Progress Forge

Blog

  • Increasing Importance of Real-time Search

    On a scale of importance of from 1 to 10 in early 2009, real-time search may have been given a 5 or 6. But by the end of 2009, the heat was on, and now its given an importance of an 8 or 9.

    Real-time search is a hot commodity. Rightly so, because of the power and sheer volume of information available at your fingertips, well, in real-time. The collaboration and syndication of social network information by the big players: Google, Yahoo! and Bing is an indicator of the increasing importance of real-time search.

    What’s the big deal about real-time search?

    Real-time search enables social data in the form of status updates, posts, and information stemming from social media and social network sites to be semantically flag and produce the information relevantly in a search result. Simple terms: it puts the good stuff from actual people right in front of your face, giving you what you are looking for quickly, instead of digging through long articles written by professionals.

    I heard an interesting comment by Brian Solis on a HubSpot webinar today regarding his thought that Google is adapting PageRank for people. This is something he called “The Human Algorithm”. While he didn’t present any hard evidence of this, it is clear that through the vast amount of information freely available to be gleaned from status updates, blog posts and other social information would be of interest to companies from startups to largely known search engines and services.

    The question of how these companies can monetize on this is coming to light. X (formerly Twitter), recently announced their first rendition of an advertising platform, is piloting Promoted Tweets with a select bunch of organizations. Startups such as OneRiot have discovered creative ways to monetize by partnering with large blogs such as Huffington Post for example, to display ads for articles that match real-time search requests.

    While the general population doesn’t like advertising to be in their face, understandably, real-time search presents a unique opportunity to target a plethora of already built in relevant social data, with creative, but highly relevant social advertising.

    Google, Bing, and Yahoo! have their work cut out to increase advertising revenue in their real-time search efforts. The best thing they can do is to continue developing their platforms to make it appealing and simple to advertisers wanting to target real-time data, with relevance.

    I’m fine with all of this development around the social search advertising space, as long as its done with usability and user-friendliness in mind. People already show their dislike for advertising through using browser plugins such as AdBlock Plus. Marketers and organizations looking to get their message out need to continue focusing on developing great content and useful information and presenting it in the least obtrusive way possible. That is where the bread and butter is.

    Question: What do you think about the real-time search monetization challenges, and do you think so far its being done right?

  • 3 Simple Ways to Exceed Expectations

    “Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else expects of you. Never excuse yourself. Never pity yourself. Be a hard master to yourself – and be lenient to everybody else.” – Henry Ward Beecher

    Success in life often hinges on two key elements: your ability to push yourself to greatness, and to exceed the expectations of others. Being a champion takes effort. The payoff is wonderful and builds your personal brand and repertoire.

    woman climbing up a rock face showing grit on climbing up

    Whether you are in an academic setting, professional setting, or life situation, there are certain expectations. We have expectations of our own. We expect the sun to rise and the sun to set. Sometimes our expectations are exceeded by an awesome sunset or sunrise.

    Typical societal expectations are punctuality, clear communication, respect for others, good attitude and being a team player. Professors in academia may set high standards for students to push them to what seems beyond the limit. They do this to drive the point home and stretch the minds of those learning. Managers review an employee’s progress, evaluating where they were, where they are, and where they should be. Goals are often set together.

    As you can see, there are many opportunities not just to meet, but to exceed expectations. The direct benefit of doing so often comes with a greater sense of self-worth, an open mind, and new doors opening themselves to you.

    Three simple ways you can exceed the expectations of others

    1. Understand the expectation

    Some may say that curiosity killed the cat, but that is far from the truth. It makes creativity happen. Creativity will in turn open your mind to assist you in your efforts to do your best. Ask questions! Don’t assume because you know what happens when you do. Nothing. Don’t stifle yourself by not asking questions. Even if you think you know it all, be humble, and use the resources available to you.

    2. Put in the effort

    Yes, it can be tempting to do the bare minimum. But what will separate you from the others? Somewhere in your body there is a competitive bone. Put it into action. Think of a farmer. When they till the field, plant the seed, maintain, and protect, the finished product is ripe and ready to harvest. It’s no different in your effort. Put in the preparation, then progress through and reap the final benefit.

    3. Strut your stuff

    No one really likes someone with a big head, but it is OK and encouraged to let your accomplishments be known. Yes, being humble is important, but don’t let it totally overshadow your hard-earned credentials! The very fact that you took the time to understand the expectation and put in the work gives you the right to strut just a little bit.

    Don’t walk away from this post thinking, oh well I already knew that! That’s the point. You did already know this. But have you been putting it into action? As simple as some things may be, we often neglect to follow them. Try remembering this as you dig into your next project and plant that seed.

    Question: What are you doing now to exceed expectations?

    The above post is my weekly column for the Brand-Yourself blog. I cross-post it here, but you can check out the original version online here.

  • Be Seen Through the Dust: Develop Personal Brand Leadership

    It can be nice being a big fish in a little pond. The water may be comfortable, and the opportunity deep. We all like to shine. It’s human nature.

    The Internet, social media and networking afford great opportunities to portray a message. The message is about your brand, and you’d like your best assets to show through the dust others are kicking up.  The best assets you own are the same ones that take years to develop and remain an ongoing process: communication and leadership.

    people kicking up dust

    Being able to communicate effectively and lead others are key differentiators between those who succeed and are driven, and those who stay close to the status quo. The best part about developing your best key assets is that a natural effect happens personal brand leadership.

    The dust never settles

    The constant chatter happening across the Internet is a large conglomeration of information. Filled with knowledge, advice, and sometimes controversy, these conversations happen frequently as witnessed in real time.

    Here are a few ways you can go about building personal brand leadership:

    • Participate in the conversation – Comment on blog posts.  Even better, write an article in response to one you read when you feel a comment won’t do it justice.
    • Be open minded but hold firm to your values – Don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe to be right, especially if you are an expert in a niche, but keep an open mind and listen to others.
    • Use available resources to subsidize your talent – It’s OK to consider yourself a jack of all trades, but the truth is, it may be best to focus on what you are the best at and find available resources to fill in the gaps. This also gives you the opportunity to build someone else up, which in return can show your leadership ability.

    The important thing: don’t sweat it. For one, sweat and dust don’t mix well, and second, it’s all about development. Rome wasn’t built in a day, so a personal brand shouldn’t be expected to either! Keep on trucking and do what you can in the hours available.

    Question: What are you doing to be seen and heard through the dust?

    The above post is my weekly column for the Brand-Yourself blog. I cross-post it here, but you can check out the original version online here.

  • Search Marketing: Check Your Site Performance as Seen by Google

    Now that Google takes site speed in to to account in search rankings, as announced today and reported across the blogosphere, it has become even more important to have a well performing and optimized website.

    Of course they are going to continue weighing the relevance of a page higher than site performance, but how fast or slow a site loads and responds has become a ranking factor.

    Usability experts have often written about how website performance affects user satisfaction and overall opinion of the website and in many respects the business or organization who is represented by the website.

    One of the quickest ways to get your site performance measurement right from the horse’s mouth is to leverage the Google Webmaster Tools (now called Google Search Console, since May 2015) toolset to see how your site is performing. Below are screenshots and basic instructions on how to do this. Note: If you do not currently have Webmaster Tools enabled for your site, you can get instructions on adding a site here. It’s a quick and simple process to do so and highly recommend as you get a plethora of useful information after its enabled and verified.

    Checking your site performance in Google Webmaster Tools

    1. Log in to Google Webmaster Tools
    2. Click on the website and then go to Labs > Site performance
    3. Now what you will see is a performance overview at the top and below a graph of the past 6-9 months or so. Below that you get much more detailed information such as Page Speed suggestions.

    It is well worth checking and subsequently optimizing your site performance using Google Webmaster Tools and other resources which are available such as the Firefox Add-on Page Speed, Yahoo’s YSlow and WebPagetest.

  • Extend the Golden Rule to Social Networking

    Are you adding value to your social network? You need to be, otherwise you will be seen as another bump on a log. Extending the Golden Rule of “do to others what you would like to be done to you” is imperative to being a citizen of any neighborhood or community.

    Etiquette aside, living the Golden Rule is not only enriching, but a key driver for, or against an individuals’ or business’ success.

    Customer service is not to be considered paltry, or something that is done with feedback forms only. Gary Vanyerchuk renown author and entrepreneur implies that everybody has a voice, everyone listens, everyone will be in customer service.

    WIFM – What’s in it for me?

    What’s in it for your customer, client, prospect? What’s in it for the stranger that has never had any contact with your organization that would drive them to want to do business with you?

    Word of mouth spreads fast and far, and can be the best advocate or worst advocate for you. Recommendations from personal acquaintances or opinions posted by consumers online are the most trusted forms of advertising, according to a Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey.

    A few tips to extending the Golden Rule in social media marketing

    • Listen – Get as complex or stay as simple as you’d like. Simple – Set up Google Alerts and get email alerts or subscribe to an RSS feed of your alerts.  Complex – Subscribe to a service such as Marketing software by Salesforce (formerly Radian6) or RightNow Cloud Monitor
    • Participate in the discussion – Tell an interesting story to your customers. If its worthy of repeat, they will gladly do so.
    • Create a campaign around your market’s needs – If you have listened and discussed with your market, you will be able to create a campaign based off their needs, not what you perceive to be theirs.  Perception isn’t always reality in this case. Run surveys, polls, and actually read the comments.

    By remembering and acting on the Golden Rule in social networking, you will effectively add value to your social network and not be seen as a bump on the log.  This will prove to be a measurable driver for your success.

  • Tell a Story Your Customers Will Repeat

    People like to be told stories. It doesn’t matter if you are 8 or 88, a story of interest is always appealing, has the power to draw in, and creates an interest in the story teller and who they are. An individual or company aiming to brand themselves needs to tell a story.


    In a recent discussion with a client in the real estate industry, we discussed ways to truly make their website a hub of useful information to current and prospective customers. At the top of the list was creating genuinely interesting content on their website’s blog. This ranges from telling stories about the local history of the area, highlighting some of the fun things to do, including pictures.

    Become a master story teller

    Whether speaking or writing on behalf of a small or large business, the end desired impact and hope is the same. To extend the value and importance of your brand. Extended reach can be accomplished with a wide network, whether offline or online. Not only from a public relations perspective, but also a relationship building perspective.

    Do you like to be talked at, or conversed with? Its no different with Internet marketing and social media marketing strategy. I was listening to a very interesting webinar featuring Gary Vaynerchuk talking about passion inspired video and creative content, and something that he zeroed in on caught my attention. He said real relationships are key, not the tools.

    Business and Consumer Whac-a-Mole

    The cycle of word of mouth is intriguing. Don’t view business to consumer and business to business in the traditional sense. Your story, product, service will get sent through the channel of B2B, B2C, BCB, and so forth. Yes, that’s right, BCB: Business Consumer Business. How about Consumer Business Consumer. Is that possible? Break the mold, tell the story to your target audience.

  • Importance of Online and Offline Networking in a Connected World

    business connection online and offline

    At a recent meeting I had with some associates, I was talking to a guy who has become a closer friend, and we like to bounce ideas off each other. I had sent him a LinkedIn invite to connect and reap the benefits of that dimension of an online relationship, however, he told me that at this time he isn’t going to sign up, that he prefers face to face.

    I respect that. But at the same time, you can have it both ways. For the sake of time, I didn’t have the opportunity to explain why its important, particular in the industry of business he is working in, however, it got my wheels spinning and I have a few thoughts as to why it is so important to connect online and offline.

    Blend offline and online networking

    The blending of online and offline contacts in a social network is key to good networking.

    Some of the best businesses have been built on those strong, and key face to face relationships.

    Letting your foot hit the pavement and getting out, meeting up, discussing, brainstorming, and collaborating with others to build up something, whether it is a business, or organization, is effective.

    The same effect can be realized in a different dimension with online networking. I’ve connected with many clients and business contacts that I never would have realized if it weren’t for social networking and social media.

    At the same time, those existing relationships I have with people I may see every day have been strengthened through using the Internet as another channel of communication.

    Take the opportunity to introduce others to this dimension

    Like all good things that you realize, its always fun to share it with another. I’d challenge you to take the opportunity to reach out to your clients, contacts, and others who you desire to connect with on another level in business, and invite them to join your network, community, or group. Its likely you already have done this, but think about someone who you know isn’t quite there yet, show them the light and advantage of online networking.

    (Photo credit: Loic Lemeur)

  • Hitting Home Runs in Your Life

    With eyes focused ahead, sweat on brow and the dry dusty air swirling overhead and a deep but calm breath inhaled in, the batter is ready.

    Peering at the motion of the sly pitcher, I watch the threaded ball coming thundering towards me. As the synapses fire and adrenaline pump through my body, my spit fire reaction kicks in and a sweet sound roar. I watch the lofty baseball float fast and far, all the while running toward that stiff first base. Home run! Rounding the bases never felt so good, and the cheers and high fives waiting at the end make the experience worthwhile.

    batter swinging the bat at baseball

    Baseball flowed through my veins as a youth and teenager. I looked forward to the practices, the games, and the tournaments. Each experience was an opportunity to grow, push and challenge.

    Life is a lot like baseball. We are thrown pitches and must decide how to react.

    Find your ritual

    Baseball players pride themselves on their home plate ritual. You know, the ritual that players can become known for. Think of Babe Ruth during his called shot. For me it was the same pattern over and over. The left foot scraped against the dirt back and forth twice, the right foot spun slightly as if to dig in for the impact. The elbow up and chin tucked in.

    When you get up to the proverbial home plate of life, be ready. If you catch yourself not ready, do so in a hurry. This is the time to observe and focus, tune out the noise and bear down. You have work to do. If you put your work in and put a spice of passion in there, the sweet spot of the bat when swung at the right time will do marvels. Those home runs feel good.

    Try not to stress the strike outs

    Strikes out happen to the best of the best. Believe me, I know firsthand the embarrassment and frustration of how some strike outs feel. This isn’t always the end of the world but can sure feel like it at times. Poor sports react badly, might blame the umpire or the bat. Would you believe that? How can someone blame the device that is meant to be commanded to do its job? It won’t do it for you.

    Take the base hits

    Hitting a base hit can be viewed as progress. Sure, while you only proceed one base, you could have possibly pushed the third base runner home!  Many times, base coaches strategically tell their batters to get a base hit. Oh, you thought everyone was aiming for the fence.

    Aim for the fence

    Just as everyone might not be aiming for the fence, as it might strategically make sense at the moment, there is always success with aiming for the fence, whether its literal or capped.  Take the opportunity to pump yourself up and aim for the best. Achieve something that will make you proud. Work through the hard moments and champion the chance to come out greater on the other side.

    (Photo credit: Roger Smith)

  • Social Media: Go Where People Are or Go Where Your People Are?

    One of the things I’ve observed in the realm of social media marketing is that many marketing experts debate where you should focus your marketing efforts.  This stems from a variety of opinions, experiences, and where their target market’s “hang out”.

    Social media marketing puts businesses where consumers hang out. As marketers we love the plethora of information available from status updates, profile information, and other pools of data. Our society has become adept to weeding out the crap, and shoveling in the good, high quality information. Cream rises to the top.

    If you look at the following chart comparing traffic metrics of Facebook, LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter) in the light of sheer volume of people to market to you might right off the bat say, lets jump on Facebook! They have massive amounts of traffic, wahoo!

    Now of course there are many other social networks that deserve attention, but for sake of making a point, those three are the ones chosen.

    Go where your people are

    Taking a holistic approach to Internet marketing and social media marketing is key to success for any business or individual. But taking the time to find out where your target market “hangs out” is critical.

    Take a look at the following world map of social networks, courtesy of vincos.it:

    world map of social networks

    You probably see at least some social networks on the map that you’ve never heard of, I know I did. The key is to find out where your market is and to listen, participate and act upon where they are.

  • Praising Others: Sunlight for the Human Soul

    The pat on the back. A kind gesture, thumbs up, or high five. Verbal compliment. What do these all have in common? They are sunlight for the human soul.

    two men standing on a street

    Recently an insightful speaker at a Toastmasters meeting painted a clear picture of the importance of praise. Particularly how to deliver it. Besides being identified as a basic human need, thanks to Maslow, it’s also an effective means to better connect with others.

    Connecting is life. Offline and online, whether done masterfully, or done carelessly, it happens.

    You can draw a parallel between lying in the warm sun, soaking in the rays, and feeling content, to the cup that fills up when you receive praise. It feels the same way when you deliver it. Especially when it’s needed. When is it needed? Frequently.

    Praising another doesn’t have to be sitting around the campfire singing kumbaya, but it does need to be offered up freely, because those who receive it benefit from an acknowledgement which in return will offer better respect and loyalty to your connection.  Try it, it’s contagious.

    So, how do you deliver it without feeling cheesy or overdone?  Simple, make it fit. Fit the moment, fit the situation.

    (Photo credit: Carlo Nicora)