Making Money On Social Search Engines

Random

Google and Bing recently announced the first phase of the social search engine. Social search engines open up opportunity for monetization and new advertising formats. However, the rush to monetize social search engines may destroy Google’s and Bing’s core mission: delivering relevant, quality content.

Bing announced yesterday it will be integrating Twitter and Facebook into search results. A Bing spokesperson said “we are going to get access to all the public Twitter information in real time,”, “The other deal we have done will come with all the publically available data on Facebook, and services from that will come at a later date.”

Today, Google announced a new feature called social search that will be released into Google Labs soon. Google social search differs from Bing social search in that Google will deliver content from only your social networks. How does Google know what social networks to pull content from for search results? Users will have the option of connecting their social networks to their Google profile in order to opt into social search.

There will be much buzz surrounding advances in social search. However, one must ask if social search is good for search engines? I think social search will:

1) clutter search results
2) deliver poor quality content
3) produce spam
4) create monetization boom

I would like to stress the 4th point. The social search engines of Google and Bing will create a rush to monetize social search. I can see two core ways to monetize social search:

1) You get paid to post status advertisements on Facebook or Twitter

In this case, companies will start up to faciliate the relationship between advertiser and Facebook or Twitter user. Imagine a platform whereby Coca Cola submits pre-defined status updates filled with content and links to a social search advertising company. This social search advertising company then pays Facebook and Twitter users to post Coca Cola’s status advertisements as status updates. So when somebeody searches for Coca Cola in Google or Bing, they will see their friends status update advertisement in the search results. Once that status advertisment is clicked, Coca Cola gets charged and the Facebook or Twitter user who posted the status advertisment makes money.

2) Facebook and Twitter promise company ads will display in Google and Bing search results

In this case, Facebook and Twitter can easily post or add text links around your Facebook or Twitter profile like in the side bar. So again, once a user searches for something in Google or Bing, they will see advertisements attached to their friends social network activity.

Conclusion: Do you want to see ads in your search results? I don’t. I’ll predict that if Google is not able to filter out these possible status update advertisements from their social search engine, Google’s search engine popularity will fall. Searchers want relvant, quality content, not advertisements – even if the ads are coming from your friends… who want to make money from you.

Volunteer for Chum Christmas Wish

Random

This year marks the 43rd annual Chum Christmas Wish. I’ll be volunteering for Chum Christmas Wish 2009 and plan to volunteer each year thereafter.

The Chum Christmas Wish is an inspiring program. It was originally established in 1966 as a charitable foundation called CHUM’s Kid’s Crusade Foundation, for the purpose of assisting children in need, and children’s charities.

The CP24/CHUM Christmas Wish has become one of the largest distributors of toys to those in need in the GTA, supplying registered charitable organizations, social service agencies, churches, and community centres. In turn, they distribute the donations to those families, of many faiths and cultures, who require our support.

I’m sure if you live in the GTA – Oakville, Mississuaga, Toronto, Brampton, Scarborough, Toronto – you have heard about the Chum Christmas Wish and thought about volunteering – well you should this year!

The Chum Christmas Wish starts Monday, November 16th 2009 and continues until Noon, Thursday, December 24th 2009. The headquarters and toy distribution warehouse is located in Mississauga, at 3035 Wharton Way.

Apply to Chum Christmas Wish – You’ll be glad you did!

Volunteers are needed to help at the warehouse facility to sort donated toys and fill agency toy requests, during the holiday season. To apply, go to thewish.ca starting October 26th @ 9AM and apply. For more details about the Chum Christmas Wish contact 416-384-4199, or e-mail thewish@chumamfm.com.

Schedule for Chum Christmas Wish

2009 WAREHOUSE HOURS OF OPERATION for Volunteers:
Nov 10-Dec 3/09 – Weekday 9:30am-5pm, Saturday 10am-5pm.
Dec 4-Dec 23/09 – Mon-Thur 9:30am-5pm, Fri 9:30am-8pm, Saturday 10am-5pm.

Facebook Co-op Jobs for University of Waterloo Students

Jobs

facebook

The University of Waterloo is the only Canadian University Facebook hires co-op students from.

Yes, pretty awesome – Facebook is at Waterloo. During the University of Waterloo co-op application process in Summer 2009, Facebook co-op positions started appearing on Jobmine.

If you’re a University of Waterloo co-op student who wants to work at Facebook on co-op term, you can keep up do date with hiring on Facebook’s Waterloo page: Facebook is at Waterloo.

When Facebook started posting co-op positions on Jobmine, positions ranged from Marketing Analyst to Programmer. So it seems Arts, Business, Computer Science and Engineering UW students are all welcome to apply to Facebook.

Here’s Facebook’s official guide to the Facebook co-op interview process:

The First Interview
If you’re at one of the campuses we visit, we’ll see you in person (pssst…no need to dress up all fancy. Save the suit for the bankers.) However, if we don’t visit your school, we’ll probably talk to you on the phone.

The first interview is about 30-45 minutes long and usually with someone from the team. We’ll want to hear about your past experiences and current accomplishments, as well as any technical skills that we’ve said are a requirement for the job. At the end of the first interview, you’ll find out if you’ve made it to the next step in process, which are on-site interviews called University Days.

What happens next?
After the interviews, our team will meet to discuss all the candidates. These conversations are always full of tough decisions. We work very hard to get back to all of our candidates with a decision as quickly as possible. If you have any questions as you wait, please don’t hesitate to contact your recruiter.

And hey, once you have graduated from the University of Waterloo, check out Facebook’s entry level jobs

25 Sites to Submit Your Startup Website Free

Startups

apple-imac

You’ve developed a startup website. And now you ask: Where Can I Submit My Startup Website for free?

I submitted my website startup – buddingup.com – to hundreds of sites when I founded it back in April, 2009. However, only a select few websites I submitted to gave my startup a quality back link, search engine traffic and coverage in Google search results.

Below are my Top 25 sites to submit your startup website to for free:

  1. FeedMyApp
  2. CrunchBase
  3. Techvibes
  4. Linkedin
  5. Killerstartups
  6. Tradevibes
  7. Venturedig
  8. TagEdge
  9. Younoodle
  10. Blippr
  11. Startup World
  12. Lovelypages
  13. Twitter
  14. Facebook Pages
  15. Venturebeat
  16. SimpleSpark
  17. WikidWeb
  18. Gen-Y Startup
  19. NetWebApp
  20. MoMB
  21. 2.0websites
  22. Startup Nation
  23. Appuseful
  24. Gravee
  25. Digg

Submit your startup website to me – r.speziale[at]gmail.com and I’ll profile your startup on my blog.

Inspirational Quotes for Entrepreneurs: Henry Ford

Startups

Henry_Ford

If you don’t already know, Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was the American founder of the Ford Motor Company and father of modern assembly lines used in mass production. Below are my favourite Henry Ford inspirational quotes for entrepreneurs.

  • If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.
  • A business absolutely devoted to service will have only one worry about profits. They will be embarrassingly large.
  • A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.
  • It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste.
  • A market is never saturated with a good product, but it is very quickly saturated with a bad one.
  • Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.
  • Don’t find fault, find a remedy.
  • Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.
  • If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.
  • It is not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle the money. It is the customer who pays the wages.
  • Money is like an arm or leg – use it or lose it.
  • Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than in trying to solve them.
  • Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.
  • One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn’t do.
  • Quality means doing it right when no one is looking.
  • The competitor to be feared is one who never bothers about you at all, but goes on making his own business better all the time.
  • The man who will use his skill and constructive imagination to see how much he can give for a dollar, instead of how little he can give for a dollar, is bound to succeed.
  • There is no man living that can not do more than he thinks he can.
  • Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.
  • Wealth, like happiness, is never attained when sought after directly. It comes as a by-product of providing a useful service.
  • When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.
  • You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.

What is a TFSA? It’s TFSA Season Again

Investing

flaherty-introduces-TFSA

TFSA stands for Tax Free Savings Account.

The TFSA is a tax shelter devised in the 2008 Canadian Federal Budget and introduced January 2, 2009.

Think of the TFSA as a money shelter. Come January 1, 2010, you can sign up for a TFSA account, if you have’nt done so already. The TFSA will let you store $5,000 per year in the shelter.

Can you invest stocks, bonds and mutual funds in the TFSA?

Yes. You can invest in the following investment products with the TFSA.

– Stocks
– Bonds (Canadian Savings Bonds are a popular choice)
– Mutual Funds
– REIT’s
– and more…

The taxman, the government, and the bank cannot touch your TFSA money or investments. No taxes will be deducted. No dividends will be deducted. No withdrawal will be charged.

If you make $10,000 from your first $5,000 TSFA investment, you are taxed $0 and left with the $10,000 gain. Outside the TFSA shelter, that $10,000 you make is taxed and a smaller $8,250* gain is left over.

Just to note, the TFSA contribution limit changes every year subject to inflation.

Read more information about the TFSA

Hoegaarden Beer Taste Review

Random

Hoegaarden_Beer

Hoegaarden White Beer is light, fruity and smooth. I ordered Hoegaarden White Beer recently at a billiard hall in Toronto. The beer came in the bold, stylish Hoegaarden glass above.

Simply put, Hoegaarden White Beer has a refreshing taste. The aromas are subtle yet tastefull in Hoegaarden White Beer, which is brewed with unmalted wheat, malted barley and are spiced with coriander and orange peel. With close inspection, Hoegaarden White Beer has spicy and citrus-like flavourings.

Beer drinkers have described Hoegaarden White Beer as a summer beer, and I would agree. But because of its light, fruity characteristics, Hoegaarden can be enjoyed with a hearty meal.

If you’re buying Hoegaarden Beer at LCBO, the price for a 6 pack 330ml bottles is $13.95.

I give Hoegaarden White Beer 8/10 on the taste scale.

Goodbye, Trailer Park Boys

Random

trailer-park-boys

I Never thought I’d be saying goodbye to the Trailer Park Boys. Ever since 2001, the Trailer Park Boys show has entertained audiences with crazy antics like drug smuggling, petty crime, narcotics growing, kidnapping, shoot-outs, drinking, and partying. If it was wild, the Trailer Park Boys – Ricky, Julian and Bubbles – did it.

Right around the time Trailer Park Boys 2: Countdown to Liquor Day released, I was reading critics’ view as to why the Trailer Park Boys show was such a huge success. Critics argued audiences felt better about themselves watching the disenfranchised Trailer Park Boys – Ricky, Julian and Bubbles – go about heir daily lives and that we gained a sense of satisfaction knowing we didn’t live in a similar situation. Really?

I think the Trailer Park Boys show was successful because audiences 1) Enjoyed watching a depiction of trailer park life and 2) Almost wished they were living out the Trailer Park Boys lifestyle. Honestly, I’m sure many people have at least once imagined a life without bills and responsibilities. Sure, the Trailer Park Boys lifestyle would wear one out in the long term, but why not live like Ricky, Julian or Bubbles for the day?

The escape to trailer park life attracted me to Trailer Park Boys. The Trailer Park Boys show entertained me through first year university, having watched all the episodes, all the while picturing a life without responsibility and in a twisted way, reveling at the Trailer Park Boys lifestyle.

So, goodbye Trailer Park Boys – it’s been a good run.

Apple Video Game Console Will Shake Industry

Media

apple_logo

An Apple video game console would shake the video game industry. Imagine a platform similar to iPhone Apps but with downloadable video games for your home iConsole. With the advent of cloud computing, the idea of an Apple videogame console can work.

The impact Apple’s videogame console would have on the gaming industry is huge:

– Cheaper video games
– ‘Try online before you buy’ video game concept
– Game development open to everybody
– Useful Apps for your T.V.

Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft would need to refresh their business model with an Apple videogame console in the mix. And imagine a gaming console with iPhone, iPod, iTunes, and Macbook sync-up – the possibilities are endless.

Don Reisinger of Cnet writes “with such a powerful piece of software in iTunes, there’s no reason to suggest the console couldn’t be tied to the platform and become yet another way to use iTunes to download music, movies, TV shows, and now, video game demos. Simply put, the infrastructure is in place and ready to go.” Read Cnet’s Why Apple should release a game console

apple_tablet

Rumours recently fired up again about the Apple videogame console. Apparently the recently announced Apple Tablet will function as a videogame platform. Read Destructoid’s Apple tablet Rumored to be a Gaming Device. However, I still believe a separate Apple home video game console is in the works. Stay tuned.