WidgetLaboratory

ONE CLICK MIGRATION SOLUTIONS FOR NING SITE OWNERS

Sat, 29 Aug 2009 10:08:00 -0500

We have to give a big "thanks" to the folks at Ning for doing such a good job of continuing to alienate their premium site owners and forcing them to seek advice from the LAB on how to escape migrate. Their latest "update" may have been the last straw for many folks.

Based upon this increased demand for help with migrating from Ning to SocialGO, the LAB has decided to introduce a package of one-click solutions to help site owners make the switch.

Our FREE solution is available now by utilizing our Member Migration Tool as well as the other how-to articles and Videos that show one how to easily make the move over using a little bit of "self-help".

Our Lab-Help solution is for those who want the migration and basic navigation setup handled by the experts at WidgetLaboratory. We will sweeten the deal by including our $49.99 TabDoctor completely free as part of the package. This solution delivers a functioning SocialGO site, with identical navigation and membership, ready for you to apply your own styling. This peace of mind comes for a one time purchase price of just $249.99.

Our Lab-Expert solution is for those who want the full package of migration, navigation, and styling. All of the features of the Lab-Help solution are included AND WidgetLaboratory will use our comprehensive knowledge of CSS to match every detail of your SocialGO site style to that of your Ning site. The result is that your members will hardly notice that you have migrated your site to SocialGO! This is the ultimate solution for the busy professional, entrepreneur, or large site owner who does not want to take the time or chance on making a mistake during migration. This fully loaded solution is priced at just $499.99.

For more information, or to get started, just click on the link above to send us an email and provide us with your Ning Site URL. We will provide you with a detailed instructional package and promotional pricing for obtaining your SocialGO site if you have not done so already.

TabDoctor - NOW AVAILABLE IN THE WIDGET STORE

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:08:00 -0500

TabDoctor - INSTALLATION AND DEMONSTRATION VIDEO

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:08:00 -0500

Along with FootDoctor, our TabDoctor it is a "must have" for any SocialGO site and replaces our previous navigation menu product called LabTabs. A full refund credit will be available for any customers who previously purchased LabTabs and wish to make the upgrade.

TabDoctor provides you with an incredibly easy way to create powerful and elegant drop-down tab menus with just a few clicks. Full drag and drop capability make it easy to setup and modify at any time.

Accepts UTF-8 and individual CSS styling.

Video Below

FootDoctor - INSTALLATION AND DEMONSTRATION VIDEO

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:08:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through the installation and setup of FootDoctor. A "must have" for any SocialGO site.

FootDoctor provides you with an incredibly easy way to create powerful and elegant multi-column footers with just a few clicks. Full drag and drop capability make it easy to setup and modify at any time.

Accepts UTF-8, individual CSS styling, and html content.

Video Below:

WHO-IM AND VIDEO CHAT CSS TWEAKS

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 04:08:00 -0500

There are a few folks who have dark background sites on SocialGO. In such cases, the standard dark transparency of Who-IM Or Video Chat doesn't stand out strongly. No worries, it's easy to change the color (and the font size of the text) with some basic CSS.

Simply take the code below and paste it into the Ads & Custom HTML area of your Admin Center, into the Head and Meta Data box. If you already have CSS in that area, please leave off the <style></style> tags, as you only need those once. Feel free to change the Hexidecimal Color values to something that works for your site (colors shown are really strong for emphasis!)

<style>

div.wl_im_title {
background:#FF0000 none repeat scroll 0 0;
height: 26px
}

#wl_im_message div.wl_im_msg_body, #wl_im_settings div.wl_im_msg_body {
background:#FFFFFF none repeat scroll 0 0;
}

#wl_im_message div.wl_im_action, #wl_im_settings div.wl_im_action {
background:#CECECE none repeat scroll 0 0;
}

#wl_im_message div.wl_im_action, #wl_im_settings div.wl_im_action {
background:#CECECE none repeat scroll 0 0;
height:39px;
margin-top:0;
padding-top:8px;
}

#wl_im_message textarea.wl_im_ta {
background:#000000 none repeat scroll 0 0;
border:medium none !important;
color:Yellow;
font-size:15px;
height:100px;
}

</style>

BOB'S 16 RULES FOR SUCCESS

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 06:08:00 -0500

There are only a few people in the Online Business World who have earned our undying loyalty and respect. Most of them are from outside of the Silicon Valley and not "drinking the Kool-Aid" of the techblogs where borrowing millions of dollars from a VC makes your company "worth" 10x the amount of your liability. Seth Godin, Ted Turner, Richard Branson, Steve Pavlina, Mark Cuban, Jason Fried, and Bob Parsons are some of my personal favorites (just to name a few).

Bob is the founder and CEO of GoDaddy.com and has offered me the most laughs at the same time that his advice has proven to work the best in practice. He has a self-made success story, and the ability to shrug-off criticism from small-minded people and critics. Most particularly, he caters SPECIFICALLY to the needs and wants of his core-customer, who seem to be young male internet geeks. Having Candice Michelle and the GoDaddy girls is just a natural extension of his brand loyalty strategy, even if it catches the ire of the folks who just don't "get it" or are easily offended.

See if you can figure out which of his 16 Rules for Success in Business and Life In General we follow at the LAB every day. Maybe some of these will work for you too?

1.	Get and stay out of your comfort zone.
	I believe that not much happens of any significance when we're in our comfort zone. I hear people say, "But I'm concerned about security." My response to that is simple: "Security is for cadavers."
2.	Never give up.
	Almost nothing works the first time it's attempted. Just because what you're doing does not seem to be working, doesn't mean it won't work. It just means that it might not work the way you're doing it. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it, and you wouldn't have an opportunity.
3.	When you're ready to quit, you're closer than you think.
	There's an old Chinese saying that I just love, and I believe it is so true. It goes like this: "The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed."
4.	With regard to whatever worries you, not only accept the worst thing that could happen, but make it a point to quantify what the worst thing could be.
	Very seldom will the worst consequence be anywhere near as bad as a cloud of "undefined consequences." My father would tell me early on, when I was struggling and losing my shirt trying to get Parsons Technology going, "Well, Robert, if it doesn't work, they can't eat you."
5.	Focus on what you want to have happen.
	Remember that old saying, "As you think, so shall you be."
6.	Take things a day at a time.
	No matter how difficult your situation is, you can get through it if you don't look too far into the future, and focus on the present moment. You can get through anything one day at a time.
7.	Always be moving forward.
	Never stop investing. Never stop improving. Never stop doing something new. The moment you stop improving your organization, it starts to die. Make it your goal to be better each and every day, in some small way. Remember the Japanese concept of Kaizen. Small daily improvements eventually result in huge advantages.
8.	Be quick to decide.
	Remember what General George S. Patton said: "A good plan violently executed today is far and away better than a perfect plan tomorrow."
9.	Measure everything of significance.
	I swear this is true. Anything that is measured and watched, improves.
10.	Anything that is not managed will deteriorate.
	If you want to uncover problems you don't know about, take a few moments and look closely at the areas you haven't examined for a while. I guarantee you problems will be there.
11.	Pay attention to your competitors, but pay more attention to what you're doing.
	When you look at your competitors, remember that everything looks perfect at a distance. Even the planet Earth, if you get far enough into space, looks like a peaceful place.
12.	Never let anybody push you around.
	In our society, with our laws and even playing field, you have just as much right to what you're doing as anyone else, provided that what you're doing is legal.
13.	Never expect life to be fair.
	Life isn't fair. You make your own breaks. You'll be doing good if the only meaning fair has to you, is something that you pay when you get on a bus (i.e., fare).
14.	Solve your own problems.
	You'll find that by coming up with your own solutions, you'll develop a competitive edge. Masura Ibuka, the co-founder of SONY, said it best: "You never succeed in technology, business, or anything by following the others." There's also an old Asian saying that I remind myself of frequently. It goes like this: "A wise man keeps his own counsel."
15.	Don't take yourself too seriously.
	Lighten up. Often, at least half of what we accomplish is due to luck. None of us are in control as much as we like to think we are.
16.	There's always a reason to smile.
	Find it. After all, you're really lucky just to be alive. Life is short. More and more, I agree with my little brother. He always reminds me: "We're not here for a long time, we're here for a good time!"

MONETIZATION - IT'S HAPPE-Ning ON SOCIALGO!

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:08:00 -0500

Start shaking your money tree!

It's been some time since we've stood up here on our soapbox and spoken about MONETIZATION. But the time has returned! Things are really heating up here at the LAB and SocialGO as the POWER TOOLS start come off the production line.

We have just released LabAffiliate, the powerful companion to LabConnect. These two products empower you to do something that is NOT currently possible on other hosted platforms -- You can create you own network of related sites with universal login (LabConnect) and then utilize the Master Site as an SEO and Marketing portal to direct, track, and report all members sent through to the Sub Sites. Using our LabAds, you can then further monetize by creating an advertising banner campaign that spans across your entire network syndicate. Our upcoming LabCommission will let you further expand your empire by providing affiliate rewards for site members who refer new paying member to your network syndicate

With SocialGO and the tools from WidgetLaboratory... you truly CAN become a Social Network Mogul!

But wait, there's more! Take it one step further....

With the built-in capability to assign multiple permission levels to members, you can now create "up sell" premium features on any SocialGO site. This means that a Sub Site can bring in paid "members" from the Master Site referral, and then offer these members the opportunity to purchase additional content that is exclusive to that Sub Site alone (such as niche videos, photos, stories, etc). Everyone benefits form this multi-level marketing potential!

The LAB is soon releasing our LabCMS and LabAuction products that will allow a site owner to create or plugin an unlimited variety of content in modular form, as well as create member to member auction capability. SocialGO is also testing their new universal shopping cart feature called GOcart that will provide the transaction engine for site owners and their members.

For the icing on the cake, throw in our Virtual Gifts/Drinks, Member Style Pages/Templates, LabClassifieds, LabCRM, and other features not found on any other social network platform... and you have yourself a bonanza of money-making opportunities without ever leaving your SocialGO network!

As promised back in October of last year, WidgetLaboratory is fully dedicated to the concept of providing Social Network creators the ability to create PROFITABLE social networks that are fully white-label and under their OWN control.

Remember: It doesn't take a $117 million dollars in Venture Capital funding to figure out that making it EASY for YOU to make money is the way to run a profitable Social Networking platform...

LabAffiliate - INSTALLATION AND DEMONSTRATION

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 19:08:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through the installation and use of LabAffiliate.

LabAffiliate allows for the creation of a monetization relationship between a Master Site and any number of Sub Sites. Now it is possible to create a main portal site for all members to join, which then provides them with automatic access and membership to any number of Sub Sites.

The Master Site owner can set a general membership fee for "all access" to the Sub Sites, and can also track and report upon all members who are sent to the Sub Sites. When used in conjunction with the multiple-user levels of SocialGO, one is now able to charge a general membership fee to gain access to multiple affiliated SocialGO sites, while still allowing each site owner to upsell their own premium content or features on each Sub Site.

Because the Master Site owner and Sub Site owners both have access to all the membership data created through LabAffiliate, this allows for all parties to know at all times exactly how much is owed in affiliate revenue between the parties. A great way to pool resources between related sites.

Coming this week in your WidgetStore!

Video Below:

NEW RELEASE - SOCIALGO GROUP VIDEO MODULE

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:08:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through the Group Video Module from SocialGO, and shows you how to add videos specific to each particular group on your site.

This is a very handy way to build a video library that is specific to each particular group, while still being available to the rest of the site in your global video library. Video after the break.

Video Below

NEW RELEASE! - SOCIALGO FEATURED GROUPS MODULE

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 15:08:00 -0500

In this new video, Evil Genius walks you through the new Featured Groups Module from SocialGO, and shows you how to install it on to your site.

This new feature is a handy way to highlight your choice of popular groups in various locations on your Groups Page. See the Video after the break.

Video Below

OUR FULL MONTY - THE LAB PRODUCTION MENU

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:07:00 -0500

LabAds - INSTALLATION AND DEMONSTRATION

Sat, 25 Jul 2009 12:07:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through the installation and use of LabAds...the ultimate monetization tool for your network!

LabAds provides you with a built-in capability to host, manage, and track all of your ads and rotating banner images using Google Analytics.

Simple enough for a beginner to use immediately, yet powerful enough to be used for commercial purposes. LabAds allows one to create an unlimited number of image or banner campaigns and display them natively using priority ranking or random sort order.

Images are uploaded directly into your data storage on SocialGO using the simple interface (.jpg, .gif, .png), then one selects the images to use for a particular horizontal or vertical display, selects the ranking or random display order, the destination URL for clicks, and the campaign name for tracking. Easy!

All campaigns and click-tracking can be viewed, managed, and monetized using Google Analytics so that advertiser results can be monitored and shared at all times.

Video Below:

LabConnect - INSTALLATION AND DEMONSTRATION

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:07:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through LabConnect for your SocialGO and Zocku sites.

An extremely powerful monetization tool for owners of multiple sites. LabConnect provides the power to join a Primary Site with an unlimited number of Sub-Sites so that members can log in with one set of credentials across all connected sites.

You can now create an entire private collection of related sites that you control yourself or with a group of business associates. Since members will be able to utilize the same credentials across all connected sites, you can charge a universal membership fee for the collection (via the Primary Site), in addition to any fee for joining a particular Sub-Site.

Purchase one copy of LabConnect for your Primary Site, and one copy of LabConnect for each of the Sub-Sites that you would like to "connect" to your private collection. Setup each LabConnect to point new members to the Primary Site for their initial signup... and you're done. Easy!

Video Below:

LabAds - READY FOR YOUR SITE

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:07:00 -0500

Our long-awaited LabAds is ready to be released this week. We believe that you will agree it is THE solution for anyone who is looking to serve banners and ads on their SocialGO site.

- Completely native to your SocialGO Site (No outside Ad Server required)
- Incredibly easy to use, yet powerful at the same time.
- Utilizes familiar Google Analytics for reporting and tracking clicks and campaign performance
- Can also be used to rotate images (non-advertisements) on your SocialGO site to keep things "interesting"
- $99.99 one time purchase, with unlimited banners, placement, campaigns

Slide Show Below:

EVIL'S PICKS - YOUR SUMMER SIX PACK!

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 09:07:00 -0500

We're offering a great promotion this Summer to help everyone set up their sites with a six-pack of Widget fun! To get started, or for more information, simply CLICK HERE and we'll take care of the rest.

The PEN Story

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 17:07:00 -0500

Sometimes the greatest storytelling and marketing uses no words at all...

LABCONNECT - AUTOMATED LOGIN ACROSS ALL OF YOUR SOCIALGO SITES!

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 09:07:00 -0500

Today we are proud to announce the upcoming release of LabConnect for your SocialGO networks. This product will make it possible for you and your members to only require one set of login credentials in order to be a member of ALL your SocialGO sites. Best of all, this is unique to YOU and YOUR sites and is NOT a centralized ID system across all of SocialGO, so you are always in full control.

You can utilize LabConnect to create your own "network" of related sites, some of which can be free, and other by subscription only. You can also use LabConnect to join-forces with other network creators to aggregate members who then join from one centralized login page and then get the benefit of belonging to any number of other Sub-sites. The possibilities are truly endless!

First, you must install LabConnect on your Master site, and copy the special KEY from below so that you can use it for the rest of your Sub-sites. Then, purchase and install a copy of LabConnect for each of your other SocialGO sites that you wish to have as Sub-sites, and install the same using the special KEY provided below.

When someone logs into one of your Sub-sites for the first time, their credentials will be automatically retrieved from your Master site and used to log them in to your Sub-site. Easy!

LabConnect is coming this week from WidgetLaboratory

TIP OF THE DAY - LABTABS CSS TWEAKS

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:07:00 -0500

Evil Genius walks you through some important CSS tweaks to help you adjust the padding and margins of your LabTabs for a "perfect fit" on your SocialGO or Zocku site.

Video Below

Here is the CSS used in the video (adjust numbers to suit):

.supertabs li ul li a, .supertabs li ul li a:hover {
padding:7px 8px !important;
margin-top:-4px!important;
}

MUSIC IS SWEET REVENGE FOR POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:07:00 -0500

Whether you are a large company or small, it is important to remember that viral marketing is now available to all disgruntled customers. Even those without $100 million in funding can have their revenge served up nice and cold.... across millions of web browsers. Especially if they are musicians!

Best be sure that your company has the facts on your side before turning a cold shoulder on customer service... or you might end up with a memorable jingle that costs you a lot more than doing the right thing in the first place.

Full Story: http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/story...

In the spring of 2008, Sons of Maxwell were traveling to Nebraska for a one-week tour and my Taylor guitar was witnessed being thrown by United Airlines baggage handlers in Chicago. I discovered later that the $3500 guitar was severely damaged. They didnt deny the experience occurred but for nine months the various people I communicated with put the responsibility for dealing with the damage on everyone other than themselves and finally said they would do nothing to compensate me for my loss. So I promised the last person to finally say no to compensation (Ms. Irlweg) that I would write and produce three songs about my experience with United Airlines and make videos for each to be viewed online by anyone in the world. United: Song 1 is the first of those songs. United: Song 2 has been written and video production is underway. United: Song 3 is coming. I promise.

TIP OF THE DAY - DABBLEBOARD

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:07:00 -0500

DabbleBoard is a unique drawing and collaboration tool that can provide unique functionality for your SocialGO network.

Special thanks to SJ who suggested we do a video about Dabbleboard.

Video Below: