Disclaimer: This is elementary knowledge, purposed for beginners and optimization shoppers, not industry cohorts though industry contributions in comments would augment the information.

Aloha, readers, from the snow-capped terrains of rocky-mountainous Colorado.  I was jeeping my way through the western country and missed the latter portion of the week in online marketing.  Okay.   I admit.  I snuck some peeks in on my Android.  I can't stay away.  Let's see what treats online marketers left for us on the trail.

Facebook announced yesterday that adverts will appear on the 425m mobile devices used to access the social network.  The move follows the roll-out of adverts on users' news feeds, which began in early January. This means that brands you’ve endorsed by hitting the ‘like’ button will now be able to push deals and other updates right into the news feeds that show your friends' updates, photos and links.  Read more

Social media may be great for your personal life, but its benefits may not be as great for your work life. According to new research reported on Philly.com, a quick review of a job candidate's Facebook page can predict future job success.  Read more

Are you winning with your PR pitches or missing the mark, like an inexperienced pitcher from the California penal league?  Remember Rick 'Wild Thing' Vaughn from Major League?   You may know him from his present-day role as Charlie Sheen (but I digress).  Rick had the 'heat' behind his hurls but his approach needed tweaking.  A customized pair of Clark-Kent glasses and a music-filled montage of highlights later, Vaughn comes around, rallying the once-trailing Indians behind him.

I don't' have a high-def monitor; is it me or does your homepage look a bit dusty?  Is it time for a spring clean?  When was the last time you considered giving your brand's online face-page a scrub down?  If you've been following search engine optimization tips over the years, it's likely you've introduced, attended to, neglected, and eighty-sixed a number of implementations.

Facebook on Wednesday is set to stage its biggest-ever ad event, where it's expected to unveil an ad platform overhaul just two months before its IPO. The company's future might depend on how well advertisers are able to parlay the dominant social network's 845 million users into building buzz and branding — and more sales. Read more

While 90 million users have logged onto Google+ since its June launch, not many are spending much time there, according to research by comScore. In Take on Tech, WebiMax founder and CEO Ken Wisnefski talks about the platform's future possibilities.  Hear more

I wonder if Picasso threw paintings away after one day.  That's what happens to a lot of writers' online works.  Content is not physically "trashed"; yet, if it's not evergreen (and even in those cases at times) the content kind of rests there, eternally at peace.  It's a sin we let content pass on in such a way.  Shouldn't we facilitate a longer existence?  After all, copywriting professionals put in time and energy; we'd like to see our creations curated, raging against the dying of the light.

Facebook disclosed an eye-opening fact this month when it filed its plan to go public: 425 million members access the social network on smartphones and tablets.  The disclosure sent up red flags for analysts, because the company also said it does not “currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven.”  Read more

How are you (informally/professionally) using social sites these days?  In the beginning of the online party, there was sparse professional participation.  MySpace and Friendster were more or less social sites, platforms where friends could connect in informal fashions.

The success of Jeremy Lin as a brand cannot be understated. We are introduced to a man who was released by two NBA rosters, only to be given a chance by the New York Knicks. His instant rise-to-fame as the starting point guard of the Knicks proves more to consumers than simply a lesson in professional sports.  Read more

What's the importance of a business' personality?  That might seem like an odd question; isn't your business a thing, not a person?  Sure, but creating associations to your company is a large part of branding, a process not to be ignored.  I referenced personification this week in a post about getting consumer attention.  Maybe for some, it's easier to regard your business as a person; entrepreneurs are a suitable population to personify.  The group has a lot in common with aspiring businesses.

Even when an online retailer wins out on price, the cost to ship it to your home might erase the price advantage, which is especially true of heavy items such as televisions.  “You’ll see sites that have a good price, but they’re trying to get it to the East Coast from Arizona, and a lot of the time ... it might be better to go to Best Buy,” Wisnefski says.  Read more

Along with other bloggers and copywriters, I love to write.  That's what I do.  What do you do professionally?  Search engine optimization providers partner with businesspeople in a variety of industries: medical, industrial, automotive, legal, and so on.  Each client has their own respective areas of expertise, which may or may not overlap with my own.  For instance, while lawyers are likely good writers, they may not have the time to invest in online marketing pursuits throughout their day; rather than write a blog post for their site, they'll approach SEO copywriting professionals, who can help with search engine optimization objectives.

This month, Google+ passed 100 million users. And analyst Paul Allen (Google+ unofficial statistician) predicts that by the end of 2012 the number of Google+ users will exceed 400 million. Who are these people? Many of them are your customers, partners and media professionals. And now with Google+ Your Business, Google is attempting to make it easier for you to connect with them, for free.  Read more

It would be blasphemy to say it in China but the sensational start of Jeremy Lin’s rise to superstardom overshadowed the important U.S. visit of Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping last week.  Read more

Facebook has designed Timeline to look the same on mobile devices as it does on PCs, although without the ads. Lieb said Facebook is also testing ads that appear like status updates on the news feed, yet remain in view longer, so they don't get pushed down and out of sight right way. The ad could start as a friend's "like" or other social activity, and only be seen within a friend's network, she said.  Read more

Web entrepreneur Ken Wisnefski is concerned that Facebook's users will not appreciate the addition of mobile ads in March.  Read more

WebiMax

Vice-President Xi Jinping's visit to the US this week has attracted a lot of expected attention from government officials, the media and the American public.  What was totally unexpected was the dramatic entry on the sports and international scene of New York Knicks basketball player Jeremy Lin, a Chinese-American born in Palo Alto, California, to parents from Taiwan. The 23-year-old point guard has led the Knicks to seven straight victories since being inserted into the starting lineup two weeks ago.  Read more

Who's who in [insert your brand's name] -ville?  Knowing users' levels of clout was a major factor influencing former 'gamification' engagements.  Brands enjoyed user participation but did not know too much about its Badgeville 'citizens' otherwise.  Who is who is becoming more important in 'gamification' as a player's level of social 'clout' is crucial info for brands to identify.

There are a lot of online marketing options these days.  Social media alone hosts a party of solutions.  We know (through SEO best practices and a series of 2011 Panda updates) the production of content is important.  We also have come to understand (especially considering the popularity of social media) that the dissemination of content is also integral, elongating the reach of marketing initiatives, offering a better chance to secure consumer relationships.

If you're old enough to remember, some prime-time television stars (Roseanne Barr) were credited using only their first names.  I'm not really sure how one 'officially' reached such plateaus of stardom regarding 80's television, but if you're exceptionally 'down' in today's pop culture and social media world, Facebook will dial-up your account asking you to confirm your 'alternate' identity (a nickname, brand name, well-known moniker or otherwise).

Kenneth Wisnefski discusses “Image Jacking” with Richmond Morning News.  Hear more

Facebook's new deal with Bango shows its efforts to make some money on those who use Facebook on their mobile devices. Webimax founder and CEO Kenneth Wisnefski joins Alisa Parenti in Money, Markets and More.  Hear more

Cinderella

A new website with a very off-color description of Mitt Romney could create a serious image problem for the Republican presidential candidate. Reputation management experts call it “image-jacking” -- and Google says it's out of the company's hands.  Read more

The New York Knicks' young point guard has nearly melted search engines and Twitter over the past week despite other big stories, such as a possible war with Iran, the struggling economy, U.S. presidential election and Tuesday's release of the 2012 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.  Read more

When Boxer Floyd Mayweather wrote on his Twitter account Monday that ‘Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian,’ and then later followed up with a tweet saying, ‘I’m speaking my mind on behalf of other NBA players. They are programmed to be politically correct and will be penalized if they speak up,’ I thought it made sense to ask some of the 76ers what they felt about Mayweather’s comments rather than let him speak for them.  Read more