Sometimes we all need a little extra “oomph” to get our rears in gear. That extra motivation “oomph” can provide may mean the difference between success and failure. Or maybe it will just mean the difference between you having a solid Twitter presence or one that overwhelms you with information

Social Oomph is a tool designed to help users better leverage their social media accounts. Formerly known as “Tweet Later,” Social Oomph aides in the management of your social network quiver. With two versions, FREE and Professional, there exist a wide-array of tools to help “boost your social productivity.”

For those of you looking to be Tweet-Stars on a low budget: the free base account offers plenty of useful features to aide in your success.

• Schedule your tweets: Type up some Tweet drafts, save them, publish instantly, or save them for later. Decide when to Tweet and walk away to do other things like go on Facebook.
• Tracking Keywords: Feed Social Oomph some keywords and receive email updates of the usage of those keywords. It is good to be in the know about what people are saying.
• Bit.ly URL shortening service: Bit.ly is another great tech-tool. Having Social Oomph paired with Bit.ly is like getting two scoops of ice cream for the price of one. Seriously though, schedule your tweet, insert your link, have it shortened, and Bit.ly will provide analytics for the click-thrus on your link. This all happens in one easy to use interface.

Inspired social media users with a larger budget may opt for the professional version of Social Oomph. For 29.97 per month users have added features to leverage their presence with even more OOMPH.  A few of the key professional features include:

• Facebook status management and wall post scheduling.
• Scheduling blog postings.
• More robust keyword searching.
• Other Twitter features like direct message management and follower measurement.

Visit the full list of professional features to see what Social Oomph Professional can do.

By far and large the most useful part of Social Oomph for us has been the ability to schedule Tweets for promotions. Rather than take time to hop back on Twitter every hour. Users can type up tweets, save them as drafts and schedule to post them as much as they desire throughout the day.

Social Oomph does not replace the real-time aspect of Twitter which is necessary to be a great Tweep. However, Social Oomph helps alleviate common obstacles which inhibit tweeting like board meetings and conference calls.

Give Social Oomph a try and schedule some tweets to tell us what you think!

Google is the full-service gas station of websites.  From search to email and now to social: Google does it all.  Aptly named, Buzz is the latest step in Google’s emergence as a social network.  Buzz has all the characteristics that you have come to enjoy from your favorite social media websites along with some extra pieces of flair.

• Buzz uses the all important “status update.”
  Tell your followers what you’re doing, what you did, what you’re thinking or maybe just to share your latest haiku.  The status update has become the crutch for Social Internet.   What differs with this status update is the unlimited amount of characters you can enter.  No more using weird abbreviations in a struggle to express yourself in under 140 characters.  Also notable are the privacy settings, which are decided per post by choosing either public or private.  For the forgetful out there be sure to double-check before post. [the default is a public post]  Also, Buzz connects with Twitter. So all you Tweeps out there have no fear, you won’t miss a single tweet.

• Content sharing capabilities.
  Post links and videos into your updates to share with your followers. Along with Twitter, you can connect your Buzz account to your Flickr, Google Reader, Picasa, and YouTube accounts.  The content  you post on these other sites become part of your Buzz instantly.  One piece that I feel cannot go without mention is the photo gallery.  Accessed by clicking an image within the post, the photo gallery appears in light box style and allows for quality viewing and easy scrolling through the images within the post.

• Social Interactions.
  Users have the ability to interact with others in your network through commenting on posts, email forwarding, and  “liking” [To my disappointment there is still no “dislike” or “stoked” option for posts].  Comments are tracked by also being sent to your Gmail inbox.  Other social networks utilize the email notifications but Buzz and Gmail are part of the same platform so you get to save time and browser tabs.

• Suggestive Content.
  Buzz includes algorithms to suggest content which the algorithms deem interesting based on your past habits.  So if your friends aren’t sharing interesting content, at least  Buzz is there for you to hook you up with some good blog posts.

• The @ Reply.
  Buzz allows you to send @replys to others’ Gmail accounts.  The @reply, popularized by Twitter, is now the newest way to send emails.  Simply type @ and then the person’s Gmail address and you’re message is on its way.

• Buzz on the go.
  Buzz and Mobile were meant for each other.  Some of the mobile features include Buzz knowing your location, searching for people Buzzing nearby and layering capabilities with Google Maps.  Buzz mobile is accessible through mobile Google, Google Mobile maps and from buzz.google.com on iphone and android phones.

To become part of the buzz go here buzz.google.com. To watch a video about the buzz scroll down a little bit further. And lastly, to read more more of our cool posts about technology  click Tuesday Tech Tango.

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We are taught from a young age that sharing is a good thing. We’ve all heard the clever rhyme to induce sharing amongst youngsters: “sharing is caring.” In an age of a hyper-connected social web; knowledge sharing is caring. Your presence online is bolstered by your ability to generate content and share that content. Today I present to you a tool to share your knowledge through slide presentations. Presenting “Slide Share” for our Tuesday Tech Tango post.

Slide Share is a place for businesses to share slideshow presentations with the greater web community. Uploading and sharing slides is just the tip of the ice berg. Other features which may tickle your fancy are the ability to embed audio into the slides and upload general text and spreadsheet documents. Ok so you are thinking: “cool I can upload my documents; how does this differ from just emailing them?”

Social capabilities! Users have their own SlideShare profile page where other users can comment on their wall, create and join groups, follow favorite users, use custom widgets and also have their Slide Share accounts connected to LinkedIN and Facebook.

If your business creates documents for public consumption; specifically slide presentations, then Slide Share is definitely something worth your while. Not only will you have a convenient portal to direct folks interested in your presentation; you will be able to expand the audience for your presentations.

One last benefit of Slide Share is the credibility you can generate for your business. As a business, you are viewed as the expert.  The key to growing your perception as the expert is to share that expertise.  Slide Share is the key to sharing and becoming a resource for your community.

Enjoy the slides below from a presentation we did on the basics of Twitter. If you are interested in more knowledge via slide shows; visit VQC’s Facebook Page where our other presentations are posted.

| Get your SlideShare Playlist

Branding, originally a practice for identifying cattle in large pastures, is now an integral and complex marketing concept. Your business’s brand is the base for people’s initial judgments and original connotations, which are established almost instantly. Brand impressions are like first impressions; they happen once and will set the path for future engagements.

Original branding went only as far as having a logo trademarked, which draws from burning cattle hinds with wrought-iron. Lyle’s Golden Syrup lays claim to being Britain’s oldest brand, with their packaging being unchanged since 1885. Around the turn of the  previous century, marketers attaching slogans and jingles noticed people developing relationships with products. This led to the building of a brand’s personality and identity; allowing consumers to have a more meaningful relationship with a brand rather than just being aware it existed.

In the time of social media, brands have once again evolved. Brands have the capability to further their personality and identity via direct interaction. The branding process has progressed from displaying your brand to allowing customers to directly interact with your brand.

The 2008 presidential race is a prime example of having a social brand presence. Barak Obama utilized social media to generate a brand for himself that people could interact with. Obama’s Facebook Page is a place for individuals to comment and share their thoughts on his announcements. His Twitter Page shares announcements, thoughts and updates from the 44th president. Obama successfully created a social brand for himself which others could interact with and relate to.

When extending you or your business’s brand to the internet it is important to create a consistent image through your various portals. You should think of your website as the home-base of your web-based brand efforts. Customized websites can be designed in any way you would like your brand to be presented. From there create your Facebook and Twitter pages to resemble your site. Repetition is the key to memory; a consistent brand image will increase people’s recollection of your brand.

With a consistent image; the next step is having a consistent message. Each portal will vary in the way you engage your customers; but all messages should be fueled by a general topic. Keep in mind, you’re not trying to force-feed information to generate sales; you are trying to engage and interact with people. Build a community people can be a part of – your brand acting as the glue binding the community together. Keep this in mind and your social branding efforts will go far. Bust out the wrought-iron: time to get branded!

Community: “A group of people with a common characteristic or interest…”, this is how Webster’s defines a community. This idea is something very crucial to our species. Humans are social beings that build communities. Look around you, you live in a town community, you work in an office community. You belong to local communities and organizations and you enjoy these things. It is almost weird, not to be part of the community. “Outsiders, ewww, gross.” We all want to be part of something. To interact and engage is to be part of the community. The keywords in this phrase being interaction and I.

Social networks are enablers for creating interaction and engagement which are the foundation for community building. Instantaneous information allows individuals to discover those individuals with similar interests. I can go on Facebook and find other people with the taste in music, art, food, weekend activity, you name it, there is probably a group for it. By joining the group I become part of the community and am able to contribute through interactions and engagement.

I can go on Twitter and search for people who tweet about things that I am interested in. Perhaps it’s a cool new restaurant or a popular topic in the news. I am able to share my opinions just like we were having a face to face conversation. I can subscribe to lists and search hash tags to keep up with the conversations. A community has been formed and I am now a contributing member.

Or I can hop on LinkedIn and find like-minded professionals with valuable insights into my profession. Once I find my peers, I can check out the groups that they are in, join those groups and you guessed it, interact and engage the members of said groups. Viola! A new community has been formed.

You may think, well what good is a community if it’s spread half-way around the world. The reality is that, social networks can be vast, but you can focus on the specific by finding those individuals in your already existing, real-life communities. This is where the community building takes off: the ability to find common interests with locals and then interact and engage with the locals. Prior to social networks, I may have to talk to 50 people before I found someone who likes Fugazi, one of the weird bands I listen to. However now, I can easily find the Fugazi fans out there and we can discuss the classics.

As businesses, consider the possibilities. You define your target consumers with specific characteristics. Take those characteristics and define what type of communities they would be found in. Perhaps the characteristics you chose were A.independent, B.young, C.socially conscious and D. empowered. These individuals may be found in online communities centered on politics or local social movements. My point being is that the people are there, they are organized and social networks have enabled the building of your community, whatever your interests.

So with that,Welcome to our community, feel free to share a comment and interact with us; become part of the community!

The Apple Tablet?

The online grape vines are a-buzz with talks of Apple’s proposed tablet computer which could possibly “change the news media”, what Steve Jobs says is “the most important thing he has ever done” and what one Twitter user claims “to be able to remove lipstick from collar.”  Okay so maybe it won’t do all those things, but 2/3 isnt bad.  Get ready world; the itablet cometh, at least thats what’ve heard.

On Wednesday, Jan. 27th Apple will quiet all these rumors with a press event titled “Come See Our Latest Creation.” Although, there are no specifics as to what will be unveiled, there is visual evidence that an event is being planned. To witness the event first hand, you can watch live via Gizmodo.

So what you can expect from Apple this Wednesday:

• The rumor mill is leaning heavily towards the unveiling of a tablet computer for Apple. For Steve Jobs to come out and unveil something different would be a complete let down for tech-fans across the globe. Plus, Paddy Power, a UK bookkeeping service, is taking bets on the tablet’s name. So far “islate” is favorited with 4/5 odds and ‘itablet” is at 6/1 odds.

• A tablet computer with multi-touch screen interface, 3G connectivity, Wi-Fi and the ability to download print media including books, magazines, newspapers and textbooks. These are the supposed key features for the tablet, which is beginning to sound a lot like a large version of the iphone. The separating factor will be the subscriptions offered for traditional print media.

• A device that looks and acts like an enlarged iphone. Online concepts stay true to the iphone’s design. The user-interface will most likely include Apple’s multi-touch technology, which is being introduced across an array of Apple  products.

• An explosion of tweets leading up to and following the event in San Francisco. Search #itablet in Twitter and you can keep up to date with all the rumors and add your own thoughts to the mix.

The proposed Apple tablet computer will be entering markets occupied by net books and e-readers like the Kindle. But, as we can always expect from Apple, the tablet will be something completely unique and stand in a field of its own. Just as the ipods did in the portable mp3 market and the iphone in the cell phone market. The big question is who will provide service to the tablet computer and will it be determined by the size of their map?

With iPhones, 3Gs and the ubiquitous Google; us humans have become accustomed to having answers at our finger tips. Just as long as we could type in our question.  However, how often have you been out with friends staring at some big monumental piece of architecture and wondered, hmmmm, I wonder what this is but have no way to describe it? Or perhaps you have a book you are interested in learning about but don’t have enough motivation to type in the title.  Or maybe even you receive a business card and would like more information on the company but once again do not desire to type in the full contact information.

Viola! Your wants and desires are once again satiated by Google.  Google Labs released Google Goggles on Monday.  Google Goggles is a visual search tool for Android Devices.  Snap a photo and Google Goggles is able to decipher what your picture is and search based on your picture.

Due to its freshness, the new technology does have its limitations.  For now, Google Goggles is only available on Android enabled smart phones.  (Don’t fret iPhone users, you can utilize other augmented reality applications for your visual search needs.)  Also, not all subjects are easily recognized by Google Goggles; think more general objects like food, cars, animals and people.  The Goggles will recognize artwork, business cards, landmarks, logos and books.

This technology could open up new realms of search optimization and internet marketing. Imagine a world where search optimization plays a roll in the manufacturing phase of products and buildings.   Will search’s influence continue to grow and take us to this level?

Becoming a popular, widely-used tool takes time and a lot of public speculation.  Looking back through history,  some of the greatest inventions and innovations initially deemed useless have left significant impact on society.  Things like cell phones, Velcro, and the Internet.  These inventions all faced initial public apprehension and  criticism but have since proven to significantly improve society and its processes.

Twitter falls into this category of being extremely beneficial but facing public apprehension and criticism.   With over 40 million users since its 2006 birth, Twitter is one of the fastest growing forms of communication to date.  The services rapid growth has provided many potential benefits to business as well as personal use.  However, apprehension about using the service is excluding many from the benefits of having a Twitter account.

Branding / Marketing
Twitter has the potential to be an extension of your brand.  Through participation in Twitter conversations, your business has the opportunity to create a positive image in the customers’ minds.  Involvement generates awareness, which in turn, will bring your brand to the forefront of customers’ minds when they are in the marketplace making decisions.  Not only can Twitter build awareness, it also adds a personal level to your company and its brand.   Take a look at this list of companies who utilize Twitter to present a personal side of their business.  Most tweets are not specifically about selling a product or service, but rather focused on the idea and image behind the specific product and service.  Take for example, Starbucks’ Twitter feed which does not attempt to push the Venti Latte but rather captures the aura of Starbucks’ brand and identity.  Creating this identity makes your Twitter page interesting thus making your business interesting.

Communication
Furthermore, Twitter provides an extremely low-cost method of being directly involved with consumers’ communication.  First, Twitter can be used to target the users of your product.  After locating these users, you can become involved in their conversations through answering questions, providing insights or just providing general information about your business.  Take Kogi BBQ, a mobile Korean BBQ Taco Truck based out of Los Angeles, CA., as a an example of an information provider.  Kogi uses Twitter to inform customers of the locations of its various BBQ trucks.  Visit their Twitter page and you will see various tweets about each individual truck’s location and special lunch deals.  With 46,926 followers, Kogi has found an inexpensive way to keep its customers informed and interested in their service through Twitter.

Creating Beneficial Relationships
Creating a brand and successful communication on Twitter can lead to the building of a successful business relationship.  Having the successful business relationship involves a combination of sharing information and handling customer’s inquiries and complaints.  Local cable provider, Comcast, has excelled at using Twitter as a hub for customer service.  Senior Director of Comcast’s National Customer Service, Frank Eliason, uses his Twitter account to field customer complaints, comments and service issues.  By using Twitter, Eliason has made providing cable, a very impersonal service, personal through Twitter.  Check out Comcast’s Twitter page to see Elison in action, handling questions and creating goodwill for Comcast’s customers.

These three examples scratch the surface of how Twitter can be utilized.  With a growing base of users, Twitter’s potential for business grows daily.  Becoming involved with the service now will generate more opportunities for your business in the future.  Take the leap and get involved with the new wave of communication at http://www.twitter.com.  Now is the perfect time to sign up and follow VQC Designs because we are giving away a brand new Acer Netbook!  Visit VQC Designs’ Twitter-Hunt page for more details.

Don your best tweed jacket and tobacco pipe and call up your friend Watson for VQC’s upcoming contest, The Twitter-Hunt.  A twitter-exclusive scavenger hunt existing solely within the Twitter-verse of VQC Designs twitter feed.  Finding VQC’s questions and providing the correct answers could score you a sweet, sexy and very mobile Acer – Aspire One Netbook!

We will be showcasing the tiny netbook’s large capabilities on November 12th at the 2009 Harrisburg Chamber Business Expo being held at the PA Farm Show Complex.  Here you will get a chance to hang out with VQC Designs and see first-hand the beauty, size and power of the netbook.  Also, by attending the Expo and visiting our booth, #440, you’ll be giving yourself a better chance to own the netbook for yourself.  All you need to attend is a business card and you will be granted free admission into the Expo.

For the twitter-hunt you can view the complete details page at vqcdesigns.com/netbook.  For now, here is a quick run-down of how things will unfold.  In the next week, questions will be tweeted from our twitter account: twitter.com/vqcdesigns.  Each question will be numbered and have the hash tag #VQC.  The hash-tag is imperative for us to keep track of who is chatting.  Therefore, no hash tag, no netbook.

Once a question is posted, you will retweet the question to become eligible for that specific question.  Once you have “re-tweeted” the question, you may send us your answer through direct-message on Twitter to @vqcdesigns.  Be sure to note the question number in your answer so we’re able to correctly identify which answers correspond with what questions.  Each question you answer correctly provides you with another chance in the drawing to win the netbook. Due to our hectic work schedule and the desire to not make this too easy, we will be tweeting questions at random, so you better check often so as to not miss a question.

So how does attending the Harrisburg Expo pay off?  Well aside from spending time with the guys and gals from VQC designs, you’ll also have a leg-up on the competition of the twitter-hunt.  A few of our questions will be strictly derived from the happenings of the Farm Show complex on November 12th.  It could be anything from how much is the popcorn at the vendor stand to what color shoes is the guy wearing at the booth next to VQC’s.  Therefore, attending and answering questions correctly will undoubtedly increase your chances in comparison to those who decide to stay home.  Good times and chances at free stuff, come on, how could you NOT show up, it’s elementary my dear, Watson.

ClickableNow.com – Clickable Now is the twitterverse’s newest and coolest improvement; twitter backgrounds that have clickable links!  Clickable provides a means to place live, active links in your twitter background.  Now your sweet twitter background will actually be clickable and drive traffic to your blog or website and not just look freakin’ awesome.

Building Twitter backgrounds is quite easy with a basic Photoshop knowledge and idea for a background.  Utilizing this nice Photoshop template you can easily create a background and check its compatibility with Twitter Background.  Once you have your background established and uploaded on twitter, go through ClickableNow.com to drag and drop links into your background and begin the driving of traffic to your website! Enjoy the added traffic and make sure to check out our twitter background @vqcdesigns.