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Pintrest 1.0:  Pinterest, described by CNN as one of the top 50 new tech tools of 2011, is not just for designers and fashionistas whose focus is very visual.  The business-to-business aspect of Pinterest is also growing.  The site presents current trends as searchable information, which is organized elegantly by ‘pinners’ into ‘boards’.  Many post their portfolio, photos, or “how-to” articles, and these pins are categorized and tagged. This combination of fun and information is social because of the ‘following’ aspect, and searchable like Google and Twitter.  Google and Bing are picking up the links behind all those images as authoritative links. The more people “repin” those items, the more strength they yield, and retailers have caught on.  Pins and repins of retail offerings translate into potential customers. According to Google Ad Planner, the demographics of Pinterest reflects an audience between the age of 25 and 44, household income is $25K to $75K per year, 25% are well educated, and 80% are women, which is great news for retailers, as women are largely responsible for purchasing decisions.  Pinterest is now in the top 10 social networks, with 11 milion total visits each week, and considered the top traffic driver for retailers by Mashable as of January 30, 2012.  Is your business pinning?  Let Wurlwind Solutions show you how.  www.wurlwindsolutions.com

Search Ranking Reports continue to be a valuable tool
when measuring search engine optimization efforts, particularly when measuring
the performance of keywords within a website.  For more accurate results,
best practice is to use a broad range of terms related to your product or
service.  A comprehensive search ranking report should include not only
keywords, but also key phrases.  Think beyond ‘affordable eyewear’ to
‘latest designer affordable eyewear’.   Wurlwind Solutions is your
SEO partner.  Call us today to receive your free ranking report at
1-866-907-6161. www.wurlwindsolutions.com

There are many Free QR Code Apps for smart phones like QRreader, ShopSavvy , NeoReader, ScanLife, I-nigma and MobileTag .   Use QR codes to present more information about an offering, always provide a link to your website, and impress your visitor with added value not available anywhere else, like a special discount coupon.  In what ways can QR codes promote your business?  Wurlwind Solutions is your e-commerce partner.   www.wurlwindsolutions.com

Wall Street firms Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are fighting public relations war over who will manage Facebook’s upcoming IPO.  Facebook is expected to file papers for an initial public offering this week. Indications are that the IPO will suggest the company is worth $75 billion to $100 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. The offering, which could raise as much as $10 billion, has been hotly anticipated as a defining moment for the latest Web investing boom.  One challenge Mark Zuckerberg will face, according to the Washington Post, is how to retain the overnight millionaires who have been critical to the company’s success thus far. Facebook’s IPO is on such a grand scale—if it raises $10 billion, it will be the fourth largest in U.S. history, dwarfing the $1.9 million Google raised in 2004.

Pinterest is the newest Social Media Sensation.   One of the latest players to hit the Social Media landscape, Pinterest is fast becoming ‘the next hot property’ on the Internet, and a favorite for brands and consumers alike.   But you already knew that if you followed The Elf on the Shelf (children’s book doll) escapades posted faithfully by naughty-and-nice parents during the recent Holidays.  Pinterest is a sort of online filing system that allows you to mark or catalogue your interests (pin), collect them all in one place (digital pinboard), and engage with postings that inspire you (repin).  The site is by invitation only, yet traffic in December had reportedly increased 40 times since the previous six months. The site’s popularity is driven by people’s fundamental needs to collect, organize, and connect.  However, Pinterest is not only for stay-at-home moms and design buffs; businesses like Real Simple, use the website to introduce their products to new audiences.  In October Pinterest received a $27 million infusion from the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowtiz.  What’s your Pinterest? www.wurlwindsolutions.com

Twitter is not just for social.  Twitter’s biggest value is finding out what’s happening in your world in real time.  Co-founder Jack Dorsey describes it “as an information utility”, a personal news service as much as a social network.  Twitter messages are 140-character ‘tweets’ sent  to groups of followers.  With over 100 million active users, Twitter reportedly made about $140 million in revenue last year.  Twitter Co-founder Dorsey, said advertisers were proving willing to pay to promote their tweets, accounts and trends.  An expected market float could value the company at around $8 billion. – Reuters

YouTube, acquired by Google in 2006, has hit the 4 billion worldwide views per day mark.  The site has been recently redesigned, so it is easier to find your favorite wild stunts, amateur music artist, or how to video.  With high profile names like Madonna and Jay-Z, now having their own YouTube ‘deals’, and running ‘graphical display ads’ alongside video, the company is monetizing more of its specialized content.  No reason why your organic video can’t be the next YouTube sensation, right?  www.wurlwindsolutions.com

A testament to the power of your voice via social media to influence policy:  Reuters reports that Lamar Smith, U.S. Rep. (R), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Texas Congressman whose proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) prompted dozens of websites to go dark or run protest messages this week said Friday he is pulling the measure from consideration “until there is wider agreement on a solution.”  www.wurlwindsolutions.com

If disaster strikes, do you have a robust Business Continuity Plan in place?  These five simple steps can limit headaches and keep your critical operations functioning in the event of a disaster or other catastrophic risk.  1) Get executive-level support and obtain resources for the BC plan.  2) Indentify your critical business requirements and maximum tolerable downtime, or MTD. 3) Determine recovery speed and recovery time objective, or RTO.  4)  Identify gaps between MTD and RTO for each operation, negotiate solutions, and consider investing in additional resources.  5) Maintain the BC Plan by revisiting regularly as your business shifts and/or expands.

Are you ignoring existing customers for the sake of acquiring new ones?  Don’t let repeat business suffer.  Loyal customers will advocate for your brand and drive referrals, so remember to keep them happy.  Best practice is to maintain a detailed database listing products and service preferences and implement segmentation software to create and deliver timely marketing messages based on their needs.  For strategies to keep lifelong customers contact Wurlwind Solutions today at 1-866-907-6161 or visit us on the web at www.wurlwindsolutions.com