Internet users are now used to getting many online services for free, like facebook, or online dictionaries, or just about any information that someone could want.  These services are free to the user because of online advertising.

Advertising is used ubiquitously off of the internet to reduce cost to the consumer and increase profitability for the business.  Some examples are advertisements at sporting events, advertisements in news papers, advertisement on TV, etc.

The effectiveness of online advertising can be measured with ease which is a blessing and a curse.  It is great for advertisers because they then know how effective their advertisements are and they have a bargaining chip in reference to the cost of advertising.  

With most other forms of advertising it is difficult to track how effective advertisements are.  In the online sector, impression advertising has been on the decline, and click-throughs has been on the rise, precisely because you are paying for effective advertising.  If offline advertisers had a similar system to the click-through ads, I think we would see a demise in advertising.  Thus, I think that tracking the effectivity of ads has made profitability in the online sector very difficult.

Before Web 2.0, it would cost a lot of money to drive traffic to a website. Pay-per-click programs and web banners/ads were the cutting edge and came with a significant investment. Web 2.0, however, introduced a variety of tools to do more with less.

StumbleUpon.com is an online community of user-generated referrals. Just as friends refer one another to trusted businesses/products, StumbleUpon users refer one another to useful, interesting websites. Users refer and rate these websites using two buttons, a “thumbs-up” and “thumbs-down.”

Rather than “word of mouth,” it’s a “click-of-a-mouse.”

For the growing web-business, using StumbleUpon is a free way to not only generate traffic to your site but also to receive relevant feedback. When users comment about your website on StumbleUpon.com, utilize this information to improve your website. Lastly, make sure to thank them by commenting on their StumbleUpon page. Remember, five years ago you would have written a check to receive such feedback.

In his book, Effective Networking, Michael Hughes says the first five seconds of meeting someone new is the time when each party forms the most important perception about the other. The first impression is crucial to successful negotiating, interviewing, and networking.

What would you do differently to make your first impression a good one?

You can make a good impression prior to arriving; forming your brand image begins before sitting in the interview chair and even prior to the all-important handshake. Give important appointments a chance to view your personal page at LinkedIn or read your blog. The first five seconds is still critical, but social media tools can relieve some of the pressure.

First Impressions:  LinkedIn is definitely a more professional and older member of the social networking family tree, a well succeeding business man, professional and clean-cut.  Immediately I see the benefits of being involved in this social networking site.

Second Impression:  How legitimate is it for me to add a Nutrition professor from my college back home (I’m pretty sure I’ve never spoken to him)? What about my past positions in companies-how professional does a part-time job as a domestic in a nursing home sound? What about business partners and professional service providers? – I think I may be a few years too early for LinkedIn??

How can a College student use LinkedIn among many different professionals and not feel overwhelmed or simply inferior due to the lack of professional experience?

The Answer: I found on LinkedIn itself, a presentation on the application ‘Slideshare’ that told me 10 things I could do as a student to brand myself as an expert-http://www.slideshare.net/shortdigs/linked-in-for-college-students-presentation

Ø  How to blog your work and work your blog

Ø  How to become a newsmaker

Ø  How to become a published author

These are just three things but all 10 of these tips link you to other application or websites which make these things DO-ABLE.  So despite the feeling of being LinkedIn’s younger more inferior, facebook-loving sibling, we as college students can brand ourselves as experts in some sort of manner.

When my roommate studied abroad last year it was weird to think we wouldn’t really get to talk for a couple of months except via email, then she told me about Skype.

It amazed me that for free we could actually talk through our computers.  Skype is headquartered in Luxembourg and has spread like rapid fire throughout the United States.

Lucinda Watrous described a short history of Skype and it like every other internet-based company has thrived and expanded vastly.  They have added add ons from calling mobile phones to video chatting all over the world!  So basically anywhere there is an internet connection you can be visiting a friend in a different country.  It also eliminates a lot of phone charges calling long distance or across the country.  For a minimum fee of $2.95 a month you can call unlimited to the United States.  That beats phone cards or paying by minutes.

There have been many controversial issues with Skype recently. It has been claimed that:

·         Skype blocks and has disabled customer accounts from using the SkypeOut service

·         Usage Caps being placed without customer awareness

·         The web portal is the only form of customer service

·         The conversations used in Skype can be wiretapped with ease by the government

My personal experience with Skype was that the connection was not the greatest and I would not use it as my main source of communication, but in the case of studying abroad or for an emergency, it is great.