A friend of mine, BRI, 17, on America's Got Talent 2009!

(Note: NBC Universal has copyright of this video and disabled embedding for blogs - but GO TO YouTube TO SEE IT!!! They are allowing it there!)

Proud to know this amazingly talented up-and-coming artsist, BRI! Check out her audition on this season's "America's Got Talent."


We first met back when I taught music Marketing at a school she was attending in Hollywood a few years ago. This girl can sing, play and has a great and friendly personality, too.

GO BRI!!!! We'll be rooting for you to go all the way.

Let's show the world how beautiful viral marketing can be - share this video with everyone you can on all of your social networking sites. Exposure is key in any business. Especially show business!

FREE Twitter Class This Friday!

Recently a lot more people have been asking me to give them additional Twitter Tips, so I came up with an easy and efficient way of doing it. I want to gift to you some excellent and FREE Twitter education so that your business can start seeing immediate results this Summer!

Register now for this Friday's FREE class where I'll be teaching you:

"3 Easy Ways to Build Your List and Make Money on Twitter"

Friday July 17th, 3:00-4:00pm PST/6:00-7:00pm EST

The class is valued at $297 - you will NOT want to miss this opportunity!

On this free call I will be giving you:

- specific, detailed steps to take that you can implement right away
- the recorded presentation so you can go back and review the material
- a live Q&A session to ask me your burning questions about Twitter

No beating around the bush, being too vague or throwing you a bait-and-switch. Just plain 'ol facts that I've learned about Twitter by spending thousands of hours researching what works and what doesn't work. I can't wait to share them with you! (And no, Twitter is NOT all about telling us what sandwich you just ate.)

But HURRY - I only reserved 99 spots available. Register HERE. Pass this along to your friends who need Twitter help and join me on Friday!

Using Facebook for Personal vs. Business Use

Today I need your advice on something Facebook-related.

The #1 reason why I joined Facebook awhile ago, was to solve the problem of having a place online where my friends and family could see what I was up to. I had been on MySpace for a looooong time (think when Mark Zuckerberg was still in college) and that profile morphed into a networking and info-sharing powerhouse for me. But as this happened, my privacy began to fade away, and I began to limit certain personal things for the sake of protecting and keeping things "safe."

So I had turned to this new thing called Facebook. At the time, hardly anyone was on it, but it seemed people were migrating over with the same idea. I liked the privacy settings and to this day, I only allow access to friends and family I actually know. Mostly I am concerned about protecting my son and more personal pictures, videos, etc that belong to the family. People who know me know that I'm very protective of this, yet am a part of this "share-everything-online" generation. Such a contradiction, I know!

However, now that I'm helping folks learn how to take advantage of these social networking sites for their business, they are "finding" me and it doesn't make sense if I don't "friend" them back. It's part of the online ettiquette we all know about. (I hope.) It's just rude not to. And Social Media is all about relationships. Bad start to a possibly great future.

Is it true that Facebook will shut you down for having two accounts under the same name? I'll be digging through the legal jargon and Terms Of Use here shortly to find out, but have you encountered this?

I have created a fan page for my company, Mellott Marketing Group, which is advertised all over my blog here in hopes of bringing in some much needed work. I can direct these friend requests to that page, yet doing so gives them the ability to see my personal account for 30 days. This seems to defeat the point of keeping it personal, but, hey, I don't make up the rules. I just question them. ;0)

My particular skill-set and knowledge on Social Media has just recently been given a new level of respect, and there is an overwhelming number of people who are asking for my help in explaining it all. What to do, what to do???

Please tell me your feedback, advice, or take this opportunity to vent, too.

What are your thoughts on privacy issues and sharing your real life experiences with the world wide web? I know what certain people in my life think about it already, and if you're a Babyboomer who's comfortable and sees value in posting things online and sharing with others, please comment back and tell us why.

Thanks for your feedback on this one!

Cheers,

Kerianne :0)

Facebook Usernames for Small Businesses

Just a quick update:

Facebook has lifted the temporary limitation for Fan Pages who want to get their vanity username but have fewer than 1,000 fans. As of 12:00am last night, small business owners and others in this same boat can now grab their unique URL. Yay!

General names are still not available, such as "pizza" or "marketing," but I was able to score my next choice: "marketing help." I would like to be the first person that people think of when they need some Marketing help, especially in the field of Social Networking. I love this stuff!

So, welcome to my new page: www.facebook.com/MarketingHelp. Please go there and become a fan so you won't be left out in hearing all the latest news affecting your business!

By the way, becoming my fan gets you in the loop of the latest social media happenings. If I hadn't been doing research, I would have never heard about this opportunity. So stay close to me for more tips, tricks and free advice!

Cheers,

Kerianne

P.S. Are you looking for some serious help in understanding all of this Social Networking stuff and how it applies to your business? I have the solution! Have you seen the details on my upcoming 8-week TeleSeries yet? Early Bird Special pricing runs thru July 8th! Check it out ASAP! www.MarketingMakesMeSmile.com/MMG/class

Sharing is Caring

I never claim to be a techie to the extreme, but every now and then I dive into the Computer Science part of me and figure something technical out. After all, unless someone shows us how to do something, we're on our own to figure it out. (Unless you hire a great Social MEdia Marketing Coach, but no shameless plugs here...heehee...)

One of the most crucial components to success on the Internet is how viral your content can become. Let's remember a basic rule of Marketing - you could be the best lil company in the world, but if nobody knows about you, then you might as well close up shop. That's where Marketing & Advertising come into play.

In today's online world, learning how to get the word out to as many people as possible is HUGE. Even more significantly, allowing users to SHARE your brilliance is even better. Work smarter, not harder, right?

I'm proud to say that today I learned how to add the "Share This" link to my websites. (Look! It's down below each of my posts now! Whoohoo!) I was reading an article on Facebook vs. Google and wanted, of course, to share the news. I clicked on the "Share This" link at the end of the article and sent it to my FB and Twitter communities.

After you "share" something, a box pops up and says, "Thanks for sharing!" and offers you the options to share on more sites. It also gives you a "Get this button" option. I clicked on that last option and went to go sign up for my new Share This account. It's an easy 3-step process and allows you to set up all of your domains with this new widget. (A "widget" by the way, is an add'l online thingie that stands on its own, but can be added to your website to add valuable content. It usually is used for viral purposes and connects to another site. For example, you can see my Twitter widget to the right of this post. It helps you get to my Twitter account by simply clicking through it.)

Have you set up your "Share This" buttons yet? If you are satisfied with simply posting to the web for your own enjoyment, don't worry about it. However, if you would love for at least one other person to spread your words through their entire online network and possibly help grow your business, then I highly suggest you sign up today!

Happy sharing!!

Build Your List With Twitter Buttons

How cute it this??



Get yours, too, at www.twitbuttons.com.

There are several to choose from, but I chose the one with movement. Why? Because our eyes are distracted by movement. If nothing on a webpage is moving yet you're seeing a ton of information, you eyes will automatically be drawn to any movement first. Hence the cute little wings flapping away above! See? Try it and see how it works on your websites. :0)

Can you notice the difference between the above and the below? Where do your eyes go first?



HELPFUL TIPS:

How to make one for yourself at www.twitbuttons.com:

1. Select which icon you like the most.
2. Highlight the entire HTML code underneath it in the box.
3. Click "Copy."
4. Head to your website/blog/facebook, etc and find where you want to place this cute little birdie.
5. Click "Paste" in the desired spot.
6. IMPORTANT: For those who aren't too familiar with HTML, you need to know how to change one part of the code before you post it, or it won't get people to your profile.

See what it says in yellow? "a href="http://twitter.com/YourUserName">"?

You must delete that part and put in your Twitter profile name. For example, mine looks like this:

a href="http://twitter.com/keri_mellott">

This directs people to your Twitter profile when they click on the little birdie.

Ta-da! You're done!

Let me know how it works for you. :0)




Tweet, tweet!

Grab Your Facebook URL Before Somone Else Does!

How funny. Facebook must have heard me telling everyone how annoying and particularly ineffective their idea of not giving us the ability to create our own username was (i.e. www.facebook.com/myname vs. www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=12345678). I wonder if anyone actually made business cards with the above address on it....Hmmm. Looks pretty spammy to me.

Or, maybe the fact that a third-party application was invented to help provide at least a somewhat better alternative (http://companies.to/mellottmarketinggroup/ ) and Facebook finally caught on. (See my previous post.)

Either way, it's going to be exciting because tomorrow at 9:01 PM PST/12:01 AM EST you will be able to grab and assign your own unique username to your facebook URL. I remember doing this when I signed up for MySpace in 2005. Why did it take so many YEARS to figure out and adapt? You got me.

So why is this a big deal and why should you care?

Well, for all the Steve Smiths and Jill Jones out there and others who have common names, it will be a mad dash to literally be the first, and only, person to get their chosen name. Or even Steve or Jill alone. It's also a big deal for people and/or businesses who have a branding strategy already in mind. Once you assign the name - it can't be changed. Facebook is pretty strict with making sure you are the person or company you say you are, so this will definitely be enforced. They have already created steps to take if your trademarked or copywritten identity is taken by someone else. They've also prevented "squatting" - where people try to scoop up popular domain names and sell them later for cash. Facebook usernames will be non-transferable. GO, Facebook.

Here's what they don't tell you in the articles you may have read. The following applies to Administrators who run a Facebook Page:

1. If you're ready to go grab www.Facebook.com/Marketing or whatever generic word that describes your business, think again. They won't approve it. Bummer, huh?

2. Do you have under 1,000 fans? If so, your username won't be approved. This is something that people are ranting and raving about. I am one of them. Make enough noise, and we may get the attention of the powers that be.


Creating your new Facebook URL will be a huge opportunity for companies to build their online presence. As a Marketing Coach, I highly urge you to take a look at your strategies for PR, Marketing and Advertising and make sure you have a great plan. I am a big stickler for your brand image to remain consistent. This applies to your URLs. Try to keep them as close as possible, and remember - you only have one time to make a first impression!

Overall, it should be an interesting Friday night.

Post in the comments what your chosen username will be!

Create an Easy Link to Your Facebook Account

Ever been frustrated when you want someone to add your Facebook account and they can't find you or your company's Page when they go searching for it? Drives me crazy.

This is difficult because Facebook does not allow you to have your own designated URL. For example, MySpace allows you to choose your own URL - i.e. www.myspace.com/whateverIwant. Mine is www.myspace.com/kmellott.

Facebook makes it a little messy, if you want my opinion, although there is always a brilliant third-party application that someone has created to make our lives easier. And I found it!

Simply add the application to give yourself a more clean-looking URL. Mine is
http://companies.to/mellottmarketinggroup/

This is available for companies, celebrities, or regular groups or profiles.

Check out this quick-fix here and your issues will be solved:
http://apps.facebook.com/webaddress/

Hope that makes it easier for all of your adoring fans and clients to find you on Facebook! Getting there shouldn't be the most challenging part!

Tweet, tweet!

For the laugh of the day:




Are you tweeting enough? It's like working out - the more you sweat, the better results you get. Put in the time and you'll be glad you met so many great new people!

So Easy To Promote!

My Act TV :: Talent Broadcast Network

Posted using ShareThis

Don't click quite yet, but take a look at the above link. What do you think it means? Why am I posting this? Well, I had to share another example of how powerful social networking is becoming for different people.

This link leads to a video of my boyfriend performing at a recent event we hosted. As a professional entertainer/vocal coach in Los Angeles, his singing was captured in HD quality video and uploaded onto a site used to promote creative talent. So, what's the big deal about a guy singing, you ask?

The coolest part about discovering this new company, My Act TV, that just launched a few weeks ago, was the brilliant and EASY ways they installed to share this video with others.

Right underneath his video is a link that says "Share This." By clicking on it, another window pops up which gives you 45 different social networking websites to post it to. Yes, I counted them - 45!! My blog (Blogger) was one of them. After selecting the "Blogger" link in this window, it asked me for my log-in name and password. Only a click of the "Post" button, and then - BAM! - off it went. I came here to log-in and write about how cool this feature was.

For this company, the more exposure their artists receive the more exposure their company receives so it's advantageous for them to have every sharing site available. Makes sense, right?

It's the little - and convenient - things that I love. :)