The LA Times recently published an article, in which it compares Google to Osama bin Laden. It seems Google’s plans to let users comment on aggregated news has some editors and journalists edgy. But as long as they do their jobs and publish objective and complete articles, they have nothing to fear.

I wrote the following letter to the LA Times editor in response to the article:

Welcome to Web 2.0, LA Times, where consumers and the public at large get a say.

Surely, providing Google users forums to comment on news stories will result in some biased and uninformed viewpoints, but it’ll also keep editors and journalists on their toes.

For if you don’t do your job, and produce biased or incomplete articles, there will be a newly empowered body ready to call you on it.

Site after site, poor web copywriting continues to obstruct user experience. The problem is most businesses and organizations tend to treat copywriting as an afterthought.

While reading a newsletter posted by Icograda, I was directed to a poll with the following copy:

Current Opinion

State your opinion. Share your views. Vote on the weekly Opinion poll. Then view the collective results. Just click the check box beside your selection, then click on the “Vote” button.

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Robert Kiyosaki’s ‘Before you quit your job’ takes you up several hundred feet to get an unobstructed perspective on what separates employees (who seek security) and entrepreneurs (who seek freedom). Moreover, the Rich Dad book reveals everything from how to deal with mental roadblocks to how to position yourself in your chosen industry.

Regardless where you’re at with your entrepreneurial endeavors, this book is worth picking up. While it sometimes overlaps Kiyosaki’s original ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ book, it contains several valuable gems.

StrawberryFrog, a global agency with offices in Amsterdam and New York, recently blogged about the impact and future of consumer-generated content.

Tori Winn, Digital Executive Creative Director at StrawberryFrog, gave her take on the future of consumer-generated content, concluding the future is bright.

Indeed, the emergence of consumer-generated content is rapidly empowering consumers. That’s a good thing, and it’s here to stay.

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Google has unleashed a Local Business Referrals program to tighten its stranglehold on Internet yellow pages (IYP) companies such as YellowPages.com.

To improve its local results, Google is paying Business Referral Representatives to canvas local businesses to collect information, such as hours of operation, and take digital photos of the establishments. The representatives get up to $10 (U.S.) for each approved and verified referral. You can sign up here.

Google tells candidates: “…you’ll be helping the businesses you refer attract new customers while also making it easier for people in your community to find the products and services they’re searching for.”

Long-established directories that have been struggling to stay relevant in the rapidly progressing search engine industry may see the already significant gaps widen. Late last year, comScore reported Google garnered 29.8 per cent of local searches by U.S. Internet users compared to just 3.9 per cent by YellowPages.com.

While competitors and Internet marketers will be studying Google’s Local Business Referral Referrals program closely, one thing’s for sure: the pace of the IYP/local search race is heating up and the offerings are going to get better.

Advantage: consumers, local businesses and, of course, advertisers.

While visting Seth Godin’s newest blog, which promotes his latest book, The Dip, I was moved by a magnificent opera performance by an unassuming mobile phone salesman.

Paul Potts, who confessed to having confidence challenges, earned a standing ovation within seconds of his performance and blew away the American Idol/ Britian’s got Talent judges. He went on to the finals and won the entire competition.

Regardless what business you’re in, this will prove to be an inspiration. Watch it here. It’s four minutes well spent.

Another Gem in the Rough

And here’s another moving performance. They laughed, and then they cried.

Susan Boyle, a 47-year-old that “wants to be a singer,” sings Les Miserables’ I Dreamed A Dream on Britain’s Got Talent.

Watch her blow the audience and judges away.

Watch Out for that Kid, Susan!

After Simon Cowell cut Shaheen Jafargholi’s initial song short, the 12-year-old dazzled Britian’s Got Talent’s judges and audiences with a soulful version of Michael Jackson’s Who’s Loving You.

Following Shaheen’s performance, Simon tells him: “This is how one song can change your life. And this may be the start of something special for you, young man.”

See Shaheen here.

Businesses are starting to recognize it’s not the volume of online traffic, but the quality that counts.

Good traffic comprises relevant visitors who are likely to fulfill a desired action on your website, whether it’s to make a purchase, e-mail or call, subscribe to a newsletter or what have you.

Poor traffic, even in extraordinary amounts, is a waste of bandwidth. No matter how impressive the numbers, the wrong crowd won’t bring you desired results.
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Search engines control access to the world’s most valuable commodity: information. So with potential for abuse by companies like Google, is government regulation necessary?

Scholar Frank Pasquale recently put forth the question: Should search engines be subject to the types of regulation now applied to personal data collectors, cable networks, or phone books? He answered it with a 60-page article in favour of search engine regulation.

However, one needs to consider Internet users can choose to use any one of countless search engines. It’s no stroke of luck Google owns more than 50 per cent of the search engine market (Nielsen//NetRatings). Google produces relevant results, and that’s why it’s the king of the hill.

But if Internet users feel Google is manipulating its algorithm and results, or determine there are better search engine results available through different service providers, Google will quickly become today’s Yahoo, which dominated the market just a few short years ago.

Whatever your view, this shouldn’t be taken lightly considering the search engine industry’s influence on our economy, politics and culture could one day exceed all traditional media combined.

Those who tap into their raw talents and passion get ahead further and faster in the ever-expanding Web world.

It seems obvious, but most web types get drawn toward immediate, short-term opportunities and wander far from their true calling.

Enter Specialization

Renew your drive by specializing in an area where you naturally thrive.

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While more business owners are recognizing the benefits of hiring professionals to compose copy for websites, confusion remains on what the following three types of writers can deliver. Here’s a brief breakdown:

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