Archive for the internet marketing

Under the revised Guides, advertisements that feature a consumer and convey his or her experience with a product or service as typical when that is not the case will be required to clearly disclose the results that consumers can generally expect. In contrast to the 1980 version of the Guides – which allowed advertisers to describe unusual results in a testimonial as long as they included a disclaimer such as “results not typical” – the revised Guides no longer contain this safe harbor.

The revised Guides also add new examples to illustrate the long standing principle that “material connections” (sometimes payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers – connections that consumers would not expect – must be disclosed. These examples address what constitutes an endorsement when the message is conveyed by bloggers or other “word-of-mouth” marketers. The revised Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement. Thus, bloggers who make an endorsement must disclose the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service. Likewise, if a company refers in an advertisement to the findings of a research organization that conducted research sponsored by the company, the advertisement must disclose the connection between the advertiser and the research organization. And a paid endorsement – like any other advertisement – is deceptive if it makes false or misleading claims.

Read the entire article at http://ftc.gov/opa/2009/10/endortest.shtm

The following is a reprint of the FAQ’s Page from Twitter. The Direct URL is- http://help.twitter.com/forums/10711/entries/13920

Follow me on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/willcorrente

twitter is becoming an essential part of a businesses social media mix and an increasingly important part of my small business consulting practice, i definitely recommend you become familiar with twitter!

Here are the Q & A’s I found most helpful:

What is it?
Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages. People write short updates, often called “tweets” of 140 characters or fewer. These messages are posted to your profile or your blog, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter search.

What does it mean to follow someone on Twitter?

Following someone simply means receiving their Twitter updates. When you follow someone, every time they post a new message, it will appear in your Twitter home page. New messages are added to your home page as people post them, so you always get the updates in real time. When you log in, you can see what the latest updates are. Twitter offers other ways to follow people too: you can get updates from certain people on your phone!

How can I send updates to Twitter?

Twitter offers many ways to post updates: from the web in the update box, from your phone, from your mobile web browser using m.twitter.com, or from any third party application made by the talented folks who’ve utilized our API.

Can I put my Twitter updates on my blog?

Yep! Put a Twitter badge on your blog, website, MySpace… anything that accepts Javascript or HTML. You can even customize your Twitter badge to match! 

What are @Replies?
An @reply is a public message sent from one person to another, distinguished from normal updates by the @username prefix. If a message begins with @username, we collect it as a reply and post it in the replies tab. Reply publicly to any update on Twitter by using the @username format. Following is not necessary to reply to someone, and all of your replies are visible in the replies tab of your home page sidebar.

What are Direct Messages?

Direct messages are private messages sent from one Twitter person to another. You can only send a direct message to a person who follows you. When you receive a direct message, we save it in your direct message inbox, accessible from the Direct Message tab in the sidebar in your home page. Set your email preferences to notify you by mail if you have a new message.

Can I edit a tweet once I post it?
Nope. Once it’s out there, you can’t edit it. You can delete an update by clicking the trash icon on the right end of the update, but you can’t make changes.

What is the difference between an @reply and a direct message?
An @reply is a public message sent regardless of follow-ship that anyone can view. A direct message can only be sent by someone you follow, and is a private message that only the author and recipient can view.

Fun Stuff: friends, favorites, and stats!
There’s more to Twitter than OFF and ON! Use the commands below to send private messages, mark updates as favorites, or even remind someone to update their Twitter page if you’re wondering what they’re doing!

@username + message
directs a twitter at another person, and causes your twitter to save in their “replies” tab.
Example: @willcorrente I love that song too!

D username + message
sends a person a private message that goes to their device, and saves in their web archive.
Example: d willcorrente want to pick a Jamba Juice for me while you’re there?

WHOIS username
retrieves the profile information for any public user on Twitter.
Example: whois jack

GET username
retrieves the latest Twitter update posted by the person.
Example: get willcorrente

NUDGE username
reminds a friend to update by asking what they’re doing on your behalf.
Example: nudge biz

FAV username
marks a person’s last twitter as a favorite. (hint: reply to any update with FAV to mark it as a favorite if you’re receiving it in real time)
Example: fav al3x
STATS this command returns your number of followers, how many people you’re following, and your bio information.

INVITE phone number
will send an SMS invite to a friend’s mobile phone.
Example: Invite 415 555 1212