Hey All!

Welcome to my new blog.  It hasn’t changed that much but at least I’m finally heading in some direction with it.  I thought for my first new post I would write about the plugins I’m using this time around.

• Contact Form 7 – This plugin is amazing.  Really simple to use AJAX form, that even has a form generator in the admin section for a truly customizable experience.  It even has a built in option for a CAPCHA area, to prevent spam. (However you have to download this as a seperate plugin to use the functionality.)
• Flickr Gallery – Really simple to use Flickr implementation plugin that allows you to important your Flickr photostream in a variety of customizable ways.  Currently I have mine set to display the most recent uploads.
• Twitter Updater – Automatically sends a tweet to my twitter profile to let my followers know I just posted a new blog post.
• All in one SEO Pack- Everyone should know about this one already.
• Google SiteMaps XML – Again, a great SEO tool which everyone already knows about.
• Ozh’ Admin Drop Down Menu – Now this plugin is incredibly helpful.  It makes all admin section navigation in drop down menu format with CSS.  I couldn’t stand having to click through the various higher-level nav to get to the lower-level admin pages.  This saved me about 15 minutes of clicking time.
• Sociable – Easy integration of social networking and bookmark services. (Which is below this post…tweet me please!)

I’m also using various other plugins, but they are technical and/or aren’t important enough to talk about here.  Anyways, enjoy the new blog look and feel.  Hopefully now that I have a more presentable blog, I will write more.

Evan

I recently responded to an email containing a news article abotu the importance of SMO (Social Media Optimization).  There were good points but lets face it, how many of you have had someone follow you on twitter with social media expert listed as their occupation.  These are the things to look out for and just some general advice.

While I did stress the importance and great growth that is going into SMO (Social Media Optimization), there are a few things to look out for when considering hiring an individual who will take on the challenge of increasing your firms presence on Social Media sites.

First of all, and this is really important, because of the new essence of this practice (SMO), a lot of people claim to be experts but really are not.  There is no accreditation.  Anyone can claim that they are the best at what they do.  So be weary of this.

Second, it is both a very involved process not just for the web-master, but also for the individual’s in the firm itself.  A communication “one-to-one” needs, well, at least one of those people to be you.  A comunication of “one-to-many-”, like we are starting to see with sites like Twitter, need to be even more involved on the firms side.  This is not an exact science, but my suggestion is that you talk to someone who has been involved with THEIR OWN profiles on these sites(SM sites) more than the average user.

Currently, I have established myself prominently on about 15 major Social Media Sites, most of which the public at large, and especially private firms, have no idea about.  I am actively using ALL of them.  I have learned how to interact with people, what people want when it comes to brand personality, content, and overall demeaner.  Its these reasons that make me feel comfortable to say that I am a SMO expert.

The point of me writing this back is really to say, that I do not want to watch any firms get “screwed” over by a general web developer who doesn’t neccessarily interact with these social networks often.  You need to be an active user in order to fully understand the complexities of society in cyber space.  Its a social science in-itself.

So be weary, and if you ever need my help I am here with open arms.

Thanks for listening,
Evan Samek

Evan Samek is a blogger, web developer / designer, and internet strategist out of Washington DC.  For more contact info: evancsamek@gmail.com or @esamek