'Net Features : 10509

Hiring Professional Link Builders

Pete Prestipino — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:00:00 GMT

It’s the single most important part of your success with search engine optimization – inbound links. But a link-building initiative can also be one of the most time-consuming tasks one can undertake. However, outsourcing this essential process is possible when you ask some very important questions (and the get the answers you want) of the agency or individual who will be responsible for the project.

Let’s look at some general principles for hiring a link builder (researching link building vendors, understanding the link building methods used, and what to look for when analyzing link-building reports) and address some important questions to ask before you even think about signing a contract.

Read more about hiring a link building team or expert now...

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Flash on Smartphones; Thanks Adobe

Pete Prestipino — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:51:00 GMT

One of the drags of smart phones today is that they don't feature full support for flash (it's been using a lighter version up until now). Today that all changed as Adobe announced improvements to the Adobe Flash Platform at Adobe Max (Adobe's developer conference) which makes Flash on mobile devices a reality.

Adobe's Flash Player 10.1 enables rich Web content, video and applications to reach more users across a broader set of devices thanks to a consistent runtime across desktops and mobile devices. The new Flash player is expected to be available for a series of mobile platforms including Google Android, Blackberry, Symbian, Palm webOS and Windows Mobile.

Adobe also announced new HTTP streaming technology for video delivered on the Flash Platform, demonstrated upcoming features of Adobe® AIR® 2 software, released a second beta of Adobe® Flash® Builder and Flash® Catalyst software, and made available new Adobe Flash Platform Services for collaboration.

“We’re excited to be launching such a broad spectrum of advancements to the Flash Platform at Adobe MAX 2009,” said Kevin Lynch, chief technology officer at Adobe. “By delivering rapid innovation across tools, runtimes, services and servers, we are enabling the large and vibrant ecosystem of designers and developers to drive the Web forward with rich content and applications.”

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Get It On With Groupon - E-commerce 2.0

Pete Prestipino — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:02:00 GMT

Shopping website Groupon has been on the radar at Website Magazine for quite a while. The service, which is now operational in 18 cities (and they just announced the addition of Nashville) is based on a rather interesting principle - collective buying.

Groupon negotiates deals with businesses (merchants). Subscribers to the Groupon service receive daily email alerts. What is unique and fulfills the collective buying principle is that deals are only "activated" if a minimum number of people agree to buy. Should subscribers really want the item/service in question, they are prone to share the "deal" with those in their social network (family and friends) through services like Facebook or Twitter.

While the viral-friendly aspect of Groupon will certainly appeal to merchants, the biggest selling point might just be that it is risk-free. Merchants pay only when the deal is "accepted" by the network, paying nothing to simply appear on Groupon and make an offer to members. Groupon collects money from participants upfront and sends a check based on campaign participation (the number of members who accepted the offer).

“Groupon brings buyers and sellers together in a fun and collaborative way,” said Groupon founder Andrew Mason. “We offer the consumer a great deal they can’t get anywhere else and deliver the sales directly to the merchant.”