I am going to San Francisco next week. I read on PCWorld that with iPhone OS 3.0 AT&T will deliver free Wi-Fi access non-U.S. carriers who include Wi-Fi access in their plans. Naturally, I am curious to see if the plan I have with Rogers (my Canadian provider) covers me with a Wi-Fi access. Since I unable to find the information on Rogers site, I did a search.

Here are the search results I got on Rogers Web site. Totally useless since the description repeats the menu instead of highlighting some content of the page. To make matter worse, the results were not even filtered for iPhone due to the fact that their search engine considers menu items. This is what happens when you failed to implement the most basic don’ts and do’s in search engine.

At minimal, a search engine eliminates menu items and only considers the content of the page to deliver relevant results. At least if they were providing me with the content of the page instead of repeating the menu items in the short text highlights I may be able, with patience, to get a clue of where to find what I was looking for.

Basic Wordpress Search Engine

To reassure bloggers on Wordpress, the basic search engine used by default on Wordpress blogs limit the search to the content of the page. It is far from perfect, but at least it does that.

Search Engine is the Last Resort

A well-designed site should give me easy and obvious access to the information I need. A good navigation system and gathering related links are a must. If the Rogers site was better structured, I could have find the information I was looking for without using the search engine. In doubt, ask yourself these questions:

• Is it too complicated to navigate your Web site or blog?
• What I can do to make it simple to understand?
• Do I need a portal page easy to navigate that contains absolutely ALL the links relevant to the single product, its options and accessories and latest news?

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If you are serious about attracting advertisers and sponsors, start by keeping a writing schedule. Consistency is important to build traffic. You wish to create a routine with your readers. Establish a schedule that is compatible with your agenda. The more you post, the more pages views you will get.

Ideally, you should aim to publish at set time. I am not there yet. With Wordpress, you can schedule in advance the date and time a post will be published. Try to always keep a few posts in backup for when you are too busy.

One advantage for bloggers in the women and mom category is that advertisers wish to connect to women. This is because women are responsible for most of the shopping in a household. We are in the best position to attract advertisers and are often asked for product reviews.

Be Picky with Your Reviews

In fact, brands solicit women and mom blogs for product reviews at an increasing rate. That is why you should be coherent and carefully select the products you will write about. Think about what your brand stands for and if the product fits well within that identity.

Take At Home with Kim Vallee. It is a collection of things I like. Negative reviews won’t fit within my concept. Therefore, the merchants send me the products without any guarantee of a coverage. Even if I like the product, I may never talk about it. They cannot interfere with what, when or if I will talk about something. I published a simple policy on my At Home blog. I encourage you to write your own.

It is important for bloggers to maintain a separation between editorial content and advertising. You wish to preserve the trust and credibility you build with your readers. Remember that you can only be an influencer if people trust what you say. It is not just your traffic but also your power as an influencer that attracts the right advertisers to your site.

Let’s watch my session.

Learning from Two Podcasters who Monetized their Shows

Matt Campagna and Anastasia Tubanos gave an excellent session on how to be considered a legitimate media. They talked about how to make money with a podcast. One of the income sources that grab my attention is sponsorship. For example, sponsored events would fit within the scope of my At Home with Kim Vallee brand.

March 10th, 2009 update: what was original intended to be part 4 was the question period. The participants did not a micro so we do not hear well their questions, so I decided to not publish it

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I prefer the Mac, unconditionally. I used to be a PC user (I still have a desktop at the office) but I do not intend to go back for my daily activities. I feel that for the average folks (not just the graphic designers), the Mac is the best option.

Defining Your Needs

I switched in spring 2008. I wanted a new laptop to fulfill my needs as a blogger. Basically, I run a small numbers of applications including Word and Photoshop. I am a heavy Web user, I upload photos and answer my emails. This corresponds to what most people do.

I gave up Outlook a couple years ago and I use Gmail now. Therefore, I do not have to care about the email software compatibility.

What I like the most about the Mac laptop?

1. Fun and easy to use
2. Hassle-free with the ProCare service – $99 per year for up to three computers
3. No more frequent windows updates to interrupt my work
4. No need to install an anti-virus software that slows you computer (thanks Janick for reminding me of this great feature)
5. A keyboard that feels wonderful – I type faster on my Mac than my PC
6. A better looking computer that is fast

Which Mac model to select?

For mobility, the affordable 13-inch MacBook will satisfy your needs and keep the weight down. Unless you are always on the run, I suggest to get a more powerful MacBook that cost less than the MacBook Air. This is what my husband did before Christmas.

I owned a 15-inch MacBook Pro.  I went for the Pro in case I want to edit some videos but mostly because the basic MacBook did not have an illuminated keyboard at the time. If you select the more rapid MacBook, the 2.4GHz MacBook, you will get the illuminated keyboard.

How Was the Transition?

I optimized my work with the right tools and techniques over the years on my PC. It took me about a week until I found the ultimate working environment on the Mac.

By asking Mac users around me or by searching for the answers on Goggle, I discovered the Mac tools or the integrated functions I need to perform at maximum. The only feature unavailable on the Mac than is way better on the PC is a keystroke shortcut to switch between an English keyboard and the French keyboard.

If you are unsure about which system is best for you, I suggest you express your needs in simple tasks or features like the way I did on this post.

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