I thought about doing a normal #FollowFriday today, but I don’t want the person and blog I’m going to recommend to get shafted because it’s New Year’s Eve. And on November 12, I did a “Your Choice” #FollowFriday. So here I am stuck…what do I do?

But there is a loophole! Last month I asked you for one blog (that wasn’t your own), the URL, and a sentence or two about why you like to read it.

So this time, your recommendation should be someone on Twitter who you really enjoy following. Please provide their name, their Twitter handle (in the format of @username so Livefyre will alert them of your recommendation and also so we can click on their name and follow them), and one or two sentences about why you enjoy following them. Continue Reading »

It’s Facebook question of the week time and I wanted something that wasn’t so business seriousy-related because it’s a holiday week and all. And I’m pretty sure the only people who are working are my team (I AM the Grinch) and only one of our clients (and I mean just him, not the entire company).

So I asked a question on Facebook and the best answer I got was from Claudia Anderson Scimeca. She asks, “If you took 10 giant steps outside of your comfort zone box, what would you love to do in 2011 that your discomfort has thus far prevented you from doing?”

If you know me well, my answer will surprise you. It’s going to be really hard for me to do. And I’d love to hear from you. How do you answer Claudia’s question?

(If you’re viewing this is your RSS feed, click here and the video will magically appear. Then come back here and tell us your answer!)

I had a brilliant idea for today’s post in the middle of the night, but between it being the middle of the night and Jack Bauer sleeping on my head (which is not comfortable), I’ve forgotten what it was. So you get a half-brilliant post instead.

A couple of weeks ago, Molli Megasko went through our analytics and pulled the top 10 most popular blog posts, based on page views. Five of those we written by me and five were not. Never fear, guest bloggers! I will beat you next year!

But Jay Baer did an interesting aggregation of his own blog posts this morning, based on what his readers liked best, so I’m copying that idea, with a twist. I told you it was only half-brilliant; I’ve stooped to copying people I admire.

Following are the top 10 Spin Sucks blog posts of 2010, based solely on the number of comments. Shoot. Now I have to figure out how to efficiently find them. OK. Here we go! Continue Reading »

I’ve been sitting here for half an hour thinking about what would be helpful to you this week, in order to be ready to start 2011 with a bang. Craig Jarrow, of Time Management Ninja, suggests five things to do this week so your to-do list is clear by Monday. Tim Berry, founder of Palo Alto Software, has tips for dealing with holiday stress. And Les McKeown, author of “Predictable Success,” is walking you through the steps of having your business go through step growth or linear growth, depending on your goals.

All three of these are important, for both your business and personal lives (which really are one, according to Mitch Joel).

But what’s the real equation for using all of this advice, plus getting something really meaningful accomplished this week? Continue Reading »

I have a feeling this week is going to be like a ghost town so I’m going to do aggregate posts that will help you plan for and do your jobs more efficiently in 2011.

Today’s post is a list of the best social media trends for 2011. I am only doing five links so you don’t get overwhelmed because, well, there is A LOT of content out there and it’s easy to get overwhelmed.

I haven’t fully decided on the lists for the rest of the week so if there is something you’d like to see, the comments section is yours.

So here we go, the five best (plus the two from Spin Sucks) blog posts that list social media trends for you to include in your 2011 planning. Continue Reading »

It’s Christmas Eve so I’m cheating. Rather than do a normal a #FollowFriday for today, I’m giving you a complete list of all of the blogs I’ve recommended since I began doing this in March. Wow! I’ve been doing this since March. You’re going to find Twitter handles hyperlinked to people’s names and their blog URLs hyperlinked to their blog names (or taglines – those darn Canadians don’t follow the rules!).

If I had more time, I’d pull these into Twitter and Google Reader lists to make this super easy on you, but alas! I’ve run out of time. Perhaps I’ll do that next week.

So here they are…the people (with Twitter handles) and their blogs (with links). Continue Reading »

You may not know that I am the oldest of six (now the double type A makes sense, huh?). I have four brothers and one sister. There are 10 nieces and nephews on my side. And to say those kids are the loves of my life is putting it mildly (don’t worry, Jack Bauer; you’re the love of my life in the pet form!).

I have two brothers in Colorado, a brother and my sister in Utah, and a brother in Portland, Ore. And then there’s me. In the middle of the country. Sure, I love Chicago. It’s a great city. But, come October every year, I get so homesick. Not just for my family (though they’re the major part of it), but for the mountains, the snow (though we get lots of snow here), and the fresh (and dry) mountain air. So why I ever left is yet to make sense to me. Apparently I’m the only dummy in the family.

I was raised Mormon and, in the religion, kids are baptized not when they’re born, but when they’re eight years old. The age that they’ve learned the difference between right and wrong and can make those decisions on their own. My middle brother, Jonathan, has four kids and his third child, Olivia, was baptized this past weekend. So Mr. D and I packed up, flew to Denver, and killed about 17 birds with one stone: Participating in Olivia’s baptism, making me feel a tiny bit less homesick, seeing our good friends Harry Brumleve and Erin Brumleve, spending time with my mom and step-dad (who drove in from Utah), and making a Christmas video for you.

So here they are…Kenayde, Nathaniel, Olivia, and Sophia giving you the scoop on what I really do for a living and wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

If you’re viewing this via RSS and can’t see the video, I know I’m biased, but you don’t want to miss this one. Click here and it’ll magically appear!

For those of us running company Facebook pages I thought I’d use Spin Sucks to break down the new impressions and feedback data and how to best use this new information to your advantage in your online marketing campaigns.

You’ll notice now when making a post to your company page, Facebook is supplying you with changing impression numbers and feedback percentages per post. What does this mean?

Continue Reading »

Well, the FCC has made their decision on net neutrality and we are now faced with two versions of the web. One where we are protected on our computers, but not on our phones. Which means we can gain access to anything we want if we’re using our browsers, but the wireless carriers can block apps if they want (i.e. AT&T could block Yelp or Verizon could block Facebook).

The rules are, at best, “net semi-neutrality,” according to the New York Times. The rules are bogus, according to Gini Dietrich.

I’ve been pretty outspoken about the need to maintain net neutrality for several months now. I’ve blogged about it and, when I speak, I advise business leaders to pay careful attention to the rulings. I even included it in my trends to pay attention to for 2011. If the neutrality goes away, the way we conduct business will be changed forever. Continue Reading »

Guest post by Michael Shmarak, principal of Sidney Maxwell Public Relations.

OK, a quick show of hands – how many people got out of bed at some ungodly hour and stood in line for any number of Black Friday deals last month?

For those who raised hands, may I ask that you take that hand, form a cup with your other hand, and splash cold water on your faces? Sorry to rain on your parade, but you need a proverbial wake-up call. Your deal might have been good, but was it a deal at all?

I don’t know why the day after Thanksgiving is called Black Friday, anymore. According to retail data, shopper patterns, and any number of measurement tools, it is not the busiest shopping day of the year. Black Friday is a myth. Continue Reading »