Watershed Studio, LLC

Ten Social Media Reads, Vol 9

Brian Groce — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 11:00:38 +0000

In this round of social media reads we have another excellent batch of posts to get the wheels turning.

12 Important Steps some Bloggers Forget (Jeff Bullas)
13 Tools to Simplify Your Social Media Marketing (Social Media Examiner)
15 Blogging Lessons From Foodies (DKS Systems)
22 Ways to Create Compelling Content When You Don’t Have a Clue [Infographic] (Copyblogger)
Hoo-ah: How the US Army Has Become a Social Media Leader (Read Write Web)
Influence: The Best Argument for Embracing Social Media (Kruse Control)
Pinterest Takes A Small Step Toward Fighting Copyright With Opt-Out Meta Tag (Marketing Land)
The Periodic Table Of SEO Ranking Factors (Search Engine Land)
The Seductive Art of Blog Commenting (Unmemorable Title)
When Social Media Goes Bad: 7 Guidelines For What To Do In A Social Media Crisis (Heidi Cohen)

If you have any social media reads that you’d like to suggest, please contact us or Tweet us @watershedstudio.

Ten Social Media Reads, Vol 8

Brian Groce — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

In this round of social media reads we have another excellent batch of posts to get the wheels turning.

5 Essential Keys To Successful Blogging (Contently)
5 Rules To Turn Your Local Business Into A ‘Social’ Business (Search Engine Land)
8 Great Ways To Use QR Codes For Marketing (Marketing Land)
9 Ways to Make Your Marketing Analytics Actionable (Hubspot)
10 Ways Social Media is Transforming Our World (Jeff Bullas)
56 Ways to Market Your Business on Pinterest (Copyblogger)
Facebook Deprecating 50+ Page Insights Metrics – Are You Ready? (Search Engine Watch)
Facebook to Release Timeline for Brands This Month (Ad Age)
How Much Is Too Much Self-Promotion? (Round Peg)
How to Make Your Content Go Viral (Social Media Today)

If you have any social media reads that you’d like to suggest, please contact us or Tweet us @watershedstudio.

Ten Social Media Reads, Vol 7

Brian Groce — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:26:28 +0000

In this round of social media reads we have another excellent batch of posts to get the wheels turning.

7 Crucial Tactics for Writing a Wildly Successful Guest Post (Copyblogger)
7 Terrific Twitter Tips To Use Today (Small Business Trends)
26 Tips for Writing Great Blog Posts (Social Media Examiner)
105 Tips To Make Your Blog Rock (Jeff Bullas)
Build Your Links the Right Way (SEO Positive)
How to Build a Traffic-siphoning Marketing Funnel (Pro Blogger)
How to Create a Social Media Editorial Calendar (Search Engine Watch)
Pinterest Drives more Traffic than LinkedIn and Google Plus (Jeff Bullas)
The “New” SEO Secret Weapon (Copyblogger)
Facebook Timelines for Brands? Time to Start Thinking Inside the Box. (Marketing Pilgrim)

If you have any social media reads that you’d like to suggest, please contact us or Tweet us @watershedstudio.

Ten Social Media Reads, Vol 6

Brian Groce — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:00:42 +0000

Here are your hand picked top ten social media reads for the week. Enjoy.

5 Questions that Are Killing Your Blog (MENG)
6 Powerful Guest Post Tactics that No One’s Talking About (Pro Blogger)
7 Fundamentals of Successful Blogs (Smedio)
9 Tips for Integrating Social Media on Your Website (Social Media Examiner)
10 Things A Brand Should Never Do On Twitter (Social Penguin)
Content Chemistry: The Periodic Table of Content (Orbit Media Studios)
How to Recover From a Social Media Hangover (Copyblogger)
Why Build a Fan Page If You’re Going To Abandon It? ( Your Social Media Mogul)
Why Pinterest is 2012′s hottest website (CNN)
Why Would You Have 50 Twitter Accounts For Your Company? (Jeff Bullas)

If you have any social media reads that you’d like to suggest, please contact us or Tweet us @watershedstudio.

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for February 2012

Brian Groce — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:56:05 +0000

Now through February 29th, 2012 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “L2012-WSHED” (no quotes).

If you’re unfamiliar with OIOpublisher, it is a PHP based ad platform with a focus on performance, control and ease of use. It allows you to easily serve advertising on your blog or website and keep 100% of the revenue you bring in. For those of you using WordPress, it includes a plugin that allows for easy integration. And if you need consulting help setting it up, please contact us.

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

WordPress 3.3.1

Brian Groce — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 04:49:50 +0000

WordPress 3.3.1 was released on January 3, 2012 and maintenance and security update.

As always, we recommend upgrading as soon as possible.

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for January 2012

Brian Groce — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 15:15:00 +0000

Now through January 31st, 2012 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “CRINGLE-WSHED” (no quotes).

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

WordPress 3.3

Brian Groce — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 15:38:19 +0000

WordPress 3.3, “Sonny”, was released on December 12, 2011 and is a major release that adds:

drag-and-drop uploader
hover menus for the navigation
a new toolbar
improved co-editing support
Tumblr importer
pointer tips for new features included in each update
revamped help tabs throughout the interface
improved the dashboard experience on the iPad and other tablets with better touch support

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for December 2011

Brian Groce — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 15:37:12 +0000

Now through December 31st, 2011 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “CRINGLE-WSHED” (no quotes).

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

Twitter Activity Streams: Good Idea or Privacy Concern?

Brian Groce — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:48:55 +0000

If you’ve logged into Twitter in the past few days you may have noticed some changes, most notably the addition of the new Twitter Activity Stream.

At first glance my thought was, “Cool, I can see who the people I follow have followed and can more easily follow new people”. In addition, I can see what tweets the people that I’m following have favorited, which is also another great way to keep tabs on potentially relevant information.

But as I thought more about this I began to wonder if this was such a good idea. Do the benefits outweigh the potential downfalls, specifically in regards to privacy.

One reason I prefer Twitter over Facebook is the fact that it takes a little more effort to stalk someone (yes, stalkers are a concern of mine, especially for my children…thank you newscasters!). Sure, I can go through individual’s timeline’s, check their public lists, view their favorite tweets and see who they’re following & who is following them, but now I don’t have to. I have the activity stream!

For my own personal and business Twitter accounts I don’t have an issue with the Twitter activity stream, but then again, I’m pretty cautious and intentional with what I post. But many people that I know are not and that concerns me.

My proposal would be for Twitter to have an option for people to opt out of their activity being shown (beyond having a completely private Twitter account). And the default of this option should be to turn it off unless someone specifically turns it on for their account.

What do you think?

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for September 2011

Brian Groce — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 15:58:36 +0000

Now through September 30th, 2011 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “MIST-WSHED” (no quotes).

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

WordPress 3.2 & 3.2.1

Brian Groce — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 17:06:17 +0000

WordPress 3.2, was released on July 4, 2011 and is a major release that adds:

making WordPress faster and lighter
a refreshed dashboard design
the fully HTML5 new Twenty Eleven theme
the new distraction-free writing or zen mode

WordPress 3.2.1, was released on July 12, 2011 and is a maintenance release that fixes a server incompatibility related to JSON, as well as a few other fixes in the new dashboard design and the Twenty Eleven theme. Upgrading is recommended.

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for July 2011

Brian Groce — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 17:32:28 +0000

Now through July 31st, 2011 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “JUNO-WSHED” (no quotes).

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

WordPress 3.1.4

Brian Groce — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 16:56:53 +0000

WordPress 3.1.4, was released on June 29, 2011 and is a maintenance & security release.

As always, we suggest you upgrade to as soon as possible to WordPress 3.1.4.

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.

WordPress 3.1.3

Brian Groce — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 12:51:51 +0000

WordPress 3.1.3, was released on May 25, 2011 and is a maintenance & security release.

As always, we suggest you upgrade to as soon as possible to WordPress 3.1.3. This release also fixes a few bugs.

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.

OIOpublisher Coupon Code for June 2011

Brian Groce — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 12:48:52 +0000

Now through June 30th, 2011 you can purchase OIOpublisher* for just $37 (normally $47) by using coupon code “JUNO-WSHED” (no quotes).

Disclosure:We are an affiliate of OIOPublisher, but we use the product ourselves and can vouch that it’s an excellent product.

Surge Bucket Media 2011 Indy 500 Coverage

Brian Groce — Tue, 24 May 2011 00:03:34 +0000

For those of you wondering what I’ve been up to over the past week or so (and for the next week), I’ve been out at Indianapolis Motor Speedway covering the 2011 Indianapolis 500 activities for our sister company, Surge Bucket Media, and specifically Naptown Buzz.

I’ve been blogging, podcasting & taking a lot of photos. Feel free to have a read, listen & look when you have a minute.

Indy 500 Photos

May 14, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Opening Day In Pictures
May 15, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 2 In Pictures
May 16, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 3 In Pictures
May 17, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 4 In Pictures
May 18, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 5 In Pictures
May 19, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 6 In Pictures
May 20, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Fast Friday In Pictures
May 21, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Pole Day In Pictures
May 22, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Bump Day In Pictures

Indy 500 Podcasts

May 14, 2011: Naptown Buzz #24 – Pippa Mann
May 21, 2011: Naptown Buzz #25 – James Hinchcliffe
May 22, 2011: Naptown Buzz #26 – Alex Tagliani
May 23, 2011: Naptown Buzz #27 – Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, Sarah Fisher & Brandon (a.k.a. “Pagoda Tattoo Guy”)
May 24, 2011: Naptown Buzz #28 – Pippa Mann & Dave “The King” Wilson

Indy 500 Posts

May 14, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Schedule
May 15, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 2 Schedule
May 16, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 3 Top Ten
May 17, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 4 Top Two
May 18, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Drivers on Twitter
May 18, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 5 Top Ten Planks
May 19, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 6 Top Ten
May 20, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Day 7 Top Ten
May 21, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Pole Day/Tom Carnegie Day Schedule
May 21, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Pole Day Qualifying Order
May 21, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Pole Day Results
May 22, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Bump Day Schedule
May 22, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Bump Day Qualifying Order
May 22, 2011: 2011 Indianapolis 500 Bump Day Results

If you happen to make it out to IMS, be sure to send a tweet to @naptownbuzz.

Note: this post will be updated through the conclusion of the race.

ProBlogger’s Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

Brian Groce — Thu, 12 May 2011 01:18:24 +0000

‘ProBlogger’s Guide to Your First Week of Blogging‘ is a practical eBook jam packed full of activities for bloggers wanting to start a new blog, get back into blogging or to just get some ideas on how to revamp your current blog.

The eBook is broken down into 7 chapters/days and has 32 tasks/exercises for bloggers to do. Think of it as 31 Days to Build a Better Blog (see previous post) but for those just in their first week.

Blog topics covered include:

Learn foundational brainstorming techniques.
Create a content plan—and content, of course!
Build a social media presence.
Create practical quality assurance tools.
Set up a publishing process.
Master the components of a blog post.
Develop your blog’s ongoing strategy.

We’ve already picked up a copy of ‘ProBlogger’s Guide to Your First Week of Blogging‘, so if you have any questions about it, or just want to discuss the eBook, contact us.

Stutz Artists Association 18th Annual Open House 2011

Brian Groce — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 04:51:13 +0000

The Stutz Artists Association will host its 18th annual open house April 29 and 30, 2011 and Watershed Studio will be welcoming visitors both days in Suite B-310. Come visit our studio and check out some of Brian’s photographs & artwork.

Courtesy of Verizon Wireless we will be demoing the Motorla Xoom on Friday night, so if you’re curious about tablets, be sure to swing by for that.

And on Saturday bring out the kids and spur their creativity. Rumor has it that there will also be free ice cream for the kids in the building on Saturday, and what kid doesn’t love ice cream?!

Stutz Artists Association Annual Open House

More than 70 artists open their studios to visitors during the two-day event. It’s not only an opportunity to see the work of 70 local artists in one place at one time, it’s a chance to see where and how the work is created. Artwork ranges from paintings, drawings and photography, to sculpture, jewelry and furniture.

Win FREE Tickets

Would you like a chance to win a pair of FREE TICKETS to attend the Stutz Artists Association 18th Annual Open House? If so, please leave a comment on Naptown Buzz’s post by 1pm EDT on Friday, April 29, 2011 and one lucky winner will be chosen at random.

WordPress 3.1.2

Brian Groce — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 12:31:53 +0000

WordPress 3.1.2, was released on April 26, 2011 and is a maintenance & security release.

This release addresses a vulnerability that allowed Contributor-level users to improperly publish posts.

We suggest you update to 3.1.2 promptly, especially if you allow users to register as contributors or if you have untrusted users. This release also fixes a few bugs.

If you need assistance with upgrading, please schedule your WordPress upgrade today via our WordSprung WordPress Upgrade Service.