If you are a die hard Facebook lover who would live and die by replying Facebook messages, updates and check profiles; here is a Mozilla Firefox plug-in for Facebook that you are waiting for. With this Firefox Facebook plug-in you can pretty much access most of the Facebook Functions in 1 click, this includes:

• Login to Facebook
• Checking pokes, friends request and mails
• Searching Facebook friends
• Share articles, and more

This plugin also comes with a sidebar that would list down your friends with their latest status updates. Click here to download the Facebook plugin for your Firefox browser.

My curiosity with how people connect online has led me into a  job as a new media consultant. It seems a natural progression for me for the moment. If not for Facebook and Twitter, I wouldn’t have been able to keep in contact with my friends from Vietnam, as well as the volunteers from the rest of the world. I wouldn’t have known that Milena solved her transportation problems in Hanoi by buying herself a spanking new scooter. Elizabeth from the UK wouldn’t have been communicating with me about our post-Vietnam blues if not for Facebook.

While nothing replaces the intimacy of hearing the voice of someone you care about, or to see them in person, social media bridges some of these gaps for us. I’m no absolute authority on how to use social media, but through my own follies, I’ve learnt quite abit.

What I’ve noticed…

I’ve seen and heard about this trend recently: Companies and organizations hear success stories about how Twitter and Facebook is the next “in” thing, and how it can create a cult following around your product or service, leading to huge sales. They all rush to connect with the community. Its hip, Its trendy. Hey Coca Cola’s doing it, why shouldn’t we?

Wrong.

Research firm Gartner predicts that in 2010, “over half of companies that develop a social media campaign will fail, potentially having a negative effect on their brand.”

If you have no intentions of connecting with your audience, you will fail. Period.

On a personal branding level, I am guilty of that too. I failed. Big time. What I’m laying out here are the lessons I’ve learnt so far in my uses of social media tools. Thinking that Facebook and Twitter was my speakerboxxx, I blasted messages everywhere, thinking that everyone would be interested to read. I ignored what was going on around me. After all, Facebook and Twitter is about telling everyone how great I was, how exciting my life was isn’t it?

Wrong!

Individuals and businesses take note: No One Cares About You! Its not about being a loudspeaker. Its about creating meaningful conversations and relationships.

What Social Media Really Does…

Social Media is meant to be a bridge across individuals, peoples, groups, and organizations. It increases and improves transparency of organizations. Sure, there are dangers that come with being open. But do you choose to not use fire, just because itmight hurt you? Everything that’s known to be useful to man has almost always been a double-edged sword.

Sure, social media has virality potential that can destroy your brand, sweep you of your feet, leaving you high and dry. But it also bears positive viral potential for your personal brand name, or products and services. This is nothing new. The same way you deal with a PR disaster, you can apply those same skillsets on the online world.

The rules of marketing apply to the world of social media.

In 1997, Harry Beckwith wrote about how all of us “sell the invisible”. No matter what business you’re in, even if you’re selling physical products, you are in service marketing. And service marketing needs a focus on relationships, less on features and benefits.

This is indeed a new way of thinking.

Wait.. is it really new?

Selling The Invisible…

Think of how Apple tells its customers to Think Different and try to change the world. Originators in trying to bring simple, user friendly computing to the mass audience.

Think of how Zappos prides itself not as simply an online business selling shoes, but a business powered by Service.

Here’s what Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh thinks of Twitter:

Think of each tweet as a dot on a piece of paper. Any single tweet, just like any single dot, by itself can be insignificant and meaningless. But, if over time, you end up with a lot of tweets, it’s like having a lot of dots drawn on a piece of paper. Eventually there are enough dots for your followers to connect them together. And if you connect the dots, in the aggregate it paints a picture of you and/or your company, and it’s that total picture that is your brand.

The emphasis in any social media campaign success should be put on the value of the relationships formed and the feedback and data gained from consumers. On a personal branding, and being a friend, that means communicating more with those you care about, as opposed to simply raking up the friend or follower count on your social networks.

How people and companies fail by not being proactive:

Don’t listen

Why bother when people are talking about your brand? Because if you don’t just a spark can bring an entire forest ablaze.

Don’t ask

Most of us neglect social media, not realizing its potential a focus group tool. Even if its relatively inexpensive to conduct tests online.

Don’t start preparing your team

Hey it should be easy to get on facebook and twitter right? Anyone in the company can do it! Hmm… but who’s gonna maintain it? Remember… establishing a connection with your customers is not a one-time affair, but ongoing relationships.

What are we doing today to make social media more relevant to ourselves and to others

Okay you decided to open a Twitter account for your business, congratulations! Now where do you start? So much information out there, do this do that, here I got 3 simple.

Twitter Step 1

Create you account, sounds simple enough, right. Next create a twitter name that is unique. Last tweet information about your business, tips, facts, who you are as a business.

Twitter Step 2

Follow people who are tweeting about your products and services. Get a feel of what everyone is saying. Next add yourself to wefollow.com, under the correct directories.  If you have an IPhone or BlackBerry you can download cool apps to stay in touch like tweetdeck, or tweetberry. I would recommend staying away from programs that do a mass update on all social media sites.

Twitter Step 3

Engage your followers. You don’t want to get a following and then start to see your numbers fall off because you are not engaging your crowd. What do I mean about this? Post articles or links to your blog and ask for feedback, set up promotions or contests. Also make sure to respond to comments about your Brand in a professional manner. If someone writes something negative don’t get upset, wait a while to come up with a good comment.

Last remember to have fun!

Well we all heard about the Swagbucks widget right? Well if not, that’s ok. It’s a nice little flash app that lets you access some of the SwagBucks features from any site you post it on, it also helps to attract referrals. The only problem I have with this widget, is that it’s kinda annoying, to have to launch your internet browser, go on Facebook or wherever you have it, just to look for a code, especially when Mac OSX comes with a dashboard full of widgets that are right there at the press of a button.

But don’t give up on the SwagBucks widget just yet! If your a Mac user, all you need to do is to have your widget posted on any site. Facebook, Twitter, WordPress… Whatever you want. Now once you are at your widget in Safari, go to File, Open in Dashboard. Click on your widget, and you’ll see that safari highlights it. Click on add in the top right corner of the window, and voila your done! The widget should be now in your dashboard readily available at a moments notice. Searching for codes have never been so quick and easy!

Every time I share with someone my passion for building my brand through social media, I’m met with comments such as, “But why do I want a Twitter account?  I don’t want to know what people are doing every minute of the day.”  Or, “I don’t need Facebook.  I don’t need to connect with people I don’t remember from high school.”

Let me explain.  If you have a business and you’re not using these medium to reach your audience then YOU ARE MISSING THE BOAT.  How awesome would it be for Starbuck’s or McDonald’s to create a video, post it on their site and in this video ask the consumers what they want?  Instead of spending millions of dollars on advertising, spend $0 and post a video on Youtube then post tweets about it with a link to the video. Put in on their Faccebook fanpage.  Connect that page to their website or blog.  The possibilities are endless and flat out amazing!  Then when they get feedback from the customers they can create a product they know will sell because the consumers helped to create  it.  The consumers want it!

The truth is whether you’re a company or an individual…  You’re on Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Digg, etc…  And you’re saying, “Hey!  Look at me!  I’m over here!”  That’s not a bad thing.  However, if you have a passion for a topic or a business, you BETTER be saying…  “Hey look at me!  I’m over here!”

Pretty soon people will check you out.  They will “re-tweet”, re-post on Facebook or send your link via email to their friends.  THAT is more powerful than any commercial during Super Bowl Sunday.  The power of ONE person looking at your brand…  PRICELESS.  That one person has so much power at the click of that mouse!

And that is how Twitter and Facebook and the rest of the social media platforms out there, work for you.

The growing popularity of FaceBook has lead to an explosion of applications. These applications are aimed at making you more productive by helping you with everything from tracking to storing files. Writing tools, networking tools and more have all been used as the basis for a growing list of applications guaranteed to make your FaceBook experience smoother and more productive. Below is a list of the top 15 FaceBook applications aimed at improving your productivity.

1. Zoho

Zoho let’s you access all of your office files, from presentations to spreadsheets and documents on line. Better yet – it’s free. Zoho makes sharing and collaborating with your office documents a snap because you can access them from anywhere. Never again will you have to email documents to your friends or save them to a thumb drive – Zoho makes that a thing of the past!

2. iRead

Simply the largest book app on Facebook, iRead lets you rate books you have and write reviews. Other features include the ability to browse what your friends and family are reading and to find other users who have similar tastes in books. More than 60 million books have been added to the app so far. IRead is a great way to share your bookshelf with all of the users on FaceBook

3. Picnik

Picnik is a great app filled with tons of features you can use to edit your pictures. Features include auto-fix, crop, rotate, exposure, resize, color adjustments, red-eye fix and even basic sharpening. Tons of effects are available as well and the text feature makes adding captions a breeze. The basic package includes all of these options and more, but for a small fee you can upgrade to premium features!

4. Translations

Translations is a application that translates text by accessing a network of FaceBook translators. ‘Quality control’ is guaranteed as each new language translation is reviewed by the translation community prior to being released for FaceBook features. FaceBook Translations has added 96 languages to the community and are developing an additional 64. Translators are even working on right-to-left translations!!

5. Dictonary.com: Word of the Day

A great application that turns your FaceBook page into an educational experience with Dictionary.com’s Word of the Day! A new word is available everyday from the popular website www.dictionary.com. Increase your brainpower and your vocabulary with Dictionary.com: Word of the Day.

6. Webinaria Screencast Recorder

If you have every want to share your desktop moves with your FaceBook friends or to create a webcam video complete with narration, Webinaria Screencast Recorder is for you. Use this application to create video demonstrations, presentations and more to easily post on your FaceBook page.

7. Simple Stock Quotes

A great applications that does just what you think it does – helps you keep track of just what is happening on Wall Street. Functionality includes a super easy set up and the ability to track the stocks your FaceBook friends are trading as well. The simple look of the application fits in perfectly with the overall look and feel of FaceBook! Download here

8. BillMonk

Whether you have a roommate you share the bills with or are tracking IOW’s from friends, BillMonk makes keeping track of your cash flow a snap. A great design looks perfect with your other FaceBook applications!

9. Walkie Talkie

A handy application for chatting with FaceBook groups. Walking Talkie simply enables group chat among your selected FaceBook users. Whether you use this application for business or pleasure, Walkie Talkie makes group chatting easy and fun!

10. Calendar

Of all the calendar applications out there, Calendar by 30Boxes is simply the best. This handy application makes keeping track of your life easier by including the ability to send SMS reminders, track up coming events and share your calendar of events with your FaceBook friends. A must have for any one with a busy social (or business) calendar.

11. Box Files

Box Files provides you with 1GB free storage space, making your thumb drive a thing of the past!! Save important work files, music and photos and share them with your FaceBook friends no matter where you are!! An inexpensive upgraded version is also available!

12. SlideShare

A great little application that makes creating and sharing slide shows easy as can be. Create slide shows right through your FaceBook page and share them easily with your friends. A simple, but elegant interface makes this application stand out!

13. My Lists

So much more than a simple “to do list’ program, My Lists helps you make lists of almost anything you can imagine. Favorite books, songs, movies or college roommates can be used to create your own personalized lists. Be silly or serious and share your lists with everyone you know with My Lists!

14. WikiSeek

Do all of your Wikipedia searches without ever leaving the comfort of your own FaceBook page using WikiSeek. The handy application links your FaceBook page into Wikipedia and displays your search result right on your home page!

15. Last.Fm

You share your favorite pictures and even your important documents, why not share your favorite music? Last.Fm makes doing this easy by comparing your music taste with friends and even share your playlists. Another feature of last.fm allows you to put images of albums right on your homepage!

FaceBook application makes your day more productive and more fun. Whether you want to share a favorite song or slideshow or need a way to keep track of your latest stock purchases, there is a perfect application to increase your productivity!!

If you have been using the internet for some time and wondering why some people seem to have an easier way earning money online through their blogs while you on the other hand has no idea why then you might just be the one this article was written for. The magic word for blogs to earn money is to increase traffic to the blog site. More traffic means more visitors who get to read and watched the ads displayed in your site which could possibly translate to increase revenue to your sponsors. Increased revenue means that you also get to share in the earning process because your popularity will spread, and you will get higher page ranking which will invite more ads for your site. But the question remains to be: how do you increase traffic to your blog?

If you are just beginning, a target of 100 daily page views may seem unattainable how much more breaking the 1,000 daily page views mark. But that is exactly the target you must aim for; else you can just kiss your online earnings goodbye. So here’s 4 ways to drive traffic to your site:

1. Create a value-laden article

A value-laden article is an article that contains great value to your specific readership or target niche. You can get it by thoroughly researching and expounding ideas and re-telling it in a way of tutorial so that it is easily understood and followed by your potential visitors. A value-laden article is known by other terms such as killer article, link baits or pillar articles. Pillar because these the content of these articles served as the main structure of your blog, the reason why visitors get hooked to your site. They are link baits article because they are exactly that, they serve as baits to your potential visitors to draw them to your site. Examples of a pillar articles would include writing a comprehensive list of resources for a particular topic targeting your niche, writing about a common problem your target market faces and finding a solution for it or tackling a topic which is not as thoroughly discussed in previous articles but still generates a lot of interest in your niche.

2. Social networking pays

Social networking largely involves commenting or linking to other blogs within your niche, and essentially establishing an online connection with others through the use of email, twitter and social networking medias like facebook and myspace.

3. Self-promotion

If you already have your value-laden article, you should exert all effort to promote it so that it will reach as many as potential visitors in your niche. Promotional activity will include letting everyone in your network know that you have a new article out. It will also help if you can ask some of your friends to share your article to top social networking sites and directories, and micro-blogging site twitter.

4. Write spice articles in between

Since it is impossible to write killer article on a daily basis, your blog should also include articles that are light reading but are also designed to capture the interest of your readership. These types of articles are what is termed spice articles. In effect, they give flavor and variety to your blog which in the long run keep the interest and loyalty of your readers.