Building Relationships with Social Interaction Optimization

We've all been taught that being polite is important from an early age. Say please. Say thank you. Say you're welcome. In the process of habitualizing all this polite behavior, it can sometimes tend to become a little too automatic and begin to lose some of its intended effect. Today we explore the concept of social interaction optimization (SIO), a way to better appreciate those around you and thus build stronger relationships.

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Foursquare, Gowalla and Facebook Places Widgets for Squarespace

A few weeks ago, Squarspace founder and president Anthony Casalena announced some planned enhancements to the web's best publishing and blogging platform. Since then they've quietly rolled out their new Locations social widget, giving you the ability to integrate your Foursquare, Gowalla and/or Facebook Places stream into your Squarespace blog or website. Today we'll take a look the new Squarespace Locations widget and how to install it.

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The Growing Overlap of Search and Social Media

There's always been a relationship between social media and search engine optimization (SEO). For as long as there have been people gathering to create and share content, there have been search engines organizing and helping us find it all. And new evidence points to a growing overlap between search and social media, signalling the importance of a strategic relationship between the two online marketing channels. Are your search and social media efforts as coordinated as they could be?

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Exploring Social Media ROI with PostRank Analytics

As a blogger, have you ever wondered about the value of a single blog post? Sure, Google Analytics allows you to track event such as engagement, comments and contacts, but then there's social media. How much value is added by a Tweet on Twitter, a Like on Facebook or a reader's comment? Today we examine a web-based tool called PostRank Analytics that attempts to answer these questions and explore the social media ROI of your blog.

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A MN Blogger Conference Recap: Coffee, Directions and 20 Other Lessons

This past weekend I was among the 130+ extremely lucky people to be a part of the MN Blogger Conference. I initially didn't get a ticket because they sold out almost immediately. Then I missed another shot when I didn't win Top Rank's contest for a free pass. Finally, conference co-founder Arik Hanson took pity on me and let me volunteer my labor in exchange for a seat at the event. And after all that effort to get in, you bet I'm going to blog about my experience at the first-ever MN Blogger Conference.

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