Just had a brainstorm…GPS targeting AdWords in the near future.

Let’s say Billy Iphone Jr. is on the way out of a mall when he sees a shiny new camera at Ritz that he has to have. Being the time-strapped smart shopper he is, Billy wants to shop around for the best deal without actually walking around. He removes his trendy Iphone from his untrendy hip holster and goes to CNet.com for camera reviews and price comparisons. Read the rest of this entry »

So I was minding my business this morning, checking my various accounts and my numerous Google tools when something caught my eye. Google Friend Connect! What’s this? Well it’s this handy gadget that Google built that lets you add social networking tools to your personal website in order to build traffic. I had to try it!

So I signed up (very easy), followed the 4 or 5 steps (super simple), and downloaded an extremely small amount of code (painless). I thought I would try it in a site that I actually use so i pasted the code to my personal blog, jordonmeyer.com. Much to my dismay - it did not work. I tried the most basic route - by creating a post with the html inside, but it didn’t work. I was not shocked. It’s built with Wordpress anyways, so i couldn’t complain.

I moved on to another domain I have (I’ll keep it a secret for now) and took a few minutes to setup a site. I added the html files and pasted some code and away I went. I had a sign-up widget on my site! I then proceeded to add a few gadgets, like Wall posts and reviews which encourage visitors to participate.

“Google Friend Connect means more people engaging more deeply with your website — and with each other.”

One of the coolest features is the fact that you can invite friends from other networks. Google friend connect allows you to invite friends that are connected through Gmail, Google Chat, or Facebook. This feature makes it extremely easy to get a head start on building your community.

Overall, it was a good experience. Although I am not going to use it this week or next, I will keep it in mind for an addition to my sites in the future. I think this will catch on quite well. So if you have a site and want to increase traffic and interaction, I recommend that you try it out: http://www.google.com/friendconnect/

The new keyword tool is a nice addition to Google’s web tools. It’s a great way to optimze your own websites and an even better way to anazlize your competition. By using the tool you can identify additional advertising opportunities that you may be missing, or simply take the information to apply to SEO.

I just found the keyword tool today so I have to play with it a bit before I truely discover it’s value, but I like it so far. Check it out here: http://www.google.com/sktool/#

A Google blog post and the corresponding video ask people to register to vote (find out how at http://maps.google.com/vote ) and/or send this video to five of their friends.

Vote however you want. But please register now and vote next month.

With 73% of the market share- the Apple iPod lineup changes frequently to stay on top of the market. The latest announcements have added some pretty cool features, including one of my favorites, Shake-to-Shuffle.

Big applause for a new feature, “Shake to Shuffle” — you shake the Nano, the accelerometer kicks in, and the device automatically forwards to the next song. Time magazine’s Josh Quittner, sitting next to me, has an interesting thought: “That wouldn’t be so cool if you are running.”

Although the pricepoints have not changed significantly, you will now get more bang for your buck; “bang” being storage space. The iPod Classic has now dropped the 80gb model and is going with the 120gb model selling at the 80gb price, $249. The iPod Touch is now starting at $229 for the 8gb model, $299 for 16gb, and $399 for 32gb.

Most new iPods will hit stores today - so run out and buy, buy, buy! Or wait until after Christmas for another price drop. Your call.

Well- I have it, tried it out…and it’s OK. Nothing to write home about but obviously blog-worthy. The start page, most viewed, is right out of Opera and tabs are straight from Firefox. The one thing I noticed that I liked a lot, more than other browsers I use, is the Code View. It’s nice that it actually numbers the lines of code. And the tabs have a little more organic movement than Firefox. So- after about 10 minutes of play, I have to say that I do like it and I will be using it intermittently. It should be interesting to see what add-ons they come up with in the near future. 

That’s right! Google is rumored to be creating an open-source browser called Chrome. I’m currently a Firefox user, and have been for the past 3 years. I use it because it’s open source and I just find it to be a much better browser than Internet Explorer (Exploder). I’ll definitely jump on the Google wagon if the rumor is true about Chrome. I like pretty much everything Google does, and a browser seems to be right up their alley. You can check out a more detailed breakdown of the browser here: Google Chrome.

As a charter member of Online Marketing Connect: Our objective is to build the best and deepest online marketing vendor solution directory on the planet. Upon completion of this project we will have enabled marketers to make smarter buying decisions and ultimately, we will have saved them countless dollars and hours.

OMC has set out to organize, rate, and review all vendors in the online marketing space to make it easy for marketing professionals to understand “who’s who” in the ever-changing vendor arena. Whether it be a full-service interactive agency or a social media platform, OMC will use the “power of community” to identify the industry’s players and how they fare against the criteria important to choosing a vendor.

If you are interested in becoming a member please let me know and I will be glad to help you join this exciting community.

Last night on episode 8 of The Real World: Hollywood on MTV - The Bruises we played as song # 3! This is the second time this season they were played on the show. By the looks of it, the plays have sparked some buzz about the band. I’m most excited about the recent publicity because the lead singer is Aja Blue, my sister! Hopefully they continue to grow their fan-base and blow-up in the near future!

Check out a music video they made on a Sunday afternoon, it’s pretty funny.

Dancing Is Dangerous from Aja Blue on Vimeo.

It looks like this will be a mix between my personal site/blog and an informative Search Engine Optimization (SEO) website. I’m very passionate about all things tech and Internet - and it just so happens that I have a knack for SEO. When I get time I’ll try to get to some details about SEO and I’ll make a habit of posting regularly.