Another Amazing Affiliate Summit East 2014
Last week I attended another amazing Affiliate Summit East 2014 – big thanks up front to Shawn Collins & Missy Ward for their tireless organization of a terrific conference. I was very excited to return to New York again after missing Affiliate Summit East 2013 in Philadelphia. This was my 15th Affiliate Summit, and as usual I got more out of it than I ever thought I would.
Read MoreTop 5 Social Media Apps for iPhone
Guest Post by James Clark.
Social networking sites for smartphones are what make the smartphone experience all the richer. You can get the entertainment and socialization aspects of using a full time PC all in a handy device that is not only portable but can be safely tucked into your pockets or bags. Modern technology really can be a blessing but availing the luxuries can be a bit tricky. With so much progress happening on the smartphone front, there is also a lot of malware and spyware being produced too- – a counter reaction almost for all the things you can use smartphones for.
Of all the platforms for smartphones, iOS ranks number one when it comes to safety. There is just no doubt that an iPhone is the safest platform what with the closed OS and Apple’s strict review policies for apps. So if you feel that you want a social app experience and are safe from cell phone monitoring, keyloggers, and all sorts of malware and adware that spreads through social networking sites, iPhone is your best option. And so, here are the best social apps that will help you socialize with ease and no fear of spyware on your iPhone.
There can be no surprises here. Facebook is King App when it comes to comparing social networking apps for any platform. When we talk about iPhone, we know that the people over at Apple have managed to master social networking app creation and have a great free app version on iTunes. The app is very close to the real website and offers almost everything that is available on the site. The rating is 5 out of 5 and is the most used social app on iPhone.
Meebo
Though Meebo also has an excellent rating (5 out of 5 like Facebook), it still will have to come in a close second behind Facebook since the latter’s preference outdoes anyone else’s. But what is great about Meebo is that you can use it and still avail Facebook chat along with dozens of other chat services all rolled into one iPhone app. The app is free and very easy to use.
IMO Instant Messenger
This is a great app that also allows you to keep in touch with friends through multiple social network platforms and services. Among services it incorporates are AOL, MSN, Facebook, MySpace, and many more. Unlike Meebo, it supports Skype which gives it an edge over some other apps for Skype fans. IMO Instant Messenger is free and allows users to sort out and organize contacts, user push features, search chat history and more. The rating for this app is 4.5 out of 5 but personally, this app is a better option than Meebo.
TweetDeck iPhone App
This is a favorite among Twitter fans. Though it’s the free version of the Twitter app, fans flock to it since it does offer a lot of good features despite holding back many for the users on the paid version. With TweetDeck users can manage more than one Twitter account on one simple interface. The ranking is 4/5 and hard to beat for a free Twitter app.
Now this app is quite possibly the most comprehensive one when it comes to accessing multiple services. Instead of just incorporating the big names, users can also keep tabs on Tumblr, LinkedIn, and Instagram. All the news feeds come to the users in magazine style updates, keeping everything fresh and fun. Flipboard ranks great with a 5 out of 5 rating.
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James Clark has been in the business of providing quality information on Mobistealth Mobile Spy Software for a while now. He’s an expert at all things spyware, but his main forte is iPhone spyware which has captured the interest of many.
Read MoreUnlocking Your Future – the Key to Working from Home
Guest Post by James Martell
In my dad’s day, a businessman commuted from the suburbs to the office for hours each week, often traveling on business trips to meet with clients or suppliers, and spent more time away from home than he ever did with his family. Those days are disappearing, and it’s time to embrace a new normal.
Blast from the past
Back in 1998, when I first started understanding how the internet would be the future of business, everyone was a bit leery of it. When I did my first promotion for a company in the United States, everybody thought it was crazy for a Canadian like me to do business with someone from another country, not to mention someone I had never even met. I must admit I had my own doubts about it, but they were all laid to rest when the first check cleared the bank.
Today’s Information Age
Flash forward twelve years and the internet is the way we all do business, so why are so many of us still leaving our homes and families to punch a time clock in an office? Working from home is the key to your freedom and happiness; you just have to follow some simple guidelines and success can be yours.
Create your own space
Start by creating your own work space. Working from home is great, because it allows you the freedom to manage your own time and do with it what matters most, but you can’t treat your work time like home time. Creating a separate space to be your work area is essential, and allows you to mentally focus on your work, as well as keep things organized.
Some people I’ve talked to prefer to create their own office, complete with a nice home office computer desk and filing cabinets. Others prefer to make a section in their garage or a corner of the bedroom their work area. However much space you need, or the tools you require, just make sure it is a space that is all your own, and dedicated solely to your work. No setting up on half the kitchen the table and pretending you can eat dinner around it or the kids won’t scatter it. It just doesn’t work!
Social marketing
Use the internet to work for you. It’s important to realize that there’s a lot of competition out there these days, and you’ll need more going for you than just a well written landing page if you’re going to be a success. You’re going to have to make what you’re offering look appealing to the consumer and convince them that others think it has value too. Whatever you’re selling, whether it’s a product or a service, one of the best ways to sell it is with social marketing.
Just as our parents turned to the yellow pages or watched ads on TV, today everybody goes to search engines like Google when they want or need something. It’s the first place many of us get our information now.
When we want to know if the information we gathered from the web is credible, we rely on people we know for endorsements. The power of word of mouth has grown immeasurably since the advent of Facebook and Twitter. Millions of consumers are turning to these resources before making purchases and more and more of us are doing the actual buying or ordering on the internet as well. I’m sure you’ve found this to be true in your own life just as I have. These are great tools that you can use to your advantage. By getting people to talk about your product or service and consumers will seek you out.
Tools of tomorrow, here today
If all this sounds like a lot of work, just remember, you don’t have to do it all alone. Working from home isn’t for hermits or the antisocial. Thanks to today’s technology, it is as vibrant and active and social as you want to make it.
- Increase knowledge and education with webinars.
- Bring the boardroom right into your home by holding meetings and networking with them through business video conferencing or Skype.
- Utilize smart phone apps or laptops to access everything you need anywhere you go.
Do all the things you want to do with your life, and still have the access to handle all your business needs and communicate with the people you need to accomplish it all. Social networking is first and foremost about keeping social as much as you can.
Follow these guidelines and you’ll be on the path to success, and free to enjoy it when you achieve it. Your future is just waiting for you.
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James Martell, author of the Affiliate Marketers Handbook works from his home office computer desk teaching others how to make money with affiliate programs utilizing powerful tools like business video conferencing.
Read MoreAffiliate Marketing Fanatics 48: Interviewing Gary Kibel
Affiliate Marketing Fanatics – A couple of hyper-caffeinated affiliate marketers (Mike Buechele) and (Trisha Lyn Fawver) talk about all things Affiliate Marketing. From blogging to branding, social media to search, video and more!
We’re continuing our series of interviews with some speakers at Affiliate Summit West 2011, coming up in just under a month at the Wynn Casino in Las Vegas. This time, we talk to Gary Kibel about his presentation “Social Media – A Marketing Bonanza!”. In in this episode we discuss:
- Gary’s humble beginnings as an IT guy before becoming an attorney at Davis & Gilbert LLP.
- Gary’s co-conspirators, er, panelists Sal Conca from NETexponent and Wade Sisson from Schaaf-PartnerCentric.
- They’ll share some personal war stories and case studies about social media gone wrong.
- Gary will talk about working on the most successful social media campaign in the history of social media! What a teaser!
- Contact Gary at gkibel@dglaw.com or at DGlaw.com
Now… here’s the bummer. No, we didn’t mess things up and forget to attach the episode. We record on Skype using Pamela Pro and between those two programs, probably Pamela’s fault, less than a minute of our interview was recorded. So, we have nothing but Mike & my intro to post, and you don’t want to hear us babble on about our flights into Las Vegas, my tablet vs. netbook debate, or the weather in New York and California respectively, so stay tuned later this week for our last interview in this series!
Want to catch up with us & ask questions for the next show? Find us on Twitter: @AMF_Podcast, @MikeBuechele & @TrishaLyn. Like us on Facebook! You can also ask Trisha questions through FormSpring.me. Or leave us a comment!
Read MoreAffiliate Marketing Fanatics 10: Gonna Make a Change
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Affiliate Marketing Fanatics – A Publisher (Mike Buechele) and an Affiliate Manager (Trisha Lyn Fawver) talk about all things Affiliate Marketing. From blogging to branding, social media to search, video and more!
Unfortunately this week we had a mic failure on Mike’s part, so even though I could hear him when we were recording the podcast on Skype, when listening back he was inaudible. I tried amplifying it and leveling it and everything, but it was a lost cause. So instead, we decided I’d give you a recap on what we talked about since they were all pretty important issues. Basically, we’re taking a page from Shawn Collins’ book on podcast failures ;). So the title refers both to all the changes going on with tax rules and disclosure regarding affiliates AND to the change Mike has to make to get the recording right next week!
The recap episode is a short and sweet 26 minutes on the dot since it includes a Jackson tribute at the end.
In this show, we discussed:
- A recap of Affiliate Convention.
- Amazon dropped North Carolina affiliates and sent a warning letter to Rhode Island affiliates. Darren Rowse wrote about it on Problogger.
- The FTC is tightening it’s rules regarding disclosure, but it’s still ambiguous enough to leave affiliates questioning what this means for them. Daniel M. Clark wrote an article on the FTC disclosure issue, as well as Brian Clark of Copyblogger’s wrote about how to turn disclosure into a selling point.
- Twitter servers took a hit yesterday when the news about Michael Jackson’s sudden death broke. Are they ready to be a major search engine?
- Rumors swirled about other celebrity deaths – this doesn’t make Twitter look like a legitimate resource in the eyes of skeptics.
- Finally, Rest in Peace to Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson, who both passed away yesterday. We pay tribute to MJ and pontificated on whether or not we’d see affiliates attempting to capitalize on these events. I see just now that Shawn Collins is thinking about this topic as well on his blog.
Affiliate Marketing Fanatics 9: Meetings, Skype, and Pure Vanity
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Affiliate Marketing Fanatics – A Publisher (Mike Buechele) and an Affiliate Manager (Trisha Lyn Fawver) talk about all things Affiliate Marketing. From blogging to branding, social media to search, video and more!
Okay, I got caught up on Friday with lots of work, so I didn’t get this episode edited until this weekend so we talk a lot about dated stuff, unfortunately. But never fear – there’s plenty of good stuff that we cover in our sweet, sweet 30 minutes of podcast.
- We chat about the Bay Area Affiliate Managers Coalition meeting held at eBay.
- The countdown excitement to getting vanity URLs for our Facebook profiles, and the nice aspect of having unique names.
- The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s video featuring Tim Carter of AskTheBuilder.com.
- Affiliate conferences coming up, including my excitement about traveling to Denver for the first time and a long foodie aside on bagels and pizza in the now SOLD OUT (exhibitors and meet market tables) Affiliate Summit in NYC.
- Using Skype for business calls, podcasts, and actually paying for a subscription.
- Finally a big shout out to custom bumper stickers giant John Fischer of Sticker Giant for helping us out for our upcoming Getting Noticed FAST panel in August.
