Music Tuesday: Fresh faces, Burning Man’s musical side and more

Summer’s drawing to a close, but there’s still time to discover a new summer anthem. Perhaps it’s a tune from Cults, the indie-popsters Noisey profiled last week on youtube.com/music. Or perhaps you’ll find your summer song in one of this week’s featured playlists.



Fresh Faces: August

Every month, we feature a handful of newly-signed music partners on YouTube’s homepage. This month, the pickings were so rich we couldn’t narrow it down to just four, so we chose six artists to feature, and they’re an inspiring group that spans the gamut, from a sixteen-year-old emcee from New Jersey who’s sworn off cursing to J Dilla protege and former Slum Village member Elzhi. Add a few jazzy singer-songwriters into the mix and there’s something for everyone.







Burning Man Survival Kit

The annual art festival takes place in Nevada Black Rock Desert this week. And while the event’s official focus is art -- kinetic, sculptural and frequently fire-breathing -- it’s also a premier gathering spot for fans of electronic music. Soundsystems on the “playa” vie with each other, putting on all-night raves that host cutting-edge deejays as well as some of the business’ biggest names. We’ve assembled a playlist of some sounds you might hear if you were there.







James Blake and Bon Iver: Fall Creek Boys Choir

Dubstep’s errant child and indie’s golden son have teamed up for an EP that releases later this year. They’ve dropped the first song from it on YouTube, and it’s a mysterious and spacious experiment in sound...just as we expected.







Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Pigeon John ‘The Bomb.’”

More about → Music Tuesday: Fresh faces, Burning Man’s musical side and more

Reflections on September 11 - Share Your Story

The worst terrorist attack ever on U.S. soil took place ten years ago next month. The tragic events of September 11, 2001 affected the lives of millions of people, not only in New York, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania, but around the world.



Working with The New York Times, we’re marking the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with a dedicated YouTube channel, featuring special content from the New York Times, archived news broadcasts from September 2001, and your own personal stories and tributes. We hope this channel will provide an enduring record of what took place on that day.



We’re asking you to share with us:

• Your strongest memory of that day or that time period
• How 9/11 changed you, and how you believe it changed America
• What you lost — or gained -- because of 9/11

Make a video answering any of these questions and submit it to youtube.com/September11. A selection of your videos will be featured on the The New York Times website and YouTube homepage on September 11 this year.



Through telling and sharing stories, we can all hope to make sense of an event that, for many of us, was one of the defining moments of our lives. Thank you for sharing yours.



Olivia Ma, YouTube News & Politics Manager, recently watched “Portraits Redrawn: Alissa Torres”

More about → Reflections on September 11 - Share Your Story

Why a successful Email Campaign can boost your Business

A successful email campaign is very important to making any business successful. If you want to start a business, then you need to build a client base. Of course, once you have established this list, you need to know how to best utilize it. The only way you can do that is if you get word out to people about the new product or service that you will be selling through your business.


This way, when you have updates about the launch of new products, added services, price discounts and other benefits, you can simply email the customers and they can all have the information in front of them. While there are other methods of advertising, this is by far the easiest, and in the modern day, will be the most successful.

People are always checking their emails, whether it is on their computer or on their smartphones. If you can build a solid relationship with customers and make them comfortable enough to give you their email addresses, then you will have a chance to enhance your relationship to new levels. Instead of putting up flyers that people do not even notice, or advertising in newspapers and magazines that some may never read, it is better to approach the customer directly through an email campaign.

This way, for 5 minutes you will have grabbed their attention and will be able to get your point across. If you start a successful email campaign that gives information about new discounts, or about how your product or service is better than the competition, then chances are that you will increase the number of people who will come to your business.

When people read an email advertising campaign, and they like what they read, then they will tell their friends or forward the email along which is definitely a sign of a successful email campaign. Another more accurate way of measuring a campaigns success is through analytics. This allows you to see exactly how the customer interacted with your email.

Whether they ignored it, unsubscribed, clicked around or forwarded it, you will have access to this information. Based on what you find, it will allow you to use the most popular aspects of each of your email in the future. Whether it is the placement of an “order now” button or a headline, you will get valuable insight into the mind and preferences of your customer.

All in all, the best email campaigns are the ones that have a simple call to action. They do not make too many offers, and they keep it short. But the message is always clear, and is something that the customer will appreciate. This way, you can use email and the Internet to grow your business and make yourself more successful.

This is a guest post by Olivia Smith. Olivia is a health, fitness and Internet marketing blogger. She is also a contributing writer for Invesp, a site which helps clients develop new conversation optimization techniques including creating and improved landing page design.

More about → Why a successful Email Campaign can boost your Business

JasonMundayMusic is August’s On The Rise Star

Congratulations to JasonMundayMusic, who won August’s On The Rise poll after receiving the most votes from the YouTube community. Thanks to your support, Jason Munday (and his friends) will be featured on the YouTube homepage all day today.

As the self-proclaimed “nerdiest YouTube musician,” Jason’s repertoire includes songwriting, singing, producing, and sound engineering. His long history of musical projects on YouTube include hit YouTube bands Ministry of Magic and The Oceanic Six, whose songs were inspired by pop culture. Jason credits Ministry of Magic (a collaborative project with YouTube stars Luke Conard and Ryan Seiler) with opening the trio up to the potential of a YouTube music career with hits such as “Don’t Leave,” “On The Other Side,” and “This Town.” The band members have since chosen to pursue individual careers and Jason’s current solo project, Skyway Flyer, artfully combines the big arena sounds of the 80s with modern dance rock. Check out the video below for an overview of Jason’s work, past and present.



Here’s a word from Jason about his YouTube history, channels, and collaborations:

"I've been a YouTuber for several years, a musician for over a decade, and a nerd for as long as I can remember. Being a YouTube musician is now my full time job, and I'm proud to say that I've got to be one of the nerdiest! I started writing nerdy music with Luke Conard and Ryan Seiler over 4 years ago, and as Ministry of Magic, we were extremely fortunate with our online following and support. Thanks to our fans, I've been able to quit my full time job, move to Los Angeles, and pursue my dream of music and video making. I've since been able to focus so much more time and energy toward many different music projects and being out in LA amongst a vast ocean of music & film industry people, not to mention the growing YouTuber population, I've been able to network and make friends that are always looking to collaborate and even just help each other out. I always try to excel at whatever it is I'm focusing my efforts towards, and I find it fascinating to be able to look back at where I started and the place I've reached and simply look forward to where to future will take me. I'm inexpressibly grateful for all the good fortune I've had and as long as there are people enjoying what I do, I will continue to create it!”

If you’ve enjoyed monthly On The Rise blog series and want to see more rising YouTube partners, check out our On The Rise channel or look for our playlists on the browse page. Keep an eye out for next month’s blog post, as your channel may be the next one On The Rise!

Devon Storbeck, Account Manager, recently watched “Ready For Anything" (Live!) - Skyway Flyer.”

More about → JasonMundayMusic is August’s On The Rise Star

QR Codes - Do They Really Work?

QR Codes - Do They Really Work?
Quick Response codes began as a novelty, but as the prevalence of QR code reading technology has increased, so has the popularity of their use. There is a short history behind QR codes but that has not held back the growing popularity of these little squares of black on white patterns.


The QR code was first invented in 1994 by developers at a subsidiary of the Toyota Corporation in Japan, and they were intended to provide an alternative to the barcode that could be read at a greater speed.

However, it turned out that the primary advantage of a QR code was that it actually could carry information such as text, pictures and url links imbedded within its blocks of pattern. Initially, the QR was a software used to entertain consumers by challenging them to decipher its codes through the use of a limited number of devices. In the early days, QR codes displayed in England and Japan were for attention getting purposes only.

The introduction of QR technology to the mainstream market has been waiting for an increase in availability of code readers in common place devices. That time is now.

QR Code image containing this blog's homepage URL

QR code readers come standard in many Android, Blackberry and Nokia mobile phones as well as in the Nintendo 3 DS. This means that more and more people are starting to have immediate access to a reader via their pocket electronics. Now is the prime time to increase the distribution of QR codes to the masses. Even Facebook has recently added a QR code to every user’s home page. The technology is widespread and the code it self is becoming a familiar sight, but what can a QR code actually do beyond just looking high-tech?


As mentioned earlier, there is a wide array of information that can be contained in a QR code and an equally large array of outcomes that can be achieved when they are read. Scanning a QR code with a reader can produce different beneficial advertising results. The main advantage is that internet content can be transmitted immediately to the device. For example, contact information or product specifications and images can be immediately downloaded from a print location. To advertisers, this means website content can be added to magazine ads and public signs. These types of advertisements are common place in some countries, but American consumers are still lagging slightly in their common use of this technology.


This is a guest post by Olivia Smith. Olivia is a health, fitness and Internet marketing blogger. She writes about a variety of topics ranging from satellite internet service updates and SEO, to the latest in health products and fitness routines.

• Why a successful Email Campaign can boost your Bus...
• QR Codes - Do They Really Work?

More about → QR Codes - Do They Really Work?

How to Fix a Slow Windows 7 Computer

Most people love using Windows 7. That’s because it’s by far the nicest and the most productive Microsoft operating system to date. But there can still be glitches, errors, and lags. The good thing about Windows 7 is that it has lots of tools to troubleshoot and repair a slow computer. Here is a guide to where to find them and how to use them.

1. Problem Steps Recorder

Problem Steps Recorder is a great solution to get a detailed description of the problem, so that you can either review the report yourself or send it to a tech support team. Basically, this tool records everything happening on the computer that needs troubleshooting. It records all mouse clicks and everything that is pressed on the keyboard, takes screenshots, and then saves the report as a zipped MHTML file. This file can be easily emailed and analyzed. To enable Problem Steps Recorder, click on Start, type PSR and hit Enter. Then click on Start Record. To save a report, just stop recording your computer activity.

2. Troubleshoot problems

If something in Windows 7 starts behaving in a weird way and you have no idea why, go to the Control Panel, locate the “Find and fix problems” (Troubleshooting) option and you’ll be able to access the Windows 7 troubleshooting tools. They are easy-to-use wizards and can fix common problems, clean your system, check your settings, and lots more.

3. Discover bottlenecks

Under normal circumstances, Windows 7 easily outperforms Vista and XP. Nevertheless, your computer can still seem too slow from time to time. Most likely it’s an application or a process that’s slowing you down. Windows 7 makes it really easy to find bottlenecks with the help of Resource Monitor. Just click on Start, type RESMON and hit Enter to launch the tool. When it opens, click on the CPU, Memory, Disk and Network tabs to see which processes are hogging your system and using up your bandwidth. When you find the process that’s holding you back, you’ll be able to try to fix it right from the Resource Monitor. For example, if a process is locked up, right-click on it and select Analyze to see where the problem lies.

4. Repair your computer

If something goes seriously wrong and Windows 7 fails to start, it might be possible to repair your computer without the installation CD. Just boot your PC and press F8 during startup. You should see an option called Repair Your Computer. Select it and press Enter to see the recovery options Windows 7 has to offer.
These Windows 7 tools will help you troubleshoot and fix a slow computer in a quick and easy way. To prevent your computer from slowing down, use maintenance utilities like disk cleanup and defrag to keep your PC in top shape.

Author bio:

Guest post by Liz Cornwell. Liz Cornwell is an experienced writer who currently works for Auslogics Software. Auslogics makes software to speed up and clean up your slow computer.

More about → How to Fix a Slow Windows 7 Computer

Watch Anderson Cooper’s exclusive YouTube Q&A

Earlier this week, we welcomed Anderson Cooper to our New York office for a lively question-and-answer session. As he prepares to launch his new daytime talk show on September 12, Anderson has made a big splash on YouTube, posting behind-the-scenes videos from his show, and answering viewer questions directly using our Moderator platform. In the one-hour session, the “Silver Fox” (as he’s affectionately known online) answered some of your top-voted questions submitted online.

He also talked about his “YouTube moment” last week on the Ridiculist (you have to see it to believe it), and told us what it’s like to be a (shy) celebrity in New York City. You can watch the full interview here:



Anderson’s visit was part of our @YouTube Talks series, which brings authors, musicians, innovators, and other thought leaders to YouTube for talks centered on their recent work. The goal is to capture the cultural zeitgeist of the day through interviews, presentations, and intimate studio sessions --- and give you access to these minds by opening up the sessions for viewer questions.

Stay tuned for more @YouTube Talks!

Steve Grove, Head of News and Politics, YouTube, recently watched "Anderson in Times Square."

More about → Watch Anderson Cooper’s exclusive YouTube Q&A

YouTube Creator Playbook tips: the first 15 seconds

This is the first of a series of posts sharing tips from the YouTube Creator Playbook, a resource full of best practices and strategies that you can start using on your channel and videos right away.

Ever notice how many of your favorite shows start with a great two-minute scene followed by the opening credits, instead of the other way around? How often has a great movie trailer caught your attention and made you want to go see the movie right away on opening night? With so many entertainment choices, all types of creators know how important it is to capture the attention of audiences early on. This same idea applies to videos on YouTube, and here’s how you can use this creative technique to attract and keep your viewers watching.

Make compelling content first...

• Start off with something that will immediately grab attention, whether it’s what you say or a stunning visual
• Make it clear what your video is about early on, so viewers aren’t confused about what they’re watching
• Tease the rest of the video so the audience is intrigued to see where you take them.

...share your channel branding later.

• A flashy intro may look cool, but it’s not the star of the video - let them see you, or your great content, first
• Make your branding compelling by making it entertaining or unique to each video

The general concept of capturing the audience’s attention upfront applies to all types of content in different ways. Find what’s right for your channel. Check out these great examples:

Toby, on CuteWinFail, addresses the audience, makes a joke, and sets up the show all on the first 15 sec.



Want to keep your branding upfront but still use this strategy? The voiceover for College Humor’s Jake and Amir packaging changes with every episode.

Need more ideas? For how-to content, such as cooking or fashion tutorials, the first few seconds of a video is a great place to present a “sneak peek” of what the finished product of the tutorial will be. This lets the viewer know what amazing thing they’ll be capable of making if they watch your video.

FoodWishes’ cooking channel does a great job of this:



You can learn more about how to structure the first 15 seconds of your videos, and lots of other tips and strategies in the YouTube Creator Playbook. These suggestions were pulled together from YouTubers like you, and we’re eager to see how you’ll apply these tips in your own creative ways.

Ryan Nugent, Audience Development Strategist, recently watched “James Blake - Limit to Your Love.”

More about → YouTube Creator Playbook tips: the first 15 seconds

Turning Leads into Customers

There are many different ways to turn leads and potential customers into actual customers, but what are they? How do successful people do it? And which tips and tricks work the best? One answer to these questions is to use lead management software. Lead management software uses different marketing techniques to turn leads into valued customers but, that is just one piece of the puzzle.

Some other tips that will help you to turn leads and potential customers into actual customers are listed here:

1. Prioritize. Many agents do not do well because they fail to realize what the most important goal is. The most important goal is to get the appointment so that you can make the pitch. Before you can make a pitch and show people your great product you have to get an appointment. So first, focus on getting appointments, then focus on the pitch.




2. Create a powerful first impression. First impressions are very important. The way you present yourself and the product will determine whether or not you have leads or clients. You have to give the people what they want, spell it out in a simple, informative and fun way that will make you and your business or product more interesting.







3. Know the different kinds of leads. There are different kinds of leads, the ones who want to buy right away, the ones who want to buy in the near[ish] future and those who want to wait a while. Know each type of lead and have a game plan set up for you that maps out how you will act and deal with each different lead.




4. Do the smart stuff. Doing the smart stuff really just means that you do what you would expect someone else to do. For example, if someone came up to you and presented something, you would expect them to call back quickly. You would expect those people to listen carefully when you wanted to voice an opinion or ask a question. You would also want them to respond to what they hear you saying. One last thing that falls under doing the smart stuff is to make sure you go and do some research beforehand. Researching a client beforehand, shows that you care and that you’re trying to make it work for them.

One last tip that was somewhat touched on at the beginning is to use technology. Lead management software is a good one, but there are lots of other things you can use technology wise that will help you turn leads into clients.

This is a guest post by Madison Hewerdine. Madison is an author who specializes in lead management software and has a passion for singing.

More about → Turning Leads into Customers

This week's Trends: earthquakes, hurricanes, and portals

Each weekday, we at YouTube Trends take a look at the most interesting videos and cultural phenomena on YouTube as they develop. We want take a moment to highlight some of what we've come across this week:

• We highlighted lots of videos and reactions from the East Coast earthquake as well as some instances of the quake caught-on-camera.
  
  
• We saw how people were documenting preparations for Hurricane Irene.
  
  
• We catalogued 10 of the most-viewed Minecraft song parodies.
  
  
• We spotted some wild human pyramids in India.
  
  
• We tracked some rising searches this week, which included Aaliyah and some airshow tragedies.
  
  
• We shared video from a flash mob arrest.
  
  
• We received video from Libya as rebels arrived in Tripoli.
  
  
• We studied how Ken Block's new hit video was taking off.
  
  
• We discovered how some fans/filmakers brought the game Portal into real life.
  
  
• And ImprovEverywhere created another hit by asking people to "Say Something Nice."

Check back every day for the latest about what's trending on YouTube at: www.YouTube.com/Trends

Kevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "El Delorean de Volver al Futuro en Cabildo y Juramento."

More about → This week's Trends: earthquakes, hurricanes, and portals

BlackBerry Launches Social Music Service

BlackBerry Launches Social Music Service
Blackberry has just launched a new music service that will let BlackBerry users share and discover new tunes with their friends through BlackBerry Messenger. It is an attempt by Research in Motion to improve its BlackBerry Messenger service to compete against Apple and Android. BlackBerry smartphones do not offer a RIM-enabled way to buy music, although audio and other files can be loaded onto the devices from a computer.


Over 5 million people use BBM, which allows BlackBerry users with data plans to pass text messages, pictures and other files to each other without incurring charges from their network carrier. Now added to this is a global music sharing service.

BBM Music is a cloud-based music service where BBM users can share music as well as find new music through a community based library. With BBM Music all BlackBerry Messenger users can build a personal music profile with up to 50 songs. You can refresh your profile by swapping out up to 25 songs each month. Up to 50 tracks from your personal profile are shared with your BBM Music Community, and each member of your community can share up to 50 songs from their profile with you. So with each friend that is added to BBM Music, you grow your music collection, since the songs from their profile become available to you. In other words if someone has 30 friends on BBM Music and each of those friends is sharing 50 tracks, the user’s total BBM Music library will have 1,550 tracks.

Users can select music from a catalog with millions of songs from leading music companies, including EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group.

In addition, you can also check recent updates of all users within your community. This is possible by viewing the app where you can see a visual timeline that shows the recent updates. The apps give you a chronological view of community updates, including who added new friends and which songs were added or removed. You can create multiple playlists from music in your profile as well as all of your friends’ profiles, and you can see which friend contributed each song while it plays. The apps also offers a great tracking feature where you can also comment on a friends' songs and playlists and keep track of how many friends are listening to your music.
Users have access to full tracks and can listen to music offline i.e since music can be saved to phones for offline listening it allows users to access songs even when they don’t have wireless coverage.

Your music profile is accessible with all of your friends on BBM that join BBM Music. What remains to be seen is that whether this added service is convincing enough for users to buy Blackberry smartphones as an alternative to Android or iPhone. The social music service surely makes their phones better than Android or iPhone alternatives.

This is a guest post by Catherine Jones. Catherine writes for www.toyotaplace.com. She enjoys content and writing about the social sphere.

• QR Codes - Do They Really Work?
• BlackBerry Launches Social Music Service

More about → BlackBerry Launches Social Music Service

Today is a Fairytale: Taylor Swift takes your questions on YouTube

From "Tim McGraw" to "Sparks Fly," Taylor Swift has won over fans worldwide with her vocal talent and songwriting skills. In addition to a tremendous fan following, Swift has racked up four Grammys, six CMT Music Awards, thirteen Teen Choice Awards and even the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year award, joning the likes of Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton and The Dixie Chicks. And now she takes your questions on YouTube!

Ever wonder what it’s like to become a major pop star before you’re out of high school -- on the strength of your own songs? Whether you’re cheer captain or on the bleachers, Taylor wants to hear from you and she’s agreed to be fearless in answering!



Starting today, submit written or video queries on Taylor Swift’s channel, and she’ll answer the most popular ones as part of our YouTube Presents program. You have until noon on August 31 to submit your questions and vote on the ones you’d most like to see her answer.

YouTube Presents is an ongoing program dedicated to bringing you live performances and interviews with your favorite artists. Upcoming YouTube Presents events will include artist interviews (with questions provided by the YouTube community), intimate performances at the YouTube offices, and live streams of music festivals.

Stay tuned for more YouTube Presents sessions this fall -- and watch the homepage to see Taylor’s Q&A, which we’ll post as soon as it’s uploaded.

Anna Richardson, Communications Manager, recently watched "Our Song."

More about → Today is a Fairytale: Taylor Swift takes your questions on YouTube

Blogging Tips: 5 Ways to Get More Leads

A lot of online entrepreneurs seem to be having trouble finding potential customers who will buy their services or products nowadays. Well, the main reason behind this problem is the fact that most of these entrepreneurs do not generate a lot of leads through their blogs. Although having leads on social networking pages is good, blog leads are actually much more powerful in the online world.

1. The first thing you need to do in order to generate blog leads would be to find out who your target audience will be. After all, they are the ones who will influence your work in the long run. So, before starting your marketing campaign, try to figure out who you want to market to, and think about their problems and goals.

2. The next thing you need to do is uplift and update your blog. If you want to turn your blog into the main hub where people can find you, then you have to make sure it is always at its best - remember that. If you want to attract even more people, one good suggestion would be to give out free gifts in exchange for their personal information, like their names, phone numbers and email addresses. E-books, video tutorials and reports would be great freebies to give. Just make sure that your target audience will find them useful.

3. Of course, having a blog in itself will not do you any good unless you create valuable content, too. So, once you have targeted your market segment, pick out several of their most urgent problems and try to get certain keywords from them. Then, do some research on how to directly drive traffic from online search engines onto your blog through these keywords. Ideally, you should focus on long-tailed keywords, though, since they won't have as much competition out there as short-tailed keywords do.

4. Once you find several good keywords to use, it would be time for you to create valuable content for your blog. Be unique and make sure your content is always valuable. If you succeed at doing so, then you will never have trouble getting blog leads anymore since your customers will just keep coming back on their own - believe it.

5. If you want to get even more traffic later on, then you can try getting several backlinks, too. Just comment on other people's blogs or submit your own onto various search engines to get them.

Yes, with all of the methods mentioned above, you will have no trouble generating blog leads in no time and building up a list of customers out of them. However, you shouldn't forget to build relationships with your new customers, either; they are sure to appreciate it. Good luck!

This is a guest post by Jenny Parker. Jenny is a writer that focuses on blogging, internet marketing and social media. She also enjoys covering topics on an expat community blog that provides prepaid calling cards and swiss calling cards for international travelers. Take an additional 10% off with coupon code "acc10".

More about → Blogging Tips: 5 Ways to Get More Leads

Music Tuesday: Catching our breath with Zee Avi, Tom Waits and The Decemberists

Whew. Did you catch all that? We’re still trying to recover from five intense days of music mania. That’s right, we relaunched youtube.com/music last Thursday, and throughout the weekend you saw our logo redesigned and a bundle of playlists from folks you might have heard of: Lady Gaga. David Guetta. The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Eminem and Royce Da 5’9. And we had folks like SPIN Magazine, XLR8R and The Needle Drop clueing us in about what music we don’t know about, but should.



In the coming weeks, keep returning to youtube.com/music to discover more new videos, live performances and eye-opening playlists. Not only will our first batch of curators be returning with new features to share, we’ll be adding even more regular features from influential blogs, magazines, video bloggers and others. Keep coming back; we promise you’ll dig it.



Zee Avi curates the YouTube homepage

After featuring a bevy of celebrities over the past week, it’s fitting to come back to a celebrity YouTube helped foster. When Zee Avi posted her first video on YouTube, she had no idea it would make her a star; she just wanted to share a performance with a friend. One album and oodles of views later, she’s back with her second album, ghostbird. Today she shares an extremely lovely acoustic performance of several songs from the new album with us (we’re tripping over the first song, “Anchor,” which she filmed on a rooftop). She also shares some videos that put her in a state of self-described enchantment.







The Decemberists “Calamity Song”

The song is off their most recent album; the video was inspired by a scene in David Foster Wallace’s door-stop of a novel Infinite Jest. It feels to us like a metaphor for bad international decision-making, set on a tennis court with kids playing world leaders. What do you think?







Tom Waits “Bad As Me” Private Listening Party

How do you keep albums private in the digital age? How do you build excitement and mystery in an age devoted to breaking it down? Tom Waits, as always, shows us how.







Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Beirut - O Leaozinho.”

More about → Music Tuesday: Catching our breath with Zee Avi, Tom Waits and The Decemberists

Discover New Blog Post Ideas with Google Analytics Data

Anyone who has kept a blog for some time or who writes for a living has likely experienced that feeling of no inspiration. There’s absolutely nothing left in the tank – even all the rubbish ideas have been used up and you are left feeling unmotivated. It is at this point that sometimes blogs can get abandoned, as constantly thinking up new ideas is hard work and tiring.

My first stop when I get to this stage is usually Google News. Just having a read through some of the top stories can trigger a hook to link one to the theme of your blog, and if you optimise properly, you could even get on top of some of the traffic for that particular story. It is easier said than done, however, and there aren’t always big stories around that are relevant.

What I prefer to do is rely on Google Analytics to work as my inspiration on those uphill days. Chances are you will be getting some longtail traffic in to your blog. If you aren’t, you may need to work on your blog’s optimisation a bit before this technique is useful. By scrutinising your longtail traffic and understanding the terms people are actually using to reach your blog you can get some innovative ideas as to areas to plan your next blog posts around.

So to look at longtail traffic in Analytics you need to go into the Traffic Sources -> Keyword report (or Traffic sources -> sources -> search -> organic if you are using the hideous new version of Analytics). Go to page 10 of referring key terms and have a poke about to see what’s in there. Chances are there will be some quite interesting terms.

For example, a quick look at a random sample of my referring key term report reveals that there could be good mileage in blog posts about cartoon audio effects, music for schools, thunder sound effects and tire skid sound effects. These base ideas can be expanded into popular/entertaining/ interesting topics – best cartoon sound effects, most impressive tire skids in films, top 5 thunderstorm scenes in films, teaching with music in school. Sometimes you hit the jackpot and come across an idea that can be extended into a series of blog posts.

The joy of using this technique is as your blog grows stronger and starts ranking better for more longtail traffic, you will get even more inspiration delivered straight into your Analytics. Obviously you do need to continue using your own ideas to mix it up a bit and keep on top of trending topics but I highly recommend Analytics for those slow days.

This guest post was written for Tweak and Trick by Alex. Alex writes about a range of topics online, including music for TV and production music.

More about → Discover New Blog Post Ideas with Google Analytics Data

This week's Trends: extreme sports, waterspouts, rare snow

Each weekday, we at YouTube Trends take a look at the most interesting videos and cultural phenomena on YouTube as they develop. We want take a moment to highlight some of what we've come across this week:

• We watched New Zealanders enjoyed their "once-in-a-lifetime" snow storm.
  
  
• We dug into one of the more unique ways that people use YouTube to learn.
  
  
• We posted the first in our series exploring different types of YouTube "one-man-bands."
  
  
• We saw some on-the-beach footage from a waterspout in North Carolina.
  
  
• We learned that we've been peeling bananas wrong all these years.
  
  
• We enjoyed how one hostel employee's low-budget commercial went viral.
  
  
• We viewed some very talented dogs.
  
  
• And very popular driver Ken Block released an epic new stunt video with DC Shoes that quickly drew millions of views:

Check back every day for the latest about what's trending on YouTube at: www.YouTube.com/Trends

Kevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Rant."

More about → This week's Trends: extreme sports, waterspouts, rare snow

Running a Blog with your Website

Many companies now have websites, be it a small website that just shows their location and contact details, or a very large information based site, or all singing and dancing shopping cart solution with thousands of items available to order online.

Yet, many companies are reliant on their web designer or a web development company to keep these sites up to date and implement changes that a customer may want them making to their site. Now this is not down to the web company just wanting to make more money, it is down to the fact that a little knowledge can cause a lot of damage, and if you had full access to your site then with a few misplaced clicks, you could cause terrible damage to your website, which your web design company would then have to charge to put right. So, most websites are limited in how you can update them for a good reason.

There is a growing tendency for companies to want to provide daily or weekly updates on their day-to-day business, such as a new product launch, or a new store opening, or an industry accolade that they may have won. If this sounds like you, then how do you go about displaying such information on your website without having to go to your web design company each time?

Well, the simple solution is to get your web development company to design and set up a blog for you. Whilst this does sit on the same server as your website, it is in essence a separate area that you can go in to and update your information (such as new product releases, company news etc.) without having access to any of the files for your main website, thus ensuring one wrong click of the mouse does not result in your whole website going down!

Blogs are just about the best thing going for you to get the latest information across to your customers, as once they are set up, it is very easy to go in and post your latest company news on a daily basis, and the more you post fresh, original and relevant content to your blog, the more likely you are to move your whole website rankings up in search engines.

This is because major search engines love new and original content (not just some article that you have copied from another website), and in general, this is what blogs give to search engines. Yet make no mistake. It can take hard work to take your blog to the top of the search engines, particularly when anyone can set one up for free in under two minutes.

However, whilst setting up a good looking blog need not cost the Earth, you do need to maintain it regularly, as a poorly maintained blog can do your website more harm than good.

So, if you have not got a blog set up on your website already, then why not talk to your web development company today about implementing one for you. A good one will even offer a fully managed service for you if you are too busy to manage it day to day.

This is a guest post by Andy on behalf of Web Design Kent from TME Solutions which is a family-run web design and development agency in Maidstone. TME helps businesses grow online with online marketers and consultants happy to help see websites expand and thrive every step of the way.

More about → Running a Blog with your Website

Get your boat shoes, because America’s Cup is live streaming on YouTube

Through its 160 years of competition, the America's Cup has helped develop the sport of Cup racing and even brought attention to taking better care of our oceans.

Now, you'll have an opportunity to experience the sport in a whole new way as this year's America's Cup World Series is being live streamed on YouTube at the America's Cup channel. With on board cameras and microphones in HD quality, you can see and hear the crews live as they attempt difficult maneuvers and battle for nautical supremacy.



If you miss any of the live action, you can also see recorded footage of the day’s action on the America’s Cup YouTube channel.

We invite you to get on board and see sailing in a way you've never seen it before, on the wide open seas of YouTube.

Seth Frank, YouTube Strategic Partner Development Manager, recently watched “Flying on the Water"

More about → Get your boat shoes, because America’s Cup is live streaming on YouTube

YouTube.com/music is your ever-changing guide to music

YouTube has videos across the entire spectrum of music, from current pop hits to classic tracks to obscure but wonderful sounds. But how do you find that next piece of musical gold? To help with this task we’re re-launching our YouTube Music page with a host of new features to help guide you on your audio-visual quest, and several guest curators to help out as well.

On YouTube.com/music you can now find:

• recommended videos and artists based on the music videos you’re watching


• local concert listings in your area paired with artist videos


• the YouTube Top 100 - your invaluable source to the most popular music based on what the community is viewing

To help you get more into music on YouTube we’ve also partnered with music experts and tastemakers to provide you with daily playlists and picks. In the coming weeks you’ll be able to check out curations from SPIN, Vice, XLR8R and more. Some of YouTube’s music vloggers will also find a new home on the page, like the “Internet’s busiest music nerd,” Anthony Fantano of The Needle Drop.

Finally, you may have noticed the electric guitar adorning the YouTube logo today. It’s there today to celebrate the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Guide to Rock, who have the first hand-picked playlist on the new music page. Over the next five days some of your favorite music stars will be sharing a personal guide to their genre, including David Guetta’s Guide to Electronica on Friday, Lady Gaga’s Guide to Pop on Saturday and Eminem & Royce Da 5’9”’s Guide to Hiphop on Monday. Look out for a new music-based YouTube logo each day, and clicking on it will bring you straight to the music page.

Tim Partridge, Music Marketing Manager recently watched “Check out the new youtube.com/music.”

More about → YouTube.com/music is your ever-changing guide to music

The Basics of Lead Management Software

Lead management software is any technology that helps businesses seek out, obtain and manage sales and marketing accounts. Lead management can range from a method used to create new business to the process companies use to direct their customer relationship strategies.

As a faction of the broader customer relationship management industry, the lead management software itself enables businesses to efficiently manage their leads by creating structures for customer inquiries, data organization, and sales processes. With the overall goal of increasing revenue, companies implement lead management software to streamline their sales tactics thereby targeting more likely potential customers.

Lead management goes hand-in-hand with brand development and marketing management as companies that implement software to organize leads have an end goal of targeting more focused customers and generating more sales overall. By monitoring customer relationships, lead management software helps to complete sales in a more efficient manner by establishing practices that provide connectivity between marketing and sales departments.

Lead management software can enhance an organization’s ability to get data from customer interactions. It is all about communication, lead management software can help organizations to better manage customer interactions, amass greater business deals, nurture leads, and more.

These are some of the basic advantages of lead management software:

1. Updates information directly. Lead management software enters data and keeps it up to date frequently so that it does not need to be done manually.


2. Lead management software tracks and analyzes avenues of advertising and marketing. It helps you to figure out what needs improvement and what avenues are being most effective.


3. The software can customize and distribute to sales reps automatically, which can help turn potential sales into actual sales.


4. The software can also be used to ensure uniformity. The software can use uniform methods to keep high standards with follow-ups that can lead to more sales.


5. The software can also track lead information to determine its quality and potential.


6. The software keeps track of history in order to keep up good relationships. It will also inform sales reps of the next step to take in the sales process.


7. The lead management software can save time because it is maintaining lead information. The time usually used for all the things the software does can be used to maximize selling time.


8. The software helps eliminate disorganization and the loss of leads. The oversights that usually allow those things to happen are decreased so it is easier to keep track of leads.

This is a guest post by Madison Hewerdine. Madison is an author who writes about lead management software and has a passion for singing.

More about → The Basics of Lead Management Software

7 Wi-Fi Tweaks to Boost Your Speed

Chances are if you have a wireless internet connection at your home, you have had some trouble with the speed of the connection at least once before. That being said, a slow wireless connection can be frustrating to deal with. You are probably paying good money to your internet service provider, so slow speed is something you should not have to deal with, right? Well, the truth is wireless speed can be affected by a number of things. Luckily there are some Wi-Fi tweaks you can try that should help boost your speed and get you rolling in no time.



1. Reposition Your Router



The position of your wireless router plays a major role in the speed and strength of your wireless connection. If you are having trouble, you should try to reposition your router in a centrally located area, where the signal can equally reach each wireless device in your house. If your router is near an outside wall, try to move it closer to the middle of your house. Routers that are placed near outside walls can send some of the signal outside, which can risk your wireless connection’s strength and speed.



2. Purchase a Wireless Signal Repeater



Adding a wireless signal repeater to your home network can greatly increase the speed of your connection. A repeater works by extending your signal without having to add any additional wires. All you have to do is simply place the wireless repeater in a location that is between your router and your wireless device(s). It will instantly boost the wireless signal that is sent from the router to your devices, meaning faster speeds for you.



3. Install a New Antenna



Most wireless routers come standard with an omnidirectional antenna, meaning it broadcasts the wireless signal in a circular radius to reach various places in your home. If your router is in a perfectly centered location between all of your wireless devices, this is probably fine. But if your router isn’t perfectly centered among devices, you should think about replacing the existing antenna with a stronger one, known as a high-gain antenna. You can usually remove your old antenna and replace it with one of these stronger antennas to boost your signal strength, therefore increasing the speed of your connection. Another perk of a high-gain antenna is its ability to focus the wireless signal in any direction you prefer.

4. Use One Brand of Equipment



You may not think that using different brands of equipment can reduce the speed of your wireless connection, but in reality it can. If you use different brands of equipment, your components may not work as efficiently. This is because many manufacturers of wireless networking equipment pre-install enhancements in all of their products. These enhancements can boost speed, but will only work if products from the same manufacturer are used simultaneously. If you are using various brands of equipment and your speed is suffering, this is definitely worth a try.



5. Reduce Frequency Interference



Many household electronics, such as cordless telephones and baby monitors, run at the same frequency as wireless routers. This means that these electronic devices can interfere with the wireless signal that is being broadcast from your router, which can affect the speed and performance of your connection. Check the box of your router to see what frequency it runs at, and try to avoid using other electronic devices that operate at the same frequency. You can also try to change the channel on your router to avoid frequency interference.



6. Check for Firmware or Driver Updates Regularly



The manufacturers of wireless routers and network adapters often release firmware or driver updates that can improve the function of your wireless connection. You can find and download these updates at the manufacturers’ websites. Updates are usually done to fix issues, add features, and strengthen your equipment’s performance. Check for these updates on a regular basis to make sure your firmware and drivers are always kept up to date.



7. Secure Your Wireless Network



If your network is not properly secured, neighbors could be using your signal. This can reduce the speed of your connection because you are in a sort, sharing the wireless signal. Set up secure passwords and some sort of wireless encryption that will prevent anyone else from accessing your wireless network. All of these Wi-Fi tweaks can greatly boost the speed of your wireless connection. If one of them does not seem to do the trick, try another or even a multitude of options. It may take a little time and patience, but once you figure out what works to speed up your connection, you will be happy you put forth the effort.



Guest post from Karen Schweitzer. Karen writes about internet service for InternetService.net.

More about → 7 Wi-Fi Tweaks to Boost Your Speed

Creating new opportunities for publishers and songwriters

YouTube has become a thriving music ecosystem and a place for established and emerging singers and songwriters to find an audience. Today, we’re happy to announce an agreement with two leading U.S representatives of music publishers -- the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) and its subsidiary Harry Fox Agency (HFA) -- that will help more music publishers, and the songwriters they represent, make more money from use of their compositions in YouTube videos uploaded by fans.

We already have deals in place with a number of music publishers in the U.S. and around the world, and today’s deal offers more choice for rights holders in how they manage use of their songs. Going forward, the 46,000 music publishers already affiliated with HFA will be able to license the musical compositions they represent for use by the YouTube community. When these publishers allow YouTube to run ads alongside user generated videos that incorporate their compositions, the publishers, and the songwriters they represent, can make money. We’ll also be working with HFA to invite other publishers to sign up, even if they’re not affiliated with HFA.

Our Content ID system allows us to identify the works of these songwriters whether the compositions appear in an original sound recording or in a cover version, using information provided to us by the publishers. This means that more songwriters will be able to share in more of the revenue that the YouTube community’s creativity yields. It’s simple for publishers to opt in to this licensing opportunity, and advances in our technology help publishers to find even more performances of their songs, providing the opportunity for more revenue. Content ID is used today by 2000+ partners including every major US music publisher, record label, network broadcaster, and movie studio.

While this deal is only with the publishers, it will also benefit recording artists and record labels. It’s been YouTube’s policy to run ads alongside videos with commercial music only when the copyright holders for both the sound recording and the composition have authorized YouTube to do so. We’ve long had agreements with all four major record labels as well as dozens of independent labels, and now that we are broadening our coverage with more publishers, we’ll be able to create more revenue streams for all of them.

With today’s deal and advances in Content ID technology, we’re continuing our recognition of songwriters for their artistic contribution by supporting them with an additional revenue stream to help their future creative pursuits.

Elizabeth Moody, Head of Strategic Partner Development for music, recently watched "The Joy Formidable - Whirring live at Lollapalooza, August 7th, 2011."

More about → Creating new opportunities for publishers and songwriters

Sailing ships with the Sydney Opera House

YouTube and the Sydney Opera House developed a relationship during the YouTube Symphony Orchestra from our shared love of music, and we continue to look at ways to bring new music experiences to you. Victoria Doidge, Director of Marketing and Communications at the Sydney Opera House, is our guest blogger today to discuss their recent project.


Last year we set out to create a piece of content that would celebrate Sydney Opera House’s place in the global cultural community—one of the busiest performing arts centre in the world with 8.2 million visitors a year. Even from the inception of The House, master architect Jorn Utzon was committed to pushing boundaries, and as an example they had to invent a new crane to build his model.

So to create something in The House’s name, we sought to democratize the artists and the spirit of The House to as broad an audience as possible. This notion of accessibility and democratizing the content, like our partnership with Google on the YouTube Symphony Orchestra 2011, was critical to how we would measure success and why we chose to release the clip on YouTube.

We started with a song, Nick Cave’s The Ship Song, considered by many to be one of Australia’s truly great ballads. When we approached artists to volunteer to perform, we found hundreds who were excited to join: Neil Finn, Paul Kelly, Angus and Julia Stone, Martha Wainwright and Daniel Johns, to name a few. To bring it all together, we had these artists perform and accompanied by a full orchestra and opera choir.

For the final result director Paul Goldman created a voyeuristic journey through the venues, rehearsal rooms and back stages of the House. Paul has a unique skill for capturing the personal nuances of the many artists in this clip, and Elliot Wheeler complemented the video with a powerful soundtrack.



We’ve heard positive feedback from Australians at home and all over the world, telling us that it’s brought out pride and even tears. We’re thankful to be able to share this with you, and think our beloved Utzon would be pleased.

Victoria Doidge, Director of Marketing and Communications at the Sydney Opera House, recently watched “The Ship Song Project - Making Of.”

More about → Sailing ships with the Sydney Opera House

Music Tuesday: Jeff Bridges and other actors-turned-musicians

We’ve been a little obsessed with the intersection between film and music on youtube.com/music this week -- we kicked off Monday with a playlist of music videos by the acclaimed director Spike Jonze, who just directed Kanye West and Jay-Z’s easy, playful video for “Otis” and is also known for his work on the big screen, most recently for Where The Wild Things Are. And then there’s Jeff Bridges...



The Big Lebowski...Sings

Actors can convince us of a lot of things, but historically speaking, it’s pretty hard to make us believe they’re actually musicians. (Remember William Shatner’s “music” career?) But after his portrayal of a washed-up country singer in Crazy Heart, Jeff Bridges got inspired to go back to a recording studio -- which he built on his own land -- and start writing songs again. With the expert support of producer T Bone Burnett, Bridges is proving himself to be more than an actor playing a part. His first single from his new album is catchy, smart and -- best of all -- convincing. Today we feature the man better known as “the dude” sharing a little bit about the music that has influenced and inspired him.







Actors: Wannabe Musicians?

In the spirit of Jeff Bridges getting his songwriting on, we thought we’d look at the track record of other actors who tried their hand at the music biz. You might be surprised by how many there are: from Keanu Reeves and Ryan Gosling to Minnie Driver and Zooey Deschanel, a lot of thespians have tried to cross the divide -- with mixed results. Wondering who soars and who falls flat? Only one way to find out: watch!







Fool’s Gold: Wild Window

Back in 2009, the L.A. band Fool’s Gold convinced reluctant indie rockers that they actually could enjoy music that wasn’t in English -- in part because the unholy mongrelism of the band's debut album was just too compelling to ignore. (Perhaps that was due to the incongruousness of a singer crooning in Hebrew over guitar licks that came straight of the Sahara.) The focus has changed on their follow-up Leave No Trace -- vocalist Luke Top sings primarily in English and the once-sprawling collective has become a tight five-piece. But if this charming video is any indication, change is a good thing.







Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Feist - How Come You Never Go There.”

More about → Music Tuesday: Jeff Bridges and other actors-turned-musicians

Facebook's Recent Updates: Trying to fight off Google Plus

Gone are the days that Facebook was only available to college students. More and more people are joining daily and it seems the average age range is spanning in both directions. Users are now creating profiles at younger and older ages than ever before. So when it comes to social media, Facebook is king right? Well they are sure putting up one heck of a fight to stay on top.

Most recently, Google Plus had come along the social network scene giving Facebook a run for its money. What seems to attract many people to Google Plus is that it's the “shiny new toy,” so to speak and it seems to be more simplistic, and perhaps more intuitive, in its layout. As a result of these factors, Google Plus appears to be drawing in more users than other social media networks and really, should we be surprised? It seems Google has got a handle on doing a thing or two right when it comes to gaining a following.

So is this the beginning of the end for Facebook? Will it be similar to what Facebook did to MySpace?

Well, Facebook has been noticing this brand new social network rising up from the shadows, and as its result, it seems to be stepping up its game by creating some recent updates that will possibly fight back against its social media rival. Get ready ladies and gentlemen, the boxing gloves are on.

One of the most notable recent Facebook updates planned is the addition of an online video chat feature which will be integrating the same properties of Skype by adding the Skype Online Chat client function. While Google Plus also has this feature with multiple people chatting in one conference, Facebook plans to allow only two people converse in a video chat. Is this a strength or a weakness? It’s likely that time will tell when the results begin filling in. Many people are hoping that Facebook will raise the cap amount to more than two people in a single conference. While it hasn't been announced that Facebook is planning to raise the amount anytime soon, I guess only time will tell.

Another recent update is that Facebook has also added another new feature called Group Chat.

With the Group Chat feature, users can send a private message to as many friends or family that they want to communicate in a group without either starting up a new message for each friend or family member or even having to sign into Facebook's Instant Message feature. The Group feature is also great for starting up meeting appointments and many other tasks. This brand new feature has become a very popular and most used accessory in this social media platform to many.

These two updates seem to be the only real effective and recent updates that Facebook has announced, but as each day passes, it appears that Google Plus is beginning to dominate the competition altogether.

While Google Plus is slowly planning on adding new features in the possible future, who knows how the war between Facebook and Google Plus will really go down. But then again, don’t we all appreciate seeing an epic battle every now and again.

This is a guest post by Olivia Williams. Olivia Williams is an Internet marketer and a contributing writer for amazingdomains.co.uk, which offers a variety of domain names for purchase for businesses or personal websites ranging from weddings to shopping and home domains. 

More about → Facebook's Recent Updates: Trying to fight off Google Plus

YouTube Town Hall by the numbers: It’s the economy, stupid

Over the last two months, we’ve been taking a snapshot of U.S. political opinions via the YouTube Town Hall. YouTube users have asked questions of members of Congress and then voted on their answers while focusing on the value of the idea rather than the party of the speaker (Town Hall doesn’t reveal party identification until after a vote is submitted). We received 50 videos from representatives across the U.S., and the videos have been viewed a cumulative 1.3 million times.

The numbers are in so you can see how the parties, and ideas, fared. Check out the infographic below for the full story, but the top level highlights are:

• Republicans received the most views, with over a million views total
• The five topics Americans wanted to hear most about were the economy, energy, Afghanistan, education, and the budget
• Democrat’s videos received the most votes from Town Hall visitors
• The most viewed video overall is Senator Jerry Moran’s answer to a question on which sectors are most important for American economic growth.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

As you can see in the graphic above, we also analyzed transcripts of the YouTube Town Hall videos to identify which words are used most by each party. On the topic of Afghanistan, Republicans talked about progress, withdrawal, and success, whereas their Democratic counterparts talked about war, mission, and security. On education, Democrats mentioned technology and students, while Republicans talked about performance and college.

This month, members of Congress are again stepping up to the plate to answer the top-voted user questions:

• BUDGET: If 5-10% of spending was cut from the anticipated 2012 federal budget and matched with an equivalent amount in tax increases we’d cut the federal deficit in half. Why not do it?



• TRANSPARENCY: Can basic information on legislators' productivity be measured and reported in an accessible, comparable format? Categories for working hours could include: Dialogue with constituents, dialogue with peers, campaigning, legislating.



• AFGHANISTAN: Why are we spending billions in Iraq and Afghanistan to build up their infrastructure when we could be using that money to convert our own infrastructure?

Check back next month at the YouTube Town Hall Leaderboard to see how people voted, and ask your questions of Congress here!



Will Houghteling, YouTube News and Politics, recently watched “High Tide or Low Tide”

More about → YouTube Town Hall by the numbers: It’s the economy, stupid

Health Tips for Bloggers: Stay Healthy While you Blog

Sitting most of the day is not good for your health. Experts say it is better to stand rather than sit while you go about your daily work. This usually means raising your computer monitor to eye-level, and elevating the keyboard and mouse to a height that is easy to use from a standing position. This has led to the growing trend of creating “standing office workstations.” However, there are other things bloggers can do to counteract the effects of sitting all day.




You are what you eat



Your diet is important. If you spend most of your time sitting down, you may be gaining fat. Schedule meals on your calendar, and treat them like any other appointment. This prevents binging on fast food. In addition, prepare your own food, so you will know what is in it. Drink loose-leaf tea, which is better for fat-loss than coffee. It is also good for increasing energy levels. Control the amount of snacks you eat during the day.



Avoid snacks with starches and sugars.



With the multitude of sites and apps concerning calorie counting, maintaining your weight and making sure you eat the right things couldn’t be easier. If you don’t want to stretch so far as to be counting calories on a regular basis, simply being careful and not opting for that regular unhealthy snack can make a big difference to a blogger’s wellbeing.



Back problems

Prevent back problems with the following tips. Get a chair that lets you put your feet on the floor while keeping your hips and knees level. Use a footstool to accomplish this, if necessary. Every half hour get up and go for a short walk. This is also a convenient time to drink some water, so keep a bottle nearby. Drinking water will help you to be more alert.



Exercise at your desk



Here are a few exercises you can do at your desk. To stretch the back, roll your shoulders backward in a circle a few times and then relax. Stretch your neck every so often by looking right and left. Tilt your head from side to side, then backward and forward. The more adventurous blogger should consider getting an exercise ball to use as a chair. This will help to keep your spine in proper alignment. You will find that it is easier to do stretching exercises when sitting on one of these. Also, it’s a good idea to stretch your hands and fingers in between all that blogging!



Go for a run



It’s a new fad that seems taking off in offices around the world. You can go for a job during your break or maybe even at the end of the day around the office block. It helps if there’s a shower at your work though!



Other health issues for bloggers



Lessen the possibility of getting headaches and eye irritation. Every 30 minutes or so, look away from your computer screen. Focus on other objects in the room. It could be anything, a clock or a desk, for instance.



Pay attention to your oral-health. Prevent gum disease by brushing and flossing your teeth carefully. Gum disease is four times more prevalent in smokers than in non-smokers. Tobacco use of any kind will increase the risk of gum-disease, so try not to skip out and have a cigarette.



Making a few basic changes as suggested above can go a long way toward keeping bloggers healthy. Things such as scheduling when you eat, drinking water, making sure your chair is ergonomic and doing various exercises at your desk can be easily included in your work routine. Get started today for a healthier tomorrow.



This is a guest post by Richard. Richard is a freelance writer who produces content related to health and technology. He mainly writes on issues related to cosmetic dentistry. Pay him a visit at @thefreshhealth.

More about → Health Tips for Bloggers: Stay Healthy While you Blog

August’s On The Rise nominees

Each month, we identify four YouTube Partners who are growing their subscribers but haven’t yet reached the 100,000 mark for our On The Rise program. You vote for your favorite in the top right corner of this blog, and the winner will be featured on the YouTube homepage and the videos channel.

For August, we’ve got a mix of educators, creative folks and personalities. Check out the nominees’ videos below, and then cast your vote in the upper right-hand corner of this blog by August 22 at 6pm PT. We’ll announce the winner on August 29.

TheGeekGroup
The Geek Group describes itself as "a non-profit science and technology educational organization, creating a peer group and support network for anyone with a sincere and passionate desire to learn." These videos get you hands-on views of electronics, mechanics and even some retro technology.



JasonMundayMusic
Musician and producer Jason Munday weaves video games, Harry Potter and cartoons into his upbeat, dancey songs. From the Ministry of Magic Music to collaborations with other YouTubers to his solo works, Jason’s channel could be just what you need for those musical/gaming cravings.



RobynStamps
On her channel Robyn shares her love of stamps, all things crafts and the color pink. She has hundreds of videos with easy-to-follow ideas on craft making, as well as vlogs with family and friends.



MilTownKid
Casey aka MilTownKid brings you “random video creations,” ranging from deep thoughts to his martial arts passion. Expect to see vlogging on Milwaukee happenings, new websites to check out and interesting people Casey meets along his way.



Past winners like DestinWS2, CuteGirlsHairstyles and ThePianoGuys have since been featured in the news, performed at VidCon and more, all thanks to your support. If you’re interested in checking out more rising YouTube Partners, visit our On The Rise channel, which features nominees, trending partners and monthly blog winners. Look for more featured partners on the YouTube Browse page.

Devon Storbeck, Partner Support, recently watched “Mud is Interesting - Smarter Every Day 18.”

More about → August’s On The Rise nominees