?

Professionalism: My Own Ideas

And now a few of my own when it comes to professionalism.

† What do the tweets look like? Are they interesting? Relevant? Grammatically correct within the character limit? Or are they just slight variations on a theme?

• Do all provided links work, or do they go to dead ends? And do the links have any sort of measurement behind them, even simple click metrics? Do they lead to generic pages, or to any custom pages for Twitter users?

† What’s the follow/follower ratio? Does the person follow everyone, or are they, at least seemingly, a bit choosy in this area? We all know that junk follower accounts exist – does the prospective hiree even follow those or seem to use auto-follow?

• So how often does the person tweet? Daily? Monthly? A monthly Twitter stream is barely this side of useful. Tweets need not come every five seconds, but it is a fluid, evolving medium and needs more attention than that.

† And finally, and this is a question for the person (and you may not get an accurate answer, by the way), does the person under consideration actually like what he or she is doing?

Do they have a passion for it? Or is it, like, Time to make the doughnuts? I’m not saying that we can (or should) always love what we do. But plenty of people love doing this. Why not hire someone who does?

Finally, you can get a passionate Social Media person, to handle your Twitter stream, do your blogging, manage your online community, promote your Facebook page and more. And they will do it with professionalism and aplomb.

We really exist.

Want More About Twitter AKA X?

Almost Everything But the Tweet

And, if you’re a fellow writer, you may want to check out:
† PitMad on Twitter

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Blurbs, Queries, Teasers, and Elevator Pitches

Publishing, Published, Positive Reviews, Middling Reviews, Bad Reviews, Teasing, Blurb, Query letter, Elevator pitch, teasers, pitmad, rejection, Easter eggs, Starting, Digital Publishing Game, pocket conflicts, Manuscript Wish List, Reading, Submission Guidelines, Set Dressing, Hairstyles and Costumes, Aroma vs Odor or Stench, Mixing a Score in Words and Music, Disgusting vs Delicious, Hot or Cold, Publishing Stats,

Blurbs, Queries, Teasers, and Elevator Pitches

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on August 17, 2021

Blurbs, Queries, Teasers, and Elevator pitches — oh my?

Among blurbs, queries, teasers, and elevator pitches – which is which?

Blurbs

Blurbs are short promotional pieces. They used to just stay on the backs of books, but now they can serve as the copy you read on an Amazon author or book page. They can even be the snippet pulled by search engines for a page.

The best blurbs are:

• short
† specific as to genre (don’t be coy; if it’s erotica, then say so!)
• open about who the protagonist is
† spoiler-free
• not a rehash of the first chapter or the entire plot
† neutral about the quality of your work (don’t say: this is an amazing book. ‘Cause then it probably isn’t. Sorry.)

In this fantasy tale, Alice is intrigued by a strange white rabbit. Even stranger, he’s wearing a waistcoat, checking a pocket watch, and complaining that he’s going to be late!

Queries

Furthermore, queries are cover letters accompanying your submissions to a publisher or agent. They vary in length, but Job One is always to do what the recipient wants. That is, if the recipient wants it as an attachment, send an attachment. Double-spaced? Do it. Times New Roman font? Why, that’s suddenly your favorite font, too!

Rather than giving you an example, it’s probably best to link to a successful modern query letter. Now imagine your work, showcased like that. Change the genre if necessary, the character names, etc., and you’ve got the bare bones of a query letter.

Suggestion: check several successful query letters, particularly those which are fairly recent and are in your genre. If they are the queries beloved by your actual target, then so much the better.

Teasers

In addition, teasers usually go a bit longer. You use them to generate excitement. Teasers often end with a question, but they don’t have to.

Alice is bored and sleepy on a lazy, sunny afternoon spent with her sister. But then she spots a white rabbit wearing a waistcoat and checking a pocket watch. The rabbit says he’s going to be late! Should Alice follow him? What’s down that rabbit hole, anyway?

Elevator pitches

Finally, elevator pitches are, just like when you are looking for a job, the kinds of quick sales pitches done on the fly when someone turns to you and says, “You’re a writer. So, what’s your book about?”

Don’t just stand there! You’ve got to be ready.

Imagine if animals started talking, and they told you what to do in a topsy-turvy world.

My book is about Alice; she’s a young girl, a little bored on a sunny afternoon, when she spots a white rabbit. The odd thing about this rabbit is, he’s wearing clothes and talking. She follows him down a rabbit hole, but then she can’t get out.

That’s less than 70 words, and the person asking has the basic plot, the name of the heroine, and a reason to want to know more.

Back to you.

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… And Facebook for All — Company Pages

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on August 5, 2021

Liberty, Justice (?), … And Facebook for All – Company Pages

Company pages have become spots you put together on Facebook to support a business (not the same as a fan page).

However, like everything else on Facebook, these pages and their settings do evolve, and they’ve gotten simpler these days. Currently, the following features are available:

• Change Background Image/Avatar
† Edit Page
• Promote with an Ad
† Add to my Page’s Favorites
• Suggest to Friends
† Information
• Insights
† Friends Who Like the Page
• People Who Like the Page
† Favorite Pages
• Photos
† Links
• Events
† Wall
• Info
† Photos
• This Week
† Notes
• Videos
† Post Scheduling
• Various Apps

Company Pages and Details: Change Background Image/Avatar

This one is rather self-explanatory. Furthermore, a good, bright background image is good, as it shows up when you share the page. In addition, you might want to change these on occasion as that generates an update.

Edit Page

Manage permissions, add an address or business hours, etc. here.

Promote with an Ad

This is fairly self-explanatory. Note that Buffer has said that Facebook ads are a mixed bag.

Add to my Page’s Favorites

So here’s where another company you can link your page to your event pages.

Suggest to Friends

Fairly self-explanatory.

Information

This is basic information such as the company’s location.

Insights

First of all, this provides basic click information, including the number of Likes and Views. In addition, you can also see information on age and gender demographics and, most importantly, when people are online.

Friends Who Like the Page

Fairly self-explanatory.

People Who Like the Page

Fairly self-explanatory, except this includes people you are not, personally, friends with.

Favorite Pages

This goes back to adding a page as a favorite. And it shows which company pages your company has favorited.

Photos

Fairly self-explanatory.

Links

Fairly self-explanatory.

Events

I’ve found adding events to be hit or miss. First of all, not everyone RSVPs, and not everyone shows up even if they’ve said yes. However, it provides more exposure and it will bring your page up to people as the event date rolls around. Because even people who are clicking “No” are still looking, at least a little bit. So use with discretion and don’t overdo this. Because not every activity is an event, and not everyone should be invited to everything. Since that’s just plain annoying.

Wall

Fairly self-explanatory. In addition, you can control who can add to your wall. However, keep in mind that if you are free and easy with this, you’ll get more posts but you might also get spam. Although if you shut this down, you end up with Posts to Page. And it’s easy to miss these!

Company Pages Info

Here you add more detailed information. Hence this includes the company’s address and its business hours.

Photos

Fairly self-explanatory. Posts with images nearly always do better than those without, so upload an image if the link you’re sharing doesn’t have one. Make sure you have permission to use the image!

Notes

Fairly self-explanatory. Hence add notes like you would on your own personal page. E. g. these are almost discussions. However, the responses are relegated to subordinate comments versus the kind of back and forth that comes from the wall or the discussions page. And this is, admittedly, a nitpicky distinction without much of a real difference.

I would, though, suggest that you not use the Notes section for blogging. Instead, get a blog through WordPress (yay!) or the like and do it that way. Because the Notes section ends up a rather poor substitute for that.

Videos

Fairly self-explanatory. Hence if you’ve got videos uploaded, they can show up here. However, this is not the same as linking to a video hosted online elsewhere.

Company Pages: Post Scheduling

Fairly self-explanatory. So just post to your wall but pull down on the post button and select Schedule Post. In addition, if you’ve been looking at your Insights, you should know when people are online. And of course you want to try to post when people will see your posts.

Various Apps

Finally, go to Edit Profile and there is an option for Applications. However, these days, the only ones are Notes and Events.

Want More About Facebook?

If my experiences with Facebook resonate with you, then check out my other articles about the largest social network on the planet, by far.

… And Facebook for All

• Demystifying Facebook
† Creating a Facebook page
• Working with a Facebook Page
† … And Facebook for All — Your Profile Page, Part I
• … Your Profile Page, Part II
† Home Page
• … Company Pages
† Offsite Sharing
• All Your Account Settings
† … And Facebook for All
• All the Rest of It
† Advertising on Facebook
• Facebook versus Forums

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CLUMPS of SEO

SEO, SEO continued, Boston SEO Meetup, CLUMPS, discontents, WebTekPro

CLUMPS of SEO

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on July 27, 2021

Welcome to the Absolute Worst Acronym, EVER: CLUMPS of SEO

Huh? CLUMPS is an ugly acronym and I apologize profusely for that. But if you want to build and promote a website and improve your SEO (Search Engine Optimization), you should think in CLUMPS.

What are CLUMPS?

I will explain.

Content

C stands for Content, and Content is King. Don’t believe me? Try looking at a site – any site – and picture it instead as a framework with lorem ipsum written all over it. Kinda silly, eh?

So, people need something to read. Or listen to. Or download. Maybe to play. Or discuss. Or purchase. And it could be any other of a number of things that they would want to do with a website. And they need it from you! So make up your mind as to what you want. Plan your content and work on it.

Brainstorm what you want to cover, and keep records of that. This helps when the rubber really meets the road and you get writer’s block.

For Instance

For example, let’s say you want to create an episode guide for the old television show, Quantum Leap. The show aired 97 episodes. If you post a new episode every single day, you run out out of content in less than three and a half months. If you instead post twice per week, that covers 48 and a half weeks – almost a full year. Good, but what do you do after that?

So there are a few options. One is to post less frequently. Another is to churn up the content and repost it. However, what you could also do is branch out.

Therefore, post about the actors’ work before and since the show aired. And cover convention appearances. Add photographs. Post or critique fan fiction. Open up the floor for discussions of the show’s philosophy.

Maybe you can find a related show to write about, and compare it to the original. It doesn’t matter. Just, recognize that your content might have a finite end to it, so you’ll need to work on extending that.

And More

Furthermore, it can also help to look around the online world. What do others say about your topic? Make a Google Alert for your topic or, better yet, make several, with variations. Follow the news and see what you can comment on. Don’t copy others’ work outright, but commenting on it, linking to it, and expanding on it are all fair game. Always, always, always link back! Speaking of links ….

Links

L stands for Links. You’ve got to get your link out there, and have it linked back to by other sites. Now is not the time to keep it to yourself.

This does not mean spamming! Rather, you need to launch a bit of a campaign. Find like-minded individuals and ask for them to link to you. Now, it’s better if you’re linked to by pages with good, large followings. How do you find these sites? One way is to do a search on the backlinks for your closest competition. Who’s linking to them? And target those sites.

And keep in mind that Google says that reciprocal linking is against their rules.

But!

Reciprocal linking is also pretty damned natural. When sites link to us, we often wish to return the favor. So, the bottom line is, trading for the sake of trading is no good. But reciprocation can just plain be a byproduct of webmasters working together.

And be patient! Rising in search results takes some time, although you can promote yourself by using paid search, if you like, by using Google AdWords. But if you don’t have a budget to buy listings, don’t worry. You can still have good external visibility. What matters is not being number one.

What does matter is getting onto somewhere in the top three search results and then working from there. Of course, the higher the better. But the difference between page 100 and page 1000 of search results is a moot one.

The U in CLUMPS is Usability

U stands for Usability. If people cannot find what they are looking for, if your site is slow and unresponsive, or you’re just missing too many vital things, people may come, but they will not stay.

Case in point. I spent some time a few years ago investigating linking certain nursing job sites to various places where backlinks would be welcome. I did research, and of course nursing schools are a prime potential source of backlinks.

However, for some colleges, finding the link to either their nursing school or their placement office was akin to searching a hay field for sewing implements. I had, more than once, to resort to searching on Google rather than inside a particular school’s own pages, in order to find what I wanted.

Sometimes, the pages were poorly named or written (e. g. placement office pages which didn’t have the word “jobs” anywhere in sight). Others had too many unrelated or poorly related or obscure keywords. E. g. referring to such an office as the painfully generic “Student Services”.

It would have been far better to make sure that these pages were dense with correct words that people would use when searching, such as jobs, placement, careers, employment or internships.

Search Issues

Other sites had what I wanted but were painfully slow (that was often a server issue). Or the web developer was so in love with flash that the site has pretty scrolling pictures but it was hard to find where I was actually supposed to be clicking.

So look over your site. Or, better yet, have others do so. And find out from them what works, and what doesn’t. It’s not an occasion for them to tear you down or give you unstinting praise. Rather, it’s an occasion for you to learn what works, and what doesn’t.

Formal Checks

And for formal investigations, try using A/B testing methodologies. A/B testing means essentially serving up one version of a site to one person, and another version to another. And then you check their click behaviors. If these are people you know, talk to them.

The difference between the “A” and the “B” versions of a page can be as small as a new color for the background or a different location for the logo versus a complete site overhaul. But it’s the smallest changes that are the easiest to process. Make small changes before you commit to larger ones.

This also goes into the idea of keywords. Keyword stuffing is, of course, a black hat strategy, and it’s the last thing you want to do. But white hat strategy isn’t just setting up a site for the benefit of search engines – it’s also setting it up for the benefit of people.

The M in CLUMPS is Metrics

M is for Metrics. If you’re going to do A/B testing, or if you care about whether anyone is visiting your site, you need to start looking at all of that. The best and easiest to use such analytical site is Google Analytics 4. Google Analytics provides all sorts of data, everything from which is the most popular page on your site to how long users are hanging around.

Like many other things, take a little time and get to know the program but also allow it to gather some data. You aren’t going to get a terribly good picture of your site in a month. You need to let this percolate for a while.

Promotions

P is for Promotions. Again, I never advocate spamming. However, I do suggest that you put your link out there via your own Twitter stream, your own Facebook account, via Reddit, etc. For this hypothetical Quantum Leap site, you might want to find like-minded tweeters using a service like Triberr. Clumps of tweeters, if you will.

You could look up science fiction, or television nostalgia, etc. and join tribes (groups of tweeters) with similar interests who would be likely to retweet your content. Use HootSuite or a Google Alert to run regular keyword searches on Twitter for various related terms. For people who are using those terms, they might have an affinity for what you’re doing.

Perhaps you can follow them, and see if they will follow you back. And if they are reading your tweets, they are seeing your links. Look for reasonable hashtags and follow them, and start using them.

Check Your Metrics

But check Google Analytics after a while, and budget your time accordingly. If most of your time and effort are going into Twitter, but you get most of your readers from Facebook, you may need to rethink your Twitter strategy. Or, you could even try dropping it for a while, and only concentrating on Facebook.

Again, this is an exercise in patience. These things do take time, particularly if you have a shoestring budget and are essentially only using free services. For not paying, you will need to, instead, invest time.

The S in CLUMPS Stands for Shiny New Stuff

S is for Shiny New Stuff. What I mean is, sites that stay the same, year in, year out, are just not that interesting. Plus, things change. Development proceeds at a far rapider pace than most of us know. Take a look at what’s out there, and see if making some changes will help.

For me, I started off creating a site completely from scratch, using HTML. I wanted to learn the language as well as possible, on my own. However, one area where I certainly needed help was in aesthetics. This went on for a couple of years as I had a site with good content, I was working on promotions and garnering linkbacks, and I was keeping it usable and was checking metrics.

I eventually moved the site to WordPress, and used their templates (the content, of course, is wholly my own). The site looks better and functions better. It also gives it a newer look. Plus WordPress fixes a lot of issues with key words. So long as your post is on point and mentions the keywords you want to tout, those key words will be in the page, and will be searchable by Google’s spiders.

CLUMPS: Takeaways

CLUMPS is still a lousy acronym. But I hope you’ll find it continues to hold true. The way to get your site out there, noticed and loved, is to make it as good a site as possible. Consider the sites you love. What they look like, how they work, what content they deliver and how they keep things fresh and interesting.

Follow the metrics for your own site but take a leaf from those other sites’ pages. Not to out and out copy, of course, but rather to be inspired. And you can make your own quantum leap to better SEO.

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Jell-O on the Wall: Social Media Perfection is Fleeting

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on July 22, 2021

Nail That Jell-O on the Wall: Social Media Perfection is Fleeting

Is social media perfection out there?

Maybe.

Every few months or so, a new study comes out which provides what are purportedly the perfect times to post on various platforms.

Or it might outline the perfect number of words or characters or images. All of this relentless pursuit of social media perfection is, of course, is for the Holy Grail of social media, the conversion.

I don’t argue with the idea. Certainly everyone wants to minimize time spent and maximize conversions which, presumably, lead to profit or fame or some other personal or corporate milestone or achievement.

What amuses me, though, is that sometimes the advice is a bit conflicting.

Social Media Today posts a lot of articles like this, and here’s an example.

Articles

So back in May of 2014, four great and interesting (certainly helpful) articles appeared on that site. Let’s look at how they stack up.

Ideal Lengths

The Ideal Length of Everything Online, Backed by Research – this rather helpful article indicated, for example, that the ideal blog post then was 1,600 words long.

This figure put it into more or less direct opposition to Yoast’s Social Media Plugin for WordPress, which, if all other conditions are ideal, starts to mark blog posts are having good SEO at 300 or more words in length.

Now, the Social Media Today article was more about engagement, so I understand that this isn’t exactly apples to apples. But regardless of how ‘ideal’ in length a post is, it’s still … something. Fortunately, these aren’t mutually exclusive conditions.

In addition, that article listed perfect tweet length as 71 – 100 characters. But now we have more character space!

Social Media Perfection on Twitter (X)

The Perfect Tweet – speaking of perfect tweets, this article, posted four days after the first one listed above. And it spelled out that tweets with images are ideal. Again, it’s not a true contradiction, but it is a bit of an inconsistency, particularly as this article didn’t talk about tweet length at all.

Yet isn’t ideal length a part of tweeterrific perfection? It seems like it should be.

Quick Management

How to Manage Your Social Media in 34 Minutes (or Less) a Day – this article did a good job in outlining the basics. And it added a bit of a reminder to try to engage the audience, provide good content, etc.

However, they didn’t include time blogging. And perhaps they shouldn’t have. Because if you prepare a 1,600-word blog post (or even a Yoast-approved 300 word wonder), you most likely won’t write it in less than 34 minutes.

At least, you won’t be doing so if you want to (a) include images, tags, and other extras and formatting touches and (b) credit your sources properly. Furthermore, you don’t want to even inadvertently commit plagiarism. And, of course, you need to be thinking about SEO with everything that you write. Ever.

The idea of using HootSuite, Buffer, and/or Facebook’s own post scheduler is, of course, a smart one.

Marketing Campaigns

9 Fresh and Effective Ideas for Your Social Media and Content Marketing Campaigns – this article provided some quick tips on how to change things up. And this included an idea about engaging in a debate with competitors, and another about collaborating on content with customers.

I wish I knew how to do that in 34 minutes or less.

Let’s Update That Research

Ideal post lengths change.

Social Media Perfection on Facebook

According to a 2020 article from Sprout Social, the ideal length for a Facebook post is 40 – 80 characters. And the ideal length of a Facebook ad headline is 5 words.

Hmm, maybe I should change the titles of some of these blog posts?

Twitter

For Twitter (per the same article), the ideal length is 71 – 100 characters. This makes sense as it adds space to comment when replying. But make no mistake about it—having to go under 100 characters would force you to be concise.

Instagram

Caption length should be 138 – 150 characters. Not as concise as Twitter, but you’re still not writing a Russian novel.

Interestingly enough, the article also says that the number of hashtags can be 5 – 10. There’s nothing on Facebook or Twitter hashtags, but usually in those instances, less is more.

The ideal number of characters in a LinkedIn status update is supposed to be 50 – 100. So in this case, Twitter comes off as looking more like The Lord of the Rings or any other long novels you may prefer.

However, the reason for this is that usually a LinkedIn update is a caption/status and then a link. And… that’s it.

But there are posts on LinkedIn. This length does not take them into consideration.

YouTube

Per the article, there doesn’t seem to be a bit of social media perfection when it comes to the length of YouTube titles or the like. Instead, these things are evidently defined by the software itself. If the limit on video titles is 70 characters, then your ideal YouTube video title is going to be 70 characters or fewer.

Otherwise, the end gets cut off.

And as for videos, well, less is often more.

TikTok

Not even in that article! But according to Later, while you have up to 10 minutes for TikTok videos, don’t go down to the wire. But they aren’t any more precise than that. In fact, some places say 15 seconds! But then again, that was the limit originally. So, who knows?

Social Media Perfection: Takeaways

Be that as it may, we are all pressed for time these days, and it’s only going to get worse. Undoubtedly, a new study will come out soon enough with new standards and ideals and concepts that are touted as social media perfection. Will they be? Maybe, but probably not forever.

In the meantime, don’t beat yourself up if your stuff is imperfect. Hey, it happens. And you may find that your character lengths are on the bleeding edge of the next ideas of social media perfection.

Want More About Social Media?

If my experiences with non-platform-specific social media resonate with you, then check out my other articles about navigating our social media obsessed world.

Social Media in Our Society

Reviews of Books on Social Media

• Social Media Marketing by Liana Evans, A Book Review
† Book Review – Likeable Social Media by Dave Kerpen
• The Zen of Social Media Marketing by Shama Hyder Kabani, a Book Review

Working with Social Media

Social Media for Writers

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Facebook versus Forums

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on July 20, 2021

What hath Facebook wrought? – It’s a Facebook versus forums smackdown!

Let’s Look at Facebook Versus Forums

Facebook, as anyone not living on a desert island knows, is a juggernaut of massive proportions. According to Oberlo, Facebook has about 2.94 billion monthly users and 1.86 billion daily users—and these numbers are only climbing. Keep in mind that these stats are for Facebook’s core products, too. Hence some of these users may only be going to Instagram, WhatsApp, or Messenger.

In contrast, according to Worldometers, 1.425 billion people live in China, and 1.428 billion live in India. The US has a bit under 340 million in population.

Hence, daily Facebook usage is the entire population of China + the entire population of the United States. And another 9.2 million people on top of that. So, Israel. If these numbers do not blow you away, then check your pulse.

It is the 800 pound gorilla of the internet. And it is rapidly changing our interpersonal interactions, both on and offline. So, one of those areas is in the area of internet forums.

Facebook Versus Forums Sites Like Able2know

Facebook hits all forum sites and not just A2K. For years, I have been seeing drop off on a lot of different sites. It doesn’t seem to matter whether they are large, generalized places like Able2know, or small niche sites devoted to something like Star Trek. In addition, I hear about this same kind of drop off in other areas.

Facebook has its fingers in a lot of pies, and it is only trying to get into more and more of them.

The truth is, Facebook has taken over certain niches which forums or smaller sites have tried to claim. Such as class reunions—why go to a separate website and register (or even pay!) when your buddies are all or nearly all on FB anyway? Why not just make a group devoted to the reunion and divvy up the labor?

Using Facebook to market your crowdfunding (it could be to bring an invention to market or pay for your dog’s eye surgery or help out a friend who lost everything in a house fire) is a no-brainer. Looking for a bone marrow donor? Sure, go through the proper channels and the registry. But why not boost the signal by posting it on Facebook?

Everybody get in the Pool

So there are two generalized kinds of interactions (there are more, of course, but hear me out, okay?). One concerns the shallow end of things. You trade information about weather and generalized health inquiries. It’s political sound bites and the zippy pop song.

And much of what I’ve outlined above, like looking for a bone marrow donor, is mostly going to be the quick, shallow end of things. You’re a yes or a no. You send a care react and maybe you repost. But unless you’re elbows deep in it, you’re only pinkies deep, if that.

The other side of things is deeper. Because here is the in-depth political discussion where you really get to the heart of the issues. It’s the detailed information on a health condition or even how to make a soufflé or plant an herb garden. It is the symphony. And online, just like offline, it is a far rarer bird.

For you need time to develop that kind of trust. Furthermore, truly, you have to devote some time in order to have such a conversation in the first place.

In our bone marrow example, you can often find communities of like-minded individuals on Facebook. A small, private group may be able to help with more than a signal boost and expressing their concern. But that’s a small bit of the vast sea that is Facebook.

Swimming with Facebook

Facebook fulfills the shallow end of online interactions extremely well. It is very, very easy to catch up on a superficial level with high school classmates or the like. A Star Wars groups, for example, might ask basic questions like “Who was the best villain?”

George Takei has mastered these kinds of interactions (although, in all fairness, he also writes occasional longer notes). Because these constitute the quick hits that people can like and share, all in the space of less than a quarter of a minute. It works very well for mass quantities of information.

And, in a way, this is why Reels and TikTok are so massive. They are quick hits.

Facebook versus Forums – where Facebook Wins

Topics about one’s favorite song go better on Facebook than on forums as they are a quick hit and posting YouTube videos is simple. It’s colorful and, just as importantly, it’s pretty easy to pick and choose when it comes to interactions there, despite changes in privacy settings.

Other basic interactions (remember a/s/l?) are seamless or don’t need to happen at all. Partly this happens due to Facebook’s real names policy. Also, more people tend to use their real photograph and their real (generalized) location and age than not.

But there are also always going to be people who are going to check. Or they are just plain being nosy. For some, it may even be a poorly-conceived cover for transphobia. E. g. are you really female?

Facebook versus Forums – where Forums Win

But what Facebook doesn’t do so well is the deeper end of interactions (the extensive political discussions, etc.), and/or it does not do them well for a larger group of people or over a significant period of time or for a longer or wider discussion.

And apart from a small group of people fighting the same medical battle (on their own behalf, or a loved one’s), there aren’t a lot of occasions for the long-term, deeper talk.

As a result, just about all of the deep discussions go unsaid. Topics about elections outside the United States (particularly if Americans participate in said topics) are handled poorly, if at all. When it comes to the deeper end of the interactions pool, Facebook is just not a good place for that at all. Another consideration: even now, a lot of people still find that Facebook moves too quickly for them.

Swimming with Forums

For the deep end, it makes sense to collect into forums. You need to get to the heart of the matter. And that takes time, a luxury that Facebook often does not afford, as it scrolls by in a blur. Instead of mass quantities, forums can fulfill a very different niche by instead concentrating on quality interactions.

Forums offer, even for people who use their real names and are fairly transparent about their interactions, a chance to use a persona.

This is because Facebook far too closely parallels to our real lives. There’s just so much posturing you can do about being a famous rock star when your high school cronies are also there, and they remember holding your head when you had your first beer.

Again, the best way that Facebook even attempts to emulate this is in groups. But if you’re using the same login, then again, you’re found out. You get no chance to put on a persona hat, even for a moment. The jig is immediately and irrevocably up.

The Endless Online Christmas Brag Letter

And Facebook, while it can be a refuge for people to truly show they care for each other (in particular, in the groups, or using notes or chat), is more often a place where people instead get a chance to preen and show off. Like something? Then hit like! Don’t like it? Then either scroll past it or click to hide it, or even report it as spam or as being threatening.

Hell, you can even @ a tag group to comment on it.

And apart from the latter two actions, the person posting the image, anecdote, status, etc. is none the wiser when it comes to your reaction, particularly if there are a lot of reactions.

If you have a million reactions on a post, and 150,000 of them are anger reactions, how do you know your old college roommate was one of those people? Unless you have the patience and the hyperfixation to check, you are never going to know.

But with the forums, even if you do not use your real name, your opinions are still out there, for all to see, whether it’s about global warming or the Designated Hitter rule.

Facebook versus Forums: the Future

My crystal ball says Facebook is only going to get larger and more complicated. And advertising and other ways of keeping forums open is only going to get harder. Unless Facebook finds a way to take a deep dive into topics – and make it easier for people to find their way back after a day or two – then I fear a form of interaction may eventually be lost forever.

That is, unless Zoom calls and the like can rise to such a challenge. In and among the fluff and Zoom bombing and other annoyances and weirdness, perhaps that’s the way to go. Because I fear that forums are going to bite the dust before 2030, if not sooner.

There is room for both types of interactions. Facebook versus forums doesn’t have to pick a winner. The internet is a mighty big tent. But economics and sheer numbers might award a prize anyway.

Want More About Facebook?

If my experiences with Facebook resonate with you, then check out my other articles about the largest social network on the planet, by far.

… And Facebook for All

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Community Management – Wandering off Topic

Community Management, Scale. Freshening, Get Together, Love, Small Things, Without Management, True Community, Party Started, Terrible Netizen, Snakes, Circle Game, Look, Netizen, Corralling, Wandering off Topic, Facebook versus Forums, Superstar Users, Analytics, Community Roundtable, Community Management Haikus, Life of a Community Manager, Social Media Job Descriptions, Superstar Users, Community Roundtable 2010

Community Management – Wandering off Topic

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on July 13, 2021

Let’s Look at Community Management Tidbits – Wandering off Topic

Is wandering off topic ever a good idea? Surprisingly, yes.

Even the most literal-minded among us rarely remain perfectly on message all the time. It’s hard to express yourself quite so linearly.

It doesn’t just include how we interact with our fellow human beings.

Most conversations meander; otherwise they become dull. And there are just so many ways one can talk about the fact that there’s a 40% chance of rain over the weekend. This is the case even if you’re speaking at a Meteorologists’ Convention. Even very specific programs, such as This Week in Baseball or This Old House jump around.

Our human attention spans aren’t what they used to be, but there’s more to it than just that. It’s also about creating a memorable presentation. A little memorable off-topic talking can save an otherwise limited conversation.

Communities Start Wandering Off Topic All the Time

The same is true with communities, even those started and run by corporations. You make and promote conversations. Because no one is writing scholarly papers. Or advertising copy. Seriously, put down the company’s vision statement and step away.

Picture this: you’ve just started a forum, with a modest group of users. But after only one or two topics, or five or so posts, they leave. Now, there will always be people who join a forum for one small, specific purpose and then depart.

In addition, you will always have a healthy percentage (it can be a good 90%) of lurkers, no matter what you do.

They are a part of every community, and they are a sign of health. Don’t worry about them!

But right now your issue is that there’s no traction. Users come in quickly, may or may not get satisfaction, and then disappear. And because they are not engaging with one another, there isn’t enough momentum to create cohesion among them.

Fixing the Problem

Here’s where targeted off-subject conversations can work. Let us assume that your forum is about water softening. It may seem to be an esoteric topic. You probably won’t get people too emotionally engaged.

Most will come in looking for a dealer, a part, a catalog or some quick advice.

Wandering Off Topic Helps

But there are targeted, related topics you can try. Your users are virtually all homeowners (some may be landlords or superintendents), so which topics do homeowners typically discuss? There’s mortgages, appliances, pest control, landscaping, and purchases and sales, for starters.

The landlords in your community will inevitably have tenancy issues. Expand what you consider to be on topic to some of these areas by adding a few feeler topics such as these.

Humor

Consider humor as well. Humor can fall flat, and it is easy to misinterpret. In addition, people from different countries, religions and cultures will find disparate things amusing (or offensive). Hence there are risks involved.

However, in the water softening forum example, you can offer a topic on, say, a humorous battle or competition where the course is changed (the tide is turned, perhaps) on the presence of softened versus hard water.

Absurd humor does seem to work better than other types, so this kind of a topic can offer a little less risk.

Recognition

Another tactic: begin recognizing great topics, posts and answers. Promote people who draw in more users – you can spot them fairly quickly. This can take the form of badges, up votes, sticky topics and special user titles.

Mail them company swag if the budget allows (tee shirts, baseball and trucker caps, note pads, branded flash drives, whatever you’ve got).

Give these people a little more leeway than most when they do go off message.

Corporate may want you to stay on message, all the time, but that’s simply not realistic as it ignores normal human interactions. Furthermore, it tends to drive away users as they only hang around for the length of a few topics.

But give your users more topic leeway, and they will be more inclined to stay and become customers – a trade-off that any Marketing Department should embrace with ardor.

Want More About Community Management?

If my experiences with community management resonate with you, then check out my other articles about how online communities work.

Community Management Tidbits

• A Day in the Life of a Community Manager
† Analytics
• From Small Things
† Get Together
• Going From a Collection of Users to a True Community
† Handling Yourself as a Good Netizen
• Let’s Get this Party Started
† Look at Me!
• Risks of a Community Without Management
† Snakes in the Garden
• Superstar Users
† The Circle Game
• Wandering off Topic

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The Conquest of LinkedIn – Your Network

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on July 8, 2021

The Conquest of LinkedIn – Your Network

You know that your network is important. Don’t you?

So you’ve decided to join LinkedIn. Or, maybe you were pushed into it. No matter.

And you’ve even posted your resume. That’s great! Now what? What do you do about your network?

You may have already received an invitation or two to connect. Or you may be starting to realize that having a resume out there isn’t enough. You’re right. You need to forge bonds with others.

So, who should you link to?

The short answer is: everyone.

The long answer is also: everyone.

I am not kidding here, folks.

A Network: Two Schools of Thought

Now, there are people who will disagree with me, and such is their prerogative. However, the truth is, when you’re looking for a job, you tend to need all the networking help you can get. Your dentist. And your former college roommate. Your brother-in-law.

You see, a traditional network goes beyond just former colleagues and classmates. It branches out and eventually begins to include people who are friends of friends. The same is true online.

Finding Connections Among People You Know

So one thing you can do is, open up your address book to LinkedIn and allow them to send a networking invitation to the people in it. Your present and former colleagues are probably either already on LinkedIn or are contemplating joining. Most will be receptive to your invitation. And as for your family, they will probably also be fairly receptive to linking.

Even if your cousin is geographically remote and in a very different industry from yours, that does not mean that the connection is a complete waste of time. As for the other names in your book (your babysitter, perhaps), use your own judgment. Personally, I think you should ask everyone. But I can see where someone might balk at asking everyone they’ve ever known to link to them.

And that’s all right, but you may have unnecessarily cut yourself off from potential opportunities. So, what’s next?

Growing Your Connections List

Beyond the people you know, there are not only the people they know, but also people who you want to link to but you don’t know them yet.

What? You don’t want to meet new people?

Then, with all due respect, why are you on a networking website to begin with?

I don’t mean to sound flip. But the concept behind networking is to, well, network. So that means you need to meet people you don’t know, and go outside your comfort zone a little bit.

Objections?

But, you say, they’ll know my name and address. Your name, yes. As for your address – no, not unless you’ve got it in your online resume. And you shouldn’t have it there, although at least your general location can most likely be inferred, given where much of your network lives. Plus, people may be able to figure out your general location from your employment history.

Yet to that I say, so what? Your address is on your mailbox, and in the telephone directory. It can be found in tax records and voter registration rolls.

It is not hard to find. And you are neither hiding it nor better preserving your identity or your privacy in any way by not opening yourself up to this kind of linking.

So, link. Indiscriminately? Not exactly. Avoid known spammers. And, if someone you’ve linked to turns out to be a spammer, drop and report them. You don’t need to be tarred by that.

LIONs and the Like

What’s a LION? It’s a LinkedIn Open Networker. This used to signal to people that you were open to networking with anyone but a spammer. However, it’s become a kind of shorthand for spamming these days. This doesn’t mean you can’t open yourself to connections.

But the term LION has essentially become obsolete. Spammers really ruin it for everyone, eh?

Targeting Connections at Target Companies

Who else? Try connecting with people working at companies you’re targeting. And, if it’s a very large company, try narrowing your connection requests to just people in the departments, and/or with the job titles or descriptions, that you are directly targeting.

And, just in case there is absolutely no other way to whittle those people down, go with alma maters and/or geography. Yes, even if you intend to work from home 100% of the time. Even if everyone in the company does the same. Because someone who lives anywhere near you, or went to your school, has a built-in hook where you can hang your networking hat, as it were.

The Art of Asking for a Connection to Your Network

How do you ask for a connection? There is a ready-made note that LinkedIn pops up for you. It’s fine, but you should modify it. First, call the person by name! I don’t want to positively respond to a generic note – do you? So, call me by name! What else? Make sure you thank the person.

Anything else?

One last thing – tell the person why you want to link with them. It can be brief, just one sentence is fine.

You want to link to me because of my work at a particular company? Then say something like:

I’m interested in linking to you because of your work at ___ company.

Want to link to me because of a job I’ve had? Then write something like:

I’d like to link to you because I’m looking to become a ___, which I see you’ve already done.

Understandably, these notes are not too terribly exciting, but they are short and to the point and they get the job done. Don’t overthink it and don’t over-communicate. You’re a networker and possibly also a job seeker. You’re not a jilted ex.

Downsides

Be aware that, if you are dinged enough times by people who say they don’t know you, you’re going to have a much harder time trying to link later. So, proactively go out to link with the following people:

† Friends and family
• Current and former colleagues
† Known open networkers and
• People in companies you want to get into, but only if you send them personal notes and do so sparingly.

Who should you allow to link to you? That’s easy – anyone but a known spammer.

Grow your network. Here’s an area where size really does matter. Quality matters, of course, but quantity is going to open a lot of doors as well. Like it or not, a large network makes a favorable impression. So go plant those seeds!

Oh, and the more connections of any type you have (even second and third tier), the more different ways your profile can be served up to other people. You know, people who have jobs or knowledge that you want.

Next: Offline Meetings.

Want More About the Conquest of LinkedIn?

If my experiences with LinkedIn resonate with you, then check out my other articles about the largest networking site on the planet.

What LinkedIn Has to Offer

• Your Profile Page
† Your Resume
• Meeting Offline
† Your Network
• Giving Your LinkedIn Profile A Facelift
† Last Little Bits
• InMaps – Visualize Your Network on LinkedIn

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Author: Janet Gershen-Siegel

Blurbs, Queries, Teasers, and Elevator Pitches

Blurbs, Queries, Teasers, and Elevator pitches — oh my?

Blurbs

Queries

Teasers

Elevator pitches

Like this:

CLUMPS of SEO

Welcome to the Absolute Worst Acronym, EVER: CLUMPS of SEO

Content

For Instance

And More

Links

The U in CLUMPS is Usability

Search Issues

Formal Checks

The M in CLUMPS is Metrics

Promotions

Check Your Metrics

The S in CLUMPS Stands for Shiny New Stuff

CLUMPS: Takeaways

Like this:

Community Management – Wandering off Topic

Let’s Look at Community Management Tidbits – Wandering off Topic

Communities Start Wandering Off Topic All the Time

Fixing the Problem

Wandering Off Topic Helps

Humor

Recognition

Want More About Community Management?

Community Management Tidbits

Like this: