Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

Business Owners: Take Control of Online Assets


As a business owner, you hold the keys to the castle. Ideally, all or most of your company’s assets are in your hands at all times. That same ownership mentality is vital when it comes to online assets.

My friend’s cousin’s girlfriend’s brother set this up…

A favor can turn to a nightmare if a relationship goes sour, a personnel change occurs, or someone simply gets forgetful. It’s not rude to ask for access to online items about your company — it’s the responsible thing to do. When someone creates such a profile or account on your behalf, make sure you’re added as an administrator on the account, even if you never plan to access the account. As critical information changes over time — phone numbers, email addresses, service offerings — you’ll need the ability to log in (or grant access to others) and make changes.

I told him, “Just do your thing”.

Don’t let your tech phobia get in the way of your business objectives. You can let your more savvy associates create online assets for you. But establish expectations up front that you must have administrative control to any accounts created. And don’t shrug off login information because you don’t understand the technology that’s being used. Tuck the information away so that, in the distant future, you can pass it on to a contractor if you ever need help.

And now I don’t know how to get in…

Make it an internal policy to document login information for every online asset created on behalf of your company. That includes technical resources like domain registrars and FTP access, as well as social resources like Facebook Profiles and local business listings. Even if you’re solely responsible for online accounts, be sure to document login information and guard it like the precious asset it is.

Better check everything else!

If you don’t feel in control of all your online assets, take a moment to take stock. Contact the people who set up the accounts, and double-check the ones you’ve created yourself. It will help you protect your online property in the long run.

Important access items to consider:

  • Domain Registrar
  • FTP Access
  • Hosting Account Access
  • Website Control Panel/Content Management System login information
  • Google Analytics or other website statistics service
  • Google AdWords or other pay-per-click advertising accounts
  • Google, Yahoo! and Bing local business listings
  • Blog login information
  • Social profiles like Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn
  • Profiles on review sites like Yelp
  • Profiles on social bookmarking sites like Digg, Delicious and StumbleUpon

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Monday, July 12th, 2010

Building Better LinkedIn Connections


LinkedIn is a fabulous business networking tool, and if it hasn’t got you raving, you may be missing some opportunities.  The ability to see who knows whom is priceless in the business world.  I tend to refer to LinkedIn as business networking on a sugar high.  If used strategically, it can help you be seen as a subject matter expert, maintain contact with your business associates, and round out your sales plan.

Seek Valuable Connections

Of the many LinkedIn questions I am asked on a regular basis, one of the most popular is, “How do I decide who to connect with on LinkedIn?”  The power of LinkedIn lies in the quality of your connections.  One question validates or rules out my own connections: “If I send an email or place a phone call, will it be returned?” This applies strictly to benefits of a business nature.  Evaluate whether you will receive a positive response from potential LInkedIn connections to questions like, “Would you like to grab lunch?” or, “Could you introduce me to Jane Johnson?”  If the answer is yes, then that person will probably be a good LinkedIn connection.

Reconsider Stale Connections

When you’re dealing with relationships, some will stick and some won’t.  This holds true for those relationships forged on LinkedIn.  You may have connected with someone a year ago but not talked to them since.  Twice a year, go through your LinkedIn connections and identify those people you haven’t talked to in a while.  Send them a message to refresh that connection.  If they don’t respond, you have two options.  One, keep them as a connection, or two, remove them from LinkedIn.  I personally opt for option 2, because if they won’t respond to a simple, “Hey, how are you?” email, they’re very unlikely to do business with you.

The value of your connections on LinkedIn depends on the quality, not the quantity, of connections you have.  So, choose them wisely, and choose them strategically to fit within your online marketing plan.

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