Monthly Archives: June 2011

You Need an App For That! (More on The Daily Deal)

Posted on June 30, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

As useful as I find my Smartphone, one thing I’ve been aware of ever since I drank the Verizon Droid Kool-Aid is that I need to pay attention to how it works (that is, what Apps I have installed and what they do) in order to get the most out of it. Which is too much work, even if you’re a geek and stay on top of this stuff naturally.

Yelp has just introduced a “Daily Deals” component to their Android App. And if you think about it, Yelp’s the kind of company that ought to be doing Daily Deals, aren’t they? Yelp has relationships in place with thousands of restaurants, just waiting to have you show up for lunch. It’s Daily Deal heaven! ... READ MORE of this article, You Need an App For That! (More on The Daily Deal) from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (405 words, estimated 1:37 mins reading time)

Tagged with: app, daily deals, groupon, smartphone, yelp
Posted in business change

Good or Bad Business Change At Groupon, Daily Deals Sites?

Posted on June 29, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

Don’t you love a bargain? I practically jumped out of my shoes when my local CVS gave me a free bottle of vitamins last week. Of course, first I read the fine print on the coupon that came out of the register when I used my CVS Extra Care Card. And no kidding: it really was a ten-dollar coupon for vitamins with no strings attached.

But the story is usually about the strings, not the bargain.

I’m not talking about CVS having a record of my purchases and the trade-off that’s inherent in that. While I absolutely disagree with the Facebook-esque view of the world where everything that everyone does is up for grabs by anyone who cares to look, I long ago decided that getting discounts by giving information to retailers who had a whole bunch of information about me anyway was OK. Are you listening, ShopRite? ... READ MORE of this article, Good or Bad Business Change At Groupon, Daily Deals Sites? from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (482 words, 1 image, estimated 1:56 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "business negotiation", business change, daily deals, expectations, groupon
Posted in business change, Customer Service

FTC To Slap Cuffs on Google. Here’s a Better Idea

Posted on June 28, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

One of my clients just made the switch to an Android phone. He’s a technology consultant and über-geek, and so he understood that in going Android he’d need to make some decisions about how he uses bandwidth on his wireless device. If he stays with the data plan he’s selected, he’s better not plan to use Google Music or any other streaming service, because he’ll go broke.

And he understands this stuff. Most people don’t.

When I told you about Google Music and my concerns over what it will mean to heavy bandwidth users a few weeks ago, I suggested the possibility that Google might be in cahoots with the bandwidth providers. Just a little while later Verizon announced the end of unlimited data plans; starting on July 7 all new Verizon Wireless users will have their bandwidth capped. All of this made me think about something I said when Google and Verizon thumbed their noses at the Federal Trade Commission and essentially derailed Net Neutrality, last summer. ... READ MORE of this article, FTC To Slap Cuffs on Google. Here’s a Better Idea from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (535 words, estimated 2:08 mins reading time)

Tagged with: bandwidth, business change, competition, ftc, music, streaming, verizon
Posted in business change

SEO: A Disgusting, Vile Idea?

Posted on June 27, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — 2 Comments ↓

Does the idea of Search Engine Optimization make your skin crawl? Do you think SEO is snake oil? Let’s go all in: Does SEO Disgust You?

Mark Schaefer at BusinessesGrow.com is disgusted by SEO. But unlike people who think SEO doesn’t work, or is some odd technology-age form of Multiple Level Marketing, Mr. Schaefer makes his point in a way that’s fair: Search Engine Optimization is a practice with a lot of loopholes, and when there are loopholes to be exploited, people will exploit them.

I agree. And I ask: is that bad?

The way some companies do SEO is more than a little bit “disgusting” (insert JC Penney/Black Hat SEO reference here). And when big companies like AOL make SEO the cornerstone of their business model while simultaneously telling us we can trust them as journalists, well … you can see why Google wants to get the way their search engine sees the rest of us under control. ... READ MORE of this article, SEO: A Disgusting, Vile Idea? from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (242 words, estimated 58 secs reading time)

Tagged with: "search engine optimization", business change, marketing, SEO
Posted in business change, Search Engine Optimization SEO

Dilbert on SEO: Search Engine Optimization Really Works!

Posted on June 24, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

When Dilbert starts talking Black-Hat SEO, you know something real is happening.

This is today’s Dilbert. And while Dilbert’s pointy-haired boss probably doesn’t get it, you can bet that Dilbert and his creator Scott Adams sure do. Search Engine Optimization works. But while even so egregious a black-hat campaign as the JC Penney debacle can be recovered from, Black-Hat SEO will get you dropped right to the bottom of the search heap.

But SEO Works, and it’s your best chance at successful internet marketing.

What To Do?

Start with a bit of research on Search Engine Optimization. Ask yourself a question or three about how people find you on the Internet and what makes that happen. And then, Contact The Answer Guy About Search Engine Optimization. ... READ MORE of this article, Dilbert on SEO: Search Engine Optimization Really Works! from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (167 words, 1 image, estimated 40 secs reading time)

Tagged with: "scott adams", "search engine optimization", dilbert
Posted in Search Engine Optimization SEO

Wanna Come? I’m Having Dinner With President Barack Obama!

Posted on June 22, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — 1 Comment ↓

Congratulate me. I’m about to have dinner with President Barack Obama.

No kidding. Just yesterday, Vice President Joe Biden dropped me a line telling me that my chance at dinner with Barack Obama—yes, that Barack Obama—was as good as anyone’s and all I need to do to get that dinner with the President is contribute five dollars.

And in very tiny print, I saw I could have dinner with President Obama without even paying that five bucks!:


  Please upgrade your browser

Believe it, boy. President Obama wants to have dinner with me. Or you. Or almost anyone who helps him raise money for his re-election campaign. ... READ MORE of this article, Wanna Come? I’m Having Dinner With President Barack Obama! from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (359 words, 1 image, estimated 1:26 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "business negotiation", business change, marketing, president barack obama
Posted in business change

You Should Trust His Ideas: Gary Kasparov Trusts Kasparov

Posted on June 21, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

For just the second time, we’re going to talk about chess.

More specifically, for a second time we’re talking about former chess grandmaster Gary Kasparov, widely considered one of the best chess players ever, and presumably, therefore, a very smart dude.

Most specifically, we’re going to talk, for a second time, about what’s become a Gary Kasparov-related theme:

Trust Your Instincts

Last year, Kasparov, a guy long considered to be what amounts to a human computer, came out and said that being the best compute-er is useful, but only up to the point where trusting your instincts works better.

Now, a study of Kasparov concludes that he’s right.

While I don’t talk chess very often, I tell you to trust your instincts, regularly. I’ve even told Guns N’ Roses front man Axl Rose that trusting his instincts might have saved his career. ... READ MORE of this article, You Should Trust His Ideas: Gary Kasparov Trusts Kasparov from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (156 words, estimated 37 secs reading time)

Tagged with: "business process", "management skills", business change, chess, kasparov, trust, trust your instincts
Posted in business change

iPad Extends Reach, Controls Second Rate Newspaper (NY Post)

Posted on June 20, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

A couple of weeks ago, I told you about how The New York Observer Used Me As a Source for a Story on David Pogue. In that piece, I referred to The Observer as New York City’s fourth biggest newspaper.

The Top Three, in no particular order, are The New York Times, New York Post, and New York Daily News. I’m a Times reader, but I present the big three without comment as to which is best, because they’re all big, and being written with clearly different readers in mind it would be wrong to say that one was better than the other.

But this weekend I realized that whatever can be said about its quality or style of journalism, The Post is being run by its publishers at Rupert Murdoch’s NewsCorp in a way that shows tremendous disdain for its readership. ... READ MORE of this article, iPad Extends Reach, Controls Second Rate Newspaper (NY Post) from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (450 words, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "customer service", apple, business change, control, ipad, newspapers, Rupert Murdoch
Posted in business change, Customer Service

(Don’t Do This) Starbucks On Android: The App That Takes

Posted on June 17, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — 8 Comments ↓

Starbucks Android App Battery Killer

With apologies for its quality (remember, there’s no way to do a screen grab of an Android SmartPhone, so I needed to take a picture to show you this), look at this shot illustrating my SmartPhone’s battery usage during a short period yesterday. See that 13% consumed by the official Starbucks App?

I never once used the Starbucks App during that period.

I went for a run late yesterday, and as I always do, I turned on Audiogalaxy—no, not Google Music—to listen to music streamed from my computer, and used an App (in this case Cardiotrainer) to report on the status of my workout. Both of these Apps are battery hogs, and with good reason: AudioGalaxy is pulling music over my SmartPhone connection constantly, and CardioTrainer is using the GPS in my Droid to check and recheck my position every few seconds and do calculations on my progress. ... READ MORE of this article, (Don’t Do This) Starbucks On Android: The App That Takes from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (543 words, 1 image, estimated 2:10 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "customer service", Android, business change, smartphones, starbucks
Posted in business change, Customer Service

Apple: Bad at Customer Service, Great AT Customer Service

Posted on June 16, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

The Apple Store, Fifth Avenue, New York City

You might think that after the issues I’ve had with Gizmodo I’d have stopped reading them. Not so; keeping up with the glut of media/blogging outlets has made me realize that Gizmodo does great work.

I point this out in a piece about Apple and Customer Service because it was Gizmodo that put this story on the way customer service gets done at The Apple Store in front of me.

Hot on the heels of news that the guy at Apple who created the Apple Store concept is leaving to become CEO of JC Penney, a story in The Wall Street Journal detailed the way that Apple does things at The Apple Store (Gizmodo pointed me there). And the story is simple:

Customer Service Matters ... READ MORE of this article, Apple: Bad at Customer Service, Great AT Customer Service from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (465 words, 1 image, estimated 1:52 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "customer service", apple
Posted in Customer Service

Google Instant Pages: The SEO Game Changer You MUST Heed

Posted on June 15, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

Yesterday, Google made search better. They did! Honest! Just Ask Them!

Umm … better for SEO Consultants, maybe. Worse for you, though.

Google has announced a new feature in their search algorithm that they’re calling Google Instant Pages. And the way it works is pretty cool: when you search for something, Google will send the actual web page for the #1 result of your search to you immediately. The result is that if you click on the link, you won’t have to wait for the page to load; it’ll already be on your computer.

Unlike Google Instant, which guesses at what you are searching for as you type letters in a search query, or Google Preview, which puts little thumbnail pictures of search result web sites next to your search results, Google Instant Pages creates absolute bias. It’s great for Google. It’s great for Google’s advertisers. It’s also great for companies like ours; we do Search Engine Optimization, and if Google Instant Pages makes it so that you now need to be #1 instead of merely “ranked highly”, well … I smell a price hike, people! ... READ MORE of this article, Google Instant Pages: The SEO Game Changer You MUST Heed from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (514 words, 1 image, estimated 2:03 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "search engine optimization", bandwidth, business change, google instant pages, SEO
Posted in Search Engine Optimization SEO

The Internet Ruins Family Fun, Videos (Privacy)

Posted on June 13, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — No Comments ↓

I’m in Los Angeles for a couple of days. My sister, Barbara Yablon Maida, has just become the esteemed Barbara Yablon Maida, Ph. D. This video, shot at the graduation ceremony of the UCLA Geography Department, is the proof.

And it’s all the proof available, because my efforts to chronicle the now-she-is-a-doctor-and-I-am-incredibly-proud-of-my-sister robing of Dr. Yablon Maida were foiled by . . . the Internet.

Everything was going fine, by the way. I was streaming video of the graduation ceremony using USTREAM.TV, making it possible for friends and family members who weren’t at the event to see it live, anyway. And then, the microphone picked up one of my relatives making a remark that he was concerned could cause him some embarrassment if it got out. I stopped streaming, and deleted the archive video. ... READ MORE of this article, The Internet Ruins Family Fun, Videos (Privacy) from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (368 words, estimated 1:28 mins reading time)

Tagged with: internet, maida, privacy, ucla, ustream, video, yablon
Posted in business change

Hubspot Evolves, Improves, Gives More Reason Not to Trust It

Posted on June 9, 2011 by --Jeff Yablon/The Answer Guy-- Business Change & SEO Consultant — 6 Comments ↓

Ever since we published this article on why Hubspot is a bad idea for small business, we’ve been getting traffic and phone calls from people looking for a better way to do what Hubspot does.

I hope I’ve been clear that Hubspot does provide a great basket of stuff all in one place, that it’s easy to use, and that if you’re OK using a service from which there’s no graceful exit Hubspot’s entry-level plan is a real bargain. And by adding a nominal set-up fee Hubspot’s been able to unbundle questionable “consulting” services from their current pricing, so the numbers are easier to understand (presented here in case Hubspot pricing changes):

And I still love Hubspot CEO Brian Halligan’s Grateful Dead Business Change connection, by the way. ... READ MORE of this article, Hubspot Evolves, Improves, Gives More Reason Not to Trust It from Answer Guy Central, your Business Change, SEO Consulting / Search Engine Optimization & Computer Support Source by Clicking Here (649 words, 2 images, estimated 2:36 mins reading time)

Tagged with: "content management", "search engine optimization", closed-loop marketing, hosting, hubspot, SEO
Posted in business change