11 Helpful Tips for Becoming a Better Networker [Infographic]

This post originally appeared on HubSpot's Sales Blog. To read more content like this, subscribe to Sales.

My freshman year of college, I had a roommate who participated in an internship program in Washington, D.C. At the end of the internship, the students in the program attended a networking event with alumni in the city. She told me that she and the other interns competed to collect business cards -- the “winner” was the one who ended the night with the most.

Hopefully, this isn’t the way you’re networking.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1JgHSc7

7 Easy-to-Use Interactive Content Tools You Should Explore

This post originally appeared on HubSpot's Agency Post. To read more content like this, subscribe to Agency Post.

Imagine that a couple of your friends convince you to give speed dating a try. 

"It'll be fun," they insist. 

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1K0D8YQ

Cloudy skies give Manhattanhenge photos a Monet-like feel

Instagrammers couldn't get enough of the celestial phenomenon known as Manhattanhenge Friday evening despite disappointing conditions.

Manhattan was aglow with a smeared golden light as the sun aligned with city cross streets, bursting through a cloudy sky. The haziness gave photos of the biannual phenomenon a Monet-like quality

Manhattanhenge fans were saddened by the weather's impact on the typically voluminous sun, but that didn't stop crowds from blocking intersections.

See also: Art project will take 3,000 photos of disabled people to change your perceptions

Years ago when Neil deGrasse Tyson first discovered the cosmic positioning (he coined the term Manhattanhenge after Stonehenge), he was alone in the middle of the street taking photos of a glowing orb squeezed between rows of tall buildings. Now droves of people flock to capture the scene Read more...

More about Social Media, Us, Pics, Neil Degrasse Tyson, and Manhattanhenge

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1SHQ6yn

8 Interesting Charts on How the Internet Is Changing

This post originally appeared on HubSpot's Agency Post. To read more content like this, subscribe to Agency Post.

This week, Mary Meeker, a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, released her annual Internet Trends report. It's the 20th edition in a series spanning back to 1994 -- the year Yahoo launched and three years before Google.com was registered.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1HXpqDP

Rejoice: Facebook gets GIF support. Here's everything you need to know

Prepare yourselves: Facebook now has serviceable GIF support.

That's right children, you can now post GIFs to Facebook and have them display not only inline, but in the mobile app as well.

See also: Beep boop beep: An interactive, animated droid encyclopedia

Longtime Facebook users (read: old people like me who have been using the service since it was for college students only), will recall that if offered GIF support in the very early days. The ability to embed or upload GIFs was removed a decade ago, probably because of the negative impacts a ton of GIFs on the newsfeed had on the product.

A decade later, GIFs are bigger than ever and the ways in which a web service can deal with loading GIFs has improved too. Plus, virutally every other major social service now supports GIFs, so it's sort of time for Facebook to re-join the party. Read more...

More about Facebook, Facebook Gifts, Gif, Social Media, and Apps Software

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1d3VNG0

Facebook Finally Supports GIFs: 10 Ways to Celebrate

There's an old saying that goes, "A photo GIF is worth a thousand words."

And as of today, Facebook is finally allowing users to express themselves via GIF. 

[Hold for applause.]

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1d3VLOw

10 Things to Stop Doing in Your Next Public Speaking Opportunity

Most of us at some point in life have to stand up in front of other people and make some sort of presentation. That’s just the way it is.

Whether it’s only a verbal presentation to a few people or a TED Talk with cameras and a large audience, there are some simple things to remember that will help you make as strong a presentation as possible. 

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1HS3Lzv

Kale, Podcasts & Yoga Pants: The Secret Formula Behind Ideas That Take Off

Unsatisfied by his current job, Tom Dickson found himself with three things: the need for a change, a passion for bread making, and a $10 vacuum motor. 

In search of a way to combine them, Dickson started his own blender company, Blendtec. Unfortunately, he quickly found that generating buzz for blenders wasn't all that easy. 

Then one day, his marketing director found inspiration in a pile of sawdust left behind by one of Dickson's "blender durability experiments," and proposed an idea that would soon propel Blendtec to fame. 

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1JbLcVQ

Psychology of Ecommerce Sales: The Noble Edge

Familiar with companies that have a noble edge? Sure you are. They’re some of the most successful ecommerce companies out there right now. And their social responsibility is one huge reason they’re raking in the cash.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1LNxNTD

How to Create a Compelling Business Case Study: The Ultimate Guide & Template

Struggling to earn the trust of potential new customers?

Before you can expect them to open up their wallets, you need to start the sales process by demonstrating your ability to deliver on what your product or service promises. 

Sure, you could tell them that you're great at X and that you're light-years ahead of the competition when it comes to Y and Z, but at the end of that day, that's just lip service.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1Ay0QK5

Google+ chief: Big changes are ahead

Bradley Horowitz, the lead on Google's social network, Google+, made an appearance at the company's developer conference to tell the world that Google+ isn't going anywhere, but it's going through big changes.

See also: Why Google+ is splitting into photos and streams

Horowitz explained he's currently in charge of Streams, Photos and Sharing at Google, and that Google+, as a service is being completely rethought. He also said there has been a "renaissance" of thinking behind the product and that it would be changing considerably in the coming months.

"Google+ is where people want to connect around their interests and passions," Horowitz said. Read more...

More about Google, Bradley Horowitz, Social Media, and Apps Software

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1G4xgOy

4 reasons you shouldn't be afraid to be funny on social media

Laughter is a universal language and one of our first communication methods. Before we had spoken or written language, humans used laughter to express our enjoyment or accession with a certain situation. It's also a form of communication that bridges the gap between various languages, cultures, ages and demographics. So it's no wonder that funny memes and witty hashtags are such a hit on social media. In fact, according to one study, "humor was employed at near unanimous levels for all viral advertisements. Consequently, this study identified humor as the universal appeal for making content viral." Read more...

More about Social Media, Audience, Humor, Marketing, and Brand Engagement

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1G4xgy1

Human gives dying dog one last cross-country road trip

HubSpot & Salesforce Sign a Partnership Pact Through 2020

I’m thrilled to announce that HubSpot has renewed our ISVForce relationship with Salesforce.com through 2020. This is great news for HubSpot, HubSpot’s customers, Salesforce, and Salesforce’s customers.

Nearly 20% of HubSpot marketing software customers use Salesforce.com’s CRM product. We have spent many many many calories over many many many years building a great integration experience for our joint customers, and we have over 500 5-star reviews on the Salesforce App Exchange to prove it. These customers, as well as future joint customers, will be able to continue to leverage this integration.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1d1Zdt1

5 Smart Ways to Increase Your Facebook Page's Organic Reach [Infographic]

Does it feel like your Facebook Page's organic reach is slowly slipping away from you?

You're not alone.

According to Ogilvy, organic reach for brands on Facebook has seen a shocking 49% drop from peak levels in October 2013. 

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1AAnukK

If you're on Periscope, you'll get a live tour of the British Museum today

Twitter's video streaming app is finding its way into museum hallways.

The British Museum has announced it will live stream a 30-minute broadcast on Periscope from its "Defining Beauty: The Body in Ancient Greek Art" exhibition

See also: Can Meerkat still compete against Periscope?

The stream, which begins Thursday at 6:30 p.m. ET, will be hosted by TV historian Dan Snow. The first part will show a number of ancient Greek works in marble, terracotta and bronze; at that point, viewers will be able to ask questions via Twitter and Periscope. The museum's exhibit is open through July 5.

The news comes just in time for Android users; Periscope only arrived on that platform earlier this week. The video streaming app launched for iOS in March, immediately amassing a large user base but also causing some concern over copyright issues, leading to a ban at NHL games. Read more...

More about Social Media, History, Periscope, and British Museum

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1LLG5eX

How to Choose the Right KPIs for Your Business

Whether your performance improvement goals are related to inbound marketing, sales, or any aspect of business for that matter, choosing the proper key performance indicators (KPIs) to focus on is the first step towards measurable improvement.

As they say, what get’s measured gets improved. If you can quantify your current performance you can then begin to measure how things are improving, or diminishing, over a period of time.

But how do you choose the right KPIs to focus on for you business?

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1FiLbKV

How to Create Detailed Buyer Personas for Your Business [Free Persona Template]

Restaurant Owner Roy. Caregiver Katie. Landscaper Larry. Do you know who your business's buyer personas are? And exactly how much do you know about them?

Buyer personas (sometimes referred to as marketing personas) are fictional, generalized representations of your ideal customers. Personas help us all -- in marketing, sales, product, and services -- internalize the ideal customer we're trying to attract, and relate to our customers as real humans.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1HOgHXj

How To Design a Publishing Website Your Advertisers Will Drool Over

 

If you place any value on the profit generated by your publishing website, you have one crucial demographic to win over above all others: advertisers.

This is the core of increasing online ad revenue for publishers, much like the core of television broadcasting rests on providing a pleasing network for television ads. But what makes one publishing website superior to another in the eyes of an advertiser? Quality content? Layout? Reputation? These all play their parts, but there’s far more to consider in designing your site; so let’s talk about content best practices, inbound marketing, analytics, and making a profit.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1KAJ4sA

Marketing Books to Millennials: One Author's Unconventional Growth Strategy [Podcast]

In 2013, Michelle Miller left her job at JP Morgan to write The Underwriting, a story about Wall Street and Silicon Valley targeted toward Millennials. 

She knew nothing about publishing or marketing a book. All she knew was she had to do something different. The typical publishing and marketing playbook for books wouldn't work for her target audience -- they weren't the "sit down to read for long periods of time" type. 

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1BqJ6uV

Hashtag is UK children's word of the year #notreallyaword

It's not actually a word, but the symbol #, or hashtag, has been named as children's word of the year in the UK.

See also: Teens are trying to summon demons using pencils and a hashtag

Oxford University Press analysed more than 120,000 short story entries by children to BBC Radio 2's 500 WORDS competition, finding that the writers used hashtags liberally to add comment to statements and sentences.

One story entrant wrote the following, according to a statement about the findings:

She then picked it up and ran out of the cave… the cave exploded and she didn't look back at it exploding, she just kept on walking forward # super cool. Read more...

More about Uk, Social Media, Hashtag, and Us World

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1HNUsAT

6 tech hacks to master your work/life balance

Hearing more chatter — either at home or at work, or both — about work/life balance?

You're not alone

While the concept of a balance between your work and your play has been around for decades, more companies today, especially startups, are putting work/life balance at the forefront of their recruiting.

See also: Top 10 Jobs With the Highest Work-Life Balance

As new policies enter the workplace, employees are also engineering their own methods to balance their careers and social lives.

Here are six ways technology can help you find a more equitable balance between your work life and home life — and help you maximize productivity in both areas. Read more...

More about Social Media, Business Productivity, Lifestyle, Leisure, and Work Play

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1FP2TJY

Facebook Messenger beefs up payments, lets you pay inside group chats now

Facebook Messenger said two months ago that it was getting into the payments game — a long-awaited move on Facebook's part. Now, the team also plans to phase in two additional ways that people can pay each other inside the app

Messenger announced on Wednesday new tweaks to its payments feature that tightens integration with the overall app. Facebook also expanded the availability of payments, which is being rolled out over the next few months; it's already available in a handful of U.S. cities, such as Seattle, Portland and Austin, but will now include the New York metropolitan area

See also: 5 tips to make Facebook Messenger work better for you Read more...

More about Facebook, Payments, Mobile Payments, Facebook Messenger, and Social Media

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1HLZcUN

Confessions of a Google Spammer

Before I became an inbound marketer, I once made $50,000 a month spamming Google. I worked a maximum of 10 hours a week. And I am telling you from the bottom of my heart: Never, never ever follow in my footsteps.

This blog post will tell you exactly why.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1FaXMz4

The 6 Month Website Redesign Framework

When you’re craving pizza, you have a few options: You could take the easy way out and order a greasy pie or pop a frozen ’za in the oven. Or, you could make one from scratch.

Those fast solutions will be satisfying in the short run, but you’ll get more out of making your own dinner. You’ll be more careful with ingredients. You’ll be able to make it exactly how you like it (one quarter pepperoni, one third green peppers, and the rest extra cheese? It’s up to you). And you’ll gain the experience of making something out of nothing.

The same is true of website redesigns. You could hastily compile a website in 30 days, but it won’t be the same as if you dedicate your time to making it perfect.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1HLKiOk

How to Write a Resume: The Ultimate Checklist of Resume Tips

I can't think of many tasks people dread more than writing a resume. There are so many little things you need to add, rephrase, check, double-check, triple-check ... and somehow, your resume still goes out with your name as Corey Ridon from HubStop. It's anxiety-inducing, is what it is.

So, I did what I do when I'm anxious. I made a list about all the little stuff you need to do when you're writing and editing a resume.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1KzDtTu

2 Big Steps to Remove Friction During the Checkout Process

Your goal as an ecommerce retailer is to remove as many obstacles as you can between want and buy. Because you have quite a few other tasks to complete in between, reducing friction in the buying process can be difficult. Yes, selling is your main goal, but you want those customers to come back, right? Return customers don’t always come back on their own. They need a little prodding, which is why you have to use the time you have to gather as much information as you can.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1RnkIDN

Copywriting Lessons From BuzzFeed's Worst Headlines [New Data]

As more and more people begin to publish online, more channels and content will be competing for your audience’s attention. A great headline is one of the most effective ways to break through the noise -- it has the potential to increase a post's traffic by 500%. So how do you write a headline that drives that kind of results for you?

Search for “how to write the best headline” and you’ll find many articles promising a blog title formula that will garner the most page views and shares.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1AtlP0F

Teens are trying to summon demons using pencils and a hashtag

Pizza Hut is involved in a weird open relationship with meat pies

Meat pie meets pizza pie in the newest heart-attack-inducing indulgence from Pizza Hut Australia

The pizza company has recently partnered with Four'N Twenty, the beloved Australian meat pie, to create the Four'N Twenty Stuffed Crust Pizza. Instead of the usual stuffed crust, the pizza is bordered by tiny Four'N Twenty pies. Because if you've ever eaten a stuffed crust pizza, you've probably thought to yourself "Gee, I wish I had a meat pie to go with this."

See also: How some ladies are using Tinder to get free pizza

The launch of the new pie was announced on Tuesday. Pizza Hut's Fatima Syed said in a statement that "Aussies love pizza and we love pies, so in a world first we've brought these two legendary foods together in the crust, the perfect combination for the heart of the footy season." Read more...

More about Social Media, Pizza Hut, Relationship, Pizza, and Pie

via Social Media http://on.mash.to/1cY5FRK

How to Create a Collaborative Work Environment [Infographic]

Whiteboards, screwdrivers, wires, and scraps from rubber tires all live as one in the Google Garage. 

What's the Google Garage, you ask? It's a "commons where Googlers can come together from across the company and learn, create, and make," says program manager Mamie Rheingold.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1J2MVNd

38 Essential Website Redesign Terms You Need to Know

Every industry has its buzzwords, and web design is no different. If your head is spinning from seemingly endless jargon, or if you’re getting ready to redesign your company website and want to inform yourself on the most common technical terms in modern web design, then this is the list for you.

Here are 37 of the most popular technical terms and buzzwords we hear (or use) as we do website redesigns, organized from A to Z. Do you see one you’ve heard lately on this list?

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1KkEU50

Your Guide to Starting a Successful Inbound Marketing Career [Free Kit]

"Find a job," they said. "It'll be easy," they said.

Ahh, if only. For most of us, though, finding a job is pretty darn difficult -- especially one we're passionate about.

It doesn't help that competition is on a global scale. Jobvite found that 69% of all HR recruiters expect hiring to become more competitive in 2015, especially regarding social recruiting on LinkedIn and Facebook.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1IXJ9Gx

5 Simple Ways to Optimize Your Website for Lead Generation

Optimizing your website to generate leads is a no-brainer. But it's not as simple as throwing a "click here" button on your home page and watching the leads pour in. (Unfortunately.)

Instead, marketers and designs need to take a more strategic approach. In this post, we'll go over some quick ways you can optimize your website for lead generation that actually work.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1RhwteZ