The Holy Trinity of Happiness
Posts tagged michael nus
The Universal Blog Icon
17 months ago
by Michael
in Social Media
The Universal Blog Icon
It seems that there is a universally accepted icon for just about anything online these days. Checkins have that pin and map, links are typically a chain, delete is a trashcan or “x”, twitter is a bird, and so on.
Although some icons have double meanings, both are usually known across the web and are understandable within the context of the site or web app where they reside. With the popularity of blogs you would think a universal blog icon would have been in use for some time now but as far as I know there isn’t one. It’s probably difficult because conceptualizing what a “blog” (short for “weblog,” as you likely already know) is in itself difficult. A blogger gets inspired, types up a blog post, adds multimedia, shares it out to the web and social nets, and people read it. So how does one create an icon that pulls from all those actions? Also what about RSS feeds, a blogger’s lifeline in a lot of cases when s/he wants to keep people coming back with each new post?
Does an icon designer try to cram in the universally accepted thought bubble and keyboard icons for the ideation and typing part of the blogging process? The “add a picture” icon for multimedia, and the “sharethis” icon with the RSS feed radio waves? Surely not. Also, as blogs are often about the personality or subject matter behind them, how does one account for that? I think the reason why there isn’t a universally accepted icon is because blogs are hard to define in simple terms. Blog are all about content and that’s a very all-encompassing term that’s just too broad to put into an icon. Blogs can be repositories of all things internet and have a way of taking pieces of the larger pie that is the web and news sources and breaking it down to more digestible morsels by way of commentary, news feeds, satire, or reflection. Mashable understood this from day 1 and owes its success to being a central hub/mashup of the goings-on on the web.
Icons are generally very literal and therein lies the problem in this case, hence it’s not surprising that no one has really, come up with the “blog icon.” If Blogger/Blogspot didn’t trademark it’s logo, I think that would have been more or less suitable as a universal blog icon but WordPress is the king of blog platforms now and there’s no getting around the “W” as a brand logo rather than a universal one.
I was searching around and came upon a site owned by one “Brendan Mitchell” who, back in 2008, threw together the icon you see above. You can find the site at theblogicon.com. 
Sure, the icon proposed is somewhat derivative (it looks like the old “b” from Birdhouse Skateboards mixed with the RSS icon) but it’s so far the only real effort I’ve seen in trying to solve the blog icon problem. At the very least the radio waves taken from the RSS icon is apt as just about every blog has an RSS feed, so it makes some sense to me. Mitchell as also gone through the trouble of putting up all the Illustrator files in varying sizes and variations and allowing free usage of the icon with no restrictions. You can also just grab the gifs and pngs here individually. Apparently a Spanish site by the name of “Hipertextos“ came up with a very similar one but the differences are negligible. Both Mitchell and Hipertestos are aware of each other and are happy to share their icons equally as “icon brothers” – again the icons are almost identical anyway. I think if enough people start using any one icon, even this one, the icon will become truly universal or someone with way more artistic ability and inspiration than is fathomable will make something truly awesome and sort this out once and for all. In the mean time I’ll be using this icon in my endeavours. Feel free to follow suit if you also have found yourself in the same predicament when trying to represent the noble blog as an icon across your web presence or in print.
My Greatest Weakness
108 months ago
by Michael
in sustenance
Farmer’s markets are a great weakness to me. I don’t think I’ve ever been able to resist spending money at a farmer’s market save one time when I didn’t have my wallet on me. It’s damned near impossible for me to resist the urge to get fruits, vegetables and bread that are easily of a higher quality than any supermarket around.
Maybe it’s something about the fresh air or the fact that the vendors sitting in their tents peddling their goods are the very people who have grown, picked, concocted or invented whatever it is they are selling, but I am a complete sucker for them. When I lived in BC farmers markets were a dime a dozen and I would always show up at the house with heaps of fresh ingredients that I would turn into a feast for myself and any one of my starving roommates who would always appear “magically” right when I got done cooking.
Today I took my lunch at the Metro Hall Farmer’s Market and, boy howdy, did I drop a nice wad of coin. Before I knew it I had a delicious burger with peameal bacon on it, bought some beef jerky and pepperoni sticks, ate a bunch of fruit including yellow watermelons and a butter tart that Kelly, who met up with me there, insisted I try. I did and it was awesome. If I wasn’t on the way back to the office I would have bought a ton of stuff. The Metro Hall market is on till Oct 16th then they are gone like the dodo till next year but I will probably get there before that with a huge backpack and a healthy appetite. My wallet is already weeping but it’ll be worth it.
Sometimes I go to the Wychwood Barn farmers market at St. Clair and Christie or the Trinity Bellwoods one and it’s not too bad with some of the same vendors as the Metro Hall one but in my opinion, Metro Hall is awesome. I’m told that there’s one at Nathan Phillips Square so I’ll be checking it out. By no means am I any kind of expert on farmer’s markets but they seem to keep finding me. I’m definitely putting someone’s kid through college just like I am doing for that guy who walks around downtown with roses. He always finds me, puckers up with a pathetic face and thrusts some roses into my hands. If you’ve ever been to Loser karaoke at Tequila Sunrise you know who I’m talking about. He keeps getting my money because 50% of the time he comes round it’s someone’s birthday or I’m with a lady. Bastard.
Ken Seto, my colleague and CEO of Massive Damage Inc, creators of a great and super fun iPhone and iPad location-based zombie killin’ game called “Please Stay Calm” has recently picked up an obsession with “bulletproof” coffee (or was it called bullet coffee?). The main ingredient apparently is “grassfed” butter and I took a look for the stuff with no success today. I thought I saw a tub off it but the vendor wasn’t sure what that was and looked at me like I was mad before handing me a piece of cheese and telling me to bugger off. If any of you have any idea what that is and where to get it let me know. I’m making it my farmer’s market quest.
On Being a Grammar Nazi
78 months ago
by Michael
in Expression
No one is infallible. I’ve seen the best of us make huge mistakes no matter how convincing their air of perfection was. That being said, I find it disconcerting how we all try to correct each other as if the corrector is somehow superior to the corrected. The Oatmeal published a very irreverent and painfully accurate (if not opinionated) comic about what we SHOULD have been taught in senior year.
I’ve been a writer for years but from time to time I make mistakes, usually due to haste. When others read anything I’ve published they love to comb through it looking for minor mistakes and sometimes will find one. There are two ways in which I find and rectify a mistake. Either I proofread or someone tells me.
The first way is far more preferable, of course, and should be encouraged of any writer, but, again, everyone makes mistakes. That’s when the Grammar Nazis come knocking at my door with their Nazi accents. They tell me to cross a “t” or dot an “i” – sometimes adding “Herr Nus” at the end of sentences. The more learned ones will tell me (between mouthfuls of knackwurst) that, according to publishing standards, punctuation such as commas and periods should appear inside quotations, not out. The thing is they’re right and, if they tell it to me nicely and discreetly, I will always make the correction. But they won’t because they’re Nazis.
I do, however, appreciate the private DMs that good friends and fellow bloggers send me when they find an error and I am happy to reciprocate. Being a blogger, I don’t always have a second pair of eyes to re-edit my posts before they go out. Also being a blogger who has recently come into some extremely busy times, it’s been a struggle to get out as many posts as I used to. This week has been extraordinarily busy and I apologize for this one, lonely post.
Where, however, do we draw the line for politeness when correcting another person’s grammar, spelling or usage? I see it happen all the time where someone will be ridiculed for spelling “ridiculous” as “rediculas” or for messing up the spelling of “definitely” to the painful “definately.” I suspect that these glaring and annoying errors in the written English language come from a lack of training in the importance of root words and some gaps in vocabulary. However I think they can be easily fixed and don’t merit being called “stupid” for bad spelling.
I know a lot of very smart people who can’t spell to save their lives. No one is really born smart. That is even if someone was predisposed to be a genius, would he/she really be considered one they had not learned the fundamentals of human knowledge and prose before pushing the boundaries to eventually become the celebrated genius (or lamentable mad scientist, despot, tyrant etc.) that they were destined to be? If a “born genius” was born in a cave and never saw the light of day would that genius really become as resourceful, as creative or as bright as they are predisposed to be. Plato would argue that it would not be the case.
Therefore we must be shown the light of knowledge and help one another to learn rather than punish those of us who for, one reason or another, did not grasp a piece of knowledge the first time around. I would say that you will feel better if you helped someone learn how to spell a common word, rather than lambaste them online in great spectacle. Don’t be a Grammar Nazi.
What to do in a Tornado in Toronto
3
Source: http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca
UPDATE: The Tornado watch has been lifted. This post is being left up for posterity.
Hey everyone. There’s a tornado watch in Toronto. The pictures on twitter allegedly show the twister in the city of Toronto and the lightning is fierce right now. I’m not sure of their authenticity at the moment but it never hurts to be prepared just in case. I am typing this up to give you some quick tips on what to do in a tornado and syndicating it to all my social feeds.
Getprepared.ca has some general tips but I thought I would flesh them out a bit for apartment/condo dwellers. It’s a scary time right now and I just want to help where I can with planned redundancy in information. If you get the info you need from this site, great. If from somewhere else, also great. Just stay safe!
Read the tips below but stay glued to 680news radio for updates. If you still have television keep your eye on the news. If your area goes from “Tornado watch” to “Tornado warning” SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY.
If you are in a house
- Go to the basement or take shelter in a small interior ground floor room such as a bathroom, closet or hallway.
- If you have no basement, protect yourself by taking shelter under a heavy table or desk.
- In all cases, stay away from windows, outside walls and doors.
If you can manage it, bring an emergency kit or provisions with you. Charge your cell phone if you don’t have a flashlight and use it for light.
If you are in an office or apartment building
- Take shelter in an inner hallway or room, ideally in the basement or on the ground floor.
- Do not use the elevator.
- Stay away from windows.
If you are in the upper floors of a high rise building try to get to the garage and stay there for the duration of the storm. If there is no garage get to the lowest floor possible or in a neighbour’s apartment. If you can’t make it down get in your bathtub and cover yourself with pillows, blankets or even your mattress to protect yourself from falling debris. This is the safest place in your apartment.
Again, If you can manage it, bring an emergency kit or provisions with you. Charge your cell phone if you don’t have a flashlight and use it for light.
If you are driving
- If you spot a tornado in the distance go to the nearest solid shelter.
- If the tornado is close, get out of your car and take cover in a low-lying area, such as a ditch.
In all cases
- Get as close to the ground as possible, protect your head and watch for flying debris.
- Do not chase tornadoes – they are unpredictable and can change course abruptly.
- A tornado is deceptive. It may appear to be standing still but is, in fact, moving toward you.
Nobody is Nobody. Everybody is Somebody.
19 months ago
by Michael
in Stay Classy
Image: http://www.coolfer.com
We live in an age of entitlement now. I guess it sort of comes with the territory when a form of communication presents itself that is no longer one way, but two ways and many other ways in between. I am talking, of course, about twitter, facebook pages, the mobile web and so forth – social media.
People and brands alike have enjoyed (and sometimes lamented) the power of word of mouth for centuries but never before has new spread from person to person with the capacity and speed afforded by the social web. No longer must we wait till the news write up in the paper the next morning or wonder what’s on the 6 or 11 o’clock news to get the scoop on what’s happening around us. What’s more is that we can now provide instant feedback on any news we hear about moments after it ticks by on our twitter feeds.
Social lives have changed too. While we still protect our privacy to some degree we are more willing to share things online that we normally would not in a traditional social scenario (i.e. a cocktail party). We Live In Public‘s Josh Harris predicted that we would all give up our privacy online just for our 15 seconds of fame and recognition. While I still disagree with the extremity of his claim (i.e. I still don’t think we’re going to install webcams in all our living rooms and bathrooms as he did) people are using the social web to make a big deal about themselves whether it is for the purpose of getting invited to some exclusive party, get free swag, promote their web presence in whatever form, or just speak their mind without too much fear of immediate repercussions. So in a way, Harris was right but nowhere near to the extent he so arrogantly proposed.
While people on the social web “give up” their privacy as “social currency” (for example providing an email address, a follow, a Like) brands in turn give away the farm in many cases. You see it happen on group buying sites where businesses pretty much bend over backwards to give deep discounts and then have to deal with disgruntled customers who come in a few weeks later expecting the same deal, chomping at the bit to chirp them on Twitter when they don’t get what they want. You see the same phenomenon when a blogger or tweeter writes a complaint to his/her followers about some cell phone carrier that allegedly screwed them in some way. The list of scenarios goes on but the point is that business are spending and losing lots of money to appear accountable to the public on the social web and get rewarded a lot of the time with flak. I think that’s very commendable on the part of any business that would be brave enough to open their ports to the social web but it sort of grinds my gears when I see people take advantage of that and try to squeeze blood from the stone, so to speak.
Businesses on the social web now want you to feel special but it can go too far sometimes and it could hurt the ecosystem that balances the give and take between brand and customer. A phrase sort of popped into my head today as I was pondering this phenomenon of entitlement and the above issue. The phrase is this:
Nobody is nobody. Everybody is somebody. Just don’t let it go to your head.
Perhaps a mantra to describe the middle ground that I think could be created between the denizens of the social web and brands/businesses/causes that seek to engage their public without going overboard on what they give away. Yes, we give some of our privacy away when we get on Facebook, twitter, google+ etc so we should be recognized by brands for stepping out into the open and being identifiable and directly reachable. It’s a great metric for businesses to know exactly who they are dealing with now whereas before the social web there was a lot of guesswork on their part. The public still appreciates being made to feel special almost as a “thank you” for using a brand’s product (i.e. the Budweiser Winner’s Circle at the Honda Indy) but it should be recognized that Bud gave away a lot of product to market to you and throw such a swell party. Even though I was not paid to attend, I thanked Bud and Edelman with a blog post and some great pics.
In this sort of equal interchange I think the balance lies. Continuing with the Honda Indy example, although there were definitely some social media heavy hitters scattered throughout the Winner’s Circle 99% of people there were non-web folks just enjoying the event VIP style courtesy of Bud.
I guess in a long-winded fashion I am just hoping that in some form or another, social media folks make sure to say “thank you” and be a little more patient with the brands that have hooked them up along the way and continue to go to great lengths to satisfy our fickle needs.
As always, your thoughts and comments are welcome below.
I Won an Xbox at IHAVEANIDEA
29 months ago
by Michael
in Social Media
After a very busy day of meetings and wheeling and dealing I joined my good friends at IHAVEANIDEA for some drinks and schmoozing at Veritas. Every couple of months I get together with the usual suspects in the Ad game just to shoot the breeze and talk about what’s new and exciting in this thing of ours.
The last few meetups were sponsored by Microsoft Advertising and each time I showed up there was a draw for a new Xbox 360 with a Kinect! Of course Alfred of IHAVEANIDEA would not let the damned thing out of his site so stealing it was not an option and I was fresh out of chloroform-soaked rags so I had to play it fair and square. As I was telling the people around me how great it would be if one of won the XBOX with Kinect I heard someone say “The winner of the XBOX is Michael Nus!” and just laughed thinking someone was playing a joke. No joke, I got the XBOX and I must give my humble thank you to Microsoft Advertising and IHAVEANIDEA.
If you’re in the Ad game and just want to relax and network a bit, apply to become a member and see you at the next IHAVEANIDEA meetup. They also do a great event a few times a year called “Portfolio Night” where you can bring your creative portfolio – be you a copywriter, art director, designer etc – and have work on it with the very people who would see it at an interview for some of the most respected agencies around.
At its core, Portfolio Night is an event where aspiring young advertising copywriters, art directors and designers meet with several renowned advertising creative directors in a fast-paced evening of advice, networking and recruitment. While the evening has been jokingly called “speed-dating for creatives”, it’s really much more than that. In the nine years since its inception, Portfolio Night has grown to be a global event, reaching creative hubs in every continent in an evening where the best of the present meets the best of the years to come.
Creative Niche, a favourite creative recruiter of mine is heavily involved in Portfolio Night so you should keep your eyes open for the next one and sign up. Give Creative Niche a jangle and let them help you find your next great gig in the sky!
See you at Portfolio Night….that is as long as I can tear myself away from the Xbox 360.
The Emperor’s New Clothes and Google Plus
810 months ago
by Michael
in Social Media
Illustration: THORARINN LEIFSSON http://www.totil.com
Like many kids growing up I was told many stories by my parents and teachers. Hans Christian Andersen was a staple among the authors who would put me to bed at night or capture my imagination in class. One of the stories that stuck with me in particular was “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” It was a simple cautionary tale that pretty much told of the evils of pretense.
Here is the summary of the plot according to Wikipedia: (click here for the full text of “The Emperor’s New Clothes“)
An Emperor who cares for nothing but his appearance and attire hires two tailors who promise him the finest suit of clothes from a fabric invisible to anyone who is unfit for his position or “just hopelessly stupid”. The Emperor cannot see the cloth himself, but pretends that he can for fear of appearing unfit for his position; his ministers do the same. When the swindlers report that the suit is finished, they mime dressing him and the Emperor then marches in procession before his subjects, who play along with the pretense. Suddenly, a child in the crowd, too young to understand the desirability of keeping up the pretense, blurts out that the Emperor is wearing nothing at all and the cry is taken up by others. The Emperor cringes, suspecting the assertion is true, but holds himself up proudly and continues the procession.
Living in a social media world I find that pretense always has the potential to run rampant among some of those who live in it. You may have observed said pretense in the scores of so-called experts that Twitter has spawned or the droves of “visionary” speakers who are making a killing on nothing but pretty words. It seems people are just salivating to become the experts on the next new big thing by becoming the early adopters (the “I was there!” pretense) of the newest technologies. So we’re on to the subject of Google+.
Ever since Facebook left the academic world and became mega popular people have been wondering what the “Facebook killer” will be. Enter Google Plus and many have been touting it to be that very killer but I’m not so sure just yet. Granted it’s still in its early stages and the Google+ dev team is reportedly adding new features, I still don’t see what all the fuss is about. I’ve been using it pretty much since the beginning myself but have not gotten that much out of it. From a social sharing perspective the idea is solid where people seem to be mostly sharing links to existing content and A LOT of “How Tos” for how to make sense of the Google Plus system but I’m still not seeing the real capital S Social part just yet.
The thing about social media is that the most effective applications of it have been where the activity mimics offline social life to a suitable degree. Facebook really is the granddaddy of social networks because you can invite people to events (compare: inviting friends over to your house for a little party), you can tell your friends happy birthday due to the reminders (tying a string around your finger), and you can see what other friends are planning if they make that information public (hearing something through the grapevine). The list goes on of course with Notes, Social Graph, Places, Chat, Groups, Albums etc. and they can all be compared to things you would do in a hypothetical world where the internet doesn’t exist.
Google Plus does some of social things adequately too, in particular the Video Hangout and the Circles functions. Just as in real life you would definitely hang out with people you know to shoot the breeze about this and that, and you would also maybe have different circles of friends from university or the office and so on who may not necessarily mix. So for Google+ that’s a big win for sure, especially with those on facebook worried about their privacy in terms of who sees what – it’s easier than Facebook to control that in G+. It’s also nice to be free of that damned Farmville app! But as I look at the main G+ feed stream I see that people are just spewing out shares of content pretty much the same way they would on any other social network. Aside from the +1s and comments there’s not much more “social” interaction happening there on that stream. This became particularly clear to me when I celebrated my birthday on the 19th. I was getting lots of birthday wishes from Facebook and Twitter and even on the phone and in person but not a single one came from Google+. Granted, many of those people on G+ were friends of mine who regularly talk to me on twitter and facebook and many of them wished me well on both platforms, so why not Google+ too? Well because so far it doesn’t tell you when someone’s birthday is on! At least not right on the front page of your feed. It also doesn’t have a sophisticated event function yet that’s different than their own Google Calendar.
And that’s when it hit me. I think that currently people just really want to like Google+ because they see that everyone else really wants to as well. It’s the new “in crowd.” Definitely a real social phenomenon but it has little to do with how good the platform itself actually is. It’s popularity and buzz could also very well be largely attributed to hype of the initial limited beta invite stage where people where asking each other (on Twitter, might I add) if they had gotten their invite yet and doing the virtual happydance to the envy of their followers who had not yet gotten into G+.
The real professionals aren't buying the snakeoil
Therefore I liken the current wild popularity of Google+ to the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes because it seems everyone wants to be the smart person who uses it and is admired by their peers, but so far it really doesn’t replace any platform we already use – there’s nothing there really. The current social media landscape is that Facebook is king of the castle but shares that crown with some great apps out there that focus on doing one particular function particularly well or even better than Facebook can. For example Twitter took the status updates and made that their specialty, while Foursquare and Flickr made check-ins and photo albums their own, respectively.
I’ve been giving Google+ the benefit of the doubt and I admittedly kinda dig the Android app for what it is in the microcosm of the mobile world, but the core web app still leaves something to be desired and really isn’t all that amazing. Perhaps I’m missing something and the best is yet to come, but I’ve been noticing a lot of people on Facebook, Twitter and even Google+ who are still scratching their heads as to what to do with this thing. I encourage you to weigh in with your comments below….Oh and share this on Google Plus, will ya?
Toronto Pride Parade 2011
5
No matter where I am, year after year when the Toronto Pride Parade takes over downtown I beam with pride myself. Although I myself am not gay and do not fit into the LGBT designations I have a great appreciation for the community. Growing up I was surrounded by the mixed feelings of others about homosexuality. I think any and all of us who have lived through the 80s and 90s have at one or more points run into careless comments of prejudice and misunderstanding about LGBT people and even some of us may have said something that can be construed as offensive to gay people. But when I see huge crowds at the Toronto Pride Parade celebrating sexual diversity I am always staggered by the times we now live in where prejudice, racism, hatred, and fear are no longer the norm but the outcast exception.
True, there are still pockets of the above hatreds (i.e. the ugly anti-Israeli “Apartheid” movement that wanted to crash the parade) but I’m happy that they are no longer accepted as normal public discourse they way they were, say, 30 or 50 years ago. The issue of sexual diversity, to me, was always a peculiar one as I grew up because although I went to schools that I suppose would not condone homosexuality, when I came home I still had two gay uncles and a close cousin who came out when I was 12. In my mind I figured that my uncles (one related and one not) were in love, lived together and were happy – so, awesome. There didn’t seem to be anything “wrong” with them, despite what the teachers said. They were two perfectly normal men with jobs, hobbies, cars and all that – they just happened to be in love with each other. As for their hobbies – they happened to enjoy decorating their apartment so it was way classy, preferred food and wine of top quality, and loved to travel. If anything I was in awe of their sense of good taste and none of it seemed weird at all. Even now I love going over and hanging out as it means I get to marvel at their baby grand piano, eat beautifully prepared food, peruse through their travel scrapbooks and secretly borrow selections from their classical music collection. They’re thrilled that I live with a roommate who’s gay and are noticeably more open about their experience together, which is great.
I wasn’t living in Toronto when same-sex marriage was ratified nationwide in 2005 but I was so proud to be a Canadian that day on July 20 (a day after my birthday) and I knew that my uncles were proud to be part of it. II made it a point to make it out to the Toronto Pride Parade this year and I got some really great pictures. As you look at them, think about what a great time it is to be alive and appreciate it. I certainly do.
Social Media as SEO and Google Mayday
311 months ago
by Michael
in Social Media
Many folks tend to mention social media and SEO in the same breath as a sort of catch-all term without realizing that they are not one and the same. They are, however, complimentary and the former can potentially have strong effects on the latter.
Image: DSM publishing UK
Some SEO DIYers may define the practice of SEO as simply getting site content to match up with keywords in the meta tags portion of their HTML code. However when they try to put that concept into practice they soon find out that it’s not THAT simple. No one really knows the exact algorithm Google uses to rank websites except maybe the people who work at Google HQ. The reason for that is mostly because the Google search algorithm is perpetually in flux and can be thought of as a “work in progress” due to the ever changing nature of the web itself – in fact they make about 400 tweaks a year to their search algorithm. SEO must change with it due to this hard fact and grows to accommodate not only traditional websites but social networking sites, web apps, blogs and so on. I find that many bloggers have a tough time figuring out SEO because their site’s content tends to have a shelf life – so due to the above notion of SEO they either don’t think there’s a point to trying to rank high for the content of a post or just don’t know how to do it.
It almost goes without saying that to be a successful blogger it helps if you use social media tools to help publicize your latest post. It’s not enough to just host your blog on WordPress.com or Blogger/Blogspot, even if there are certain advantages to being part of a built in platform community. A good blogger does not just write for other bloggers but also writes content for the general viewer, so it makes sense to syndicate your blog with Twitter, Facebook, etc. This applies particularly to people who self-host their blogs (although WordPress.org now lets you connect your blog with a wordpress.com account – which is awesome) as they are pretty much on an island if they use the platform out of the box without the built in community aspect of Blogger or WordPress.com. There are all kinds of tactics to get people to read your blog both online and in the physical world, but for this post I will just focus on using SEO to get people to happen by naturally. The great thing is that now with the Google May Day Algorithm change blogs get a fighting chance through great content! That’s right, content is king again, this time for real.
May Day is not a temporary change, its permanent and is independent of Caffeine, but what hasn’t changed about SEO is that search engine spiders still need to find the paths to your site. Remember that Google isn’t the only engine out there (even if it’s the most widely used) and it’s good to think of Bing and Yahoo too. What’s common among all three of the big search engines is that they still look for inbound links to help them find and index your site quicker and with more relevance to searchers. Social media, aside from all its promise and hocus pocus is still actually a great way to increase your SEO because just about every social networking site thrives on links to great content.
So here’s some things you can do for your company or blog that will help get you indexed faster.
Create social networking profiles to secure your brand identity
You probably already have a Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter profile (if you don’t, you’re going to want to fix that) but there are lots of other sites out there that may be more focused in terms of relevance to the content you produce. Each site has a different niche audience and if you’re using social media in the business world, you’re probably looking for that audience. Use Knowem to see just about all the social networks that people use and register your brand name or blog name before someone else does! The great thing is that Knowem will tell you what’s taken and what’s not in each category. Just make sure that you intend to actively use any profile you register or doing so won’t do much for your SEO.
Keywords
keywords are still important within a blog or site but did you know that you can match them up with your status updates on twitter, facebook, youtube and so on? When you write some content think about the one or two main keywords or long-tail key phrases you want your post to represent and use them in your tweets. Hashtags are a great way to do this, but also consider optimizing the permalink of your post to have the same keywords. Works like a charm and gives the search engines a direct path to the good stuff. If your blogging platform (i.e. WordPress, Tumblr) allows you to specify tags, throw those in there. The general rule of thumb is to pick the best 10 keywords and phrases and cut it off there. If you think dumping in 50 keywords will help by virtue of the birdshot principle, you’re in the clouds (see what I did there? *crickets*).
Entice
I’ve been fighting with this for a while. Facebook’s note system allows you to (poorly) import your entire blog into your profile and lets readers read the whole post on their site. While it may sound cool, it’s important to realize that using their note system in that manner out of the box does little for your SEO because, yes you guessed it, they’re getting the web hit, not your blog that you worked so hard on! I’m not saying to avoid syndicating your blog to hugely popular sites like Facebook however. Instead use services like Networked Blogs or connect your blog to Tumblr and it will publish a snippet of your main blog post for you right onto facebook. The great thing is that the link that is generated goes right back to your post and you get the hit while giving search spiders yet another direct path from a high-ranking site to your blog! Bonus tip: You know that Excerpt box under the main window of your post content in WordPress that you ignore? Fill it out with an abstract of your post content! It replaces the full content in RSS feeds when the option to display summaries is selected in Dashboard › Settings › Reading. Send em to your blog so they can see all that great formatting you busted your butt on!
Don’t be Lazy
WP lets you link to existing content in your own blog
I mentioned Caffeine before but failed to explain it. The Google Caffeine algorithm is what google put in place to weed out sites that were static and boring – sorta. That is, Google decided that the most relevant rankings were not just those with the right keywords, but those that were updated frequently in a timely manner. It makes sense – you would rather hear about the most updated information on a subject rather than something antiquated that used to rank well based on old SEO practices. It’s a big reason why Wikipedia often shows up in the top 3 results for a lot of search queries.
For bloggers this is great because blog sites are supposed to be updated frequently so no sweat, right? Well there are more than a few “bloggers” who post maybe once every 2 months or longer and wonder why their SEO sucks. Bottom line you gotta keep up appearances when you blog, so get out there and write something! Also it doesn’t hurt to keep older posts fresh with some internal linking. WordPress’ latest versions allows you to set a link to existing content on your own blog to help keep it all relevant, so use it!
Beyond that…
There are quite a few more wily tips and tricks that can help your site, but I don’t want to inundate you with too much info just yet. What i’ve listed above represents a decent deal of work so try it out and let it all marinate on your site. You should see your site move up a few spots for the targeted subject/keywords you wrote about provided that you give it a little time and that people get clicking. With Google Mayday now a permanent feature in the grand scheme of things, let your content do the talking and just point people in the right direction!
Anime North 2011
211 months ago
by Michael
in Expression
It’s no secret that I’m kind of a geek and it’s more than likely that you, the one reading this post, is cut from the same nerdy cloth. Whether you’re a closet geek or a full blown level 10 Dweeb Wizard you could have a little fun at a special interest convention. I’ve covered a few comic cons in the past, including Fan Expo 2010 and Wizard World Comicon 2011, because I think a day at the con can be a fun way to spend an afternoon for anyone. You can be among like minded people in total comfort without any judgement and that’s a great environment to be a part of. Oh and apparently there’s a whole lotta dancing.
Well played...
Anime North is uncharted territory for me. I grew up with traditional characters like Superman and the lot who tend to embody decidedly Western values and culture. When you jump into the world of manga and anime it’s an entirely new ball game. Other than the often distinct Asian aesthetic woven into most of the material you will also notice, should you be brave enough to jump right in, that the creators behind any given mange title are just about fearless with what subject matter they will explore in their works. One trip to Anime North or a similar anime convention (although Anime North is a particularly massive one) and you will see manga and anime that pretty much scoff in the face of the old Comics Code Authority with subject matter such as ultra gore, tentacles and even gay sex between popular characters (Yaoi and Yuri). Many of you are probably most familiar with popular titles like Dragonball Z when it comes to anime/manga but that’s just the beginning and only describes a series that ended in 1996! Since then the sky has been the limit and manga has become synonymous with outlandish, unbridled, hyperbole – and it’s great.
I attended this year’s Anime North 2011 with local nerd princesses Heather Cooper and Alice Quinn who convinced me to cosplay for the first time ever. They dressed as two of the three Powerpuff girls (Dani Ray was supposed to be the third but came down with a nasty case of bronchitis) and needed a Professor Utonium. All I needed was a labcoat, a tobacco pipe and a look of fatherly pride. Check. Granted the costume was nowhere near as elaborate as the bulk of those I saw at the con, it was at least a start. Most of the costumes were just really badass. Those of you who’ve been to a few of these: have you ever noticed the high prevalence of people carrying giant scythes? What is it about anime and garden tools? My favourite scythe wielder was the Double Rainbow Unicorn, by far.
To be honest I don’t know if I am yet ready to go full out cosplay just yet but I suppose I will work on it. Maybe it’s because all the manga I’ve ever read has been brought to me by my brother who is a big otaku and loves all things Japanese. Then again I do tend to go all out on Halloween so maybe it’s not that different. If I was to be asked what my most favourite costume of the con was, I would have to give it to the Phoenix Wright “OBJECTION” guy (see slideshow below). No scythe needed to cut down the competition. Although black Jesus came in a close second…coming.
Check out Heada.ca‘s and TdotComics’ blog about day 1 and 2 of Anime North 2011
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