Twitter Tools: Decoding the Social Networking Hash Tag Mystery

June 13th, 2009 Posted in Viral Marketing

by Lee Hiller

Image via boblally.files.wordpress.com

Hidden in the million tweets 140 character universe of Twitter the tiny hash Tag aka Pound Symbol [#] is the difference between your messages being seen or being missed. Although not an official Twitter function the Hash/Pound it is a simple and effect tool to ensure your tweet will appear when others seek out similar data. Hash tagged words are the Twitter equivalent of internet keywords and phrases. Simply click on the hash tagged word or a search at search.twitter.com and you will find all the tagged tweets with matching words.

Your perfect place to start is by going to Twitter and following @hashtags then every time you tweet with a hash tag reference it will be displayed as a real-time posting at hashtags.org. It is easy to check trending topics at their site and see what might be relevant to your daily messages. Popular daily hash tags include #music, #quote, #jobs, #phone, #socialmedia and #news.

The hash tag is a twitter community builder allowing likeminded individuals to share information and ideas. Twitters social media follow Friday event is a good hash tag example and is represented by #followfriday or #ff these tags are used by a majority of Twitterers to spotlight individuals they consider worth following. Once you see a tweet with the #followfriday hash tag click in it and you will see volumes of recommendations which appear in a search format at search.twitter.com.

To create a hash tag is as simple as tweeting #meetmearchie Midvale Theater 7pm Sunday 18th this lets Archie know to where and when to meet you. The added Hash/Pound will allow anyone in your group to check see what you are up to with Archie. Are you watching 24 or #24? If you want your opinion about the show to be found it is an important difference. Have a favorite recipe or just ate at a new restaurant you can hash tag the name and leave a review.

The use of hash tags allows you to create groups, find others reading the same book and or supporting the same charities. As a business tool it can be used for tracking the trending topics of the twenty-five million plus daily visitors to Twitter. If you want your opinion of a favorite movie to reach the Twitterverse or you do not want to miss an important event the tiny hash will allow you to apprise others or stay current on selected topics.

About the Author:

Lee Hiller is Co-Founder and writer/designer for Pen and Ink Inc and she can be contacted on Twitter @thehillers Click here to get your own unique version of this article with free reprint rights.

Lessons from the Candidate from Hell

photo via realsoftwaredevelopment.com

Ever wonder what would happen if  you just went off in a job interview?

Below are some of the lessons learned from an experience like this. I especially like the last point. We are all connected. Once you've crossed the line, it will be difficult to explain away your inappropriate behavior to the employer, when you really, really want that job.

1. DO NOT  ever argue, lie, criticize or belittle anyone during your job search.

2. DO  learn to take criticism, constructive or not, with grace.

3. DO NOT underestimate the importance of details during the application process. While "on paper" the candidate for this job appeared qualified, it's small touches like enthusiasm for learning, proper e-mails, responsiveness and professionalism that make a memorable impression.

4. DO be justifiably confident. But just because you got A's in classes doesn't mean you are great. Learn enough about your business and study the leaders in your business, so that you can honestly set the bar for yourself.

5. For professors (and forgiveness, but this is one of my pet peeves): DO NOT grade too easily. Demand that students demonstrate clear understanding of concepts and how to apply them. Don't listen to obvious sob stories. Don't extend deadlines when students complain, unless there's a REALLY good reason (it's not fair to the kids who did get their work done on time). Lastly, don't feel mean for being a "tough" professor. You're not doing us any favors by taking it easy or guarding our notorious self-esteem. Our bosses, mentors and role models all will ask more of us…why shouldn't you?

6. Lastly, DO remember that everyone is connected, and the internet makes it even harder to live down our not-so-hot moments. As the blogger wrote, "Be wary of burning bridges at such an early stage." I'd say it another way: Unless you want to commit career suicide, show some integrity, no matter what the situation is. You'll regret it for a lot longer than you'll be angry about it.

Read the whole article here ... via [whygeny.wordpress.com]

Career Counseling: Myth or Magic?

from WebWorkerDaily by Georgina Laidlaw

Written by Georgina Laidlaw.

It doesn't take an economic downturn to make many people reconsider their careers, their jobs, and their lifestyles. All kinds of changes can make you reevaluate your priorities, but they can also leave you feeling bewildered.

When I found myself in just such a discombobulated state a few years ago, I decided to try career counseling. It wasn't disaster that prompted me to seek guidance; it was the fact that I had no ambition, no professional goals. A friend of a friend was a career counselor, so I thought I'd give it a try. The sessions were affordable and tax-deductible, so why not?

The Myth

Career counseling seemed intimidating to me — a bit like life coaching or personal training. Perhaps there'd be a whole lot of unnecessary pressure to perform. Perhaps I'd become obsessed with salaries and KPIs and moving ever "upwards." Perhaps I'd emerge from counseling a changed woman: a ruthless, power-dressing career gal willing to stop at nothing to get to the top…

The Reality

Of course, it wasn't like that at all. The nature and direction of career counseling depends on two people: you and the counselor. My counselor had a laid-back, considered, non-confrontational style, which worked perfectly for me. The first time we spoke (we conducted the counseling via phone) she asked me what I wanted to get out of counseling, then explained a procedure we'd use to explore my interests and experience, and develop goals from them.

It all sounds very simple now, but she had me undertake a range of tasks — reflective and proactive — that made me focus on the kinds of work issues most of us take for granted: thinking about where I wanted to be in a year's time, two years' time, and so on; assessing my interests as potential revenue streams; reviewing my perceptions of what comprised "working life," "career," "a profession" and similar constructs.

The counseling occurred over three hour-long sessions. I didn't have to lie on a couch and talk about my childhood dreams of being an astronaut. And the only "analysis" involved me poring over the job ads looking for anything — anything — that remotely piqued my fancy, then working out why an ad for a pastry chef or groundsman appealed to a marketing writer.

The Magic

At the end of the process, I actually had goals. They weren't goals I could achieve overnight, and they weren't particularly concrete (e.g. by the time I'm 40, I want to be earning $x), but they were my goals, and I had strategies for achieving each of them. At the time, they gave me a renewed sense of focus and passion for what I was doing. And now, years later, I still reconsider the longer-term goals every so often, to make sure they're still current, and that I'm still on track.

Among the more important things I learned from the process was how to look beyond the superficialities of life, and the constraints of what I know about a particular field or specialty, to work out what I want. And I think this is a great asset. Could I have done this on my own? If I'd known even where to start sorting this out, I wouldn't have bothered looking for help.

Of course, depending on your needs and your counselor, your outcomes might be wildly different from these. What do you think: could it help you get a grip on your future?

7 Questions to Ask at a Job Interview

photo from biojobblog.com

Paul Sloane has written a great article about the 7 questions to ask at a job interview. Having just completed this process and missing a few of these questions, it would have been nice to read this last week. But, hey, I got the job without it. (I start next Monday)

Here are his recommended questions:

1. What exactly would my day-to-day responsibilities be?

2. What are the opportunities for training and career advancement?

3. What is the biggest challenge facing the organization today?

4. When did you join?

5. What are the criteria that you are looking for in the successful candidate for this position?

6. How do you feel that I measure up to your requirements for this position?

7. Would you like to hear what I could do to really help your department?

In my worst interview ever, I waited until the end of the interview to ask the interviewers role. When they rolled off these big official and very precise titles, I realized that my casual approach to answering their questions was the exact wrong approach. Would you hire a laid back casual Project Manager in a uptight, rigid, very structured organization? They didn't either and I did not get that job.

If you need to, write down the questions on a 3x5 card, whip it out and ask them. The interviewer will most likely be impressed that you took the time to prepare for the interview and had prepared questions.

Read more here...

Jobs I found on Twitter.

Using Tweetdeck I searched for "CA PMP", "Project Manager Job", "Program Manager Job" and found these job listings on Twitter today.

I'd love to find a way to automate these results and post them automatically. If you have any ideas on how to do this, please drop me a note.

twitter.com/andywergedal

1. RT @tmj_sfo_itpm1: #hiring: project manager - Oakland, CA http://tinyurl.com/mhlvsv #tweetmyjobs #jobs39 minutes ago from TweetDeck
2. RT @sanfranengjobs: Project Manager- Pharma/Bio-tech indu... - CA - South San Fran... (http://tinyurl.com/nvyrco)CareerBuilder #jobs43 minutes ago from TweetDeck
3. RT @WorkSanJose: Project Manager - United States San Jose... http://jobsurl.com/7a329about 1 hour ago from TweetDeck
4. RT @sanfranengjobs: Project Manager- Pharma/Bio-tech indu... - CA - South San Fran... (http://tinyurl.com/nvyrco)CareerBuilder #jobsabout 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
5. RT @GetGenManagJobs: General (Program) Manager USA82105 - Sacramento, CA (http://tinyurl.com/mrs4u7) #GeneralManager #95866about 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
6. RT @jobs_Oakland: Manager, Project Manager: CA-Oakland, Job Summary The Project Manager is a critical.. http://u.mavrev.com/fivpabout 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
7. RT @jobs_Oakland: Sr. Project Manager - Civil: CA-Oakland, HNTB is a great place to build a rewarding career.. http://u.mavrev.com/fk8oabout 2 hours ago from TweetDeck
8. RT @cranelegs: new cranelegs pond 915. from project manager to director: it finally occurred to me what the .. http://tinyurl.com/lz7pd2about 6 hours ago from TweetDeck
9. RT @caitjobs: California IT Jobs > Software Engineer - .Net Development: CA-Sacramento, Job Title : Sof.. http://tinyurl.com/ntp5s8about 7 hours ago from TweetDeck
10. RT @JobSeattle: Seattle Jobs Sr Project Manager - New Build (Southern Calif) - JPMorgan Chase - Seattle, WA http://tinyurl.com/kq5dk2about 9 hours ago from TweetDeck
11. RT @sanfranengjobs: Project Manager - GBR Smith Group, LLC - CA - San Francisco (http://tinyurl.com/q9x3b3)CareerBuilder #jobsabout 9 hours ago from TweetDeck
12. RT @mgmtjobs: Job: Senior Project Manager - (Fountain Valley, CA): .. http://twurl.nl/fdxy8iabout 9 hours ago from TweetDeck

How To Ask the Boss If You Can Work Remotely

from WebWorkerDaily by Georgina Laidlaw

Written by Georgina Laidlaw.

You've considered it. You've researched the implications. You've spoken to your significant other/landlord/dog and made sure they're comfortable with the idea. You're all ready to work remotely. All that remains is (cue suspenseful music) to ask the boss.

I don't know your boss, and I don't know whether you're a dedicated member of your team or you spend half the day chatting with your friends, but for the purposes of this exercise, I'll assume you're both a reasonable person who is happy in your work and see that you have a future with your current employer.

1. What's your motivation?

Do you want to spend more time walking Fido, reduce your travel time and costs, or simply get more work done? Once you can work out your key motivation, you can identify whether it's a priority for your boss. Let's face it, Fido is not going to be a standout winner in the Good Reason Stakes.

2. What will motivate your boss?

If you want to work from home for some (or all) of the week, you'll need to figure out what will motivate your boss. If your motivation and his or her motivation do not coincide, you need to find a way for them to do so.

For example, imagine I want to work from home so that I can commute less and spend more time with my kids when they get home from school. And let's say that my boss is heavily focused on productivity and, with recent redundancies, is trying to increase my workload.

Perhaps my reasoning would point out to my boss that currently I always need to leave work at five on the dot so I can get home to my kids, but the rest of the team is more flexible than that. So if I worked from home, I'd be able to be more flexible about my finish time, too, which could help me to work my time frames in more smoothly with theirs. Without the commute, I might also be able to start earlier in the morning on some occasions, which might be helpful to other members of the team, clients and others.

3. Suggest clear performance indicators.

If you can identify a clear reason why working from home will be beneficial (e.g. with less commute time and distractions, I'll be able to turn projects around more quickly), your boss may find it easier to justify the decision to let you work remotely. They may also feel that they have a clear indicator of performance that they can use to assess the arrangement down the track.

4. Consider some sweeteners.

What if your boss is doubtful about the idea? What if they're concerned about the cost of getting you a mobile phone, or that you'll drop off the face of the earth as soon as you start working remotely? It's not a bad idea to decide on a few compromises or sweeteners that might make the idea easier for them to get their heads around.

• Perhaps you'll be willing to arrange your own work phone and home office set-up, at no cost to your company.
• Maybe you'll be happy to make a trial arrangement for a couple of weeks or a month, with a meeting after that time to assess the success of the arrangement, and discuss any issues.
• Perhaps you'd consider forfeiting the next scheduled pay increase, or accepting a slight reduction in your current benefits, in order to work from home.

5. Believe.

Once you've worked out your strategy, aligned your motives with those of your employer, and considered the sweeteners you'll be willing to offer, there's just one thing you need to do: truly believe that this arrangement will benefit both yourself and your employer. If you don't think it has any real benefits for your boss, that will likely come across in the way you present and discuss the idea. If you believe in the benefits you're telling your boss the arrangement will produce, you'll be much more convincing.

These are my tips, but there are thousands of people here who have done the same thing with different approaches. How did you convince your boss to give you the opportunity to work remotely?

Using Social Network Websites to Grow your Business

Marketing online is changing rapidly. A short time ago no one cared anything about the social network websites, at least not as far as business promotion is concerned. The world has changed. When it comes to easily finding and communicating online with other internet users, social network websites are, perhaps, the best way to go. Any serious Internet marketer will make use of the social networking sites, or will miss big opportunities.

Joining a social website

If you are interested in joining a social network website, the first thing that you will need to do is find a network to join. You can easily find a number of networks by performing a standard internet search. For the best search results, you may want to search with the words social networking or social network websites. In your search, it is likely that that you come up with a fairly large number of different networking sites. Popular sites that may be included in your search results may include, but will not be limited to, MySpace, Stumble Upon, Digg, DirectMatches, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Orkut etc etc. You may have heard of all of these and there are hudreds of more out there. We use Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn and many more. Remember that our primary purpose in belonging at all is to promote our businesses.

Here is also a list over the biggest social networks in the US as of April 2009 

Top Social Websites - April 2009

Your profile

Once you have made the decision to join a particular social network website, whether or not it is one of the ones mentioned above, you will need to register with the site. Even free networking communities require that you go through the registration process. Once you are registered, you should be able to start communicating with other community members. Before you start communicating, you may need to develop your online profile or profile page, depending on the networking site in question. Although it may seem easy enough to create a profile, there are many internet users who are unsure exactly what they should and should not include.

Your picture - IMPORTANT!

Perhaps, one of the most important things to include in your profile at each social network is your picture. While a personal picture is optional, it is ideal. Many internet users enjoy taking to someone that they can see in their minds, without a picture this is difficult. Personally, from the standpoint of using social networking for business promotion, we think it is unprofessional to not include a decent picture of yourself. If you are looking to use social network websites just to meet new friends you may not necessarily need to post a private picture.

Personal information - Safety

In addition to your photograph, you may want to include your name. Now, when it comes to your name, you need to be cautious. You are advised against giving your full name, especially if your profile or profile page contains a personal photograph of you. In addition to your name, you may want to put down your location. As with your name it is important to display caution. Your picture, your address, and your full name can be dangerous, especially if it falls into the wrong hands. As much as you would like to fill your social networking profiles with personal information, you are advised to think about your safety before anything else.

You may also want to include information on yourself. This information may include your hobbies, issues that are important to do, your likes, and your dislikes. With many social network websites, including MySpace, you will find that there are preset profile fields for this information. In addition to preset questions or categories on your likes and dislikes, you may also find additional information, including fun questionnaires.

By keeping the above mentioned points in mind, you should not only be able to create an online social networking profile that is filled with valuable information, but you can do so while staying safe at the same time. Your safety on the internet is in your hands, that is why it is important to think about safety, as well as internet popularity.

Once you are established with a social network or two, you will need to spend a little time at each learning what is available. Once you have built a few relationships it may be time to start putting a little marketing in.

Kind regards

Tom & André

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-marketing-articles/using-social-network-websites-sites-to-grow-your-business-967146.html