You don’t want to be required to sign up for a user profile to write a comment. You want the ability to read an article and be allowed to share your thoughts quickly and easily. You want stress-free commenting. You want to avoid filling out form fields, checking boxes, and clicking verification links as prerequisites to sharing your views. You are opposed to comment registration and you support creating conversations. You also want to be loved. You want people to know you exist, to reply to you and to single you out as an expert in this or an influencer of that. True or false? Try it out. MORE >>

If you’re a regular reader of the blog, you’ll notice that I’ve switched the Livefyre commenting system back on, after using the vanilla WordPress option for the last few months. was one of the early beta users of the system, and loved the way it took blog commenting and turned it into a real-time chat (as this experiment and the subsequent results show). But I’ve always kept eyes on the system, and met the team at a conference earlier this year. So the time seemed right to switch it back on. So what’s new? Latest Post or Conversation. Simple Site Wide Moderation. MORE >>

Marketing on Google+ can be a very rewarding, and cost effective venture for those with a limited marketing budget since Google+ is currently a very popular site amongst tech savvy people, such as myself. However, caution must be exercised so that your marketing efforts do not meet with a less than happy end. Here is how to market your personal brand on Google+ Plus. Therefore, the best businesses to market on Google+ are those where YOU are the product, or you are branding yourself as the lead of the business. – Realtors. – Doctors. – Lawyers. – Dentists. MORE >>

Some people say Google+ has it all; that it is the perfect mix between Facebook and Twitter. Below are some side by side comparisons, including privacy, chat and friends, between Facebook and Google+. Will this battle of Internet titans go the distance or will Google+ get the knockout and become the new Social Media Heavyweight Champion of the World? Via: Single Grain ]. Via: Single Grain ]. Infographics MORE >>

Business consultants love to talk about best practices because it makes their job easier – and they are not alone. Many contractors, educators, and salespeople do the same. They have a few solutions that they have perfected – then they apply them to problems that may or may not fit that solution. That’s the problem. Best practices may be well-practiced by others, but are they what’s best for your small business? What Needs to be Fixed. The one question your should ask yourself every day is:   What does my business most need right now?  Ideal is Better than Best. MORE >>