Privacy on Facebook - Monday, May 17, 2010

You're going to think it's pretty funny that, as the owner of a marketing and advertising company, I'm going to caution you about the kind of information you might be giving out about yourself over the internet. Advertisers are always looking for potential markets. Recently, writers for the New York Times, PC World, and other savvy publications are sounding a warning about Facebook's privacy policy. It seems that Facebook reset a lot of your account information to be accessible to all registered users, even if you had set up your Account Settings differently. For example, under the Account Settings option, in the Facebook Ad tabs, two options are automatically turned on to share some information with advertising networks and friends. Anyone who wants to keep this information private must uncheck the boxes in that tab.

Unless you were paying attention to this change, your profile, photos, wall posts, etc. suddenly became available to friends of friends. That status post about your vacation plans (your home will be unattended, right?) and complaints about your boss can now be seen by perfect strangers. Could be one of them is a friend of your boss's friend who just couldn't wait to share the juicy gossip. In FB slang, it's called "creeping"; in the real world it's called an invasion of privacy. An invasion that you are allowing.

Facebook has over 400 million registered users worldwide, which means it is the Mother Lode of Databases. It was originally meant to be a social networking site, just a friendly sort of place you could drop in and keep in touch with people easily. But 400 million potential targets for non-friendly uses are just too tempting for some folks. Identity thieves can easily glean some necessary information about you from your Facebook site, such as birthdate, city, address, e-mail address, and workplace. Keep Facebook friendly and protect yourself by visiting all your Account Settings and setting them to "Just Friends."

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Email Address Names Can Make or Break the DEAL! - Monday, May 10, 2010

So, you're excited about the Monster.com job opportunity and have sent your resume to a very promising ad. Of course you're available for a phone interview! And please contact me at JelloShooter10@ . . . com.

Not.

No thanks, the potential employer immediately says after skimming your resume. We don't need any Jello Shooters here. We fired the last one. We're looking for a serious employee, someone we can count on. Your email address indicates you might be having too much fun to be serious. Or possibly unable to hold a coherent conversation.

Email that you use for personal and private use should reflect who your friends know you to be, but your talents as a professional need to reflect who the business world knows you to be. No matter how fantastic your portfolio or sales proposals are, you will most likely be remembered for your email name rather than your credentials. Next time, ditch the BigBoy, 2Hot4U, TequilaMama, JuicyBaby and other casual monikers in favor of something that reflects you as a business commodity. A simple and straightforward Smith2250@ . . . com helps the business contact remember your last name, and leaves off any hints that you might be living 24/7 in Party Land.

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Penthouse or Bargain Basement Image? - Monday, May 3, 2010

Today anyone with a computer and some standard software can call themselves a graphic designer. Your business card, brochure, and website can make you look like you have a penthouse on Fifth Avenue . . . or a closet in the Bargain Basement. Businesses think nothing of letting the secretarial staff or IT department design their materials. Many pass off the in-house design as a way to cut costs, thinking the only important thing about their business card, brochure, or website is that it has information on it. Good design involves understanding visual balance, style basics, even color choices. Good design strives to capture the reader's interest . . . and present your company as a competent, professional, and classy organization.

Paying money for good graphic design may seem like a luxury in a slow economy. You don't have to spend a fortune, but don't try to do it on the cheap. Cutting corners on design may end up being money wasted in the long run, especially if potential customers won't give your brochure or website a second glance. Look at samples from graphic designers before you put your company's image in their hands. When visual materials fail to hit the mark, the real problem is that the design simply didn't do its job, which is to convince potential customers that you have your act together.

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