information, resources & books for small businesses and start-ups
Do-it-yourself Social Networking Website.
Website: SocialGo
An online tool that works with Google, Outlook, Apple iCal, Entourage for Mac, Lotus Notes, Windows Live, Yahoo! and connects to major social networks including Facebook, Plancast, TripIt, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Connecting allows Tungle.me to keep your availability up to date, and automatically update your calendar as you book meetings. Your calendar details are kept private. You can see them, but others only see your free/busy times.
Website: Tungle.me
This application can be accessed on your desktop, as well as some smartphones, offering you the ability to quickly browse your social media community including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Foursquare, and more; by selecting the application and creating column views.
Website: Tweetdeck
Social Media Week. Celebrating being social? But I guess it’s like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day…all those holidays created to remind us of things we need to appreciate every day, but take for granted. And today, social media is something that users take for granted.
Remember when Twitter was down? When it came back up, all the tweets were about what we did when it was down! And now that it is more consistent, we go back to taking it for granted. We have the ability to tweet, update our status on Facebook and continue to communicate through our blogs. So why do we need a “Social Media Week”? I think we need it to stop and think. How much do you appreciate Social Media? Are you using it to build your community? How many relationships have you built from a tweet? Take a look around and think about the impact Social Media has had on your life. And then think about how Social Media impacts your “off-line” relaationships.
While I treasure the friends and relationships I have with people from high school, college and pre-Social Media, I am amazed at the community I have built with the help of Social Media. Are you using LinkedIn? Twitter? Facebook? Foursquare? With the help of Social Media, I have reconnected with old friends, connected with new friends, and through these connections, built even more relationships. And through tweetups and other events, I am able to personalize Social Media.
For those non-believers, Social Media IS social! It helps to increase your community and your world. So what are your options? You can be an observer of Social Media by joining the sites and just reading what everybody else says. You can participate by updating your status and sharing your news. And then you can be a motivator by using your community to pay it forward and help others.
So if you aren’t involved, you should be. Celebrate Social Media week by becoming more social!
Giving thanks …
Over this past year I made the decision to embrace social media. And with the help of Twitter and WordPress, I have been able to build a community of new friends and acquaintances. I want to thank them for their participation and comments on my blog. They are always challenging me to think bigger and better.
My community has helped me with humor. And as I have needed it, they have been there with guidance and encouragement. They have introduced me to more people and helped my community grow. So I want to make sure that they know how much they are appreciated, and I am sure that they know who they are.
In 2010, I want to continue to grow my community and the relationships I have already established. I also hope to help others the way people have helped me.
Tis the season. The season of giving. The season to be thankful. So I have decided to spend the next 25 days thinking about all of the things I am thankful for this year and how I can pay this forward. A year ago, I barely knew what a blog was, let alone all of the amazing things that I could accomplish with my blog. A year ago I didn’t understand Twitter or the many ways it could enrich my life. My interest in blogging and social media was a result of writing my first book, EVENTually Perfect. And while I never thought about writing a book, it opened a whole new world for me. And these are the things I am thankful for.
I think about what I have learned this past year. The learning curve was amazing! And while I could have sat back and continued on the path I was on, I realized that I was at a fork in the road. I chose to embrace the new technologies and all that it had to offer. And along the way, I made new friends and acquaintances. I forged new alliances. And I even wrote two more books, The Small Business That CouldTM and The Small Business That Could For Women.
I am currently working on a membership website, and that was what sparked my desire to write this post. After several months of searching for the right tools to create this website, I sought the advice of a friend and mentor, Jen Bonnett (@jen_bonnett) of Startup Chicks (@startupchicks). She shared her insight with me and motivated me to move forward with this project. And while I spent a significant amount of time and frustration, not to mention excuses on why I couldn’t do this, I also knew how important this project was to me. So today I started. I knew WordPress. I knew membership site plugins were available. I just had to find a plugin that could offer the database function I needed. And I had a friend who was helping me with the theme.
So over the next 25 days, I will take a few minutes off from this project to share what I have learned about these new technologies and how they can build a community, a business and most of all a circle of friends. And at the end of the 25 days, I will launch my new website. It is my present to myself. The best gift I can give myself, the gift of satisfaction and accomplishment.
![cliqset-w[1]](http://smallbusinessthatcould.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/cliqset-w1-150x83.jpg "cliqset-w[1]")
There’s a whole lot of chatting happening on Twitter. I participate in a few of the chats, and some I just try to follow. I say “try” because that’s what it is. If someone is participating in the chat and has a great comment, but forgets the chat hashtag, most people following the chat miss it. As I continue to join more chats, this particular problem becomes more frustrating. There has got to be a better way to do this. And I think I found it.
I have been thinking about starting a chat group for a while, but because of the issues stated above, I changed my mind. A few weeks ago, I joined Cliqset. (http://cliqset.com). I am still getting used to this new program, but have quickly learned how fabulous it is many things, including “chatting”. Here is what I l have earned:
I have to wonder, why wouldn’t everyone want to move their chat conversations to Cliqset? In order to participate in the chat, you would need to be registered on Cliqset. Not very difficult, and well worth it. You would have to be following the person holding the chat on Cliqset. Again, not very difficult and well worth it.
Social media is about engaging with others. And building a community is critical to the success of your business. Since the internet is every changing, new services are constantly evolving to help make tasks easier. Through the use of a service, like Cliqset, your community can start to form and become active, without you having to spend too much time on upkeep. The user-friendly features of this program will help you enhance your current social media program.
So now, I have decided to launch my #partychat. It’s the holiday season and we are all thinking about social events. What better way than to share our ideas through social media. I hope you agree, because this is your official invitation to follow me @eventperfect and join me on Cliqset for #partychat on Monday night at 8pm EST.