It was a fun Day 1 at SES Toronto 2008. Here’s a recap of my day:

Check-In

The check-in process was smooth and pain free – usually check-ins at conferences involve slow lineups and poorly trained staffers manning the booths but SES Toronto did a great job – having a press pass I’m sure didn’t hurt either.

Press Room

Immediately as I entered the main floor I was shown the press room where there were tables set up so you could recharge your laptop. Coffee, pop, and water were also made available. It was a great place to go to in order to escape the noise of the main area and get some time to write. The only issue was that the free wi-fi that was set up for the conference members didn’t reach the press room so we went without a connection.

Exhibiting Area

I made it in just before the exhibiting section opened up. The exhibitor list was fairly small but it was a nice group of companies. My first stop was Microsoft who was promoting their AdCenter product. I don’t do any online advertising, and instead, make my money as an online publisher. I was told that they didn’t have a solution for publishers in Canada yet – on to the next booth.

Google was my next stop. They had five people manning their booth and they were all from the AdWords or Website Optimizer teams. Website Optimizer is a new Google tool to help you measure conversion but it unfortunately doesn’t work yet with AdSense which is a big source of revenue for me. I grabbed a free magnet and moved on.

Next up was Yahoo! The Yahoo! guys were really stealing the show. They had free giveaways of mini chairs as well as multipurpose pens. They also had MarioKart set up so you could challenge other attendees to a game. Most of the buzz in the hall was around the Yahoo! booth.

The booth I found most interesting was by a company called Brafton. Brafton CustomNews is the news agency specializing in providing tailored news feeds for websites. Newsroom journalists write news feed articles to an editorial brief and keyword strategy that is controlled by you. All articles are unique, search-engine friendly and archived on your website. What are the key benefits? Keep your website fresh and updated with breaking news; increase organic listings with search engine-optimized articles; inspire confidence and portray your brand as a leading sector voice; drive revenue by directing traffic to revenue pages from articles; and increase dwell time and repeat visits with archived and related articles. It’s an interesting concept and the sales guy was very knowledgeable. Unfortunately they had no marketing collateral to hand out so I left my contact information and am waiting for a follow up.

Sessions

The sessions then began. My favorite one of the day was actually the first one. The topic was Search Around the World: U.K., Europe, Asia Pacific, & Latin America. I discovered that the majority of Internet users are outside of North America (Europe and Asia) and that there are many rapidly growing emerging markets that online marketers could benefit by targeting early. My favorite speaker of the day was Andy Atkins-Krüger. Andy is a trained linguist who has worked in international marketing for 20 years having worked with major brand leaders in five continents during his career in advertising and public relations. Then in 1997 he discovered SEO and a couple of years later paid search. In fact as the Marketing Manager of Portakabin, Andy was responsible for promoting the company throughout Europe in the late nineties and needed an SEO solution that was multilingual. The result was the business now known as WebCertain which Andy bought share of and became Managing Director in 2002 – later he acquired the whole company.

Andy was very knowledgeable, provided great insights and answered many of the questions from the floor. I didn’t take too many notes because they said the slides would be available online afterwards but I don’t see them yet on the site so I’m hoping they come soon!

Google Blunder?

After Andy’s insightful talk I got to thinking about overseas opportunities. Would there be a significant opportunity to translate my content and tailor it to non-English speaking countries? Since AdSense provides a stable income base for my website I wondered how strong the opportunities were for publishers in foreign markets. It would be much harder for me to sell direct and affiliate products in languages I don’t understand so I would have to lean heavily on AdSense to get started. How strong are the opportunities for AdSense in foreign markets? Do you make higher cost per clicks if the content is translated into that foreign language? Which are the top markets to get into if I’m an AdSense publisher looking to go outside of North America?

I immediately went back to the Google table. Unfortunately nobody knew the answers to my questions as there wasn’t a representative from the AdSense team. Disappointed in not getting any solutions I took a pamphlet of theirs on Webmaster Tools and then asked a question I was facing with my own Webmaster Tools account. Unfortunately there wasn’t anybody there either who was knowledgeable about Webmaster Tools. They suggested that I post to Google Groups and someone would get back to me. I’m a big Google fan – they drive most of my traffic and pay me a lot through AdSense but to have at least 5 people staffing a booth and have none of them be familiar with AdSense or Webmaster Tools at a Search Engine Strategies conference seems ridiculous to me.

All in all, however, it was a great day and I’m looking forward to Day 2 tomorrow.

More reporting to come!

This morning I’m off to SES Toronto and I’ve selected the following workshops for my agenda (thank you Kevin for the feedback):

11:00am-12:15pm – Search Around the World: U.K., Europe, Asia Pacific, & Latin America
Eastern and Western companies are rushing to get a piece of the action internationally, but does anyone really understand the marketplace? In this session, attendees will learn how to separate hype from actionable activity. Leading experts with “feet on the street” in the U.K., Europe, Asian Pacific, and Latin America discuss the marketplace and the impact it’s having on the world.

1:15pm-2:15pm – Orion Panel: Measuring Success in a 2.0 World
A successful search analytics strategy is key to maximizing ROI. Traffic is nice, but what happens after the click? What’s the dollar value of a lead? What about the dollar value of a social media relationship, or a discussion? Are analytics tools accurate? This panel of thought leaders in the field of analytics will discuss bounce rates, improving conversion, spotting trends, and generally elevating your SEO/PPC analysis to a whole new level.

2:30pm-3:45pm – State of Search Marketing in Canada
Which search engines are leaders in Canada, and what are they up to? What regional differences in search engine usage do we see within Canada? What vertical areas of search are growing? Representatives from major ratings and traffic analysis services share stats and info. Search engine representatives also comment on trends. Finally, panelists look to the big picture to assess the growing strength of digital marketing in Canada and where search fits in.

4:15pm-5:30pm – Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions
Link building is crucial, but linkbait tactics that worked this year may not be as effective next year. This session focuses on the underlying quality as well as ingenuity needed to get other websites to link to you early and often. It will also explain how you should approach journalists, bloggers, and other authoritative sources to enhance your company’s online reputation — whether or not you get links.

I’ll report back later on in the day to share some of the things that I’ve learned from the conference!

This week’s Entrepreneur University comes thanks to Anthony Mora. Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that focuses in the areas of media relations, image development and media training. Anthony shares with us his thoughts on how to be successful in a media interview:

Congratulations, you made it through the pre-interview, and the producer has booked you on the TV program. You have joined an elite group. This is what you’ve worked towards.

You’ve reviewed your wardrobe and dressed appropriately. If you’re discussing a product or a book, you’ve made sure that you’re taking along some extra samples (you have already sent copies to the producer). You’re about to walk out to your car, you’ve given yourself plenty of time (keep in mind – if you’re late, you’re dead), and you are ready to drive to the station and experience your first interview. Before you pull out of the driveway, be on the safe side, take a couple of minutes (you’ve given yourself plenty of time, right?) and review the following checklist.

1) Review the two or three primary points that you want to get across during the interview.

2) Make sure you’ve checked yourself in a mirror before you go on camera. Is your hair in place? Is your tie crooked? Is your lipstick smeared? Give yourself the basic once-over.

3) Remember, you don’t have to force the information; weave your points into the interview. If you spend your time forcing an issue, it will come out sounding strained and stilted.

4) Relax. You are there to have a conversation. Well, at least you want it to look like a conversation.

5) No slouching. Sit erect.

6) Focus on the interviewer. The camera and crew is part of the furniture as far as you’re concerned.

7) Start off with your most important information. Interviews can be very short. If you don’t lead with what’s important, you may have missed your chance.

Breathe. People have a tendency to hold their breath when nervous, which only creates more anxiety. Remember to breathe.

9) Smile. I’ve seen more media opportunities ruined by people who have refused to smile during their interviews. Looking grave does not make you appear more profound, it makes you look dull and somber.

10) Listen. Don’t anticipate questions. Don’t think that you know what the interviewer is asking. Wait until the question is asked and then respond.

11) If you get momentarily confused, or lose your train of thought, that’s okay. It happens to everyone. Take a deep breath and start again.

12) It’s alright to ask the interviewer to repeat a question. The last thing you want to do is give an answer to a question you don’t fully understand.

13) If the interviewer takes the conversation into an area you’re not comfortable with, or tries to manipulate you into answering questions that you don’t want to answer, remember you have control over the situation. Don’t be forced into saying something you don’t want to say. Be polite, and stay on course.

14) If a particular question throws you, or if you don’t want to answer a specific question, deflect it. Acknowledge that it was asked, and then return to an area that you’re comfortable addressing. You see and hear these types of responses every day around election time. An example of an appropriate response would be: “I certainly understand why you’d ask that question, but what’s really important is…,” now return to your agenda.

15) Don’t recite a laundry list of information and sacrifice a good interview. We’ve all had teachers who knew their subjects well, but bored the hell out of us. That may work in school, because there’s a captive audience, but you have no such luxury. You are there to interest as well as inform the audience.

16) Don’t be vague or use trade jargon. Speak in easy-to-understand language.

17) Show the audience what you’re talking about. Use a story or an account that illustrates a point, as opposed to just giving them vague ideas or theories.

18) Keep your information short, concise, and to the point. Keep it clear, short, and easy to understand.

19) When trying to make a particular point, be assertive but not pushy.

20) If having clients visit your store is pertinent to your business, mention your location. The viewers may love you, but if they can’t find you, you’re in trouble. Don’t simply blurt out your address, but weave your location into the conversation.

Bonus: Relax. Have fun. You’ve worked hard for this – enjoy it.

I learned about Nate Marles through keepMEcurrent.com, a daily and weekly news website for the Greater Portland Region.

Nate, a 17 year old entrepreneur, has a computer repair business called Current Computer Tech and has already found 65 customers who use his services to fix and upgrade computers.

In addition to being a high school junior, Nate is certified by Hewlett Packard, Intel and IBM to work on their computers. He is also a beta tester for Microsoft.

Nate started the business at 14 when he fixed computers for people in their homes. He says the biggest growth for him came when he moved from personal computers to working with small business customers.

“I have at least 10 or 15 business clients. I take courses on how to service their needs. These are businesses that have Web sites, and have their employees connected to servers.” 

Although Nate owns the business, it has become a family affair where his father helps him with his taxes and his mother drove him to client sites before he got his own license to drive. His father, Greg, used to run two different business and has helped mentor Nate.

“I’ve taught him that if you don’t take care of your customers, you won’t keep them. You need to deliver what your customers want, not what you want them to have.” 

The advice is paying off as Nate’s customers are happier than ever. According to Anne Telesco, one of his customers:

“Nate is just wonderful. I’ve got him on my speed dial under the name ‘computer god.’ Nate is very mature for his age. Quite frankly, he is very mature for someone 10 years older than he. My computer had flat-lined when I called Nate. He did the work really fast. He took my hard drive home, ran some diagnostics on it and fixed everything. I was relieved. This was something I could not do myself.” 

Price has also been his competitive advantage. He charges $20 per hour where many computer repair technicians can charge up to $100 per hour.

“Charging a lot of money would be too stressful. I try to do what is reasonable. I may have scheduled two hours to be at a client’s house or business to fix one problem. What if I find other problems and it takes me four hours? Then I am charging that person $400. That’s quite a bit of money.”

The money he’s made so far is going towards his college education as well as a new laptop that he just purchased and his cell phone bills.

“This is an exciting time for my company. More businesses are finding out that I can do major repairs but at a lower cost than the competitors. I’m flexible too. I put out proposals that fit the clients instead of telling them this is what I can do.” 

What’s next for Nate? He’s planning on going retail to start selling electronics and warranties. He has also recently created an online accounting section on his website where his clients can see price quotes online, access their invoices, and pay their bills.

Next week is the start of Search Engine Strategies Toronto and I will be reporting from the expo on Tuesday and Wednesday. Fortunately for me I live in Toronto so my travel time consists of hopping on my Vespa and driving to the conference center.

I’ve never been to a SES conference so I’m excited to see what the excitement is all about. There are three tracks that attendees have the option of attending (at any point in time there are three seminars going on at once so you have to pick which track you want to go on). The three tracks are: Get Me Up to Speed, Practical & Actionable, and Advanced. Judging from the seminar information my inclination is to focus on the Advanced track but I will list the different seminars below. As I will be reporting from the event, if there is a particular seminar that you would like more information on please let me know and I might attend it for you.

Track: Get Me Up to Speed

• Introduction to Search Engine Marketing
• State of Search Marketing in Canada
• Site Clinic
• Search Advertising: PPC 101
• Keyword Research: Purpose, Tools and Tactics
• Link Building: The Basics & Beyond
• SEO Don’ts, Myths & Scams

Track: Practical & Actionable

• Search Around the World: UK, Europe, Asia Pacific & Latin America
• Getting Found in Maps & Local Search
• Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions
• What’s Different About B2B? Tailored Strategies
• SEM Toolkit: Marketers Share
• Accessibility, Usability & SEO
• Site Clinic

Track: Advanced

• Universal & Blended Search
• Paid Search: Advanced Issues in PPC
• Twitter: Ultimate Time Waster, or Great Tool?
• User Search Behavior
• Social Media Success
• Web 2.0 & Search Engines
• Giving Credit Where It’s Due: Which Campaign Sold What?

Which topics are you most interested in?

Of course, if you plan on attending, let me know as well!

Second Life is a 3-D virtual world created by its Residents. Since opening to the public in 2003, it has grown explosively and today is inhabited by millions of Residents from around the globe.

At the end of March 2008, approximately 13 million accounts were registered. In January 2008, residents spent 28,274,505 hours there, so on average about 38,000 residents were logged on at any particular moment.

Second Life has its own economy and a currency referred to as Linden Dollars (L$). Residents regularly create new products and services which they can then buy and sell in the Second Life virtual world. There are also currency exchanges where Residents can exchange real world currencies for L$. Though the exchange rate fluctuates, as of February 2007 it is reasonably stable at around L$ 266 to one US dollar. These exchanges are open markets, except that Linden Lab sometimes changes in world Linden Dollar “sinks” or sells Linden dollars to attempt to keep the exchange rate relatively stable.

A small percentage of Residents derive net incomes from this economy, ranging from a few hundred to several thousand US$ per month, while a larger percentage derive a gross income large enough to offset most of their expenditures in L$. The currency has become the subject of concern in economic circles in regard to possible taxation.

To see how the L$ compares to the US dollar on average you can visit the LindeX Market Data.

How do you make money with SecondLife? Kabalyero recently put together a list of easy ways to ear L$. On the list included:

Get a Job

One of the best way to earn L$ is by getting a job. There are thousands of businesses in Second Life. Examples are banks, clubs, whore houses, stock exchanges, malls, and shops but these are just some of it. These businesses needs manpower to function and business owners are always looking to hire people with the necessary skills to fill up various positions like dancers, greeters, promoters, managers, security guards, escorts, writers, graphic artists, programmers, builders, scripters, texturers and many, many more. If you’ve the skills then find the matching job and apply for it. Remember, not all jobs pay with tips. There are many jobs that pays from 500L$ to 10,000L$ per hour but you have to find them and to help you find these jobs visit Second Life Jobs.

Camp

There are many residents in Second Life who doesn’t want to get a job because of various reasons. Maybe they don’t like working for someone, maybe they don’t have the time for it or maybe they are just plain lazy but whatever their reasons may be they still can earn L$ and that is by camping.

Join Research Panels or Groups

Research Panels or Groups conducts research studies through surveys and the results of these studies are used by businesses both in Second Life and in Real Life. Earning potential from these groups ranges from 250L$ to 10,000L$ per completed survey and sometimes bonuses are awarded depending on the survey.

Do you play SecondLife? Have you managed to make money from it?

George Eastman came from a poor family and dropped out of high school after being deemed “not especially gifted,” but that did not stop him from creating what would become one of the most successful imaging companies in the world. He overcame his beginnings to launch a business that would put the powers of photography into the hands of the average person and change the way the world remembers itself.

For Eastman, those two things were the same. Eastman had found a passion in photography that he had never known before. From never having taken a picture to starting up a company that focused on only that, Eastman was taking a risk. What was it that saw his risk through? What were the factors that took Eastman from his days as a high school dropout to being at the top of the country’s corporate ladder?

“The manifest destiny of the Eastman Kodak Company is to be the largest manufacturer of photographic materials in the world, or go to pot.

I could do nothing with my first outfit until after I had paid a professional photographer…five dollars to give me lessons. When we started out with our scheme of film photography, we expected that everybody who used glass plates would take up films. But we found that the number which did so was relatively small. In order to make a large business we would have to reach the general public. The idea gradually dawned on me that what we were doing was not merely making dry plates, but that we were starting out to make photography an everyday affair, to make the camera as convenient as the pencil.

A trademark should be short, vigorous, incapable of being misspelled. It must mean nothing. If the name has no dictionary definition, it must be associated only with your product. I devised the name myself. The letter ‘K’ has been a favorite with me – it seems a strong, incisive sort of letter. It became a question of trying out a great number of combinations of letters that made words starting and ending with ‘K’. The word ‘Kodak’ is the result. This is not a foreign name or word; it was constructed by me to serve a definite purpose. It has the following merits as a trade-mark word: first it is short; second, it is not capable of mispronunciation; third, it does not resemble anything in the art and cannot be associated with anything in the art. I have always admired the letter K’s ability to strike a certain tone in one’s ear, that tone of power and strength and resonance.

What we do during our working hours determines what we have; what we do in our leisure hours determines what we are.”

This week’s Entrepreneur University comes courtesy of Andy Marken. Andy has become a recognizable name on the blog having contributed two other posts: How To Do A Media Interview and How To Create A Sales Incentive Program. Andy is the brains behind Marken Communications, a full-service marketing and communications company. Andy’s advice this week is on whether you should start your or blog or not.

“Viral marketing, IM, SMS and blogging are just a few of the new avenues emerging for our globally constantly connected world. Rather than management seeing our avenues of reaching our various stakeholders as shrinking, the routes are actually being expanded. CEOs and senior managers have to understand what they are, the strengths and weaknesses of each and how you can leverage them best.

If not you could be the friend of Hawkeye’s in one of the M.A.S.H. shows who was critically wounded. He looked up and said, “I didn’t hear the one that hit me.”

The first three we mentioned are relatively easy to understand. If you aren’t familiar with them then go to google.com or yahoo.com, type them in and review widely available information.

The final avenue – blogging, weblogs or simply blogs – is more difficult to understand and not without its share of risks. It is also one that provides management what they need in today’s world – a fast, effective and economic means of carrying out two-way communications with a firm’s many audiences. Blogs also represent a long-term commitment to reaching out to educate, inform, influence and obtain inputs/feedback directly from your market.

It is also a concept and means of communications that won’t go away. It is a viral communications program that is going to become important to all organizations that are interested in growing.

If you don’t think you need to address the area it would be wise to find out how many blogs originate within your own organization. HP has more than 2,500. Microsoft has more than 3,000. IBM has more than 4,500. Proctor & Gamble…Coca-Cola…Pfizer…Dell…firms large and small have blogs being written by employees.

Weblog, Blog In its simplest terms a weblog can be an online (very public) diary.

It is a way for management to talk directly to customers, business partners and every stakeholder (including the board of directors). Blogs provide an opportunity for you to convince them that the positions, directions and actions that you are taking are in the best interest of all concerned.

For the first time, every head of an organization has the chance to interact on a daily basis with every segment of his or her community. The president/CEO has the unique opportunity to set the agenda, lead the commentary and shape opinions.

If it sounds too good to be true…it is!

Blogs are not one-way. They are two-way communications that can be observed by millions. Michael Dell has used the feedback very profitably – good and bad. He has used the information to hone Dell Computer’s products and processes. This immediate and open communications has enabled the company to gain the #1 position in the PC industry.

As with Dell’s and other corporate executive weblogs, the sites also provide a fast and direct means of conducting research of direct customer experience, company perception and review policy and programs in near real-time.

Granted, not all of the comments are favorable and many are downright negative but layers of managers don’t dilute the responses. As a result Dell management is able to evaluate the inputs and respond – internally and externally – as required.

Does Dell handle all of the feedback himself? Of course not! Nor does Microsoft’s Bill Gates, GE’s Jeff Immelt, AMD’s Hector Ruiz, Home Depot’s Robert Nardelli, the Dallas Mavericks’ Mark Cuban or the growing number of CEOs who maintain weblogs.

All of these executives monitor their blogs. They also have one or more members of their organization scanning, summarizing and focusing the information for the multitasking executive so he or she can respond and react accordingly.

While company/CEO blogs are not without their dangers, the alternative is that company blogs are being carried out by disgruntled employees (as was one highly covered Yahoo blog) or unhappy customers (there are hundreds of negative company/product sites on the web).

However, the CEO blog provides a blank canvas for management to state and explain their position, their actions. It also provides management with an opportunity to immediately and directly address issues and concerns. In some instances management can nullify the attack and in others they can turn detractors into supporters.

Blog vs e-newsletter While newsletters, especially print, have been used by companies for tens of years to get their messages to specific stakeholders – shareholders, employees, channel partners, market segments. They have been expensive, time consuming and …one way.

Even when we take advantage of the power, speed and ease of the Internet; an HTML newsletter suffers from the same shortcomings. In addition, once it is published and sent out you are never certain the newsletter will make it past the recipient’s spam filters. It is also less immediate than today’s growing blog community (Fig 1, 2).

Using one of the many blog templates your executive weblog site can be quickly established. Rather than broadcasting your message it can be fed to readers using today’s widely used RSS (Really Simple Syndication) format. The blog can be an extremely effective means of directly getting your corporate and product message to editors and reporters in the mainstream media (MSM), the community of citizen journalists as well as the growing number of individuals regularly read blogs.

RSS is a format for syndicating news and the content of news-like web sites. These include hundreds of major news sites such as Wired and Slashdot as well as thousands of business and personal weblogs. The blog can be made available to news aggregators at no cost and people interested in specific subjects to track the information and news.

There is more information than you want to know on the subject available on the web. But we have found the best source to educate yourself to be www.oreilly.com. The publisher offers a number of excellent books on the subject including Dan Gillmor’s, former influential columnist with the San Jose Mercury/New and author of We the Media. Dan recently left the SJ MN to practice what he preaches with his own grassroots journalism blog.

Weblogs are not something that should be begun without a long-term commitment. Unlike printed or e-newsletters that cross your desk or screen and can be dropped and forgotten, the blog remains…forever. The blog needs to be updated frequently – weekly, if not daily. There is nothing worse than visiting a blog or company web site that has news and information that hasn’t been updated…recently.

The Effective CEO, Business Blog The effective business-centric blog uses the combined tools of communications – computer, keyboard, focus, objectives, willingness to listen and something important to say. The executive blog has the unprecedented freedom of immediacy. The response can be developed, reviewed, massaged and posted in minutes rather than hours or days. The posting can be as long or as short as necessary to tell the story, make the point or counter incorrect information.

With full credit, we’d like to paraphrase some of the tips to an effective blog that have been presented by Seth Godin, a seasoned blogger and viral marketer — sethgodin.typepad.com

1. Blogs are ideal for CEOs because the focus is on a topic you are passionate about. The blog allows the executive to address business issues and concerns, explain them and expand on key industry/company points.

2. Use shorter, more frequent blog entries rather than long white papers or position statements. As you study blogs around the web you will see that the best and most popular sites are a short paragraph or two and sometimes only a sentence. The goal is to show you are knowledgeable about the subject and to make one specific point. Some of the best executive blogs only have a sentence or two with a link directing readers to a relevant article in a respected business, trade or consumer publication.

3. The best business blogs reflect the viewpoint and voice of the executive, not lawyer talk or PR bullet dodging. This can be a tightrope because you want to be as honest and forthright as possible but you also have to write with the understanding that you are creating a very public presence of your information.

4. The best CEO blogs are where the executive writes out two or three key points which are reviewed and massaged by a blog-savvy staff member. Make certain you use correct grammar, syntax and spelling.

5. Organize the content of the blog. A blog is an elegant, easy-to-use writing and communication tool. It should also be purposeful. Plan out the corporate and industry issues you plan to cover over time. Categorize your points with key words so the site can gain the widest and most visible search engine attention possible.

6. Post a new entry at least two to three times a week. Since each new entry is its own web page you will increase the chances that search engines will find the blog so you can broaden your reach with key audiences. Over time you will find that an effective blog entry can be done in 20 minutes or less. That certainly isn’t true when you are producing an enewsletter that can take days/weeks to develop and execute.

7. Include key contact information. Just as effective marketing web sites clearly display the contact information to make it easy for customers and the press, you want feedback and inputs from supporters and detractors so you clarify points or continue a meaningful and hopefully positive dialogue.

8. Godin emphasizes that executive blogs work best when they are based on:

• candor • urgency • timeliness • pithiness • controversy • utility Nothing expresses a company and product brand better than a CEO…especially a CEO who is smart, plugged in and can articulate issues that are important. It is not a place to simply plug your company, products or services. It is a place for executives to provide a voice and personality to an inanimate organization.

With the assistance and guidance of a knowledgeable and professional Internet and Web staff members, the executive can give voice to the company to discuss its position and place in the global community. He or she can articulate and explain business and industry activities.

Blogs are both derided and read by the mainstream media. More importantly they are increasingly being read by your business partners, stockholders, consumers and other stakeholders on a global basis. The corporate executive’s weblog provides a powerful strategic and tactical tool for expanding his or her influence and growing the company.”

Do you have your own blog? What’s the url and why did you start blogging?

Our 21st Review our Blog entry comes thanks to Nick Grinberg from The Young Entrepreneur. You can read what he had to say about us in his blog post: The Young Entrepreneur has allies!

‘The Young Entrepreneur’ – A blog that is dedicated to creative business development from the perspectives of young, knowledge-hungry entrepreneurs! Nick will be welcoming all ideas, feedback and contributions. The vision here is to start a community of like-minded readers, who are ready to contribute and mould the future of this blog.

Thanks for the review Nick!

If you are interested in doing a review, check out our Review Our Blog initiative for instructions.

It’s time for our next Entrepreneur Poll here at YoungEntrepreneur.com. This time our question is: What is it time to go full-time?

Most entrepreneurs start up their own business before taking the leap to quitting their jobs. How do you know when it’s time to cut ties with a steady salary and rely on your company to make the money you need?

We would love to hear from full-time entrepreneurs who have already made the plunge as well as part-time entrepreneurs who are hoping to go full-time in the near future.

To cast your vote, please visit our newly created forum post and reply there (instead of commenting here below).

I’m looking forward to some great feedback!