Love this YouTube video, a perfect perfect satire of the whole BP in the Gulf of Mexico debacle. Obviously plenty of others agree, given that it now has over 5 million views.

As a former PR professional, this whole crisis makes me shudder for two reasons – first and foremost, I would hate to be in BP’s shoes and secondly, I have no idea in the world how they can possibly spend $60 million on PR for crisis management.

What concerns me even more are the long term ramifications of this situation, especially given the disastrous potential effects of the banned chemicals they are using to disperse the oil, which will in fact make everything worse by spreading oil-dispersed particles right throughout the water column (instead of floating on top as oil does). But of course, from BP’s perspective, it will be all good because the TV cameras will no longer be able to see the oil slick floating on top of the sea.

Sigh.

What do you think?

Or do you take things (and yourself) a whole lot more seriously than that?

For me, it’s a bit of both. I think that anyone who can’t step back and laugh at themselves and life in general, is really in danger of losing perspective.

But I also think there are some things we need to take pretty seriously – and act on when and if we can.

Like the enormous pollutants pouring in the Gulf of Mexico right now. Was this just about a very bad mistake by BP that lead to one of the world’s largest environmental disasters?

Or was it our need to push harder and harder to extract fossil fuels from more and more challenging locations – like 5,000 feet underwater? Here in New Zealand we are at risk from a government who are looking at the short term money to be made from selling off our natural resources – including offshore oil, to the highest bidder, without fully taking into account the potential consequences.

A disaster like the BP one would be cataclysmic for an island nation the size of New Zealand. I can only hope that our politicians pay attention to the voices who are telling them to beware.

But really my post is about living life with integrity. Being true to ourselves, and knowing that we can go to sleep at night without fear or guilt, without the worry that we have taken steps that might unnecessarily endanger others.

And that goes for our online presence too. Do you share information that might benefit others? Do you shoot down or laugh at those less fortunate, or those who are trying to make a difference? Do you actively support causes that have the power to create a shift in the world?

What we do, what we say and how we think does make a difference.

Check out this blog post by my friend James, based on the research of Dr Masaru Emoto. It is a clear indication of the impact our thoughts and the written word can have on our environment – and our food. Try the experiment yourself – see if it makes a difference.

Namaste

Karen

Most of the time, when we do SEO work for clients, it is all about attracting as many visitors to a site as possible, and then converting them into customers or prospects or followers or subscribers.

But the powers of search optimisation can also be put to work for worthwhile causes.

Causes that might even change the world.

Tonight I have been doing some reading, about subjects that are close to my heart and I thought I would share some links with you – on subjects that really do have the potential to change lives for the better.

1) Autism – Mercury in vaccines and so much more

2) Mercury Poisoning from Environmental Toxins, Dolphin Meat and You

3) Your Diet Could be Killing You – Make a Change and Prevent Diabetes, Heart Disease and Cancer

4) Lifechanging Movie Soon to be Released – Forks Over Knives

and

5) Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days – Its Real and it Works!

Please take the time to click through on these links and share the information with people you love. We have the power to change the world for good – and sometimes it can be a lot simpler than we think.

It’s time to take action!

Seems to be a frequently Googled question, so I thought I would have a go at addressing it.

It’s an interesting one for anyone who is already online, since they would appear to be benefiting from all the websites that are currently online, but perhaps they are looking at the issue from a business perspective – for example, if I am someone who gets most of my customers from word of mouth, I spend no time at all in an office in front of a computer and I am already flat out busy … why have a website?

From that perspective, it is a good question.

Maybe right now you don’t need one – but it is likely that at some point in the not so distant future that you might find it beneficial.

1) Google is the new “yellow pages”. For a huge percentage of the population, the first point of call when they are looking for a product or service, is to turn to the internet and start searching.

2) Your competition have websites. So when someone is hunting for a particular business or service, in their area or city, frequently they will see at the top of the page the “local listings”, which sit next to a Google Map. If your business is not in the local listings, chances are people will think you don’t exist and go to your competition.

3) Having a website can be cheaper than printing and distributing brochures. Most websites that first went online were pretty much digital versions of marketing brochures or company profiles. They have evolved into something a lot more dynamic and interesting now, but putting up a simple website with just a few pages is faster and cheaper than printing 1,000 brochures and deciding what to do with them. Your website can be updated quickly and easily (by you if you have a good content management system) and you can change the look and feel of your business image whenever you want (without having to throw all those brochures out).  If you are at a trade show or an event where you would normally hand out brochures – have some great signage on your stand and simply give out business cards with your website address for more information.

4) Your website can give you clues about your customers. Including something like “site search” on your site, can give you valuable information as to what your potential customers are looking for when they come to your site. It might be specific products or services, or it might be information. You can also install Google Analytics (free)to get a clear idea of where people are going in your site and how much time they spend on each page.

5) Your website can be making your money, even when you are busy doing other things. You may have heard of affiliate marketing – or if not, you have probably seen websites with advertisements for products and links to sites like Amazon.com. Every time someone clicks through from your site on one of those advertisements, then buys the product, you make a commission. Check out sites like Affilorama.com for more information about how to be successful at affiliate marketing.

6) Your website is a great place to experiment with new products and services. Before you commit to spending a whole heap of overhead on developing a new product or service, test it out on your website first and ask for feedback. You may get ideas that take your concept into a whole new – better, direction.

7) Having a website maximises the benefits you can get from social media. If you have set up a Twitter account and/or a Facebook account for your business, or even for yourself, having a website means you can promote different aspects of your business – new releases, events, services etc, just by linking to your site.

8 ) A website can increase the resale value of your business. If you are considering selling your business at some point in the future, having a website – and a great URL (domain name) that is relevant to the business, will add to the value of your company. If you are thinking of selling in the near future, now is the time to really get your site up and humming.

9) If you don’t have a business but you want people to know who you are – creating a site like a blog is a great place to start building your profile and online persona. It can support your job applications, serve as the base for that book you have always wanted to write, and give you a creative outlet. You can set up as many different blogs as you like, to focus on different topics – the software is free, templates are easy to use and you can choose from the hosted sites like wordpress.com or buy your own domain name and get it hosted cheaply by one of the many hosting providers around the world.

10) If you don’t a website, because you don’t know where to start, it’s time to Get With the Programme! Again, there are loads of free sites you can start out with, and millions of companies who can set up a site for you. Don’t be afraid to ask the things you don’t know … you can start out by Googling if you want. You’ll get up to speed pretty damn fast, and then there is a whole world of additional information just waiting to help you transform your site into something powerful.

Any questions? Feel free to comment below and I will answer.

1. If you’re doing it indoors, chances are the zombies will just pass right on by …
2. Zombies don’t attack gays, so if your sex preference happens to be for the same gender, then you are probably cool
3. Alternatively, if you have sex with a Zombie, odds are he or she won’t kill you – as long as the sex is good.
4. Blowing up your spare condoms and popping them will sound like gunshots and scare off your potential zombie attackers
5. If you are holed up in your bedroom for a romantic night in, with food and wine, you’ll be able to survive for longer without having to go outside and confront the zombies
6. If the output of having sex in your household has been any number of children, you can sacrifice them to save yourself
7. If the zombie outbreak is really on a movie screen – then having sex will give you a reason not to watch
8. If you get really desperate you can thrust your partner towards the zombies and make a run for it!

So what’s all this?

Been playing with a little online toy designed to help break writer’s block and help you get creative about your blog content. It’s called the Linkbait Generator and you can find it here http://linkbaitgenerator.com

Have fun playing – it’s not the most sophisticated tool on the planet, but feel free to use it to inspire some creativity – and have a laugh.

Later,

Karen

Hmmmm …

This is a question that has been on my mind lately – how to eliminate, or at least scare off, those pesky green caterpillars that like to munch on my brassicas!

I am not one to sprinkle liberally with derris dust or spray with anything that requires time to be left before the food can be safely eaten, so what to do, what to do?

Funnily enough, I was checking out a new service offered by yellow.co.nz, called How To guides, and thought I would throw in the universal gardening question.

Sure enough, I came up with a great post from a guy who coincidentally happens to be a client of ours – David Brittain from Kiwicare.

And they have a great organic option for getting rid of the little blighters, which works on a bacterial organism that the caterpillars really don’t like.

So, all I need to do is purchase some of this magical elixir, spray it on every few weeks and my kale plants should soon be bug free.

Woohoo!

By the way, if any of my readers are experts in a particular area, and keen to write their own How To guide, here is the link for submissions … http://howto.yellow.co.nz/

Great opportunity to get some links back to your own website and put some valuable content out onto the interwebs.

Till next time,

Karen

The rumbles are out there in the interwebs (as per usual) about more changes in the Google algorithm and what impact it will have on companies wanting to optimise their websites.

Well the good news is that if you are focusing on building awesome content into your website – you will still come out on top of the heap!

Never stop thinking about what you can add to your site that might be of interest and value to any readers, anywhere. Especially good if it relates to your core business of course … but the occasional article or blog post that is off track can be good too … it’s a little like when your local supermarket decides to move things around. You find it harder to see the things you normally buy, but you sometimes end up discovering completely new products you’ve never bought before.

And you eventually rediscover where they have hidden your usual shopping staples.

So where do you put fresh content on your site?

You might build a blog or add a blog to your site, skin it to match the rest of your site design.

Or add a section themed around the main content of your site; a press section perhaps; news; or expand existing pages to include more relevant information and detail that might be of interest to visitors.

Any questions? Post them below – I would love to hear from you.

Karen

Yep, that’s it … I have officially designated 2010 as the year of moving beyond the comfort zone.

What does that mean for you?

What challenges can you create for yourself that will take your life, your job, your business – and your website, to a new level.

What are the things that technology has enabled in the last 12 months that might entice you to look differently at what you are doing – and make some changes as a result?

Check out this interview with Mashable’s Pete Cashmore on CNN, and his post about the 10 top trends he forecasts for 2010.

Are you going to be riding Google Wave – or at least one of the first to actually get your head around it and start using it the way its developers conceptualised?

Are you going to take Twitter to the next level for your business?

Will you be ready to take new technologies by the horns and really make them work for you?

Or will you be sitting back waiting for everyone else to take the lead before you make a move.

Stretching ourselves, taking some risks, moving outside the comfort zone of business as usual is key to innovation, growth and progress, particularly when so many have battened down the hatches to weather the recession.

As we have seen in the past, the best companies have emerged out of tough economic times leaner and more creative, more productive than before, to really take the world by storm.

Are you going to be one of those? Or will you be one of those who fall by the wayside because you were too scared to put your toe in the water.

I wish you courage, creativity, commercial nous and great success in 2010 – roll on the new decade!

Happy New Year everyone.

Karen

I would also like to make the point that if one of the reasons your site is not being regularly updated is because you have to get your web company to do it for you, or your staff find it difficult to use the CMS behind your site – then it is time for a change.

Get training for your staff

or

Have your site shifted to a user friendly CMS (Joomla is one good option to check out).

Don’t let the construction of your site stop you from keeping it fresh.

Ten more reasons to update your website content.

Some reasons to add to the existing list.

1. A good website should be dynamic. And that means plenty of new stuff, and plenty of interaction – make this a place readers WANT to return to.
2. Your site content, perhaps especially your home page, should always look fresh and relevant. Dated material is obvious to readers very quickly.
3. Good intentions are not enough! Starting off adding new material (with dates on it, like press releases or newsletters) is only a good idea if you keep it going. Seeing a site with the most recent release or newsletter dating back to the previous year, or even earlier is NOT a good look.
4. Your products and services are constantly changing, and your site needs to reflect that. Even when you are super busy, make sure it is someone’s role in the company to be updating what’s new on your site.
5. Relevant social media “conversations”. Fresh, interesting content on your site gives you something to talk about in the world of Facebook (business and fan pages), Twitter, LinkedIn and anywhere else you and your audiences like to hang out and share.
6. Keep your business on its toes. If you don’t have new and interesting things to share with the world via your website – why not? Have you stopped growing, researching, developing, responding, innovating? Is your business in a rut – or does it just look that way?
7. The world around you is changing – fast, even if you’re not. Make sure you regularly check the language on your site to make sure it is still relevant to your audiences. Perhaps your audience has changed, but the jargon or terminology on your site hasn’t. Running a regular check for your key audiences is a great way to help ensure you stay in touch.
8. Communication is a constantly evolving process. And that’s what your website is – a primary communication tool. Don’t forget that.
9. Refresh your window display. If you were a retailer, how often would you change your window display? Once a week, once a month, every season? Change your site frontage just as often. Show the passers-by that this shop window is loved and attended to.
10. Reflect your marketing activities. If you are actively marketing online, make sure your site is perfectly tuned to your marketing campaigns. Create special landing pages for your adwords to get the flow going with potential customers who are interested enough to click through to your site – reward their interest by taking the time to give them what they are looking for. Don’t assume that what is already on the page is enough.

Would love your own comments about why you think a site should – or should not, be updated.

Till next time

Karen

Yes, once again I am talking about doing what it takes to make your site stand out and connect with your target audiences. And even better, create the kind of content that is different enough and edgy enough to make readers send their friends and colleagues to read it for themselves – or email/share your site links.

All too often we get scared when it comes to doing something cool with our site content. The pressure to be polite, politically correct, grammatically correct, and really, kinda boring … is very strong.

But …

If your target audience is not corporate, if being PC doesn’t serve you, and if people really appreciate a genuine, authentic voice on your site, then why not do it?

We talked to a client today who has a product that is very “retro” … which is one way of saying it hasn’t changed or been upgraded in decades. And the customers really like it that way. So the new owners have no intention of changing its essence, and our job is to represent that authentically through their new website.

Fun job!!

So I would encourage you – if that is the position you are in, not to get hooked up on making everything so vanilla and inoffensive that no-one really wants to read your content (cos why would they?)

ciao for now

Karen