Jorbb gets Jobs for You! Bringing Employers and Job Seekers updates on Singapore Employment News. Productivity related Tech Toys & Web 2.0 Sites will also be covered. Singapore's 1st freelance / casual / part time / contract job blog. Visit http://www.jorbb.com to join today!
Starbucks is hoping to harness the power of social media with a new ad campaign aimed at creating an online conversation between younger coffee drinkers.
Rolling out in newspapers, magazines and billboards in the US this week, the BBDO North America led campaign is understood to be Starbucks largest to date.
Outdoor activity encourages Starbucks' Twitter followers and Facebook fans to take pictures of the company's new billboards and be first to post them online. However, it was not revealed whether a reward would be offered.
In early 2009, H1Studio, Singapore, started research and innovation in Augmented Reality via Flash platform utilising the Flartoolkit SDK. At the same time, it is conducting R&I for AR via Mobile phones (Symbian and Windows Mobile). This is done via licensing of SDK from R&D centres in Europe and USA.
With the recent popularity of Augmented Reality applications such as Tonchidot’s Sekai Camera, GE’s SmartGrid and Mini Cooper’s Print Ad for Augmented Reality , we are now expanding our suite of services to include this, for Brands / Products / Services,
From Wikipedia - Augmented reality (AR) is a field of computer research which deals with the combination of real-world and computer-generated data (virtual reality), where computer graphics objects are blended into real footage in real time.
AR can be used in Advertising and Promotions / Marketing of a new product offering, allowing users to interact with the product replicated in 3D, in real-time, overlaid on the real video capture. It is a natural progression for the studio to offer such services due to experiences in 3D, interactive and mobile applications.
The Techgoondus are "a bunch of technology journalists and ex-journalists from Singapore who share a common love for all things geeky and digital, from cellphones to graphics cards to games. Together, we’ve had decades of experience covering news and reviews from the early 1990s."
This event was organised as they felt tech start-ups don’t get enough visibility through traditional channels.
They are considering running this event on a semi-regular basis so that start-ups in Singapore will have an avenue to showcase their work. For more information or to lock in your interest, email Chi-Loong at chiloong@techgoondu.com.
So last night we experienced sudden strong winds at our place in the west, and after we twittered it, @angmogirl and @benkoe also posted that they had experienced the same thing where they were.
Over Twitter, we were able to know the current conditions over other parts of Singapore, which was "real-time", compared to the bots which updated the official weather sites.
So we decided to create a PHP+CURL script which pulled weather information from Nea.gov.sg and Yahoo.com.sg and also mash up the rain locations on Singapore map + towns into 1 image via Nea's site. To reduce noise, the cron job runs hourly, just after the sites update their reports.
Will also be encouraging fellow Twitterers to add #sgweathernow when they tweet about the current conditions at their locations, e.g. Storm brewing at Tampines, very windy. #sgweathernow
Hopefully this will help you find out if the location you are heading to is sunny or pouring via Twitter search tools such as Twitterfall.com and Search.twitter.com.
Any improvements / suggestions for other mash ups we could create, please drop us a comment!
Mashable.com has gather a list of 85+ tools covering time / expenses, invoicing, stock image libaries, freelance sites and more...
"Deciding to become a freelance worker can be a scary proposition. Sure there is an allure to picking what projects you work on, but it can also be stressful not knowing where your next paycheck will come from. Luckily there are numerous resources out there that not only help you find more work, but also loads of tools to help you do your job more efficiently with a professional edge.
We’ve gathered over 85 tools and job sites for a variety of freelancers and web workers. While a lot of these items are focused on web design elements such as photography, programming and writing, we made sure to include something for everyone."
TWO friends who know first-hand what it's like to be unemployed, now want to help others in the same boat.
Mr Terence Tay, in his late 40s, has not held a full-time job since 2002.
And certified counsellor Gilbert Goh, 47, was previously unemployed for about 20 months between 2003 and 2005.
The two men have recently started a website - www.transitioning.org - to help the unemployed network, find emotional support and get work.
Said Mr Goh, now a teacher at a private school: 'The unemployment situation seems set to get worse, and there will be many people who will be hit with morale and psychological problems, on top of financial woes.
'We hope to form a support group through the site, offer online counselling to those going through difficult times, and eventually get employers to publicise job openings online.'
The site, which was started only last week, will be officially launched in late February, said Mr Goh.
It cost the two friends a few hundred dollars each to set up.
For both men, surviving unemployment had not been easy...
So it's that time of the year again and blogs / forums are posting their most plausible product launch at this year's Macworld, also known as Apple's last Macworld, also known as, No Steve Jobs Keynote Macworld.
So here's our list:
1. New Mac Mini (highly likely) 2. New Mighty Mouse (with multi touch) (unlikely) 3. iPhone Nano (likely - someone posted a case making site taking orders for Nano casing) 4. iPhone Pro (unlikely) 5. iPod Touch (up size - 7") - this we like! We reckon that this would be Apple's foray into the netbook market. (likely)
We thank you for your support over the past 4 months, since our launch in Sept 2008.
Jorbb.com has grown to almost 450 registered Jorbbees and 125 Jorbbers in this short period of time.
To build on our mantra, "Jorbb gets Jobs for you!", we will be launcing new tools in early 2009, including integration of Jorbb's job search engine with our friends at Widgeo.us so that you can search for jobs via email / msn / widgeo.us device and eventually sms. (What is Widgeo.us? Daniel from YoungUpstarts did a post on them a while back and in the words of Ridzuan, the CEO - Widgeo.us is a web-based universal cross-channel communications platform that allows application developers to create applications that work seamlessly across multiple channels such as email, instant messaging, microblogging, text messaging etc. Of course this also means that end users can have applications that “follow” them wherever they go. No more being tied down to a single software client and all.)
We will also provide widgets for you to embed your profile onto your website / blog, and in return, earn credits for doing so, to exchange for great gifts (movie tickets, food vouchers etc).
We, at Jorbb.com, wish all members a Happy and Safe New Year.
Twitter has made Dell $1 million bucks in revenue. This is such major news for 2 main reasons.
1) It proves Social media can be "cash in hand" profitable 2) It begs us to examine the "How the hell they made this happen?"
I'm sure the article from Internet news will spark a gazillion emails from CEOs and MDs down to line level digital managers telling them to get their ass on twitter. Although those may not be the exact words, i'm sure some "leverage", "explore", "forefront", " maximize" was thrown in for good measure.
So is Twitter the new revenue stream for brands to take notice of? Will tweeting about your latest product promotions ( like Dell does) bring about a new spring of cash? The answer i feel lies in Dell's background. First off, lets not just look at "Dell + Twitter = $1,000,000". The equation goes much deeper as we examine some of Dell's social media position.
Dell has been conversing with its customers ever since Michael Dell took over back in 2007. The best thing he has done is to have made customer focus his only focus. ( It stuns me everytime someone in a meeting says we need to focus on several things) By thinking about what his customers want and hearing those comments enabled sites like Ideastorm and DirectoDell to take place. In the words of the man himself " "If we don't do that at Dell.com, it's going to be on CNET or somewhere," Michael Dell says. "I'd rather have that conversation in my living room than in somebody else's."
From redefining customer service to customer driven product innovation, Dell has over the last 2 years proven to be sincere about this shift in focus. As a result, their tweets are received by a multitude of followers that resulted in this million dollar revenue opportunity.
There is no shortcut to engagement and the equation certainly isn't as clear cut as it seems. If you are suddenly thinking about getting your 15% store discount on twitter. Stop. Go back to the chalkboard and look at the origins of the equation. Yes, you can make revenue from promo tweets but the pre cursor is your followers need to be your friends and top priority.
When you are at a business / social function, you have less than 15 seconds to make that first impression.
15secondpitch.com provides a quiz which will help you craft that 15 second pitch to market yourself, in a concise and compelling way.
Some guidelines: Create a pitch — for every niche. This is very important. Develop a straight forward pitch for every industry that your focused on. If you dabble in photography but work nine to five as a caterer - you need one for each.
Use it effectively — and have a pitch prepared for every event that you attend. Be it a barbecue, fundraiser, or networking event - when you are least prepared is when you are most likely to have a random encounter opportunity.
Include a bold — compelling statement that peaks the interest of the listener and provokes them to want to know more. As Seth Godin says, “Your either remarkable or invisible.”
Thanks to this great service by Odiogo, we have now incorporated audio feeds for our blog posts so that you can listen, in the background, to the relevant employment, entrepreneur, tech and web 2.0 news in audio!
Just click on the audio icon at the beginning of each post (see top of this post) or subscribe to the podcast on the right side.
Meetings are always important in all types of businesses and companies. You might have participated in many meetings and sometimes, you may be obliged to conduct meetings. As a top performer, you have to know how to conduct meetings effectively. There are a lot of aspects that you have to consider while conducting meetings. The first thing you should consider is the necessity of the meeting. If the task can be accomplished without meetings, then you need not waste the resources. However, if meeting becomes very important, try to organize effective meetings.
Decide the start and end time of the meeting. Depending on the persons you are going to invite, you have to make this decision. You have to decide the duration of the meeting based on its purpose. If you have participants from other timezones, use World Clock Meeting planner to find a common time. Video conferencing is made easy with new web2.0 sites such as Orgoo, Vyew, Snapyap, TokBox.
Invite all the people for the meeting and communicate the timings to them. Ensure that the invitees will be present during the meeting. Try Vyew as it includes scheduling / ad hoc invites.
Use Google Docs to prepare an agenda for the meeting so that everyone can edit 1 single document online. You can also create an open agenda and stick to whiteboard. The participants can add their agenda but they should take the lead during that agenda. After getting suggestions, you decide on what is to be discussed during the meeting.
You have to take the lead during the meeting. Know about your audience and talk in their language.
Decide who is going to speak what during the meeting. This will help you in taking up the lead position and you can let the non speakers speak up during their turn.
For 1-2 hours meetings, do a time check at fixed intervals e.g. 15mins. If meeting is behind time, cover important matters first, and leave the rest to be discussed via email / next meeting. If you are arranging for longer meetings, make sure that you break the schedule for 15 minutes after 2 hours of meeting. The participants can refresh themselves during the break.
When you conduct formal meetings, the decisions should be made in the meeting with the opinions of the majority of the people. You can use online editors such as FineTuna and Skitch to allow participants to comment live on images / proposals etc. Vyew allows you to prepare and save slides for commenting before a meeting.
You must be ready for inclusions during the meeting. The participants may come up with certain new things that can be added to the discussion. You can add the program if it can be completed within the scheduled time. Otherwise, postpone it until the next discussion.
Use Google Docs or Business-in-a-Box to mantain the Minutes of Meeting live, during the meeting itself so that no additional time is needed to distribute / edit / proof the minutes.
In a time of economic crisis, web developers and freelancers everywhere have started chewing their fingernails. However, no matter how bad the economy worsens, there will always be work in certain booming fields of web development.
As the moderator of the Freelance Switch job board, there are certain types of jobs that are constantly in demand. Here are the 10 skills that are or will be in highest demand for developers. If you are proficient in these skills, you’ll be in a great position to find work and weather any economic downturn.
1. Framework knowledge
It seems that frameworks are one of the next big things. With the meteoric rise to fame of Rails, Django, and other MVC frameworks, developers have learned that they can build websites much faster with the help of these tools. Frameworks help you cut out much of the repetitive tasks that normal custom programming would require. Having knowledge of the top frameworks (Rails, Django, CakePHP, Symfony, and a few others), can give you a whole other dimension to your skill set.
2. Widget development
Widgets have changed how web development has been done in the past couple of years. With the advent of widgets, data has become more portable, interactive and most importantly, viral. It’s in almost every web startup’s business plan to include a widget or two at some point, mainly because it helps increase their audience and puts more eyeballs on their content.
Widget development requires knowing Javascript and/or flash, not to mention knowledge of the regular language that the parent site is built in.
3. Custom CMS themes
Designers and developers can always find work creating or customizing a CMS theme. As the popularity of CMS like Wordpress and Drupal have risen over the past years, so has the demand for creating themes for the software.
Many people use CMS to power their personal or business websites, so this work is always going to be around. A decent website needs a unique and usable design that reflects well on the brand behind it.
4. CMS Customizations and plugin development
CMS are great because it gives site owners with little technical know-how the ability to change aspects of their site on the fly with the help of modules. While most CMS platforms have a long list of modules to offer, many businesses and personal sites need more, and custom modules or plugins are the perfect solution.
Developers can have thriving businesses in CMS development and customization alone. Here are a few (and by no means all) of the top CMS platforms that could use plugin development and other customizations:
Another one of the more popular skills needed is converting Photoshop files (PSD) to XHTML files for template use. Because designers don’t always know how to convert Photoshop layouts into template files, a CSS and XHTML ninja can always find work. Because of the array of browsers now in common use and the niggling differences in how they render sites, you want to be a web developer who can build-out sites that display the same in any browser. This kind of design to code service is the most sought after of them all.
6. Javascript Plugin creation
Much like the rise of CMS and MVC frameworks, Javascript frameworks are just as popular. These Javascript frameworks are built with the ability to add custom functionality in the form of modules. If you’re a developer who knows how to build custom Javascript modules for frameworks like jQuery or Dojo, you’ll have plenty of work available. Here are some of the most popular Javascript frameworks you might need to get a handle on.
Facebook and MySpace have both opened up their platform to allow developers API access, and the demand for social network apps has been huge since then. A whole new industry for web development sprang up overnight, and hundreds of applications are now added on a daily basis. The social media application platform has been found to be very viral and potentially very lucrative.
Some of these applications are built to make money or drive brand awareness, but ultimately the applications can be very successful and viral if they’re done properly. A solid developer can make a decent living creating Facebook and MySpace applications.
Social networks like Facebook require that you learn their own language of syntax, like the FBML (Facebook Markup Language), so there is a small learning curve to this skill.
8. iPhone applications
Yet another platform-specific skill set, building iPhone applications can be very profitable, and much like the social media applications, a great skill for any developer to know. Making an iPhone app that is accepted into Apple’s platform has an excellent chance at making great money or receiving tons of downloads.
This is a great thing for web developers because companies are starting to see the value in developing iPhone and other mobile technologies, and consequently will be wanting more and more applications developed in the future.
9. Ecommerce integration
Business web sites are always going to need ecommerce integration. Essentially, if you can take a language or framework (PHP or Rails) and fuse it with a payment gateway (like Paypal or Authorize.net), you’ll do well for yourself. I’m predicting that we’re going to see more paid services than free, ad-supported services being developed in the near future, as less money is being doled out to startups.
As the economy turns sour and the ad industry starts to get a little tighter, websites that use a subscription-based revenue model will start to become more common. Having the knowledge to piece together integration with online banking services like Paypal and Google Checkout will be great skills to have.
Flash animation can do a lot for a website. Flash can be used to create videos, interesting navigation, fun animated sequences, widgets, and many other useful things on the Internet. The flash technology can add a very professional dimension to any website, and large websites and corporations always pay to have their sites look professional, and often commission Flash animated interfaces to showcase their products. With search engines working on ways to have Flash communicated better with them, this is a skill that’s sure to boom as the search technology advances.
Conclusions
Learning frameworks is one of the best way to increase your skill set and potential work as a freelancer. Whether it’s a Javascript framework, CMS, or MVC framework, taking the time to learn a new skill can be a huge advantage to finding work. Also, website owners pay big bucks for development that allows them to make money, because they see it not as a regrettable expense, but as an investment in future profit. Services like ecommerce integration, creating iPhone apps and flash knowledge will also be much-needed skills, and people will always pay for those skills.
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Glen Stansberry is a web developer and blogger who’s struggled more times than he’d wish to admit with CSS. You can read more tips on web development at his blog Web Jackalope.
A Practical guide to Google Docs: Learn how to do anything and everything with your online Google Office by Amit Agarwal.
Q: How do I upload all my Microsoft Office documents from the desktop on to Google Docs?
A: List Uploader is a Windows utility that enables you to bulk upload files to Google Docs via drag-n-drop or through the right click menu.
Mac OS X users can upload documents through GDocsUploader - simply drag-n-drop the document onto the uploader icon. Another option is GDocsBar – just drag your files in the Firefox sidebar and they’ll automatically get uploaded to Google Docs.
Q: How do I associate the common Office file extensions like doc/xls/ppt with Google Docs so that desktop documents open directly in the web browser?
A: Get the Google Toolbar for Firefox and select the ‘Google Docs’ checkbox from Toolbar options. This will let you open Office documents directly in the browser bypassing Microsoft Office.
Q: I am worried that someone may hack into my Google Account and delete the important files. To play safe, I want to download all documents from Google Docs locally and burn them on to a CD. Is it possible?
A: To download a copy of all your Google Docs documents on to the hard drive, get this Grease Monkey script. It will create a list of all your online documents that you can download in one step using the DownloadThemAll add-on.
Q: How can I add watermarks (like PRIVATE, CONFIDENTIAL, etc.) to my Google Documents?
A: You simply need to edit the CSS of your document – add an image with non-repeating background.
Q: Can I open Word 2007 (docx) documents in Google Docs?
A: Unlike Zoho Office, Google Docs do not support the new Office 2007 format but you may convert these docx files to the older doc format using Zamzar and them upload them to Google Docs.
Q: I was checking mails on a mobile phone and a client sent me this PowerPoint presentation as an email attachment. My phone has no Office viewer so san I still view this presentation?
A: Sure. Just forward this email (with the attachment) to your Google Docs address. You’ll soon get an email back containing the link of your uploaded presentation that can be viewed in the mobile phone browser without requiring any Office viewer.
Q: I wrote a long document in Google Docs in English but my client is insisting for a French version. Can we translate Google Docs documents online?
A: Publish your Google Docs document as a public web page (read steps) and then use the online Google Translate tool to translate this page into any other language. You may copy-paste the translated text in a new document and then turn off public sharing for the original document.
Q: I am sending a Google Docs document to a large mailing list. Is is possible to track who read the document and when?
A: Go to your Google Docs Settings page (link) and turn on the option that says "Track visits to my documents using Google Analytics".
Q: Forget the mailing list, I am just sending a document to my immediate boss so how do I if he really opened my document?
A: Just embed a secret 1×1 tracking image in the document to know when people open your Google Documents.
Q: I want to create new documents in Google Docs in one click without having to go to File –> New Document.
A: Simple, either add a bookmarklet to your browser or install desktop shortcuts – see instructions.
Q: I want to turn Google Docs into a distraction free writing tool just like Writeroom.
A: Go to Edit –> Document Styles and turn the background color to either black. Then change the font foreground color to white or green and press Ctrl+Shift+F to enter Full Screen mode. See a similar hack for Word.
Q: OK, I know you can write documents or create spreadsheets in Google Docs but what else? Tell me some more creative uses of Google Docs.
Q: Tell me about some desktop applications that work with Google Docs.
GMDesk – AIR app that makes Google Docs behave like a desktop program. Thanks Ryan.
GDocsBar – The perfect Google Docs extension for Firefox.
Send to Google Docs – Upload web documents (including PDF) directly to Google Docs.
OO Add-on – Export or import documents from OpenOffice.org or StarOffice to Google Docs.
Q: Like other Google tools, can I access my Google Docs library from the Firefox Sidebar?
A: Create a bookmark for http://docs.google.com/m and set this to open in Firefox sidebar. You can browse all documents though the sidebar but can’t create new stuff.
Q. Can I use Google Docs like Microsoft OneNote for taking notes and saving web clippings?
A: Open a new Google Document in a separate browser tab and drag the clipping from another brower tab / window into this document. That’s it. Not sure if this works with Google Chrome.
The Packagetrackr website is one of these tools that sooner or later will come in more than just handy. As you might have guessed from its name, this solution is nothing but a package tracking service – and a universal one at that.
In order to learn about the status of a package, you simply key in its tracking number and choose one of the featured carriers from the provided drop down box. These include UPS, USPS and DHL. FedEx and FedEx SmartPost are also taken into account alongside Aramex and UK City Link.
Upon submitting this information and hitting the “Track it!” button, you are presented with a comprehensive package summary which provides information such as the status of the package as regards its intended destination along with other considerations such as its weight and the pickup date. The package progress is likewise detailed, and you can inform yourself about the departure scan and arrival scan dates.
Jim Stroud posted an interesting video interview (and via web cam too) on Cloud Recruiting.
Jim Stroud is a “Searchologist” with an expertise in the full life-cycle placement of Executive and Technical personnel, Recruitment Research and Competitive Intelligence. Jim Stroud and Marie Journey interview Michael Marlatt about his "Cloud Recruiting" concept, the amazing apps on his iPhone and how he uses them in his Recruiting efforts. Cloud Recruiting redefines how employers and employees connect, communicate and "click" on work, jobs and values. It points to the realities of competing for people who are physically and virtually mobile. It's about staying ahead of the crowd.
In the last few years we’ve seen an explosion in new awesome tools for freelancers including project management apps, invoicing apps, time management apps and to-do lists. One type of app that I think is particularly awesome is the collaboration app. These services allow you to upload images, documents and in some cases videos and flash, and then you, your client and anyone else working on the project can discuss and annotate the work.
When it comes to sharing concepts, particularly for freelancers working over the web, this is literally a revolution in feedback. There are 9 apps listed below, half are extremely feature packed with a few slimmer (cheaper) options and one coming soon app.
Get feedback on documents (Word, Excel), Powerpoint, images (including Photoshop PSD files), webpages and free-form text. Backboard also features multiple versions of a project, email integration - just send an email with the file for review attached, desktop upload and SSL encryption.
Plans ranging from Free for one non-commercial account (unlimited "backboards") to $49 p/month
Feedback for images (including PSD files), vector files like EPS and PDF, video files, a raft of document types from Powerpoint to Word, and of course live web pages.
Add notes and discussion to points on the item being shared, a feature to print a summary - including the notes, a desktop uploader, custom branding for freelancers who care about their image and a customizeable interface.
There are free trials, otherwise it’s $24 - $99 p/month.
Like ConceptShare and Backboard, ProofHQ has the ability to annotate a variety of document types - PDFs, PSDs, JPGs, Word, Powerpoint - and webpages. It also includes email integration, version control and the ability to create workspaces. And like ConceptShare you can customize the look and feel to give it some branding.
Free trials are available, otherwise it’s $29 - $99 p/month
Proof-It-Online has some good features - annotate not just static files but video, flash and animation. But it’s way more expensive that the previous three options ($39 p/month up to a whopping $750 p/month) and looking a lot older and less up to date.
Cozimo is another solid looking solution with the ability to do not just the static docs but like ConceptShare to add notes to video as well. Also features SSL Security, custom branding on all but the cheapest plan, unlimited folders and a healthy dose of storage (provided you pay - otherwise it’s 10mb not really enough to do more than documents).
Priced from $29 p/month to $149 p/month with a free trial option
Review Basics processes all the usual suspects - documents, powerpoint, images - and does video as well. Notably however you can’t provide feedback on PSD files - though I suppose you can just make a JPG out of them pretty easily.
Currently the system seems to be in pretty early stage because it’s completely free with a paid plan coming later. I couldn’t find many other limitation details, so you’d have to try signing up to find out about number of projects etc.
Fine Tuna is a MUCH simpler product than those listed above and is only for adding notes to a single image. You then send it off to an email address and can go back and forth.
There’s a firefox extension and it’s quite a usable product from my brief play with it, but obviously it’s like a matchbox car compared to a real car when stacked up against the products above. You can’t do webpages, documents, videos, animations, there’s no security etc.
Fleck is similar to Fine Tuna in that it’s not really in the same category as the top apps. Unlike Fine Tuna, Fleck is for webpages. You grab a web page and add notes, then share. You can create accounts, though it appears to be totally free.
Vyoopoint is actually not available yet, but looks like it’s going to be promising. It includes the ability to annotate Flash files, integration with Basecamp and a few other interesting features. You can sign up to be notified on launch.
Twitter idiocy. Or Twitteriocy (I'm coining a term- run with it). It's what we are beginning to see on Twitter, and it is an easy thing to combat.
Now, while Twitter right now is the hot thing for corporations, and we have begun seeing more and more and more companies getting accounts, well, it is becoming obvious that there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.
DO appear on Twitter as a real person. Be like comcastcares.
DON'T let your PR firm do the tweeting. A customer-facing employee like comcastcares is best.
Who to follow: DO follow people who follow your company's account. DO follow people who tweet about the company more than once. DO follow people who talk about the company's space.
DO reply to people who direct-message you. Be engaged and responsive. Be personable. There's nothing worse than sending someone a direct message on Twitter ... and hearing nothing back.
Social Networking sites can be much more than fun distractions and a way to keep track of your friends. Used correctly they can be very powerful List building tools.
Websites like Twitter, Stumbleupon, Hubpages, Squidoo and Facebook are excellent tools for networking with and marketing to others in your niche. They are also great ways to drive traffic to your websites. If you want to build a niche list they are an invaluable resource.
The Micro-blogging site Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows users to follow one another through posts of 140 characters or less. It is a great place for posting small bits of information and for directing people to blogs or squeeze pages.
Stumbleupon is a social bookmarking site that works from a tool bar downloaded to your browser. It allows users to discover and rate web pages and ultimately functions to give social validity to some sites over others. The more your site is liked the higher value it is given by search engines. Stumbleupon is also a great tool for finding others in your niche.
Social Networking sites are extremely valuable tools for building niche lists. You don’t want to send spam or blatant advertising through these sites, but you can drive prospects to your squeeze page or your website where you can give them an incentive to share their contact information with you through an opt-in box.
The goal with using any of these sites is to build up your list. If you can attract people in your niche market, drive them to your site and have them sign up for your mailings, suddenly you have a growing list of people who are interested in the products you are offering.
Starbucks is hoping to harness the power of social media with a new ad campaign aimed at creating an online conversation between younger coffee drinkers.
