Website Hacking Happens. You Can Prevent It.

Posted in: Blog, Security by Christian on August 9, 2010 | 1 Comment

Anytime I hear a customer say, “I went online and read that your hosting servers are hacked” and I think a little misinformation on any subject matter can be very dangerous in the wrong hands, especially when found online. In actuality the percentage of websites, compared to total customer base, is less than 7%. There are several reasons website hacking happens and very rarely is it because a server itself is “hacked” or compromised. This post is about educating yourself and taking simple and easy steps to prevent and protect your website(s) from being compromised.

Benjamin Franklin said it best, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Read more…

Foursquare Is A Brand Loyalty Builder

Posted in: Blog, Social Media by Christian on July 16, 2010 | No Comments

Have you seen Foursquare for Businesses? The easiest things to do first is to offer deals on twitter for foursquare checkins. Another thing you can do is if you have retail space to make sure you get a sticker/cling for each store front.

Here is a quick list (courtesy of good friend Cheryl Harrison that I have expanded on) of things you can do to promote foursquare checkins:

+ Loyalty card. “Free x for every x number of checkins.” (printing, business cards, brochures, etc.) Daily, Weekly, Monthly Be unique and get people’s attention by offering more than 10% or 20% for a “one time” offer. Brand loyalty comes when the customer service experience turns into word of mouth marketing not spending more money on traditional marketing techniques. Make them feel special and unique. Read more…

6 Must Read Network Marketing Books

Posted in: Blog by Christian on July 3, 2010 | 1 Comment

Somebody recently asked me what books I would recommend for networking marketing and at first my answer was, “Throw those books away and just dive right in… Look at profiles of other members of social networking sites, and attempt to emulate them through a combination of best practices… Participate in group discussions, answer questions, comment on blogs articles, build your network connections list and start communicating with folks you’d like to do business with… Just do it… Simple as that…”

However, I believe it is always important to self educate by reading a couple of books from leading authors on any given subject for supplemental and continuing education.

Tribes by Seth Godin: It is a quick read and is intentionally not an in depth book in that it gives you the broader scope/bigger picture as the why network marketing is so important for long term goals and building relationships

Trust Agents by Chris Brogan: Chris builds off of Seth Godin’s book, but then starts to scratch the surface as to why. He points out that while we are still riding this wave of “social media” network marketing buzz, human interaction is still king for several reasons.

The New Rules of Marketing & PR by David Meerman Scott: In this book David talks about how to get away or at least add on new media to traditional methods of marketing whether it is for a company brand or personal band (which in a lot of cases the line is blurred). Read more…