Set your data free

In today's business environment everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY has had to Excel and PowerPoint.  In the realm of online marketing, like many realms I suppose, data is the key to making smart business decisions.  But how do we avoid paralysis by analysis?  How do I know which is more important, costs, revenue, ROI, ROAS?  Ahhhhhh, it's like alphabet soup!

Well, I recently decided that I wanted to improve my chart and graph skills to present KPI metrics to my team and those business managers I work with.  In my search I found a site which I will share with you to help "set your data free".  Michelangelo said: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free".  If you know what data is necessary to sell your idea or proposal, then set your data free with a compelling visual image and not the 1,000 words or boredom already swirling around every corporate conference room in the city.

The site I found is http://www.excelcharts.com/blog/

Even a cursory look around and you understand the drive and passion Jorge Camoes, the site owner, has for this topic.  I am impressed and appreciative of the information and education available, and all without cost.  Be sure to check out the About link to learn more about the owner/author, his background and experience.

I am going to take some time to familiarize myself with this site and it's learnings.  Do you have any similar sites to share?

Keep on keeping on...now stop reading web sites and go outside:

Understanding SEM on a deeper level

I recently began a new job working in paid search for a large retailer.  In 10 days I've learned a LOT.  My career has been rooted in client-service so this role is new for me on a couple of levels.  My world has been opened to a level of analytics and "turning data into knowledge".

Example:  I've learned to measure positive and negative ROI metrics, then use those numbers to craft a story and strategic recommendations which need to be pitched to internal business managers.  The numbers are specific and always questioned, so it's important to bring your A game.

Additionally we are changing our SEM agency and I've been able to participate in a number of conversations on the best way to set up our new campaigns which has given me a new appreciation for the level of knowledge and expertise that these folks offer.

What lessons will this week bring?

Two shopping sites you should know

If you enjoy finding good deals online and getting rewarded for online shopping you need to know about SlickDeals and MyPoints.

SlickDeals.net is a site that scours the web to bring together the best bargains and coupons for you.  It offers a wide variety of product categories from the web's largest retailers and displays them in an easy-to-read front page grid.

MyPoints.com is an online loyalty site for shoppers.  By purchasing goods and services you collect Points which can be redeemed at any of the site's redemption partners.  You can purchase books, contact lenses or a DirecTV system.

Take a minute or two and check out these sites.  Bookmark them now to start reaping the benefits of shopping on the web.

Top 5 Web Directories you should know about

If you own a website and are interested in driving more traffic to it, here are 5 online directories you should be aware of:

1:  DMOZ, widely recognized as the Granddaddy of online directories.
www.dmoz.org


2: JoeAnt:  Born of the desire to provide relevant results in a wide variety of topics, and seeks to work by forming a 'community' of editors where anyone interested can join in.  Re-launched in August 2002 following an extensive site rebuild that recreated the back-end to enable the directory to be indexed by search engine spiders
www.joeant.com


3; Yahoo Directory: The directory wasYahoo!'s first offering. When Yahoo! changed to crawler-based listings for its main results in October 2002, the human-edited directory's significance dropped, but it is still being updated. The Yahoo! Directory offers two options for suggesting websites for possible listing: "Standard", which is free, and a paid submission process that offers expedited review.
http://dir.yahoo.com/


4:  Best Of The Web:  Best of the Web Directory is a commercial web directory providing websites categorized topically and regionally.
http://botw.org/


5: Business.com: Includes Work.com, a business-to-business community publishing platform where experts share advice on common business topics in the form of how-to guides.
www.business.com