Your Google Profile

Creating & Verifying Your Google Profile in 7 Easy Steps:

1. Sign into your google/gmail account or get one here:https://www.google.com/accounts
   Note: If you are creating a new account, remember to uncheck “enable web history” this is a feature that is on by default and has always bothered me.
2. Once you sign in or create your account, navigate to “My Account” via links in the top right corner of most google.com pages.
3. Click Create A Profile (see pic below)
   

   Step 3: Create your Google Profile



Step 5: Set Privacy Options

4. Fill out all the information you want to share  click here if you are lost.
5. Read the privacy policy and set your Privacy Options. They are very easy to understand, broken down by your contacts.
6. Choose a profile URL, sooner the better. They will likely go fast.
   

Step 7: Verifying Your Google Profile – harder than it sounds.

1. WHILE SIGNED INTO YOUR GOOGLE ACCOUNT visit http://knol.google.com
2. Click sign in if you ignored step one, or it didn’t work for some reason.
3. Click Preferences
4. Click Name Verification

   

5. Verify by method of your choice.

That is it, you should now have a verified Google Profile! cheers.

WHY ITS IMPORTANT TO DO SET THIS UP SOONER RATHER THAN LATER

For starters, you can get a better url/username for public profile pages (wish they could lose /profiles/ from url). Second you’ll be ahead of the curve on the new thing on the internet. Third, Google is just a better company. Their model is to make the internet better and they make money from doing so. Facebook makes money off of data generated and collected from its users online social lives.

Yesterday’s exciting release of Adobe CS5 included new features that allow users to build programs in Flash and then convert the software into IPhone Apps which can then be sold in the IPhone Apps Store.  This technology is one of many improvements Adobe has made in the effort to allow designers to develop applications without writing code.

Prior to the major release made by Adobe, Apple made a change to their developer agreement (Clause 3.3.1) that only allows applications that are built in Apple’s approved programming languages – Object C and C++. This clause is directly geared toward programs that are developed in Flash and the new technology that Adobe has worked hard to release.
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Today was the release of the highly anticipated Creative Suite 5 by Adobe Systems. Adobe has provided a lot of great tutorials outlining the changes that are included in the new release. Below is a video tutorial that talks about some of the changes for Web Premium.

The changes that I am very excited about include the following:

1) Dreamweaver Integrated Content Management System (CMS) support

2) Direct Integration with BrowserLabs to check compatibility

3) Adding 3D Extrusions with PhotoShop to your web layout.

4) Content Distribution onto platforms like AIR and the IPhone

5) Server side display of all multiple platforms within Dreamweaver

To learn more visit www.Adobe.com.

Design application SnagIt is a great video capturing application that can be used for graphic and web designers. The tool has a lot of functionality and is very user friendly. Goto TechSmith.com to download a free trial and use it yourself!

When advertising with search engines like Google Adwords, there are many strategies to successfully converting prospects à customers. When it comes to online advertising goals, there are two main strategies that are used: Branding or Direct Response.

Branding:
Branding is when your advertisement and subsequent landing page is used to direct users into an “awareness” of your products or services. Branding is a crucial piece of marketing. Everyone wants Buy Now sales in their business, but utilizing a branding method to provide information on a product or service is sometimes even more useful as people are not always in a buying state when browsing the web.
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A sneak peak at Adobe’s signature product PhotoShop CS5 shows that the product has once again gone to a new level of providing productivity features that make design and photo editing easy and fast. The product is reported to be released on Monday, April 12, 2010. A full feature set of updates has not been released for all products, but is this preview is an example of what is to come in PhotoShop than we can’t wait to see what the rest of the Creative Suite 5 has in store!!!

Have you been stuck in the situation of trying to determine what the exact RGB or PMS color of an image is? Website designers and graphic designers know the importance of color when it comes to branded images such as logos. It is important to stay consistent. Color Cop is a program that runs from your desktop or laptop and can identify any on screen color.

The tool couldn’t be easier to use. You simply grab the eye dropper icon and drag it across the screen to the exact pixel of color that you are trying to identify. Color Cop then displays the hexadecimal RGB color. You can then use the color chart interface to change the color within the Adobe CS like color wheel.
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Monday, January 18, 2010 - UPDATE - the there has now been over 2.1 million text message donations received and over $21 million raised for Haiti Relief Efforts.

Thursday, January 14, 2010 – The Red Cross has now raised over $3 million dollars through their text message campaign to help Haiti. By sending the text “Haiti” to 90999 you can donate $10 which is backed by the United States State Department. The text charge will be applied directly to your monthly cell phone bill.

The mobile fundraising effort was started on January 12, 2010 shortly after a devastating earthquake struck Haiti killing and injuring thousands.
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Pepsi will not be running ads during the Super Bowl for the first time in 23 years. Instead, the company plans to focus their marketing efforts in online ads. The company spent $15 million in Super Bowl ads last year on Pepsi alone (they also own Gatorade, Frito-Lay, Cheetos, etc.).

If a company with a marketing budget the size of Pepsi has realized that there is more value in spending with online ads than with Super Bowl ads, then it is clear that online marketing is starting to become the primary source for reaching potential customers.
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Here is a great gift idea if you are searching during the holiday season – Toms Shoes. Founded by Blake Mycoskie, Toms Shoes is a for profit company. Their business model is very simple: For every pair of shoes you buy, they give a pair away to a child in need around the world. This business was launched in 2006 and has already turned a profit and demonstrated that their philanthropic business model is a success. The idea of the business is very simple and was started after Mycosckie vacationed in Argentina and recognized the need for kids who did not have shoes.

The marketing strategy for Toms is very different than any other clothing or shoe company. Because of the nature of the business which involves giving, Toms Shoes is marketed very well by word-of-mouth advertising.
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