Sometimes I seem to do the same things over and over again.  I frequently find myself awash in an ocean of information, and then I think, "GET ORGANIZED!"  Here are a few good tools that are FREE, and extremely useful in my managing my daily online activities.

Password Safe

I have so many passwords to keep track of! Working in the domain industry, I have even more than ever before.  I don't want to lose any and can't possibly remember them all, so I've got to have a system to keep all of them organized and safely available.  Password Safe is a great tool - you can store all your usernames and passwords, along with notes if you need any, and a link to the login page.  You will have one main login for Password Safe, which in turn gives you access to all the other logins you've stored. 

I recommend backing up Password Safe on a USB flash drive, or in your web based email client,  that way you can rest easy if ever your whole computer dies or something.

Password Safe - http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/

Texter

Texter is a text substitution application that was recommended to me by my colleague and it pleasantly surprised me with its utility. It allows you to  define text substitution hotstrings that, when triggered, will replace hotstring with a larger piece of text. By entering your most commonly-typed snippets of text into Texter, you can save countless keystrokes in the course of the day.

I now enter all the text I find myself typing repeating throughout my day into Texter. At first I don't think I have much to enter in it, but as I go along I use it routinely.  I can enter greetings for example. For things I explain by email repeatedly, Texter is awesome. I can access Texter to copy and paste the content, but even cooler are the hotstrings. I can set a lengthy greeting with a word like 'hello' which becomes a hotstring.  This means I just type in 'hello' and it gets replaces with my full greeting.  What a time saver! Texter can also be stored on a USB flash drive, allowing you to take it with you.

Texter - http://lifehacker.com/238306/lifehacker-code-texter-windows

GIMP Portable

I often want to edit my photos, fix the contrast or saturation, optimize them for the web or for emailing to friends, however I don't work in graphic design so I just can't justify the cost of an expensive photo editor. Well, that's fine ... I have discovered GIMP!

GIMP is a FREE image editor, and there are two versions; one is portable and doesn't even need to be installed, it can sit on your USB flash drive.  GIMP is very powerful, and I think it important to share with you; even with prior Photoshop experience I was still overwhelmed by all the features of GIMP.  So here is a tip: search on Google for GIMP tutorials, they are a life saver!

GIMP Portable: http://portableapps.com/apps/graphics_pictures/gimp_portable

GIMP Full Version): http://www.gimp.org/

Don't forget to check out the GIMP Tutorials: http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/

The above three tools have been constants in my life for years.  They help me to stay organized and get things done without having to scramble around like a madman.  Zen is maintained.  "Ooooommmmmmm!" 

So you've registered your domains. Score. You set them all up and made them appealing. Score. But do you know if anyone seeing them?  Good question.  There are some great ways to capture that feedback, and here are some of them:

Counting Visits

A simple 3rd party counter is often all it takes to make me feel better about the traffic on my domain name.  As someone who is starting out I don't really care too much about the details.  The most affordable solution is a 3rd party free counter service like what is offered by tinycounter.com.  I have tried this on my blog and it works well enough.  It allows you to either count each website visit, or unique visitors and displays that number on your website. 

Other counter services can be found by doing a Google search and can offer all kinds of information such as where the visitor is located, what their IP address is and much more.  The only drawback of having this on the blog, is we're not sure if they went to the domain to get to the blog or reached it via a search engine.

For more in-depth web stats you would need to actually have your website hosted somewhere, like Webnames.ca.  This allows the information to be given about the domain instead of where it has been pointing to. Webnames.ca has multiple hosting options.

Google Analytics

Now if you want to get really serious, check out Google Analytics

Google Analytics can give you even richer information such as what website they clicked in from to get to your domain, how long they stayed on your website, what pages they viewed, and tonnes more. This can be very interesting, especially if you have lots of content.

Ask Away

Don't be shy to ask visitors how they heard of you.  You can post a request that they email you this information, a web form, or a survey.

PHP "Yeah You Know Me" (Advanced)

I actually went through a phase where I was obsessed with my web stats - I wanted to be emailed every time I got a visit. I had a webhosting package with PHP and used a PHP mailer so if anyone visited me I'd get notified and do a little happy dance.  One of the best places to learn more about PHP programming is w3schools.com.

I am sure there are other tools out there and if I hear about them I will post them.  Happy Counting!

Photo credit: The Count von Count, from Sesame Street (www.sesamestreet.org)

I was invited to speak at a really great event last week "Leadership Lessons from Influential Women in Business". It was put on by Business in Vancouver, Professional Women's Network, and Young Women in Business. The event was sold out!

I was honoured to be part of a group of women that included Tamara Vrooman CEO of Vancity, Sarah Morgan-Silvester Chancellor of UBC, Karen flavelle of Purdy's Chocolates and many other successful women in Vancouver. Here is a complete list of all the women who spoke.

The room was a constant buzz of energy. The topic I spoke about was "The Power of Networking".  The 3 groups of women who joined me, in true networking form, traded business cards as soon as they arrived at the table. We discussed everything from the fear of networking, networking outside of your comfort zone, how to turn networking into sales, some of the great networking groups in Vancouver and of course, the big topic of social media & networking.

1. Recognize your fear - Most people who don't network a lot have a fear of it. When you're talking to someone, they are probably more nervous than you are. Recognizing that fear is normal and common is a great first step to overcoming it.

2. Develop your networking style - Do men and women have different networking styles? Some thought that men were more aggressive and women had softer styles. Personally, I don't like to generalize. The point is, be true to who you are and be genuine, honest and natural in your interactions in order to develop valuable connections and relationships.

3. Use Social Networking tools - from LinkedIn to Facebook to Twitter, there are great ways to connect with people these days. Everyone who used LinkedIn found great value in it as it allows you to keep up-to-date on the activities of your network without actively having to talk to each person regularly. You can also keep your network abreast of your updates. Many people didn't understand the value of Twitter although more people are starting to try it out. Twitter is a very fast way to get your message out to a lot of people.

The key point to remember is to make sure you use these tools appropriately and manage your reputation carefully. Maintain work-related content and avoid posting anything too personal and certainly avoid anything inappropriate. Your reputation is out there for anyone to see whether it be future employers, future clients or business partners or future acquirers of your business.

4. Recommended networking groups - There are many industry specific groups.

I'm on the Board of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs and can attest to the amazingly high quality of programs and networking events. The next FWE 2010 Gala on January 18, 2010 will celebrate the people who invest in entrepreneurs. Keynote speakers will include stars of the popular shows Dragon's Den and Fortune Hunters.

One group I joined recently is the High Output Business Network They combine the power of social networking and weekly chapter meetings in a no non-sense "this is what I need" and "how can I help you" format, that I find surprisingly refreshing.

The Vancouver Board of Trade has some great events as well and at the beginning of each event, people are invited to exchange cards and ask "how can I help you". This format really helps those who are typically too shy to approach others at a networking event and I highly recommend it to those who are just starting to network.

The Women's Enterprise Centre has a comprehensive list of the various networking groups for women in BC.

5. Start your own group!  - There are a number of less formal groups in your local area called "Meetups". These are formed with specific topic areas like entrepreneurs, sales, social media, real estate. I joined the dotTel meetup recently. Go to www.meetup.com to find one that suits your interest. If you don't find a group that fits your interests, you can even start your own.

6. Importance of Followup - Many people go to a networking event and come back to the office with a stack of business cards and they sit on a desk for a while before they get tossed in the garbage -- wasted time and some trees sacrificed in the meantime. When you meet someone, write on the card where you met them and a few notes about them. Write a followup to the people you met the next day to continue the conversation you had and to build on the connection you made.

.TEL - Making Networking More Successful

To facilitate easier networking and life-long connections, Webnames.ca gave away three .TEL names as prizes at the event. .TEL is like a virtual business card. You give out your easy to remember .TEL name rather than a business card.

The information in a .TEL is much richer than what fits on a small card and can include email, phone, fax, Skype, SMS, Google map, links to blog, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and more. The true beauty is you can update your contact information as often as you like without having to reprint business cards and whoever has your .TEL name will have your up-to-date contact information for life.

Photo:
L to R. Cheryl Carter-Business in Vancouver, Laurel Douglas-Women's Enterprise Centre, Paulina Lipska-Young Women in Business