In case you’ve somehow missed this, we’re big believers in Search Engine Optimization. Let me be blunt: remove the “it’s snake oil” part of the conversation (and it isn’t), and the simple truth is that if you don’t optimize your presence on the Internet so search engines can and want to find you, you have a very big problem.
How does this book factor into a discussion on Influency?
If you’re looking for a quick read/impossible-(for most people)-roadmap-to-Influency, use this link or click the picture at the top of this piece and get your hands on a copy of It’s Not About The Tights.
This week I was discussing a new tool called “OwnCloud” with a client and Answer Guy Central working partner. He’s one of the smartest people I know, and our conversation started with me telling him I had come across a way to get past the security worries that many people have when it comes to using services like Dropbox.
I’m pretty clear that I don’t really think there are security concerns in most cloud services. Sure, you have to trust the companies you do business with, and you need to have your own security rules in place. But Dropbox does a “good enough” job, and you can fill in the blanks when you need to.
The last time I suggested two business titans came from the same place, I had my tongue planted firmly in my cheek. Today, let’s go literal: Chris Brogan and Julien Smith have merged into one guy.
That’s Chrisjulien Brogansmith at the top of this post. Mr. Brogan and Mr. Smith came together almost too easily, and their latest book, The Impact Equation, like the earlier Trust Agents, is a similarly mashed-together set of ideas that simplify some none-too-simple stuff.
Think you should leave Britney alone? Think again.
I’m about to do a 180 degree turn on something I’ve said here a few times. Pay attention, though, because as I turn, I’m also going to be moving the circle.
Just like YouTube has.
Last week, Google announced that they were changing their search engine algorithm to look at YouTube traffic differently. Moving forward, the number of clicks you get on a video on YouTube will matter in Google’s Search Engine Optimization rankings less, while the time people spend actually watching your videos will count more in SEO-land.
Our Tag Cloud as of May 29 2012
Do you ever wonder what’s really important to people you speak with, or whose words you read?
The subject of authenticity is one that gets tossed around quite a bit, and on the Internet, where we’re bombarded with opinion after opinion from a plethora of sources who’ve earned various amounts of our trust in differing ways, it’s becoming an ever-hotter topic.
Who can you trust?
When I was The Computer Answer Guy (OK, when The Computer Answer Guy was a media personality—I’m still The Computer Answer Guy), I did a weekly radio program that ran on several terrestrial radio stations and reached a large audience across the globe via the Internet. One day in, oh, 1996 I was speaking with the owner of the radio station that I broadcast from, and he said something that stuck with me.
Broadcasting is dead; everything is about narrowcasting
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Julien Smith, “The Flinch”, Kindles and Facebook Comments
I really like Julien Smith, but as you can see from this Facebook Comment Stream the dude is missing something important. And it’s really simple: Not Everyone Uses a Kindle.
I first came across Julien exactly two years ago. The Robin to Chris Brogan‘s Batman, Julien co-authored Trust Agents, a book that’s made Brogan very famous and thrust him into the upper strata of marketing consultants. Now, Julien’s released a book he’s authored himself. The Flinch is an easily read, insightful tome on human reactions to stimuli, and fits nicely into the questions that more and more people are trying to answer in the social media era.
And The Flinch is free.
Seriously. a full length book by one of the smartest young business authors around is yours for the asking. No strings attached.
OK, there’s one string: you can only read The Flinch on a Kindle, or using Kindle software. (aside: Julien Smith has just made a PDF version of The Flinch available in response to my questioning him on this point) aside #2: and now, two days later, Julien has deleted it.
Since only the people who visit here are likely to ever find that link, Julien still has a problem: it appears as though Julien Smith is endorsing the Kindle platform and telling his fans and potential readers that unless they drink the Kindle Kool-Aid they aren’t welcome to read The Flinch.
This of course isn’t true. But remember, perception is reality.
A very long time ago, I did TV and radio as The Computer Answer Guy, and make the radio program available on the Internet. I needed to decide what audio format to use. Was it WindowsMedia? RealMedia? QuickTime?
I chose “all of the above”. We encoded the program three times for each feed, so that as few people as possible would have to install software at the moment they were trying to listen to the program. We did the same thing at TechTalk, a radio program I co-hosted with Ken Rutkowski, and at the other media properties that Ken and I once co-owned, including Chris Pirillo’s Lockergnome.
But the days of what platform you use to publish your work are supposed to be over. Click a link, and your browser does the heavy lifting. If that work leads down a path where you need to jump through hoops to get at the content you’re looking for, the chance of you ever getting it are reduced tremendously. And remember: this problem only gets worse as computers get easier to use.
I’m happy to report that Julien Smith gets all of this. He and I are debating the issue even as I write this piece:
But I can’t help wonder how Julien could miss this point the first time around. And while that might sound like a criticism of Julien Smith, it’s much more a commentary on how much nuance there is in marketing in the social media age.
Read The Flinch. Think good thoughts about Julien Smith. And when you need help making your business and media goals come together, Contact Me Here.
Or if that’s one click too many
, just fill out this form, and I’ll get right back to you: ... READ MORE of Julien Smith, “The Flinch”, Kindles and Facebook Comments at Answer Guy Central, your Influency and Integrated Marketing Source By Clicking Here (538 words, 2 images, estimated 2:09 mins reading time)