So the question is: How do I get this started? What are the first steps?

The Joker has a Calling Card - So Should You

Back in the day (the 1800′s) gentlemen carried calling cards. It was used to introduce yourself, request a meeting (date), and even express condolences. In today’s modern society, it feels like a calling card would not be necessary, but I argue, that there is no better time to have your own calling card.

You have Facebook, Twitter, email, phones, a blog (maybe), IM, and about 100 other ways for people to contact you. However, after I meet you, I can’t find you or I forget who you are. Imagine you meet someone at a party and you want to get to know them better. You put their name and phone number (more likely their email) in your phone. Weeks later, you’re going through your phone and you find this contact, but you don’t remember why you wanted to to contact them.

Now imagine you are at a party and you meet someone. This time you give them your calling card and you make a note on the back, “Meet at the Yelp museum mixer.” Not only are you the only one handing out calling cards, but you added a note that makes it easy to remember you. Also, can you think of a better way to introduce yourself to a nice lady? Your calling card mixed with a story of how gentlemen would use them to express interest in the fairer sex can only lead to one thing, follow up contact.

Business Cards are for American Psychos

“But Mike, I have business cards. Why should I have a calling card?”

Most people change jobs every four years, most people keep the same email, phone number, IM, etc. forever. Plus, business cards have your company info on it. It tells the recipient nothing about you (plenty about the company you work for). Here’s what you can put on your calling card: Name (First Name, Last Initial is fine), Nickname, Email Address, Facebook URL, Twitter Name, Google URL, Yelp URL (you can get a personal URL from Yelp too), QR Code, xBox Live Gamer Tag, and your Blog URL.

There are a bunch of places you can go to get your own business cards, several are about $30 for a box of 500. Here are a few suggestions:

• Crane & Co. – very nice and pricey
• The Stationery Studio – still nice, cheaper
• Zazzle – They have pre-designed, 4-color cards
• Moo – My personal favorite. They have some killer “ready made” cards

Having your own calling card makes it easier to break the ice in odd situations, makes you stand out (until everyone else is using them), and will increase your contact list.

The Gentleman’s Guide to the Calling Card - Art of Manliness Article

May I Offer You My Calling Card? – Time / CNN Article

ONE: Beer Pong at O’Sheas – imagine you are in college, you have been playing beer pong in your dorm room for four years and now that you’re 21, you are in Las Vegas. You don’t have a lot of cash and you are not too interested in playing $25 blackjack. As you’re walking down the street, you see o’Sheas has beer pong. 4-hours later, your wasted and you spent about $200. On top of that, as you are walking out of the hotel, you spend another $100 on blackjack because your too wasted to not play. That was $300 worth of beer pong. Genius!

TWO: Oxygen Bars and Water Massage in the Malls – I have seen these in many malls in Souther California, but I have never been interested in trying them. I’m sure you feel the same way, and so do all the customers sitting at the oxygen bar and getting massages. There is something magical about Las Vegas that makes people want to do something they won’t do at home. It could be as complex as getting a tattoo, visiting a hooker, or something as simple as getting a water massage. Genius!

THREE: Painting the ceiling of the mall to look like dusk – today we had lunch at the mall inside the Venetian. I stress inside because when we put our name in at the front, we were asked, “Would you like to be seated inside or outside?” We then had to take a group evaluation and the conclusion was, “Outside is good, it’s nice out right now.” But there is no OUTSIDE, there is only INSIDE. We were covered by 42 floors of steel and concrete. The air was cool and still, the light was artificial and unchanging, but today, I had lunch outside, inside the mall at the Venetian and I never once considered leaving the mall and going to a great local restaurant only a few blocks away. Genius!

There are plenty more Genius ideas in the City of Sin. I’ll be sure to let you know all about them.

So here is my guide to buying an HDMI cable:

Step 1: Find out how much cable you need. Usually you only need about 6′ (six feet) to get from the component to the TV or receiver.

Step 2: Go to your local Fry’s or Radio Shack (avoid Best Buy at all cost) and find the cheapest cable in that length. You need to ask the sales associate where all the cheap cables are located. They will not have an end cap or special display. They will be in simple packaging with ho-hum colors and information. These are the cables you want. The in-store cost is about $1.25/foot.

Step 3: If you don’t have access to a Fry’s or Radio Shack, please buy a cable online. Most will have free shipping and no tax (if it’s outside your state). I like Amazon.com or NewEgg.com.

So why can you buy a cheap cable for your high-end stereo system? Why don’t you need a double shielded cable with gold connectors? It’s very simple: HDMI is a digital signal cable and regardless of the environment, there is no signal loss. Digital signals are on or off, one or zero, black or white. There are no shades of gray (like in analog cables). So when you plug in a $100 HDMI cable to your system, you’re getting the same ones and zeros that can easily pass through a $6 cable. There is no difference and no proof that the $100 cable is better or that the $6 cable is worse.

So I hope this helps you and saves you some money when you purchase your next HDMI cable. In the end, I spent $5.95 on a 6′ HDMI cable.

What is HDMI:

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is the first and only industry-supported, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. By delivering crystal-clear, all-digital audio and video via a single cable, HDMI dramatically simplifies cabling and helps provide consumers with the highest-quality home theater experience. HDMI provides an interface between any audio/video source, such as a set-top box, DVD player, or A/V receiver and an audio and/or video monitor, such as a digital television (DTV), over a single cable.

HDMI supports standard, enhanced, or high-definition video, plus multi-channel digital audio on a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports 8-channel, 192kHz, uncompressed digital audio and all currently-available compressed formats (such as Dolby Digital and DTS), HDMI 1.3 adds additional support for new lossless digital audio formats Dolby® TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio™ with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements.

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Friends With Benefits: A Social Media Marketing Handbook

I just completed reading “Friends with Benefits: A Social Media Marketing Handbook“. Did I enjoy it: Yes. Can I recommend it: Maybe.

If you are totally new to social media (as in you don’t have a Facebook or Twitter page) for your business, you will get a lot out of this book. If you run your own business and are thinking about getting into social media marketing, you will get a lot out of this book. But if you have been on Facebook and Twitter or you have your own blog, you can probably skip this one.

This handbook is written for the newbie (no disrespect) and I was able to only get a bit of knowledge out of it (I’m so advanced). I would have liked more information about using Facebook pages for business and how to Tweet for your business. The topics in the book are elementary (or 101 if you prefer).

The writing style is perfect for the content and explains all the terminology in detail, but fails to dig deep for the advanced user. Just a hit of this sub-surface information would have made the book a lot more useful (for me).

Overall, if you are considering social media marketing for your business or organization, consider “Friends with Benefits: A Social Media Marketing Handbook“.

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Sell your product in the title – no matter what the medium, you only have five seconds to grab the readers attention. The title is the best way to do this. Tell me what you are selling and try not to be cute. Example: “Ikea Queen Bed with Mattress Dark Brown Platform Slightly Used“. Now if you read this title, you know exactly what to expect. If I am looking for a platform bed, I’m going to look at this ad, but if I’m looking for a sleigh bed or Thomasville, I know to avoid this ad. This little title will save me the  seconds it takes for me to click the ad and then click the back button. Over time, it’s going to save me hours.

Put in the actual price you willing to take – I realize that there are cheap people who see something for one dollar and will click you ad regardless of what you’re selling. But for people who are actually going to purchase your item, I want to know the price ASAP. CL has a space for the price, use it. Do not put the price in the title field, use the price field. If you are willing to take less (or more) add “obo” (or best offer).

Do not reinvent the wheel – if you are selling a product (new or used) and you didn’t make it yourself, you probably bought it from somewhere else. So when you are selling that used 27″ flat screen TV, do a Google search for the product name and number. What will you find? Only all the details about the product. Copy and paste the important details of the product into your ad. Now I (the buyer) will be able to see all the important specs of the product. How does this help? It will eliminate all the email questions people will be sending you. As the seller, this will save you a lot of hassle. Once again, only serious buyers will be contacting you.

Add a personal touch – after you have all the technical specs in the add, feel free to add a personal touch. If you loved your couch and paid three-times as much as you are selling it for, now is the time to tell me. You can also put in any special notices like “scuffed corner” or “missing pillows”. Some people think that adding faults to the ad will eliminate some buyers, and it will. But some people don’t care and are glad to know what is wrong with your product.

Pictures, pictures, pictures – most of the crappy CL ads are missing images. Please take a picture (at least two) of your item, from different angles, and post them to the ad. When you are taking your pics, turn on all the lights in the house or open all the blinds. I want to see the product and if your camera is a cell phone, this will help the picture a lot. CL offers an option for four photos, I recommend you use all four slots. If you happen to mention that there is a surface flaw in the product, try and take a picture of that too.

The goal of your CL ad is to sell your product. The easier you make it for me to find and fall in love with your item, the quicker and easier it will sell.

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My parents had to put our dog to sleep today. She had bone cancer and it was too deep to operate. My mother is very upset because it’s also her birthday (Happy Birthday Mom).

She was letting me know that I now have an option when it comes to overages. I could stick with the way it is now or I could opt out. Not being sure what the current way was, I asked. I was informed that currently, as a courtesy, if I made a purchase on my card, but didn’t have the credit to cover the purchase, Capital One would accept the purchase and then simply charge me a fee to cover the purchase. In addition, if I decided to keep this option, Capital One would like to reduce the service fee they charge for this service. Instead of paying $39 per overage, I would only pay $29 for each overage.

So let me get this straight, I have a credit card with a $750 limit. If I try to spend $751 dollars, instead of declining the charge (like the good old days), they will accept the charge and add a $29 service fee.

So I asked her, “instead of charging me, why don’t you increase my spending limit?” Her response, “Well, you don’t qualify for a limit increase.” Really, so if I pay you $29 each time I want a temporary limit increase (which is basically what is happening) that’s fine?

My other option, it turned out, was to decline this service and in the event that I tried to charge something and didn’t have enough credit, the charge would be declined. Um…I thought that was how it worked in the first place. Call your credit card companies and make sure you opt out of this “feature”.

For more information on the reforms the credit card companies have to follow, check out this Frontline episode, your tax dollars paid for it anyway.

• Bad Santa
• Die Hard
• Planes, Trains and Automobiles
• Christmas Vacation
• Gremlins

1. Uptight (Everything’s Alright) – Stevie Wonder
2. Moondance – Van Morrison
3. Wave of Mutilation – The Pixies
4. Starry Eyed Surprise – Paul Oakenfold
5. On the Road Again – Willie Nelson
6. (Don’t Fear) the Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult
7. Incense and Peppermint – Strawberry Alarm Clock
8. Shut Up and Let Me Go – The Ting Tings
9. Dead and Gone – T.I. (featuring Justin Timberlake)
10. Take On Me – a-ha
11. Touched – Vast
12. Fireflies – Owl City
13. Such Great Heights – The Postal Service
14. There is a Light that Never Goes Out – The Smiths
15. Viva La Vida – Coldplay
16. Sowing the Seeds of Love – Tears For Fears
17. If You Leave – O.M.D.
18. Why Does it Always Rain on Me? – Travis
19. Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want – The Smiths
20. If I Ain’t Got You – Alicia Keys

Verizon has partnered with the Wi-Fi service Boingo to offer access in thousands of locations throughout the U.S. including hotels, airports, restaurants, coffee shops, retailers, convention centers and public locations across the U.S.

On the same day, Barnes & Noble announced that they have partnered with AT&T (my personal favorite technology company) to offer free Wi-Fi inside all B&N bookstores nation wide.

We have always wanted our stores to feel like home—a place where people can relax, explore and connect with ideas and each other at their leisure. So it is only natural that, in today’s world, we want our customers to enjoy complimentary Wi-Fi. You can explore the world the way you always have at Barnes & Noble with the technology that connects us to the world today.

While you are connected, you can text, IM, make VOIP calls, read, download, and just communicate. You are not out of reach. People flock to free Wi-Fi. You think it was hard to find a chair at Barnes & Noble before, now you have to fight with the guy who is not even reading a book. He’s crunching spreadsheets and posting to his blog. His home office is Barnes & Noble (or Starbucks, or a Verizon Hot Spot). For $4/day (price of coffee), he can start a business from the comfort of these locations. With a Wi-Fi spot, you don’t need a expensive phone/data plan. You can get a VOIP account and take calls from your iPod or hook up a mic/headset to your notebook.

Nothing is more frustrating then having to leave my house to get some treats (or necessities), have a great idea, and then being stuck with limited ways to foster the idea. We race home, only to have forgotten the minor details that make the idea POP.

Sure, you can write your idea down on a napkin, but wouldn’t you rather research, develop, and send you idea to a partner? Of course. So I’m only going to the cafe, bookstore, coffee house, or restaurant that allows me to accomplish this. The one that give me free-ish (price of service) Wi-Fi.

So is this the beginning of “muni” Wi-Fi? Imagine with me, the following scenario: you complete your Skype call with your mom, and head to the cafe for some breakfast. When you arrive, you can access the cafe’s Wi-Fi because the code is listed on the menu. You order your breakfast and start reading the daily news on your iPod (Kindle, etc.). After your meal, you head next door for some window shopping. You have left the cafe, but you are still connected. Why; because the code you used was good for the building (not the just the cafe). In fact, you have access to the Internet no matter where you go in the strip mall/complex. It’s one of the main reasons you frequent this complex and all the shops benefit.

This post was not completed or edited – just flowed from my brain – I’m sorry if it leaves you wanting or frustrated.

Give it a try. You can use the Archive over on the right –>
to look up old post. When you read the old post, you will see the ads at the bottom. Please enjoy my old (and future) post.

http://www.noiseinsidemyhead.com/category/noise-inside-my-head-podcast/feed/

Enjoy