I love working out at the gym because it's a great opportunity to listen to internet marketing podcasts and learn about the lastest marketing strategies and trends. The only problem is that when you hear great ideas (especially ideas that you're thinking of tweeting/blogging about later) it's tough to remember them. Since it's hard to remember several ideas (or website links) throughout your entire workout and until you get to your home/office, it would be great to be able to write them down. But who wants to carry a clipboard or notebook around the gym?
Solution: Your Mobile Phone/iPhone and the multi-platform Evernote program.
Evernote is an excellent web-based as well as phone-based program you can use to jot down your notes in a hurry. All you have to do is register on Evernote's website and then download the Evernote software and install it onto your laptop/desktop (PC or Mac) and web-enabled phone. Since the Evernote site has directions, videos & tutorials & screenshots, I'm just going to show you how to use Evernote at the gym during your workout.
How to Improve Your Memory During Your Workout at the Gym
Download and Synchronize podcasts onto your mobile phone/iPhone.
Note: I use Juice and Windows Media Player for this.
You may use iTunes.
Listen to the podcasts while doing your workout.
When you hear a great idea start Evernote on your mobile phone/iPhone.
Jot down a note in Evernote.
Example: "MOC: Google Website Analyzer" (see Evernote image).
Rinse and repeat (do this for every great idea you hear that you want to remember).
Extra credit to boost your site traffic:When you get back to your home/office write a tweet or blog post based on the great idea.
Clearly when you write these notes on Elliptical Trainers or the Treadmill they don't always look that great (do not do this...see the Caveat/Warning below).
But the point is: All they have to do is be good enough to remind you of the idea you need so you can take action on them, e.g, writing a tweet or posting a blog post.
YouTube Video: "How to Improve Your Memory During Your Workout at the Gym"
How does this help me Attract More Visitors to my Site?
You might be thinking, this is all great, but how does it help me get traffic to my website? Basically, by helping you remember all of the great ideas you heard in internet marketing and social media podcasts so you can blog and tweet about them on Twitter. That's it, no magic or mirrors involved, just enabling you to write more blog posts and Twitter tweets which others may see or find via Google searches and then follow to your website (from your blog or your Twitter bio/profile).
Comments
Have a better way to remember great ideas during your workout? - just let me know...
And "extra credit" points for ways which improve your site traffic as well.
Caveats and Fine Print Warnings!
Please consult your Doctor before engaging in any exercise program. Also, please be sure to *pause* during your exercise routine *before* writing notes in Evernote in your mobile phone/iPhone! After all, you don't want to end up falling or having an accident at the gym.
I tweeted about the slideshow on Twitter and now those tweets are currently the highest ranked on Twitter Search: slideshare ranking google search.
What Really Happened (SEO-wise)
1) Google indexes Slideshare very quickly
First, slide shows posted on Slideshare appear to be indexed by Google really quickly.
This makes sense since Slideshare has very fresh content posted by people who should be authorities/experts regarding their subjects and content. Google loves fresh content and authority sources.
Conclusion: Slideshare has great Google Juice!
2) Long tail Google searches are really powerful
Second, long tail Google searches (searches with many keywords) are very powerful, especially when exactly match the title of Slidehare slide show.
And yes, this is "gaming" Google a little, since chances would be remote that many people would choose this exact search.
But that's the power of "The Long Tail", in that some people may actually try that search and find exactly what they were looking for.
3) Long tail Twitter searches are really powerful
Similarly, doing a strategically-chosen long tail search in with particular keywords in Twitter Search provided the top (and only) results in Twitter Search (see image above).
Conclusion: Google and Twitter searches with many keywords rock!
4) Slideshare slides are can be organized, shared , and can go viral
Lastly, within a few days of posting my slideshow on Slideshare, etalbert re-posted it to the Enterprise 2.0 and Social Media groups on Slideshare's site.
This way the slideshow is given more "organization" by being categorized in a couple of relevant groups.
Also, people in those groups may find my slide show more easily.
Conclusion: The slideshow is being found and shared with others who may find it useful, helpful, and/or interesting.
5) Slideshare rocks with Google Juice!
Overall Conclusion: Slideshare rocks(!) and has great Google Juice (even in you "cheat" a little and use long tail multiple-word keyword searches).
Comments...
Have a comment or a better way to get "Google Juice" using Slideshare or other social media methods? - Please let me know...
Last night I spoke to Mark Stern's Ethics in Marketing & Advertising class at UCLA extension on "The Importance of Ethics in Social Media in Marketing and Advertising" and I just wanted to share the slides with you in Slideshare:
The other thing that's cool about sharing these slides with you via SlideShare is that I can embed them (above) or get a Widget and install it in my sidebar (see the right column under "Technorati Favorites" above the Global Translator flags).
Creative Commons License
What's also great is that you can use a Creative Commons Attribution license to "...let others copy, distribute, display, and perform your copyrighted work — and derivative works based upon it — but only if they give credit the way you request." This way others can use your PowerPoint presentation, or parts of it, but they need to credit/attribute it to you.
Online Marketing & Social Media
Slideshare is another great social media tool for sharing information with others, so they get the info they need and then they can share it with others, who can share it with others...
Descriptive Tags
Not only that, but you can include many tags describing your slideshow when you upload your slides. This way your slides can be found easily on Slideshow, but better than that, they'll be indexed by Google and easily findable in Google searches.
Google Juice
In fact, my slideshow was already #1 in the Google rankings and I only uploaded it 1 hour ago - and I ate lunch in between! See image below...
That's great Google Juice!
Thanks Slideshare!
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Of course this makes sense since Google tries to provide fresh valuable content from reliable sources/authors to it's customers: Web Searchers.
So this is just good SEO (Search Engine Optimization) as well as using great tools like Slideshare.
And of course I used the "Mother-of-All" long tail Google searches too (see below & image):
With a New Year and a sense of there being a new outlook in the world, it's a good time to think how your website/blog/podcast is doing. While the Presidential Inaugural parade was today in Washington DC, we can also look at the recent Rose Parade on New Year's day in Pasadena for some guidance on website design and strategy.
Design, Planning, Functionality, and Theme
Looking at the before and after pictures of NAMM's* "Musical Extravaganza" float which was designed to coincide with the Rose Parade's "Hats Off to Entertainment" theme you can see that a lot of work and planning goes into creating a pleasing yet functional float. And it must have been pleasing because it won the President's Trophy.
* National Association of Music Merchants
Big Bird float - BEFORE
Big Bird float - AFTER
Before and After
This wasn't just random - the float was entirely conceptualized and planned out before it was built (structurally) and the flowers were glued on. You can see the scaffolding used to build the structure in the Before photo (on the left) and the final flower-decorated float in the After photo (on the right).
Blind Evolution versus a single Objective
But many websites have grown-up (evolved?) from initial ideas/concepts into something which might be quite different from what they originally began as. These websites (yours?) weren't tightly themed, planned, and constructed with a sole purpose for a particular effect or goal (e.g., winning the President's Trophy).
"Now" is the Time to Step-Back and Evaluate your Site
No matter how your website got to where it is, now is a great time to step-back and evaluate it (or re-evaluate it). One way not to do this is to let your body go all limp, squint your eyes, and stare at your website for x minutes (like a "magic picture").
Ways to Evaluate (and Improve) your Site
Ok, so if that isn't the way to evaluate your site, then what is? One way would be to find a handful of brutally-honest friends and ask them what they think. A variation on this would be to find a handful of strangers and ask them what they think. The difference being that you'd have to reward the strangers in some way (free ____, pay them, etc.). Or you could simply evaluate it yourself by answering some questions or using a checklist.
