Header

Author Archives: martinbrossman

About martinbrossman

Success Coach / Trainer / Author Learn more on my Linkedin Profile: http://linkedin.com/in/martinbrossman or call me at (919) 847-4757

Social Media Core Competency in Social Media Marketing 

Finally a class that goes over all the fundamentals of the top social media platforms in detail. Hands-on. Offered as a multi-part class.

This class fills in the gaps that you never had time to sit down and learn. Bring a bag meal and join Martin Brossman and Deborah Oronzio for this series of four hands-on workshops!

We know that building strong and loyal relationships helps a business to get started and to grow. Social media can help in ways that we may have never dreamed were possible.  

And, the good news is that it doesn’t take massive sums of marketing dollars to make it effective.  The effective use of social media is a perfect fit for small-business owners and entrepreneurs who usually have little discretionary cash for promoting their businesses, especially in the early days.  

This course will provide participants with basic knowledge about a variety of social media tools and will offer strategies for how to use them most effectively:

  • Social media  – Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Google+
  • Mobile marketing
  • Free local directories – Yelp, Google Local, Trip Advisor
  • Location-sharing and photo sharing like Instagram and FourSquare 

Class time will include the basics of how to set up accounts for these online tools with intensive focus on how to use these tools most effectively to drive customers to your business and generate revenues.  A how-to reference manual will be included in the registration fee. 

Who is this training for: Virtual Assistants, Marketing people wanting to deepen their skills, Small Business owners and anyone that wants to enhance their skills for a career.

 

What Others Say…

“I have attended Martin’s training a number of times now.  Each time I come away with an enormous amount of usable information and advice.  He is wealth of knowledge and a down to earth communicator whose enthusiasm is contagious.  I highly recommend attending any of his classes”.


About the trainers:
ABOUT MARTIN BROSSMAN
Martin Brossman is a leading authority on social media and online marketing. He is a busi-ness coach, consultant and a dynamic trainer known for his insight and humor. A member of the National Speakers Bureau, Martin is a popular speaker on social media topics. He teaches at North Carolina community college Small Business Centers throughout the state. Martin offers customized coaching and training solutions for individuals and groups integrating social media, social networking and reputation management strategies. An advocate for professional transparency, Martin is a catalyst for achieving powerful business results with integrity. An overview is featured on his website, ProNetworkingOnline.com.

His recent books, Linking Into Sales and Social Media for Business, provide guidance and resources for accelerating professional networking and marketing; both are available at Amazon.com.
Martin’s clients have included: IBM, SAS, GlaxoSmithKline, EPA, Women’s power networking, North Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants, Professional Photographers Association of NC, Small Business Centers, Chambers of Commerce, Counties and Towns across NC…. to name a few.

Active Member of ASTD—American Association for Trainers and Developers, NSA—National Speakers Association

Recognition: 2007 Ron Hering Mission of Service Award, 2009 Ethel N. Fortner Writer and Community Award from St. Andrews Presbyterian College, RTP volunteer of the year 2001 by the Governor of NC & IBM Mean’s Service award, completed, Fonder of the KI Coaching: Coaching Certification Program, Founding member of UPSA of RTP, Certified & Registered Sales Profes-sional (CRSP), Certified & Registered Sales Professional Trainer (CRSP-T)

Martin on-line:

– Facebook Business page: http://facebook.com/martinwbrossman ……. 2,240 Likes –

– BrossmanOnFB.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/martinbrossman ……. 3,547 Followers

– BrossmanOnTW.com LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/martinbrossman …… 3,420 1st Degree, 1,410,600 2nd & 14,210,200 3rd – BrossmanOnLI.com

– Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/u/0/103386024139526427298/posts ……. 619 circled – 1,296 in my circles

– BrossmanOnGP.com Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/martinbrossman—130 subscribers and 33,180 videos viewed

– BrossmanonYT.com Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/martinbrossman/ … 552 Followers

– Pinterest business: http://Pinterst/martinwbrossman/

– Instagram: http://instagram.com/martinbrossman

– Foursquare: https://foursquare.com/martinbrossman

– Podcast: LinkingIntoSales.com on iTunes and Stitcher with over 300 active listener To schedule a class contact Colleen

ABOUT DEBROA ORONZIO:

An extensive background in business management, marketing, sales, education, training and business counseling, Deb has developed the skills necessary to help others succeed in their career plans and in their businesses.  Her greatest satisfaction comes from establishing a connection with her training participants knowing that she has offered information that enlightens them and that they will apply to make better decisions in the future.  She is also delighted when working with a client when the light bulb goes on and they experience their own personal breakthrough that will propel them towards achievement of their goals.

Deb’s philosophy is that growth comes from within and that we simply need an impetus at times to uncover our unique capabilities, talents and skills.  Because she has had to dig deep and reinvent herself on several occasions during her career, she can relate to the feeling of being stuck and she is adept at helping you to move beyond paralysis to action.

Learn more about Deborah Oronzio at: http://DeborahOronzio.com

WordPress Security

WordPress Security

6 Essential Security Tips for Using WordPress  by Martin Brossman and Andrew Hill

Each month, more than 372 million people look at 4.1 billion WordPress.com blogs. From big name websites like TechCrunch to CNN and the NFL, WordPress.com is a household name in the web world. And with WordPress.com users publishing nearly 50 million new blog posts each month, it is easily one of the leading blog hosting platforms.

Whether you are a seasoned blogger or are just getting started, the following are some essential tips to help make your next WordPress experience as safe and secure as possible.

 Immediately change the default ‘admin’ username:

Your WordPress username is viewable by the public, so keep this in mind and make it something unique. Any hacker who is trying to gain access to your website will always try to use the default ‘admin’ username first. Therefore, leaving the username as the default will only make it easier for your site or blog to get hacked into.

 Use a strong password:

Choose a complex password that will be easy for you to remember but difficult for hackers to penetrate. Phrase based passwords that have an emotional connection to the phrase are both easy to remember and more secure. For example if you have a goldfish as a kid called ‘Goldie’, then you may choose “golDiewasMY1stFish” as your password.

 Don’t ignore site updates:

It is important to keep your WordPress site updated ALL THE TIME. You can usually tell if a site update is available by logging into your WordPress site and glancing towards the top of your Dashboard.

Site updates are issued by developers usually with the express purpose of resolving potential security issues. Therefore, it is always a good idea to stay updated. Best of all, it usually takes no more than a few seconds to complete your site update; and because the updates are secure, you won’t have to worry about losing any information on your site. However, if you are working in the middle of a blog post, be sure to save your information first.

Additionally, if you are using a particular WordPress theme, check for ‘theme’ updates, and make sure you’re caught up.

 Take control of spam:

Spam is annoying, but it can also be dangerous if left unattended or worse- if it is allowed to slip through the cracks. Combat spam by moderating your blog post comments carefully. Most bots will not make it through the spam filters, but some spammers are coming up with clever ways to outsmart the system. Make sure you select the comment option that says, “Comment author must have a previously approved comment” and then manually approve the comments that make sense.

Pay attention to the IP address of the person posting the comment. Did you know that you can actually block one or more IP addresses?

Make sure that you have some sort of anti-spam filter or plug installed. Akismet is the most popular one, though there are several others.

You may also choose to require people to sign-in using their Facebook page which slows down SPAM as well (explained in our Advanced WP class in more detail).

 Use SSL Encryption:

A Secure Sockets Layer, more commonly referred to as ‘SSL’ Encryption is a type of connection that is used to connect your computer or other electronic device to a secure server on the Internet so that information may be transferred safely and securely. Think of using your credit card to make an online purchase or wiring money to your bank account online. It is all done using SSL Encryption.

To further safeguard your blog or website from hacker activity, it is a good idea to use SSL encryption. Not only will your site information be difficult to intercept, it will also be difficult for hackers to decrypt it. If you are using WordPress SSL encryption, it is free. However, in most other cases, you will have to pay for a SSL encryption.

 Take advantage of WordPress plugins:

Did you know that there are a number of WordPress plugins that you can tap into to help make your site more secure? Below are just a few:

  • Login Lockdown – Registers every failed attempt and IP of the person; blocks the ability to login for a range of IPs (so make sure you write down your login info and keep it in a safe place!)
  • Change DB Prefix – Changes your WordPress database table prefix to something unguessable by hackers. This protects all of the sensitive information contained within your posts, categories, settings, plugin settings and more
  • WP-DB-Backup – Sends site backups to your email (can also be stored on the server)
  • BackUpBuddy – Also provides full site backups (for a yearly subscription)
  • WP Security Scan – Removes the visibility of which version of WordPress you have, making it impossible for hackers to know which version you have. This is beneficial because if hackers know which version of WordPress you have, they will also know what the bug issues are, making it easier for them to hack into your site. By removing this from sight, you make it more difficult for them to hack in.

These are just a few security tips to help you get started. For further reading, check out some of the reading list below. Are there any other tips that you can think of, if so share them in the comments?

See training on WordPress at:

References

WordPress. A live look at activity across WordPress.com. Retrieved from: http://en.wordpress.com/stats/

 Further Reading

Louise, G. (April 2013). 6 Simple WordPress Security Tips. Gretchen Louise. Retrieved from: http://gretchenlouise.com/wordpress-security/

Pignataro, M. (April 2013). 15 Advanced Security Tips To Make Your WordPress Site Bulletproof. Core PHP. Retrieved from: http://www.corephp.com/blog/15-advanced-security-tips-to-make-your-wordpress-site-bulletproof/#.Uco1eBa9CYp

Wright, K. (May 2013). Get 5 Essential WordPress Security Tips in 7 Minutes. ithemes. Retrieved from: http://ithemes.com/2013/05/01/get-5-essential-wordpress-security-tips-in-7-minutes/

(Research done by Janelle Vadnais )

 

 

Growing  Your Business with Social Media–the New Competitive Advantage
developed and presented by Martin Brossman

A dynamic overview of Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest, Youtube, Blogging and free on-line directories. Learn how to get started with free Social Media platforms and web-based directories, and understand which marketing approaches are best for your business. This class will give you real-world examples of small and micro businesses that are successfully using Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest, Yelp and other sources. You will take away an easy-to-implement grassroots marketing strategy to give your business the edge it needs to compete in today’s fast-moving online world.

instagram-appUsing Instagram to Gain and Retain More Business for Small Business Owners
by Martin Brossman

Learn how to effectively use Instagram to stay top of mind with current customers and attract new customers. This popular photo sharing platform is especially important if you want to attract a younger audience that is fully integrated into the mobile world. This class will include correct etiquette as well as understanding and proper use of hashtags.

With 100 million active users, 40 million Photos Per Day, 8500 Likes Per Second, and 1000 Comments Per Second, it is a growing platform that is drawing the attention of more prospective customers for you.

This class also includes how Instagram interfaces with other social media platforms, other core photo sharing platforms and short video sharing platforms.  Smart Phones are not required but it is suggested you bring your if you have one and download Instagram before the class.

Call Colleen Gray to schedule the class: (919) 858-6122 – or email her.

Martin’s latest blog post on Instagram for Business.

See an article on how a local business is using Instagram to get more business. 

Connect to Martin Brossman’s personal Instagram at: http://Instragram.com/martinbrossman:

Instagram of Martin Brossman

Martin’s personal Instagram

 

Instagram