Sometimes I just can’t be bothered to bookmark a webpage I find interesting. Instead I leave the tab sitting open in my browser because I am positive I will come back to it later. In reality, I never come back to the page and eventually have so many windows open that my computer starts to hate me and slows down to snail’s pace. Maybe this problem doesn’t sound familiar, but for those who have this same habit of leaving pages open that you just can’t bear to close there is a solution. It is called Pinterest.   

Americans get so caught up in their use of smart phones, laptops, and tablets that we often take access to technology for granted. Many of us think that having Internet access is a given. We can’t imagine going about our daily lives without Internet, let alone without a computer. But many Americans are less concerned about their favorite new Internet app than about actually paying for Internet. The concept of a digital divide is often thought of on a global scale so the divide in the U.S. is often overlooked; but, the F.C.C. is taking on the digital divide here in the U.S. 

The New York Times outlines the program but we provide an overview here for quick reference: With the help of tech companies who will provide software and major cable and Internet providers the F.C.C. is working to bring Internet access to low income families in the United States. Their service will be $9.99 a month and IBM is refurbishing computers to be bought for $150 with the help of micro-financing provided by Morgan Stanley.

Running Scared?

To be blunt: Facebook users cannot bear to leave the site after years of commitment. I find the recent major changes just as annoying as the next person but we learn to adjust and adapt because we can’t imagine actually erasing the history contained within one account. Many may threaten to shut down their accounts but when the mouse hovers above the “delete account” button and the site asks “Are you sure you want to delete your account?” they just can’t seem to follow through.

The masterminds behind increasing Hulu’s paid subscribers should give themselves a pat on the back. Reaching their goal of 1 million users 3 months ahead of the predicted target date says a lot about Hulu’s marketing and business strategy.

After taking a look at Hulu’s strategy and successes I wanted to point out a few aspects of their strategy that we at SnapHawk believe exemplify an effective marketing strategy aimed at targeting key audiences and listening to customers.

Do “123456”, “abc123”, and “Qwerty” look familiar to you? That’s probably because they are some of the most popular passwords around. If you’re like most people, then these examples or some variation of them may have been one of passwords at some point. Because we’re living in the age of awesome, but sometimes frustrating technology, a lot of our personal data is stored on the Internet, which makes us all potentially vulnerable if personal data were to fall into the wrong hands.

With all the recent hackings in the news, it’s imperative that you secure your personal and business accounts to the fullest extent. We here at SnapHawk always try to inspire tech awesomeness and marketing savvy so the following are some helpful tips that should amp up your security and let you continue managing your Internet marketing campaign, business, and overall lifestyle smoothly.

The other day I wrote a blog post about tablets that are currently on the market. In the post I noted that the information presented was accurate as of August 18th, 2011 (the day the blog was published) and also mentioned that it’s always good to double check which make and model you are looking at when buying a technological device. Just seconds after I published this post—and as proof of the fact that technology changes faster than most people can keep track of — news broke that the HP Touchpad (one of the tablets compared in the blog) is being discontinued. 

Today, the news is full of articles about patents, acquisitions, lawsuits, and product launches all focused on one industry: mobile technology. We’re rapidly entering a period where demand for desktops and laptops is diminishing and want for tablets, smartphones, and other mobile devices is skyrocketing. The computing capabilities of mobile devices today are so advanced that you check the weather or surf the web as well as complete more complicated to-dos, like transfer money into your checking account. Mobile technology is advancing everyday, making everyone’s lives a little more convenient on a personal and business level. Here are some interesting ways that a business can maximize smartphone capabilities to grow your business.

Lately there has been some serious buzz about tablets and it seems like a new one gets released every day. Since it feels like every tech company in the world is creating their own version of the tablet, there must be something that makes these devices so popular. I am on a mission to find the best features the tablet has to offer – and what differentiates some of the many versions out there.

First off, what are some of the features of a tablet that make them so popular?

The Inspiration

A few weeks ago I read a great story about a coffee house in Houston that uses social media marketing (SMM) to personalize customer service in order to compete with larger franchises. The owner of the coffee house received a direct message via Twitter from a regular customer saying he was in a hurry and could he pick up a breakfast burrito as he drove by? The owner Tweeted back “What do you want on it?” Sounds pretty convenient to me.

With 750+ million users, 55% of all social site visits, and 40% of daily web traffic, Facebook is more than just a simple social media website. It enables users to stay up to date with current news about their friends and the world, check into places where they are currently hanging out at, view advertisements tailored to their interests, and send private messages and chat with friends. Facebook has also become a business tool, giving businesses a channel to connect with an interested audience who are more likely to respond to advertisements, deals, or discounts.

While Facebook is clearly not lacking in variety of features, the social media giant continues to innovate and launch new applications and updates frequently. It’s hard to stay current with all the new features, so here’s a summary of Facebook’s latest additions and how they can make your social experience even more awesome.

With an abundance of social media sites out there, and new ones cropping up all the time, it has become difficult to differentiate each site. After a while they start to blur and it can become frustrating and tiring to try and keep up a presence on each one and to keep up to date on the newest social media  and Internet trends. One site that is sometimes overlooked and is becoming increasingly important for professionals who want to be "plugged in" is LinkedIn.

Over the past few weeks, as I myself have become even more familiar with LinkedIn, I have noticed there is a lack of understanding of the benefits of LinkedIn and how the site is in fact different from other social media platforms. The questions, “Isn’t LinkedIn the same thing as Facebook?” and, “Do I need to be on LinkedIn?” are common ones. This may come as a surprise to some but no, Facebook and LinkedIn are not the same thing, and yes you need to be on LinkedIn if you are in the college phase of your life or beyond. Here’s why:

With Apple’s iCloud.com just being released this week (currently for developers only), cloud technology will continue to be the next big thing and is clearly here to stay. According to Wikipedia, cloud computing is “the logical computational resources (data, software) accessible via a computer network, rather than from a local computer.” You may be wondering what does this mean to me? Why do I care?

How about making your life more easy and your technology more integrated? For instance, cloud technology will allow you to access your documents, contacts, calendar, photos, and any other information that you want on your smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc. This technology is revolutionary because users will no longer be required to install specific applications, such as a word processor, because the programs will be managed by their web browsers.

Technology has changed the way we read, communicate, and even think so it’s no surprise that it has also changed the way we listen. From record players to cassettes to CDs to MP3s, music is always evolving. Our own tech hawk, Jim, has demonstrated this progression by creating a music compilation site, Box of Cassettes, which blends retro tech and images with current digital realms. When you enter the Website, you will see a message that indicates how many cassettes are in the box. The visuals include a creative mash-up of ripped labels and broken cassette cases complete with awesome music driven by cutting-edge computer programing. Today, music is provided by online streaming and here are some popular services and useful links.

Pandora - allows you to create stations based on a song, artist, or genre and suggests songs similar to your taste.

Grooveshark - similar to Pandora, this site recommends music through Grooveshark radio. It also lets you search for a specific song and play it instantly.

If you’re like over 15 million other people worldwide, you may be a user of StumbleUpon, a discovery engine that suggests web content based on your interests. Once overtaken by your interests, one can spend hours on this site, sorting through pages and pages of content about technology, design, music, or any other topic you may be interested in. While this site is a fantastic procrastination tool, it can also be a great marketing tool, too.

Some marketers, however, have a love/hate relationship with the site because even though it sends a large number of viewers to your site, the traffic doesn’t usually last for more than a couple of seconds. However, with StumbleUpon recently beating out Facebook and becoming the biggest social media traffic driver, you may not want to discount the site from consideration. StumbleUpon lets users discover your site without having to click on ads or links; your page is your ad. Here are some tips on how to maximize your site’s or blog’s exposure on StumbleUpon.

With technology directing our everyday lives, the development of e-readers has revolutionized the way we read. Now, people have instant access to millions of books, newspapers, and magazines at a lower price than traditional printed materials. There are also many resources where you can access and download free books, such as Internet Archive, Open Library, Project Gutenberg, and Many Books.

Which One to Choose

While there are many e-readers available, the Amazon Kindle 3 and Barnes & Noble Nook are two of the most popular models. For those of you avid readers that are ready to follow the trend and purchase an e-reader, but are unsure about whether you want the Kindle 3 or Nook, here’s a little comparison.

As with all social media sites there is a learning curve with Twitter. The vast amount of information on the web created to help guide you can be overwhelming and go into more detail than you ever cared to read. I have compiled some of the best pieces of advice I have seen out there on the “proper” way to use Twitter to create a quick and simple list of tips for getting started or improving your Twitter experience.

Before you dive in, take some time to look at other business’s Tweets and profiles. That way you can see for yourself what works and what does not.

Thanks to the Internet, people who never fancied themselves writers (or moreover, have no proper training in the subject) find themselves behind the wheel of major publishing tools like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. Whether or not “citizen journalists,” as they’re often called in the media world, are “real journalists” is a debate better left to the annals of academia. The bottom line is the Internet allows anyone to be a published author. Furthermore, many businesses are feeling the pressure to launch blogs on their websites in order to incorporate more SEO (Search Engine Optimization) keywords.

Acronyms are a favorite tool of those fluent in technobabble. Search Engine Marketing sounds better and more digestible as the three letter term, SEM. Likewise for Search Engine Optimization, or SEO. In reality, these shortened terms do little more than confuse industry outsiders, leaving them drowning in what we call Acronym Soup. Here at SnapHawk, we have sworn off the Soup.

Sure, it’s cool and trendy to toss around these pithy nuggets of tech knowledge, unless of course you don’t know what they mean. Then what’s the point? Thankfully, we’re here to help. The SnapHawk Internet Marketing Glossary offers definitions of the industry’s most commonly used lingo to help users swim, not sink in the Soup.

1. Know What You Don't Know

Let’s face it, when you’re running a business, you don’t always have time to read up on current industry news. With purchase orders, payroll, and clients to deal with on a daily basis, only the biggest innovations and findings make their way onto your radar, but the Web is riddled with blogs that make your industry news its top priority. They are in the business of knowing what you don’t even know you don’t know. No one will ever know everything about their particular industry, but taking the time to figure out what you don’t know will ensure that your blogs are not misleading or out of date. Take an hour and become familiar with resources that will help you sort through the vast amounts of information out there. A quick search will reveal helpful “top 50” lists for the best blogs pertaining to your specific interests. Make sure to include a few small business blogs in this mix.

Being “successful” online is subject to many definitions, but here at SnapHawk we know that most business owners want to see a monetary payoff. This payoff can come through a variety of channels depending on the goal you’ve set. Perhaps the aim is to get a customer to make a purchase through your e-commerce site or maybe you want visitors to sign up for an e-mail newsletter. Whatever the goal, one thing is clear: potential customers need to not only land on your web page, but they need to stay on your web page.