Great LinkedIn invitations? Are they really that big a deal? Sure, canned messages are lame, but inviting someone to connect via LinkedIn (or any other social networking site) is just a simple matter of record-keeping. What’s wrong with just, “Hey, let’s connect?”

That’s one way to look at it. But consider this: every communication you Read More...

I want to make a quick plug for two new tools that I’ve been using.
CompanionLink Software gave me a trial copy of CompanionLink, which synchronizes PIM/CRM data with your phone or other supported desktop applications and web-based services (like Google, Act, Goldmine, etc.).  I use it to sync my iPhone with Act 2009 Premium.  I Read More...

Twitter’s security meltdown has done a fantastic job of publicizing how vulnerable a modern, cloud-based startup can be to a determined hacker. 
I have been surprised that in the numerous articles about how to protect yourself against hacking, I have seen very little mention of the powerful technique that we discussed in The Virtual Handshake.  Read More...

By most people’s standards, I’m doing very well on Twitter. TwitterGrader currently gives me a score of 100% and has me ranked #265 out of nearly 2 million users it has analyzed.

I’m adding an average of a little over 30 followers per day, and have had days where I’ve added almost 100 Read More...

I’m not in the practice of being overly critical, and certainly not mean or snarky. But sometimes someone does something so completely, utterly incompetent or misguided that it’s worth pointing out, for their own good as well as being an example for the general public.
That happened yesterday. Short version of the story: an established PR Read More...

Well, I made it official today. I threw in the towel and turned off my auto-welcome DMs (direct messages) I had set up using TweetLater. I’ve had a lot to say on the subject of auto-DMs, and I’ll sum it all up in another post at some point. But for now, I just want Read More...

All kidding aside, I do actually have two Twitter accounts, and I know some who have more. It’s actually becoming fairly common to have a personal account covering a wide variety of topics and one or more additional accounts for specialized niche topics that might not be of interest to your main audience.
For example, @ScottAllen Read More...

I’d heard this was going on, but I just received my first one of these, so I figured I’d better share it with everybody. I received an email that looks like a Twitter direct message notification:

I was a bit suspicious of the message and URL (http://twitterblog.access-logins.com/login), and Google Chrome (my new default browser since Read More...

A little while ago, I gave a speech at NYU Stern Business School on “How to Squeeze Maximum Value from Business School: Leverage Your Education to Accelerate Your Career”. How can you maximize the benefits of all the years and all the money that you invested in your business education?
I prepared the Read More...

With the growth of Twitter, it seems there’s been a surge in the use of URL shorteners. They’re also an essential for mailing lists, including Yahoo! Groups and Google Groups, as links over a certain length (40-50 characters) will break for people who use plain-text email.
TinyURL.com was the original, and is still widely used. But Read More...