Corey Smith's Random Thoughts

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I try to write about three times per week. Most of it is pretty good and will probably help you grow your business. If it doesn't, then I probably can't help you.

You can use a traditional RSS Feedreader with this fancy-dancy link. I think this approach is harder but if you want to do it the hard way, who am I to say otherwise?

You can use a traditional RSS Feedreader with this fancy-dancy link. I think this approach is harder but if you want to do it the hard way, who am I to say otherwise?

I have always valued hard work. Of course, when I was living with my parents as a teenager, they would never have known it. Since I realized I was responsible for my own destiny, I found that I enjoy working hard.

I also enjoy not working hard.

Balance can sometimes be a hard thing to achieve with work. In fact, sometimes I wonder if my wife will ever figure out how my on/off switch works.

I’m not opposed to working late to get something done but I’m also not opposed to taking a long, Sunday afternoon nap or just turn everything off when I get home and watch some TV or read a good book.

Posted in my personal blog on Friday, April 25, 2014 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Break
gone squatchin

I have always valued hard work. Of course, when I was living with my parents as a teenager, they would never have known it. Since I realized I was responsible for my own destiny, I found that I enjoy working hard.

I also enjoy not working hard.

Balance can sometimes be a hard thing to achieve with work. In fact, sometimes I wonder if my wife will ever figure out how my on/off switch works.

I’m not opposed to working late to get something done but I’m also not opposed to taking a long, Sunday afternoon nap or just turn everything off when I get home and watch some TV or read a good book.

Posted in my personal blog on Friday, April 25, 2014 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Break

The most common question I hear related to web marketing is how to get higher in the search engines faster. I’ve talked a lot about search engine optimization or SEO at length.

One of the key first steps is to make sure the search engines know what content you have. Having clear paths for your content on your website with links throughout makes a big difference for the search engines. However, sometimes, that’s not enough.

Submitting your site map to your search engine of choice will make a big difference in the performance of your website in the search engines. A sitemap is a way to tell the search engine some key information about your website.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 18, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Sitemap

The most common question I hear related to web marketing is how to get higher in the search engines faster. I’ve talked a lot about search engine optimization or SEO at length.

One of the key first steps is to make sure the search engines know what content you have. Having clear paths for your content on your website with links throughout makes a big difference for the search engines. However, sometimes, that’s not enough.

Submitting your site map to your search engine of choice will make a big difference in the performance of your website in the search engines. A sitemap is a way to tell the search engine some key information about your website.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 18, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Sitemap

As we grow up, we learn skills and form opinions based on our experiences and personalities. We define ourselves by our thoughts, assumptions and actions.

One of the challenges that we have is that we naturally assume those around us think the same way we do. In fact, it's amazing how often we seem surprised when those around us think differently than we do.

The real difficulty comes when we are faced with hard choices that challenge our assumptions. Some of the hardest choices arise when we are asked to choose between what is right for us and what is right for others.

Posted in my personal blog on Friday, November 15, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Decisions, Do The Right Thing
Doing the Right Thing is Hard

As we grow up, we learn skills and form opinions based on our experiences and personalities. We define ourselves by our thoughts, assumptions and actions.

One of the challenges that we have is that we naturally assume those around us think the same way we do. In fact, it's amazing how often we seem surprised when those around us think differently than we do.

The real difficulty comes when we are faced with hard choices that challenge our assumptions. Some of the hardest choices arise when we are asked to choose between what is right for us and what is right for others.

Posted in my personal blog on Friday, November 15, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Decisions, Do The Right Thing

At no time in my life have I been truly happy with my weight or fitness level. There have been times when I have been significantly overweight and times when I've been healthier. Usually I've just been too large for my liking.

About 15 years ago I decided to ask my doctor at the time about my weight loss. I was about 240 pounds where I've mostly hovered for the last 20 years. I asked him what I can do about it. I spent some time telling him me experiences that I had a really hard time ever getting below 220.

His response was simple and clear, "You might have to accept you are not going to get much smaller than that."

Posted in my web strategy blog on Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at about 1pm.
This posted is tagged: Weight, Diet, Goals
Milestones Not Goals - Idaho Athletic Club

At no time in my life have I been truly happy with my weight or fitness level. There have been times when I have been significantly overweight and times when I've been healthier. Usually I've just been too large for my liking.

About 15 years ago I decided to ask my doctor at the time about my weight loss. I was about 240 pounds where I've mostly hovered for the last 20 years. I asked him what I can do about it. I spent some time telling him me experiences that I had a really hard time ever getting below 220.

His response was simple and clear, "You might have to accept you are not going to get much smaller than that."

Posted in my web strategy blog on Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at about 1pm.
This posted is tagged: Weight, Diet, Goals

In the world of search engine optimization (SEO), link building is an important part of getting to the top of the search engines. When you are developing your link building strategy, it is important to be very proactive in your approach rather than just allowing it to happen naturally.

As you are considering the myriad tactics to gain links, you'll want to look at building efficiencies in your approach. It can be time consuming and ineffective if you take more time than necessary looking for links in all the wrong places.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 11, 2013 at about 9am.

In the world of search engine optimization (SEO), link building is an important part of getting to the top of the search engines. When you are developing your link building strategy, it is important to be very proactive in your approach rather than just allowing it to happen naturally.

As you are considering the myriad tactics to gain links, you'll want to look at building efficiencies in your approach. It can be time consuming and ineffective if you take more time than necessary looking for links in all the wrong places.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 11, 2013 at about 9am.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is simply the process of getting your website to appear at the top of the search engines. It is brand awareness for the web. There is a reason that marketing your website starts with search engine optimization. It is the same reason why you would start marketing your storefront with brand awareness -- if your customers don’t know you exist, they won’t buy from you.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, November 8, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Search Engine Optimization, SEO
SEO is Brand Awareness

Search engine optimization (SEO) is simply the process of getting your website to appear at the top of the search engines. It is brand awareness for the web. There is a reason that marketing your website starts with search engine optimization. It is the same reason why you would start marketing your storefront with brand awareness -- if your customers don’t know you exist, they won’t buy from you.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, November 8, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Search Engine Optimization, SEO

My company, Tribute Media, has been building websites and marketing them online for better than six years. We've had clients of all sorts. Those that are spectacular to work with and those who are, well, not so much.

Sometimes we have clients that forget that mistakes happen and it's no use sweating bullets over. They will flip out if there is a pixel out of place. They will struggle to realize that just because something isn't perfect on their website, it doesn't mean that the world has to come to an end.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at about 1pm.
This posted is tagged: Web Design
You Think Your Website Has Problems -  Fox News Jon Stewart

My company, Tribute Media, has been building websites and marketing them online for better than six years. We've had clients of all sorts. Those that are spectacular to work with and those who are, well, not so much.

Sometimes we have clients that forget that mistakes happen and it's no use sweating bullets over. They will flip out if there is a pixel out of place. They will struggle to realize that just because something isn't perfect on their website, it doesn't mean that the world has to come to an end.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at about 1pm.
This posted is tagged: Web Design

Most webmasters, for as long as the WWW has been a thing, have worked hard to increase traffic to their websites. Usually they recognize that more traffic doesn't necessarily equal more sales (hopefully) and perhaps they do know that increasing traffic at least increases the chance of a new sale.

Even when your goal is brand awareness and not sales or leads, increasing your traffic means that you increase your footprint.

The problem with traffic is that the quantity of visitors on your website is not necessarily an indicator of how well your website is performing. It's like the body mass index (BMI) of the marketing world. It's sort of an indicator.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 4, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Google, Analytics, Traffic

Most webmasters, for as long as the WWW has been a thing, have worked hard to increase traffic to their websites. Usually they recognize that more traffic doesn't necessarily equal more sales (hopefully) and perhaps they do know that increasing traffic at least increases the chance of a new sale.

Even when your goal is brand awareness and not sales or leads, increasing your traffic means that you increase your footprint.

The problem with traffic is that the quantity of visitors on your website is not necessarily an indicator of how well your website is performing. It's like the body mass index (BMI) of the marketing world. It's sort of an indicator.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, November 4, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Google, Analytics, Traffic

This week I had the opportunity to take a morning to do some fly-fishing with a good friend, Jordan Allen. This was only my second time and, last year, the same good friend took me for my first fishing trip.

Since I was no longer in my rookie, year, I performed much better. What I noticed, more than anything, was the fact that it didn't wear me out like last year. I found that I didn't have to work as hard to get the fly to go where I wanted. I think that I did so well I figure I'm pretty close to being promoted to amateur.

Posted in my business blog on Friday, November 1, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Fishing, Business
Corey Smith - Brown Trout

This week I had the opportunity to take a morning to do some fly-fishing with a good friend, Jordan Allen. This was only my second time and, last year, the same good friend took me for my first fishing trip.

Since I was no longer in my rookie, year, I performed much better. What I noticed, more than anything, was the fact that it didn't wear me out like last year. I found that I didn't have to work as hard to get the fly to go where I wanted. I think that I did so well I figure I'm pretty close to being promoted to amateur.

Posted in my business blog on Friday, November 1, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Fishing, Business

The term blog was first coined in the late 1990s. It became common in modern lexicon about 2004. Now, in 2013, it's still hard for some people to get. When I talk to businesses about blogging, I'm convinced that the most common reason why they don't blog it's because they don't like the word blog. They seem to think it's kind of hokey.

I think that a part of the problem is that blogging may have gotten a bad reputation over the years because the mention of a blogger typically elicits the image of someone in their parents’ basement, uploading opinionated and overly sarcastic content to the "blogosphere".

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 28, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Monday Marketing, Blogging
Monday Marketing - Get Blogging

The term blog was first coined in the late 1990s. It became common in modern lexicon about 2004. Now, in 2013, it's still hard for some people to get. When I talk to businesses about blogging, I'm convinced that the most common reason why they don't blog it's because they don't like the word blog. They seem to think it's kind of hokey.

I think that a part of the problem is that blogging may have gotten a bad reputation over the years because the mention of a blogger typically elicits the image of someone in their parents’ basement, uploading opinionated and overly sarcastic content to the "blogosphere".

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 28, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Monday Marketing, Blogging

Shameless self-promotion is what gives network marketers a bad name. You know the ones I'm talking about. It's the neighbors that are always talking about the next get-rich scheme or the new business opportunity.

You see the same thing in certain people in your circle of friends. They are always talking about what they are up to. They are always pointing out the cool things their kids do or talking about how great they look. They are the ones that are always giving advice but never want to hear what you have to say.

You see this behavior in subtle ways, too. Sometimes it's as simple as too many selfies on their Facebook page.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 25, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Social Media, Promotion
Stop Talking About Yourself

Shameless self-promotion is what gives network marketers a bad name. You know the ones I'm talking about. It's the neighbors that are always talking about the next get-rich scheme or the new business opportunity.

You see the same thing in certain people in your circle of friends. They are always talking about what they are up to. They are always pointing out the cool things their kids do or talking about how great they look. They are the ones that are always giving advice but never want to hear what you have to say.

You see this behavior in subtle ways, too. Sometimes it's as simple as too many selfies on their Facebook page.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 25, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Social Media, Promotion

I've picked up too many things from my dad. Mostly very positive. One of the things that I say often enough, that I learned from him years ago, is, "If you try to be everything to everybody, you'll end up being nothing to no one."

Yeah, I know grammatically it doesn't play well, but the statement is very true.

Too often, we try to be all things to all people. We so desperately want everyone to love us. We want to make sure that we never say anything that will be offensive.

Posted in my personal blog on Wednesday, October 23, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Happy
You Can Not Win Them All - Charlie Brown

I've picked up too many things from my dad. Mostly very positive. One of the things that I say often enough, that I learned from him years ago, is, "If you try to be everything to everybody, you'll end up being nothing to no one."

Yeah, I know grammatically it doesn't play well, but the statement is very true.

Too often, we try to be all things to all people. We so desperately want everyone to love us. We want to make sure that we never say anything that will be offensive.

Posted in my personal blog on Wednesday, October 23, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Happy

The Internet is certainly known for a gathering place of information. It's a challenge to sift through all the information and know exactly how to use it. As more information becomes available more opportunities are created for consumers to choose from in regard to services and useful platforms. The overabundance of companies currently operating on the Internet has led to large amount of services all vying for your business.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 21, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Monday Marketing, Free
Monday Marketing - Free Services

The Internet is certainly known for a gathering place of information. It's a challenge to sift through all the information and know exactly how to use it. As more information becomes available more opportunities are created for consumers to choose from in regard to services and useful platforms. The overabundance of companies currently operating on the Internet has led to large amount of services all vying for your business.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 21, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Monday Marketing, Free

Your website is a business tool and, as such, requires a business decision. Too many leaders want to abdicate responsibility in making decisions. CEOs will often defer critical decisions when they don’t understand what it all means. The single most important responsibility of a CEO is ensuring that the company has a coherent message that matches the right audience.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 18, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Web Strategy
Web = Strategic Business Decision

Your website is a business tool and, as such, requires a business decision. Too many leaders want to abdicate responsibility in making decisions. CEOs will often defer critical decisions when they don’t understand what it all means. The single most important responsibility of a CEO is ensuring that the company has a coherent message that matches the right audience.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 18, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Web Strategy
Dear Smith,

This is not an automated message. I am sending this message directly to you because I have taken some time to review your website and think that I can probably help you in getting ranked in the search engines.

I've noticed that your website is not getting ranked for the terms it should be and with our unique approach, I am confident our company can help you get found in the search engines.

I just need a little bit of your time to discuss some options. I'm sure you'll be happy. I look forward to talking to you very soon!

Sincerely, A Spammer

Posted in my web strategy blog on Wednesday, October 16, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Spam

Dear Smith,

This is not an automated message. I am sending this message directly to you because I have taken some time to review your website and think that I can probably help you in getting ranked in the search engines.

I've noticed that your website is not getting ranked for the terms it should be and with our unique approach, I am confident our company can help you get found in the search engines.

I just need a little bit of your time to discuss some options. I'm sure you'll be happy. I look forward to talking to you very soon!

Sincerely, A Spammer

Posted in my web strategy blog on Wednesday, October 16, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Spam

Pinterest has quickly grown to be one of the top five social networks. Still, most business owners are hesitant about joining yet another social network. They are still struggling to work with and understand the two best known social networks: Facebook and Twitter.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 14, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Pinterest, Monday Marketing
Monday Marketing - Pinterest

Pinterest has quickly grown to be one of the top five social networks. Still, most business owners are hesitant about joining yet another social network. They are still struggling to work with and understand the two best known social networks: Facebook and Twitter.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 14, 2013 at about 7am.
This posted is tagged: Pinterest, Monday Marketing

You hear them every day. The words that mean nothing but are used to describe the services you buy. They have become jargony (that's a word, right?). They are used to describe things that we don't really understand how to explain.

Personally, I think that "space age technology" is the worst offender so I'm going to start my rant there. Let's think back to when the space age started. Let's look at Sputnik 1.

Posted in my business blog on Friday, October 11, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Business, Marketing

You hear them every day. The words that mean nothing but are used to describe the services you buy. They have become jargony (that's a word, right?). They are used to describe things that we don't really understand how to explain.

Personally, I think that "space age technology" is the worst offender so I'm going to start my rant there. Let's think back to when the space age started. Let's look at Sputnik 1.

Posted in my business blog on Friday, October 11, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Business, Marketing

I have chronic heartburn and I have to take medication for that heartburn. The best drug that works for me is Nexium. But, I don't take that because my insurance co-pay for it is too expensive. If I did take that, I would only have to take one per day.

Because Nexium isn't a preferred drug on the insurance policy, I have to take two per day of Prilosec (or its generic equivalent). So, instead of 30 pills per month, I take 60 pills per month. If I miss a pill, I have a horrible few hours until the next pill kicks in.

I thought I would do a little research on what the real cost is.

Posted in my business blog on Wednesday, October 9, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Health Insurance
Insurance is the Problem, Not the Solution

I have chronic heartburn and I have to take medication for that heartburn. The best drug that works for me is Nexium. But, I don't take that because my insurance co-pay for it is too expensive. If I did take that, I would only have to take one per day.

Because Nexium isn't a preferred drug on the insurance policy, I have to take two per day of Prilosec (or its generic equivalent). So, instead of 30 pills per month, I take 60 pills per month. If I miss a pill, I have a horrible few hours until the next pill kicks in.

I thought I would do a little research on what the real cost is.

Posted in my business blog on Wednesday, October 9, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Health Insurance

I am a firm believer that content, especially on your website, is king. It is what sets you apart from the other, boring companies that compete against you.

While pretty design is important, your content is what can give you the substance you need to attract and keep quality website visitors. You don't want to be a pretty face with nothing inside that is of any worth.

Aside from communicating with your website visitors, the content on your website also serves as a very important component of your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. Content is what allows your website visitors to find you when performing a search on a search engine.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 7, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Search Engine Optimization, SEO, Content
Monday Marketing - Check Your Content

I am a firm believer that content, especially on your website, is king. It is what sets you apart from the other, boring companies that compete against you.

While pretty design is important, your content is what can give you the substance you need to attract and keep quality website visitors. You don't want to be a pretty face with nothing inside that is of any worth.

Aside from communicating with your website visitors, the content on your website also serves as a very important component of your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. Content is what allows your website visitors to find you when performing a search on a search engine.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Monday, October 7, 2013 at about 9am.
This posted is tagged: Search Engine Optimization, SEO, Content

When I consult with people and businesses about social media, one of the topics that always seems to come up is that of follower count. They look at my follower count and I get questions like how did you get so many followers or why would 38,000 people follow you.

The first and more important thing to understand is that unless you are a celebrity of sorts, building followers takes effort. Even many celebrities have to actually put work into it. The second thing to understand is that only a certain percentage of the people that follow you will ever take action on what you say.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 4, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Twitter, Facebook, Social Media
Followers: Quantity vs. Quality

When I consult with people and businesses about social media, one of the topics that always seems to come up is that of follower count. They look at my follower count and I get questions like how did you get so many followers or why would 38,000 people follow you.

The first and more important thing to understand is that unless you are a celebrity of sorts, building followers takes effort. Even many celebrities have to actually put work into it. The second thing to understand is that only a certain percentage of the people that follow you will ever take action on what you say.

Posted in my web strategy blog on Friday, October 4, 2013 at about 8am.
This posted is tagged: Twitter, Facebook, Social Media

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