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Guest Bloggers

How Can Pinterest Help your Retail Store

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When brands like JCPenny, The Gap, Honda, McDonalds, and Banana Republic make it to Pinterest, you know that Pinterest means business. And it does, although Pinterest was not intended to be a business venture, but like other social networking sites, it has found a niche. It is rapidly growing and provides a visual delight to its visitors, and now features a platform for businesses and retail stores to display their products.

Pinterest for Retail


Well it’s no secret, Pinterest is pretty. It is a visual delight and provides that ultimate virtual experience of window shopping. Your retail store too can become a part of the ever growing retail community.
According to the 2012 Social and Mobile Commerce Study released by Shop.org, Pinterest users follow an average of 9.3 retail companies whereas Facebook users only follow 6.9. This is reason enough why more and more retail brands are making sure that they keep up with the new trends in e-commerce. And you can do the same, here’s how:

1. Product Marketing

You can put pictures of your products which link back to your websites. Pinterest has a high click through rate, so pinning those pictures will lead to visitors, who may find your product appealing enough to visit your website to make a purchase. Even if a visitor does not intend to buy the product but finds it visually appealing, chances are he or she would re pin it, which will market your product free of cost.

2. Know what’s Trending

By following your followers or even your competition you will know what’s trending. Especially in case your product is related to fashion e.g. clothing or accessories, see what’s making the news and pin pictures which relate to it. For instance if a certain celebrity is trending or a certain color or silhouette then pin or re pin pictures of your products that reflect those trends. By following your followers you will also be able to get a better idea about their tastes and preferences. It will provide that much needed feedback and insight into your customers or potential customers tastes.

3. Picture Perfect Sales

Any sale via the web requires serious selling techniques, with Pinterest it’s the visual tactic. And it has been known to work. So even if you do not sell products but services, then pin pictures that relate to it. For instance if you are an event management company then pinning  pictures of your completed projects or pictures that display themes or ideas will attract potential customers.

4. Links

Don’t forget to link your website with Pinterest with a “Find us on Pinterest” link on your website. Also link your website with other social networking sites, especially Facebook and Twitter, this will let your pins then appear on the newsfeed of those sites. This will mean more traffic and will attract customers from other social networking sites too.
Pinterest is only 2 years old and it already has millions of users and a profitable retail presence. So it’s about time that you jump on the bandwagon and make the most of it.
Pantelis Vladimirou is the Co-Foudner of Webarts, which is using Pinterest and other Social Media as part of its Cyprus Digital Marketing strategy for its clients.

The 5 Best Annual Technology Conventions

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From the creation of cars, to ergonomic couches, to prosthetic joints, technological advancements lay down the path for a brighter future. As everyone at Box and Dice knows all too well, it’s essential that we foster our excitement for technological development and learn as much as we can about its possibilities. Here are some top class technology conventions to keep you informed and enthused… and they couldn’t be in better locations!
International Consumer Electronics Show – Las Vegas, USA
The international ICA is one of the largest consumer technology conventions in the world, so a pilgrimage to Las Vegas is a must for all die-hard techies. Occurring in early January each year, the event showcases revolutionary gadgets from high-tech headphones to automotive electronics, and never fails to gain the support of high-profile technology stakeholders. Between the concerts, competitions and celebrity appearances, it promises to be an eventful four days.

CeBIT – Hannover, Germany
CeBIT is a showcase of digital IT and telecommunications technologies for both work and play. Over the 5 days, Hannover swarms with It enthusiasts who are passionate about the future of the industry.  The convention most specifically targets sectors such as retail, finance, government, science and hobby groups. Go along to compare notes with fellow tech heads or simply take in the spectacle.

iWorld – San Francisco, USA
If you’re wondering why you haven’t heard of this one before, it may be because it was previously known as MacWorld. The convention constructs a Mac world where almost everything is virtual and interactive. If that doesn’t do it for you, I’m sure a sneak peak at new apps and devices will!

GSMA Mobile World Congress – Barcelona, Spain
Mobile World Capital Barcelona hosts the world’s largest convention on mobile technology. Take a moment to listen to the range of keynote speakers and discussion panels conversing about the future of mobile devices or play around with the hot new products on the market. Just as you think that mobile innovation has just about reached saturation point, check out some of the concept designs and realise that there is a whole new level of creativity that is yet to be tapped in to.  A good excuse to book a flight to Spain!

LeWeb – Paris, France
Industry leaders from around the world gather in Paris every year to discuss the opportunity that presents itself in the form of the World Wide Web. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a major corporation or an interested individual, you are likely to walk out of this convention with new insight into the future of business practices in the age of digital convergence. Word on the street is that the December 2012’s guest speakers will be unmissable, given that 2011’s speakers included Karl Lagerfeld and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt.

Guest Blogger: Sarah Paige is a freelance writer who loves any and all kinds of tech conventions because of all the random things she learns from watching plastic moulding demonstrations, to hearing speeches on the future of the internet. Follow Sarah on Twitter @sarahpaige or connect to her on Google+ here.

10 Ways to Use Foursquare for Business

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Foursquare is a location-based smartphone application which offers check-in service to customers, marketers and businesses alike. You can use this mobile application to check-in to venues and share with your friends where you are, and obtain info about those places.  Based on your updates, the application might assign you merit badges. It’s an interesting social concept for consumers and at the same time, a strong business tool that can be potentially used for creating brand awareness and profits. Hence if you want to leverage your business, this platform platform is worth looking at for several reasons. To do this, you’ll have to understand how it works. There are 10 ways to use Foursquare for business. To help you get an idea about promoting your own business through this platform, there are a few tips discussed below.
How to use foursquare for business
To begin with, check your business on Foursquare. If your business is not there, add it and then, claim it on the listing. Connect your Twitter account with the listing. This process is quite simple. Once this is done, you can proceed further to use Foursquare for business promotion. In this endeavor, following things can be done:

  1. Create interesting deals to draw in customers. Deals can easily be created if you have claimed your business on this platform. You can give special discounts to those users who checks in to your business, for instance – announce to give 10% off on one’s next merchandise shopping. However, just ensure that your deals are special and creative so that new customers get attracted and keep coming back to you.
  2. Design reward-based programs on Foursquare for loyal customers to retain them. If deals help you draw new customers, rewarding those who are regular visitors to your business is useful in winning their loyalty. It can create a bond between your customers and the business and entice them to come back to you. Your reward-based programs should be smart and intelligently devised, for instance – a program asking one to check in 5 times in 15 days and win a surprise gift.
  3. Use Foursquare to collect demographic details of your customers. Through this platform, you can know the average check-in rate of a customer, his/ her age and gender, check-in timings and where he or she is sharing the check-in details – on Facebook or Twitter.
  4. Another interesting way to use Foursquare for business promotion is to get feedback from your customers about your business. Customers can leave their comments or tips about a particular venue they visit. You can use their feedback to bring improvisation in your business.
  5. Foursquare is a powerful medium to advertize your business for free. When you claim your business and optimize the listing by adding authentic contact details and website, you increase the chances of promoting your business across various social networking sites which are used by millions.
  6. If your business doesn’t have a physical presence, you can use Foursquare to set up a page instead of claiming a venue. Foursquare page is not much different from a Twitter page. Those who follow your business on Foursquare can obtain information about you from there.
  7. You can enter a partnership with other brands which are physically present to derive optimum benefit. For instance if you are a book publisher, join hands with a local bookstore to increase the reach of your business.
  8. Design Foursquare event at your venue to boost massive check-ins and brand consciousness.
  9. You can encourage your staff to join Foursquare and check-in at your venue there whenever they report to work. This will also help spread awareness about your business among their friends and followers.
  10. You can also share useful tips on Foursquare to engage with your customers and thereby, attract their attention to your business.

These are few ways to use Foursquare for business. You can use these and other innovative techniques as well to make success out of your business.
Edoardo Piccolotto, is an Internet Marketing and Strategic Consultant that provides specific strategy advices to business that want to use internet to generate new business opportunities. Follow him on twitter @epiccolotto.

QR Codes on Gravestones to Access Memorials

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Walking through a cemetery is often eerie and rather uncomfortable, especially knowing there were people who lost their lives and were buried in the ground beneath you. It’s not unusual to wonder about those who are deceased and what their stories were. When looking at gravestones you know their names and their life span, but who were they really? What did they do with their lives and what were they known for. Soon these questions will be answered with as little as a scan of your cell phone.
QR codes, the two-dimensional barcodes that have grown to be extremely popular over the past few years, are making their way now onto gravestones. Starting in the UK and quickly moving to America, gravestone producers are offering the addition of QR codes to direct those interested to an interactive memorial for the person who has died.
These interactive memorials can include anything from pictures, videos and contributions from family and friends. There are even people now who are creating their own memorials so that they can structure how it’s laid out and how they’re remembered.
Imagine being able to structure what people see in your memorial, what your last thoughts were and what messages you’d like to send to family and friends. This also creates easy access to family tree information, making it much easier than digging for birth records in the future.
Of course with new technology such as this, there are bound to be challenges. The idea of putting a QR code on a structure that’s made to last for hundreds of years creates a number of difficulties. You can go to any graveyard and see how different recent gravestones look compared to stones that are hundreds of years old. As a gravestone weathers and changes over time, a QR code can become much more difficult to read and scan. Textures like sandstone and granite will change and the codes you have etched into them will change as well.
Another challenge you run into with adding these codes to gravestones is the technology itself. While the QR code technology has been around for a couple decades already, it’s never a sure thing that it will be around in another 10 to 20 years. With technology always evolving, another two-dimensional technology could replace the QR code, making the current QR codes obsolete and unreadable.
By creating a memorial for someone online, this creates another issue regarding the website URL. With the Internet constantly evolving, URL technology could very well change within the next several decades. This puts you at risk of losing all of these records over time. While the current technology appears to be here to stay, you never know what the future holds for us and what advancements will be made to completely change the way we do things today.
The idea of preparing for your own death may be morbid, but it’s a reasonable thought process. Rather than being remembered for a tragic accident, a health condition, etc, why not shape exactly how you want to be remembered and implement that as an interactive memorial. This way, the next time someone’s walking through a graveyard and sees the QR code on your gravestone, they have the opportunity to learn about who you really were, not just when you passed away.

Patricia Goldbum is a freelance writer focusing on technology. As a business owner, Patricia has just implemented barcode stickers and labeling to stay on track and keep her business organized.

3 Tips to Effectively Market Your Real Estate Website

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The key to marketing a real estate website is in knowing what your prospects are searching for, what sites they frequent, and how they use the web to communicate and gather information. Consider the following 3 tips to effectively market your real estate website:

Proper Domain Selection

The first step is choosing a domain name that will either capitalize on your brand name or target web searchers based on keywords. If you already have an established brand that is locally recognized you’ll want to make it easier for existing clients and prospects to find your site by registering a domain name that contains the name of your agency.
On the other hand, if you’re able to get your hands on a rare, yet highly valuable geo-targeted domain name (i.e. – FloridaRealEstate.com) then this option should be considered over all. Some firms choose to register multiple domains in order to maximise search traffic.

Competitive Analysis and Keyword Optimization

A great way to figure out what keywords you should be targeting in your site content and marketing efforts is to utilize keyword research tools and services like:

  • Google Adwords Keyword Suggestion Tool
  • Keyword Discovery
  • Wordtracker
  • Spyfu
  • Compete.com Analytics

All of the above resources will help you determine which keywords your competitors are using to generate the most traffic. Once you’ve built a list of keywords you can focus on outdoing the competition by publishing more content and contributing genuinely useful information. In addition to filling your real estate website with quality content, you should also start focusing on becoming a thought leader in your industry by spreading your outreach around the web through…

Blogging and Networking

Investors, property buyers, and other agents use the web to build their contacts and educate themselves on a regular basis. Research the leading real estate blogs and attempt to establish your own authoritative presence by becoming a reputable guest author.
As a real estate professional you’ve probably heard the phrase “It’s not what you know, it’s WHO you know that matters.”  With the ability to quickly contact ideal buyers and accommodate the needs of a large network of sellers you can maximise your yearly commissions by increasing the volume of transactions you facilitate.
Start by joining Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Learn the ins and outs of social networking, and consider the advantages of outsourcing the management of your campaigns to professionals that can optimize your output.
Joseph Tollett is a real estate professional and experienced blogger who currently conducts research for IronMonk Solutions, a well-known SEO firm with headquarters in New York. Click here to read their blog.
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Nine Steps to Becoming a Twitter Chat Pro

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Beware. They’re all around you, lurking in the shadows of The Twitteverse. No, I’m not talking about vampires that communicate in 140. The subject here is Twitter chats. And, believe me, they can suck your blood. Once you join in one and learn something new, or feel hashtag camaraderie warming up your typing fingers, you might find yourself devoting hours to these online discussion groups. Some people participate in several at once, revelling in the fact of Twitter jail (yes, when you tweet over 100 times an hour, Twitter will knock you out for a while), displaying all their “alternate” handles, such as “@TwitterjailAngie” or “@TwitterchatPete.” But no need to get out your garlic and silver stakes. Twitter Chats can be entertaining and useful when you know how to work them.
1. Find a chat that’s right for you. Perhaps the best way of joining a chat is to follow your Twitter pals. Around 8 or 9 p.m. ET any night of the week (including Fridays, but not so much on Saturdays) you might notice several of the people you follow ending tweets with #cmchat or #craftychat. Click on the hashtag and see what people are saying. Ah, #cmchat is about country music, led by Jessica Northey (@JessicaNorthey) from Tuscon, AZ and Nashville, TN. #craftychat is, well, about crafts and led by Maria Nerius (@favecrafts). One of the most popular chats, #blogchat, is run by Mack Collier (@mackcollier), who claims to tweet with a southern accent. Some chats, like Carolyn Burns Bass’s popular #litchat, attract people during the day, several times a week. (MWF, 4 p.m. ET: Well, lots of writers work at home and are on the computer anyway.) Others go on all during the day: #USGuys (and 3 p.m. ET on Mondays) and #smgirlfriends (and 12 noon – 1 p.m. ET, M-F). There’s also a widely circulated Google Doc (Twitter Chat Schedule http://bit.ly/ChatSched), originated by Robert Swanwick (@twchat) that now lists nearly 750 chats and grows daily.
2. Use a tool to help you follow and participate. Marking a column with a hashtag you want to follow is easy enough with Tweetdeck or Hootsuite, but several third-party Twitters tools have been developed specifically for chats. Many people use tweetchat.com. The site asks you to sign in with your Twitter handle. Then you enter the hashtag you want to follow. You can adjust the refresh speed so that the tweets move at a rate you can read. You can also retweet, favorite and reply — if you can keep up. TweetGrid enables users to follow the hashtag, the host and the guest. Some chat hosts use Twebevent (www.twebevent.com); topics and/or questions appear on the side of the chat stream. (The twebevent website is another place to check for chats.) Meanwhile, if you would like to follow a chat using what looks like a PInterest board — and displays links in the tiles — sign onto www.sees.aw and you’ll be amazed by this:
Check out this great list of Twitter Chat tools put together by Kevin Mullet (@kmullett), using List.ly, a new curation tool. http://list.ly/list/1Jr-twitter-chat-and-hashtag-tools?feature=mylist
3. Learn the format. While some chats are pretty much free-for-alls, or “open-mikes,” most moderators ask questions numbered Q1, Q2, etc., and the participants then answer the questions putting A1, A2 before their tweets. Here’s an example of a #pinchat — a chat about Pinterest run by Kelly Westhoven Lieberman, Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET. Notice as host she asks a question. Then her guest, Chobani yogurt, a brand with a magnificent Pinterest boards, answers.

4. Always introduce yourself the first time you speak, and if you’re new to a chat, listen in for a while before you start tweeting. Generally, as soon as you tweet, “First time here,” lots of participants, and the host too, will tweet you back, “Welcome.” And they mean it. With Twitter chats, the more the merrier. If you’re a newbie, watch the tweets. Notice who speaks with the most authority and who gets retweeted the most. When you do join in, begin by manually retweeting (Tweetchat and Twebevent automatically cut and paste a tweet when you click on the retweet button rather than throwing out an auto-retweet of the kind you find in Twitter.com) something smart that has been said and placing a comment before it. Soon people will be talking to and retweeting you. (Hootsuite enables you to “quote” tweet, again making it easy to add a comment before your retweet.)

5. Begin by retweeting good ideas or interesting comments. The same rule holds true in a Twitter Chat that applies to Twitter as a whole: A RT is valuable currency. It gets you noticed; it gives you a chit in the back and forth of social media. You could RT something the host or guest has said: Retweets are the currency of Twitter, and Twitter Chats too.
6. Watch all the sidechat. You might find something exciting. Most sidechat during Twitter Chats reflects people online catching up with one another. Or sometimes people talk a bit of nonsense.This happened awhile back when Chobani yogurts was explaining their pinning strategy: Yes, guilty as charged. I was off-topic and not really minding my Twitter chat manners. Still, you can find great stuff in a side chat, such as a discussion about white hat vs black hat SEO during a conversation about a new tool — great for people who thought they’d just be learning about a tool, but end up getting an SEO lesson as well. Or look at the tweets below: not too long ago a new chat, #NostalgiaChat, arose from a few side comments during #toolschat. #Nostalgia Chat, hosted bye @BekiWeki (Becki Winchel) and @JoeBugBuster (Steve Case) gaining in popularity, is trying out the Sunday night 10 p.m. ET slot.
7. Thank your host. This isn’t just a matter of social media manners. Chat hosts are normal people who read their @ mentions. I thanked a host, and next thing I knew I was a guest on #MediaChat talking about finding your Twitter style. Here’s someone thanking @MackCollier, who hosts #BlogChat, one of the most active weekly chats.
8. Follow people you find interesting on the chat. As you get comfortable with a chat and tweet more, you’ll find that many people start to follow you. Some will drop off within the next 24 hours if you don’t follow back — Twitter-bot behavior that real people looking for new followers mimic. Check your new followers, however, against the transcript of the chat. Many hosts will tweet out the URL for the transcript, or you will often find a FB group related to the chat where the link to the transcript is posted. (Hashtracking is a favorite tool for transcripts, though new ones are popping up, and many chat hosts, and hosts and participants are using storify.com to capture the conversations.) If you notice someone who has consistently tweeted interesting comments during the chat or has made you laugh or otherwise engaged you, follow him or her. Use the same strategy you would to get anyone to follow you: retweet, engage, repeat. Even when fellow chatters don’t follow you back, you may find them worthwhile follows since the information they provide during the week may be as good as their chat tweets.
9. Power to the Women! Quickly eyeball any Twitter chat, and you’ll see that the male/female participation has a lot to do with the topic. #Pinchat has a lot of steady male participants, but most of the people there are women, reflecting its female demographic. Similarly, the #Toolschat group seems to skew male — but there are plenty of women there talking about online tools every week, and the most frequent host, Kelly Kim (@Twylah) is a woman. A recent column on CNN points out that women in business are flocking to Twitter chats for real time advice. If you have any doubts that women are playing a significant role in social media, spend a bit of time in a chat. But woman or man, once you start participating in Twitter chats, your tweet volume will increase, but so will your followers (and probably your Klout, Kred and Peer Index scores). Regular participation in a Twitter chat will make you part of a “hashtag community” — tweeters who come together around a subject marked by a #. You may not be conversing with these people face-to-face, but you will be meeting new people and making new friends.
Linda Bernstein has written hundreds of articles for dozens of magazines and newspapers, writes the blog GenerationBsquared and teaches social media at the Columbia University School of Journalism. Follow her on twitter @wordwhacker
 

The First 5 Apps for Professionals on the iPhone 5 [OPINION]

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Even as a longtime iPhone user, the excitement of getting a new phone is palpable. I just picked up my iPhone5, making me among the first to get the new iPhone at the flagship Apple store in San Francisco.
The larger screen is great for apps, which I’m eagerly downloading now. Apparently I’m not the only one who is app-happy. The average number of apps installed per smartphone has jumped 28 percent in 2012. No wonder, really. We’re on the go so much, and there’s a seemingly infinite array of apps to save time, money, and (for me at least) some sanity.
I’ve got a well-rounded list of must-have apps: two to be productive, two to travel smarter, one to stay informed.
Mobile productivity
Apps are the key to mobile productivity, and DocuSign Ink (of course!) was the first app on my new phone. Version 2.0 works with iOS6 and the iPhone 5. You’ll want it too, so you can sign documents—from permission slips for school to contracts from the office—while you’re standing in line at the grocery store. Skip the print, sign, scan, email routine. We use it at work to get sign-off on documents from nondisclosure agreements to contracts to purchase agreements. 
As busy as we are, who couldn’t use a little brain assist to keep things organized? Evernote promises to help you “remember everything.” I use it to capture anything from good ideas to the grocery list—and then rest assured I won’t lose it before I need it.
Travel smart
If you’re on the road or in the air much, TripIt is the app to have. Forward all of your confirmation emails (air, car, hotel) to plans@tripit.com, and you’ll magically get one consolidated itinerary that’s easy to share with colleagues and family. It even adds local maps, weather, and event information. I don’t travel with a stack of printouts anymore, just TripIt.
If, like me, you find it challenging to keep track of expenses on the road, get an app like my download #4, Concur. I use it throughout each trip to snap photos of receipts, which are then automatically added to my expense report—thereby dramatically improving my reimbursement rates.
Stay informed
These days, on-the-go is far from out-of-touch. I got Flipboard to read the latest happenings from my favorite social sites, all happily assembled in one place.
What’s on your “Day-One Downloads” list?  Let me know in the comments. I’m always on the lookout for new apps to download.
 
About the Guest Blogger:
The article was provided by Robin Joy, Vice President, Online & Mobile at DocuSign. You can follow the company and all the latest news on twitter @docusign.

Top 15 Must-See Websites for Designers and Illustrators

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From visiting the museum to riding the bus, inspiration can come from anywhere. However, finding inspiration is not that easy for some designers and illustrators. Sometimes, designers suffer from what they call an artist block. Imagination can actually dry up and leave the designers with an awful feeling of blankness. Luckily at this day and age, the World Wide Web offers a multitude of creative information and ideas from all over the globe to those in dire need of inspiration. Overcome artist block with the list below that features the top 15 must-see websites to get designers and illustrators motivated.
These ultra-modern websites range from personal blogs to online galleries of graphics and images, are definitely awe-worthy and rousing. The creative images and works to be featured here are products of the hard work and passion of other designers and illustrators. These are great sources for inspiration but are not meant to be copied. They’ve put much love and soul to their works and deserve the respect and admiration of everyone.
1. Inspired Mark
This is the personal website that features a range of scribbles, outstanding illustrations, and awesome designs by web architect Mark Collins.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
2. We Love Illustration
Another good resource for inspiration and motivation, We Love Illustration is a real haven for art and illustration lovers to find inspiration and share their works. This is a place that showcases the amazing talents of different artists from all over the world.
Find them on Facebook
3. Leivos
Managed by designers Shyra and Veronika, Leivos provides more than just creative images and pictures with their daily posts. This virtual pin board also features the coolest interviews with well-known artists and other new artists worth knowing.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
4. Daily Design Inspiration
The name says it all. With artworks from brilliant designers, this website offers a great deal of fresh design inspiration every day. It features the best logos, cool websites, illustrations, creative photos, and never before seen patterns made by the most talented designers worldwide. Daily Design Inspiration is a hodgepodge of everything artistic and original.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
5. Sketchblog
According to website owner and professional art director, Rob Sheridan, Sketchblog is a creative playground he set up to encourage himself to draw and create more often. But with his cool and unique artworks, Sketchblog does more and inspires even aspiring artists worldwide to live their dreams start sketching.
Find them on Twitter
6. Ads of the World
Owned and managed by Web Media Brands, Ads of the World is an advertising archive and community. It features inspiring print ads and marketing campaigns done by the world’s top advertising agencies. Students and beginners also post their works at this site to get constructive criticism from the industry experts. There’s also a forum page where artists and designers can exchange ideas for their projects.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
7. Print and Pattern
Print and Pattern is a gallery of nothing but awesome prints and pattern designs. Print and Pattern transforms your fabrics, wallpapers, cards, and gift wrappers into works of art. The innovative mix and match of colors, shapes, and lines is a must-see for all artists.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
8. Cool Hunting
Founded in 2003, Cool Hunting has grown from one designer’s personal reference into an award-winning publication. Composed of a global team of editors and contributors who highlights creativity and innovation in technology, design, travel, food, and culture, Cool Hunting provides daily updates and mini-documentaries that attract creative people internationally.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
9. Orange You Lucky
Cute, colorful, and imaginative are the three words that best describe this website. Owned by an illustrator, designer, and a mother of three pretty girls, Orange You Lucky offers fun and fresh art and drawings.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
10. Theartcareerproject.com
This website is creativity to the max.  Really sleek cool design that gets your artistic juices flowing.  The site is owned and hosted by a sharepoint hosting company in California and so far has become very popular within this last year.
Find them on Twitter 
11. Web Designer Wall
Toronto-based web designer, Nick La started this website in August 2007 as his personal wall of design ideas, trends, and tutorials. It has quality content and eye-catching design that makes it a must-see website for designers.
Find them on Twitter
12. I Love Typography
Often taken for granted by designers, a good typography is vital in creating the best quality designs and artworks. I Love Typography has the prettiest and most unique type design, lettering, and fonts, from road signs and shampoo bottles to billboards and posters.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
13. Fuel Your Creativity
A great website to spark your creativity and generate awesome ideas, Fuel Your Creativity is a brilliant design blog that has inspiring articles and links to various design websites.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
14. Design is Kinky
Design is Kinky brings design and art goodness from Sydney, Australia since 1998. A blog that features new designs, photos, and artworks from all over the world, this site has been inspiring many artists for years.
Find them on Facebook
15. Monster Meltdown
Founded in 2005 by design lover and cool dude, Patrick McNeil, Monster Meltdown is a funky website that has the cutest little monsters in the web. It has a variety of design styles, trends, and elements. Its mission is to provide the largest and most exhaustive inspiration sets possible.
Find them on Twitter or Facebook
Rob Smiel is a advit design art fan.  Rob especially likes graphic design and web development.

What Type of Marketing Job is Right for Me?

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You want to get into marketing, but aren’t sure where to start. Maybe you’ve just graduated or are looking around for an internship, but are having trouble narrowing down your options. The fact of the matter is that marketing is a vast industry, and it has many different types of careers to offer in numerous fields. The key is finding the one best suited to your particular strengths and passions.

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The marketing sector can be broadly divided into five primary fields or branches. They are all interrelated and interdependent, but each is unique and all involve very different job descriptions. You can choose from careers in advertising, media, brand management, market research, and PR. Here’s what each has to offer:

Advertising

If you’ve ever seen an episode of HBO’s Mad Men, you probably have a general idea of what this work involves. Of course, it’s not nearly so glamorous or dramatic as that, but a career in advertising means becoming an expert in rhetoric, persuasion, and psychology. You’ll need to have a sharp aesthetic sense, be well versed in typography and design, and, most importantly, be able to create concise appealing images and expressions that will sell products.

Media

Technically, media falls under the blanket of advertising, but it deserves it’s own space because of the specialization it involves. While advertising, as characterized above, refers to the generation of concepts and strategies, media refers to the communication of those ideas. These jobs demand technical skill and involve getting the ad concepts circulating at maximum exposure on the Internet, television, in print, on billboards, and wherever else they will be most effective.

Brand Management

Brand Management accounts for a large part of marketing. It is also a largely conceptual field that requires an intimate understanding of a specific company and the products it sells. Brand managers must find ways to capture the essence of a company or product and translate it into a concise image, name, and marketing strategy––all while anticipating public reactions, carving out a niche market, and combating competitors.

Market Research

To sell a product, one must first understand the people it is being sold to. Market researchers conduct polls, organize focus groups, analyze statistics, recognize and anticipate consumer trends, and gain insights into the habits and psychology of the buyer.

Public Relations (PR)

Public relations jobs require strong social skills and fast-talking. PR departments are intermediaries between the media, consumers, employees, investors, and the public. They write press releases, appease angry parties, promote products, keep investors informed, and deal with journalists.
As long as products are being sold, there will be a demand for people who can market them. This is why there are so many employment opportunities in the marketing sector, and usually a strong degree of job security. Slumps in the economy rarely put marketing firms out of business. Rather, they make companies who are desperate to sell their products even more reliant on advertising and creative marketing. Hopefully this guide has helped you narrow down your options. Best of luck in finding the type of career you’ll pursue in your job hunt!
Thanks to Agency Central for contributing this guide. If you fancy your hand in any of these roles, you can find wide range of marketing recruitment agencies at AgencyCentral.co.uk.

Making Money With Your Webinar- Structure Your Content in Five Easy Steps!

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So, you finally decided to try out a webinar to make money. By now, you probably have an idea as to the type of webinar that you would like to make money from. Perhaps you have a pre-recorded webinar on your computer with a teaching or sermon that you would like to share with the world. Perhaps you recorded a how to get a full body workout in only ten minutes or conducted a teaching session on how to thrive in a stagnant economy.
It’s exciting that you’ve selected your topic of interest! The ideas that you have are indeed limitless, and the webinars that you could create are now within your grasp. You want your customers to come to you so that you can answer their needs. Every business fills a need, every customer has a need waiting to be filled. How will you go about filling this need with your webinar?

Dynamics of Content

First and foremost, you’ll want to understand the dynamics of your content and how it brings life or death to your webinar. Content answers the question of how to get your webinar off the ground. It also creates a hunger for the products and services that you have to offer. I don’t just go to any place to get my pizza fix. I go to a specific place because I know that I like the content of their pizza and the way that they make it. In the same way, your attendees are coming to your webinar for the content that you have to offer and the way that you offer it.
If you haven’t already created a webinar, you’ll want to decide on the software to hold a web conference first. Once you’ve finalized the software, you can begin to put the pieces of your webinar’s content together by following these five simple steps to ensure that your content meets the mark and your subscribers leave the session happy that they purchased your webinar!

1.) Know your audience.

  • If you’re lecturing NASA scientists, you can pretty much skip the fluff and beef up the content with more analysis and scientific research findings.
  • If you’re creating a session geared for Girl Scouts, you’ll want to include more things that they can relate to.

2.) Decide on your approach.

  • Do you want the audience to sit through the entire session or do you want to include short quizzes and test sections?
  • Do you want to be more informational and provide a lot of data or conversational and more relaxed? Which approach fits your audience better? Can you customize it to fit their needs?
  • Once you know what style approach you will be using, it is much easier to create a consistent webinar that exudes professionalism. There are many, many bad webinars out there that could easily be avoided if the webinars had only been consistent in their approach from start to finish.

3.) Structure your time well.

  • If you told your audience that you would be discussing XYZ in the webinar, make sure you don’t gloss over XYZ and skip over to ZZZ. I’ve seen this happen too many times and have been completely disappointed when this happens. Not only do I feel cheated out of my time, but I feel betrayed by the bait-and-switch method that seems to run rampant.
  • If it takes ten minutes to explain a key area, do not take more than that time to explain it. You want to engage your audience and keep them at the edge of their seats wanting more!

4.) Groom your content.

  • Are some areas too wordy and others lacking in content? Take time to comb through your presentation and cut out the clutter while beefing up the lean parts.
  • Does your outline convey your actual content? We often think that we have everything perfectly compiled only to discover that a key element was never included. A scan between your actual content (webinar) and your outline will help you get that 1:1 match.
  • Do your images and illustrations match up with your topic?

5.) Is your content engaging to your audience?

  • If I am going to sit down and watch a webinar that I paid decent money for, I must be looking for specific content that will help fill my needs.
  • Have you created the content that adequately satisfies my need (ie, my need to learn how to sew from your created webinar)?

The above are a great starting point when beginning to look into creating a webinar that has lasting results. No only will you come across as more professional, but you will also service a niche group that could potentially return time and time again.

Benjamin Baker is addicted to writing! He is a research hound and fills hard to find searches. He enjoys playing his guitar and spends his free time camping and fishing. He recently discovered www.webconferenceclassroom.com and is starting his own webinar mini-series on how to fish. He is happily married and is the father of 3 growing (and busy) teenagers. He lives in Denver, Colorado with his wife and kids.