Andy's Idea Factory

If you want to start doing social marketing for your business, you've likely been told that you need to  join them all, but you think, it sure sounds like a waste of time posting to Facebook AND Twitter AND LinkedIn AND your blog when you want to publicize something.  Well you don't have to.  Since someone just asked me for this today, I thought I'd post the methodology we use at AJDesign. Topics included in this post are:  (skip ahead if you're already a go-getter!)  I. Twitter to Facebook II. Facebook to Twitter III. Twitter to LinkedIn IV.  Blog to Facebook or Twitter I. Steps to filter Twitter posts (Tweets) to Facebook wall i f you use Twitter more:  Login to Twitter Click on View my profile page (top left) Click on Edit my profile (top right) Click Post your tweets to Facebook (bottom right) Click Sign in to Facebook and Connect your accounts Fill in Email and Password and click Login And click ...

As many of my friends know, I have an addiction to photographing flowers, so when this email came into my inbox last week, I couldn't help but repost it!! It's got some great tips and it reminded me of what to think of when I'm shooting those small beauties. To join Digital Photography 101's list at PEPhoto click here: https://pephoto.lifepics.com Photo Tip #137: Photographing Spring Flowers Greetings Fellow Photographers! The seasons are changing again! Springtime in North America presents some incredible opportunities for taking photos as the snow melts, flowers bloom, and the weather warms up. Whether you step into your backyard for a little fresh air, or arrange a hike with your friends and family, try to spend some time outside in the coming weeks, and don't forget your camera! Close Ups You've probably seen some gorgeous close up photos of flowers and plants. A lot of these pho...

WIKI: Search Engine Optimization(SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a Web site or a Web page in search engines via the "natural," or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic"), search results. A beautiful Web site is nothing without SEO, and there are many ways to direct traffic to a Web site to move you up the search engine ladder and get you to the top of Google's first page when someone searches for you, your business, or your topic. In addition to providing great content, one of the best ways is Internal Linking : an internal link is a link to another page on your own website.  Like inbound links (your Web site's link on other sites), they help build up your ranking for search engine results pages (SERPs) and are 100% within your control.  Both are equally important, as inbound links offer credibility (from peers) that your site alone can't create.  But linking to yourself throughout your site is just as important, as it ma...

The online tools I teach to small business owners are the ones that are most inexpensive (or free!), stable, reliable and most importantly, always improving.  I look for applications that have the same priorities - making online marketing and communication easy for business owners. Today's blast from MailChimp is a perfect example. The headline: Every 4 weeks we launch new features.  An online tool can't get more up to date than that.  I have half a dozen clients using this program, and knowing they all got that email today too made me giggle.  What a proactive little monkey! It takes me weeks, sometimes months, to share the plethora of online gifts that I love with my clients, but in brief, here are some of the wonderful tools (in order of  why I appreciate them) that I use for my own businesses, which to me, speaks volumes when I learn from the my own online gurus. In this fast and vast technological age, we are all students just keeping up with the p...

Photographing a wedding is a fun, magical experience for me; I feel like each wedding is its own unique adventure that is propelled by the personalities of the couple and their families. But it can also be a stressful day if the events are hurried, so I have a thorough checklist that I prepare for myself to make sure every shot request gets taken, my equipment is up for the job, and the day flows smoothly for the bride and groom. Having planned my own wedding, that experience now lends its expertise to my day as well. Before the wedding: I always meet with the bride and groom several weeks or months beforehand to discuss their expectations and their package of choice, but then we meet again the week or day before their day to go over the site and day of events. It's often easiest to meet just before their rehearsal to see the location once again. I take these meetings to double check: List of formal and informal shots the bride has requested Wedding colors Number of guests and...

I'm going to go out on a limb on this one, proving my lunacy to some I'm sure. But since 1995 I have worked with my lead guide, guardian angel, spiritual master, whatever you chose to call them, and have a list of miracles and fascinations as a result. Fifteen years with this man I call Merlin; he has guided me from studying crystals to teaching classes, through courses in energy work and healing, and in creating meditations, journeys and quests for myself and others. He calls me "my child," and our sacred place is atop a lone butte with miles of views in every direction and with a cave that houses our talks on the rainier days, which has two nice "sky chairs" hanging in the protected entrance. But how did I come to find Merlin? That summer in Oregon I took two classes from Sarah Felez, a woman I found at the Saturday market whom I now call my first spiritual teacher. The first class was in "Basic Assumptions," where we learned about our soul ...

This direct from Twitter's help desk, some of these mobile commands are new to me... tip of the week from the Idea Factory- you've heard it before- "Sometimes it just pays to read the instructions!" Did you know: you can perform certain actions, like following or marking a friend's update as a favorite, by using the designated Twitter commands? Use the commands listed below from your phone, the web update box, or your favorite third party application. Turning Twitter off and on: device notifications ON: turns ALL phone notifications on. OFF, STOP, QUIT, End, Cancel, Arret or Unsubscribe : turns ALL phone notifications off. ON username : turns on notifications for a specific person on your phone. For example, ON alissa. OFF username : turns off notifications for a specific person on your phone. For example, OFF blaine. FOLLOW username: this command allows you to start following a specific user, as well as receive SMS notifications. Example:...

Today we're on our way to Miami for the No Barriers Festival and it reminded me to share the many travel ideas we've gathered along the way! Our travels take us far and wide, and some of these ideas make us feel like we're not that far from home. 1. Lists. If you're an organizer, think about making "packing lists" based on the type of trip (we have business, vacation, and camping lists). We were forever scribbling on Post-Its before our trips and forgetting something every time, when I finally realized I could write a master list that we could add to any time and save sheet after sheet of yellow sticky paper. To take it one green step further, print out the lists and laminate them, then cross off what you've packed with a grease pencil and clean it off when you're done! Make one for every family member so they're in charge of their own belongings and forgotten items! 2. Drier Sheets. My favorite trick for the suitcase and keeping clothes fresh, ...

This Idea stemmed from the realization that most people don't have time to read their entire camera manual, especially when the device works just fine with Power, Autoflash, and the Automatic setting. But making the most of your technology is the only way to make the most of your memories.... So let's dive into a few tips for you Photography Newbies. When I worked in the service industry and people would ask me to take their picture I'd chuckle and give them (and their camera) the once-over before saying Yes. Not because I thought to say No, but because a select few were open for a lesson, and some weren't. Without being sexist, I'll stop there; but suffice it to say most people don't read their instruction manual and yet it's such a powerful tool. You're probably one of those people whose camera takes amazing pictures MOST of the time. But occasionally it just doesn't and you don't know why. You set the dial to that green "Automatic...