dexter roona's List: Indianaoneblogger

""[Luke], I am your father." That infamous Star Wars line is a prime example of how a well-crafted plot twist can breathe new life into any story.

We've been thinking about plot twists this month in Mashable's social book club MashableReads, as we read James McBride's The Good Lord Bird. As readers follow Little Onion, a slave who is rescued (or kidnapped, depending on who you ask) from slavery by John Brown, The Good Lord Bird shocks readers with a variety of plot twists, including the fact that Little Onion is a boy who is posing as a girl to survive."

"It’s no secret that I am a big advocate for using Instagram in social media. If you follow my blog, you know that I dedicate every Monday’s post to tips and advice on how best to use Instagram for marketing. As much as I love this platform though, I know a lot of you are either new to the platform or haven’t yet set up an account. With that in mind, I’ve put together the Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Instagram."

"Still waiting for that owl to deliver your acceptance letter to Hogwarts? Well, it may be too late for that but it isn’t too late to become a wizard of social media!

Recently, Forrester conducted a study on the various types of social media platforms and came up with some interesting data. Having your business present on Google Plus is definitely worth including into your marketing strategy.

“Brands’ Google Plus posts generated nearly as much engagement per follower as their Facebook posts — and almost twice as much engagement per follower as their Twitter posts.”"

"This year it seems we can’t go a day without a murder story, a shock-factor story or someone making inappropriate comments.

The second part of this happens to be social media. After the story is released, someone always says the following, “after news was released, the word quickly spread on social media platforms and it was the topic of conversation”. (This is the new word-of-mouth) Right or wrong, the media is always reporting that news traveled quickly over social media."

"Think you need dozens of tools to promote your blog? Think again.

In this post you’ll discover how to promote your blog with just 3!

Whether you’re a blogging newbie on a tight budget, or an internet superstar living it up in the cloud, we can all relate to that one scary thing – how overwhelming blogging is when you first start out."

"There are many rumors around if Google+ is dying based around Vic leaving and some other stories.
Now, if Google+ did get dropped, which seems hard to believe based on all the integration it has across all of Google's properties, but if it is, how would that impact SEO and the search results?"

"Those who have Twitter accounts might have engaged in live-tweeting. Anyone can become involved in it – as William Shatner showed recently – and it’s easy to see why. The idea of sharing one’s thoughts on new episodes of television shows, for example, is an appealing one, especially when given the broad scope of Twitter. However, are you certain that you are getting the most out of this as possible?"

"You'd think people would know better than to share damaging info online. Alas, no. Not even close.

On the Internet, anything that can be used to act stupid will be used to act stupid. Like the bank intern who told the boss he had a family emergency and then posted photos of himself at a Halloween party on Facebook. Now that Twitter has become the favored medium for oversharing, so too has it become the best way to get fired, double quick. Resume Bear just did a quick Twitter search, and posted 30 tweets likely to haunt their authors. We've excerpted a few below. The rest are here. You've been warned."

"A site called Pinterest is growing like crazy and none of us are talking about it enough.

What Tumblr was to 2011, Twitter was to 2007, and Facebook was to 2006, a site called Pinterest is to 2012."

"The future of digital marketing is bright. The global retail brand's consumer has evolved with the advent of new technology and channels, and these channels demand a new type of marketer. With more marketing metrics and tactics than ever before, modern marketers must look at the current trends to prepare their strategies for the future"

"How one Irish woman made $22bn for Apple in a year
A private individual who shuns publicity, Cathy Kearney is thought to be the brains behind the Cork office that has helped save Apple billions"

"From management, to marketing, to finances — business skills of all varieties are critical to have in this economy and incredibly beneficial no matter what your situation.
In this article we’ve collected 15 different websites that will help you sharpen your business skill set in a number of different ways. Each of these sites is an incredible source of information, and some of them are easily worth reading on a daily basis.
Here’s the list:"

"There are fewer than 10,000 Google Glass headsets in the wild—2,000 in the hands of developers and another 8,000 trickling out to early adopters—but already, creative entrepreneurs are thinking ahead to what will be a brand new, multi-billion dollar industry: accessories for Glass and other face-based computers.

Accessories for smartphones were a $20 billion business in 2012, and are projected to be a $38 billion business by 2017. That’s a lot of protective cases, keyboard stands and speaker docks. If Google Glass and the many competitors that will inevitably follow eventually ship in numbers that are even a fraction of the market for smartphones, you can bet that a healthy trade in accessories will arise to serve the world’s cyborgs."

"Italy’s ambitious organized crime syndicates are still killing people and trafficking drugs and weapons, but their latest bet is eco-friendly businesses.

The cash-heavy groups are tapping into corporate cost-cutting in Europe’s crisis-torn economy, including the often exorbitant expenses required to properly dispose of waste, according to a recent report by European law enforcement agency Europol. The Italian mafia is famous for its forays into waste management, but thanks to shrinking budgets and tightening environmental regulations in Europe, illegal dumping and waste trafficking are booming under the guise of eco-friendly trash disposal. They’re high-return low-risk endeavors that are rarely prosecuted, Europol says."

"For most people who start a one-person business, riches don’t follow. The U.S. Census Bureau’s recently released annual report on “non-employer” businesses found that there were 22.5 million “nonemployer firms” in 2011. They had average revenues of $44,000. That’s in the ballpark of the average annual wage in the U.S. of $45,790, though, of course, any overhead the owners must pay comes out of their revenue."

"I was going to call this article “All 'Social Media Experts' Need To Go Die In A Fire,” but I figured I should be nicer than that.
But my title stands. If you call yourself a social media expert, don’t even bother sending me your resume.

No business in the world should want one on their team. They shouldn’t want a guru, rockstar or savant, either. If you have a social media expert on your payroll, you’re wasting your money."

"The blogger vs. journalist debate has been a heated topic for years. Bloggers are influential, educational and informative, but some believe (including an Oregon court) blogging doesn’t equate to journalism, hence bloggers aren’t considered by some as completely legitimate resources. However, with the influx and influence of blogs, several traditional news media outlets, including The New York Times, have adapted and taken on a more blog stylistic approach. This year, The Huffington Post (considered a blog) won a Pulitzer Prize, which is typically awarded for “achievements in newspaper and online journalism.” This was considered a well-deserved victory for blogosphere credibility. However, The Huffington Post also adheres to several standard journalistic practices, something all bloggers should do."

"Sell your services as a freelancer.  One of the best ways to make money is to offer services including but not limited to web design, graphic design, copywriting, translation, etc.  Some of the main freelancing websites include: Elance.com, Freelancer.com, Guru.com, vWorker.com, GetACoder.com (not just for coding) and oDesk.com.  For a more comprehensive list of freelancing sites, visit this FreelanceSwitch.com article.
Run a college moving service.  Do you have a truck or van? Run an end-of-the-school-year college moving service for fairly local students.  Hang up flyers at the start of the finals period.
Become a holiday chef for hire. If you don’t celebrate Christmas and/or Thanksgiving, advertise yourself as a holiday dinner chef for hire.  This will give your employer(s) more time with family."

"As the economy struggles to rebound and households continue to scale back on spending, there is an increasing trend in the business world toward investing in corporate social responsibility. Even in these tough economic times, companies realize the importance of supporting local communities and philanthropic causes. Supporting a cause that positively reflects on a brand and its core values demonstrates a commitment to making a difference. Today’s #E2sday looks at “The Business of Giving” and how companies are making an impact on philanthropies."

"Getting people to say “yes” is the goal for any sales message. It’s what psychologists call “compliance.”

However, my first exposure to the idea of compliance was not in a psychology book, but beneath a tree decades ago when my grandfather, in a moment of playfulness, showed me something startling with a stick and a few red feathers."