Posts filed under 'Networking'
Promote your expertise with this search engine
Social networks are great for following your friends’ daily musings, but rarely do they help grow your income. I think we all want to leverage social media to help our business efforts – now there is Weedle.
Like a LinkedIn/Yellow Pages hybrid, Weddle’s a new platform from Ireland to help users effectively market their professional expertise through mutual contacts which leverages an implicit “element of trust.” Users fill out a description of their vocation (plumber, video producer) and location, back it up with a mini resume and optionally a photo/video of their “skills in action”, then one imports contacts from myriad accounts including Gmail, LinkedIn, and AOL. Users searching for hires (done by skill set) will have their results prioritized based on individuals with whom they share contacts, allowing them to vet you by a trusted source should they choose; if interested, they can reach out.
Once the process is over, both parties can go back “rate” one another and/or comment on the experience.
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Add comment August 31, 2010
TAX BREAK Houston’s Creative Bailout!
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Comedy – Music – Live Art – Networking
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| After bobbing and weaving together last year, this year’s creative mixer is all about getting a little relief from work and taxes. Join Houston’s leading professional creative organizations as we socialize and enjoy another tax season passing us by … |
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Event Name: Tax Break! Houston’s Creative Bailout |
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Sponsoring organizations: American Advertising Federation Houston (AAFH) American Institute of Graphic Arts Houston (AIGA) Art Director’s Club of Houston (ADCH) Only in Houston (OiH) University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership (UHGAP) |
![OiH_650-m[1]](http://mediaslap.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/oih_650m11.jpg "OiH_650-m[1]")
![facebook[1]](http://mediaslap.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/facebook11.png?w=36&h=36 "facebook[1]"){kind=small}
Add comment March 26, 2010
Can Google Change China?
Have you been to China? It’s an amazing country with smart very productive people. Many predict that China will be the leading economic nation soon … or are they now?
The Google machine (no that’s not a slam) thinks that they can muscle China. In our last Shanghai trip, we found that when you went to an blocked web site or said a word in your email that was against government policy … your computer screen would go black and display a warning for a period of time. I was told that if you get too many warnings then Chinese security would be on the way. We heeded the warnings and complied. The NSA thinks they monitor the net?
Now Google wants to offer an uncensored search engine in China? China is changing but not fast enough for Google. Read more ….
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2 comments January 29, 2010
Share Documents in the Clouds
Almost everyone I know uses Office or Office for Mac. Bur sharing documents can be a bother. Even email is not dependible because of Spamfiltering, mail policies and AntiVirus programs that block your attempts to share.
Have you seen what is going on with all of the servers and services available today?
Sharing is fundamental to cloud computing. This type of sharing uses your Web browser as the window to the cloud experience. With OfficeLive Workspaces, you can view and share Word documents, Excel –spreadsheets, PowerPoint, or many other documents – from anywhere to anywhere. Whether you are at home, at work, at the library, or in a hotel room with Internet. Forget sending e-mail attachments back and forth, or using a thumb-sized flash drive that too often gets misplaced.
Clouds are Everywhere
Computing in the clouds gets even more fun when you see your desktop computer in the clouds. No, nothing has been abducted from your home. Welcome to Mesh, your personal network of your own computers in the sky, viewed in your favorite Web browser. Once your computers are adding to Mesh, you can view any of your computers from all the other computers—and all for free. I use Mesh to connect to my desktop computer at work when I must have a file or need to run a program remotely.
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2 comments January 28, 2010
Send SMS to a Phone by Email
Ever want to send an email to a phone? Some people NEVER respond to email, just text. While trying to find a text messaging by email solution this morning I found that each phone company has a email portal. So, you can message per phonecompany or reach all phone companies through teleflip.com (see below.)
I had a specific need for a server alert system to send me a text should the server burp. But this is a great way to text someone from your desktop too.
* Be sure of the recipients messaging plan because some people have to pay per text or have just so many messages in their plan.
(Note: For each carrier, I have included a link to a page with more detailed information on how SMS works with that carrier, how much it costs, and where you can find more information. In the list below, just click any carrier’s highlighted name to find out more. This info is subject to change.)
Alltel
[10-digit phone number]@message.alltel.com
Example: 2125551212@message.alltel.com
AT&T (formerly Cingular)
[10-digit phone number]@txt.att.net
Example: 2125551212@txt.att.net
Boost Mobile
[10-digit phone number]@myboostmobile.com
Example: 2125551212@myboostmobile.com
Nextel (now Sprint Nextel)
[10-digit telephone number]@messaging.nextel.com
Example: 7035551234@messaging.nextel.com
Sprint PCS (now Sprint Nextel)
[10-digit phone number]@messaging.sprintpcs.com
Example: 2125551234@messaging.sprintpcs.com
T-Mobile
[10-digit phone number]@tmomail.net
Example: 4251234567@tmomail.net
Verizon
[10-digit phone number]@vtext.com
Example: 5552223333@vtext.com
Virgin Mobile USA
[10-digit phone number]@vmobl.com
Example: 5551234567@vmobl.com
Teleflip If all this seems complicated, there’s an easier way to send email to any phone, no matter what its carrier. Just address it to [10-digit phone number]@teleflip.com
Example: 2125551212@teleflip.com
More information on Teleflip
Add comment January 12, 2010
Your Image in 2010
Perhaps we need to refer to the new year as twenty ten, it is more concise and simple. I ran across an article that inspired me and thought I would write about this on January first, twenty ten.
Many of us have learned that good looks add to success in the workplace but too many fail to realize that cultivating the perception of youth and a hip attitude is also very important. It’s no secret that we live in an age-obsessed society. Don’t follow these rules to impress a young person. Your goal is to create a more youthful perception about yourself. So how do you do it? Here are some of the concepts form the new book, “Bulletproof Your Job”:
Rule #1: Crest Whitestrips. This is a surface and shallow cosmetic-based tip. But people just don’t understand that having coffee-stained teeth doesn’t do you any favors. Then smile. Smiling makes you look and feel younger.
Rule #2: You need to be on Facebook. No friends? You already have one: just facebook me (dwightcook.) I will be your first friend.
Rule #3: Know how to use Google and Wikipedia and use them. Bookmark these sites on your computer, and set one as your homepage.
Rule #4: Watch an episode of “Big Bang Theory.” Discuss and Repeat.
Rule #5: Peruse your local Apple store. Learn the difference between an iPod Classic, iPod Touch and iPod Nano. You also need to what itunes and podcasts are all about and then you are on your way.
Rule #6: Do not disclose your past. Keep it to yourself. These are the “good old days!”
Rule #7: Don’t talk about how you’re addicted to Starbucks. Nobody cares and it won’t make you seem younger.
Rule #8: Keep up to date with Entertainment news and Sports. Set them as a favorite or add it to your custom home page on Google, Yahoo or Bing. This can help you with current relevant conversation.
Rule #9: Learn how to text message and do it.
Rule #10: Lose the newspaper. Young people get their news online.
Rule #12: Make eye contact. Eye contact is so critical to being perceived as young; don’t be afraid to use it.
Rule #13: Never refer to your grandchildren or great-grandchildren. Rarely mention your children – these topics make you sound old.
Rule #14: Go to the gym.
Rule #15: Never use ancient words like “groovy, dy-no-mite, or tubular.” Use current vocabulary.
Rule #16: Get a TiVo or DVR. Know how they work.
Rule #17: Record yourself to see how how old you sound. You will probably be your own worst critic. Note that youthful people talk much snappier.
Rule #18: Dress is very important: always dress age-appropriate with no frump factor.
Rule #19: Give your hairstyle a hard look. Get a young stylist to help with your look or ask a young family member that will be honest with you to help.
Rule #20: Skip cologne and wear deodorant. Young people don’t wear scented oils or strong cologne. You don’t want BO, so don’t skip that deodorant.
Rule #21: Make younger friends and hang out with them.
1 comment January 1, 2010
Two Secrets to a Successful Web Site
It’s really pretty simple:
1) Get people to your site
Most people get this one. People spend good money to promote a web site to search engines, trade links and advertise. All of these are important. With millions of web sites on the internet you can’t expect people to find your site by accident.
There are still hundreds of web sites published daily and they will never receive a spec of promotion. Promote, promote, promote!
2) Give them a reason to come back
This is the real kicker. The days are long gone when you can build a site and forget it for years. Yet there are static sites out on the Net that have not changed since they were built. If you have already read a book, it better be captivating and compel you to pick it back up to reread it. The same holds true with a web site. Make the web site connect with the visitor. Better yet, 
change your content and keep it fresh. So why would someone never visit your web site again? Here are my top reasons:
- There is nothing of interest
- Nothing has changed since my last visit
- Misspellings bad content, broken links, poor design or a bad impression
Please follow these two rules to avoid failure.
Add comment December 14, 2009
Help a Genius Who Paints Sound
As many of you may know, the DREAM Fund was developed to assist people in advertising, public relations and media industries whose lives have hit unexpected difficulties. Today, we have a special need in the Houston Area; a need that requires immediate assistance.
Mark Meyer works as an audio engineer at SoundWorks. He has been diagnosed with lung cancer and unfortunately the chemo treatments have not helped; thus, the current prognosis isn’t favorable. For the past 6 months, he has worked on a reduced salary and is the primary provider for his family. Mark has been labeled as a genius at painting sound; however, he is also a master of not making a sound when needing help. To fight this battle, Mark needs not only encouragement but monetary support for his mounting medical bills and for the care of his family (wife, two daughters and grandson).
Should you wish to make a tax-deductible donation to assist this family in their time of need, please logon to: http://www.dreamfund.org/
click on: DONATIONS
select: Donate online
Fill-in all required areas (*) on the form, uncheck any pre-checked selections and under DIRECTED DONATIONS type: MARK MEYER
Once the donation transaction is complete, you will be able to print your donation confirmation and receipt.
Again, please spread the word and help a colleague in need. Thank you for your support.
To send a note of encouragement to Mark – visit The Mark Meyer Fund on Facebook or Mark Meyer on Twitter.
Add comment November 18, 2009
Carefully Build Your Social Network
Think … interesting communities
We all know that some people think social networks are a waste of time. Sometimes they are! If you don’t use them properly as part of a marketing plan they can be just a fun conversation. But wait – social networks can be so much more. It’s not just about numbers of people connections – it’s about numbers of targeted connections.
I love Twitter – first of all it’s limited to 140 characters. I like to follow people who talk about things I am interested in and that relate to my work. There are so many twitter tools that let you do just that. These tools can search the Twitter public stream and look for posts containing key words typed by people you may want to follow. You can manually add these people after a review of the post or automatically follow them. I have used this method to connect with over 10,000 people in just a few months. Once I follow people, they usually follow back. Ultimately, I don’t follow people who don’t follow me back, because to me, it’s all about connections. My favorite Twitter application is Tweetdeck – it allows me to filter tweets of others by subject and helps me with Facebook posts too. Just do a search for Twitter applications – the number of these grow daily!
I think that Facebook is the more personal social network. I prefer to connect with people I know and their direct friends. I make an exception by joining targeted groups on Facebook. You may also find the groups and fan clubs are helpful for making focused connections. I also repurpose my Twitter feed as my Facebook status.
I like to think of Linked-in as a way of connecting with groups of special interests. I find that may people think of it as more “business”. Actually all of these social networks are good for business. But Linked-in does have more of a business orientation. I search for connections by using the search on Linked-in and look for groups of people with the interest I want to target. But you must add to the group “think” and talk with members in order to be accepted.
All the social networks have unspoken manners you must adhere to to be successful. For example it’s a real turnoff to sell a product directly – but it’s cool to post a link to an article on your blog.
Where will social networking go in the future? I think that the big networks will definitely be around and continue to be useful but there will be large growth in niche networking as people become more discerning about with whom they connect. For example I recently heard about a bartenders network with an invitation only tier for the elite in this craft. I think we will see more tiny focused social networks like this in the near future.
So, connect and grow your network but be targeted! Feel free to post a comment or connect with me on Twitter, Facebook or Linked-in. You will find my profile at www.dwightcook.com.
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Add comment September 1, 2009
Free Food Friday – October 8th @ SoundWorks
SoundWorks has fun ways of supporting the creative community with Free Food Friday* networking lunches. Menus for past events have included everything from good ole’ fashioned homemade hamburgers to Mexican, Spanish and Portuguese-inspired dishes prepared by local chefs. FFF is free lunch fun with Houston creative people. Dwight Cook of SoundWorks says, “It’s very cool to see graphic designers, writers and filmmakers make personal and business connections. It’s about making the Houston community smaller by getting to know each other.”
The next FFF event on October 8th will feature a Jamaican-themed menu and guests get to suggest their favorite Caribbean tune for download. Pirate punch for everyone!
* FFF translates: free lunch, invitation only, creative community enjoying creative cuisine. We believe in building this Houston network of professionals through the art of conversation, a shared perspective, a plate at a time. FFF is by invitation only, so if you want to attend you might have to twist an arm at SoundWorks.
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Add comment September 1, 2010