About six weeks ago, Ashley was contacted by Rick Nathanson of the Albuquerque Journal who was doing a story about Pinterest. Ashley explained how we and other Albuquerque-based businesses are using it to collaborate and network B2B and B2C. Ashley mentioned how she recently taught a class at WestStar Mortgage to local area realtors and how they can use Pinterest in their Web Marketing strategy.

“The appeal is definitely visual, and it’s easy to scan through and see images and share them.” — Ashley Drake Gephart

Ashley and I like how we’re seeing people using Pinterest boards in unique ways. Recently, Patsy Bailey, a mortgage banker at WestStar, had seen a board on homes in Albuquerque. Thinking the board belonged to a realtor, Patsy reached out to the individual. The board owner was a man and wife who were thinking of relocating to the area. They were using the board to share and save homes they were interested in. Patsy has since met with the couple.

If you missed the full article in the Albuquerque Journal, you can still read it in Sage Magazine. Since the interview, one major change has taken place regarding ownership of photos in Pinterest’s terms of service. Not familiar with Pinterest? Then be sure to check out my previous post!

Don’t forget to follow us on Pinterest.

Take one part Google+, one part Groupon, plus two parts Gephart, throw them into a Google+ hangout, and watch Rev. D, Groupon Affiliate Specialist, perform a renewal vow ceremony this Friday, Mar 30th, 5PM EDT (4PM CDT/3PM MDT/2PM PDT).

Groupon sent out this email this past week: “Wedding season is right around the corner, and as a special service to all of our wonderful affiliates, we are offering FREE wedding renewals via phone, Skype or Google Hangout with our resident Reverend, Derek Felix. (You may also know Derek as one of our affiliate specialists. He can both marry you, and help you with your sites. He’s the ultimate two-fer.)”

Karl and I met online over eighteen years ago on a BBS (Bulletin Board System). He proposed to me over the phone before meeting me in person and mailed me an inexpensive ring as a token gesture of engagement. You can read more details in the Albuquerque The Magazine story.

Our 18th Wedding Anniversary is April 1st. Yes, we got married on April Fools’ Day with an elopement to Las Vegas!

So, how could I turn down an opportunity to renew our vows so close to our wedding anniversary using the more modern technology that brought us together?

We are opening up a couple of slots in a Google+ Hangout if anyone from the media would like to attend. Please hit me up on Google+ or twitter.

For those of you who aren’t able to attend, we will have a recording up within a few days!

Thank you Groupon, for allowing us a quirky anniversary celebration that relates so well to our original courtship and marriage ceremony!

As we were recently updating clients’ sites to include Google+, we quickly realized that many of the packs of social media icons out there are old enough not to include Google+.

After rather extensive searching, and finding many that contained only Google Wave or Buzz or broken links, we found five sets that we’d like to share with you!

You’ll find the source link below each image.

Tell us which set is your favorite!

Social Media Icons by Kim Maida

Social Media Takeout Coffee Cups

Rounded & Glossy Social Media Icons
We love these so much, we’re using them on our site!

Glassy Social Media Icons

Woody Social Media Icons

No doubt about it, Pinterest is one of the fastest-growing social media sites ever! With over 10,000,000 unique visitors in January (according to Comscore), Pinterest is second only to Facebook for average on-site time spent per month!

It’s no wonder businesses contemplate just how they can use Pinterest most effectively. The “80/20″ rule definitely applies here. 80% of the things that you share should be from other people or websites. And no more than 20% should be self-promotion.

Of course, not just any content is Pinteresting. For example, a real estate agent sharing nothing but listings won’t hold much value in the long haul. On the other hand, a board such as “Only in the East Mountains,” by Jeanette Raver, showcases the many things you could do in her local community, offering value to the visitor.

Need some (p)inspiration? Here’s 10 ideas for Pinteresting business boards:

• Go team! Debbie McBee shows off her school spirit with her “Go Vols” board.

• Florida beauty! Cyndee Haydon captivates us with her beautiful beach sunsets!

• Noms! Jerry Gallegos makes our mouths water with his “Recipes” board.

• Get the 411! Kristelle Siarza keeps us informed with her “Info – Oh, No” board.

• Grab a book! Ashley Drake Gephart gives us a glimpse into the creative process behind her upcoming Urban Fantasy novel!

• Decorate! Heather DeSimone gives us great ideas on her “diy decorating” board!

• Kick back and relax! Tomislav Savov takes us to some breathtaking locations with his “Favorite Places and Spaces board!”

• Gentlemen, start your engines! Kostas Georgioy shows us through his “Cars” board that Pinterest is not just about wedding dresses, dream homes, and jewelry.

• Go Fly a Kite! Alta Mira NM subtly reminds us of their upcoming KiteFest 2012!

• Just for LOLs! Laura Chambers always provides a chuckle with her “Funny!” board.

Pinterest is still by invitation only, so if you need an invite, just contact us and we’ll get one right off to you!

Last but not least, don’t forget to follow all of our boards at Drake Intel Group!

What’s your favorite board on Pinterest? Leave a comment with a link to it so we can check it out!

Often, we’re asked, “How do I find the time to manage my social media accounts? I have clients to see during the day. I can’t be online all day!”

Of course you can’t! There’s no need to be tied to your Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or blog all day. On the other hand, 6:00 a.m. might not be the best time to post to your accounts, either. And you don’t want to post a social media “vomit” of ten or more updates back-to-back!

The solution? HootSuite’s Social Media Dashboard! You can manage many of your popular social media sites all in one, easy place. The free version is perfect for individuals or small businesses managing their own online presence. You can add up to five accounts from various social media platforms.

For social media consultants such as myself, who might manage anywhere from several to dozens of accounts, there’s a professional version for only $5.99 a month. Quite affordable, considering the HUGE time savings you’ll find with HootSuite’s many robust features. Social network integrations include Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, plus a suite of social content apps for YouTube, Flickr, Tumblr, and more. For Enterprise accounts, Google+ Pages are now available.

Though the Free and Pro versions both allow you to schedule tweets, the Pro also allows uploading a .csv file of up to 50 tweets at a time. Have an assistant, but don’t want to risk the security of your valuable social media accounts? With the Pro, you can further add a team member without giving out your passwords or risk your account being hijacked by a former employee. If you want more control, you can limit their account so they can schedule posts for you, but give you final say on publishing them.

As a night owl, 2:00 a.m. would be the least logical time to update all my sites and those of my clients–except for those in the UK, perhaps. HootSuite allows its users to write hundreds of updates and schedule them throughout the next day or next several weeks!

Have an upcoming event? Schedule all your updates at one time! No matter how busy you become, your messages will still be delivered! Not that I’m suggesting you schedule your social media updates, only to forget about them! You should, however, stop in to see if anyone is talking to you or about your company and check for any updates needing a response. The scheduling feature will keep you in the loop so you still have time for business. HootSuite has the tools to keep you connected while on the go with support for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, iPad, and Keitai!

If keeping up with your company’s social media presence has become overwhelming, contact me, a HootSuite Certified Professional, today, and leave all your social media accounts managed efficiently and effectively!

Is your online professional reputation up-to-date?

I work with numerous real estate agents and was recently searching for a few on Linkedin. Imagine my surprise when I found not one, not two, but 38 different agents still listing a brokerage that went out of business over a year ago as their current employer! I checked another brokerage that closed and found 21 still listed. And the second brokerage didn’t just close its doors last week, either.

Even more troubling is that many of them still list their primary email address as one belonging to their former company. Guess they won’t be receiving Linkedin communications! Imagine missing out on a great lead because you failed to update your email address.

If you’ve changed employers, email addresses, phone numbers, or even job titles, make sure you update all your online information.

Here’s a list of places to check to get you started:

• Company website & blog
• Personal website & blog
• LinkedIn
• Facebook – personal & business pages
• Google+ – personal & business pages
• Twitter – personal & business accounts

Check your about pages, footers, contact pages, custom banners, and backgrounds to ensure all your information is accurate. In some industries, such as real estate, you are legally required to have this information correct.

Don’t forget to do a Google search for your name so you can find as many sources of your information as you can that require updating.

Make sure your online reputation is as professional as you are!

What is Gentlemint? As simply stated by the co-founders (Brian McKinney & Glen Stansberry) of this new social media site, “A Mint of Manly Things.”

Ladies, take heart, there are no gender barriers to membership. As a matter of fact, my wife, Ashley Drake Gephart, was a “Gentleminter” almost a week before I was. Perusing the site today, I saw another gentlewoman, Colleen Pence, tacking up items of interest.

If your interests include cars, boats, or moustache styles, you’ll get plenty of manly ideas from Gentlemint!

On the other hand, if you’re into weddings, nurseries, or high-heels, you may find Pinterest more interesting.

Not that Pinterest is inherently “women-only” by any means. In fact, the site boasts four categories that tend to lend themselves to more “manly” things: Cars & Motorcycles, Geek (yeah, baby!), Technology, and Men’s Apparel.

Even though Gentlemint is still invitation only, you can still request one online.

Of course, Ashley and I (Karl) have a couple of our own favorite tacks:

• Porsche 356 A 1600 Speedster
• The Trustworthiness of Beards
• Movie Poster Placement Win

If you’re not on Pinterest and would like an invite, drop us your email via our contact form, and we’ll send you one!

This Friday, Jan 13th at 9AM, don’t miss Ashley Drake Gephart talking about the “Evolution of Social Media” on KIVA AM 1550′s “New Mexico and Company with Larry Ahrens!” If you don’t live in the Albuquerque metro area, you can still listen to the broadcast using the radio station’s Internet link below:

KIVA 1550 AM Tune-In

As I’ve said before, Microsoft’s trend in the last couple of Windows versions has been to move the user off the desktop and toward the taskbar. Well, if you’re like me, you like all of your most frequently used apps to have distinguishable shortcuts. So, you customize them as best as you can visually. But isn’t it unfortunate that some shortcuts won’t let you change their icons? MS Office apps, for example, have the “change icon” button greyed out. Well, look no further for a solution to this problem!

Let’s say we want to create a “Downloads” folder on our taskbar for quick access. Just follow these steps…*

Go to your desktop.

Open up Notepad or text editor of your choice.

Save the blank Notepad file with a name, say, “Downloads.exe” on your desktop.

Drag the new file to the taskbar and pin it.

On your desktop, right click over the background and click “New” then “Shortcut.”

Click “Browse” and navigate to the folder with your Windows user name, select it, and then click to highlight “Downloads.” Click “Next.” Name it “Downloads” and click “Finish.”

You now have a shortcut on your desktop called “Downloads.”

Right click on this shortcut (not the .exe file you made) and select “Cut.”

In Windows, go to this folder –> C:\Users\Your User Name Here\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar.

Right click in the taskbar folder and select “Paste.”

When Windows prompts you, select the top option, “Move and Replace.”

Right click on your new Downloads shortcut in the Taskbar folder and select “Properties” then click the “Change Icon” button.

Navigate to the Windows icon you want or browse for your own .ico file to display the shortcut as you want on the taskbar. Be sure to click “Apply” and “OK.”

You will probably need to logoff or restart Windows to see your new icon display as you want on the taskbar. Click on it and the Downloads folder should open. You can delete the Downloads.exe file on your desktop.

Of course, you can use this trick to create other shortcuts on your taskbar.

*This trick assumes you have an “intermediate” comfort level with Windows 7.

Those of you who know me know all too well how passionate I am about Firefox. Besides my open-source convictions of Mozilla, I have always loved the browser for its ability to be greatly customizable through its registry of settings and many developers’ add-ons.

One of my favorite add-ons (and I have many) I find very beneficial is eCleaner. Similar to adding and removing programs in Windows, when you add and remove extensions in Firefox, you are usually left with stray registry variables and values (user preferences). Over time, these can slow down Firefox’s processing speed.

eCleaner allows you to click on a button on your navigational toolbar and select the left-over extensions you want to clear (delete). Of course, you can hold down CTRL while clicking on several extensions at a time before clearing them. Looking over at the “Values” column on the right gives you a good idea for how much waste you’re clearing. That’s always important to an “add-on junkie” like me!

A word of caution: Be SURE you know what you’re clearing! Sometimes, the entries won’t have clear-cut names from their extensions. Have your Firefox Add-on Manager open with the names of your extensions and, if you’re uncertain about a selection, leave it alone! Otherwise, you could be left with dysfunctional add-ons.

I can tell you the first time I used this add-on to remove several entries I noticed an improvement in performance. I highly recommend it! You can read all the other favorable reviews and download it here: eCleaner. Enjoy!