Webinars may seldom be charming. However, they are the most widely recognized application of business to virtual space. The ball got rolling with globalization driving internet and social media towards business virtualization.

Professionals work online, train online, and worry more about online reputation management than about the relations that they share with their colleagues. Within all this, webinars consume a significant and vital space. Let’s face it though; they are boring and unbearable to the extent of torturing. Moreover, they seem like a one way ‘forced’ conversation. Since they are obviously ultimately boring they don’t have a great success rate. How do you turn the tables then, and make them one of the best ways to capture audience interest? Here are a few tips:

Bring Out the Blog: Pre webinar blog posts often give people a fine idea about what the webinar would entail. They work like an energizer and motivator.  Keep the blog crisp and concise. Don’t give out the details here. The blog will serve as a guide or a manual to evoke participation in the webinar.

Focus on Industry Updates: A webinar without current industry updates is like stale bread. You can’t make anything out of it. Facts and figures are important; and so are trends. Even if there is nothing interesting to talk about, the way you present the numbers can make the whole difference. Invite people to comment on the trends and talk about what they think about progress. Ask them if they see progress happening, or otherwise.

Understand Audience Behaviour: People are likely to pay attention to other social media platforms, happily chatting their time away if they encounter even a bit of boredom during a webinar. Analyzing and understanding audience behaviour and reaction is a way of predicting feedback. Mock webinars can help you get more accurate results.

As the adage goes – first impressions are the last impressions – so is the case with webinars too. A welcome slide for the webinar should hook the audience. Your half the job is done there and then, is it? No! You need to proceed in an equally engaging manner to make your webinar a hit.

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When launching a new site or revamping an existing one, social media optimization remains the crux, in order to attract an interested demographic and to grow brand awareness and visibility. With these five tips, you can understand and avoid the most common mistakes in this sphere. 

Specifying Domains: This simply means that you should have the favourable option of either http://www.xyz.com or http://xyz.com. Redi­recting the preferable one solves this quickly.

JavaScript and CSS Control: For aspirations of search engine optimization, framework sites that are plug-in heavy have this problem. If cutting down on the script used and the CSS displayed is not feasible, running them through external files will enable faster load times.

Exam­ple: <script type=‘text/relevant-type’ src=‘http:/xyz.com/location-of-relevant-file.js’></script>

Advantages of Sitemap: Using an XML sitemap is hugely beneficial. The tools for this are available online in abundance.

Search engine optimization is achieved by making your pages and website more discoverable as search engines pick them up. It also assigns degrees of importance to different content.

Title Tag Format: While title tags are elements to the page header, they could also be visible at the top, depending on the browser.

It is also the text, which can be clicked as the results appear in an organic search. Not only are they a ranking criterion, but they also influence click-through rates.

Points:

• Title tags should not cross 70 cha­rac­ters, with spaces
• Avoid excessively filling with keywords
• Essential keywords should comprise the start of each title tag

Lac­king or Dupli­cate Desc­rip­tion Tags: Desc­rip­tion tags are visible in search results. They appear below clickable text and are created by search engines, which assign importance, when the tags are not compiled. It is far better to decide for yourself on the information that will be visible to your audience rather than automated decisions, in this case at least.

The possibly worst and most common mistake in search engine optimization functioning is the repeated usage of a description tag across multiple pages. This makes the process redundant and it is better to have blank descriptions for other pages.

Rules of Thumb:

• With spaces, description tags should not exceed 150 characters
• Every page should have a distinct description tag
• These tags should complement title tag keywords.

Gaining an insight into these unpopular mistakes that most websites and businesses make empowers you to succeed, without the impediment of wary operations. Follow these tips and make good on your promise to operate a website with full search engine optimization.

Image courtesy mashable.com

Colours – They remind you of two things – the joyous festival of holi; and, the uninterrupted, essential variety of life. Take for example social media. There is absolutely no dearth of variety in the purpose and usage of these platforms. You have the red queen Pinterest, Blue bird Twitter, a blue and white journal Facebook, and many more ways of keeping entertained. Social Media indeed is motley of interesting ideas to draw from. Each platform, however, has a USP. The confluence of connectivity with social media is an interesting development that the Internet has witnessed.

The world today enjoys many facets of this platform. There are innumerable social media platforms waiting to be explored. Not just that – there is a lot that you can do with and on each of those platforms. Even though you are doing a number of things on social media, there are a number of activities that you can take up of which you don’t even have an inkling of idea about. Finding a job, learning a language, chatting, dating, keeping in touch – all can be done through a single social media platform. Here are some variants of is worldwide usage:

• From Black Churches to Everyday businesses, every organization makes use of social media in a manner that suits them. Have you ever heard about a court room trial being tweeted about? That’s what Courier-Post did once.
• Another important aspect of social media is that it thrives on change. Since technology is the base of every social media activity, a small change in technology can open a number of avenues in the periphery of social media.
• Varied social media platforms are suitable for laptops and desktops. With the invention of smart phones, using social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest on phone has become feasible.

While the four main slices of the social media pie can be divided into video updates, test updates, photo updates, and content updates, there are many other things that social media has made possible.  Think Farmville for example; apart from the fun and enjoyment that it provides, the game teaches a lot of farming. With social media, be a little creative and a lot creative, to realize all the facets of the platforms.

Image courtesy seelevel.com

P.S. this is not to say that Google isn’t already leading.

A lot is expected from Google in 2013. With Facebook changing its search strategy it is expected that Google with unveil its new tactics as well. Till that happens (if it really has to) let us look at what the markets contemplate:

1. An Unbeatable Google+ - Even though Google+ is well developed and has a number of uses, n one has really bothered to use it till date. Add-ons and upgrades are expected in Google+ this year and so is a better marketing strategy. For those who don’t know Google + is already considered far better than Facebook in certain categories. In 2013 users want to be the cream of social media. Maybe till date Google + has not been able to make a mark because it is trying to capture an audience that has.
2. Google Growth - In 2012 Google grew both in size and in operations. In 2013 it has to keep up to its expansion plans. The industry expects Google to own the companies that it acquired in the year gone by.
3. Better Awareness about Google+ - It’s sad that a remarkable innovation like Google+ is going waste because no one understands its purpose clearly. It’s not just a social networking site; it’s a social backplane service. The larger goal is to connect the data from all around the world and not just the people. The smaller agenda is to enhance information sharing.
4. Android 5.0 - The world wants a better android in 2013 and wants Google to beat the rest in coming up with the change. To stop the world from turning away from the Android fever Google will have to innovate in time.

The Internet is a pretty place to delve in. And 2013 will bring many more interesting features to keep busy with the net. Industry trends point out that there is a bigger and better on the cards. Will it be Google all the way in 2013?

Image courtesy hresources1.news.com.au

Google has always encouraged and even spearheaded innovation. In 1998, Google started a new phenomenon with a series of doodles. The first doodle honoured the “Burning Man Festival” and as the years followed, the phenomenon picked up pace and got more creative and funkier. Let’s take a look at the most interesting doodles of 2012.

1. Hisashige Tanaka’s 213th Birthday: To honour the great Japanese inventor, Google created quite an intuitive doodle with flash animation. As Hisashige Tanaka created the Karakuri dolls, Google also created a doodle which portrayed the mechanical prowess of his inventions.

2. 107th Anniversary of Little Nemo in Slumberland: This is probably one of the most elaborate doodles Google has ever created. This doodle honoured master draftsman Winsor McCay who was one of the most remarkably talented storytellers the world has ever seen. The doodle consisted of a series of animated sketches which told an interesting story about the adventure of a boy.

3. Robert Moog’s 78th Birthday: How could Google ignore one of the finest creations gifted to the world by Dr. Robert Moog. As a token of gratitude to Bob Moog’s unique inventions, the Google Doodle created a close version of the keyboard, consistent with the theme of 1960s music.

4. Julia Child’s 100th Birthday: For the love of Julia Child, Google Doodle celebrated her birthday with a Google Doodle. Celebrating in the honour of someone who has been an ardent supporter of causes close to her heart was a small yet significant tribute.

5. Howard Carter’s 138th Birthday: It was the most FUN Google Doodle ever. Some may say that it had a kind of dizzying effect; nonetheless, it was addictive. Intricately detailed, this doodle also ranks as one of the best of 2012.

Now, Google creates doodles to honour major festivals of the year, known personalities and various other things. With its doodles, Google has given its followers an extra something to look forward to.

Images’ courtesy google.com

Remember the uninformed and surprising entry of the Facebook Timeline? A number of us did not like the very idea of it, and its usage was definitely not in question. Many of my online friends were completely against it and voiced their criticism against the time-line feature pretty openly. Discussions about the time-line that led to unfair opinions against Zuckerberg and his declining sense of design were so common that I doubt if an unintended viral may not have affected  the opinion of even those who would have liked to give a thumbs-up (read: like) to the time-line feature.

You may or may not be comfortable with the timeline settings for now but what matters is if you have switched to it then it is indeed good for you. I have a silly habit of searching for things that seem disconcerting. The timeline feature in particular was for example one of the many ‘not-so-important-yet-on-my-mind’ things that undoubtedly was something that I wanted to know more about. Why so much of a brouhaha over something that was only a part of the virtual world? Why is everyone discussing it? Actually, no one was really discussing it. EVERYBODY WAS CRITIQUING. So, I took to studying the timeline and to my surprise what seemed useless for a complete bundle of goodies. I now can’t think of another way of great online marketing.

Many businesses as of present have switched to the timeline feature but haven’t been able to figure out how to benefit from it. In a market that is inexorably focused on social media, the Facebook timeline has given businesses some extremely simple ways of getting ahead with online marketing.

Advantage Cover Photo

The cover photo becomes an evident part of your Facebook profile once you have agreed to use the timeline. Inarguably, this is the most important feature of the timeline also as it a strategically thought adding that helps businesses to improve the visual-designs of their companies. This is the place where you communicate with the world in pictures. This is where on-line marketing is at its active most level. Put a cover photo that draws attention and captures the essence of your business. Be creative, take it seriously and the timeline will come alive, acting as a salesman for your business.

A Tryst at the Template

 Many of us may not know that it’s not just the look that has changed but so has the purpose and intent. Facebook timeline allows a lot more interaction and rendezvous than the earlier version did. You can make use of the template/body at the advantage of online marketing. Highlight items on your page, feature stories, and pin to other websites for a full-fledged online marketing experience. And, then there is a bar to the right-side just below the cover photo which contains four boxes labelled pictures, maps, notes, etc. You can intelligently customize these boxes to display the products, brochures and content of the company.

Knowing the Admin Panel

 No one paid attention to this, right? Well, the admin panel which is a useful part of the timeline is a feature that monitors all the activity that is taking place on your business page. There is also an “Insight Box” that is helpful to convert the user data into a statistical and/or graphical form. This helps you analyze your popularity and reach towards the World Wide Web audience.

The Kolaveri Di about the Timeline took some time to settle but its now time you start benefiting from the well-planned strategy.

Initially corporate trainings were synonymous with never ending program schedules and celebrations. Induction programs meant going to beautiful locales, stationing new employees in high class hotels to attend seminars and work shops. This procedure used to fall heavy on logistics as well as expenditures. Then, economic slowdown, rising inflation and increasing need of talented human capital has led the corporate world to switch to modern technologies for more effective and cheaper means of communication.
Relief came for corporate trainers when a few years ago, a research done by Forrester Research on Computer and Web-based training revealed that use of digital communication media for web based training initiatives resulted in higher completion rate, trainees found it more acceptable and efficient as they could run these programmes at their own pace and compared to traditional training, this proved to be more cost effective.

Digital communication has long been acknowledged as a self paced, dependable and the only alternative to conventional instructor led training. As mentioned above Forrester Research revealed that computer and web based training reaped higher rates of completion because web has always been an intriguing media for everyone, it has not only helped the novice but also professional trainers in improving their own performances. The ‘self paced’ characteristic of digital communication helps employees in engaging in learning processes whenever they find time, without disrupting their work schedules. The third finding of the research revealed that companies found web based training more reliable in long run as it enabled them to get more work out of fewer efforts and lesser budgets.

The corporate world is constantly evolving and at this point of time the competition, technology and tools are rising up and amalgamating together to define what business education and training will look like on the World Wide Web.

Different ways of e- training

e-training today has been made more accessible and more interesting. The interactive nature and the use of multiple media have generated more interest amongst corporate trainees. e-learning is a confluence of myriad technologies that make it more exciting. Here are a few e-learning methods or trends that have already proved their efficiency in the arena of digital communications.

Video Conferencing

Video conferencing is a computer based learning tool that has been there in the corporate world for quite some time now. This digital technique has helped the corporate world in diminishing boundaries. A video conferencing provides an effective platform to address audiences across the globe through a single instructor. Recent addition to this tool is that one no longer needs to be present live in the conference room while the video conference is on. Now the live audience can be extended to anyone with access to a web browser. Intelligent portals with strict security controls look after such video conferences and make sure that right information is provided to right users. The advent of technology has lead enterprises to leverage existing conference room assets into virtual class rooms that span across continents.

Audio Instructions

Research shows that some people are able to concentrate better on visual medium and some are more receptive to sound. For people who are more receptive to audio medium and for the ones who are visually challenged, digital communications have provided a wider horizon to impart knowledge and train corporate employees through sounds, voiceovers and music. A lot of people find it boring and difficult to read off the computer screen, for them voiceovers or sound effects not only make reading interesting but also help them concentrate better as sound is a personal medium that generates pictures in the mind. Voiceovers also aid in customizing the e-learning process according to the target audience’s language. For instance Enterprises in which training manuals are printed in regional languages generally combine their texts with a translation in English or any other regional language to connect with trainees from different cultural backgrounds.

Graphics or Comic Strips

Graphics or over simplified comic strips are being used effectively to leverage circumstantial role plays. Certain soft skills like negotiation skills, body language and objection handling skills can be best explained in situation only. A verbal or textual account cannot have as much impact as a visual account. Hence simplified comic strips, caricatures or video graphics are used to teach trainees how to handle certain situations and the role they are supposed to play in those situations.

Games

Games are no longer frivolous or a waste of time. They are being effectively used to give circumstantial exposures to corporate trainees and to test their skills. Most corporate trainers have a range of favorite games for which the results are tried and tested before hand. These games give a wider scope of exposure and interaction. The interactive nature of web has transformed gaming into a powerful gaming tool today. Games make the training process more fun and exciting. The army has been using games for training since 1980s and the corporate games market is small but it is growing at a fast pace. Such games make up for 15% of the serious or non entertainment category of the gaming industry.

Virtual Trainer

Why would a company pay for an entire team of trainees go to a particular job site or production site to learn the production techniques when the job site itself can reach the trainees on their desktops and PCs? Yes, the video technology has also transformed the digital learning process. Now it is possible for enterprises to take their new trainees on a virtual tour of their distant production sites with the help of video clips. Now with the help of Chroma Key technology, it is also possible to have a trainer in the video clip explaining the production module without the instructor having to be present at the location. This saves time and cost for the enterprise to set up an entire shoot at the production site. All that they need to do is get footage of the production site and rest everything can be digitally manipulated while editing sessions. The web now allows streaming such videos and uploading them so that any employee with web access can enlighten himself with such virtual training sessions.

Video

Much of training is about using a Show-and-Tell model to teach people. The limitation of the old WBT modules lay in their inability to show something in a dynamic way (video) and to actually talk about it (audio). Now, leveraging an Internet technology known as Flash Video, it is possible to deliver fast-loading, lightweight video content without gobbling up enormous Gigs of bandwidth. Moreover, the video can be programmed to start playing while the rest of the file continues to load at the backend — thus, the trainee does not have to wait for the whole file to load before he/she can view the video.

Conclusion

As tools and technology mature, an increasing number of choices will be available for business learning via the Web including off-the-shelf turnkey solutions for customers who desire shrink-wrapped solutions and powerful development tools for organizations willing and desiring to build more customized environments