2005 February - MJS Blog

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Wednesday, February 23, 2005
Alert! Another Advantage of Google

An excellent resource for us web developers and web optimizers. Google has a service (still in beta) called Google Alerts. You enter a search term and Google will email you the results when those terms have been updated into Google’s database. It’s a great tool after you’ve just launched a new website or update.

And I quote…

“A ‘Web’ alert is an email that lets you know if new web pages appear in the top twenty results for your Google Web search.”

This is an excellent way to measure your keyword optimization strategy. What a great way to test - I plug in my search terms and Google tells me when they’re in.

That’s what marketing is all about - testing. What works, and what doesn’t? A friend of mine told me, and I agree, you won’t know if it works unless you test it.

Read more about Google Alerts.

Mike Swartz says, “Check it out.”

Posted by: Michael Swartz at 11:15 am

Comments: None | Filed under: Web General, SEO, Web Marketing

Monday, February 14, 2005
The Phish Are Still Biting

It still surprises and amazes me that some people are still getting sucked into the phishing scams. Maybe I haven’t received anything too sophisticated, but I can’t imagine anyone falling for the latest one I received.

I received this email (in my Yahoo alias account) that passed through Yahoo’s spam filters. It’s a phishing scam – an email requesting my personal information. It’s obviously not from Yahoo. The email contains:

Misspellings and Grammatical Errors
You should be immediately suspect of any misspellings and/or grammatical errors in emails from professional corporations.

ATM Debit or Credit Card Number and PIN Request
I wouldn’t even give my ATM card number & PIN to my bank through an email. This is done over the phone – when I call – or in person.

Any email that has the above characteristics should be reported and then deleted. Period!

Don’t get “hooked” in or fall for the “bait”. (puns intended)

Read my other posts about preventing phishing and spyware.

Prevent Phishing and Spyware Attacks
Prevent Spyware - The Easy Way

Mike Swartz says, “Check it out.”

Posted by: Michael Swartz at 11:14 pm

Comments: None | Filed under: Web General

Thursday, February 3, 2005
Blogging For Business

An article I wrote for the Alameda Chamber of Commerce Newsletter was published today and I wanted to share the full article and an excerpt about the benefits of blogging for your business.

Blog Benefits

Blogs are incredibly beneficial in so many ways. Here are a few that really stand out:

They’re personal – In an impersonal world called the internet, it’s refreshing to read the more human aspect.
They’re interactive – Readers can post comments and interact with the blog writer and vice versa.
Search Engines love blogs – Keyword rich, easy to index and popular.
They’re easy to setup and maintain – You can setup a blog in a matter of minutes and maintain it without knowing HTML code.
They can increase traffic to your website – If you’re providing valuable information on your blog, they’ll be a reason for visitors to return and more likely to contact or buy.

Blogs Have Many Uses

Librarians are using blogs to provide updates to their staff and patrons. Project Managers are using blogs to distribute updates to team members. Writers are using blogs to showcase they’re writing skills to publishers. Blogs can also be used to deliver company news alerts or announce new products or services.

There’s no end to the possibilities – only your imagination.

Here is the full length article on Blogging for Business.

Mike Swartz says, “Check it out”.

Posted by: Michael Swartz at 9:01 pm

Comments: None | Filed under: Blogging

Tuesday, February 1, 2005
2004: Year of The Blog

I subscribe to CIO magazine. It’s good for catching up on some of the latest trends and the inner workings of the IT world…and articles about Robotic Parking creating an Automated Parking System in New Jersey. Awesome! I’d love to see that in action and maybe see it in San Francisco soon.

Anyhoo…where was I? Oh yeah. In the latest issue of CIO there’s a small article on the popularity of blogs in 2004. Here’s the stat that jumped out at me.

Blog readership jumped 58% between February 2004 – November 2004
Readership means more visits to your website. And the more people who visit, the more they’ll come back, the more they’ll trust you, and maybe even contact you or purchase your services and products. Whew!

Don’t underestimate the power of the blog.

Read the CIO article here.

Read my Blogging for Business post and full length article.

Mike Swartz says, “Check it out.”

Posted by: Michael Swartz at 1:01 am

Comments: None | Filed under: Blogging