For the past week or so, I’ve had numerous Firefox crashes that I’ve had a sneaking suspicion are related to the newly downloaded version of AVG Anti-Virus (Version 8).

Today I researched the matter and came upon this article which I found quite helpful. Basically, you fix it by doing the following:

1. Launch AVG Anti-Virus Free.

2. Go to the top menu and click TOOLS.

3. Click on Advanced Settings and then look at the list to your left.

4. Click the fifth choice down - LinkScanner.

5. With LinkScanner clicked, look to the right and you’ll see two boxes that are checked off. Uncheck the boxes. With these extensions disabled, you’ll no longer enjoy the privilege of having links pre-scanned for viruses before you click them… but unless you’re exploring uncharted territory where you’d want your virus alert way up high, I’d say it’s worth it.

Good luck - here’s to hoping this solves the crashing problem with Firefox!

- Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing.

Popularity: 39% [?]

Your client just emailed you to say that the check will be late (again), your dog ate your only copy of Strunk and White’s Elements of Style and your significant other stomped on your last nerve hours ago. It’s enough to make any blogger hit the rant button. But if you’re thinking of venting your spleen on your professional blog, stop for a second and reconsider.

For starters, what will ranting actually accomplish? Probably nothing, other than to make you feel better. On the other hand, you could alienate your readership if your tone, content or language seems too harsh or critical. Venting on your own personal blog is one thing, but when it comes to your business, you need to stay cool, calm and professional. Here’s how:

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Popularity: 72% [?]

If you’re making the transition from corporate to freelance, how comfortable are you in the new role?

Is it like a new pair of shoes; you’ve stepped in with both feet, but they’re giving you blisters — and you really just want to go back to those old, broken-in, full-time loafers?

I was interviewing a client the other day, for a new business website I’m helping her launch. She was telling me about the vast and varied experiences that led her to desire this new incarnation of her professional self.

She kept saying things like, “So then I had to change jobs again. We relocated to Missouri and I had to start teaching, because we had a family to support!”

My client sounded almost apologetic. Every time she mentioned a new skill that she had acquired along the way, she had to justify the experience as though it was a “bad thing.” Like she shouldn’t have changed jobs, or she shouldn’t have bothered to learn new things.

After hearing her repeatedly downplay her credentials and experience, it occurred to me why this client needed my copywriting support and marketing direction.

It was because *she still didn’t think of herself as a consultant!*

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Popularity: 66% [?]

Facebook, Ryze, LinkedIn, Myspace… what’s the point?

Can social networking REALLY work to get you clients? Or is this just a way for wily webmasters to bring hits and attention to THEIR websites, so they can pull in more ad and membership revenues?

Last week, a fairly new copywriting client asked me the above question. Then he said to me, “I emailed you to work on my project because I remembered you from Ryze.”

I was active on Ryze… oh, three years ago? And yet this person remembered me after three years, sought me out, and here we are doing a website project together.

This is not the first time I’ve gained a new client due to having “put in my time” on the social networks.

In my humble opinion and experience, I would say that the more of a standout social networking experience you create, and the more you put into making your profiles professional… the more thought you give to creating posts that add value and meaning to others’ professional lives… the more you’ll get out of social networking.

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Popularity: 91% [?]

About a week ago, I got a call from the local animal shelter telling me there was a 2-year-old boxer dog available for adoption. I had put my name on their list hoping to find a dog for my parents, who had just lost their beloved boxer to kidney failure.

I got to the pound, and there was a beautiful boxer dog, perfect in every way. Young, healthy, vibrant, with a pretty face and that famously goofy boxer expression. He was shy and bashful when I opened the door to his cage, but he gave me paw when I asked, and covered my face with kisses when I bent down to introduce myself. I quickly called my parents on the cell and encouraged them to “grab this one while they had the chance.”

My parents, being the old fogeys they are, had reservations. “Is the dog good looking?” “Do you think we’ll be able to handle a young dog?” “What if he runs off?”

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Popularity: 63% [?]

If you’re a user of Google AdWords then pay close attention. Google has announced that they will now begin adding landing page load time to your AdWord rank score.

According to Google, people who have web sites with slow-loading pages will be charged more for their Google AdWords advertisements.

There are several ways to reduce the loading times of your pages.

• Cut down the graphics. Graphic files take up a lot of bandwidth even with today’s high-speed connections. If your site depends on graphic intensity, then make sure you optimize your images to minimize load times.
• Take a written approach. While graphics slow down load times, text seems to have little effect, so making pages that are heavy on the copy are to your advantage. They load fast and, if properly optimized, will help your page ranking.
• Avoid Flash animations. Flash animations are definitely cool, but also eat up bandwidth faster than Iron Man eats up WD-40.
• Avoid embedded objects. YouTube videos, photo slide shows and other items that you embed into your pages increase the amount of information that has to be sent, which causes your pages to load more slowly.

Studies show that if a page doesn’t load within 8 seconds, people go somewhere else. So optimizing your web pages for better load times will not only help your Google AdWord bottom line, but will provide a better experience for your readers.

Read the full story here.

Michael Sieber is professional web content writer. Visit his site at prowebwriting.com.

Popularity: 33% [?]

Hello. My name is Dina Giolitto, I’m a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant and the owner of Wordfeeder.com.

I started the Entrepreneur’s Breakfast blog because I was feeling topically-challenged by the niche-specific nature of my other blog, Copywriting on the Fly. After five years of managing a business online, I feel I’m more than qualified to offer advice that goes beyond copywriting and into the areas of outsourcing, online business, customer relations, website marketing and blogging.

That’s the purpose of the Entrepreneur’s Breakfast - a single serving of knowledge to nourish your business and start your day off right.

Allow me to explain “The Entrepreneurs” listed in the sidebar of this blog, in case anyone is confused by that. These are people who I know personally, admire for their entrepreneurial spirit, and would wholeheartedly recommend to trust with your projects and your business. Some of these people function as “online associates,” some have become friends, some I’ve had just a brief brush with but I was nevertheless impressed by them, and some are or have been clients or consultants of Wordfeeder.com.

All are completely scrupulous, high-minded individuals whom I greatly respect and admire for their talent, skill, drive and integrity. I’ve listed them here not to show off how many people I know, but to give you a gentle push in a good direction if you, too, are perpetually in the market for great business contacts.

Of course, not everyone who you come across in the freelance and online business markets will live up to your expectations. I could have created a blog of people to avoid, but what would that get me other than negative attention?

Don’t forget to stop by for your daily Entrepreneur’s Breakfast.

- Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing

Popularity: 52% [?]

Dogs and bees, and freelancers, can smell fear. As someone who writes copy and produces marketing materials on a freelance basis, I can tell within five minutes of talking to a potential customer whether their fear of being overcharged will set the tone for our work together. I can also assure you that there are ways to retain quality and get good turnaround time on projects without being run through the wringer.

Some facts and suggestions on how to get the most bang for your outsourced buck:

Know that the freelancer is just as interested in being quick and efficient as you are.

People who are new to outsourcing might view me (the copywriting consultant) as someone who would try to milk them out of their last dime while dragging the project on forever. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Established freelancers typically juggle multiple projects at once. It makes much better business sense for us to complete two projects for two happy clients in two days, then deliver one project for one client in two days and have that client feel uneasy about the amount of time we spent on their work.

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Popularity: 87% [?]

I’m currently in the middle of trying to figure out why my client’s email newsletter looks strange when viewed in some versions of Outlook and in Gmail. So I Googled “sending html emails in gmail” (but I didn’t put it in quotes).

Up came this phenomenal article from MailChimp.com with information so specific they should be charging money to let people read it.

I’m going to paste the beginning here and then let you click to read the rest.

(By the way, their use of “How” and “How to” in the title and subtitle is enough to send this copywriter into convulsive fits… but I’ll let it pass because the rest of the information is just so superb.)

How To Code And Send HTML Email Campaigns and Newsletters
How HTML email works, basic concepts, best practices, tips and tricks

Want to learn how to code your own HTML email campaigns? You’ve probably Googled all kinds of web pages that give you countless “what works, what doesn’t” charts. They tell you which CSS definitions break, how Lotus Notes never renders HTML properly, and how Outlook can’t send email campaigns right.

But instead of focusing on specific tactics, let’s go over some fundamental principles…
Prerequisites

One thing I have to stress is that in order to code your own HTML email, you really, really, really need to know how to code HTML. You should be able to code web pages “from scratch” without the help of any WYSIWYGs (like Front Page, or even DreamWeaver). If you’re that good, then you really don’t need to worry about a million little rules (like what CSS definitions work in this email program, but not in that email program). Just being able to understand “the fundamentals” will save you a lot of time and frustration.

Continue reading this article

This tip courtesy of Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing

Popularity: 38% [?]