Graphic Design Tips, Tricks, and Information from the NetMen Corp

Do It Yourself Online Reputation Management Toolkit

Listening to real time conversations for opportunities, leads, and reputation management is now a standard marketing item on the to-do list. While there are services such asRadian6, Trackur and Jive Software (Filtrbox) that provide this kind of tracking for a fee, there are a number of tools that any do-it-yourselfer can employ to capture much of what’s being said about their brands, people, products, and industries in real time: 1. Google Alerts This one is certainly not new, but I still find people who don’t tap into it. Google Alerts allows you to set up as many custom searches as you like and have Google alert you via email or RSS when any mentions of those search terms hits their radar. Not 100 percent foolproof, but very good. 2. Google Reader Google Reader is an RSS reader, which means you can use it to subscribe, capture, read and display anything that produces an RSS feed. Most people use it to sort and read blogs, but anything with an RSS feed will show up here, so you can filter a great deal of content, including tags in bookmarking sites such as Delicious. Every customer and competitor blog feed should be in here. 3. MyReviews Page Rating and review sites such as Google Places and Yelp have become essential marketing tools. Monitoring reviews is a big part of managing and building reputation on these sites. MyReviewsPage alerts you when a new review shows up on many of the more popular review sites. 4. Backtype Backtype primarily focuses on blog comment streams and is a handy way to track this important content source. 5. Boardreader Bulletin boards and forums have lost a lot of their buzz due to social networking sites, but many industries still have very strong and active ones. Boardreader is your alert tool for the most popular bulletin board and forum sites. 6. Social Mention Social Mention is a real time search engine and important part of the mix because it not only catches things that others miss, it offers a wide variety of content types such as images, video and audio mentions, as well as giving some data about the influence and sentiment of the mentions. 7. Netvibes Netvibes isn’t a tracking or listening tool, but it’s a nice way to manage viewing all of the data you collect. Netvibes allows you to create a custom dashboard of RSS feeds and other elements and can be a great way for you to bring all of the content created by the tools above into one handy viewing station. Source: Open Forum

By Ignacio Galarraga|April 17, 2013|Online Marketing, Small Business, Social Media|

Hacelo vos mismo

Escuchar las conversaciones en tiempo real de oportunidades, clientes potenciales y gestión de la reputación es ahora un elemento de marketing estándar en la lista de tareas pendientes. Si bien hay servicios tales asRadian6, Trackur y Jive Software (Filtrbox) que proporcionan este tipo de seguimiento por una tarifa, hay una serie de herramientas que cualquier hágalo usted mismo puede emplear para capturar gran parte de lo que se dice acerca de sus marcas, las personas, los productos y las industrias en tiempo real: 1. Las descripciones de Google Éste es, sin duda no es nuevo, pero todavía encontrar personas que no acceder al mismo. Alertas de Google le permite establecer el mayor número de búsquedas personalizadas como desee y tener Google que le avise por correo electrónico o RSS cuando cualquier mención de los términos de búsqueda golpea en su radar. No es 100 por ciento infalible, pero muy bueno. 2. Google Reader Google Reader es un lector de RSS, lo que significa que se puede utilizar para suscribirse, captura, leer y visualizar cualquier cosa que produzca un canal RSS. La mayoría de las personas lo utilizan para ordenar y leer los blogs, pero nada con una alimentación de RSS se mostrarán aquí, por lo que puede filtrar una gran cantidad de contenido, incluyendo las etiquetas en los sitios de marcadores como Delicious. Cada canal de blog al cliente y competidor debe estar aquí. 3. MyReviews página Calificación y revisión sitios como lugares de Google y Yelp se han convertido en herramientas de marketing esenciales. Monitoreo de comentarios es de una gran parte de la gestión y la construcción de la reputación en estos sitios. MyReviewsPage le avisa cuando un nuevo comentario aparece en muchos de los sitios de revisión más populares. 4. Backtype Backtype se centra principalmente en los flujos de comentario en el blog y es una forma práctica de realizar un seguimiento de esta fuente de contenido importante. 5. BoardReader Los tablones de anuncios y foros han perdido gran parte de su zumbido debido a los sitios de redes sociales, pero muchas industrias todavía tienen muy fuertes y activas. BoardReader es su herramienta de alerta para el tablón de anuncios y el foro de los sitios más populares. 6. Mención Social Mención social es un motor de búsqueda en tiempo real y una parte importante de la mezcla, ya que no sólo capta las cosas que otros no, que ofrece una amplia variedad de tipos de contenido, como imágenes, vídeo y audio menciona, además de dar algunos datos acerca de la influencia y el sentimiento de la menciona. 7. Netvibes Netvibes no es una herramienta de seguimiento o escuchar, pero es una buena manera de gestionar la visualización de todos los datos que recopila. Netvibes permite crear un panel personalizado de RSS y otros elementos y puede ser una gran manera para que usted pueda llevar a todos los contenidos creados por las herramientas anteriormente en una estación de visualización cómoda. Source: Open Forum

By Ignacio Galarraga|April 17, 2013|Medio Social, Mercadeo En Línea, Pequeños Negocios|

Misfit Entrepreneurs

Imagine Walt Disney at the age of nineteen. His uncle asks him what he plans to do with his life, and he pulls out a drawing of a mouse and says, “I think this has a lot of potential.” Or Springsteen. In a concert he once told the story of how he and his dad used to go at it — how his father hated his guitar. Late one night, Springsteen came home to find his father waiting up for him in the kitchen. His father asked him what he thought he was doing with himself. “And the worst part about it,” Springsteen says, “was I never knew how to explain it to him.” How does he tell his father, “I’m going to be Bruce Springsteen?” Someone interviewed me a few months back for an entrepreneurship project, and he mentioned that in his conversations the thing that stood out most was the willingness of great entrepreneurs to be vulnerable. It’s not the first association you’d make with an entrepreneur. Words like “driven,” “ambitious,” and “persistent” usually come to mind. But the moment he said it I knew he’d hit the nail on the head. Vulnerability. It is the most poignant quality in every entrepreneur I know. There’s a misfit in each of us, and it’s the most delicate, precious thing that we have. Sadly, most people make it their life’s mission to hide it, to cover it over in the same clothes, the same work, the same “regurgitations,” as Thomas Merton wrote, as everyone else. This virus of homogenization has infected the landscape. Our backdrop in real life now mimics the scenery repetition you’d see in a Fred Flintstone cartoon as he drove down the street. But now it’s Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks; Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks; Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks. Ironic that all those enterprises were begun by entrepreneurs trying to do something different. And poignant that in the absence of Walt Disney himself, the Walt Disney Company just keeps building more Disneylands. I used to visit the merry-go-round in Griffith Park in Los Angeles where Disney once took his daughters, asking himself, “Is this all there is? There has to be a better place to take my children.” And the rest is history. The great entrepreneur — the entrepreneur who really changes things — is the one who, in 2010, goes to Disneyland and asks the same question: “Is this all there is?” And the new world she or he will create as a result of that audacious inquiry is one that cannot possibly be conceived by people busy trying to fit into the world as it is. To question the hegemony of merry-go-rounds — to actually care that there should be something more magnificent than a merry-go-round — is to be a misfit. I mean, who worries about these things? It reminds me of that scene in Annie Hall where the mother of a young Woody Allen takes him to a shrink and he says to the therapist, “How can I relax when the [...]

By Ignacio Galarraga|February 16, 2013|Small Business|

Entrepreneurs desplazados

Imagínese Walt Disney a la edad de diecinueve años. Su tío le pregunta qué piensa hacer con su vida, y él saca un dibujo de un ratón y dice: "Creo que esto tiene un gran potencial." O Springsteen. En un concierto que una vez contó la historia de cómo él y su padre solía ir en él - cómo su padre odiaba a su guitarra. A altas horas de la noche, Springsteen volvió a casa para encontrar a su padre esperando para él en la cocina. Su padre le preguntó qué pensaba que estaba haciendo con él. "Y la peor parte de ello", dice Springsteen, "fue que nunca supe cómo explicarlo a él." ¿Cómo se le dice a su padre: "Yo voy a ser Bruce Springsteen?" Alguien me hizo una entrevista hace unos meses para un proyecto de iniciativa empresarial, y mencionó que en sus conversaciones lo que más se destacó fue la voluntad de los grandes empresarios a ser vulnerable. No es la primera asociación que serías con un empresario. Palabras como "impulsado", "ambicioso" y "persistente" por lo general vienen a la mente. Pero en el momento en que lo dijo supe que había dado en el clavo en la cabeza. Vulnerabilidad. Es la cualidad más conmovedora de todos los empresarios que conozco. Hay un desajuste en cada uno de nosotros, y es la más delicada cosa, preciado que tenemos. Lamentablemente, la mayoría de la gente lo hace la misión de su vida para ocultarlo, para cubrirlo con la misma ropa, el mismo trabajo, la misma "regurgitaciones", como escribió Thomas Merton, como todos los demás. Este virus ha infectado de homogeneización del paisaje. Nuestra telón de fondo en la vida real ahora imita la repetición paisaje verías en un dibujo animado Pedro Picapiedra mientras conducía por la calle. Pero ahora es el Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks; Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks; Home Depot-Walmart-McDonalds-Starbucks. Irónico que todas esas empresas se iniciaron por los empresarios que tratan de hacer algo diferente. Y conmovedor que, en ausencia del propio Walt Disney, la compañía Walt Disney sólo sigue construyendo más Disneylandias. Solía visitar el Merry-go-round en el parque Griffith en Los Ángeles, donde Disney una vez llevó a sus hijas, preguntándose, "¿Es esto todo lo que hay? Tiene que haber un lugar mejor para llevar a mis hijos. "Y el resto es historia. El gran empresario - el empresario que realmente cambia las cosas - es el que, en 2010, va a Disneyland y hace la misma pregunta: "¿Es esto todo lo que hay?" Y el nuevo mundo que él o ella va a crear como resultado de ese consulta audaz es una que no puede ser concebido por la gente ocupada tratando de encajar en el mundo tal como es. A cuestionar la hegemonía de caballitos rondas - que realmente importa que debe haber algo más magnífico que un tiovivo ronda - es ser un inadaptado. Es decir, que se preocupa por estas cosas? Me recuerda a esa escena de Annie Hall, donde la madre de un [...]

By Ignacio Galarraga|February 16, 2013|Pequeños Negocios|

5 Social Media Tips for Small Business

A recent study by Employers indicates that over half of small businesses believe in social media as an important marketing tool. Yet, only 16% of those polled use their social media accounts to communicate directly with customers. So, what are they actually doing with social media? The average small business uses it to promote, much in the same way they use ads, direct mail and other forms of traditional marketing. Social media for business promotion is fine. But, the real leverage comes through engagement with people who are interested in you. Your fans and followers are the real catalyst for your success with social media, so keeping in touch with them is critical. Why? Social media, much like content marketing, is all about building customer relationships. In fact, businesses can take their cue from the origins of social media as a primarily “social” tool. Sites such as Twitter and Facebook were really designed to help people communicate with each other, share resources and stay in touch. Businesses can do the exact same thing with their customers, using the same sites. Using social media sites to engage with current and potential customers takes a commitment of time. However, the tools are already built in, so you can simply think of your company account as another way to connect with your target market, just as you would with friends, colleagues and relatives. Here are 5 tips for building the relationships that lead to sales: 1. Listen- There are a lot of conversations going on out there. Some of them may be about your company, your industry or other topics that affect you. Take the time to listen to what is being said before deciding how to respond or add to it. You’ll learn more about what is important to your target market when you put your ear to the ground. 2. Participate- By becoming part of these conversations, you show that you’re interested in what people have to say. This is also your opportunity to show how much you know about your topic, which helps to establish your authority. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, encourage debate and even stir up a little controversy now and then. It gets people talking and gives you more information you can use to connect with them. 3. Add value- Your comments should always add something of value to the conversation. If you’re too self-promoting or don’t add any useful information, both you and your company will lose credibility. Think of your efforts as conversation rather than as a push for sales. 4. Evaluate your goals- At some point, preferably at the beginning but also along the way, you should think about your objectives. What you trying to achieve with your social media efforts? Some businesses want to increase brand awareness, others are more interested in what their competitors are up to. Honing in on your primary goals will save you time and energy in the long run. 5. Look at the big picture- Think of [...]

By Ignacio Galarraga|November 16, 2012|Online Marketing, Social Media|

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