Google Search Incorporates Google+ – Why is Anyone Surprised?

Karen    Business Tools and Resources, Opinion, Social Media     conversion optimisation, Google +, social media

Blog posts with inflammatory headlines decrying the latest move by Google to further link together its web properties, by incorporating Google + results into SERPs have been circulating the net the last week or so. I can’t help but wonder why anyone at all is surprised by this.

Google have signalled all along they are integrating their assets together – and why wouldn’t they? the incorporation of elements like the +1 button has been around for a while, providing you are logged into a Google account of any kind. And personalised search is pretty much unavoidable – even when you turn off search history, you will still get personalised and localised results. read more

The Best Way to Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions

Karen    Business Tools and Resources, Inspiration    

So we are a week into the new year, 2012.

And what have you done? Did you make a resolution to lose weight, go to the gym daily, quit smoking, cut back on the alcohol or change some other damaging vice or bad habit?

Do you believe in making – and trying to keep, New Year’s resolutions? Or have you ‘been there, done that’ so many times without results that you just don’t bother any more?

I’m pretty much in the latter camp, but just recently I had a little ‘aha’ moment that I think could really help in achieving the things we would really like to change or improve in our lives in the year ahead. read more

What’s in a plan?

Karen    Business Tools and Resources    

Cliches around planning abound – fail to plan and you plan to fail, and of course if you are using ‘bleeding edge technology’ you can find out ‘who moved your cheese’ , ‘push the envelope’ and ultimately ‘make money hand over fist’. read more

Awesome free business tools!

Karen    Business Tools and Resources    

Working with a range of businesses of all shapes and sizes on a daily basis makes me acutely aware of the challenges that many are facing in the current business environment.

Down here in Canterbury, not only are many desperately trying to rebuild their client base following the events of September 4, but most were already dealing with the fallout of an economic recession that has affected businesses around the world. read more