Hart of Success » Google

Microsoft, Google seal search deals with Twitter

Stefanie — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 22:43:35 +0000

I found this article that I wanted to share with you.

Alexei Oreskovic of Thompson Reuters has written an article about a Joint Venture you should know about.

Microsoft Corp and Google Inc have sealed separate agreements to access real-time content from Web phenomenon Twitter, intensifying their battle for a search market that Google now dominates.

Google and Microsoft’s five-month-old Bing search engine, which hopes to take on the current leader, both won access to Twitter’s store of public data in real time, executives at the two companies said on Wednesday.

The long-expected deals are expected to ramp up the efficacy and lure of search results, by allowing users to scan real-time Tweets: 140-character stream-of-consciousness messages that Twitter hosts on its vastly popular website.

But Microsoft appeared to one-up its rival Google, which controls 65% of the search market, with a deal also to include content from social networking site Facebook, one of the Internet’s most visited addresses.

Terms of the deals – which were non-exclusive – were not disclosed.

“In the past few years, an entirely new type of data has emerged – real-time updates like those on Twitter,” said Marissa Mayer, Google’s vice president of search products.

“We have reached an agreement with Twitter to include their updates in our search results. We believe that our search results and user experience will greatly benefit from the inclusion of this up-to-the-minute data.”

Twitter, the three-year-old Web start-up that has become an Internet sensation popularized by celebrities and government, attracts tens of millions of visitors every month.

Qi Lu, president of online services at Microsoft, said data from Twitter could provide “signals” about which content on the Web is most popular and most relevant to search queries.

“You can use those to augment today’s search experience,” Mr. Lu told a San Francisco Internet conference.

From Wednesday, Twitter search results will be accessible on a special section of Bing as a beta, or test product. Microsoft plans to present the most popular Tweets of the moment, while allowing Web surfers to view Twitter messages that contain links to other Web content. Microsoft will filter out spam and other extraneous data.

Conversely, Bing’s Facebook deal encompasses only messages that its 300 million-plus users have flagged as viewable to the public, a practice that is relatively new and not as widespread on the social network, where users typically send messages to groups of friends.

“This is one of the first times that a search engine will be differentiated through access to content. We think Bing will benefit from the right to index and display the tweets almost as soon as they are posted,” JPMorgan said in a research note before Google announced its own agreement.

“As searchers are looking for more and more real-time Web results, we think this partnership will help Bing to improve its user experience.”

Microsoft also inked a deal this year to entwine its search efforts with Yahoo’s.

Yahoo’s chief technology officer, Ari Balogh, told reporters that, generally speaking, any data Microsoft’s search engine has access to would also be accessible to Yahoo under the terms of their partnership.

Yahoo already has been testing the limited inclusion of Twitter messages within Yahoo search results to certain users, he added.

“All content on the Web is relevant to search,” Mr. Balogh said. He thought people would not want to go to three or four sites to access different types of data, such as Twitter results.

Article found at: The Financial Post

How can your small business compete against the mega-corporations that cater to the masses?

Stefanie — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 16:00:18 +0000

: Image by Luke Miles via Flickr

“Are you ready to become the big fish in a small pond?” asks Scott Gerber of Entrepreneur Magazine. “From aquatic sporting goods for dogs to Michelle Obama-inspired fashion websites, niche products and services have the potential to generate big bucks if they capture the hearts, minds and wallets of a dedicated consumer base.”

As you know, I’m a huge believer in setting aside that “get the numbers -beat the competition” approach to business. As our population ages — people aged forty and older now make up the largest adult population in North America — more and more entrepreneurs are looking for opportunities that are not only profitable, but meaningful. This often leads to niche businesses — businesses that are tailored to specific markets that are often overlooked by the large franchises.

Mr. Gerber’s article, “Five Steps to Building a Successful Niche Business,” gives a terrific example of how the internet has changed the world, creating endless possibilities for entrepreneurs who are following their passion instead of the dollars. He mentioned Google as an example of how niche businesses can find tremendous success by providing a simple service — a search engine ranked by backlinks — and doing it well.

So how can you profit by serving your specific niche? Mr. Gerber says:

Create a Simple Service. Rather than trying to be all things to all people, choose a specific market that has a specific, unmet need and meet that need.
Become the leading expert of your niche.
Be Specific, Distinctive and Relevant.
Copy, Past and Repeat. Keep hammering that message home.

It’s a new era in business. Consumers have lost interest in corporations that treat them as numbers or a prize to be won. If you know what your customers want and set about delivering it with a customer service attitude, they will be drawn to you. If you approach other entrepreneurs with an eye toward finding win-win ideas, you’ll both grow your business. Thanks to the internet, you can do both of these in a way that hasn’t been possible before.

If you still wonder whether putting people above profit will dampen your success, remember Google’s declared Code of Conduct: “Don’t be evil.” The Google prospectus notes: “We believe strongly that in the long term, we will be better served — as shareholders and in all other ways — by a company that does good things for the world even if we forgo some short term gains.”

Empower yourself and grow your business by learning more about the changing landscape of business. Download your FREE copy of The Hartman Report now.

Are You Trained for Success?

Stefanie — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:45:56 +0000

Throughout my life I have taken classes on many different subjects. While learning sports like golf, ballet, skating, and dancing, I learned that physical and mental balance were equally important. I even took several medieval sword training classes at one time!

All of these experiences reinforced what I already believed: The combination of both physical control and mental FOCUS were the key to mastering all of these activities.

Taking the classes addressed what is needed to learn and develop the skills needed. They honed my concentration and showed me the basics. Any one who has golfed knows that when you get that hole in one it’s a level satisfaction unlike any other…until you reach another goal you aspired to that is.

Are You in Need of a Spring Tune Up?

The majority of high achievers will tell you that the key to their success has been their ability to balance the many aspects of their lives. They also acknowledge that though they may not have gone to school for that specific field, they found books, mentors and peers to gather information which led to their success. Information is power.

As one, I believe this is true of all aspects of your life. Being able to align different facets of your life can actually be the way to reaching your goals.

An important concept successful and inspired self-starter understand is that money is merely

an exchange or reward
for your time or your value.

If you’re reading this and thinking:

Life feels hard
You don’t have enough time in the day
You feel burned out or tired all the time
You’re not making enough money for the hours you’re working

Then as you may have already realized, your life is out of balance. I believe that realizing that being paid for your VALUE as opposed to your time is one of the most critical hurdles to over come.

Or you may be thinking you are on the verge of achieving total equilibrium but just need a little help, some tips or further information to get you over the last few obstacles.

What if you could adjust those issues that are troubling you or not going the way you’d like them to? What if I told you there was a way to turn things around?

To live a more inspired life means experiencing satisfaction in every category of your life. You can improve on your business, personal interests and relationships step by step. A refresher course, new ideas and inspiration, or some guidance could be the direct route to excelling in business and achieving balance through your life.

Sometimes all it takes is recognizing that you need a little help, some mentorship or training. If that sounds like you then I hope you check out the link below!

The Millionaires in Training^TM

The Hartman Report

Stefanie — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 04:25:15 +0000

Business has changed. Find out why those who read and execute what this manifesto contains may be the ONLY businesses remaining over the next 5 years.

Just sign up now… download your FREE copy of The Hartman Report!

In this manifesto you’ll discover…

Why a BILLIONAIRE continues to use the same no-cost marketing (yes we said free) strategy we describe in this manifesto
Why experts have said that this immense change in cultural attitude may be unsurpassed in its effect on humankind, perhaps more so than in any other Era in history.
What Thomson Financial suggests is the Most Powerful Trend in History of Business.
How to market your products at any time – even if you have zero customers and zero marketing budget – all at zero risk. This is a MASSIVE SOLUTION for executives, entrepreneurs and small business owners.
What the NEW Economy is and how it affects you.
How you can get past gatekeepers at companies, find people to co-create products with and how to “borrow” anything you need in business, whether it is customers, products, leads, marketing power, or even INSTANT credibility.
Why your Net Worth is LARGLEY determined by your Network – and how easy it is to get tapped into a network that can help you transform your business overnight.
What Google, Oprah, Fed Ex , Kinko’s and other commercial giants including the producers of The Secret Movie all have in common and how you can do it too to build your business
REAL CASE-STUDY examples!

It will introduce you to the New Economy (the new currency in business) already unfolding around you, the next Evolution of Business (how business is changing) and the Most Powerful Trend in the History of Business – and how YOU as a business owner can greatly benefit from all 3 – provided you know about it and act on it.

Please post your comments below after you’ve read it!