Admin eSolutions: Blog

On 14 June 2011, Google announced at their Inside Google Search event that they would start to roll out Voice Search on Google.com during the coming days

Google Voice Search was a tool from Google Labs that allowed someone to use their phone to make a Google query. After the user called (650) 623-6706, the number of Google Voice's search system, they would wait for the words Say your Search Keywords and then say the keywords. Next, they would either wait to have the page updated, or click on a link to bring up the search page the user requested.

With Voice Search for the desktop, which is a feature of the Chrome browser, users click a microphone icon in the search box, and then speak into their computer’s microphone.

I tested it this morning and it works very well. You may have to repeat the actual words a couple of time but it will eventually get it. I tried both with "Antoine Dupont" & "Admin eSolutions". I got a funky result on the first try "edmond dew point" but it got it right the 2nd time!!

Watch the video below to see how it works and give it a shot. Happy Friday to all.

Non-profit organizations are integral to a society as they perform a variety of social and practical functions that no one else can. A large amount of funds can be required to meet the operational requirements of such a body and all kinds of sources need to be tapped in order to obtain the requisite amount of money.

Non profit grants are one such source that can help in acquiring funds for keeping the organization afloat. Grants for non profits can be accessed after comprehensive knowledge is provided to the granting body about the need for such funds and the use to which they will be put. Certain tips on getting non profit grants that can considerably increase one’s chances of obtaining them have been specified below:

1. The first thing that needs to be done is to get the organization register as a nonprofit if it has not already been done. One only needs to obtain the required form from any government website and then file the necessary documents to apply for registration. The forms required can vary from state to state. This is quite useful as it also allows nonprofit organizations to become tax free entities. If such an organization has not been officially registered, it can be almost impossible to obtain a grant for the same.
   
   
2. One usually requires a grant proposal in order to obtain funds for the organization in question. This proposal should be prepared after much deliberation and after obtaining a thorough understanding on all the necessary elements that must be contained therein. This is the basic document on the basis of which the governing body decides whether to provide the grant or not. One needs to fulfill all the conditions required for preparing a good proposal and nothing should be left out as it can lead to denial of grant. All the necessary documents that are required to be filed should be collected and submitted for perusal. A request is contained in the proposal itself along with the purpose for which they are required. It is vital that this document is prepared in a meticulous manner with great attention to details if you’re seeking non profit grants.
   
   
3. The proposal in the above mentioned point should be prepared by someone who has experience and the necessary knowledge to be able to prepare it. Someone from the organization itself can be employed for this purpose. However, if no within the organization possesses such skills; one can employ a professional to do so. This will ensure that the perfect proposal is readied thus increasing your chances of being approved for the nonprofit grant. A person who is good with words and can formulate a convincing argument should be preferred for preparing this important document.
   
   
4. Another thing to keep in mind while applying for grants for nonprofits is to ensure that the funds granted are actually put to the stated use. The bodies that provide grants usually follow up with the organization and employ a person to look into the actual working of the nonprofit organization. So it is necessary to function in a transparent manner so as not to invite scrutiny or legal action.

Keep it Simple
Keeping it simple is a tough lesson, especially as it often flies in the face of innovation and reinvention. How do we continue to move forward while making sure people understand how to use our site? Additionally, when is it time to train users on something new instead of only feeding them what they know?

There are lots of examples in recent history where "keep it simple" and "innovate and change" are not on opposite sides of the argument.

Multi-touch, for example, is a relatively new invention into our psyche. But it went off without a hitch. Why? It's intuitive and (more importantly) simplifies things. In this case, "keep it simple" was in effect, and things got simpler. Apple's two-finger scroll (on its trackpads) is another example. After you try it once, you wonder how you ever used a computer without that feature (and grimace when you have to).

But odd navigation on a website that doesn't simplify things is bound to confound users. Usability testing is crucial to understand if your latest and greatest innovation is intuitive or confusing.

Redesign Isn't One Event; It's a Constant Evolution
Redesign isn't always a big bang. Certainly, a wholesale redesign of the entire site is a huge idea. But beyond that, feature evolution and improvement is a weekly process. Sometimes, it's easier to sell a "redesign" if you don't use that word. If you're just changing one page or one feature, call it an "upgrade" or a "tweak." Upper management is usually less afraid of these words.

Post-Launch is Vital
Once a new feature or new site is launched, the work is rarely over. When redesigning, it's important to have a post-launch plan. Usually this involves analyzing site usage and metrics and tweaking things once they're used in the real world. Launches are also generally executed in phases, so preparing for Phase II and Phase III is important after the launch as well.

Additionally, it's important to get tech and creative to still be interested in the project. Once something is launched, it's no longer the "newest" or "sexiest" project at your company. But it still needs to be maintained and updated. You need to do internal PR to keep people interested in working on your project. Metrics, sales data, customer comments, and other feedback can help show its value and keep people excited.

First you have to understand how search engines work. Most of us don't have a clue, it's something about complex mathematical algorithms....right?

Yes, that's right, but you are now most likely in a mild coma, so let's look at the 3 major components that power the major search engines:

1. Crawling
   Crawling is actually done by bits of computer that find information on a web page, read it and then continue along be following links from your page to other pages. Another terms to describe crawling is search engine spiders that "crawl" around the web looking for content. Spiders will return looking for changes to the original page, which means there are always opportunities to alter the way a search engine sees & evaluate your website content.
2. Indexing
   Once your content has been captured, it is indexed & stored in a giant database. It is now gauging how relevant your content is to the words that people searching the web are using (i.e. keywords or key phrases)
3. Ranking
   The critical aspect of search engine technology is how the engine decides to provide the most relevant content to people searching for specific stuff (via keywords & key phrases). This is done by the secretly guarded "algorithmic functions". Fancy word for the search engines rules about what's relevant and what's not, thus PageRank.

Take a look at the major components of Google ranking algorithm

24% Trust/Authority of the Host Domain
Largely based  on the quality of incoming links. They treat links that flow to your site over time as an indication of other's people's trust in your site, find value in it, and reference your content as an authoritative citation. Creating a blog on your site that others link to or add a link on their site to yours is one of the major way to accomplish this. You can also call your friends and beg but don't be surprised if they stop answering the phone when you call. Provide value & be a resource is how you get this done....and it takes time & dedication. Read Blogging tips for non profit websites

22% Link Popularity of the Specific Page
The number of links to a specific page matters a lot too. How you keep visitors engaged and the quality of the content (highly valuable) is directly related to the probability of attracting incoming links. If the first measure is quality, this one is about quantity. Be a reference (.e. link) on many site as you can. Same here, this takes time, won't happen overnight.

20% Anchor Text of External Links
Anchor text links from other sites matters because this is their way of finding out what your page is about (i.e. "Your Company Name" as a link to your website posted on other websites)

15% On-Page Keyword Usage
The density of keywords in your content. There are few tools who can help you with that. The one I use is SEOscribe, it does all the work for me, it's like having a pro on staff reviewing your content before your post it...for $47/month. To help you with indentifying the right keywords, Google Keyword Tool is a great start

7% Visitor/Traffic and Click-Through Data
What do visitors do when they land on your site, stay for a while and browse or leave seconds after they get there (bounce). Engage people as soon as they land on your site, if your site doesn't provide any value, or valuable information, then they'll leave. Information about your company or services is not valuable...especially if it's full of marketing catch phrase such as "state of the art" or "best in class" or any other marketing mumbo jumbo. Provide value, something that 5 minutes ago I didn't know, i.e. valuable information in bite size format. If you do that, then I may re-tweet, like or link to my Facebook page your valuable content. Now you are helping your site with the #1 & #2 factor to better ranking....does that make sense? Google analytics has all the tools you need to analyze your traffic/

6% Social Graph Metrics
How popular you are with Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, etc. How often people "Like" or "Re-Tweet" your content is very important. The more likable you are in social network, the better it is for your rankings. Now you may have realized why you should do it if until now you were a bit puzzled by why & how to do it.

5% Registration and Hosting Data
The trust worthiness of your domain name registration & hosting provider.

What do you think your biggest challenge will be in optimizing your site?

A lot of organizations understand that they should have a blog on their Non Profit Website. I couldn't agree more and most Executive Directors I talk to agree as well. But there is a lot of confusion about how to do it or even what constitute a true Blog. So here are few tips to help you get started with your blog:

Your blog title should be keyword rich
You want to use good keywords, keywords that your typical member or potential member would be searching for. To identify good keywords, you can use Google Keyword Tool to get started.

Short & Sweet
I would recommend to keep it within 300 words, to include bullets, multiple short paragraphs and to bold keywords. Statistics show that most people don't have nearly the attention span you think they do, get to the point and remove all unnecessary words & phrases.

Include some related links to your content
The rule of thumb is to have a link for every 120 words. Could be a link to some interior pages of your website with more in depth information on the subject or better yet, a link to an outside source (i.e. Wiki) to provide additional information or to explain a specific term.

Add one single image to your blog
Most of what we track, show that having one image per blog is good. It makes it more visually appealing and gives people something to relate to than just a whole bunch of words. The image should describe the mood or feeling or describe in some ways what the blog is about. Make sure to add an image description to your image (aka ALT tag)

Make sure to have a RSS & email subscription
Most blogging services include RSS and adding a way for people to easily subscribe to your upcoming blog is a great way to spread your voice and to make your organization relevant. Some organizations have 70-80 percent of their blog readers subscribe by email, the rest will use RSS.

Getting people to comment
Some of the great ways to do that is to ask a question at the end of your blog or be controversial. Also, you can leave part of the subject not covered. If you completely cover a subject, there isn't much room for someone to add anything to it.

How often?
Once or twice a week. Yes, at least once a week, twice would be better. I know what you are thinking: "How on earth am I going to find the time to do this once, let alone twice a week". I think it's important for any organization to engage the whole membership, dumping this on one person's lap is a recipe for it to fail. Try a contest with your members: "best blog submitted will be published and the winner will receive a discount for the annual convention".

Is your schedule packed enough that the idea of adding blogging sounds like a nightmare?