When it comes to selling a new product or branding oneself or company online, what’s typically the main goal? To get people to click on your link and buy buy buy, right? Yes- Click here! Go to my beautiful site!

But is this what people do? No way! In fact, if you’re too eager to plaster your link all over the place, you are likely to be deemed a spammer, annoying, and a nuisance. Yuck- who wants that?

Instead of focusing on spreading your link everywhere, why not save it and all the valuable information that sits behind it for people who readily want and ask to see it?

How can you do this? You need to build a positive, trusting relationship with others. Let them know you– who you are and what you’re all about. Put yourself out there. Help people. Provide value. And give it away for free. My friend Joe Schroeder always says, “What you give away, you always get to keep.” Ain’t that the truth?

So to start, why not concern yourself more with helping others do what they need to do or obtain what they are looking for? It’s easy-peasy.

Here’s one way you can start from scratch and for free. Leverage an existing community to carve out a voice or brand for yourself or your company. Ever heard of Yahoo! Answers? Of course, you have. I’m sure many of you have even benefited from it. It’s a community-driven website provided by Yahoo! which allows members to engage in a site-wide discussion forum. The service is quite simple. Users ask and answer questions about virtually any topic.

Hello! If you are an expert in a particular industry, or have information that could help others, or if you’re just passionate about a specific topic, Yahoo! Answers offers a great opportunity for you to lend your expertise, knowledge, and resourcefulness to a community where everyone is literally asking for assistance.

The service is free to all and is accessible to anyone in the world. The information posted on the forum is non-exclusive and royalty-free. As a result of each posting being automatically indexed to a category, it will show up high on search engine results.

So where is the power behind this?

Well, if you are able to help others by providing useful answers to people’s questions, you will not only be offering quality information to others, but you will also, over time, build your credibility as a resource. Once you establish credibility, it will be natural for readers to want more from you and to want to become your subscriber.

Here’s the KEY and I will state the obvious: You must provide helpful, useful, quality information.

There are many categories and you will want to focus on positioning yourself as an authority in a particular niche. Eventually, when people see your posts, they will automatically read and LISTEN to what you have to say.

You will start to earn respect from other community members, which will give you more freedom to answer questions on an ongoing basis and turn this into an additional income stream for you.

Remember: When posting answers do NOT ruin your reputation by putting links for people to go and buy something on all your posts!

Instead, focus on posting helpful answers throughout the day and on just 1 out of, say, 10 posts, include a post that includes all of your information, including a link. If your answers are indeed helpful, your readers will WANT this information. The other posts will simply be direct answers providing very helpful information, and will NOT include a link to anything.

A few technicals… Yahoo! Answers operates on a point system. Each new user starts with 100 points upon opening an account and additional points are obtained by answering questions, receiving votes on answers, and having answers chosen as “best answer”.

As you continue to consistently add quality content to questions asked, you will be laying the groundwork for becoming a “Top Contributor”. Top Contributor status gains you a bright badge under your name and image. It represents the highest position you can achieve on Yahoo! Answers.

Once you reach this level, you will be seen by others as an authority and an expert. Everyone will see your answers and people will readily LISTEN to what you have to say. This becomes very powerful when you post your occasional 1 in 10 posts with a link to your site. People will be much more inclined to follow that link and more importantly, YOU!

A similar community-driven answers site has just been launched at Mahalo.com. Now you can double your presence!

JM Smucker Co, which recently acquired Folgers from Proctor & Gamble, is launching an immediate price reduction plan in their Folgers Ground prices as well as their Dunkin’ Donuts retail roasted coffees which it manufactures and distributes.

The aggressive price reduction strategy is in response to the pressure of the worsening economy and consumers’ growing propensity to forgo pricey café brews in favor of home brewing and less-expensive cups of coffee. In order to stay competitive, passing savings onto customers is their way of gaining customer loyalty, especially in a sagging economy.

With ever-increasing competition from McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts, do these kinds of price reduction moves necessarily mean bad news for premium brands like Starbucks?

What really happens to consumer loyalty in a recession? When we are forced to cut back on our spending, do we automatically downscale? Instead of Starbucks, do we opt to go with the more cost-effective means of having coffee by brewing Folgers at home?

According to Eric Anderson, VP of Emerging Media at Whitehorse, consumers will, indeed cut back on their spending, but not necessarily in the way most of us might think. Instead of making decisions between brands, consumers will make decisions between the types of luxuries that they enjoy. So, instead of Starbucks versus Folgers, for example, the decision is more likely to reside between Starbucks and say, Netflix.

If this is true, then this can make it more difficult for traditional marketers to keep customers since their brands may be competing against a completely unrelated product or service.
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz told analysts last week that it’s critical that Starbucks not undermine its premium brand position in the face of economic pressures. Starbucks is not “a fast-food operator” or “discount business,” he stressed.

True. Starbucks is, in fact, built around a community and the brand, itself, is a part of people’s lives.
Watch this.

It’s no wonder that in the face of tough economic times, their new Gold Card program which carries a $25-per-year fee and offers benefits –notably, 10% off on most purchases–drew 350,000 sign-ups in the first four weeks after it began to be promoted in stores in November, Starbucks reported.

Clearly, some folks are not willing to forego their beloved coffee of choice for its lesser-priced counterparts.

So, what can we learn from this? What can businesses do to maintain customer loyalty in times like this? Anderson suggests we need to have a deeper level of engagement with our consumers about where our brand fits in their lives. Advertising alone will not achieve this, but social media might. Why? Because the impact of social media is a matter of trust. It’s about connecting with people in their daily lives and engaging them.

With the web consisting of a giant network of humans interacting and a mass of conversations, Anderson believes it is communities that will drive brands and inspire brand loyalty. And because of this, businesses can’t afford to ignore the importance of the social media space.

Bottom line: Increasing loyalty, which can be leveraged through communities (esp. social media), is a key way to recession-proof your brand.

If you want to donate to a charitable organization while also providing a deduction for your 2008 tax bill, charitable giving expert and philanthropic consultant Lisa M. Dietlin suggests now is the time to make a final decision about which nonprofit organizations to donate to, so you don’t miss the year-end deadline. This season is traditionally the busiest time for charitable giving; this year, because of the sagging economy, many charities are experiencing a greater need for their services and support. By giving a charitable gift now, donors can help an organization continue providing important services, while providing themselves a charitable tax deduction.

“The time to give is now - if you’re not sure you can get a donation to the nonprofit organization by the December 31st deadline, consider making a donation online; many nonprofits have a Website that enables donors to give online using a credit card,” said Lisa M. Dietlin, president and CEO of Lisa M. Dietlin & Associates. “Every dollar counts and no donation is too small, especially now as many nonprofit organizations are seeing an increase in need; your giving truly matters.”

Lisa M. Dietlin’s Tips for Year-End Charitable Giving:

Keep Detailed Records:
To claim a deduction for a charitable contribution you need to keep a dated receipt, such as a canceled check or a dated credit card statement. The receipt needs to show the name of the nonprofit organization and amount of the contribution. Also, keep detailed records and receipts for donations such as clothing and furniture indicating both the item and the condition of the item donated.

Don’t Miss the Deadline:
Be sure your donation is processed by 11:59 pm on December 31st. If you make a donation by credit card, consider making the donation a few days earlier than the December 31st deadline, to be certain it’s processed in time.

Pledges and Contributions:
It is important to know the difference between a pledge and a contribution. If you pledged $500 in July but paid the charity only $200 by December 31st, your deduction is $200.

Give Wisely:
To check out the standards and accountability of a nonprofit organization, search the database of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance. This watchdog organization offers a no-cost search service that produces in-depth reports detailing how a charity spends its money and how it governs its organization. www.bbb.org/charity

Stocks, Bonds, Real Estate and Life Insurance:
Gifts of stocks, real estate and life insurance are valuable donations, but complex. Donors should consult with their financial and tax advisors about the deductibility of these types of charitable gifts.

Review IRS Guidelines:
The IRS does not consider all charitable donations equal. Contributions registered as 501 (c) 3 entities are tax-deductible. Donations to 501 (c) 4 groups that perform lobbying are not. Be sure to check IRS guidelines for details about tax breaks.

“Let this season of giving inspire you to make a New Year’s resolution to contribute to a charity throughout the year,” said Dietlin. “Remember, need knows no season, and your monetary gift, or the gift of your time, is valuable and will be appreciated.”

Visit lmdietlin.com for more info. Source: PRWeb

Since the launch of the new DOT ME extension in July, there are already over 2 ½ million DOT ME web pages on the Google search index.

People and businesses have foreseen a huge potential in the new .ME domain names and rushed to pick up as many as possible during the opening bid period in June. It has become the fastest domain extension to ever launch on the Internet.

The first DOT ME domain auction, held by the DOT ME registry, broke records for a new extension, with total sales reaching just over 2 million USD.

So what’s the mass appeal? The internet is all about you and me. Think: youtube, myspace, facebook etc. .ME is the only 2 character domain extension out there that enables you to use in so many ways for marketing and branding.

“Due to their universal appeal and quality to be easily remembered they have become essential to brand yourself or a company in the online market. Furthermore, some “premium” names such as. Contact.ME, Drive.ME, Kiss.Me, Youand.Me, Insure.me have the potential to create a completely new perception of the websites.The .ME extension allows for easily memorable sites..” Source: DomainInformer.com

So, what are you waiting for? Express yourself! Pick up a top-level domain that’s all about YOU! Get your .ME today!

Yesterday, I included an excerpt from Seinfeld’s hilarious episode, “The Label Maker” which highlighted the notion of regifting. Jerry also suggests you can tell immediately how a person feels about your gift based on their reaction. If they state what it is, they probably don’t like it.

This month, Best Buy Canada has launched a holiday ad campaign to showcase its ability to connect with shoppers and assist in finding gifts that elicit the best reactions. Here is a hilarious spot featuring two parents seeking the right gift for their twin girls.

I wonder how many takes that took?