11 Tumblr Tips for Power Users

Once you’ve mastered the basics of Tumblr, consider learning a few more tricks to make the blogging experience even easier.

From browsing the dashboard to editing and publishing, the tips listed above can be valuable to seasonedTumblr users like you — especially if you juggle more than one account.

Tumblr’s minimal design may seem pretty straightforward, but the site has a few hidden tricks up its sleeve. Some may have been hiding right under your fingertips this whole time.

1. Mass Editing

To quickly edit multiple posts at the same time, use the Mega-Editor.

The tool looks just like your archive, except you can select or delete multiple posts, and edit and add tags.

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2. Hot Keys

Certain keys help you browse through the Dashboard more quickly.

To move forward, press the "J" key. The "K" key moves you backward.

You can also like the current post by pressing the "L" key.

To reblog instantly, without leaving the dashboard or tagging, click the reblog button while pressing the "Alt" key. If you need to tag, press "Ctrl" instead.

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3. Posting Without Internet

Sounds impossible, but you can do a few things on Tumblr via SMS.

Once you've grabbed the personal Tumblr email from the settings page of your blog, send a blog post with tags, a photo, quote or any other feature. Tumblr will automatically detect it and send to your blog.

Or post audio (once you've configured) by calling 1-866-584-6757.

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4. Queued Posts

To rearrange queued posts, click the up and down arrows and drag to the right order.

You can also hover over the arrows and press the "Alt" key, then click. The post will automatically move to the top of your queue.

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5. Original Posts

There is a small fold at the top-right corner of every post on the dashboard. It's easy to miss because it only folds when you hover the mouse over it.

Leave the mouse hovering to see what time it was published, and click to view the original post on the user's blog. This is a valuable tip for anyone who has lost something in the dashboard.

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6. Quick Engagement

When you hover over a user's profile picture in the dashboard, a small "i" offers you different ways to engage.

Depending on what features the user has available, you can ask a question, send fan mail and unfollow or follow a person, without leaving the dashboard.

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7. What Your Friends Like

Want to know what posts your friends like? (This trick only works for public Tumblrs.)

Minus the brackets, use the following URL: http://www.tumblr.com/liked/by/[insert username].

You can also do the same with archives by typing http://[insert username].tumblr.com/archives.

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8. Personal Stats

If you manage more than one Tumblr, you don't need to switch back and forth to view followers, drafts, messages and queues.

Press the "Alt" key and click on the tab as a shortcut.

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9. Search

Not every Tumblr has the search bar available.

To get around it, type this URL: http://[insert username].tumblr.com/search/[search term].

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10. Let Followers Answer

When you end any post with a question mark, a box appears to the right that allows other users to answer.

Even if you're really excited or enraged and add a "?!," the box still appears.

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11. Short Codes

If you're not a fan of Bitly's new redesign, this tip might be useful.

On the edit screen, pull a short code from any published post when your Tumblr is synced to Twitter or Facebook.

What hidden tricks do you find useful on Tumblr? Share your master wisdom in the comments below.

Reference:  http://is.gd/DMu2T
I

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How to Use Social Media for Employee Referrals

The war for talent is more competitive than ever. Every company wants the best and the brightest on its team, but traditional candidate sourcing methods may not cut it anymore. As companies, we have to be bold, we have to put ourselves on the line and, most importantly, we have to sell our culture harder than in the past. 

That’s where you, the already-employed professional, come in. More than ever, recruiters and hiring managers are looking to their internal network to help them find the right fit. After all, the real cost of a hire can be around $100,000, when you factor in the non-direct costs, such as training and the productivity lost in finding a new employee and bringing him up to speed.

Many workers are passive candidates, meaning that they are silently looking or waiting for an attractive offer. And, there’s a large chance your friends are lumped into this group.

Pair that with the explosion of social networking and we have a recipe for talent acquisition success. Apart from a status update here and there, you can use social media to help your friends find jobs and earn anywhere between $1,000 to $15,000 as a referral bonus from your company. Check out these tips to get the most out of your friend circle.

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1. Look Beyond Your First Degree of Connections

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No matter what industry you’re in, you probably have tons of connections through your social networks. However, it may be in your company’s best interest to go past the base-level when you’re trying to help your friends find jobs. The right fit may lie beyond your direct connections, but you’d never know this if you just skim the surface.

Many social networks allow you to see beyond your primary network. For example, Facebook “suggests” friends while LinkedIn not only shows second and third degrees, but it also may bring you to the right candidate based on their employment history. This tactic allows you to reach thousands of potential candidates, which is probably a lot more efficient than scouring your friends or contacts list.

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2. Find a Perfectly Catered Match

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Do you think that all you need to do is tweet out a job listing to your friends? There’s actually more to it. Social media also comes with access to deeper technology and analytical insights, so take advantage of it.

You can easily search for the right connections on your social networks by looking for specific keywords. For instance, say your company is looking for a candidate with an extensive design background who knows Photoshop and is located in San Francisco. You can search for these job-specific keywords on your social networks to find a more catered match. Once you’ve found these matches, you can then, of course, check out their profiles and job history to ensure they are the perfect candidate to be your new co-worker.

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Show Off Your Company Culture

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You know your workplace better than anyone else. So, use social media to show why your organization and company culture is inviting and forward-thinking and how it helped progress the careers of its employees.

For instance many companies are using video testimonials to give a better insight into the journey a candidate takes within the company. This video could then, in turn, be posted on your social networks and blog. The aim here is to bring the organization down to a “human” level, free of typical corporate jargon. It makes it easier for your contacts to realize what your company is all about, and why they should consider the particular position. In a similar vein, recruitment videos, such as the one Twitter recently made, have been extremely successful in reaching potential candidates and giving them a better idea of what it’s like to work at a company.

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Share the Bonuses

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Most companies have a significant referral bonus if the contacts you suggest get hired, and the best way to reach beyond your direct contacts could be to pay it forward. If there’s a $5,000 referral bonus at your company, pick some of your well connected contacts and offer them half the bonus if they know anyone that might be a good fit — you’ll be surprised how many people are connected to talented people looking for new opportunities.

In addition, you can make the process easier and help your friends out by using job matching platforms. Many of these actually allow you to analyze what kind of worker someone may be based on their social network value and work experience. By using these platforms, you gain something that keyword searching can’t give you: thorough insight and background information based on the networks your friends are using on an everyday basis. After all, you can learn a lot about a person by what they’re saying on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If it matches what your company is saying, you may be on your way to finding the perfect colleague.

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Conclusion

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The combination of all of these gives your organization access to the highly sought-after professionals who’ll likely stick around for the long haul. Plus, you have the opportunity to help a friend who may be able to bring real value to your company, which is the ultimate goal for anyone looking to fill a coveted spot. It’s a win-win.

What do you think? What are some other ways you can use social media to help your friends get jobs?

Reference:  http://is.gd/ywuwn3

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It’s Facebook Election Week: How You Can Vote on Your Privacy

It’s time to exercise your democratic right — not at the ballot booth, but on Facebook.

The social network is calling on users to vote on which privacy rules will govern the site. As in most elections, you only really have two choices: the current documents, or new ones drawn up with the help of user feedback. 

So what’s different about the new privacy rules? Comparing the current and new rules side-by-side, one thing jumped out at us: the new Data Use Policy. It contains an expanded list of activities in which user data can be collected by Facebook — whether you’re interacting with an app or something else on the site.

The company states that “if more than 30% of all active registered users vote, the results will be binding. If turnout is less than 30%, the vote will be advisory.”

In other words, some 300 million users will have to vote to make this definitive. That’s roughly the same number as the population of the U.S.

Voting started this Friday and ends the following week, Friday June 8 at 9 a.m. PT. You can vote here.

In March, Facebook made changes to its Statement of Rights and Responsibilities (commonly referred to as terms of use) and Data Use Policy, which outlines how Facebook controls user privacy and protects user safety on the site, among other things. It asked users for feedback on the new documents and received 150,000 comments. Facebook incorporated that feedback into the new policies, and it’s now asking users to vote on which policy you prefer, current or new.

The company said a lot of users simply asked for expanded explanations on certain sections, which it did in the new policies.

Right away, you’ll notice that the Privacy Policy is now listed as the Data Use Policy. Facebook made the change last fall, and they’re now making all the wording consistent. In the new Data Use Policy and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, Facebook goes into greater detail about user privacy and explains what the changes in the documents’ wording means for users.

The new Data Use Policy will also include an entire section with examples just to make things more clear. Facebook says the “vast majority” of changes between the two documents are changes in wording and how sections are explained, not how user data is captured.

Facebook held a site governance vote in 2009. A spokesperson from Facebook said 665,654 votes were cast to support the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities and Principles, which won by a margin of 74.37%.

Are you going to vote? For which policy and why? Let me know in the comments.

Reference: http://is.gd/SaWyKs

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5 Ways Facebook Can Boost Corporate Volunteering

With all the news swirling around Facebook’s messy IPO, it’s important to remember one thing: nothing has changed about the site…yet. Despite shareholder lawsuits, NASDAQ fumbles and a stock price faceplant, Facebook is still a powerful tool that can be used to affect positive social change. And when it comes to corporate volunteering, Facebook is a priceless way to stimulate employee engagement.

Similar to Pinterest, Facebook offers a dynamic way to gather support while highlighting your company’scorporate social responsibility efforts. Unlike Pinterest, however, Facebook provides the ability to make your content available strictly to those who join your fan page, which you can create exclusively for your corporate volunteer program.  Deciding ahead of time whether you want to use Facebook as a broad promotional vehicle or tailored outlet for your employees will help drive your privacy settings.

Haven’t begun using Facebook to drive corporate volunteering? Here are five ways to get started:

1. Display Purpose: Without a clear goal in mind, corporate volunteers won’t understand why they should be using your program’s Facebook page. State your reason for this page in the “About” section and make it clear in the content as well. If you’re crafting the page to highlight your corporate volunteering efforts then stay focused on that topic.
2. Tell Everyone: Most social media efforts that fail do so because the team forgot to inform their targeted users about the new feed, page or site. If you want employees to join your efforts, highlight the Facebook page within your volunteer management software, in your newsletter or on any other marketing material that gets distributed internally.
3. Be Active: There’s a reason members of your community joined the page — they want to learn more about your corporate volunteer program. Remind them with content that encourages employees to dive in and get involved.  Fun tips on how to help out or stats on the importance of giving can go a long way, but remember to update the page daily or else it will lose its impact. Respond quickly to users who interact on the page.
4. Show Off: People are encouraged by others’ goodwill. Your program’s Facebook page is a great way to get the inspiration flowing, with minimal work. Post pictures at the next volunteer outing and you’ll get the ball rolling; other followers will “Like” the picture and send it to their Facebook communities, which will encourage still others to join your page and volunteering efforts. Then lather, rinse, and repeat often.
5. Get Help: After you’ve built your page, it’s important to tap into the energy of your members. Sending out challenges to your page (“we need 100 volunteers for our next blood drive, can you help?”) can motivate your community to assist.  Point users to the right volunteer management tool so they can sign up without forcing you to coordinate and keep people involved; if users see that you’re close to your goal, you’ll be surprised at how much support comes from your online community.

Reference: http://is.gd/zlJmHn

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Are Teens Beginning to Prefer Twitter to Facebook?

Did your teenagers suddenly stop using their Facebook accounts? They may not be the only young adults who’ve lost interest in the largest social network on Earth, according to arecent report by The Los Angeles Times. 

There are many reasons why teens could start visiting Facebook less, including the fact that parents keep tabs on their kids on the social network. On sites like Twitter and Tumblr, they can use any pseudonym, and they don’t have to feel pressured to add people they don’t want to add, even if they know them in real life.

Groups of friends also find themselves having fun on Twitter trying to make hashtags trend. In fact, according to a recent Pew Internet survey, 31% of all internet users 18 to 24 years of age use Twitter, though we imagine some of them have inactive accounts.

With 900 million users, it’s unlikely that Facebook will be dethroned as the king of all social networks in the near future. But if teens truly are beginning to lose interest in it, the company has to find ways to keep things fresh in order to avoid becoming MySpace Wasteland 2.0.

Reference: http://is.gd/YJDgII

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