TJantunen.com

Once you have gotten past the hurdle of getting followers on Twitter, chances are good that you will want to know what is the best time to push out your content-marketing tweets or commercially-oriented tweets. I recently came across a tool that analyzes your Twitter followers and tries to give you some statistics to help you find the best time to send out those tweets.

Before I dig into this topic, I want to address any concerns from the social media unicorns and rainbows crowd. Just because you know when your tweets are going to reach the highest audience doesn’t mean that’s the only time you should be on Twitter. This is social media, and it requires you to be social at some point. There are exceptions: big brands and news accounts can operate in broadcast only mode but, for most accounts, community interaction is required if you want to get the greatest value out of Twitter. That’s not to say that you should spend all day on Twitter. That’s rarely cost effective. The key is to find a way to balance being on Twitter, being involved in your community, sharing links, and meeting your content marketing goals.

If you visit the website Tweriod.com, it will ask you to authenticate your account (pretty standard at this point). Then it will analyze your last 5,000 followers and come up with information about when they are online. It gives you quite a bit of data, but I’ll highlight the most important bit in this graph.

Online Follower Graph from Tweriod.com

There are two important points I want to bring up. First, it’s only analyzing my last 5,000 followers. Since I’m just shy of 15K followers at the time this post was written, that means 2/3 of my networked isn’t being analyzed. Second, the oldest 1/3 of the people following me is probably the section of my followers I interact with the most. This may or may not be something you need to take into consideration for your account.

To be honest I don’t know what causes that spike on Monday nights, so I’m going to say it’s a data anomaly and ignore it since it’s not my peak time anyway. It doesn’t come as a huge surprise to me that the people who follow me are at their peak from 11-6 EST. I’ve been involved in Internet marketing for a long time, and people have been shopping/browsing/interacting while they are supposed to have been working for as long as I can remember.

The two high points of 11am and 4pm did surprise me a little, as I typically get more conversation around 1-2pm, but it’s not out of left field. Now, if I were going to use this data to push out a commercial message, I would use a Twitter scheduling tool like Hootsuite or Bufferapp and schedule my tweets for 11-ish AM and 4-ish PM the same day or subsequent day depending on the tweet’s importance. Social media experts tend to look down at repeating tweets, but it works.

I don’t recommend that you blindly follow one source of data though. Bufferapp and Hootsuite also come with reporting tools to let you know how many clicks and retweets you got. However, if you really want to get more reliable data, I would suggest adding hashtags to your url before shortening it. Using hashtags gives you a much more accurate result. Use hashtags, not querystring parameters, and make sure you have the canonical tag in place to lessen the chance that a search engine will screw something up. For more info on using hashtags, read this post on URLs, social media and campaign tracking from Joost de Valk.

So what are the takeaways on this post on Choosing the Best Time of Day to Tweet

• Use tools like Tweriod to analyze your followers and find the times for peak visibility.
• Be aware of the 5,000 follower limit and any other data that doesn’t make sense.
• Look for the intra-day high points and repeat your tweet on the same or following days.
• Use hashtags to create unique URL’s for maximum tracking before using URL shorteners.
• Based on the data you get, experiment with variations, but don’t make judgements on just one set of data.

photo credit: Photospin

Related posts:

1. How to Use Twitter as a Marketing Tool with Tweet Pro So my friend Cesar Serna launched his new site this…
2. How to Get More Followers on Twitter Getting more Twitter followers is one of the first hurdles…
3. Twitter Contests and Incentives – Do they Work A few weeks ago I made the mistake of wondering…
4. What Social Signals Might Search Engines Use Late last year both Google and Bing announced they are…
5. Are Search Engines Using ClickStream Data Recently there was a big kerfuffle over Bing copying Google…

Advertisers:

1. Text Link Ads – New customers can get $100 in free text links.
2. BOTW.org – Get a premier listing in the internet’s oldest directory.
3. Ezilon.com Regional Directory – Check to see if your website is listed!
4. Need an SEO Audit for your website, look at my SEO Consulting Services
5. Link Building- Backlink Build offers customized link building services
6. Directory Journal – Get permanent deep links in a search engine friendly directory
7. LinkWheel SEO – Get Web 2.0 Backlinks
8. Links From PR9 Sites – - Get In Top 3 Google ASAP
9. TigerTech – Great Web Hosting service at a great price.

This post originally came from Michael Gray who is an SEO Consultant. Be sure not to miss the Thesis WordPress Theme review.

What is the Best Time of Day to Tweet

from Michael Gray – Graywolf SEO Blog

Under the legacy approach to software development, developers write code, which is then frozen, tested by another group, released and ultimately supported by yet another team again. Under this highly structured approach, large enterprise software applications are typically updated every 6 to 12 months, and up to several years can pass between major operating system releases. In enterprises, risk appetite and the desire for stability typically drive these intervals. This “silo” approach to software development practices is clearly out of synch with today’s real-time-focused business world.
from TechNewsWorld

With styluses for touch-screen computers and all-in-one “smartpens,” handwriting still has its uses in a digital world.

from NYT > Personal Tech

Governor Jerry Brown of California has signed his budget into law, which includes the affiliate nexus tax.

With the stroke of his pen, Governor Brown just put legions of entrepreneurs and their employees out of business.

The affiliate nexus portion of the budget forces out-of-state retailers to collect California state sales tax for Internet sales, based on the view that affiliate marketers constitute a tax nexus for the retailers.

The immediate reaction by countless online retailers, in what promises to be a huge list, is that they will remove the affiliates of California from their affiliate programs, so they still do not assume a tax nexus.

Simple summary for California politicians: no additional tax revenue will be collected.

Amazon already informed their affiliates that they’re out on the street.

And with scores of affiliate marketers fired by these retailers, California is going to lose a big chunk of income and income tax.

Congratulations to the CA lawmakers and Governor Brown: you’ve managed to deepen your huge deficits through some misguided bureaucracy.

Back in the spring, the state of Illinois passed a similar law, which forced super affiliate FatWallet.com to move from Illinois to Wisconsin, so they could remain in business.

How many companies in California will now be leaving the state like FatWallet for places that are not hostile to economic growth and job creation?

More details on the California affiliate nexus tax from the Performance Marketing Association.

from Affiliate Marketing Blog by Shawn Collins

Ready for a peek around the other side of the desk? as a blogger you are likely approached by link builders. But what do they really do on a regular basis? This interview will take you through the ups and downs you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what you can expect to earn and more. This is a true career story told anonymously, to get you closer to the truth about this line of work.

What is your job title? How many years of experience do you have in that field?

My official job title is link builder, i.e. I optimize search engine results for different websites. I have been working as a link builder for almost one year.

Would you describe what you do on a typical day?

I work from home, so after having breakfast I log in to the main dash board where I am able to view the work plan for each site I optimize. I assign, proofread and publish articles on different online magazines. Then I search for possible link partners, and send them emails asking them to place links to my sites.

What is your ethnicity? How has it hurt or helped you?

My father was a white American and my mother is a Peruvian Hispanic, therefore I consider myself a mix. As I grew up I believed this to be a negative thing, but as I have matured I’ve learned to appreciate my ability to understand both races and cultures; once I learned to embrace my background, I realized I had double the opportunities.

If you’ve experienced discrimination, in what ways have you responded and what response worked best?

Initially I felt upset whenever I felt discriminated as a Latino and tried to fight back by speaking my mind. After many years I realized the best response was to be tolerant and humble, as I was able to concentrate more on my own happiness rather than trying to change someone else’s mind.

What languages do you speak? How has speaking another language helped you?

I speak English and Spanish. After graduating college, I was asked to translate marketing material on my first internship. I realized it was something I could do easily and enjoyed; therefore, I continued writing and translating. Having done this has opened many doors in my career.

What did you learn the hard way in this job and how did that happen?

It took me a while to understand the importance of each URL. As I searched for new links throughout the web, I would place incorrect URLs on letters and/or articles, making me lose time and money.

What don’t they teach in school that would’ve been helpful to you?

Humility. It changes the entire perspective on life and work. Being humble helps me appreciate things more, as well as work harder to get things I want, as I don’t take things for granted.

How did you get started in this line of work? If you could go back and do it differently, what would you change?

I began writing and translating for different websites, which taught me the importance of the internet as an advertising channel. If I could go back in time, I would listen more to the advice of my elders and people who love me.

On a good day, when things are going well, can you give an example of something that really makes you feel good?

Seeing how my sites’ rankings are improving is rewarding.

When nothing seems to go right, what kind of snafus do you handle and what do you dislike the most?

Sometimes websites go down, either the ones I promote or the ones I partner with, and I have to look for alternatives that will help me move forward. Other than this, I dislike having to tell my boss the mistakes I made.

How stressful is your job? Are you able to maintain a comfortable or healthy work-life balance?

I don’t find my job stressful. Working from home allows me to maximize my day depending on the different things I have to do, like pay bills, buy groceries, do exercise, take care of family, etc.

On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate your job satisfaction? What would it take to increase that rating?

I would rate my job satisfaction to a 9 only because I enjoy writing, which I’m not able to do as much. If I were to do more research and write about what I find, I would rate my job satisfaction a 10.

What’s the most rewarding moment you’ve experienced in this position? Of all the things you’ve done at work, what are you most proud of?

Some of the websites I manage have reached the first result in Google for the keywords I have optimized. This is rewarding. The thing I am most proud of is writing an article that people like and learn from, as well as motivates them to visit the site I am promoting.

What’s the most challenging moment you’ve experienced? What would you prefer to forget?

When I initially began working I was a little confused by the new terminology related to HTML. I want to forget the times I mixed the links to the different sites I managed and how I felt when I had to tell my boss the mistakes I had done.

What education and skills do you need to get hired and succeed in this field?

An understanding of HTML and how the internet works, as well as good communication skills are important as you’re always writing emails to people you don’t get to meet get face to face.

What would you tell a friend considering your line of work?

Ask them if they like to work independently and if they enjoy working with computers. I would also let them know the benefits of working from home (or any place they want).

How much vacation do you take? Is it enough?

The good thing about the job I have is that I can work from anywhere I want. Therefore I can go on vacation to where I want, take some days off and then continue to work wherever I’m at. After a couple of months, I can take some more vacation days.

Are there any common myths you want to correct about what you do?

Some people have called me a spammer for trying to find links to my sites. I don’t surf the internet looking for places where I can get free links. What I try to do is promote sites that benefit people ethically, without deceiving other people.

Does this job move your heart? If not, what does?

I find this job motivational because I promote sites that help other people find jobs. Helping others succeed and achieve their goals satisfies me.

If you could write your own ticket, what would you like to be doing in five years?

Writing allows me to investigate and learn new things, and teaching allows me to pass on the knowledge I acquire. Therefore I would like to write about things I like and teach at the same time.

Is there anything unique about your situation that readers should know when considering your experiences or accomplishments?

I’ve worked at different places and learned a lot from each one of them. However, I always wanted a job that would allow me to travel; therefore writing worked out for me. Not being able to find a travel writer job, doing SEO work allows me to work from different places, and I am able to write about the things I want in my spare time. I consider this very important, as I don’t have to write about things I’m not passionate about.

Guest Bio: As told to ‘LatPro.com Learn’ – a collection of true career stories told by Hispanic and bilingual professionals including this high school department chair.

from Performancing.com – Helping Bloggers Succeed

Cracking the TDL-4 botnet is going to be hard, say security experts.

More than four million PCs have been enrolled in a botnet security experts say is almost ‘indestructible’

The botnet, known as TDL, targets Windows PCs and tries hard to avoid detection and even harder to shut down.

Code that hijacks a PC hides in places security software rarely looks and the botnet is controlled using custom-made encryption.

Security researchers said recent botnet shutdowns had made TDL’s controllers harden it against investigation.

The 4.5 million PCs have become victims over the last three months following the appearance of the fourth version of the TDL virus.

The changes introduced in TDL-4 made it the “most sophisticated threat today,” wrote Kaspersky Labs security researchers Sergey Golovanov and Igor Soumenkov in a detailed analysis of the virus.

“The owners of TDL are essentially trying to create an ‘indestructible’ botnet that is protected against attacks, competitors, and anti-virus companies,” wrote the researchers.

Recent successes by security companies and law enforcement against botnets have led to spam levels dropping to about 75% of all e-mail sent, shows analysis by Symantec.

A botnet is a network of home computers that have been infected by a virus that allows a hi-tech criminal to use them remotely. Often botnet controllers steal data from victims’ PCs or use the machines to send out spam or carry out other attacks.

The TDL virus spreads via booby-trapped websites and infects a machine by exploiting unpatched vulnerabilities. The virus has been found lurking on sites offering porn and pirated movies as well as those that let people store video and image files.

The virus installs itself in a Windows system file known as the master boot record. This file holds the list of instructions to get a computer started and is a good place to hide because it is rarely scanned by standard anti-virus programs.

The majority of victims, 28%, are in the US but significant numbers are in India (7%) and the UK (5%). Smaller numbers, 3%, are found in France, Germany and Canada.

However, wrote the researchers, it is the way the botnet operates that makes it so hard to tackle and shut down.

The makers of TDL-4 have cooked up their own encryption system to protect communication between those controlling the botnet. This makes it hard to do any significant analysis of traffic between hijacked PCs and the botnet’s controllers.

In addition, TDL-4 sends out instructions to infected machines using a public peer-to-peer network rather than centralised command systems. This foils analysis because it removes the need for command servers that regularly communicate with infected machines.

“For all intents and purposes, [TDL-4] is very tough to remove,” said Joe Stewart, director of malware research at Dell SecureWorks to Computerworld. “It’s definitely one of the most sophisticated botnets out there.”

However, the sophistication of TDL-4 might aid in its downfall, said the Kaspersky researchers who found bugs in the complex code. This let them pry on databases logging how many infections TDL-4 had racked up and was aiding their investigation into its creators.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

from BBC News | Technology | Full Feed