Add and Automate Updates on Your Ning Networks

I hesitate to tell you how long I've been looking for a way to add and automate updates to my Ning profile pages. Several months ago I heard about Ping.FM and love the way it automates updates on a wide variety of social media sites - although there are some more I think should be added.

But, my biggest wish was to find a way to add these updates to my Ning profiles - and I have profiles on almost 40 Ning networks. So - that one little thing could add updates to 40 more social sites. Maybe that explains why I was so anxious to find a way to automate this.

Just a note - in case you're reading this and don't know what I mean by "update" - this is the short messages that we post on Twitter and that you see on other social sites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and MANY other sites. It is in that box that usually says something like - What are you doing?

So last night I was working on the social media package descriptions for a new social media setup that we will be offering in the very near future. I was creating a spreadsheet template for the full list of social sites that we set up for clients who opt for this service. I checked the Ping.FM site to be sure I hadn't missed any sites - and that's when I saw Shoutem.com. I'm not sure if its new or if I just missed it in the past.

I clicked on Shoutem.com to add it to my postings from Ping.FM and I set up my profile on their site. That's when I saw a note about adding ShoutEm.com to my Ning site. At that point - I stopped everything else and had to check out the post.

I will admit that I made a few mistakes in this setup - but it is working now. I'll even share the silly things I did wrong to save you all that wasted time :) So - here are my step by step instructions for this setup. As a quick bit of shameless self promotion - this is a small part of the new social media setup programs that my company Promo 101 Promotional Services offers --- more information about that when I finish designing the packages we will offer.

1. You need a Ping.FM account - www.ping.fm
2. You need a ShoutEm.com account - www.shoutem.com.
3. Set up your own network or join another network on ShoutEm. You will need the URL for your network and also your user name when you set up the Ning application.
4. You need at least one account on a Ning Network. If you don't have any, but would like to check it out - I invite you to visit one of mine http://readersstation.ning.com
5. Once these accounts are in place - log into your Ping.fm account and you will be on the dashboard. On the left side of the page you will see "Add More Networks". Click there and it will bring up the full list of sites that you can connect on.
6. This can be routed through ShoutEm (http://www.shoutem.com) and Laconia - (http://laconi.ca) PS - Do not sign up for both - or two copies of your pings will go to Ning.
7. I was unsure what needed to go in the "server" box - use your URL with the http:// and you do not need to include your username in the URL.
8. Go to your ShoutEm network page - this is mine http://promo101.shoutem.com/admin to see an example. At the bottom of the page, click on "widgets". This page will give you the URL to use on your Ning page and it also gives you the html if you want to add the ShoutEm.com widget to your own Ning network.
9. Go to your Ning profile page and on just about every network that I'm on - under my profile picture I see this link - Add Profile Apps
10. Click on Add Profile Apps and you will see a list of applications that you can add. In the left column - you will see a list of links, click on +Add by URL
11. Once you click on +Add by URL you will see a box - this is the URL that you need to add http://www.shoutem.com/apps/ning/1.0/ShoutEmNingApp.xml
12. Go back to your Ning Profile page and click "settings" on your ShoutEm box which will be at the top of the page. In the first box - put the URL for your network - mine is promo101.shoutem.com and in the second box add your username - mine is admin
13. Once that is done - you are ready to post. Add a new ping on Ping.FM and it should post on all your Ning profile pages where you added the ShoutEm application.

That may seem like a lot - but imagine all the time you will save once it is setup.

This is one small part of the social media setup that we offer. It is a wonderful and very useful tool to help you connect with people on your social networks. We can even set this up so that you can "ping" through your email account. If you would like more information, feel free to contact nikki@nikkileigh.com

Till next time - Look for more tips....

Nikki Leigh
Author of Book Promo 201: Harness the Power of the Internet with Web 2.0 and Social Media Marketing

Kindle from Amazon Now Offers the Chance for Paid Blog Subscriptions

May. 15, 2009 (8:46 am) By: Brian Osborne

If you’re a blog writer the folks at Amazon is offering yet another way for you to monetize your blog. Amazon is allowing you to sell the contents of the blog itself to owners of the Amazon Kindle and Amazon Kindle for iPhone applications.

A blog writer charges a monthly subscription price for every subscriber which they will receive 30% from. That means 70% of the subscription will go to Amazon. Amazon will set the price for blog subscriptions and writers will not have the option of offering their blog for free. Amazon estimates that it takes 12 to 48 hours to make a blog available through the Kindle Store.

When I read something like this it really gets the gears in my head turning in regards to what one could write that would be interesting enough for someone to pay for. Usually, the most honest answer is most of us would be surprised. That’s why I say if you got a blog it doesn’t hurt to offer it on Kindle. Even if it only adds up to extra beer money every month.

Read more from the Amazon website.

(https://kindlepublishing.amazon.com/gp/vendor/help/help-display/175-1355444-6727969?ie=UTF8&itemID=200296470)

Originally posted at: http://www.geek.com/articles/gadgets/blog-writers-can-now-sell-subscriptions-through-kindle-store-20090515/

Last Chance for "21 Powerful Rewrite Strategies" Teleseminar

This is not promotion related - but a great resource for any writers. I have never tackled a screen play - but I've been on this call a couple of times and there is all kinds of great rewrite and editing tips on this call. Of course they are trying to sell a screenwriting class - but you will pick up some great rewriting tips - it also has tips to help you write tighter.

Last Chance for "21 Powerful Rewrite Strategies" Teleseminar

Have a screenplay to rewrite?

Using a professional rewrite process can:

• Triple the quality of your screenplay.
• Cause you to win contests.
• Attract producers to your writing.

The more effective your rewrite strategies, the better your script will be. In this two hour teleseminar, I will present strategies to make sure your next rewrite will be your best so far.

"I have never heard of such a comprehensive step-by-step rewriting process before finding you. I started not to even get on the call because I just found your website a few days before the teleclass. But, boy, am I glad I did!"
-- Dolores Wix

Best of all, there is no charge.*

Here's some of what we'll cover:

• A step-by-step process anyone can follow to create a professional level screenplay that will be respected by agents and producers.
  
  
• The #1 Key to Rewriting Success. Change this one thing and rewriting gets so much easier.
  
  
• Three ways to turn ordinary characters into extremely compelling story people.
  
  
• The most important question you must ask to turn dull scenes into dramatic and valuable scenes.
  
  
• The #1 Reason writers won't cut bad scenes. Don't be guilty of this.
  
  
• And 16 other Advanced Strategies for rewriting.

Whether you are entering contests or promoting your script to Hollywood, this call will give you valuable tools for improving your chance of winning and/or selling.

"It's the best rewrite class I've taken. I've taken three, one was 2 months, another 2 days and the third six weeks. I learned more high quality tools in two hours with Hal than all of the other courses combined."
-- Kymber Yung, Writer/Producer

Limited to 100 callers

PRICE: Nothing...*except the long distance fees you pay to your own phone company. (Usually around $5 - $8)

TIME: Tuesday, May 19, 2009

To sign up for one of these teleseminars, go to http://www.scriptforsale.com/rewrite_conference2.htm

I hope you'll join us.

Hal Croasmun
http://www.ScriptForSale.com

OTHER COMMENTS ABOUT THE REWRITE CALL

"Took an (amazingly free) teleseminar last night on rewriting screenplays. Check out http://www.scriptforsale.com for a whole variety of classes, including -- if you've been living right -- a repeat of the one last night, giving 21 steps to rewrite your script, with lots of meat on those bones. Presented by Hal Croasmun, whose emphasis is on winding up with a script you can sell."
-- Chas Ridley, Author of 11 books

"Of all the classes and seminars I've taken, this was the most informative and valuable insights I've ever received. And I have been paid well, writing scripts for years.
-- Ruth L Ratny, REELCHICAGO.COM


"Just a note to say THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I was on the
teleconference call last night. To say I thoroughly enjoyed it,
is an understatement. I really liked the way you went through
everything and the GREAT examples you used.

I learned more in our call than I did in a weekend seminar
with Robert McKee."
-- Ed Gillow

"It's the most comprehensive and systematic source of
information about the rewrite process that exists."
-- Chuck Loch, Optioned Screenwriter

=================================================

Are You A Wimp in Your Business? If so - You Do Not Want to Read This

Sharing a post by my friend Kathleen Gage about a call she is offering later this week --

Are You A Wimp?

My friend Sam Crowley hits you where it hurts with this video. He talks about the people who die at 25 but get buried 50 years later. Don't let this happen to you.






Are you merely existing or are you living your life with passion? Are you saying, "Someday I will do what I love and live my Saturday?" or are you among the sleep walkers of life? Join Sam and me oh Thursday, May 21st at 3 p.m. PST, to find out how to move your life in the direction of your passion.

http://www.streetsmartsmarketing.com/Sam.htm

Originally Posted at http://www.themarketingmindset.com/2009/05/dont-watch-this-if-you-are-a-whimp-.html

Strategy to Classify Followers on Twitter

One of the common use cases of marketing on Twitter is its usefulness as a channel for lead generation. Getting to that critical mass, which can be an asset to a company, is any marketers dream, be it traditional channel of marketing or social media.

In this article, let us evaluate a strategy to classify followers on Twitter and identify critical mass, along with appropriate actions. It goes without saying, the starting step for this strategy on twitter is to Listen, Understand,Categorize. And Repeat.

The picture below illustrates how followers can be classified on two dimensions: Involvement and Interest*

Classify Followers on two dimensions: Involvement and Interest

1. Low Interest and Active – These are the followers who talk in varied topics, not all of which are related to your topic of interest. At the same time these followers are very active on twitter. The strategy that will work here is to Nurture them; educate them in the area of your expertise. The goal will be to move this set to “high interest” zone.
2. High Interest and Passive – These are the followers who talk about topics that match your areas of interest. But, they are not very active. The strategy with this group will be to Engage them. Ask questions and give replies on a continuous basis. The goal will be to move them to “Active” zone.
3. High Interest and Active - This is the absolutely desirable group to have. Not only do they speak your language, but they do so often. It is this segment where you will find your influencers and promoters. And most active users are not necessarily neutral.If you do not quickly Convert them, remember your competitors might get them and they can soon become detractors for you.
4. Low Interest and Passive – These are those followers you probably got using the “Increase Follower” tool. They are not interested in what you have to say, nor do they care, as they are passive. The best strategy is to not spend much time on this group. Try engaging and nurturing – if the users do not move to either “active” or “high interest” zone – Ignore them.

* SentimentNow(TM) technology of ObjectiveMarketer can actually show mapping of your and your audience’ similarity of interests.

This is a simple strategy, but will be very effective when marketers are planning their campaigns and evaluating the strength of their target audience on Twitter. Identifying the influencers is key strategy to a successful Viral Campaign on Twitter.

It would be interesting to get more views on this topic.

This article was originally posted at:
http://objectivemarketer.wordpress.com/2009/05/12/follower-strategy-on-twitter/

Social Networking With Twitter by G T Bulmer

I've been a member of the Twitter social networking site for several weeks now and the experience keeps getting better and better!

© GT Bulmer
Web Biz Opportunities - StarrBizz.com

Social networking has become such a vital part of every home based web biz marketer's game plan and Twitter has developed into a leading force in social networking.

The biggest benefit of social networking is that it is free; you can reach thousands of prospects easily and economically. The challenge of social networking is that you have to spend time developing your presence on a social media site and time developing relationships of trust.

Twitter definitely simplifies the process. Sign-up and set-up take a matter of minutes. Then all you do is begin posting your "tweets" in 140 characters or less. You can post as often as you like, but the secret to social networking success is to offer info, insight and value, not just blatant promos or ads for your products and services.

You will find that once you become active in posting tweets, Twitter members will automatically start following you. And that is the object of social networking; to build a list of followers.

There are a few techniques to build your followers faster. One way is to follow other members. It's easy to do on Twitter - just a click of the button - and most members you follow will follow you back.

As your list of followers grows, it becomes even more important to create a balance between informative tweets and promotional tweets.

Also, it helps to keep your tweets relative to your basic theme. For example, I try to keep the majority of my gtbulmer tweets focused on the theme of business and online marketing. I try to keep the majority of my ThinkGreen4Life tweets focused on the theme of the environment and going green.

If your tweets depart too far afield of the theme that attracted your followers, some will un-follow you, and on Twitter, it's just as easy to un-follow as it is to follow.

Another way to help build your followers is to "re-tweet" the posts of other members. Basically, you click the "reply" icon to paste their twitter ID into your comment field; you type in the letters "RT" (meaning re-tweet), then copy and paste the portion of their text that you want to re-tweet. After making sure it is 140 characters or less, you then click the "update" button to post the re-tweet.

When you re-tweet the comments of other members, they appreciate it and will likely pay more attention to your tweets. Also, they might return the favour and re-tweet some of your tweets. There is a HUGE advantage to this: when they re-tweet your tweets, their ENTIRE list of followers could potentially see your messages. There are two key benefits to this:

- First, you instantly multiply your exposure to members you might otherwise never reach.

- Second, when one member re-tweets another, many of their followers begin following the member who has just been re-tweeted.

With that in mind, I actively watch for tweets that I think my followers will be interested in, then re-tweet those tweets. It's one more way I can provide service and value to members of my growing social network on Twitter.

After just a few weeks as a member of Twitter, I have developed a nice following and I am following many informative and inspirational members. Not only have I been learning a great deal on a variety of topics, but I've been finding some great links to share with friends on other social networking sites.

If you are looking to build your home based web biz or advance any form of business or Internet Marketing that you may be involved in, I recommend you consider the value of Social Networking with Twitter.


http://www.starrbizz.com/blog/2009/04/social-networking-with-twitter.html

70 Do Follow Social Media Sites

I just heard about this list on EvanCarmichael.com and would like to share it with you. You can create a profile page on each of these social sites and participating and submitting your articles and other sites to their bookmarking service can be beneficial for you. See what you think....

70 Do Follow Social Media Sites

(Originally posted at - http://digitallabz.com/blogs/70-do-follow-social-media-sites.html)

A staple of successful internet marketing is a quality link building campaign. There are many resources on the web on link building and I will not bother going into those details here.

As social media has grown and evolved over the past few years, it has become a new avenue for marketers and webmasters to execute link building campaigns.

This blog post is an attempt to list the social media sites that allow “do follow” links; which should have the potential to contribute to the search rank of the page being linked.

Contribute To This List
I am sure this list is far from being thorough and accurate. The landscape of the social web will always be changing. So, I invite everyone to leave comments recommending any “Social Media” websites that I have left off the list. Some sites will be removed from time to time as well, as suggested by the comments. Page Rank of the sites on the list will fluctuate over time. They are meant to be a guide.

Guidelines for adding to the list

• Must be a social media site.
• Must allow for user submitted links that do not have the “no follow” tag on the link.
• Make suggestions as comments.

Guidelines for site removal from the list

• Must provide proof that “do follow” user submitted links do not exist on the site.
• Must prove that the site should not be considered a social media site.
• Make suggestions as comments.

PR	URL	Do Follow
9	www.slashdot.org	Yes
8	www.2collab.com	Yes
8	www.digg.com	Yes
8	www.mister-wong.com	Yes
8	www.propeller.com	Yes
8	www.stumbleupon.com	URL Only
7	www.current.com	URL Only
7	www.reddit.com	In Main Categories
7	www.spurl.net	On Main Page
7	www.friendfeed.com	Yes
7	www.furl.net	Yes
7	www.hugg.com	Yes
7	www.connotea.org	Yes
7	www.mybloglog.com	Yes
7	www.mixx.com	Yes
7	www.folkd.com	Yes
7	www.multiply.com	Yes
7	www.dzone.com	Yes
6	www.sphinn.com	25+ Votes Articles
6	www.kaboodle.com	URL Only
6	www.feedagg.com	Yes
6	www.backflip.com	Yes
6	www.kirtsy.com	Yes
6	www.searchles.com	Yes
6	www.bibsonomy.org	Yes
6	www.swik.net	Yes
6	www.plime.com	Yes
5	www.mylinkvault.com	On Main Page
5	www.linkagogo.com	Yes
5	www.stumpedia.com	Yes
5	www.corank.com	Yes
5	www.faves.com	Yes
5	www.spotback.com	Yes
5	www.kwoff.com	Yes
5	www.jeqq.com	Yes
5	www.bringr.com	Yes
5	www.web2list.com	Yes
5	www.quadriot.com	Yes
5	www.unalog.com	Yes
5	www.linkatopia.com	Yes
4	www.urlex.info	URL Only
4	www.highvibeit.com	URL Only
4	www.a1-webmarks.com	Yes
4	www.oyax.com	Yes
4	www.memestreams.net	Yes
4	www.bookmarksync.com	Yes
4	www.bmaccess.net	Yes
4	www.ausculture.com	Yes
4	www.1topix.com	Yes
4	www.blogmarks.net	Yes
3	www.wobblog.com	URL Only
3	www.plugim.com	URL Only
3	www.kez6.com	URL Only
3	www.th3scoop.com	Yes
3	www.megite.com	Yes
3	www.earthfrisk.com	Yes
3	www.contentpop.com	Yes
3	www.actualtopics.com	Yes
3	www.postonfire.com	Yes
2	www.shareddish.com	URL Only
2	www.stuffs4u.com	Yes
2	www.givealink.org	Yes
2	www.dekut.com	Yes
2	www.diggdirect.com	Yes
2	www.oopza.com	Yes
0	www.i89.us	Yes
0	www.bookmark-tag.com	Yes
0	www.under-link.com	Yes
0	mystuff.ask.com	Yes
0	www.your-bookmark.com	URL Only

Do You Have Questions About Twitter?

This is a link to a radio show I did to help people understand more about Twitter - how to use it, some things to avoid, learning your way around the page and settings and more ---

My Twitter Toolbox - Over 100 Twitter Tools

Are you looking for ways to maximize your exposure and effectiveness on Twitter? Then I have something you have to check out.

With My Twitter Toolbox, you get more
than 100 tools to tame the tweeting beast!

Take a look at this page and you can see the table of contents. I'm still working my way through the list of all the tools I want to use. The price is $19.97 today, but I've heard it is going up in a few days. The research time I can save is easily worth much more than $19.97 :)

http://www.learntosellmorebooks.com/twittertoolbox.htm

--
Book Promo 201 - Book Promo 201: Harness the Power of the Internet with Web 2.0 and Social Media Marketing (May 2009)
Book Promo 101 - http://www.nikkileigh.com
Follow Me on Twitter - www.twitter.com/litekepr
Promotional Services - www.nikkileigh.com/promo.htm

Blazing Trailers - New Site to Share Your Books and Trailers

Blazing Trailers
Books at the speed of fun.

Over 300 books strong and growing...

www.blazingtrailers.com

It's official. Blazing Trailers is now open for submissions. If you
have a book trailer, it's free to post. Instead of inviting readers to
view your trailer on a dead end url at a video sharing site, send them
to Blazing Trailers. Each video is accompanied by an excerpt, review,
blurb, author info and BUY LINKS! Blazing Trailers authors are also
invited to share their news, contests, reviews, etc on the home page.

The site is still in the first stages, but we're planning a launch
party soon. The next phases of Blazing Trailers will include
individual author pages and viewer comments, among other surprises.

To submit a trailer visit http://www.blazingtrailers.com/submit.php.
The submissions form is still beta testing. If you have any questions
or problems, please email me at kimm@blazingtrailers.com

Oh, and did I mention...it's FREE?

Kim McDougall

kimm@blazingtrailers.com

Unique Book Promotion - Weddings Are Dangerous to Marriage

We have our first "Unique Way to Promote Your Book" and I'm on the lookout for more......

Since wedding books always sound so "rosettes and champagne," we created a shocking press pitch that we sent to radio and television producers and it worked every time. The interview questions included many of the same points so it was easy to promote our book and our website http://smartweddingcouples.com as the answers to all these problems:

WEDDINGS ARE DANGEROUS TO MARRIAGE

Many wedding traditions don't support the couple's relationship or the marriage they are committing to --

In fact, the typical traditional wedding is a mine-field of disasters waiting to happen:

• Surprise proposals before the couple even discusses kids, finances, or life goals (and what if she doesn't like the ring?)
• Only the bride wears an engagement ring, the groom wears nothing (she’s taken – is he?)
• The bride and her mother plan the wedding while the groom is treated like an accessory or worse (no wonder husbands feel excluded from family life)
• Parents pay for weddings as if the bride and groom are still children (even when the “kids” are fully employed adults)
• Trying to impress the guests and outdo friends, the emphasis is on glitz and glam, hardly the vows (which are, after all, the point)
• The average cost of today’s wedding is $27,000 – often not including the ring, the gown, or the honeymoon (production values win out over purpose)
• Couples go into debt over this one-day event (is that the way to start a marriage?)
• And on and on and on . . .
  

BUT . . . there's an important new trend that's helping turn things around.

We are husband and wife, best-selling relationship authors Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski AND as a psychology team(we both have PhDs) we wrote our book --

THE SMART COUPLE'S GUIDE TO THE WEDDING OF YOUR DREAMS:
Planning Together for Less Stress and More Joy
(New World Library)

To point out wedding dangers and provide meaningful modern-day alternatives.

Unlike any other wedding book, The Smart Couple’s Guide:

• Is the ONLY wedding book on the market for the couple
• Shows the couple that how they treat each during their wedding planning sets the foundation for their marriage -- and most couples don't have a clue about this.
• Is the ONLY voice for the NEW TREND in American weddings -- which is that “80% of grooms are now active co-partners in the planning of their weddings.” (TIME 10-3-05)
• That’s revolutionary. And we predict this trend will bring down the divorce rate. Taking the couple from their engagement through their honeymoon, our book is an easy and fun read punctuated with nearly 150 heartfelt stories from brides, grooms, and couples around the country.
  
  

We’ve included our bio at the end so you can see our extensive media experience, and you can check us out at http://judithandjim.com as well as our book at http://www.smartweddingcouples.com

We'd like to send you a review copy of the book, just tell us the appropriate address.

We'll give you a provocative and exciting segment -- count on it.

We look forward to hearing from you.

The Voice for The New American Wedding,

Judith Sherven, PhD & Jim Sniechowski, PhD
702-870-3657

Judith@judithandjim.com

JUDITH & JIM

Husband-and-wife psychology team Judith Sherven, Ph.D. and Jim Sniechowski, Ph.D. provoke audiences with their bold, yet charming take on the future of men and women and relationships.

Never afraid to share stories from their dating, wedding, and marriage experiences, audiences laugh with affection and identification -- while always moved to change their ways so that Judith & Jim's success can also be theirs.

Best-selling relationship authors, their latest book is "The Smart Couple's Guide to the Wedding of Your Dreams". Editors, journalists, and media bookers are always grateful to have their 2-for-1 energy and inspiration.

They named their company The Magic of Differences because at the heart of their work is the message that embracing and learning from differences is the key to successful loving and living.

As guest experts they've been on over 1000 television and radio shows including Oprah, The O'Reilly Factor, 48 Hours, CNN, Canada AM, and The View.

They’ve written for or been interviewed by hundreds of publications including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, the Boston Globe, Wall Street Journal, Cosmo, O, Bridal Guide, Redbook, Playboy, Parents, Bride’s, Men’s Health, Best Life, and Today’s Black Woman.

This is Judith’s first marriage and the third for Jim. Celebrating their 21st wedding anniversary this year, they bring hope to everyone.

Visit their websites:
www.judithandjim.com
www.smartweddingcouples.com