Social Media

Nineteen with little money. Need wheels? So you buy a car that promises much but breaks down when getting to that important meeting or date that matters. It’s expediency driven by budget, necessity and inexperience. You bought a lemon. Blogging is not that different. Sometimes we are so eager to get started that we cobble something together and launch. Later we have to pull it apart because it didn’t have the foundations to handle the traffic or the flexibility to do what was needed. Sometimes we borrow when we should have bought. The result is that it can be painful, time consuming and often expensive. It’s called impatience, it can masquerade as frugal and it may even be called shortsighted. We have all been there. A blog that means business If you are serious about turning a blog into income and then your business, then laying the right foundations is important. It means sitting down and doing some planning. It means asking some questions What am I going to focus on? What should the branding and design be like? What should I develop it on? The list goes on. If you do mean business then you need to create the right framework and foundation for your blog. A framework for the future Sometimes a little thought, the right framework and resources can be time saving and stress relieving in the long run.   Here are 10 key building blocks to get you started. 1. Focus Many people start a blog because they are passionate about photography, sales or leadership. This focus normally happens because of two factors. Passion for the topic Innate ability Others start with an analytical eye on an opportunity. A topic that is trending and a business category that is growing. These can be identified around topics such as Health  Making money Success Avoiding pain You can then choose a business focus that is growing using tools such as Google Trends or Facebook ads to see if the market is growing or shrinking. Both approaches can be successful, but for me I find the passion approach provides a stronger and more sustainable foundation. 2. Branding Branding is part science and part art. In its simplest form it involves two key elements. Your visual design that resonates with your chosen category. This includes logo and colours  Your messaging and voice which will carry into what you write and how you communicate across a range of multimedia Being memorable and sticky within your category so that you stand out is key. If your competitors are zigging maybe you should be zagging. 3. Select a Platform There are so many platforms to build a brand online. It can be confusing and it will make your head spin. Let me keep it simple. In essence you have two choices: Rent a pre-built platform such as Blogger or Tumblr. Advantages?…… It is fast and cheap Design and build on your own platform using a WordPress Template. Advantages?…..You own it and have flexibility. In the end it comes down to fast and cheap is more for those who are just playing and messing around. If you want big foundations that mean business then build it on the WordPress platform using your own domain name. Then you own it. 4. Design & Development Design is what consumes most of people’s time. For most, it is how it looks. Yes…Looks are very important… but design goes much deeper than that. It is also how it works. Design that matters and manages the tension between form and function can be beautiful to behold. Steve Jobs knew and understood that. So hire a designer that understands that it isn’t just about having a beautiful face but powerful and essential functions. 5. Hosting Ever been to site that is so slow to load that you click away. That can sometimes be put down to having a slow internet connection. Often though it is because you are sharing a hosting computer with hundreds of other domains. It has become vital with Google’s new attention to user experience that your site loads quickly. if it doesn’t

Not all iPad games are created equal, especially when it comes to cost. You might download a great game only to fall into a trap of ugly graphics, bad controls and in-app purchases. Lucky for you, we've tested 15 games for their fun factors — and they're all free. You'll find complicated strategy games, creative titles and games you can play against your friends. SEE ALSO: 10 Best Cross-Platform Multiplayer Mobile Games Check out our list above. Do you have a favorite free game we missed? Share it with us in the comments Homepage image courtesy of Adult Swim Games. Read more...More about Entertainment, Apps, Gaming, Features, and Video Games

Google Glass is one of the hottest gadgets on the planet right now, but not everyone's a fan. In fact, there are many people worried about privacy. In this Sunday Comic, we see that the government is concerned, too — just for a slightly different reason. SEE ALSO: More Sunday Comics Comic written by Larry Lambert; illustrated by Jerry King. Read more... More about Comic, Gadgets, Comics, Humor, and Watercooler

Silicon Valley has long been at the forefront of the tech startup scene, but thanks to the growth of emerging companies in other areas of the U.S. and worldwide, the West Coast is no longer the only tech hub sparking startups and innovation. In fact, according to a report by financial research analyst firm PrivyCo., there were more than 100 acquisitions of tech startups in New York City last year, amounting to $8.3 billion. The city is now only positioned second behind Silicon Valley in terms of startup acquisitions. And thanks to the expansion of larger companies such as Facebook and Google to the New York area, this is only the beginning of the bigger trend Read more...More about Startups, Business, and Mobile

Yahoo's board of directors has approved a $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr, it was reported earlier today. The initial reactions from many Tumblr users have ranged from skepticism to outright anger, as many fear the acquisition will change the culture of the platform What do you think the future holds for a Tumblr owned and operated by Yahoo? Let us know by answering the poll below. If there's another question you'd like to ask, you can add it to our poll Yahoo Acquires Tumblr Stay tuned for more updates from Mashable as this story unfolds. Photo via iStockphoto, kycstudio Read more...More about Yahoo, Tumblr, and Social Media

Commander Chris Hadfield, the web's favorite astronaut, returned to Earth last week after 146 days in space. While based at the International Space Station, Hadfield treated us to a number of breathtaking photos from his Twitter account. SEE ALSO: More Sunday Comics In this Sunday Comic, our friends Nitrozac and Snaggy at The Joy of Tech imagine what kinds of photos Commander Hadfield might start tweeting, now that he's returned to the planet Comic illustration provided by The Joy of Tech. Published with permission; all rights reserved. Read more...More about Twitter, Comic, Comics, Space, and Humor

Yahoo’s board met today and agreed to acquire Tumblr for $1.1 billion in cash, according to AllThingsD. The company was quickly targeted by incoming CEO Marissa Mayer as a larger acquisition target, according to AllThingsD reports. The Sunnyvale, California-based media company sees Tumblr as a way to play to its strengths while also appealing to the younger audiences Tumblr attracts. Tumblr founder David Karp will reportedly stay on at Yahoo with say-so over the fast-growing blogging platform. Neither Yahoo nor Tumblr would confirm the deal, but a Yahoo press event is set for tomorrow afternoon in New York City, where Tumblr has its offices. New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

In today's competitive job market, it often feels impossible to stand out from the thousands of other college graduates with similar bachelors degrees in hand. Internships are becoming an increasingly popular way to differentiate yourself from the hoi polloi; in fact, interns are 70% more likely to be hired as full-time employees with a company than candidates with no experience at the company. And, not only are interns getting hired more often — but there are companies that offer incredible perks and incentives to attract strong candidates. For example, Amazon interns earn $5,366 as a monthly salary, and Disney interns get free admission to all parks and resorts. Read more...More about Careers, Internship, Infographic, Job Search Series, and Business

A store in Australia made headlines earlier this year for charging consumers $5 to just walk through the door. The decision was made following the growth of "showrooming," a familiar concept when a person heads into a physical store to check out merchandise before finding the same product at a cheaper price online. Thanks to free shipping and returns, as well as low or no taxes — hello, Amazon — it makes sense for consumers to do online price comparisons before making a purchase According to analytics firm ForeSee Results, about 70% of consumers use a mobile phone in a retail store to research and accompany their shopping experiences. Data from U.K.-based design agency Foolproof also supports the growth of in-store mobile usage. In fact, a recent report revealed 24% of British consumers "showroomed" during the 2012 holiday shopping season — and 40% of that number bought from a competitor after comparing prices. Read more...More about Mobile, Retail, Brands, Buzzwords, and Business

It feels like social media is easier to use than ever before. With new features that auto-hashtag content, allow users to buy products right from videos, and provide tailored content recommendations to users on mobile websites, things are definitely changing for the better. While all these new features are exciting for inbound marketers, we also worry that social media may lose the personal touch it had in its younger years. How will these new social media changes affect how marketers connect with people? Check out this week’s round-up and let us know what you think. YouTube Finally Makes Some Videos ‘Shoppable,’ From Mashable Have you ever wondered how awesome it would be to simply click and buy the things you see in YouTube videos? Well, wonder no more. YouTube is releasing a new feature it calls a “channel gadget” that will bring some of that functionality to your video viewing experience. The new channel gadget will shorten the conversion path to purchase by connect viewers directly to retailers throughout the entire video experience. For example, if you’re watching a how-to video about a particular product, the channel gadget will enable shoppers to find retailers, check product availability, compare prices, and make purchases without leaving the comfort of your YouTube viewer. Marketers are being encouraged to reach out to their respective Google representatives to learn more about how they explore this new option, though it's currently only available as a premium option for consumer goods clients. This new feature will give marketers the ability to make the most of their video content and shorten the time it takes for someone to purchase. Advertising on YouTube videos is great, but turning your high quality video content into engaging and effective calls-to-action is even better. Read more about YouTube's 'shoppable' videos at Mashable. Google Launches Dramatic Redesign of Google+, Emphasizing Context and Content Discovery, From HubSpot With over 390 million monthly users, Google+ has come a long way since its launch almost two years ago. This week, Google announced a complete redesign of its social network with more than 40 new features that simulate an experience much closer to the much-loved mobile apps. Of all the changes, one of the biggest is that the Google+ stream is now broken into a three columns, allowing users to scan and scroll through content faster. Another very notable feature is the auto-hashtag, which automatically assigns a hashtag to anything you post using Google’s powerful search data. We know it’s still a social network that many marketers haven’t tapped into yet, but these new features are going to make life a lot easier for its users. With the new redesign, more and more people may start using Google+, making it an even more important social network for marketers to use. Also, since user experience and interface have a lot to do with how people interact on social networks, marketers should be sure to adjust their Google+ content strategies accordingly. Read more about the Google+ changes on the HubSpot blog. Yahoo Partners With Twitter to Further Personalize Homepage, From TechCrunch This week, Yahoo announced that it will be partnering up with Twitter to bring Tweets directly to Yahoo’s homepage newsfeed. The partnership will reinforce the aim of Yahoo’s redesign and create a more personalized experience for users. Marissa Mayer explains that this new integration will “seamlessly include relevant and personalized tweets alongside stories from Yahoo! and our other sources.” Any headlines on Yahoo’s newsfeeds that come from Twitter accounts will be indicated by the news source’s Twitter handle. Although the post doesn't specifically spell out which Twitter accounts will be featured, marketers should be aware of this change as it could lead to an opportunity for brands' Twitter accounts to be featured down the road. The Yahoo homepage newsfeed is designed to adapt based on user activity, and tha