So every once in a while a client asks me to put together a website for them.  I’m not going to lie, I use WordPress because I am NOT a full-service website developer.. I am a Social Media Producer and some of what I specialize in is inbound marketing to WP blogs.  I also prefer to let my clients have administrative access without pulling my hair out when I want to and WordPress allows me to do so.

Step 1:  Pick a theme.  There are some very FREE nice WordPress themes right on their website.  Some of these custom blog themes are amazingly adaptable when it comes to changing their headers, widget placement and php & css altogether.  Basically, you can change a lot to make it look more like your prior site, but I prefer to start with a color scheme and layout you feel great about.

Check out my header ^.  Totally custom.  I use Photoshop to create my banners, but the template I have incorporated it with, called PressPlay, gives me the dimensions to at least have a jumping off point for the design to be seen correctly on a smaller screen.  It also gives me some pretty sweet widget space and any WordPress blog gives you access to the Plugins you’ll need to help build your site.. which I’ll go into further later.

So this is where my client needs to take a deep breath, decide upon a template and sleep on it.. and then we’ll go to Step 2:  Setting up WordPress hosting for your site on x10i.com for <$100/year (which I’ll go over in my next lesson…coming soon..subscribe.)

First of all.. pick a theme and comment it (with a link)!  I really need some help with BeantownSocialite.com.. not digging the way it looks altogether anymore.  What looks good on your eyes?  Difficulty:  No flash.

<3

Gravatars are the universal avatar syndicated over the web.

Super easy.  From Gravatar.com:  ”Your Gravatar is an image that follows you from site to site appearing beside your name when you do things like comment or post on a blog.  Avatars help identify your posts on blogs and web forums, so why not on any site?”

There’s even a video on how to set it up and how and when they’re used:

Sign up.  Add email address(es) that you use to comment or post to WordPress blogs.  Add a photo (or logo) that you’re going to use throughout the web.

Lather, rinse, repeat

After signing up, you can go in and manage your Gravatar images on a whim.

Start making ca$h using Shortbord

Required Reading

• Create a Shortbord, using whatever login name you use every other place on the web:  Twitter, your Facebook.com/name, etc. & walk thru the set up process
• Click on your Shortbords tab.  Sort by Cash Value and read what each endorsement is worth.  Has to have a $ in a green circle to make any cash.
• Add these Shortbords to your queue.  Note how much $ you can possibly make.

• Every once in a while, Endorse the item by directing your followers to your Shortbord site.  If you can’t find yours, you can click on mine @ http://www.shortbord.com/kris10haley

How to actually find out how much you’re making and to release it

• Click on your Account tab
• Don’t forget to add your PayPal email under these settings.  If you don’t have a PayPal account, sign up here.  It is a completely secure way of sending and receiving money and I have been trusting it for years.
• Click on Value Earned
• Here, you’ll see your current earnings, lifetime earnings and a Withdrawl button.  I wonder if that’s southern… anyway, if you have enough $ in there, you can get it paid right to your PayPal account.

It was pretty instantaneous when I did it the first time so I bought a book right then!  I’m just doing my part to raise the internet economy  So far, I’ve made a little less than $70.  Not bad for a few weeks @ the job and a couple of days into endorsing the correct companies!

Questions may be asked in the form of a comment below. <3

Ever wonder what keyword phrases you should use on your website?  Check out Google’s Keyword Tool for Google keyword search.  Super easy:  All you have to do is type in a website you want to see how it’s doing so well in your market or phrases such as “Search Engine Optimization…”

This generator kicks back the top Google keywords you can use on each and every blog post (I suggest using 2-3 phrases targeting your market per page/post), and you can order them by monthly searches, suggested bid, competition, etc… Listen:  This is the FREE WAY to find the most Searched keywords in Google.  Rather than buying keywords on Google, you can keyword optimize your site just by typing in a few words or a website.

AND you can export them to an excel csv.  How easy/cool is that?

I’m in sales (technically, I sell my services that show you how to blog/use social media better .  Who isn’t in some way?  You have to sell yourself to get into college.  You have to sell yourself to find a career when you get out.  You get inundated with ideas and names and companies that it’s sometimes hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel but Manta.com at least gives you the directions to get you to that light.  It’s up to you to make use of it.

I used to have a problem with organizing and moving my prospects, whether they be sales prospects or job prospects through a pipeline with whatever tools I have on my own computer until I found Manta.com.

First of all, if you’re looking for vital information on any company that’s registered in the US and then some (this site’s got a lot of international information as well), Manta’s got your back. This site pulls directly from Dun & Bradstreet and contains great information for salespeople looking to find FREE leads.  Yes, you have to dig a bit more to gain anything, but if it’s free, it’s for me. You can browse companies by state or industry and you can sort and even refine your results.

When you register for free on the site, you can see much deeper information such as the number of employees, $revenue/annual sales, DBA’s and you might even get a decision maker’s name in the listing if you’re lucky.  You can also add information, claim profiles and ask the company direct questions in the Company Q&A tab.

Now for the juicy stuff:  in order to create a pipeline, you have to first add this company to your lists.  Simply click “Add Company to List” and create a new list set, or add to an already established list.  It’s okay if you don’t pick a list first, you can always just create a new one or merge the company with another list easily later.  After this, you’ll be able to click view lists to bring you to your pipeline.

Finally, you can share these lists and these pipelines with your team.  Just add email addresses you would like associated with your prospects and it does it all on its own.  Pretty cool stuff. FYI:  To get into your pipeline later, there’s a link @ the top of the Manta.com screen called “My Manta.” Lather, rinse, repeat.

So remember a while ago when you signed up for the government’s sweet Do Not Call list?  Have you changed your number recently?  Today I got a solicitation from a company trying to sell me automated calls.. how cliché!

So here’s me walking you thru the steps again just to keep at least your # privacy safe O.o

First of all, starting @ DoNotCall.gov is  good idea

Click Register Now.

Type in your area code+phone number and repeat if necessary in those boxes you see there.

Type in your email address.  Twice.

Click Submit.  Click Register

STEP THREE: OPEN YOUR EMAIL AND CLICK ON LINK

Get it?  Got it?  Good.  Now leave your # as a comment on this blog

So it’s a good thing I had the internet on my side on this one.  Apparently, if you send someone an invoice from PayPal, they WILL pay, you send the goods and give them tracking information.. even when they DO receive the goods, they have a chance to revoke payment.

I mentioned that I was selling a camera on Facebook Marketplace, because I figured it would reach friends and friends of friends.  Apparently, it reached some hacked or bogus users.

Their stories go like this:  I am in the military or I am in the US but I need to ship this to my buddy/mom/sister over in S Africa/Nigeria/Somewhere in Africa so I am willing to pay an extra $100 to cover shipping expenses.  Please send an invoice from PayPal to my Gmail/Hotmail account so I may pay you.

They pay, you ship, they receive, they revoke.  You end up without your goods and without their money.

One of the only safe ways to really combat this is sell on eBay, where you will qualify for seller protection or only take local payments.

I JUST picked up a new Kodak PlaySport for $150 in Abyss from the Best Buy in Back Bay

It takes video in 1080HD and has a 5MP camera.  Sweet.

Problem is:  It doesn’t come with ANY internal memory.  OK, it gives me 30 seconds in WVGA, 6 in 1080.. or a couple of 5MP photos, but my 8GB SDHC card is coming in today from Newegg.. along with my 2 TB hard drive, USB dongle (LOVE that word) and tripod.  heh.  I’m going to have to wait a few hours.  At least it takes like 2 days to get the majority of my Newegg stuff in after ordering

Newegg seems to be having sick sales every day recently.  Don’t forget to check today’s!

I got my SDHC card for like $20 in March.  What’s your best Newegg find?