Recently it was announced that the popular search engines Yahoo! and Google are going to work with Adobe on methods to make SEO possible within Flash Files. As a web designer, this news sounds great. It would make Flash easier to operate while maintaining higher placement on search results. Many are talking about how this will change the way web design and SEO are handled. But the truth is, the solution doesn’t exist quite yet. I think the idea is great, but the fact remains that SEOing Flash is still difficult and will be for a while. Until the techniques are perfected, Web Designers will still have to use the current methods of SEOing sites that have Flash.

-Chad Breske

Help feed the world and build your vocabulary with FreeRice.com

In a recent issue of Woman’s Day Magazine I came across a great website for writers (well, anyone really) who’d like to give their vocabulary a boost, and do some good at the same time.

On freerice.com you match words with meanings in a multiple choice format. For every word you get right, the site donates 20 grains of rice through the UN World Food Program to end world hunger.

How it works

On the homepage you’ll see something like
small means:

little
old
big
yellow

Click on one of the four definitions that you think is correct. If you get it right, FreeRice donates 20 grains of rice to help end world hunger. In the example above, you would want to click on “little,” which means “small.” You will then get a chance to do another word the same way, increasing in difficulty. You can play as long as you like and donate as much rice as you like. When you are finished you do not have to do anything; your donation is already counted.

You’ll find a video on the homepage of the free rice being distributed. Over 38 billion grains have been donated to date. I can’t think of an easier way to improve your speaking, writing and thinking while being charitable at the same time.

-Jenny Silgen

Lead Generation is the most effective sales tool for companies hoping to bring in new revenue.  Contacting prospects by telephone is that personal connection to let them know you are interested.  A professional Business to Business program qualifies the right prospects and generates face-to-face meetings. The best programs discover your prospects’ need for change, as well as their budgets and time frames. I know from personal experience – making that call can determine whether the time for change is now.

Yesterday I contacted a prospect for a client and discovered she was about to purchase a product my client could provide for her. She wanted to meet the sales rep, so I scheduled a meeting. If this company did not have a lead generation program in place, this opportunity would not have been possible. This afternoon my client’s sales rep will present their products and services to a prospect that is about to make a purchase. It’s all thanks to lead generation.

I have officially been a Minnesota resident for all of 41 days. I have to say, it has been quite the adjustment leaving the cornfield in my backyard and moving to the 48th largest city in the United States. And while Minneapolis lies just 2 hours from the Iowa boarder, I’m often pegged a “southerner”.

For instance, when I asked for a sack at the grocery store the checker responded, “You mean a bag?” I was later informed by a co-worker that people in Minnesota call them “bags, not sacks.” I’ve also received endless chuckles for my use of the phrase “skywalks,” apparently up here they are known as skyways. I’ve even been told that I have some sort of weird “twang” in my voice!

That said, I couldn’t be more pleased with how friendly people are up here. Everyone I’ve met has been so welcoming and genuinely nice. I’ve also seen how truly caring Minnesotans are. On more than one occasion I’ve found myself conversing with complete strangers who have offered their sympathies for my family who was affected by the Iowa floods.

So while I’ve only been in the Gopher State for a short time, I sure am seeing an abundance of that Minnesota Nice!

-Jamie Shubatt

I heard a story recently that I thought related quite well to prospecting for new business. The story is of the Chinese bamboo tree. In the early spring seeds are planted and each day the seeds are watered. Periodically throughout the year fertilizer is sprinkled over the seeds. After an entire year of watering the seeds every day there are no results to show for the effort.

For nearly five years the same process is used but with no sign of results. Then sometime during the fifth year, over a period of six weeks, the Chinese bamboo tree grows ninety feet. Now the question is, does the Chinese bamboo tree grow ninety feet in six weeks or does it grow ninety feet in five years?

The answer is that it grows ninety feet in five years. The reason for this is simple. If at any time during those five years you stopped watering and fertilizing, the seeds would die. The same is true when you prospect for new business. If at any time you stop communicating with your prospects and nurturing them with information, you run the risk of losing their business forever.

-Randy West

Olivia Takes Her First Jump

My 4 year old daughter has finally mustered up enough courage to jump off the end of the dock at our lake cabin. She showed no fear this year as she had in the past.

After a few attempts with jumps off the side into the shallow water, all the sudden she took a running leap right off the end of the dock. The water is just over her head there. She went under the water for a few seconds and then popped right back up (she had a life jacket on of course). There was this fearful look to her eyes at first that quickly transformed to excitement. She paddled into shore – the whole time jabbering about how she is a big girl now. She climbed back up onto the dock and took the plunge over and over again for most of the afternoon. I was exhausted just watching her.

This was a big accomplishment for the youngest grandchild of the bunch. It won’t be long before she is swimming out to the sand bar with the bigger kids. Blink and they grow up so fast!

-Jane Tomassetti