Manila Connection

Little Red Riding Hood Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:00:00 -0700

Here's a 21st century take of the old fairy tale classic "Little Red RidingHood." As VSL (Very Short List) points out, this is Little Red Riding Hood meet CSI. This is one brilliant video production by Tomas Nilsson, a design student at Linköping University, in Sweden.

This video captures exactly how the modern information age mind thinks. Everything is analyzed down to the smallest detail (Grandma's nutritional value as a meal to the wolf, that's just hilarious!). That the story ended exactly how it should, despite all the details, is a statement in itself. The tools we have at our disposal are there to make us better informed when we make decisions. It is still entirely up to us to process this deluge of information and come up with the best course of action.

But, I'm keeping you from the video with all this clutter. Enjoy...

Tags: Tomas Nilsson, VSL, Very Short List, Little Red Riding Hood, Linköping University, Sweden, fairy tale, CSI

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Switch Off Those Lights for Earth Hour 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 03:16:00 -0700

Earth Hour 2009 is happening this Saturday, March 28, 2009 at 8:30pm - 9:30pm local time. This is going to be a huge event taking place worldwide with over 2100 cities in 82 countries participating. Here's how the official event organizers' site describe the goal for this year's Earth Hour:

In 2009, Earth Hour is being taken to the next level, with the goal of 1 billion people switching off their lights as part of a global vote. Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you’re from, but instead, what planet you’re from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community. A call to stand up and take control over the future of our planet. Over 74 countries and territories have pledged their support to VOTE EARTH during Earth Hour 2009, and this number is growing everyday.

We all have a vote, and every single vote counts. Together we can take control of the future of our planet, for future generations.
VOTE EARTH by simply switching off your lights for one hour, and join the world for Earth Hour.

Watch the Earth Hour 2009 video:

For more information please visit:

Earth Hour Official Web Site

Media credits:

Photo of Earth Hour Logo courtesy of Earth Hour.org

Tags for this post: Earth Hour 2009, climate change, global warming, environment

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Values for the "Lost Generation"

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 18:13:00 -0700

Here's an awesome video shared by a Facebook friend, Howard Falco. Simple yet strikingly effective, it outlines the values and priorities of the so-called "lost generation." While it debunks the myth that young people (gen y or z) are lethargic and apathetic, it also highlights the more important things in life for them (and for us) - family, relationships, civic consciousness, caring for the environment. Share with a loved one, if you also find this awesome. I'm showing this to my daughter.

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Have A Great Week Ahead!

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 01:53:00 -0700

"We're starting a new week...so help us God."

The quote above is from a friend's update in Facebook. I'm a bit perplexed by the tone of this message. The author obviously wants to pass it off as some sort of joke, but one can sense the feeling of dread and fear of someone who's ill-prepared to face the new week or whose week will be exactly the same as last week or the one before that. In a fast-moving world, we need solid anchors or we get adrift, at the mercy of the waves and eddies created by others.

Who do you work for?

Modern business and the constant demand for social interaction in a wired world tend to make us forget who our real employers are. Some people work for themselves, and that's fine. Others, like myself, are motivated by their families - spouses and children. It may be counter-intuitive in the face of the current crisis, but if you do work for yourself, don't wait until you're sixty before enjoying and pampering yourself, you deserve it.

Details of a montage my daughter Aya and I created for a school project

If you work for loved ones, don't wait to land the big one before spending some great time with the kids. If you don't give them time and make them an integral part of your schedule, no one else will, and soon you'll have strangers growing under your roof that you're gonna take to the park or the movies...someday. Trust me, I'm a dad, I learned this the hard way.

On self-discipline

Self-discipline is a bit tricky working from home; perhaps even more difficult than having a 9-5 job working for someone else, because that someone else will be there to give you a hard time if you don't do things the corporate way.

When you're your own boss, there's obviously no one else to enforce discipline. It's all up to you. It doesn't mean, though, that you have to be extra-hard on yourself and work crazy hours (like I did when I first started the business). Strike a balance between work, family, and time for yourself. Too much of one thing is always a bad thing.

Control your thoughts. Self-discipline comes from within. Have a conscious awareness of the thoughts that go through your brain. Positive, disciplined thoughts create a positive and disciplined reality. Avoid brain-numbing habits (TV, the news, online games) that kill creativity or put your brain in one track for long periods. I try to, but it's a an uphill battle, for the moment - Huffington Post and Ikariam are eternal distractions in my fight for mental discipline.

Just some random thoughts for the new week. Let's all have a productive and great week ahead.

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Glory Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 18:41:00 -0700

The other day, I watched for the nth time, a rerun of one of my favorite war movies of all time - Glory (1989, Tristar Pictures) on cable's Star Movies. I can hear Tony Robbins now, telling me to get a life. Well, it's one of my favorite movies from the eighties (arguably, the best decade to grow up in), I guess that gives you an idea of how old I am, but no matter.

Every time I see a powerful movie like Glory, there's always a new perspective, a new turn of phrase that I must have heard (and ignored) before, but has found a new sense of relevance in my current circumstances. I guess great works of art, literature, and the cinema have that effect. You always discover something new every time.

You haven't seen it? Why not?

Well, too late now for a wide screen viewing (unless you own a theater). Grab your DVD copy, you're missing out on something truly epic and powerful. The film received five Oscars, including Best Cinematography, in 1989. Denzel Washington's performance remains as riveting as ever, and the prayer scene on the night before the big battle is as poignant and emotionally-charged (for me), just like the first time I saw the movie.

But it was the words of Col. Robert G. Shaw (Matthew Broderick) that struck a chord this time:

There's more to fighting than rest, sir. There's character, there's strength of heart. You should have seen us in action two days ago. We were a sight to see! We'll be ready, sir. When do you want us?

Replace fighting with life, and you will see the universal truth in this statement. Character, shaped by immutable principles (like honesty, integrity, compassion, fairness, excellence), will forever remain to be the deciding factor of how we fare in this life, of how we grow with our individual businesses.

As Dr. Stephen Covey suggests in "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People," principles are like a lighthouse on a rock in the middle of the ocean (I hope he forgives me for mangling the analogy). We can have our course shaped by their presence, or we can ignore their power and destroy ourselves in those rocks.

What has this got to do with web 2.0 and marketing?

Everything, actually. The web 2.0 environment is a venue so powerful that it can potentially magnify any message (good or bad), for anyone who's good at it, or who hires someone good at it. But that's all it is - the internet is only the medium NOT the message.

You still craft your own message, you're still judged by that message, and by your own actions. And because of the highly interconnected nature of web 2.0, people will discover soon enough if you're true to your message, and if you're really doing business based on integrity, fairness, and excellence. Or, if you're just someone out to make a fast buck.

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Twitter Icons

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Mon, 9 Mar 2009 22:13:00 -0700

I was searching for really cool Twitter icons the other day and Douglas Karr's "The Marketing Technology Blog" page came up in the first page of the Google results. Doug has designed his own icons and is quite generous in sharing his designs (including the Illustrator file he used).

I'm using the biggest of the batch (see the icon at the right column of this blog) which is about 100px by 100px, and I think it came out just fine. The icon is hotlinked to the image file hosted at Photobucket, and links directly to my Twitter user page. Visit Douglas Karr's blog and download the Twitter icons here.

You're not on Twitter? Why not?

Seriously, as Doug points out in his post, the micro-blogging (140 characters per post or update) platform has become so "mainstream," practically everyone is using it. Twitter has evolved into a major marketing tool, and if you're wondering where your market is, chances are a huge chunk of that market is busy atweeting.

As a marketer, can you make sales by Twitter?

Another web 2.0 and podcasting guru, Paul Colligan, thinks you absolutely can. Paul has 7,645 followers in Twitter (as of this writing) and all it took him was 13 seconds to post a "check this out..." link to his product sales page, in Twitter. The results? "More than a hundred" clicks and an astounding 9% conversion rate!

Of course, Paul is a great guy who has built high-trust relationships with his audience over the years and "The Business of Podcasting" is a great product, but still, there's no denying how awesome Twitter's power as a marketing channel is, in Paul's case.

Twitter is a great channel to convey your message. In fact, it has evolved and morphed into myriad applications, not just marketing, for many different people in many different situations. Even the most jaded Beltway politicians are using it. At the end of the day, though, it is only a channel, not the key to instant internet riches.

If you've worked hard in your offline business building relationships, creating solid and trustworthy products, adding value to people, Twitter may just be the platform that could magnify your reach, influence, and sales results. Send out a tweet, today.

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Daylight Saving Time (DST) Starts Tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Sat, 7 Mar 2009 17:39:00 -0800

Daylight Saving Time (DST) officially starts early morning tomorrow - March 8, 2009, the second Sunday of March. This means that the time in DST-using parts of the world, will be adjusted or moved ahead by one hour, from 2:00 am to 3:00 am on Sunday morning. Daylight saving time will end on November 1, 2009.

Cover of the pamphlet "The Waste of Daylight," written by William Willet,
inventor of Daylight Saving Time (DST). (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Daylight saving time is a convention that aims to move the start of day closer to actual sunrise, adjusting the time by one hour so that there is less light in the morning hours and more light in the afternoon hours. DST was first established in the US through the Standard Time Act of 1919. The practice has gone through numerous changes in the years since then owing to the controversial nature of the benefits of daylight saving time. Until today, its positive effects on energy savings, health, public safety, and the economy remain challenged by groups opposing DST.

So, why am I discussing Daylight Saving Time when you can easily read about it in Wikipedia? If you're working as a freelancer from Asia, you might want to adjust and change the time for calling your clients in the US and Europe. I work mostly with people based on the US East Coast, which is sort of convenient as far as computing time over there, instantly. When Daylight Saving Time starts this morning, our time difference would be exactly 12 hours (the Philippines no longer use DST) - 9 pm here would be 9 am in Florida.

Whatever the arguments for or against DST, it was obviously conceived for the purpose of improving efficiency through time management. A very simple trick, which I found to be quite effective in this respect, is by dividing my work hours into short concentrated bursts of 50 minute work periods. A friend finds 45 minutes to be his optimal performance and uses a stop watch to time his work. I use an online stopwatch myself, since most of my work is done online, so it's just a matter of opening another tab in the Firefox browser that I'm using.

During the 50 minute burst, all work is focused towards finishing whatever task I needed to complete at that time. No playing around, it's all concentrated work during that 50 minute period. When I first started using this system, I found my efficiency almost doubled in an instant, more work is being done and I have more time to "decompress" during those 10 minute breaks. If you're home-based and find yourself and your work habits to be your main adversary (like I did) in getting things done, you might want to try this system, I'd like to hear how it worked for you in the comments section below.

In the meantime, let's get ready for Daylight Saving Time tomorrow, and start double-checking those scheduled calls for this upcoming week.

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New Directions for Manila Connection

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 18:33:00 -0800

Manila Connection was originally created to highlight and showcase interesting facts about people, places, and events in the city where I live - Manila, in the Philippines. I may still pursue that goal in the future, but it would probably be hosted in some other site. Manila Connection has been "re-engineered" to help people aiming to establish their businesses in the web 2.0 world.

I can't believe it's been more than a year since I last updated this blog, and like everyone else, so much has happened to me, since then.

On a personal note, we have welcomed a new addition to the family October of last year - our new baby, Mikhael. So, yes, I'm now a proud father of three great kids - Aya, Jedi, and Mikhael.

I have also successfully transitioned, in March of 2008, from working for a big company to finally striking out on my own as a freelance internet marketing consultant. It's been a great year - I have worked with some of the most talented and successful people in internet marketing as well as some guys who are just starting their internet businesses. They've all remained good friends and repeat clients.

Manila Connection will be about the latest ideas, tools, and best practices in the web 2.0 environment. I continue to learn new things everyday, and I feel that by sharing what I learn, I'll be able to grow more as a person, and as an internet entrepreneur. This is my way of "paying it forward" and sharing the philosophy of abundance.

Manila Connection is a full web 2.0 site, a point of connection and interaction between people from all over the globe. If you're a blogger, freelancer, or a business person with ideas to share or a project proposal, please free to contact me here through the Friend Connect or in the social networking (like Facebook) or micro-blogging (like Twitter) sites.

So, once more, after a year of hibernation, I welcome you to the new Manila Connection. Looking forward to fun and productive times ahead.

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Top File-Sharing Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 17:49:00 -0800

Under Construction

Top Photo Sharing Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 17:47:00 -0800

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About Me

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 17:46:00 -0800

My name is Emmanuel Gonot, and I'm a web support professional specializing in SEO, social marketing, and PPC. I help small and medium-sized businesses design their web marketing plans and also assist in the implementation of these plans.

Feel free to get in touch with me (contact information below) to see if I can assist you with your campaigns and help you grow your business in the internet. You can also view my profile in the top outsourcing sites like Guru.com and Elance to see my specific skills set.

I live with my wife, Susan, and my three great kids in Manila, the Philippines. My goal in the next 5 years is to be able to put in place all parts of my business in automatic/outsourced mode, and live the kind of lifestyle Tim Ferriss so vividly described in his book, "The 4-Hour Work Week." There are so many things worth doing and experiencing in life before we pass on the torch. Let's all make the most of our limited time.

About Manila Connection

My knowledge of programming is rudimentary, at best. I'm not here to show you what's under the hood. I test-drive web tools and applications to see which ones work and which ones are worthless. In both SEO and social marketing, there's a right way and a wrong way of doing business; I'd like to show people what the best practices are, which tools or sites work, and where the dangerous curves are.

Manila Connection, primarily, is a hub for clients, both current and prospective. It's designed so that people arriving here from the freelance portals can assess my skills and see if there's a fit with their ongoing and future projects. Hopefully, the information I post here will also be of some help to fellow freelance professionals and those who are seriously considering doing freelance work in the future.

Contact Me

If you have a project that you feel I can help you with, or you would like to clarify the skills set I'm bringing along into your project, please feel free to view my profile or leave me a private message at any of the following sites:

Guru.com
Elance
Lime Exchange

I'm also on Skype, you can leave me a voicemail message in any of the contact options below, and I'll get back to you within 24 hours upon receipt of your message.

Skype Contact Name: ManilaConnection1
US Phone Number: 1 (954) 607-7599

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Site Map

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:32:00 -0800

Under Construction

I. Site-specific

II. Personal

III.Motivational

IV. Tools

V. Resources for Freelancers

Top Outsourcing Portals

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:25:00 -0800

Under Construction

Links to Great Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:22:00 -0800

Under Construction

Inspirational

TRUTH SERUM by Howard Falco. "This originated as the result of a sudden, massive and expansive shift in consciousness that occured in the middle of ordinary life. My intent since this event is to pass the awareness of what happened to me and what became known to me to anyone interested in expanding their own awareness in the effort to experience more peace, harmony and fulfillment in life."

Marketing and Web 2.0 Blogs That I Read

Tubby Nerd (The Underachiever Life) by Ed Dale. I credit Ed for introducing and inspiring me to go into internet marketing through the awesome Thirty Day Challenge.

Seth Godin's Blog. If you read only one marketing blog in your lifetime, read Seth Godin's. Brilliant, inspirational - this guy's a marketing genius.

Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantsch. "John Jantsch has been called the World's Most Practical Small Business Expert for consistently delivering real-world, proven small business marketing ideas and strategies."

Mashable. "The Social Media Guide."

Scobleizer by Robert Scoble.

The Marketing Technology Blog by Douglas Karr. "New Media Strategies and Other Marketing Gems."

Noble Samurai by the Noble Samurai Team - creators of the cutting edge market research tool "Market Samurai."

Tagzilla. "Traffic, Promotion, and Mass Exposure News."

Top 30 RSS Directories

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:18:00 -0800

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Top 30 Web Directories

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:17:00 -0800

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IM and SEO Glossary

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:16:00 -0800

Under Construction

RSS or Real Simple Syndication - is a group of feed formats used to distribute frequently updated content such as blog posts or news stories. This allows site owners the advantage of automatically syndicating their content to target audiences, through online readers or aggregators (like Google reader), desktop readers, and mobile devices.

Social Bookmark - an online bookmark (as opposed to browser bookmarks or favorites) hosted in sites like Digg or Propeller, and shared with friends and network members. Other people can leave comments in, add tags to, and vote up (or down) your shared bookmarks.

Social Proof - is a concept that revolves around the idea that the more people appear to trust and believe in you, the more trustworthy you become to others. This involves, but is not limited to, multiple comments in your site, testimonials, etc. Social proof is important since it could easily translate to higher sales or opt-in conversion, viral content dissemination, and long-term goodwill.

Internet Marketing Gurus

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:15:00 -0800

Under Construction

Top Press Release Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:13:00 -0800

Social Networking Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:12:00 -0800

Under Construction

Internet Marketing Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:11:00 -0800

Under Construction

Web 2.0 Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Fri, 6 Mar 2009 02:10:00 -0800

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Clients

noreply@blogger.com (Don Enrique de Montealto) — Thu, 5 Mar 2009 18:50:00 -0800

Under Construction

Pacebutler Corporation

Sharp Brains

Manila Connection

Little Red Riding Hood Revisited

Switch Off Those Lights for Earth Hour 2009

Values for the "Lost Generation"

Have A Great Week Ahead!

Glory Revisited

Twitter Icons

Daylight Saving Time (DST) Starts Tomorrow

New Directions for Manila Connection

Top File-Sharing Sites

Top Photo Sharing Sites

About Me

Site Map

Top Video Sites

Top Outsourcing Portals

Links to Great Sites

Top 30 RSS Directories

Top 30 Web Directories

IM and SEO Glossary

Internet Marketing Gurus

Top Content-Sharing Sites

Top Press Release Sites

Social Networking Sites

Internet Marketing Tools

Web 2.0 Sites

Clients