It was only a matter of time. Google has started slowly rolling out an update that will negatively impact each and every one of you that have non-responsive or non-mobile-friendly websites. Here's a sample of what it looks like, brought to you by SearchEngineLand.                     What's the difference?  Do you see it?  Both are searches done on mobile devices.  On the picture on the left, you'll see a little icon next to the URL showing that the website is NOT friendly for mobile devices. On the right, you'll see a green icon next to the URL showing that it IS friendly for mobile devices. Uh oh.   Let's dive into this a little deeper. First of all - chances are good that many of you reading this are already making excuses. "You don't have to pinch and zoom on my website TOO much fro... 10/24/2014

This past weekend, a buddy of mine was helping me pick up some furniture.  He only asked one thing in return. There's a farm about a mile from our house.  It's called Sweet Pea.  He wanted to swing by to pick up some fresh Greek Yogurt for his wife. When we arrived at the farm, there was a hay ride going on for the kids.  On the left side of the farm was a small shop.  The sign at the front door tells people the hours...and upon entering, I was surprised to find there was nobody manning the shop. Check this out - you pick out whatever you want and write it down in a book.  Then you pay check or cash...and if you need change, you make your own change out of the money sitting out in the open. This blog isn't going to go into too much detail how amazing the cheeses and fresh yogurt was tha... 10/23/2014

Last night, I had the opportunity to speak to a group of about 30 college students who are aspiring business owners and leaders. As I stood there, I couldn't help picture myself back in the day...hungry for knowledge and excited about having the whole world at my fingertips. We talked about outrageous marketing.  We watched fun videos of everything from Jeff Gordon and Pepsi Max to some of the zombies that we've filmed and everything in between. Then it happened.  One of the students asked about my thoughts on Yelp from a business standpoint. I talked to him about how we handle the reputation management for countless clients - responding to all positive and negative reviews personally on their behalf (as them).  I talked about the pro's and con's...the headaches and the ah ha moments.  ... 10/22/2014

This is a game changer.  You're going to want to share it with everyone who does video. And everyone who does NOT yet do video.  Then kick their butts a little and tell them why they should be using it. For the first time, Facebook has passed YouTube for the nuber of video views on desktop.  In August, the social media giant delivered nearly a billion more videos. Now with that being said, YouTube still holds the title for mobile plays.  And as we all know, mobile is growing - quickly. So what's accounting for the difference...and is it the same quality of views when looking at it from a marketing perspective? The answer is simple.  Auto-plays.  Scroll through your Facebook feed and you'll find that videos start automatically playing (without audio).  Click on it and audio plays as well... 10/21/2014

Do you really want people to do business with you...or do you just want to say that you own a business?   It's a fair question.  Perhaps it's a question you never thought you'd be asked...but it's still a fair question.   Allow me to explain.   We have the unique privilege of working with all sorts of businesses.  Retail.  Restaurants.  Service-based professionals.  Car dealerships.  You name it - we work with them.   And while we selectively pick our clients based on individuals and organizations that we know have a strong process in place...we see many other businesses that seemingly could care less about making it easy for customers to do business with them.   Take, for example, the John Deere affiliate for Home Depot.   We ordered a lawn mower for our house.  What a FUN experience t... 10/20/2014

Every experience we have in life leads us to where we are today - for better or for worse. In my case, til death do us part. I'm one of the lucky ones.  I survived the dating scene with my soul still (mostly) intact. Somehow, I managed to score the most beautiful woman in the world. And I got to bring with me a whole boatload of knowledge from the dating world...to apply to social and business networking events. Now, I pass it along to you.  Below are the keys to the kingdom - success in networking and business brought to you by a former serial dater. You have three seconds to make an impression.  Make it good.  Believe it or not, my shockingly good looks and wildly charming personality didn't always do the trick alone.  I needed that icebreaker line.  Make sure it's one that helps crea... 10/19/2014

Chances are, most of the people who read these blogs do so because they want knowledge.  They're hungry to learn and they're hungry to grow. So when you hear the "experts" talk about all of the bells and whistles of SEO (search engine optimization), you get excited.  You pull out your wallets.  Because CLEARLY they know what it's going to take to help your website rank. In the past week, we've talked to no fewer than FIVE companies who are contracting someone to handle their "SEO".  Why did we get the phone calls?  Because several of these companies can't seem to find their business online in a very simple Google search.  Two more of them had concerns over just what they are getting for their money from their "SEO guy".  Let me start with this.  The Silent Partner Marketing is NOT an "S... 10/18/2014

Dear Friends, So we're doing some business with a great real estate agent out here in Connecticut.  She's hungry to learn when it comes to social media, marketing and all things digital.  She's sweet, charismatic and incredibly knowledgeable.  She's a rare breed - understanding that there's lots to learn in order to grow. For whatever reason, I didn't save her cell phone number in my phone - only her office number. I needed to give her a buzz while I was driving yesterday.  I figured she'd have her cell number in her email signature. She did. Sort of. But here's the thing.  She had LOTS of stuff in her email signature.  Graphics.  A picture of her.  All of the links to her social media and more. She's not alone - countless people do. But all of that "stuff" doesn't translate when openin... 10/18/2014

If you were to put on the news, you'd hear little of the positive and lots about the negative.  Trust me - I used to work in the business.  There's something to be said for "if it bleeds, it leads". Last Thursday here in Connecticut, a 14-month old child and his dad were in a tragic accident involving an armored car. The father and son were rushed to the hospital by Lifestar helicopter after they were extricated. A few days ago, the 14-month old died. I read the story while sitting next to my beautiful new daughter.  Stuff like this didn't ever hit home when I worked in journalism - you always fictionalized it.  That's how you dealt with it. For me, that's all changed. A GoFundMe campaign was set up to help cover the funeral expenses.  The goal was $7,000.  In two days, 165 people have ... 10/16/2014

“Look at it this way it cost you $20 dollars to get rid of him. Right? He’s never going to bother you again. He’s never going to ask you for money again. He’s out of your life for $20 dollars you got off cheap” – Sonny in A Bronx Tale Sonny DID get off cheap.  Not us.  We were burned.  Badly. The cost of our lesson?  $1600.  The value of the lesson?  Priceless. I have to be very careful with this blog, as it involves some very, very big people.  Like...think about the biggest people in the country.  Think bigger.  Yeah.  There you go. So we're contracted to do some filming in support of a non-profit organization.  Some real feel-good stuff.  The terms of the agreement?  We'd be reimbursed all out-of-pocket expenses - and we wouldn't charge them for our work.  We felt it was a great oppo... 10/16/2014

Farmers told you Kale was the best thing since sliced bread.  So you put it in your smoothies. Apple told you their phones were just what you needed to look cool and be organized.  So you bought them. ActiveRain told you 20 blogs a week were the best way of rockin' out the real estate world.  So you wrote them. *Insert screeching record sound here* Why? First of all, before everyone starts hating...allow me to clarify.  I'm not saying it's bad to be writing that much.  From a search engine optimization perspective, there are a lot of benefits to it.  But keep in mind, those search engine optimization benefits are just as much for Trulia as they are for you.  And that's ok. Here's what I mean.  It's genius, really.  The more content created on this back-end of Trulia, the higher their ov... 10/14/2014

    I'll bet you thought that speed dating was something only singles did.   Wrong.   You are doing it with your customers every single day.  So here's the question - are you making dates?   I'll explain in a second - but first: the background.   Earlier this year, our team at The Silent Partner Marketing partnered up one of our clients - Monaco Ford in Glastonbury - with a local speed dating company called Got 5 Minutes.  The idea was simple. "Don't just fall in love WITH our cars.  Fall in love IN our cars."   It was a big fundraiser for Mothers Against Drunk Driving.  We previewed the event by filming introduction videos with a few of the single ladies (an example of how to use YouTube and Vimeo to reach a new demographic - click here to check it out).  We invited local vendors to sh... 10/11/2014

Earlier this week, I submitted to you a post about my failure with sports star and restauranteur Bobby V.  I ate a slice of humble pie because, we'll, we can't all be perfect. Well...I'm batting two for two.  I've been totally caught with my pants down on Facebook. Luckily for you, it's a figure of speech.  Allow me to explain. So there I am, rushing to get through Costco the other day.  And as I'm making a bee-line for the registers, there's an older couple walking in front of me in the middle of the aisle.  It forced me to stop and reflect because, frankly, I couldn't go around them.   I thought it was really sweet how they were spending time together, and imagined that this would be my wife and I in 50 years.  So I did what anyone would do (right??).  I pulled a ninja move with my ph... 10/11/2014

Dave and Busters opened last week, Monday, in Buckland Hills, Manchester Connecticut. It is a fun place for the young people and the young at heart. This is the first Dave and Busters in Connecticut. According to our server Marissa, Dave and Busters are in their 60s. They decided on the name of the restaurant by tossing a coin. So, we could presume that Dave won the coin flipping because his name comes first. A restaurant, bar and arcade. Dave and Busters is already creating a buzz in the city. The price of the meal is decent and you can buy a discounted power card for the arcade games with the meal. I did not enjoy the food as much as I enjoyed marveling at the bright neon lights across the table where the arcade games are.   Yes. My lunch was distracted by the thought of Pacman. My he... 09/29/2014

It will be a stinky situation for the Manchester residents as the Manchester CT Sewage Plant starts its $43M upgrade tomorrow, August 22, 2014.   According to Scott Hanley, Town Manager, the cleaning of this old system is going to result in very unpleasant odors, depending upon proximity and wind direction.   "We expect the first few weeks of work, when the largest amounts of highly concentrated organic material are being removed, will be the most hostile to the human senses," Hanley added. (Expect a stench in Manchester)   It is expected that it will take a few weeks to empty the storage or circular bins and then the waste will be disposed or deposited into nearby landfills, Eyewitness New Channel 3 reported. This tank will be emptied and demolished, consequently. It is not clear to me... 08/21/2014

  Manchester Connecticut  has more than 1,000 acres of park land, a range of housing styles and prices in attractive neighborhoods, Manchester Memorial Hospital, Manchester Community College – an award-winning school system, performing arts organizations, libraries and friendly, community-spirited residents.(Source: Town of Manchester).   I find Manchester as one of the most convenient towns in the State of Connecticut. The access to interstate highways like 84, 384 and 291, makes it a perfect location for any age groups or demographics.   Manchester CT has 23 Town Trails.  One of my favorites is the Center Springs Trail.   The Case Mountain will take you to the top-of-world feeling  once you get to the end. The Hartford Skyline is a sight to  behold. Places to Visit: 1)Buckland Hills M... 08/21/2014

  Schedule a Showing/Request Info Search All Homes For Sale Homes Close to Where You Work Free List of Foreclosed Homes For Sale What is Your Home Worth? Short Sale Homes For Sale Mortgage & Refinance FREE HUD Report: How to Buy FREE List of HUD Homes for Sale   Beth McIntyre Keller Williams Realty 860-508-7855 Questions?Schedule a Showing!   Licensed In:CT License #:0388065 Information valid for the date of this posting only. Please contact us for the most current information and status of this property. 70 Wells Street Manchester, CT Scan with your smartphone & take me with you. Description Photos Maps & Local Schools Print Brochure JUST LISTED       $ Click for current price 3550 Square Feet Owner will arrange viewing of one unit then if interest others will then be arranged. Extra ... 08/12/2014

Manchester Connecticut Manchester CT provides convenient access to all the interstate highways. It is the city wherein you can find one of the biggest malls in the state, The Buckland Malls.   It also boasts of diverse restaurants, a great array of retail stores, 23 Town Trails, 15 Parks and Fields, and Showcase Cinemas.  You can find almost all the basics of convenient living here in Manchester Connecticut.   Manchester Connecticut July 2014 Real Estate Market Report: Compared to June, July's home inventory is up by 12 units. Currently, the City of Manchester CT has 267 properties available for sale. The average listing price is $227,546 consisting of average size of 1,873 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms.  117 properties are under contract as of this writing. The avera... 07/15/2014

What makes Manchester Connecticut great for people who are buying for the first time or downsizing is that this town offers a wide range of homes for sale that are both affordable and decent. For an inclusive monthly payment of under $1600, the buyers can comfortably obtain a home in an established and desirable neighborhood.   The convenience that Manchester Connecticut offers is also unbeatable. It has one of the biggest malls and cinemas in the State. There are plentiful of diverse restaurants and retail stores.   This Cape Cod home, which sold this month, is very typical in the neighborhood. It has 1,348 square feet, 1 full bath and 1/4-acre land. The listing price is $139,900. The house has been meticulously maintained by the owner.   And the buyers are very happy with the overall ... 06/23/2014

Manchester Connecticut Condos NEED to Get FHA-Approved I recently compiled the data for condominium sales and came to a very definitive conclusion: Manchester Connecticut Condos NEED to get FHA-approved.  And, I’m not just saying that because I help condominiums to get approved with FHA. I have done a lot of market research in Connecticut in order to provide data to contrast FHA-approved and non-FHA condominiums.  In most towns in which I have done research, the data point to an obvious benefit by displaying better sales figures (more closed sales, fewer expired listings) in FHA-approved condominiums.  This has been true in every town except one. However, Manchester’s data provided another interesting discovery altogether: the average list price of expired listings was nearly $30,000 hi... 06/08/2014