I don’t know about you, but I’m even pickier when it comes to my business. With a small-business budget, I can’t afford to waste resources on equipment that doesn’t meet my specifications or advertising efforts that don’t reach my target market. Regardless of your size, you probably can’t either. That’s why social media marekting is such a great idea. A small operation like mine can run a hand-crafted campaign through PayPerPost or SocialSpark, getting bloggers to create buzz about my service. Parent company Izea can help me set it up so that I reach the people most interested in what I offer. They’re not just for us small-timers, though. With a network of over 170,000 bloggers, PayPerPost and SocialSpark can help you reach the masses, as they’ve recently done for Criss Angel’s Cirque du Soliel showcase and Dirt Devil’s new Accucharge.

Your business probably falls somewhere between my tiny operation and the mega-big-boys. Izea’s marketing tools can help you select the demographics and outreach that will give you the biggest bang for the bucks. If you’re selling this year’s hottest back-to-school tools, thousands of mommy bloggers can enthusiastically promote your product to other parents. Likewise, a stable of savvy tech bloggers know just the right language to appeal to the geeks who will buy your new software. You can even hand-select the blogs where your advertising will appear, or arrange to send out samples so bloggers will be able to relate their first-hand experiences with your product. Blog Sponsorships will keep your name on the front page for every visitor to the blogs you select. These are just a few of the ways you can market your product, service or website through blogs. Follow the link and you’ll find just the right creative marketing concept to suit your needs. Izea’s Solution Sales Team is standing by to help you make sure your social media marketing campaign brings you the exposure you need on a budget you can afford.

Not advertising on blogs yet? What are you waiting for? Put together a small trial campaign to see what advertising on blogs can do for you. You’re gonna like what you find!

Technorati Tags: advertising, blog advertising, internet marketing, IZEA, marketing, PayPerPost, social media marketing, SocialSpark

I didn’t make any special plans for the Fourth this year. There’s been a carnival-type festival going on all day at Maili Beach Park. I tried to find a place to park so I could walk around, watch the kids on the rides and visit the food booths. Alas, the nearest spot to leave my car was much too far away. I did park at the other end of the beach, though.

Families get camping permits for long weekends and stake out their territory early - probably Thursday afternoon for most. There might be six or eight tents in a family gathering, with aunts and uncles, grandparents and cousins all enjoying the holiday together. It looks crowded in the photo above, but it really isn’t - just the angle of the photo, I guess. Groups are far enough apart to not intrude on each other and there’s plenty of open space left over. The park is probably about a mile long, and the festival area only takes up a stretch of a couple of hundred yards.

Maili Beach Park is the closest beach to my house. I have to pass it to go anywhere, so I stop by frequently. Sometimes there are hardly any people there, but on weekends it gets a lot of local traffic. On holiday weekends, everyone goes.

I was in street clothes when I stopped by. These kids were having so much fun I was tempted to strip down to my skivvies and join them! I don’t remember toys being this cool when I was a kid!

I always ask before I take photos with recognizable faces. This family group welcomed me warmly. There are several veterans in this group. The young man writing in the notebook is currently serving in the Navy. The fellow directly behind the blue bag was in Nam at the same time as my ex.

I was going to grill outside today and wanted a steak, so I stopped at the market while I was out. I did get a steak, but I’m saving it for tomorrow. There was a huli-huli chicken calling my name. I had some for lunch and will have some more for dinner. When a word is repeated in Hawaiian it means many or plural. Huli is turn. This is chicken that has been turned many times - you’d call it rotisserie chicken. Whenever I see huli-huli chicken I think “turn-turn” and start humming … “To everything, turn, turn, turn - there is a season, turn, turn, turn.”

I’ve been hearing a few fireworks intermittently all day. They’re getting more frequent as the sun is just going down. I might drag the ladder out in a little while and set it up so I can go sit on the carport roof. There will be a big, professional fireworks show at Maili Beach Park. My roof provides an almost-front-row seat.

Oh, my! They’ve started early! Here I go!

Technorati Tags: Fourth of July, Hawaii, July 4th, Maili, Maili Beach Park, Waianae Coast

#1. Name your biggest cooking influence.

That would have to be my mom. She was an adventuresome cook, making up most of her recipes out of her head, the way that I still do. If she heard of a dish that sounded interesting & didn’t have a recipe, she imagined what she thought it might be like and made it. Nero Wolf fans, anyone? The dish Pork Chops and Sour Cream was mentioned in one of his stories. I have no idea what his version was like, but I still make the dish she created with only the name for inspiration.

#2. What is your ultimate comfort food?

Any potato dish, but especially potato soup! I shared a recipe a few months back in my answers to FFoF#15. It’s warm and filling and very “down-home” feeling.

#3. Name one must-have tool that you think every kitchen should have.

Wooden spoons! Give me some wooden spoons, a decent knife and any old pots and pans and I can cook. I love all of my kitchen gadgets and tools, but I must have my wooden spoons!

#4. Share a time saving tip.

Keep the big bags of frozen, boneless, skinless chicken pieces in the freezer. Chicken is so versitile that you can always whip up a quick meal when you have it on hand. I always try to keep some Holy Trinity ready to go, too. That’s the onion, celery and green pepper that are so basic to the New Orleans kitchen. I chop up big batches and then freeze it in portions - about a half-cup each - so I can just grab a chunk or two out of the freezer when I want to make jamblaya or dirty rice or a sauce that calls for it.

Technorati Tags: cooking, food, meme

Y’all were all over and under and around the correct answer this week, but never actully on it. You knew you were seeing fabric and some bracing or framework, so you were just an intuitive step away from seeing an umbrella! Don’t despair, though - I’m usually much easier to figure out. Come back next Tuesday when I’ll try to stump you with a new Tuesday Teaser and you’ll probably make me feel rather foolish by shutting me down as soon as I post the picture. Mahalo to you all for playing. A special thanks to all the new players and to those of you who have been spreading the word so new folks could find me!

If you enjoy playing games, stay close. I’m way behind on game reviews, so I should be introducing you to several new hidden object games within the next couple of days. That’ll help you train your vision so you’ll be ready for next Tuesday!

Technorati Tags: contest, game, photo puzzle, Tuesday Teaser, umbrella

It’s hard to believe it’s been almost six months since Buddy died. I still feel him here sometimes. Other times the ache of missing him is overwhelming. But it just doesn’t seem that long - more like a month or so, maybe. Logic tells me a different tale, though. Lance and I have moved on, adpoted new routines. Lance eats indoors now. He used to eat on the lanai because he and Buddy couldn’t eat near each other without trouble. He gets to play with toys now, too - another thing they would have fought over. And he’s finally decided that it’s okay for him to sleep on the mini-couch that was Buddy’s bed. At first he wouldn’t go near it. After a while he started sleeping on the back of it.

This week he’s sleeping all the way in the bed. I guess he’s finally decided that it’s “his” bed. I know that he would know Buddy if we had him back today, but I think the memory is fuzzy for Lance now. That’s good - he’s not moping around waiting for his pal anymore. He doesn’t lay with his face against the front door screen, watching and waiting. He’s a happy little guy, like he was when he had his pal to keep him company each day. It’s a different kind of happy, but it’s genuine and good.

Technorati Tags: adapting to loss, dogs, pets

How did you select your web hosting service? Did you spend hours or maybe even several days, going from site to site to evaluate different services? Perhaps you converted your findings to a spread sheet so you could look at services side-by-side. Setting up a new site can be pretty stressful, but finding out everything you need to know about selecting a web host doesn’t have to be. Web Hosting Geeks is a web hosting review and rating resource that provides all of the information you’ll need to compare the top services. In addition to providing their own reviews of each site, consumer reviews are also featured - real feedback from people who have used the services. You know which features are most important to you. Maybe you’re only interested in services that offer free domain names or multiple-domain hosting. Whether you’re most concerned with speed, uptime, price or e-commerce features, you can compare them all on one site and find the web hosting service that best suits your need. Why waste your valuable time trying to find all of the information on separate websites when you can find it all in one place? Check out Web Hosting Geeks, one-stop shopping for web hosting services.

Technorati Tags: Web Hosting Geeks, web hosting reviews, web hosting services

Can you identify the item depicted above? Take your best guess and post it in the comments below. If your guess wins, you’ll get a nifty prize. Here’s how it works:

1. Write a comment giving your guess as to what the item is. Be as specific as you can. A table is too vague - a clamp on a card table leg is specific.
2. First person to identify the item wins. If more than one person provides the correct answer, time and date stamp will determine who was first.
3. The author of this blog will be the sole judge as to what constitutes a correct answer. Sorry - no hints will be given. I will attempt to respond to your answers at least every few hours, but I am not continuously at the keyboard so please be patient.
4. The contest will end in forty-eight hours, whether or not a correct guess has been submitted.
5. Skeet’s Stuff is a do-follow blog, so you get some link value just for commenting.

What will you win?

1. The author of this blog will write a LINKY LOVE POST (review) about the winner’s blog (commercial sites ineligible.) The LLP will contain the url for your blog plus at least two deep links and will be posted here on Skeet’s Stuff, a PR4 PR2 PR0 (bah google!) Ha! PR3 blog. Skeet writes good reviews.
2. The weekly winners will be entered into a monthly drawing for a $10.00 gift card from Starbucks or Amazon or a ten dollar payment through PayPal.
3. Drawing for the monthly prize will be held on or about August 1, 2008, and will include all weekly winners for the month. There are five Tuesdays in July, thus the maximum number of people who will be eligble is five.

Comments submitted with commercial links will be deleted. If you would like to market your product, service or website through skeet’s stuff I’ll be happy to discuss your needs and my prices. Please submit your request via email.

Technorati Tags: contests, photos, photo contest, photo puzzle

The Carnival of Aloha went live early this morning and I forgot to tell you! Oh, I’m so bad, but the posts will stay up, so get on over to Evelyn’s place. She’s directing traffic as we race around the islands, sharing stories about our beautiful paradise. Don’t you need a little tropical escape to help you ease into the week? Evelyn has hooked us up with eight great posts about life in Hawaii. All you have to do is kick your shoes off, imagine the warm sand between your toes, relax … and read. Aloha!

Technorati Tags: blog carnivals, Carnival of Aloha, Hawaii, Hawaii blogs, life in Hawaii

Two of my favorite people in the whole world have been visiting this week. Allysther and the boy are on the move again, this time from Korea to the East Coast. Hubby/Dad Zanla will follow in a few weeks to begin his new military assignment. They have to stop and visit home in Hawaii each time they travel, of course. Allysther, the boy and I had lunch on Friday, then went shopping for office supplies. What? Isn’t that what you do when you have a reunion with friends? We got together again yesterday for lunch with the Table of Contents at the same restaurant (Allysther’s favorite.) I thought I had taken at least one picture of all three of us, but somehow missed that opportunity, to here’s me and the boy, too. Yeah, I don’t look so hot, but he’s cute enough to make up for it, don’t you think? He was more than willing to stay here with me but Mom and Dad seem to need him around so, alas, the skeet house remains childless.

Cass, I’m thinking you could spice up Self Portrait Sundays by having a different theme each week. Like say, everyone in pajamas one week, work clothes the next, cooking in the kitchen, fooling with their hair - that kind of stuff. Oh, maybe each of us in sexy costumes for Halloween! Just a suggestion, mind you. It’s works well the way it is, but a theme could be fun, too. Whaddaya think? I think I need to get over to Midlife Musings to see who else took a self portrait today.

Technorati Tags: friends, meme, self portrait

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Do you get as sick of the daily news as I do? Wouldn’t you rather just ignore the ugly headlines for a little while and indulge in something uplifting instead? I would and sometimes I do. So do some of my readers, and they’re kind enough to Share the Good Stuff when they find it.

JenX named her blog Daily Mitzvah. It’s all about ways to make the world a better place and about people who are doing that in some innovative ways. Her story about To-Go Ware is a fine example of both. A female college student developed a creative solution for conserving recources, and her product provides employment for women living in marginal circumstances. It’s a winning idea all around - Good Stuff!

My pal Val knows everything and is a tireless champion for the disabled and developmentally challenged. I love her story about a man who created a browser for his autistic grandson and is now sharing it with the world - for free! While it was developed for children with special needs, it can be a great boon for all children. Hey Val - that’s Good Stuff!

You came across some Good Stuff recently, too, right? Why not share it so the rest of us can enjoy it? It can be from your local news sources, a website or even your own personal good news. Tell us about the neighborly thing that happened in your community, or the modern furniture you finally got to replace your old milk crate shelving. If it’s made you smile it’s stuff worthy of sharing. Write it up and send me your link. I’ll feature your post and give you a link-up the next time we get together to Share Some Good Stuff!

Technorati Tags: current events, good news, good stuff

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