5 Tips to Safeguard your Google Plus Privacy

Google Plus is still relatively new and apparently, most of the users haven’t figured out its privacy settings like they’ve done with Facebook. That said, Google Plus settings are more transparent and simplier compared to Facebook and you don’t need to be too techie to master them. In this post, I’ll be covering the G+ essential profile privacy tips:

#1. Hide your Google Plus Profile:

Although it isn’t possible to completely hide your Google Plus profile, we’ve looked at hiding as much of your G+ profile information in this article.

#2. Hide Google Plus Circles (friends) from your Profile:

If you don’t want others to find whom your Google Plus friends are, I’d advise you to hide them from your profile by following the advice provided in this article. After hiding mutual connections, they won’t show up on your profile when others take a look.

#3. Hide Google Plus videos/Photos:

Some of us may upload personal family videos onto Google Plus which we’d want only our relatives/friends to watch. To prevent a co-worker, or your boss from peeking on them, read up our guides on hiding videos and pictures on Google Plus, as well as disabling automatic picture uploading from your smartphone.

#4. Backup your Profile with Google Takeout

As for any other online service, i would recommend to periodically download a local copy of your Google Plus account to your disk. You can do so with a nifty little tool called Google Takeout. Read our blog post regarding this to know more.

#5. Keep reading our blog.

We write tons of tips for Google Plus (not just those about Privacy). Before you leave, make sure you take a look at our popular list of Google Plus tips to get the most out of it.

5 ways to search for people in Google+

With its gaining popularity, people have started using Google+ to share their thoughts and views with their friends. But users find it difficult to search for their friends in Google+ and get connected to them. This is evident from the questions that we receive from the users. So here we list 5 easy ways to find people in Google+.

1) Google+ Search results

The easiest and simplest way to find people in Google+ is to type their name in the search bar and look for the search results. This will work all the time if you are sure about the exact name of the person.

2) “Find People” Option in Google+

Google+ provides you with an option to add your Yahoo! and Hotmail friends by linking the account with Google+. This ”Find People” option  is available in theCircles page  in Google+.

Also by uploading an address book from Outlook, Thunderbird etc , one can link people in Google+.

3) Using findpeopleonplus

With Findpeopleonplus, one can easily find people they are looking for by just entering their name. This site provides you with so many filters – you can filter people with relationship status, gender, education, occupation and location. So if you are not sure about the exact name of the person but other details about him, you can easily spot him using this site.

4)Using gpeep

gpeep.com is another search engine that finds people in Google+.  C But one interesting thing about gpeep is that you can add your profile and add tags that suits you best and people can now use the tags to find you easily.  Use your Google+ profile id to add your profile in gpeep.

One can find his Google+ id  as shown in the picture :

5)Using gglplus

Gglplus works in a similar fashion than gpeep (which we covered above). One can add his profile using his Google+ id to gglplus and select tags of his interest. Now users can find him easily using the tags. You can also search for people participating in public hangouts.

Thanks for the read. If you have any more easy ways to find people in Google+, you can share it with us in your comments.

How to set up an account for Google Plus?

With the recent launch of Google Plus, several readers have sent me a note about creating an account for the new service.

Access to the service is being carefully controlled and it is mainly available for now mainly by invitation. It seems that there are two ways to make a Google Plus login:

• Filling up a request at the Google Plus project page and be contacted by Google.
• Ask a friend with to add you to a circle, then login to Google Plus with your Google account.

I would recommend that you’ll give it a try and let us know. I will be happy to connect with our readers on Google Plus. If you want me to add you to a circle, feel free to reply to one of our mail list messages.

How to Make a Google Account

Welcome to the 'How to Make a Google Account' page, within wikiHow. Just read the steps below and get started

Steps

1. 1
   Go to the Google homepage. Click sign in.
   
   
   
   Ads by Google

   Business Presentations

    Use Google Documents to create and collaborate on shared presentations
   www.google.com/apps/business
2. 2
   Click the red Sign Up button in the upper right corner.
   
   
   
3. 3
   Fill in the information that you are asked for. You will need to choose your username, which will be your email address. You may have to have a few backup usernames at hand, because every username must be unique.
   
   
   
4. 4
   Scroll down, and fill in the remaining information.
   
   
   
   • You will need to provide your current email address, so that Google can send you an email if it looks like someone has hacked your account, or if you forget your password. #*Fill in the captchas, and agree to the terms of service.
   • Click Next Step.
5. 5
   Add a profile photo if you would like by clicking add profile photo. If you would like to skip that step, click Next Step.
   
   
   
6. 6
   You're ready to go! Click Get Started to explore your new Google account.

10 Things Entrepreneurs Should Be Tweeting About

Apart from creating a vibrant branded Twitter account for your startup, business owners should consider creating their own personal account on Twitter. Fans and followers often want to connect with the person behind the brand.

Giving customers and prospects a glimpse into theentrepreneur's life and mindset can allow them to cultivate a deeper relationship with customers separately from the brand. The goal, of course, is to increase customers' loyalty to the brand.

Here are 10 things every entrepreneur can tweet about, which can allow your clients and prospects to see another side of you:

1. Personal news: Share the big events of your personal life -- vacations, weddings, births -- the type of info you'd share with close friends. It can help keep your followers feeling like they're "in the loop." You're also more likely to make a connection with followers who have experienced something similar.

2. Mistakes and lessons: Sharing mistakes and what you learned is a sign of growth, not weakness. Try doing a "What I learned this week" tweet and see how your followers respond.

3. Answers to questions: If someone asks a question on Twitter and you know the answer, share it. This can also be a way to develop a FAQ within your industry, which you can later point them to via a link.

Related: 5 Tips for Using Social Media as a Customer Service Tool

4. Links to articles: They key to sharing articles is to also include your unique opinion. Let others know why you liked or didn't like an article.

Just remember that your opinion paints a public image, which means you should be cautious about which opinions you choose to share -- ideally only those which are congruent with your market. Keep the rest to yourself.

5. Pictures of unusual things you see: If something catches your attention, it's probably going to catch the attention of others, too. So why not share it? This includes visually impressive products, food and architecture.

6. Wisdom from the book you're reading: When you hit a "golden nugget" of wisdom in a book, share it. It not only shows that you're well read, but that you value wisdom. Those are two things that can only help your reputation.

7. Interesting advertising: When a billboard or any other advertising catches your attention, take a picture and tweet it. Everyone can benefit from seeing smart marketing.

Related: Want Better Twitter Results? Try These Effective Types of Tweets

8. Fun purchases: Sharing your recent purchases, such as music, video games or sports equipment can stir up comments and conversations from others that have bought similar items and enjoy the same kind of entertainment.

9. Share wisdom from outside the world of business: Quotes from sports heroes, military leaders and artists can teach us about innovation and leadership, which are essential to business success.

10. Your work: The greatest links you can share are links to your personal work, but don't limit that to what you do professionally only. If you have a hobby or passion for something creative, share it.

Salary Negotiation Lessons From the NHL.

image credit: Bunow

Hockey fans have been out of luck so far this season with the National Hockey League (NHL) locked out since September due to a labor dispute between team owners and players. NHL team owners want the players' revenue share reduced from 57 percent to 50 percent under a new collective bargaining agreement.

The lockout is also concerning to many business owners, especially sports bars and restaurants, that rely on the NHL season to fuel their revenues during the winter months.  

For most business owners -- sports team owners included -- the primary objective is to increase revenues. But when it comes to paying your staff, the rules can sometimes change.

As the NHL labor dispute drags on it can offer a few lessons about negotiating salaries with employees. Here's a look at five:

Related: 3 Ways to Lead Your Business Like a Baseball Manager

1. Consider the economic conditions. As an employer, you not only have to know the current economic position of your own company, you need to be aware of the state of the economy as a whole when putting together budgets. Consider how a deal you agree to today -- a salary contract or any other type of financial agreement -- might affect your business five years from now.

2. Understand the market value of your employees. As an employer, find benchmarks in your industry in order to understand whether your employees salary demands are realistic. If your competitors are offering more money for a similar role, you better be willing to step up or have something to offer that would make that employee want to stay with you.

3. Be willing to part with replaceable employees. Can the business run without the employee or is he or she critical to your success? Are you willing to lose the employee over salary demands? Perhaps you have other candidates or current employees with similar skill sets and experience that can fill the role. These are all factors to keep in mind when negotiating salaries.

4. Know your limits. Even if you're convinced that an employee is invaluable to your organization, you have to set a budget and stick to it. If you lose the employee because you're unable to meet his or her demands, you can save yourself years of unrealistic and perhaps unsustainable costs by hiring someone for a more reasonable salary.

How to Drive Sales Through Social Media

In this special feature of 'Ask Entrepreneur,' Facebook fan Amy Clark Braden from Austin, Texas, asks: Which social network is better for converting followers into customers? So far we haven't had much luck with Facebook. What about Twitter or Google+?

Converting customers through social channels is not as cut-and-dried as most business owners think it should be. Put yourself in your customer's shoes and ask, "Why would I engage with this brand on Facebook?" Often, the answer is not, "So I can buy stuff from them."

Perhaps a better question to ask is, "Where would I buy things from a brand?" Chances are, Facebook is not going to be the first answer for many.

Your Chance to 'Ask Entrepreneur'

We enlisted our Facebook fans to ask their most pressing questions about starting and running a business. Over the next several weeks, our special panel of experts will offer their answers and discuss more in online chats. Mark your calendar and stay tuned for details on these future events:

•  Nov. 16: Gary Vaynerchuk on Connecting with Customers
•  Nov. 20: Jason Falls on Social media
•  Dec. 5: Grant Cardone on Sales
•  Dec. 19: Angela Jia Kim on Growing a Business

Consumers see the social layer around a brand as one that supports their buying decision in providing engagement and information pre-purchase, then supports them after the purchase when they have questions.

There's a disconnect when brands say, "We want to use Facebook to engage our audience," but then expect the result to be purchases. It's also misleading to think that your Facebook fans are the same type of captive, opt-in audience that you might find in, say, your email marketing list. They clicked a like button. It's a virtual high-five. The barrier to entry there isn't much of an obstacle.

This doesn't mean you can't drive conversions or build a customer base using social media, but that you have to first understand that's not what customers are turning to many social networks for. Secondly, approach your social channel with a strategic plan and purpose to drive business.

My guess is, for a business that says its Facebook fans don't convert, it isn't providing content that attracts likely customers or asking them to convert. Sometimes you have to present a call-to-action and give them a compelling reason to click, download or buy.

One social network that seems to get the most nods when I ask, "Are you driving business there?" is LinkedIn. This makes sense because it's mostly used by business people for business purposes. Networking with sales in mind is more natural on LinkedIn. On Facebook? Not so much. But if you've approached your Facebook strategy with the conversion in mind, you'll see much greater traction than if you just "engage" and cross your fingers.

Still, it's not the channel that is often to blame, but the strategy at play. If you want to convert fans on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest or any other social channel, you have to drive likely prospects and customers there with promotions or compelling content. Then you have to give them the opportunity and reason to convert. If you've attracted the right audience with the right messages in the right place and the right time, they will.

When Sustainability Starts With Yourself: The Key to Lasting Change in Your Personal Productivity 6 Simple Solutions for Getting Rid of Stress The 3D Printing Craze Hits Young Entrepreneurs How Successful Leaders Balance Skepticism and Openness

In today's rapidly changing market, small businesses that innovate survive. But, that's no easy task for aleader. You're expected to be open to risky ideas while protecting your company and evaluating what will work. Openness and skepticism often seem at odds, and finding a successful balance can be tough.

"Innovation pulls leaders in multiple directions," says Sam Hunter, a psychologist studying innovation at Penn State University. Learning when and how to employ each mindset will help you manage the innovation process effectively.

Related: 3 Ways to Think Outside the Box

These four tips can help you encourage creative ideas while keeping your business safe.

1. Accept all ideas at first. At the beginning of a creative process, while you're generating ideas, you want to be open to any and all suggestions. "For truly creative thought to occur, team members must believe it is okay to put forth different -- often strange -- ideas," Hunter says. Cultivating an environment of openness will create a sense of safety. 

Assume that every idea has the potential to be great. "A leader must serve as a champion of novel thinking in early stages," Hunter says. A terrible idea could inspire a great one, so encourage people to take risks and give them a safe space to do that.

2. Aim to improve ideas, not criticize. Encourage a lively debate and strive to make ideas better. The original idea might seem outlandish, but you can raise specific concerns and solutions that help your team hone the idea. It's an iterative process. With each improvement, the idea becomes stronger and more feasible.

Be wary if you find yourself nixing ideas as soon as they're spoken. "Criticism too early is a sign that someone is resisting simply because change is difficult to manage and it may be more work for them," Hunter says. Improve an idea as much as you can before you pass any judgment.

Related: The Biggest Mistake Small Businesses Make in Brainstorming

3. Create low-cost sketches or prototypes. After the initial brainstorm phase, pick out several ideas that are most exciting to your team. Choose a mix, including some that seem risky, and find low cost ways to test them out. "Spend some time letting that idea come to life," Hunter says. "It has to be far enough along in development that a proper evaluation can be made." 

The key here is to test ideas quickly and cheaply. You might work on a low-cost prototype, sketch out a plan, or run it by a few focus groups. An idea that seems silly on paper may be highly effective in practice.

4. Be skeptical before you spend. Once you have a sketch or prototype, be as critical as you can. "The skepticism lens should be brought out when cost is about to incur," Hunter says. The creative process is over at this point (or temporarily stalled) and practical concerns take precedence.

Gather all the information you have about each idea and judge how well each of them will help you reach your goals. Now is the time to be ruthless -- a fun idea is not necessarily good business.

5 Ways Social Media Can Ruin Your Reputation

Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Google+ allow us to connect with the players in our market. But, when used improperly, social media can be a dangerous platform for entrepreneurs to ruin their reputations.

Here are five ways social media users can destroy their online rep, and tips for steering clear of these costly mistakes:

1. Boring posts. A boring post is anything that lacks your unique personality or perspective. Giving a fresh perspective on an old topic or going against the status quo is what gets noticed.

So ask yourself how you can infuse your own character or sense of humor within each post. This is the essence of branding. The last thing you want to be is forgettable.

Related: 7 Key Habits of Super Networkers

2. Disrespecting others. Social media is not the place to work out your problems with people. It's no different than yelling insults at someone in public or raising your voice at a retail store employee. Yes it gets peoples' attention, but that's not the kind of attention you want.

Unfortunately, the higher you climb in social media, the more people will want to throw stones at you. But don't retaliate publicly. Simply delete the negative comment, block the person and then decide if you want to address the issue privately, or just move on.

3. Failing to promote others. When it comes to building your business and developing a powerful network, you'll want to develop a reputation as someone who highlights others. Not only does this give credit where credit is due, it also communicates that you're secure with your success and have the ability to promote others in your industry.

Some effective ways to highlight others:

• When someone gives you a great piece of advice, post it on Facebook or Twitter and tag that person.
• Utilize the Endorsements feature on LinkedIn and begin endorsing people within your network.

Related: Got a Bad Yelp Review? Here's What to Do

4. Not replying to comments. Not replying to comments on your blog or over social media is no different than starting a conversation with someone and then ignoring their response. Actively monitoring comments and questions on every post can be time consuming, but even posting one follow-up comment per post can show you care and that you're engaged.

5. Being tagged in questionable photos. Most everyone has been captured in a photo that should be titled, "This is not how it looks." As funny as some photos can be, think twice about allowing yourself to be tagged in questionable photos. As a business owner, be mindful of how you want to be perceived publicly. Untag or delete yourself from any inappropriate photos.

Your best ally in creating an image that attracts the right kind of people and attention is to simply use common sense, which usually not so common. As long as you're consistently infusing your unique style and communicating with the same class that you would in public, you'll do just fine.

What would you say are the biggest social media blunders to avoid? Let us know in the comments below.

3. Make your email marketing more valuable.

E-mail remains effective at reaching a large number of current and potential customers. It could be used in a myriad of ways, from informing your customers about a new product, to offering ongoing training and industry news. Every email should be valuable. Jantsch recommends the following strategies to get the most out of your e-mail marketing efforts.

• Use an E-mail Service Provider (ESP): If you're sending more than 10 emails, an ESP is essential. It allows you to be more creative with presentation and also allow for automatic responses and tracking. Jantsch recommends Aweber, Infusionsoft, MailChimp, Constant Contact and Vertical Response.
• Have a consistent communications tool: To be truly effective in e-mail marketing, you need to have something that you can send out regularly, such as a weekly newsletter.
• Build e-mail campaigns around events: Send out e-mails when you have something to offer, such as a new product, service or compelling content. 

Related: How to Create an E-Mail Marketing Campaign That People Will Notice

2. Become a smarter listener.

To stay relevant and interesting to your customers online, it's important to know what they want. Jantsch says it's essential to listen to your customers and to journalists, influencers, competitors, blogs and general industry chatter. Here are his tips on how to find them.

• Create Twitter lists to see what your customers are saying about your product or industry, and to monitor what your competitors are up to.
• Create Google Alerts for journalists who write frequently about your industry.
• Use Alltop to peruse the content of some of the most influential people blogging about your industry.
• Sign up for Quora to understand what questions are being asked by your customers and competitors. This will help keep you informed and might point to an unmet need in the market.
• Use Google Reader to manage your blog subscriptions.

Organizing the way you listen will make sure you know what's happening in your space -- and help you craft your own message.

Related: 10 Little Known Social Media Tools You Should Be Using -- Now

1. Think about your content carefully.

Plan ahead and approach content creation in a purposeful way. Choose eight to 10 topics that you believe will most engage your readers and tailor your content to them. Then, create an editorial calendar with a list of upcoming topics, and be faithful to it.

Related: How to Create Great Content for Your Website

Jantsch recommends using WordPress as a content management system; he says that not only is it intuitive and comes with an entire community of developers and designers constantly improving it, WordPress pages are also more SEO-friendly than static websites. Jantsch recommends using the following WordPress plugins to boost SEO appeal. 

• Contextual Related Posts: This plugin automatically places five to six related stories below a post. This allows readers to easily access related content and makes your content easier to find by search engines.
• Sociable: This plugin allows you to seamlessly integrate social media into posts. It has buttons that display how much your content is being shared on social networks, including Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.
• WordPress SEO: This plugin allows you to maximize SEO by reminding you to insert images and meta descriptions, and analyzing your headlines for length and keyword usage.   

3 Steps to an Online Marketing Makeover

Marketing expert John Jantsch, author of the popular blog Duct Tape Marketing, recently shared with Entrepreneur his insights on how to create a comprehensive and compelling web presence. In a webinar hosted by Laura Lorber, Entrepreneur.com's executive online editor, Jantsch voiced his thoughts on the seven stages of a web presence: search engine optimization, e-mail marketing, social media, online advertising, mobile and analytics.

Here are three of the key strategies he discussed.