Developing a useful, well-written online survey that extracts the information you need from your users can be a challenge. In this article, I will review 14 tips for creating a useful online survey.
Write a brief, concise survey. Start with a mental framework that focuses on only what is essential to know. Ask questions only if the answers will give you the data you need and can use. Try to envision each question as its own specific theory that you are testing. In addition, research has shown that people skim and skip on the web, so your online survey completion rate will be higher if the survey is short and succinct.
Try to begin the survey with interesting questions. Interesting questions will inspire the respondent to keep reading and complete the survey.
Develop questions with answers in the proper format for your purposes. For example, if you believe your students need more time to complete the questions in your lesson, ask, “How long did it take you to complete the unit and accompanying questions?” with various time intervals as possible answers.
Plan ahead of time how you and your company will analyze the information before you send out the final version of the survey. This may affect your questions and format when you realize that the statistical analysis you need to perform.
Use the simplest language possible and respect the respondent’s dignity when constructing questions. Your survey respondents will undoubtedly come from many different groups.
Use neutral language. The online survey is being developed to find out what your audience thinks and is not a forum for you to air your perceptions or opinions.
Relax your grammar a bit so your questions do not sound too formal.
Be sure to ask only one question at a time and put them in a logical order.
Avoid double negatives, difficult concepts, and specific recall questions. Respondents are easily perplexed when trying to interpret the meaning of a question that uses double negatives.
Try to use more closed-ended questions, with no more than one or two open-ended questions. Respondents usually have a better understanding of closed-ended questions because they are more straightforward and offer responses they can choose from. Open-ended questions require a written response.
Scaled response questions should have answers that are at balanced, comparable intervals. For example, offering choices of excellent, very good, good, and terrible would cause you to miss important information in between the values of good and terrible.
Whenever possible, responses should be developed as discrete amounts instead of general statements of quantities, with specific options from which to choose. It’s better to ask, “How many times a month do you go to the movies?” “0”, “1 to 3 times a month”, “3 to 5 times a month or more”, instead of “How often do you go to movies?” “almost never”, “once in a while”, “I am there at least once a week”, etc.
Name your survey and write a brief introduction. It prepares them for what is to come.
Craft a well-written subject line for the email you send with the survey to capture your respondents’ attention.
In summary, a well-written online survey has higher completion rates and is an effective method for gathering information.
Now, a group who “gets it!” CourseSmart has released this movie of how eBooks are going to change and adapt — they have to — for the next generation of reader and learner. Also, the rumors of the Apple “iSlate” make this reality a lot closer than you might think. So, where might this leave the Kindle? You be the judge.
Do you think there will be a market for this product? How do you think it will revolutionize learning?
I have to admit, this is the first time I have read anything by T. L. Hines. I am typically reading business and work related material. I save reading fiction for down-time when I need a little “fluff” and entertainment to take my mind away from present matters. And, isn’t that what fiction is for — an escape, a getaway, a chance to relax and vicariously “live in someone else’s world” for a while?
The main character, Lucas, in Hines’ book, The Unseen, spends most of his waking hours by living his life through the imagined worlds of others. You see, Lucas is an urban explorer. He lives in abandoned buildings, sewers and subway tunnels. He spies on people and invents elaborate worlds in his mind as a past time. That is until his world is intruded upon by another explorer. Donovan belongs to a group called the Creep Club. After befriending Lucas, Donovan invites Lucas to a Creep Club meeting. Lucas expects to find like-minded urban explorers, but he what he really finds is far more sinister.
The beginning of the book sets up some of the characters and starts to introduce various plot lines that coalesce toward the end of the book. I found that as the story progressed the action did as well. Hines surprised me a couple times when I thought the story should be winding down — he infused a new shot of adrenaline and kept me moving through the pages.
For some readers, this book might seems average and predictable — spotted with government intrigue, subtle romance, and good-guy-wins-in-the-end themes. For readers like me, that’s okay. In a sense, like the character Lucas, I read fiction to take a break from the real world in order to imagine, to recharge, and, yes, to think about bigger things than myself. So, if you have never read The Unseen, I recommend giving it a go. Find a comfy chair, sit back and enjoy.
Before you write the copy for your next email marketing effort, ask yourself these five questions and write down your answers:
Question 1: What problem does your target audience have?
You only need a few sentences here. Your prospect needs to know that you really understand her. Remember, we’re not writing copy yet, so you don’t need to be creative here. Rather, we’re developing a framework that we will turn into great copy.
Question 2: What have been the obstacles to the problem’s solution?
Again, this answer can be short, with just a few factual sentences. You need to identify what the historical roadblocks were to the problem’s solution in the past. Think about what’s been keeping the problem from getting solved.
Question 3: What is possible because of your product or service?
You’re getting ready to set the stage for what your prospect’s life will be like after buying your product or service – your solution. The answer to this question should paint a picture so the prospect can see himself enjoying the benefits.
Question 4: How is your product or service different?
Write a few sentences on your Unique Selling Proposition (USP). Your USP is what sets you apart from your competition in a favorable way. Your USP is what gives your business the advantage from which your clients and customers benefit.
Question 5: What do you want the prospect to do?
This is the call to action. Think about what you want the recipient to do. Sign up for something? Call you? Register for an event? Make a purchase?
With this framework in hand, you are on the way to crafting copy that will elevate your email marketing results.
-Source: Paul Broni has been a partner at Inbox Interactive since 1998.
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs forwrad it.
fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a wreid mnid too. Seped rnadieg sluohd be a bezere!
Really? Who says, blogging is dead? Maybe it was Jason Calacanis. Well, if you’re Jason and your tired of writing lengthy content…yeh, blogging is probably dead for you. Twitter is short, sweet, and to the point. And, it doesn’t hurt if you have a following or are seen as a bit of a celebrity.
Well…it makes all the difference!
If you’re an average person, what do you care? If you’re blogging for your family and friends, then guess what? Blogging is not dead. If you’re tweeting for family and friends, good for you. Although, I question whether your family is reallt interested in where you are at any given time or how many times cute-little-Suzy rolled peas up into her 8-month-old mouth (See Twitter Is For The ADD Generation).
Sorry Jason, blogging is not dead. Twitter is fun for some, but it will soon be replaced by a type of video tweeting and live friend0finder mash-ups.
What do you think? Take the poll or make a comment.
Last year WeirdGuy blog participated in Blog Action Day. This year, we will again and share from a weird perspective on the issue of poverty. I encourage you to get involved. Find out more details at Blog Action Day.
As a reader of WeirdGuy blog I’d like to humbly ask you to help me. I have a short 10 question survey running from August 28 – September 7, 2008 on Zoomerang. The survey should take 2-3 minutes to run through. Your thoughtful responses will aid me in future developments for this blog.
I realize I am asking you to volunteer your time, but I value your opinion. Please follow the link provided today — the survey is only available for 10 days.
And, if the survey takes longer than 2-3 minutes then you can feel free to spam me with your hate mail.
Thank you for your patronage…can I say “patronage”?…whatever, you know what I mean.
By the way, I’ll reveal the findings here on WeirdGuy when the survey is up, so if you want your response to count, now is the time to act…now! If you do not care, then what are you doing here at WeirdGuy blog to begin with?
When designing and writing courses, descriptive and sensory language can often be lacking. Informational and factual verbiage is more the norm. Karon’s article relates to copywriting and should be heeded by marketing writers as well as instructional designers to create a truly immersive learning experience.
In its most basic form, copywriting is, among other things, the art of conveying a message in writing for the purpose of persuading someone to do something. This is especially true when writing descriptive copy.
Why? Because your customer’s five senses don’t work on paper, they only work in person. That’s why we, as copywriters, have to create a sensory experience for our customers through our words.
Have you ever stopped to consider copywriting as a sensory activity? You should. In order to see, hear, smell, taste, or feel a product, we have to be in the presence of that product. All too often, when copywriters create descriptions, they leave a lot to be desired. There is no excitement, no interaction, no experience.
Descriptions should be, well, descriptive.
Effective descriptions should fill the gap of what customers would see, hear, smell, taste, or feel if they were standing in the presence of the product. Effective descriptions should draw customers in and create an actual event… as if they were able to be right there with you.
Do you make cinnamon rolls? You wouldn’t want to describe them simply as “delicious” or say they “smell great.” Instead, you’d want to bring your customers into the experience of enjoying your cinnamon rolls. Think of which of their five senses would be most in tune with your product and write to those.
Try this…
Definitely NOT grandma’s cinnamon rolls! Bake them fresh right in your own oven. As the aroma of these gourmet rolls begins to waft through the air, your nose will start to tingle and you’ll immediately know they are worth the wait.
The scents of freshly ground cinnamon and yeast begin to merge as the dough rises and the cinnamon, sugar and butter begin to bubble. Open your oven door to reveal one of the largest sweets you’ve ever seen.
Drizzle the homemade frosting over the top to complete your warm, gooey treasure. Your taste buds will praise you with every bite!
Can you smell the cinnamon? Can you visualize the dough rising in the oven with the cinnamon and sugar bubbling on the top of each roll?
Are you remembering the times you’ve glazed cinnamon rolls in the past and, with sticky fingers, taken that first bite out of a freshly baked, warm, gooey pastry? This copy brings it all back, doesn’t it?
Do you rent private, Jamaican beachfront condos? Taking a basic route and falling back on the phrases “ocean view” and “sunsets are included” will leave your reader lacking a truly intriguing experience.
Something like this will work better…
As your day begins, enjoy a gourmet breakfast prepared by your own private staff who is at your disposal 24 hours a day. A gorgeous view overlooking your own crystal blue freshwater pool welcomes you to another exciting adventure in Jamaica.
A morning stroll along your private, white sand beach is the perfect way to welcome the day. A fun-filled outing can consist of splashing in the surf, sunning on the beach or napping in an authentic hand-woven hammock that cuddles every curve of your body. At the end of the day, you’ll have sun-kissed shoulders, a glowing bronze tan, and a phenomenal appetite.
Unwind at the poolside gazebo as you prepare for a world-class dinner that rivals any five-star restaurant. Refreshing after-dinner cocktails are especially enjoyable when sipped on the terrace as nature provides an amazing display of sunsets and a soft, caressing breeze you won’t soon forget.
Let’s go! “Splashing in the surf, sunning on the beach, or napping in an authentic hand-woven hammock that cuddles every curve of your body.” Can you just imagine? How about “sun-kissed shoulders, a glowing bronze tan”? That paints a picture, doesn’t it? Can you feel that warm tingling you always get after spending a day in the sun?
“Nature provides an amazing display of sunsets and a soft, caressing breeze.” I’m ready! Where do I sign up?
Are you beginning to see the importance of writing truly descriptive descriptions? Your customers aren’t there.
They can’t see, hear, feel, taste, or smell what you can. You have to do the next best thing and vividly depict what their sensory experiences will be like so they’ll want to buy what you have or do what you’ve done.
When you write descriptive copy, choose the senses that are most appropriate and focus on them. If you’re describing food, of course you’ll want to think about what you’re tasting but also what you smell and see. (Presentation is just as important as taste.) If you’re writing travel copy, you’ll want to focus on sights and sounds plus feelings (relaxation, enjoyment, excitement, etc.).
Your goal is to have your readers close their eyes and genuinely, vividly imagine they are in the midst of the same experience you are. When you accomplish that, you’ll find your sales increase as will your bank account balance!
I’ll be taking a week off to focus on closing out a project (July 28-August 1). More to come from the lessons learned during this engagement. It’s a really cool online course with custom hooks into a client app. The back-end was designed as “plug and play” so content can quickly and easily be swapped out while still being applicable to the course testing and grading scenarios.
I have questioned the value of Twitter in the past. Well, with a recent acquisition, there may be some value to using/adopting Twitter — especially if you’re in marketing, public relations, or customer service. See Mike Gunderloy’s post on Web Worker Daily:
If you’re a Twitter user you likely saw the news this morning: Twitter bought Summize. The deal, covered on the business level by our parent blog GigaOm, brings Twitter some more smart engineers and a potential route to monetization. But what does it mean to the average web worker?
Do you talk to your reader in your sales letters? Are you using language that is too formal or stuffy? Worse yet, are you writing in a style that is too informal?
Formal Language
I talk to so many people that are confused about what is business appropriate in their written correspondence. Many are convinced that the company expects them to use the old formal language.
Let’s look at an example.
Pursuant to your inquiry of March 17, 2008, I am enclosing some literature regarding our XYZ products. Our organization is dedicated to providing the utmost quality and cost effectiveness. We are confident our products will meet and exceed your standards of excellence.
This is too formal and most likely will bore your reader. You should ask yourself if this is how you would speak to the customer in a face-to-face conversation.
Informal Language
Now let’s consider the opposite approach. We treat our customers as if they were one of our closest friends. We use slang, make up adjectives, and forget we have proper grammar and sentence structure to consider. We forget that email, when used for business correspondence must remain business appropriate.
Take another look at the above excerpt now written in a very informal style.
Hey, thanks for calling. I put some really cool stuff about our XYZ products in the package. Our company thinks quality is really important and our pricing is uber-low. You’ll be totally stoked by our super products.
This is too informal. It sounds like we are talking to a friend at a college party.
Business Appropriate
Let’s make our excerpt more conversational, while maintaining the appropriateness.
Thank you for your call. I have sent you some information about our XYZ products. You might have heard that our company values quality. We would like to show you how we can help you be most cost effective. Let’s talk some more about how we can help you and answer your questions. We want to be sure you feel good about your decision to buy our products.
Does the above example sound too stuffy? Is it too informal? Does it sound conversational and still maintain a business-like tone?
Try reading your sales and business letters out-loud before you send them. Make sure they are written in a conversational style that maintains a business tone. Give your customers the respect they deserve by communicating in a clear and concise manner. Choose strong, direct words to convey your message. Write in a style that encourages your reader to want to talk more with you.
Source: Valerie Kendrick is the President of Kendrick Resources LLC, specializing in communications skills training.
In the past 14 months I’ve given 70 presentations including keynotes, luncheon speeches, after-dinner speeches and seminars in virtually every market in the U.S. and mainly for corporate groups of CEOs, key executives, and entrepreneurs. But the most memorable group I spoke to was the May 2008 graduating class of J.E.T. (Jobs and Employment Training) at St. Patrick’s Center on May 30th in my hometown of St. Louis
St. Patrick’s Center does noble work in helping homeless people find hope and generate permanent, positive changes in their lives. However, the thing I like the best about St. Patrick’s Center is they are very practical. They don’t just talk about helping people create permanent, positive changes in their lives; they dive in and get things done. They help people find a place to stay and they provide them with training on interviewing and job skills necessary to re-enter the workforce. One of their programs is called J.E.T., which is a twelve-week program on a variety of computer skills that will help the graduate increase their chances of gaining meaningful work.
Overcoming Life’s Greatest Obstacles
There were nine people in the graduating class at J.E.T. ranging in age from approximately 25 to 45. I met each of them briefly before my speech and got to know their names. I won’t list them here, but I’ll also never forget them. I could see the excitement over their accomplishments in their eyes. I felt the passion in their dreams. I had to do everything I could to keep myself from crying in front of the audience, which included their family members and friends. It could have been the graduation ceremonies at Harvard because that’s how excited each of these individuals was that day.
To me, these nine individuals represent everything that I’ve written about and spoken about over the past 11 years. They had just completed a 12-week course to increase their capacity to gain meaningful work, and they were incredibly proud of what they had learned and accomplished. They were enthusiastic about the future. They were ready to get on with it.
Isn’t that what life is about? Going after dreams and trying to better ourselves so we can make a greater contribution to other people. Jackie Robinson, the baseball player, said something to the effect that the whole purpose of life is to make a difference in the lives of other people. Well, if that’s true and I think it is, then bettering our selves in order to add value to other people is an important part of the process, and that part should be celebrated.
These nine individuals were moving from a life of homelessness and despair to a life of hope and contribution and carving out the careers they wanted for themselves. One lady stopped me after the ceremonies and said, “St. Patrick’s Center gave me my self-esteem back and now I’m excited about the future.” I almost said to her that no one can instill self-esteem into another person. Self-esteem means the value a person sees in himself or herself. Only the individual can strengthen his or her own self-esteem. As Abraham Maslow said many years ago, “True self-esteem rests on a feeling of personal dignity, the feeling that you are in control of your own decisions and your own destiny.” No one can give you a feeling of being in control of your own decisions. Only you can develop the feeling that you are in control of your own decisions.
But I understood what the woman meant. She meant that St. Patrick’s Center provided an environment of encouragement where she could focus on her strengths and the value she can bring to other people. In doing so, this woman took the time to realize everything she had to offer to the world. That is how self-esteem is built.
I met a teacher named John that day who told me about a life course offered at St. Patrick’s Center on realizing that every super successful leader overcame odds to make a difference in the lives of other people. I totally agree. Walt Disney and Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King, Jr. and Oprah Winfrey and Mohandas Gandhi didn’t just wake up one day ready to contribute. They honed their ability to add value until one day they were so good that other people opened their eyes to all the value they had to offer. Martin Luther King, Jr. worked at writing essays and giving sermons long before he started changing the world for the better in 1955.
Graduation Day taught me or re-taught me so many lessons:
o In giving we receive. I was more touched by those 45 minutes with those nine graduates who had transformed despair into direction, homelessness into hopefulness, and frustration into focus than any work project I’ve done in the past ten years.
o We all need to take the time to recall the value we have to offer to other people. It’s wonderful to help other people see their value, but it’s just as important that we take the time to see the value we have to offer to other people. Recall your past success stories where you made a difference in the lives of other people and the strengths and passions you have to offer to other people.
o Lift your head to see the difference you’re making in the world. You can get so busy giving love to other people that you may not see the impact that your love is making in the world.
o Celebrate life’s most important transitions. That ceremony was a moment to savor like a fine meal. Climbing a mountain means resting at the plateaus. Rest, re-energize, let the success soak in, and then plot your next move up Mt. Contribution, the real-life mountain of trying to make a difference in the lives of other people that we are all trying to climb.
o Pause occasionally from helping your work team move forward and trying to move your career forward and look around you for opportunities to give to others who will never be able to repay you, at least not financially. There are so many magnificent organizations within 30 minutes of your home. What non-financial contribution can you make for them? How can you use your strengths and passions to deliver real value to people who simply can’t afford to pay you?
o Achieving a specific, measurable objective at work is important. Achievements are the basis of promotions, raises, and career growth. Hitting a number is about a goal. Living with purpose is about the soul. Ask yourself, “What is my purpose?” Write down your purpose. Then pour your efforts into both your work and your community events to fulfill your purpose.
In watching the tributes to Tim Russert, I was reminded that great business managers still take the time to give back their strengths and their passions to their communities. As many people thanked him for what he did outside of NBC as he did inside Meet the Press.
Dan Coughlin is a business keynote speaker, management consultant, and author of Accelerate: 20 Practical Lessons to Boost Business Momentum.
How can we use the four communication styles to connect to more potential clients? Why do we need to be aware of these styles when writing our direct mail literature?
If you haven’t asked yourselves these questions before writing your next direct mail piece, you may be missing a lot of opportunities. When we write to an unknown audience we need to make sure we capture the attention of each of the four communication styles.
1. Directors: The first line of your document must attract the “Directors.” It must be direct, to the point, and state clearly the main purpose of the document. You need to answer the question for this reader, “What’s in it for me?” The very last line of the document must tell them how to take action to buy your product because their overriding need is to finish each task.
Example: The new A500 with increased speed and reliability, doubling your productivity, can be ordered directly from our website at http://www.whateveryourwebsite.com.
2. Socializers: Next we can appeal to the “Socializers.” Their driving need is to be appreciated. You need to explain how your product will get them more attention from those they care about. You need to emphasize the “newness,” creativity, or flexibility of the product.
Example: You’ll be surprised when your friends and family continually ask you to show them the new and exciting ways to use the improved time-saving features of the A500.
3. Thinkers: For our “Thinkers” you need to include a chart or graph that specifically depicts the statistics that prove your product is bigger, faster, more reliable, or more efficient. They love facts and details, and those must be presented in a very eye-catching way. You cannot let the details get lost in the body of your document. Remember to leave a lot of white space around your chart of specifications so that the “Thinkers” are drawn to the information.
4. Relaters: Lastly, you must include our “Relaters.” Their focus is on being liked and belonging to the group. They want harmony and a way for everyone to avoid conflict. You need to make sure they know how your product enables them to share with others. This style really appreciates testimonials because they highly value the opinions of others. They will seek out this information by asking all their friends if they have used your product or know anyone who has used it. Don’t make them search for this information; give them the testimonials and endorsements right near the bottom of your document.
Example: “I am thrilled with the wonderful new features of the A500. It has saved me so much time and energy, and my whole family loves to use it. In fact three of my neighbors have already asked to borrow it.” Susan, Dallas,TX.
We all have a dominant communication style and it governs how we respond to information. So the next time you are putting together your direct mail document, keep the four styles in mind and appeal individually to each one.
Source: Valerie Kendrick is the President of Kendrick Resources LLC, specializing in communications skills training. She has been called the “Grammar Guru” because of her passion to help the business person communicate more effectively.
What is the goal of a press release? You’re probably thinking, ‘It’s obvious, isn’t it?’ The hope is that your press release gets picked up by your media of choice and you get free advertising. Marketers dream their press release will wind up as the main headline on the front page. And it’s true: The value of being on the editorial pages of the media is priceless. But what some marketers don’t consider are the hidden advantages, the less obvious but equally powerful benefits of P.R.
1. Improves Internal Communication And Messaging
Communicating effectively to employees is more than good H.R. – it’s essential to retention and relationship building. Employees don’t want to learn about their company’s accomplishments over the news or online. They should hear it first from the source: their employer’s communications department.
Making your press release accessible to employees — via a company newsletter, corporate intranet, or company website – is effective internal communication and plays a valuable role in professional development. Furthermore, when written properly, the press release is chock full of corporate messaging, and serves as a “key message” document, which employees can use when speaking with clients and prospects. It’s a great way to build consistent messaging throughout the organization.
2. Boosts Search Results
The content in press releases is by nature rich with key words, making it high-value content for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Press releases increase the value of your website in the eyes of search engines, as well as encourage other sites to link to yours. This inbound linking is also highly valued by search engines and can lead to much higher organic SEO ranking.
To get even more back-links, submit your press releases to free PR submission websites. A live link from the press release back to the website owner’s site will be posted on most of the syndicated places that the press release shows up. The more channels you reach out to, the better chance you have of getting picked up in the search engines.
The residual online benefit for the press release publisher is the coveted fresh content that is so hard to come by on the Internet today. Your website stays relevant and up-to-date with the latest news.
3. Defines Your Company As A Leader
When journalists use your press release to write about your products, they provide an independent review that creates credibility. When consumers read press releases, it strengthens their perceptions of your brand. Included as part of a company’s integrated marketing program, the press release reinforces branding, boosts loyalty and contributes to sales results.
4. Works In Your Marketing Tool Kit
Get double duty from your press releases, by including them in collateral, or information kits. Too often, salespeople starve for tools that will support and improve their sales efforts. A well-stocked arsenal of sales materials—the marketing toolkit—is crucial to successful sales efforts. When left with prospects, along with case studies, fact sheets and other collateral, the press release is a fundamental tool for arming salespeople with materials they can use to “get in the door,” ensuring the right message is delivered and keeping your name in front of the client long after the initial sales call.
5. Broadens The Net To Prospects
A release can be distributed to a range of publications through paid news services, sent directly from your communications department to targeted members of the media, and can be posted on your company website for potentially thousands of people to view. You broaden the audience who learns about your company – and ensure that your brand is well-known in your industry.
Put together a P.R. plan that includes distributing and posting press releases on a regular basis and you will start reaping hidden benefits of a press release.
NOTE: Robyn, from Elephant Poop, took time to respond to the Twitter article. Below is her response and how she finds Twitter useful in her life. Enjoy!
Hey, Eric!
Well, I really don’t spend a lot of time ON it; I have it open in a sidebar of Firefox and set to update every three minutes, though it may be as long as several hours before I actually open the sidebar to look at the tweets. It’s more or less like music playing very softly in the background. Every so often I turn up the volume, then turn it down again after the piece I like has finished. And if I’m on deadline or just not interested, I shut Twitter down, often without announcement. No one seems to mind.
I don’t follow a lot of people – for teenagers it may be quantity (how many can you follow and how many are following you?), but I’m kinda selective. Right now, I’m following about 14. There are some bloggers I follow and they often will tweet when they’ve uploaded a new post or if they’re attending a conference and just heard something interesting. I like when I get short updates about areas I’m interested in. For example, Jackie Peters was at the same conference as Peter Shankman, who was giving the keynote address and she mentioned that Peter’s address was on “PR and transparency on social networks,” something I think I want to know more about. I know Peter will likely put his presentation on his blog, so I now I know to be looking for it.
As for entertainment, I follow Guy Kawasaki (who is generally too busy to blog more than a couple of times a month) and he linked to some pics (using Twit Pic) of his trip to Kuala Lumpur while it was happening, including some imposing temple steps he climbed, the great seats you get on Cathay air and a fabulous dinner you can have in Indonesia while having to look at an advertisement for ear candling! It’s noodling and minutiae, but it makes the world my backyard, so to speak, while letting me feel as though I am more connected to the people I follow. I wish more of my friends and family would join and use it – most of them live hundreds of miles from me and I would like to know about some of their small victories and defeats as well as their large ones. I have one sister with a chronic disease who occasionally tweets and it’s great to be able to hear from her even if it’s only 140 words or less at a time!
Like a lot of people, I got a Twitter account a year or so ago, but didn’t use it because I couldn’t see the benefit. But there were a few people online whose ideas interested me and sparked my own ideas. So I started following them to see if their short posts were as interesting as their long ones. I do have one person I started following who blogs too much about her yard and kids, but for the most part it hasn’t been disappointing. Maybe it’s like the haiku of the online world – a way to connect without giving up your life to email or feed reading. If you stick to reading the poets whose work you find interesting, you can learn and be entertained at the same time on several levels in several idioms. It has also reminded me of learning the
value of each word you use (something I didn’t do in this reply, but I’m just getting over a bad sinus infection, so I’m still a little woozy). Okay, okay, I nearly always write too much and have to edit myself! :-) If this had been Twitter, I probably would have said it shorter and sweeter!
If your visitors like your Web site, there is a very good likelihood that the search engines will, too. Here are the last 5 tips from Barry Fenning, that focus on how to develop your site with your visitors in mind, and also effectively conduct search engine optimization.
6. Descriptively label your links and images (aka, the “anchor text”)
This technique is both common sense and good practice. Saying “click here” is not enough to help visitors understand what they’re going to find once they click through. Be as descriptive as possible with every text and graphical link on your site. When writing your anchor text and alt attributes, you can almost always describe the page you’re pointing to by using its main keyword phrase. That is an important factor that search engines take into account when it comes to ranking your Web pages.
7. Make sure your site is spider-friendly
Your site may look fantastic. You and your Web designer may be talented graphic designers who can make Flash and JavaScript dazzle your visitors with a show that would put Michael Flatley and his River Dance to shame. However, if your site contains Flash and JavaScript, it’s important to know that search engine spiders have difficulty reading this code (or appreciating the effort you put into the design). The way around this is to provide navigation alternatives such as static links and a site map to allow the spiders crawl deep within your Web site and index the pages within their results. Overuse of Flash, JavaScript, and images can also lead to your Web pages’ being very slow to download. If these file types are used sparingly, your visitors and search engines will appreciate your efforts a lot more.
8. Create fresh content
When you are optimizing your site properly, you will see a trend. If you are doing something that benefits your site’s visitors, then the search engines will reward you for it. Blogs and forums are effective and easy ways of adding new information to your site on a regular basis. However, if your only purpose of setting up a blog or a forum is for better search engine rankings, then there really is no point in doing it. Only add a forum if it contributes something beneficial to your site and if you have the traffic to make it interactive enough for visitors to return to it. And, only add a blog if you have something of interest to say on a regular basis. Once you have your blog and/or forum up and running, you should optimize them with the same professionalism you do with any other page on your site.
9. Do not think that you can trick search engines
As noted before, if you are benefiting your visitors, then the search engines will reward you for it. If you try to trick the search engines by hiding keyword phrases, joining link farms, or any other sneaky practice, your sites will be removed from the search engines. (And you will also have to spend more time cleaning up your site before they will accept you back in.)
10. Offer something unique
If your Web site offers something that is unique and interesting to your target market and it is properly optimized (by applying all of the techniques listed above), you will not only rank well within the major search engines but also get the added benefit of people linking to your site in forums, blogs, and through other sites. That will send your site more visitors and create more inbound links, which will help it rank higher.
Remember, it’s human visitors that you are trying to impress, not search engine robots.
Posted by ebrown 
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