All Entries in the "NameCritic" Category

Twitter as a Workflow Management Tool

I’ve seen twitter.com criticized and praised. Each time the person doing the commenting is basing their opinion on their own experience with twiiter, so none of them are really wrong or right.

Twitter is one of those online tools that defies definition. Try to define twitter in their own 140 character format. If 100 people defined twitter in 140 characters, there would be at least 90 different definitions.

One of the criticisms is that twitter is a time-waster in the workplace, that employees are spending too much time on twitter and not doing enough work. That may be true in some instances.

However, twiiter can be used for workflow management. Let’s talk about your to do list. Hopefully you make one each day and prioritize the tasks you need to complete.

When you start each task, make a twitter post saying you are starting that task. Then when you finish, make a post that you finished. Look for the post you made at the start and it will tell you how long ago you posted it, also telling you how long it took you to complete the task.

An employer whose employees did this could simply follow all of his employees and see what they are getting done and how long it takes them to do each task.

The accounts for your employees should not be the same as their personal twitter account. They should have one account just for work. You could even set the user accounts up for them and have them log in each day and use the twitter.com free workflow management tool.

hey, just an idea.

Buying From TemplateMonster.com Not Worth The Hassle

I understand the need for security with online purchases and advise clients on that all the time, but TemplateMonster.com takes the cake.

I find a template i like. I order it. Simple right? No. I even have to look up my bank’s phone number to include in the form. No big deal right? Just a little more time. A little more chance for me to change my mind. But I do it.

Then I get an email saying that since they could not reach me immediately by phone, (I was on with a client), they can’t send me my download link for the template I purchased.

Does TemplateMonster.com actually want to make a sale? Do they actually want more business? Why not go ahead and ask for an in-person appointment while you are at it. Require the names of my children, my mother’s maiden name, a secret question, the street my family lived on when I was born, where my mother was born, and to top it off, put in a captcha that is really hard to read.

TemplateMonster.com, you need to understand, you are not doing us a favor by allowing us to purchase what you sell. We do you a favor if we decide to buy something from you.

EDIT: Oh wait. It gets better. The email says I must respond right away if I want the template I paid for. But when I email them, the email bounces. So now I had to get their number and call them.

A lot of work just to buy something from someone. The exact way NOT to set up your purchasing system.

Starting Monday November 3rd SEO Radio Will Be On Air At 3pm

There will be a live show every day, starting Monday, November 3rd, at 3pm each day. There will be guests, contests, prizes, and more. We invite all online business people to attend and learn about marketing on the web.