Thought For The Week

“It takes a good and creative person to do something simply.”
                                    ...Dick Newick, Sailboat Design Visionary

 
Site of The Week

The Utne Reader - "Cure Ignorance"
Want to gain a fresh perspective? Read stories that matter? Feel optimistic about the future? It's all here! Utne Reader offers provocative writing from diverse perspectives, insightful analysis of art and media, down-to-earth news and in-depth coverage of eye-opening issues that affect your life.
www.utne.com



Eclectic Stuff From Around The Web. Some of it really crazy, some really useful, some just really interesting and all (I hope) valuable for you.

Thief Returns $300 to Deli a Decade After Robbery
Here's your feel good news for the day: Nashville's InterAsian Market & Deli, a grocery store that's known for its banh mi, recently posted the above note on Instagram. According to the post, the deli was robbed "11 or 12 years ago," and now the robber in question has returned the $300 s/he took along with a note of explanation. "I'm a drug addict," the note reads. "I must make amends to the people I have hurt in the past." InterAsian responded by writing, "All is forgiven and thank for your note. We don't care about the money. We are more inspired and touched by your act." Below, the full text of the note, and the deli's response.
Read more at: http://eater.com/archives/2013/09/09/thief-returns-300-to-deli-a-decade-after-robbery.php

What Witchcraft Is Facebook?
Mass psychogenic illness—historically known as "mass hysteria"—is making a comeback. “Epidemic hysterias that in earlier periods were self-limited in geography now have free and wide access to the globe in seconds.”
Read more at: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/09/what-witchcraft-is-facebook/279499/

These Days Apple is More Like a Fashion Label Than an Electronics Company
When the big “change” in a product launch is color, Apple has become more like Prada and less like Edison
Read more at: http://qz.com/123930/these-days-apple-is-more-like-a-fashion-label-than-an-electronics-company/?oref=dbeurope

Meet The Ugliest Animal on Earth
The blobfish is shaped exactly like you might imagine, with a ghoulish pallor. And then you can meet The kakopo, the axolotl, the Titicaca water frog and the proboscis monkey. Yikes!
Read (SEE!) more at: http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/09/12/blobfish-voted-ugliest-animal/

When Complexity Is Free
Fortunately, there is another, still “exceptional,” American reality out there. (I am talking to you, Putin.)
It’s best found at the research centers of any global American company. These centers are places where scientists and engineers from dozens of nationalities are using collaboration and crowd-sourcing to push out the boundaries of medical, manufacturing and material sciences, where possibilities seem infinite, where optimal is the norm and where every day begins by people asking: “What world are we living in, and how do we thrive in that world?”

Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/15/opinion/sunday/friedman-when-complexity-is-free.html?hp

How our names shape our identity
Sometimes we try to live up to our names. Sometimes we try to run away from them. But either way — and for all the options in between — your name is a crucial factor in developing your sense of self, and thus helps propel you forward on various paths of life and career.
Read more at: http://theweek.com/article/index/249589/how-our-names-shape-our-identity

Getting Out of Student Debt and On the Road
A post-college career detour offers a different kind of education—and the opportunity to get out of student debt.
Read more at: http://www.utne.com/mind-and-body/getting-out-of-student-debt-zm0z13zsozlin.aspx#ixzz2f3OkLD00

 

SEO

TALKING TO UNICORNS: RARE WOMEN OF #SEO SPEAK OUT
It is time to hear the women of SEO speak their minds! Kate Ghergich Roubos gathers the thoughts of esteemed SEOs and conducts interviews on content marketing, gender, search, and social media.
Read more at: http://ghergich.com/blog/talking-unicorns-rare-women-seo-speak/

 

Advertising

Storytelling Ads May Be Journalism’s New Peril
When the guy who ruined the Internet with banner ads tells you that a new kind of advertising might destroy journalism, it tends to get your attention.
Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/16/business/media/storytelling-ads-may-be-journalisms-new-peril.html

 

Instagram

Fashion’s Latest Muse? Instagram
Designers have turned to Instagram for a glimpse into the lives and tastes of their fans, and vice versa.
Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/15/fashion/fashions-latest-muse-instagram.html?_r=0&hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1379242806-UMDvLhjKSG1LgKzuvqDWsQ

 

Content

10 Fast Ways to Become a Better Writer (Even When You’re Burning the Midnight Oil and Can’t Afford an Editor Just Yet)
In the world of online and email communication, writing powerful copy makes all the difference.
Read more at: http://thinktraffic.net/10-fast-ways-to-become-a-better-writer-even-when-youre-burning-the-midnight-oil-and-cant-afford-an-editor-just-yet?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ThinkTraffic+%28Think+Traffic%29

The 5 Stages of Writing Irresistible Landing Page Copy
Landing pages are remarkably powerful conversion and search engine optimization tools that turn traffic into money. They force readers to focus on one thing — and one thing only. To boost your email newsletter or blog subscribers, sell more of your digital or physical product, or dominate a keyword in search rankings, you need to use landing pages. And lots of them....
Read more at: http://www.copyblogger.com/landing-page-stages

20 Resources for Incredible Content Marketing
The secret to content marketing success is creating awesome content that is highly shareable, and then distributing that content in an effective and targeted way. This involves looking at a variety of key metrics to help you analyze your audience, tweak your site with CTAs and improve user experience all to drive more traffic to your site and increase your customer base. Seems difficult right? Well, only if you don’t have the proper tools and resources in place to help you be awesome.
Read more at: http://inspirationfeed.com/articles/blogging/20-resources-for-incredible-content-marketing/

Education

The secret of Finland's stellar schools
To get kids to take education seriously, you have to give them first-rate teachers
Read more at: http://theweek.com/article/index/249613/the-secret-of-finlands-stellar-schools

 

 

Email Marketing

Eight Do’s and Don’ts for Building a Quality Email Marketing List
When your email database is cluttered with email addresses that your company purchased, a buddy gave you or you brought from a previous position, it affects several different aspects of a successful email marketing initiative:
Read more at: http://www.smartbugmedia.com/blog/bid/186742/eight-dos-and-donts-for-building-a-quality-email-marketing-list?source=Blog_Email_[Eight%20Do%E2%80%99s%20and%20Don%E2%80%99t]

Retailers Fight Exile From Gmail In-Boxes
Even in an age of Twitter posts and Instagram photos, e-mail is still the way marketers reach the hearts — and wallets — of consumers. And that is why retailers are up in arms about Google’s latest tweak to Gmail.
Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/16/technology/for-retailers-new-gmail-has-one-tab-too-many.html?hpw&_r=0

 

Link Building

4 Ways to Wash Away The Link Building Hate
Link builders love building links — most of the time. But there are lots of reasons to hate it, too. If you hate link building and you’re a link builder, you’d better take a serious look at what’s going on inside your head before you develop a more serious condition. Think of this as a free counseling session.
Read more at: http://searchengineland.com/4-ways-to-wash-away-the-link-building-hate-171574?utm_source=marketo&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter&utm_content=mday&mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonuq7JZKXonjHpfsX57OgkWaSg38431UFwdcjKPmjr1YcBSMZ0aPyQAgobGp5I5FEPSLfYRrFlt6UJXw%3D%3D

 

Excel

How To Create Interactive Charts In Excel
Excel offers a panoply of interactive controls that make this possible. I’ll be the first to admit that working with interactive controls were really intimidating to me when I first started. They seemed to have a lot of moving parts. But once you understand how they work and learn a couple basic functions, they’re actually quite intuitive to use.
Read more at: http://marketingland.com/how-to-create-interactive-charts-in-excel-57816?utm_source=marketo&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter&utm_content=mday&mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonuq7JZKXonjHpfsX57OgkWaSg38431UFwdcjKPmjr1YcBSMZ0aPyQAgobGp5I5FEPSLfYRrFlt6UJXw%3D%3D


Language

48 things you didn't know had names
Yes, there's a word for the excess weight gained from emotional overeating
Watch the video at: http://theweek.com/article/index/249488/48-things-you-didnt-know-had-names


Blogging

Did the Senate just declare war on bloggers?
A Senate panel says not everyone deserves protection under a proposed media shield for "real" journalists
Read more at: http://theweek.com/article/index/249644/did-the-senate-just-declare-war-on-bloggers

How to Promote a Blog For Free: 25 Ideas
Although many of us blog for business purposes, not all bloggers are getting paid for their work. On the other hand, most smaller businesses need to keep expenses in check when promoting their wares. We often get questions from clients and colleagues about our recommendations for low cost or free answers to how to promote a blog.
Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/blogging/promote-blog-free-25-ideas-0604195#fukCkFLLBHtJHTxi.99

 

Social Media Marketing

Why Advocates Should Be Part Of The Modern Marketer’s Strategy
Here’s a fun exercise. Take five minutes to think about the contrast between your life as a consumer and that as a B2B marketer. If you saw a movie this weekend, you might have Facebooked some friends for their opinion first, then tweeted your 140-character review after. On your way to dinner, you probably compared restaurant reviews on Yelp. Afterward, maybe you went on Angie’s List to find a contractor to fix the garage door you backed into last week while texting.

Then you showed up at work on Monday and dove into your next campaign, wracking your brain to come up with the best way to reach your buyer and messages that will get them to engage. See the difference? As a consumer, you didn’t make your movie, dinner or contractor decisions based on what some marketing flak had to say — you got first-hand opinions from your peers.
Read more at: http://blog.eloqua.com/advocatemarketing/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ItsAllAboutRevenue+%28It%27s+All+About+Revenue%29

 

EdTech

Google Expands Role In Digital Education, Teams Up With edX To Build A YouTube For Free Online Courses
It’s turning into a busy week for Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) providers, and the tech companies that love them — particularly Google. On Monday, Udacity co-founder and CEO Sebastian Thrun and California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom announced the Open Education Alliance, a consortium of online organizations dedicated to closing the skills gap, developing standards for career readiness and providing the content that will help get students ready for the workforce. Google and AT&T are some of the names already endorsing the Alliance, while rumors have been circling that Coursera and other MOOC providers are on board as well. However, at this point who will be participating and what it could mean for education is still up in the air. It’s an alliance-in-progress.

Today, Google took another big step into the open courseware game, announcing a new partnership with edX — the Harvard and MIT-backed, non-profit organization that currently stands as one of the Big Three MOOC Providers, along with Udacity and Coursera. Together, the two companies plan to launch MOOC.org, a site that will allow teachers, businesses — and really anyone — to create their own digital course and share it with the world. As of now, the site is slated for launch in the first half of 2014.
Read more at: http://techcrunch.com/2013/09/10/google-expands-role-in-digital-education-teams-up-with-edx-to-build-a-youtube-for-free-online-courses/

Careers

How to Land the Content Marketing Job of Your Dreams
According to research from McKinsey, two-thirds of companies can’t find qualified applicants for some existing positions:
Read more at: http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2013/09/land-content-marketing-job-dreams/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=Act-On+Software&utm_content=email&utm_campaign=Content%20Marketing%20Wrap%20Up%3A%20Content%20Marketing%20World%20|%20Emotional%20Connections%20Through%20Content%20|%20The%20Need%20for%20Numbered%20Lists&utm_term=How%20to%20Land%20the%20Content%20Marketing%20Job%20of%20Your%20Dreams


That's it for this Monday morning. Have a great week!