I called my hosting company, GoDaddy, for some help.  I paid about $14 for three months of security.  They helped remove the other places this hacker snuck in some code.  The remainder of those months, they continued to run a scanner on the website to make sure everything was in the clear.

Well, it has been a few months since the incident and I am back on track.  I mean, I thought the websites were okay.  That was until this morning when I got a message from Google.  I was in my Google Webmaster Tools, and it said that JacquelynMarks.com, Mockingjaysummary.com and OnceUponaTimeABC.net were “Suspected Hacking.”

Ugh!  Not again!

I read the information that Google provided.  They offered a Google Safe Browsing check.  I checked the websites by visiting http://www.google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=www.example.com.  Just replace www.example.com with your URL.

It gave a simple report saying that nothing was infected.  Thank goodness!

Next, I called GoDaddy.com and told them about the Google warning.  The representative ran a check on all my websites.  He said that everything was coming up clean.   That gave me a little piece of mind.

My guess is this hacker was trying to get into the sites again.  I changed all the passwords twice since the incident.  However, I still want to take things a step further to protect myself.  Yesterday, I was listening to a netcast that had Matt Cutts as a guest.

For those who do not know, Matt Cutts is the head of Google’s spam team.  Well, he talked about a plugin that he uses on his WordPress blog.  This plugin is called Google Authenticator.  You will notice that this plugin has over 17k downloads.

I set up all my blogs with this authenticator. When you download the plugin, remember to set it up under each user who has access to the website.  In addition, download the app for the mobile phone.  That is how you will get the Google authentication code.

Be sure to scan the QR code or enter it into the app when setting up the plugin under the user’s profile. Otherwise, you will end up locking yourself out of your own website. I just named each one the title of that particular blog, so I know which code goes to what blog.

If you have any other tricks or tips on how to increase the security of a website, please comment below.
This photo is courtesy of Microsoft Clip Art

This website is not only going to offer website owners some education about the industry, but it will help me continue staying current with trends.  I am hoping this website will help me create a stronger presence within the industry for myself.  In addition, I am excited to share my knowledge and encourage readers with ideas to help grow their brand or business.

The website is almost completed.  I am waiting for a logo to be created, which should arrive in the next few days.  I have also created a Twitter and Facebook account for the website.  I will continue updating on my personal Google Plus with new posts.

With that said, please visit www.ShesSoDigital.com. On the right hand side, you can subscribe to my updates and find my social media accounts.  Please come and join me on this adventure into the digital marketing industry.  I look forward to hearing your feedback!

This photo is courtesy of Microsoft Clip Art

With that said, I started to think about how much in the past two years that I have grown.  Recently, I went to visit my old office and friends at Nagelbush.  The environment has not changed much there, but their spirits have been lifted some.  I am happy for those who survived the major cuts the company had to do.

At any rate, I started to think about my current position.  In the past, I questioned whether I made the right decision by working at a corporation rather than an agency.  An old college friend came by my apartment the other day.  After college, she landed a position working at a digital marketing agency.

She came over to ask for my help on a website she planned to launch.  As we went over what would be SEO friendly for the website, she took notes on what I said.  At that moment, I realized that I made the right decision working at a corporation. With that said, was I lucky to have gone to a corporation or lucky to have found the right corporation?

Working at an Agency

At her position, she regularly updates multiple social media accounts with supervision.  In addition, she had a taste in SEO with meta tags.  That is all I know of that she had worked on and gained experience.   When it comes to other areas of digital marketing, she has not had a chance to dabble it in at her job.

This is my observation about working at an agency.  However, I may be wrong because I have never worked in that environment.  If I am wrong, please let me know.  When working at agency, each person focuses on a single (maybe few) particular duty.

For an example, most of her day is focused on updating the social media accounts for the company’s clients.  She once had an opportunity to work with the meta tags.  When it comes to SEO, there are numerous people in the office that focus on those areas of digital marketing.

From what I understand when working at agency, a single employee will be focused in one area of the marketing campaign.  This leaves less room for that employee to learn other areas of the campaign’s strategies.  Therefore, they would probably be more proficient in that area than I would, but they would not learn any other opportunities.

Working at a Corporation

When working in a company, such as my current job, I have learned multiple facets in digital marketing such as (not limited to):

• Advertising
• Affiliate Marketing
• Infographics
• Google Products
• SEM
• SEO
• Social Media
• Social PR
• And more..

I have been fortunate to be on multiple projects, where I have managed a portion of each of the items stated above.  I did not even mention about learning HTML and CSS.  My boss was (and still is) an excellent teacher when it came learning the industry.  I definitely would credit the majority of my knowledge to him.

In addition, I took the time to research and implement projects on my own at home.  This also helped with my education in the digital marketing industry.  In conclusion, I have decided that I made the right decision working at a corporation.  It had allowed me to work on multiple projects utilizing various digital marketing skills.

If I were at an agency, I would have been stuck focused on one area.  I am not saying that working at agency would be bad.  In fact, I would agree that my friend understands social media implementation and applications better than I do.  However, I could not be more appreciative of my current position, and how much I have learned.

With two years down, here is to the rest of my working life!
This photo is courtesy of Microsoft Clip Art

I first learned about this website when I read Ryan Holiday’s Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator.  He talked about how he was able to reach out to many media professionals and promote his clients by lying.  These media professionals include many major networks.

I have been incredibly busy with a few side projects since I read the book.  Finally, I took the time to register and start receiving updates.  Each day, I receive numerous emails from HARO.  In these emails, it lists many media companies (magazines, radio stations, websites, newspapers, television etc) looking for a source in their story.

How does HARO work?

First, you receive an email from HARO that includes numerous journalists’ requests.  One of their terms is not to post an actual request on blogs, but you can email it to a friend privately.  With that said, I’ll give you an example without the actual information:

Name: Editorial Team YFS Magazine
Category: Business and Finance
Email: query-123456@helpareporter.net
Media Outlet: YFS Magazine
Deadline: Time/Date
Query: Looking for this information for my story.

All you do is respond back to that email with whatever the journalist is requesting.

Why use HARO?

Since there is no actual money in exchange, why would you want to help this person out?  Simple..  In exchange, this reporter can state you as the source in their article or use a quote from you.  In addition, this also means more exposure for a business and/or a nice quality backlink from a high profile website.

If you have worked in SEO, then you can agree with me how tedious linking can be.  I am sure you can especially agree with me if you are still building relationships in the industry with high PR websites.  This is not easy and it takes a lot of time.

What if you could get a quality backlink on a site like Yahoo! in exchange for an interview or a paragraph about a topic that you are familiar with?

I recently signed up on here, and it seems fantastic so far.  If you are looking to gain exposure for a brand or company (or yourself), I definitely recommend signing up for this.  Oh and it’s free!

I am excited to enter 2013 and see what is in store for me. This year, I continued my career at Active Data Technologies (Foreclosure.com) and I started writing for the Examiner.com. In addition, I have learned even more about the industry and career that I so dearly love. There are a few plans for the New Year that I have in mind.

Examiner.com

I am going to continue writing for this online publication. I am probably going to write a little less and focus on my own blog posts. I feel that I can make more money directly into my pocket if I work on my own projects. However, Examiner.com has been a great supplemental income.

Domains

I need to purchase more SEO focused domains. I started working on MockingjaySummary.com and HungerGamesMockingjay.com. I slowed down building them out because I was focusing so much time on Examiner. I want more websites that need less maintenance.

Foreclosure.com

I would like to start thinking of more ideas to really make myself shine with the company. I feel like I am just here doing what I am supposed to do. I need to come up with creative ideas to stand out. I am not okay with just existing.

Personal

I am going to start writing here about my tips on digital marketing and trends. It not only makes me look super smart on the Internet, but it helps me learn. When writing about these topics, I end up taking the time checking resources and relating them to my personal work. Moving forward, my posts will be about my career and tips (again).

Other than that, there really is not much more that I want out of 2013.  I mean, more money is always nice.  I expect that will come over time.

This year, I wanted write an article that would go viral.  I have accomplished this.  On Nov. 10, 2012, I wrote an article about how certain companies are reacting to Obamacare.  This article received over 6,000 Facebook likes, 229 Tweets, 38 GooglePlus Ones, 28 emails and 88 comments.

The article itself is not about marketing, but I turned it into a marketing topic.  I did this by saying it is a bad public relation move to publicly announce something against the government or policies as a business.  It is interesting to see how people react to the news.  Especially, it is fascinating when you are the one writing the article.

From the Examiner, I have learned how to turn any trending topic into a marketing write-up.  This has been great because I am starting to really increase my page views, which ultimately leads to more money.  However, all that money is going right into my student loans.

My plan for 2013 is to pay off my student loans by at least 75% of the current balance.  I am going to use the money from the Examiner to help with the extra deposits.  This means subscribe to my articles, so you can support my student loan payments.  Please and thank you.  West Palm Beach Marketing Examiner.

I really believe there are so many ways to make money on the Internet.  As a digital marketer, if you cannot find a way to make extra money on the Internet, you are not doing it correctly.  I really like how Ray Wert, Executive Director of Content for Gawker Media said it.

Overheard: “I’d rather do marketing, but there’s no money there.” (Umm, I think you might be doing it wrong…)

— Ray Wert (@raywert) October 11, 2012

As I learn more about this industry, I do find ways to bring in extra income.  I am hoping 2013 will be even better and help me accomplish my goal of paying off those student loans. One day, Sallie Mae and I will break up.  Then, I will be able to keep my paychecks.  Ugh commitments..

Finally, I have been finishing up MockingjaySummary.com.  I am on page one for the keyword mockingjay summary, so I need to jump on this and finish it up.  There is money left on the table because of my slacking.  Over the weekend, be sure to check it out because it will be done.  I promise!

Overall, this year has been fantastic for my career.  I am looking forward to 2013.  In March of 2013, it will be my third year at Foreclosure.com and in the digital marketing industry.  Time really does fly when you are having fun!

As I was talking to the two, they asked a lot questions.  Questions like, if I went to college, my major and the career I chose.  When I told them that I do marketing at foreclosure.com and a journalist for the Examiner.com, the male responded with the most flattering response.  He said, “Wow, are you like some celebrity?  Am I sitting next to someone famous?”

I laughed and said not quite.  We went on to talk about a few things and had a nice conversation for the short flight from Atlanta, GA to Columbia, SC.  His questions reminded me of myself when I got out of high school.  Someone looking for that perfect path for their future.

I asked so many questions to people who were established.  That was the time in my life when I was still trying to find myself.  It was great to see someone so young who wants to do something.  I hope the two make it through bootcamp and come back ready to take on the world.

Well, I am heading to bed.  I wanted to touch on all the people who I met today. However, I am exhausted and going to catch up with this later.  Until then, wish this city girl good luck in South Carolina for the next few days.

I started just about the last day in September writing for them. Shortly after, I left for my trip to New York, so I had a slow start. When I came back from my trip, I started to write at least an article a day. The way you make money is by page views.

How to make money writing for Examiner.com

I mean, obviously you will make more money on your own blog because you are not sharing the ad money. However, Examiner offers more exposure. Here is how in one month, I have made their number one Marketing & PR Examiner along with third place for West Palm Beach and Business & Finance.

1. Trending topics.  They provide you the trending topics they are looking for. It normally consists of upcoming holidays or popular news topics.
2. Newsworthy.  If you can find a topic to write about that was released within the last 72 hours, they will submit your article to Google News.

It is simple, it really is. First, I started pushing a bunch of articles that would be keyword targeted for the search engines. Even though this is not a bad idea, I am going to keep this to my personal blog. The amount of money that I was making from pushing many articles, versus one article with the above criteria have been bringing me the exact same income.

To be their top Examiner, write something that is trending. For an example, they were looking for articles on Movember. This is where men do not shave for a month in honor of an initiative for men health issues. I wrote an article called Movember in Palm Beach. This not only targets the local area, it also was within the 72-hour guideline with a trending topic.

This hits all the areas they are looking for. Then, tweet it out to a few local people with a large following, and there you go.

Using Examiner Status

I am such a fan of using Twitter to drive traffic. If you can catch the right person with a nice engagement level along with many followers, you are golden. For an example, Donald Trump was out there babbling about his “Big Offer” to President Obama.

Even though this man is anything but respectful to the world, he is great to write about for traffic. I did an article questioning whether he has a PR person. I did a Google Search and came up with one girl who posed the same question on Twitter.

I quoted her in the article then tweeted her that I used her tweet. I made this girl so happy and honored. With that one quote and tweet to her:

Then wait a few days and retweet them to bring back the attention to the article.  That is easy and effortless traffic.

Well, this is my honest interpretation when writing for Examiner.com.  If you can write, then I highly encourage taking the opportunity to join.  Oh, and if you say I recommended you, I get $50.  So come and join the bandwagon and apply today!  Apply to Examiner.com

Well, maybe not.  In my last post, I wrote about a few opportunities that I had to get out and meet people.  I would not say any of it was a waste of time, but I certainly have not embraced it to the fullest potential.  I blame myself here.

Junior League of Boca Raton

I had joined this group of ladies who bring a lot to the table for the community.  There is no question about that.  However, one of the reasons for joining this organization was to meet new friends.  I started attending the meetings in August, and I have not made a single friend or acquaintance.

In fact, I just do not fit in with these ladies.   I was not raised poor, but these ladies are way out of my class.  They ALL have the same large Louis Vuitton purse and white Mercedes.  I will stick with my little Honda Civic with way too many miles on it.  Maybe I am little envious because I work so hard to just maintain where I am.

I have met a few friendly people, but mostly they seemed to have formed their own cliques already.  My guess is that I have missed some gatherings because they all seem to know each other fairly well now.  As for me, I could not even tell you even one of their names.  It is probably my fault since I have not signed up for any volunteering shifts.

I did not sign up for the shifts because I was under the impression all these food opportunities would be handling a variety of meats making sandwiches.  I was wrong.  There are other opportunities but none of them really fit my schedule outside of work.  At any rate, I do not think I am going to continue attending the meetings for this group.  I have no clue what they are ever talking about, and after a long day, I just want to go home.

SMX East

Being on a major budget, I flew to NYC and stayed with my cousin in Queens.  She had a nice apartment with a nice couch that fit my excessively tall self just fine.  The first day, she had to work so I hopped on the train and headed to the city alone (for the first time).  I was more freaking myself out about taking public transportation.  How ridiculous, right?

Well, in reality it was not bad at all.  I took the train and followed the streets to the address.  I made it to the Javits Center a little later than I wanted to.  I did not miss much since I was on the free pass and sell-me-your-product seminars.

I went in the first meeting, where it was Bing-Yahoo talking about their ad network and such.  It was just about noon when I finished that seminar.  I decided to check out the food court and I met with Ben.

Ben was a young guy who just finished at NYU and was looking for a job.  He wants to be a trend analyst.  Considering he has a great education and lives in a city of opportunity, I am sure Ben will make it one day.  However, he was telling me how he wants to attend Miami Ad School.

I wish that I had the money to continue going to school.  At one point, I was so ready to go back to school for my MBA.  Then, I evaluated my student loans and how much more debt that I was going to add to it.  That idea died along with my bank account that is now paying back what I currently owe.

Anyway, I met a few people who were really nice at the convention. However, I wish that I had the money to attend the educational side.  When I came back, my office asked me if I attended the event.  They told me I should tell them next time because they would have paid.  Let’s just say it was not a secret, where I was going and what I was doing.  I’ll leave it at that.

However, they did finally order me business cards!  You would be excited to if you have been working for years and no one ever agreed to order them for you.  Yes, I have asked (numerous times).

Anyway, after SMX, I did attend the Big Ad Gig at the New York Times Building.  I was an attendee and not a participant, unfortunately.  The people who were chosen had major advertising portfolios, I have nothing.  At the end, I walked up to Calle Sjoenell, Chief Creative Officer at Ogilvy to introduce myself.  I had about 30 seconds to say something and make an impression before the rest took him away.

Me:  Hi.  I am Jacquelyn Marks.  I have applied to your company about 25 times and I am stalking your HR person on LinkedIn.  Nice to meet you.
[we shake hands]
Calle:  [laughs] Nice to meet you.  Oh, good.

That was it.  Then I spent the rest of my trip in NY running around eating and drinking.  I am still paying for this.  Sigh, I hate being broke.

That was really all I have done for the networking idea.  Honestly, it is hard when you work so much and cannot keep up with what is going on.  However, would anything really change if I met someone who was going to be a mentor or friend?  Who knows?  I am not giving up nor shying away from anything else that comes my way.

To see pictures from my NYC trip, check it out here.

In my previous post about meeting President Bill Clinton, I mentioned how important it is to network with people. The people you meet face-to-face can be priceless to a future of fantastic connections. A few years ago, I was the lead Street Team member for Broward Palm Beach New Times (Village Voice). With that position, I worked at practically every bar, club, restaurant, festival etc in South Florida.

All those experiences helped me meet and shake hands with the hardworking business owners and other influential residents of the community. Now that I have moved on from those promotional positions, I have found other ways to connect.

Junior League of Boca Raton

In August, I joined a group of influential women who donate their time to volunteer in the community. The people who I have met so far are extremely kind. The first year in the non-profit organization, you have to complete so many hours to maintain the membership. I just completed my fingerprints, so I will start signing up for shifts.

As I begin volunteering in the community, I’ll be sure to keep everyone updated on my experiences.

SMXEast 2012

SMX is Search Marketing Expo. They have these conventions every year across the globe. October 2nd to the 4th, they will be in New York City. I registered for the expo pass, where I can tour the exhibit halls, and listen to industry professionals speak. The other festivities are out of my price range.

I am excited to attend this convention because all the people who I read their blogs or refer to in my work will be there. This is going to be a fantastic networking and educational opportunity. I plan on taking many pictures and writing updates on here after the event.

AMA South Florida

Recently, I contacted the American Marketing Association of South Florida. I asked about a membership and the events. The woman who contacted me back explained that I could attend a meeting as a non-member to check it out. I am waiting for the next meeting, and hopefully it will not be located too far south.