did @gizmodo get taken down? . . . revenge?
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Gary Lee
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Gary Lee
RT @Niecee: Dude!! Totally haven’t seen you in forever! Super busy as usual but we need to catch up soon…LN is keepin me busy too
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Gary Lee
RT @Jonathan360: btw . . what are you and @Niecee up to these days? haven’t heard from you in forever!
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Gary Lee
RT @Jonathan360: you cleaned house over on the other one
– had to do it . . . was getting shut down by twitter for 2 many api calls -
Gary Lee
Free iPad Dock: Thinking Outside the Box from Inside the Box
I just received my iPad at work today and have been testing it out like crazy. I’m going to spare you a full on review because, well, I’m tired of reading them myself!My main interest in the iPad is two fold – 1) I’m a Mac whore, so I’m required by my membership fees to have one of these in my possession 2) I was lucky enough to be asked by the Mouse to lead a team in building an app for the iPad called the “Craft Finder for iPad” after creating the “Craft Finder” for iPhone not so long ago for FamilyFun Magazine – crafts galore – Trust! Feel free to download those two apps if you can, since they’re absolutely FREE and downloadable over the air
But I digress . . .
I have my iPad now and my hands are sore from holding it up. Yes, I’m 5’11″ and 220lbs and my hands got sore holding this 1.5lb device for 30-40 minutes. Good Luck Skinnies!So, what did I do? I made a dock for the iPad to show it off on my desk.
If you can’t figure out how to make one yourself, then I’m sorry. Life’s just tough like that
But since I’m feeling a little nice, check out this video you’ll need to see to figure how to get the connector to hold steady in your dock.Photos taken from my awesome iPhone 3G
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Brought to you by: Bunkers Paradise | Camera Equipment Pros | Kicksologists | Lakers Nation
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Gary Lee
Why Social Media is Important?
“I don’t blog on here much, but when I do, I want it to be something valuable that you can take away from your time here!”
- Mr. Gary Lee
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Gary Lee
Still the Best Tutorial on Twitter
If you need to show your friends or colleagues what the hell is twitter, then seriously consider sending them this video about twitter. The guys at CommonCraft.com have also done an excellent job making videos on a variety of other Social Media trends, so I would highly recommend checking them out if you’re still figuring out this whole social media thing.
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jennifer
thanks for the recommendation, this video made everything super clear. And now, I will sign up for a twitter account. you are my favorite cousin named Gary
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Tom Doyle
By far the best tutorial on Twitter ever. Have used similar videos for other clients and they are very effective at getting the message across in ways that are difficult with text.
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Gary Lee
Thoughts on Todays News
- Great way to inspire the people and get consumer confidence going!
- I still think people who overextended themselves and can’t afford a home, should be ousted from their home. I don’t want my tax money going to people who are sitting around their brand new granite kitchen counter tops, watching the news about unemployment rates on their brand new 42″ LCD.
- Fugate doesn’t really have much to live up to. Just don’t F up a Katrina like disaster and you’ll probably get a raise.
- Sorry to hear about the football players.
- Don’t we already know that xrays are dangerous? Who’s paying for these reports? Anyone want to pay me to do a report about how breathing oxygen leads to more cases of cancer? I swear I can twist into something shocking if you want!
- Is it me or should parents of those convicted of pretty heinous crimes be punished in some way? It’s society’s way of saying “you F’d up and we had to deal with your incompetency as a parent.” Nothing crazy like jail time, but how about some mandatory community service or something, right?
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natron
Someone a little jaded by the news lately? Same here!
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Gary Lee
jaded is a nice word . . . . just feel there’s more important events/news in the world than this stuff
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Jeff
Gary so you are against the loser homeowners accepting help from the govt. but but not loser banks, loser car manufacturers and loser insurance companies who already accepted help?
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Gary Lee
no . . i’m against them all . . banks who folded deserve it (i.e. Wamu), car companies begging for help should suffer just like any other small business (GM – how the hell did you think you could diversify that much?), insurance companies (don’t even get me started on AIG right now)
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Gary Lee
A Taste of the Twitter Inner Circle at Twestival 2009
Yesterday, I was invited my Miss Claire Bear to go to a twitter event in Downtown Los Angeles. She told me it was a twitter event called Twestival, that would have live comics and music acts with all the proceeds going to charity that helps deliver clean water to malnourished children around the world. I said, “Sure, why not?”
Along with Claire, I also met up with Terry (a mutual friend of the Mouse and I), my old intern, Niecee, who’s the social media director for Pacific Sunwear (how proud am I?) and her boyfriend, twitter extrodinaire, Jonathan360. I just linked all their twitter accounts, so click on over and follow them! And if you’re in the following mode, remember to follow me – http://www.twitter.com/mrgarylee – you never know, I might actually twitter something you care about! =)
So, I got there a little early, so I just took some pictures, thinking you guys might want to see what’s going on at these kind of things. Since, I got there early, it was pretty empty and with hopes that it would fill up, I’m sorry to say that it didn’t. I was there for almost 3 hours and the only comic that showed up sucked (the whole “I’m a dumb drunk who doesn’t know why he’s a comic” routine). The band was a mix of lincoln park and sewage. The sad thing is the most famous person to show up was the guy who sang “Chocolate Rain” on YouTube (I learned all the fun facts about him when I was there).
No matter though, I still had a good time catching up with everyone. I got to share my story of owning a domain – GoogleShadow.com – that some guy in the UK decides to use the name for in his newest ebook. I’ve been getting pretty damn good traffic from all the publicity he’s been generating for the site. Talk about the easiest affiliate marketing I’ve ever had to do!
Anyways, here are some photos from the event:
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Gary Lee
25 Random Things: New Facebook Phenomenom is Old in Blogging
I’m sure a lot of you have been getting tagged in your facebook accounts from friends who have just revealed 25 random things about themselves and would like for you to do the same. I’ve been trying my best to resist, since I rather just write for my blog than some notes section in my facebook. Then came the forehead smack – My facebook notes is tied to my RSS feed of this blog, so anything I put on here goes on facebook anyways.
So, here you go . . . .Check below to see who I’m going to tag in the blogging world:
Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.
(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page. If you don’t see “notes” you’ll need to add it by clicking on the “+” sign and add “notes.” Paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)
- I believe in Ghosts, but don’t think they’re all bad. This probably is a result of growing up with Casper and Ghostbusters.
- I watched Titanic 7 times in the movie theatres, but not on purpose. This is really hard to explain, so I’m not going to try.
- I believe having over 10+ dogs in my life has given me committment issues.
- As competitive as I am, I’m glad I’m not a sore loser . . . . I think.
- With that being said, I’ve broken golf clubs over my knee.
- I have the memory of an elephant and probably the thighs of one, too.
- I was raised in an italian household as a baby for a few years.
- I am amazed and proud of my friends accomplisments every day.
- My first concert was a New Edition Concert at the Arrowhead Pond where I was drugged by secondhand smoke of some sort, which led to hallucinations on the drive back home.
- I’ve been on a one week road trip from LA to Chicago and Back, so that I could attend summer school in time.
- I think about my funeral and wonder who would give my eulogy.
- I don’t think I have a best friend, but I have a good idea of who my groomsmen would be.
- Some of my closest friends are the ones I speak to only a few times a year.
- I love thinking outside of the box and throwing out ideas, even if they suck.
- I only played volleyball in High School.
- I’ve been hit by a truck on a freeway while riding my motorcycle and didn’t break a bone, but broke down when I told my sister.
- I’m the oldest for those of you who think otherwise.
- I didn’t vote in the 08 elections.
- I went to a new school in 2nd grade and spent recesses alone in the corner all year.
- I learn better by visualization.
- I don’t like fortune tellers because the last one told me my life would suck.
- I like Star Trek more than Star Wars.
- I feel I was cheated out of Honors English in High School.
- I need at least 7 hours of sleep or you’ll notice.
- I’m only 5 lbs heavier than I was in 8th grade.
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Gary Lee
Inside the Mind of Marketers
What are they thinking?
With the Super Bowl just passing, there wasn’t just a new NFL champion crowned, there was the best of the best in advertising out on full display. With ad rates as high as $3M per 30 seconds, advertisers made sure they were using their most effective ads. What I learned is that every time I watched a new commercial, I was given a chance to get a free marketing lesson from some of the top marketing firms in the world.
Key Points to look out for:
- Type of Message – i.e. Prey on Fear or Urgency (think Viagra Commercials)
- Choice of Words - Too many vs. Too Little.
- Images – Question why they chose that image vs. another.
- Transitions – Are there any? Do they funnel you into any direction?
- Choice of Music – Fast vs. Slow? Excitement? Commercials are mini-movies with their own soundtrack to evoke feelings as well!
- Choice of Actors – Did they affect you with their presence? (i.e. I still don’t understand why Kenny Mayne does insurance commercials)
The bottom line is that you should try your best to figure out what emotions the commercial just evoked from you. Determine what the advertiser succeeded and failed in doing. I would suggest keeping a pad and pencil on your coffee table or in your car for you to jot down your thoughts, so you can take advantage of all the free lessons of the day!
Check out all the super bowl ads at hulu.com and let me know what you thought were the best or the worst and why.
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Gary Lee
10 Tips to Online Marketing You Might Have Forgotten
So you have your website set up and you’re ready to go. Before giving the greenlight to your webmaster to launch the site, make sure that you go over these Top 10 Things to Remember in Web Marketing:
Ability to Adapt – No matter how great you think your website is, it’s what your customers think about your site that matter the most. So if that great idea you had just doesn’t pan out the way you think it should be or if there’s some new technology that your site can take advantage of, don’t be too stubborn to adapt.
Make Sure your Overall Business Works – For most businesses, the website is another source of traffic to direct to your business. So make sure that your business is running like clockwork when delivering your service or products to your customers.
Establish Team Roles – Make sure your team knows their roles, so that if any part of the site is not working, you know exactly who to turn to in order to get things running smoothly as soon as possible.
Properly SEO the Site – As soon as your site goes live, it will beging to be indexed by all the search engines. You want to make sure that you provide the right title, description and keywords for each page of your site so that when people find your links in the search results, you have made sure to provide the most informative listing possible.
Be able to Update your Site Quickly – If you’re sold out of something, you better be sure to indicate that on your site or you’re going to be left with a lot of customers leaving with a bad taste in their mouth. The same point applies to any part of your site whether it be the correct email address or the right pricing points.
Think through your Customers Eyes – Everyone has been a customer at some point and we all know what we like and what we don’t when we arrive at someone’s business or website. Take time to look at your site as a customer and try your best to address what you don’t like!
Get Ready To Hustle – Traffics not going to come to your door with a box of chocolates and some flowers. You’re going to have to get out there and promote your site like no other. Get your checklist of forums, blogs, web sites and other hot spots ready to start getting traffic on a daily basis.
Important Metrics are being Measured - There’s no more emptier feeling in marketing than getting all the traffic in the world, but not knowing where it’s coming from and how it’s converting. Spending Wisely is the most overlooked aspect of online marketing!
Remember your Mission Statement – Use your Mission Statement as your Guiding Light just in case you lose your way.
Remember to Plan Ahead - Let’s say you’ve followed all my advice and you’re getting loads of traffic to your site, do you have a plan to handle the extra traffic? Are you ready to streamline your product line? Do you know who to contact to upgrade your hosting package bandwidth? Do you have enough products to provide your customers?
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Trey Baird
Excellent advice. I especially appreciate the reminder to put yourself in the customer’s point of view, and to be able to update the site quickly. That’s one of the beauties of wordpress. You can update your site from any internet connection.
Trey Baird’s last blog post..Just Do It!
jennifer, 
Jeff, and 
Gary Lee
Suze Orman Misses Her Chance with Oprah
The recession is hitting everyone hard, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any opportunities to take advantage of. Case in point, Suze Orman scored a feature on Oprah’s Website to showcase her new e-book called 2009 Action Plan. It’s a free download until January 15, but the reason I said Suze missed her chance is because of the fact that she forgot to put any kind of links in her e-book. Those links could have:
- sent traffic back to her site
- help her sell some of her other books
- give her an opportunity to track how many people are reading her book
Suze might be great at keeping money and sound, but she’s obviously lacking in knowing how to make money online.
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Natron
I had a client that needed an ecommerce site created in 2 days for a book they would be promoting on oprah.
I stayed up for 2 days to complete it and he never memtioned the site on the show. We got 5 orders, the rest went though Amazon. Don’t remember, but I think he was not allowed to plug the site.
Natron’s last blog post..Santo Niño de Atocha
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Gary Lee
@Natron
Ya . . most likely they have some rules about linking from the site, but not from the e-book. The potential was there. -
Trey Baird
That surprises me. It really does. Methinks that she’s gotten a little too comfortable with her success.
Trey Baird’s last blog post..Just Do It!
Gary Lee
Focus and Improve Your ROI
What should we do?
One of the lessons I learned from 2008 was to focus more on projects that will make the most money from my time invested – my ROI. Especially in these turbulent times where money is scarce, families, companies and entrepreneurs alike will have to reassess where their money is going and what brings in the biggest return from their investment. The biggest problem I see is that most people don’t know where to start or what to consider when they try and prioritize their efforts. I know that everyone’s cases are different, but here are some marketing intitatives that you should invest your time into that can bring you a high ROI this 2009:
PPC Optimization – Hands down, there’s nothing on the internet that has as much control over ROI as Pay Per Click Advertising. If you’re new to this, then check out one of my past articles about Finding your Max CPC so you can make sure you get a positive ROI all the time.
Smart Banner Purchases – People say that banner ads are dead. I disagree. If tested and measured correctly, banner ads can be a great source of traffic, especially if you do the right research on the type of demographic who sees that banner.
Social Media Participation – I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. If you want traffic for your blog, one of the best things you can do is get out there and comment, vote, submit and make your voice heard on the internet. I would recommend focusing on a niche that’s related to your blog or your industry to make sure you get a higher return. If you need help with anything, leave a comment and I’ll come by and help out with a vote or submit.
Setting Goals – Branding is the one thing that is almost impossible to measure from your marketing initiatives. Metrics that can be measured are page views, uniques, registrations and subscriptions. So, do yourself a favor and figure out what your goal is. If you haven’t done this yet, then you’re ROI is going nowhere else, but up!
Gary Lee
Lessons learned from 08 for 2009
Remember when everyone was looking forward to 2008 because of they myth behind the lucky number 8?All the resolutions, hopes, promises and expectations?
I started off the year living in a new west side culture of Santa Monica ready to start a new sem consulting business. We had a plan to build our client list and give ourselves a solid foundation for us to work on our own projects such as PinkDeals.net. A combination of active and passive income was the plan that would make us rich! We’d live the entrepreneurial life of late mornings and and even later nights chatting away with other bloggers we’ve met over the years. Working when we want and how we want with no one to tell us what to do. 08 was gonna be great!
Next thing I know, I’m back in corporate america working for a company that I just couldn’t pass up. Being young and single, I had a real problem leaving “money on the table.” If there was a project that could be done, a job that I could take and a new client that could be signed, then I was all over it. One of the best pieces of advice that was given to me when I was in my early 20′s was not to waste my time lounging on a couch, watch tv and becoming a zombie. So, along with my 40 hour a week job, I was doing consulting on the side along with building and running my own businesses. I thought I could do it, but I was wrong.
As the year went on, the economy was just getting worse. Rising gas prices and then the market crash just sent signals that major decisions needed to be made in my life if I was going to survive this turbulent future. Bearing down and understanding what gave me the best return on my time invested was what I needed to concentrate on.
The 9-5 job was going great, so that’s checked. I learned that I do like a 9-5 job with the hustle and bustle of fire drills and working with a team. One thing aspiring entrepreneurials don’t really talk about is the lack of social interaction during the day. Some people need it and some people don’t. I think you should really look at yourself in the mirror and think about what work environment you work best in.
Consulting – The biggest lesson I learned was to do a better job interviewing the client and seeing if they’re going to be the type to demand more than what they’re paying for. No matter how much you get paid, once one of the parties feels that they’re getting taken advantage of, it’s the beginning of the end. At the end of the day, I realized that I needed to optimize my client list so that everyone at the table was happy.
Projects – Forget about bartering services. Just pay for what you want. It gets done faster and you don’t have to worry about hurting anyone’s feelings. I promise you that you’re going to save yourself a lot of heartache at the end of the day.
Blogging – well, I’m writing, aren’t I? 2008 saw a big time decline in the amount of posts that I came out with. One of my 2009 resolutions is to make up for that lost time and to try and pump out focuses content, which can clearly be seen by the significant reduction in categories. I’ve also spent the last couple of days redesigning my blog with a large of the inspiration coming from one of my favorite blogs out there - DoshDosh.com
Working with Others – Everyone has a role and you need to build a team where you fill each role. The great teams are the ones where people not only know their roles, but when there is something missing, they’re able to adapt and help fill in that hole. If it’s not working on for you and someone else, then it’s best that you end amicably and wish each other the best of luck.
Education – I can honestly say that I didn’t learn as much in 2008 as I did in the previous years. With everything that was going on, I was using my existing knowledge to get by. Talking with my peers from around the world, I know in my gut that I was missing out on what was going on in the industry. I’m going to do my best to catch up and get back out there on the cutting edge of internet marketing. Also, one thing that this economic situation has taught me is to not put all my eggs in this internet marketing basket. With that being said, I’m going to explore other facets of marketing, both online and offline so if things were to get worse, I am better armed to face the challenges.
Words to live by - “Reach for the stars, but keep your feet on the ground!” – Theodore Roosevelt
What were your expectations for 2008?
What lessons did you learn in 2008?
How are you preparing for the upcoming economic conditions?
How do you like the new design and look of the site?
Jeff Kee
Working with time was the toughest thing for me… The balance of new startups vs. putting bread on the table isn’t easy unless you have rich parents etc. But overall I think I learned and grew a lot in 08, and 09 will be a much better year for us.
Jeff
Nice post. Managing time was definitely a challenge in 2008. Don’t you think that what separates the big dogs from the puppies is the ability to get things done in the time we are allotted with?
Gary Lee
I think the main thing that separates the big dogs from the puppies is that the big dogs really focus and do well on their main projects which give them the time and network to become these big dogs. Look at Chow . .he had TTZ which helped him build his huge blog. Look at Shoemoney . . he made it big in PPC before he became a big dog in blogging.
Gary Lee
Convincing Lebron to Come to LA
Thought I’d share my comment from one of my favorite blogs – Dime Magazine
The Pitch: Who Wants the King?
Your Legacy! Your World!
Goal: To become a global icon and cement your legacy as the greatest basketball player ever!
How: Sign with the 2010 Los Angeles Lakers
Why:
Kobe Bryant will be entering the twilight of his career. He’s already showing that he doesn’t care about the stats by taking 33 minutes a game right now. Imagine what a couple of more championships will do to him. The Lakers will need someone to carry the superstar torch.
Supporting cast will be second to none. The Lakers will still have the twin towers under contract and in place with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum anchoring the posts. A small, quick guard in Jordan Farmar. A defensive specialist and perfect role player in Trevor Ariza. Everyone’s young and ready to go for a dynasty run. By the way, we also have the greatest coach in NBA history sitting on our bench.
Global Icon time. You know it as well as the rest of the world. Asia is the future. The only reason NYC has gained it’s global status is because of it’s enormous ties to europe with it’s european ties there. If you want to dominate the world, you’ll have to come to where Asia and the United States meet – Los Angeles! With the largest population of Asian Americans in the US residing here and millions flying back and forth from here to Asia, there’s no way NYC will give you the accessibility to 3 Billion people (India & China) the way Los Angeles would be able to.
Los Angeles Lifestyle – It’s always 70 degrees and 30% humidity here. We get earthquakes once a year at MOST and they’re not even that bad. The fires and mudslides only effect a few people. Just buy in a smart location and you’ll be fine. There’s celebrities galore out here so you won’t be mobbed everywhere you go. We know how to respect people’s spaces. Oh, and the most beautiful people are in LA. Sorry NYC, you can’t compete on that.
Legacy time – Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlin, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant. All of these guys easily crack the Top 15 players of all time and a big reason is because they were part of a great franchise. This is the franchise with the highest winning percentage in league HISTORY. We’ve reached the finals more times than any other NBA team. We’ve won a trophy in every decade the NBA has existed. Dr. Buss has created an atmosphere of excellence and will take the chances necessary to win.
Lebron – the question is posed to you – you can see how serious LA is about winning, now can we see how serious you are?
LA is yours for the taking!
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Jeff
I wouldn’t put Kobe in the NBA top 15 of all time. That is a stretch.
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Gary Lee
Sorry Jeff . . . but you’re going to have to name 15 players better than Kobe to try and convince me on this
Gary Lee
Gary Lee
Gary Lee
Gary Lee
Please Vote because I Can’t
Due to losing my absentee ballot during my recent move and also because I’m in Hawaii for a wedding on election day, I have basically screwed myself from participating in the most important election of my life time!All I can do is ask that you go out and vote to make up for my stupidity . . . oh and to help make a difference!
Dave Davis 10.50 pm on 24.02.2010 Permalink
Wow, surprised to see you pop up in my feed reader Gary!
Fantastic video, nice find.
Rodrigo Godoy 7.27 pm on 17.04.2010 Permalink
Hi Gary!
I ‘know’ you today, reading the book “Blogging Heroes” wrote by Michael A. Banks.
I published this video on my blog “Geekstorm” – http://geekstorm.com.br
I’m from Brazil and certainly, I’ll recommend your blog to my visitors and always visit it.
If possible, visit us! Our blog is in portuguese, but you can translate it using the Google translator or other translating tools, if necessary.
Best regards,
Rodrigo Godoy
Geekstorm – More geek, it’s impossible