2008.09.03
SEO for Beginners
I was asked today for an “SEO For Dummies” by a client and I thought that this Youtube video was a good starter.
2008.08.06
Vitamin D insufficiency common among breast cancer survivors
New research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed a correlation between vitamin D levels and various stages of breast cancer development. From Usana Health Sciences
Vitamin D influences pathways related to cancer development, but little is currently known about vitamin D status in breast cancer survivors. Recent data taken from the Health, Eating, Activity and Lifestyle (HEAL) study showed a correlation between vitamin D status and breast cancer survivors. Vitamin D concentrations from 790 female breast cancer survivors were obtained and vitamin D insufficiency was found in 597 individuals - or 75% of participants. Average vitamin D concentrations were even lower among African American and Hispanic women.
Controlling for various factors such as body mass index (BMI), race/ethnicity, geography, season, physical activity, diet, and cancer treatments showed that stage of disease independently predicted vitamin D levels.
In this group of breast cancer survivors the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency was abnormally high. Based on these results, health professionals and clinicians should consider monitoring vitamin D status in breast cancer patients in addition to administering appropriate cancer treatments.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 88, No. 1, 133-139, July 2008
2008.08.04
Totally Sucked In
I have a vice in which I’ve put forth legitimate effort attempting to quit. I spend short periods throughout the day, multiple times a day, playing out this filthy habit. I feel dirty sometimes, doing it. It consoles me however, that I am not alone and that there are millions out there, like me, that feel conflicted about their secret, just as I do. Read more »
2008.07.25
One more win for the little guys
I went to a movie tonight with my boyfriend playing at Empire Theatres to see the new X-Files movie which, in our opinions, was just fair at best. I don’t want to ruin it for anyone by giving any of the surprises away. Read more »
2008.07.17
Students surf their way to success
I found this on the Google blog today and think it’s great and worth sharing.
7/16/2008 12:02:00 AM
Early on in my career at Google I was approached by a former professor of mine, Jamie Murphy, who was eager to give his students hands-on exposure to online marketing. Apart from delivering a great learning experience, Jamie wanted to make sure that his students would leave university with skills they could take directly into the workforce.
Together, Jamie and I recruited a panel of professors from all over the globe and came up with the Google Online Marketing Challenge. Student teams had to identify a local business with a website, but no experience of online marketing, and then were given free Google AdWords vouchers worth the equivalent of US$200. The student teams worked with the local business to set up an AdWords account and structure an online marketing campaign which would increase web traffic and sales for the local business. The teams had three weeks to run the campaign and had to submit their campaign report to a panel of international academic judges.
Today we’re announcing the winners: an innovative team from the University of Western Australia who worked with an indoor rock-climbing school that scaled the heights and scooped the global prize. The winners will be whisked off to Mountain View, California for a tour of the Googleplex and meet with the creators of AdWords and other executives. To help them in their ongoing studies, each team member will also receive an Apple MacBook Pro.
L to R: Dr. Fang Liu, Glen Linthorne (from the partner business),
Victor Tsen (hanging), Amy Smith, Aaron Balm, and Lauren Bobridge. Absent: Anna Usikov.
Victor Tsen (hanging), Amy Smith, Aaron Balm, and Lauren Bobridge. Absent: Anna Usikov.
There were also three regional winners, including students from Pennsylvania State University, who won in the fierce Americas field, while a team from the Universität Bern in Switzerland beat some impressive competition to win for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Asia Pacific winners came from the Australian Graduate School of Management with a skillful campaign for a small specialty cake business (actually based in California).
These four teams were clearly deserving winners, but the enthusiasm all the students and professors showed for the challenge was inspiring. We initially expected slightly more than 1,000 students to take part, and were thrilled when c. 8,500 students from 47+ countries put their marketing skills to the test.
The success of the challenge and the positive feedback we’ve had from both professors and students was more than we had hoped for. As Dr. Fang Liu, who taught the winning team, notes:
“The Online Marketing Challenge offers a great opportunity for students to develop their skills and experience in online marketing. Local businesses also benefit as the AdWords campaigns have helped promote their business to a wider community. I feel absolutely thrilled that one of my student teams is the global winner.”
We’re delighted to have worked with professors to find a fun and innovative way to introduce online marketing into the university curriculum. And we’re happy to say the Challenge will carry on next year, and we hope it will go from strength to strength. Here are more details on the Challenge and our winners.
2008.07.15
How to Develop a Social Media Plan for Your Business in 5 Steps
- From Mashable July 10, 2008 — 09:01 AM PDT — by —
Social media can be an incredible tool for your business, providing you with more customer insight, direct communication channels and the ability to measure the effectiveness of these conversations very closely. Read more »
A growing concern
I was hired by a publishing company on PEI a few months ago to help launch a new website that they
developed called www.PEICanada.com. It did launch successfully and although it will always be worked upon, improved and growing, the fundamental structure of the site is up and going. Read more »
2008.07.10
A Day in the Life: Summer Inspiration
I showed my house again today to a young couple who said they’d take it and would phone me in two hours but they haven’t yet.
My new client came out to Pownal for a meeting and we went over a few things on my site. She said that she spent two hours going through my site and reading my blog and at the end of it she decided that she would hire me without a doubt and immediately to boot. Read more »
I Met the Walrus
Really interesting, timeless video sent to me by Handsome that I thought you’d enjoy.
2008.07.08
Update to Tourism Post
Please visit this post to find a letter from renowned marketer Barry Smith whom Paul MacNeill alluded to in his blog post regarding “What is really wrong with tourism” (on PEI). Great to see these guys speaking out. I can’t say too much today because I had so much fun doing a shoot for Tourism PEI yesterday however… Read more »