Facebook is one of the biggest sources of traffic for any web site or blog. Are you making Facebook work for your blog?

Here’s our webinar, “Facebook: Are you doing it right?” We hope these tips will help you drive more traffic to your blog. And the more traffic you’ve got, the more attractive you’ll be to advertisers. (more…)

via redsquareagency.com

If you’re going to be a kick-ass branding agency, shouldn’t your agency’s own brand kick ass?

These agencies have the goods. And you can buy the goods from them. (more…)

Durham, NC advertising agency McKinney won Best in Show for Web Site Excellence at Monday night’s OMMA Awards for SPENT, the online game that simulates life below the poverty level. The game, which has been called the “Oregon Trail of poverty games,” was created for local group Urban Ministries of Durham, and its universal premise has gained it a lot of recognition.

SPENT creator Jenny Nicholson has also created a petition to Congress, through which you can ask you local representatives to play the game.

Huge congratulations to Jenny and her team. We look forward to having such innovative neighbors.

Jessica Colaluca is a true lover of colors. On her blog, Design-Seeds.com, Jessica sees the inspirational details in photography.  Along with posting photos with a great use of color, Jessica offers her fans the color palette swatches that make up the dynamic photos.  Design Seeds is the perfect breeding ground for cultivating design creativity!

Blogger Jessica Colaluca of Design Seeds

Q: When and why did you start blogging?

A: I started blogging in May 2009…Design Seeds is my first blog and a complete passion project.

Q: How do you think your blog stands out amongst other design blogs?

A: Design Seeds are for any sort of creative inspiration…I have received feedback on the many ways people are inspired by Design Seeds beyond design. One of the most powerful comments I received was from a reader who said they were moved by color in the same way many are moved by music.  Those sorts of comments and emails are humbling, and I am grateful for the opportunity to share my approach to color and inspiration.

The goal of Design Seeds has always been to provide original content, which is also another way the Design Seeds blog is set apart from many other design blogs.

Q: What do your family and friends think of your blogging?

A: Although friends and family know I blog, the concept of Design Seeds is a bit abstract and not something I am defined by with those most close to me. Although it is my passion project and what I am most driven by, I don’t talk about it that often with friends. My family & friends know me for owning the design consultancy, and we don’t discuss my blogging generally. (more…)

The Stars of the DSRL

Are you familiar with the DSRL? It’s a marketing team of superstar athletes, comprised of Venus Williams, Eli Manning, Shaquille O’Neal, and Apollo Ohno. And what are they selling? Not Gatorade. Not athletic gear. Not even shoes. They’re selling Oreos. And they can lick the icing out of an Oreo cookie faster than you can.

Here are four food campaigns that dare you to eat. A lot. (more…)

So you’ve decided to make money blogging with Blogads.com. Awesome! One of the most frequently asked questions we get from new bloggers is where to place Blogads code to attract the most advertisers.

Here’s our guide to Blogads code placement, from optimal to not-at-all optimal.

Optimal: Top Left

This is the perfect spot for Blogads! Readers tend to scan a page from left to right, top to bottom, and placing your Blogads at the top of your leftmost column will maximize your reader’s engagement with the ads, and make your blog more desirable to advertisers. (more…)

If you peaked at the #f8 Twitter stream before Zuck took the stage today, you would have thought the Facebook developer conference was a fashion show.

I hope Facebook announces a mirror so their f8 staff can reevaluate their lives and never wear vests again #f8

— Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) September 22, 2011

(more…)

Blogger Scott Esposito publishes quarterly essays and book reviews for his online magazine, The Quarterly Conversation, in addition to posting reviews and interviews of authors and publishers on his literary blog, Conversational Reading. Esposito’s 25th issue for Fall 2011 is now available on The Quarterly Conversation, so make sure to check it out in addition to keeping up with his news on Facebook and Twitter!

Blogger Scott Esposito of The Quarterly Conversation and Conversation Reading

Q: When and why did you start blogging?

A: I started my personal blog, Conversational Reading, in 2004 and The Quarterly Conversation in 2005. In both cases the reason was the same: I didn’t see a whole lot of places to do the kind of writing about literature that I wanted to do–in-depth writing about great books, but not in an academic sense at all. I started these sites to share my writing, meet other like-minded people, and encourage people to read great literature. I think it’s worked out on all 3 counts.

A: I think The Quarterly Conversation stands out for the kinds of books we tend to cover–we do a lot of translations because that’s where a lot of the most interesting literature is happening these days. We also go very in-depth, with our reviews averaging around 1500 words and our essays 3,000 to 4,000. Everything on TQC is closely read and edited, and I think it shows in the quality of the material we present. We’re definitely not one of those sites that will throw whatever up online in hopes of generating pageviews through quantity. We believe we’ll get plenty of traffic—and better traffic—through quality.

A: I don’t really know. I think they think it’s cute, but they probably don’t really think about it beyond that. They probably have some idea that my sites are cool to certain people, but the things that my sites cover aren’t really my family’s thing. (more…)

So you’re ready to buy your first Blogads. You’ve read the best practices guide, you’ve set a budget, you’ve chosen blogs to advertise on. Only problem is, you dont have an ad.

Fortunately, this is a golden age for custom art. Thanks to Etsy, it’s easier than ever to commission a painting of your dog, or your car, or whatever else you can imagine.

And you can also commission custom ads. Here are 11 Etsy shops that can help the create your first ad without putting the hurt on your wallet.

1. Bears Graphics

What you pay: $10

What you get: Custom image (up to 300px), and 3 free revisions.

Customer feedback (100% positive): “I love it! good communicator, understood what I desired in an ad and ran with it.”

(more…)

Netflix has really stirred the pot, so to speak, with the announcement of its new DVD-only service, Qwikster. Apparently, in its haste to rebrand, someone at Netflix forgot to check if the @Qwikster Twitter handle had already been claimed. It had been, by a weed-smoking Elmo, apparently.

Bored as shyt wanna blaze but at the same time I don’t ugh fuck it where’s the bowl at spark me up lls

— Jason Castillo (@Qwikster) June 23, 2011

@Qwikster is just the latest brand-busting Twitterer to be added to my list, “Not Who You Think We Are”. Here are some more, uh, off-brand tweets:

Wish I was surrounded by naked women

— Jordan Sigalos (@wrangler) April 22, 2011

Erotica is using a feather, pornography is using the whole chicken.

— KFC (@kfc) March 21, 2011

Middle of September means the girls are whipping out the yoga pants. Thank you sweet bearded baby Jesus.

— Abdulc( ???)? (@Advil) September 18, 2011

im just chilling drinking on some e&j you dig

— koolaid (@koolaid) January 27, 2008

In retrospect, rehab might have been a good idea.

— Chip Clark (@Chipotle) July 23, 2011

Just launched an air biscuit. Amber hates that phrase. #airbiscuit

— Matt (@hydrox) July 14, 2011

If you’re over 60, I guess you can win an argument by calling someone stupid and refusing to discuss or justify.

— Bryan Pendleton (@bp) July 5, 2011

I had a dream that I tooted in front of Kevin Spacey. He was super cool about it and gave me a fist bump so I wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

— erin (@e) August 3, 2011

Have you seen any other off-branded Twitter accounts? Let me know, and I’ll add ’em to the list!