Desktop Search: How to Find a File or Email Quickly

Last week, almost out of the blue, a prospective corporate client phoned about a proposal they’d asked me to submit well over a year ago. I was happy, and a bit stunned, to get the call. A year? The CFO who was my contact promptly launched into discussion of my proposal, which he clearly had right in front of him. I didn’t, of course, have my copy in front of me.

Thanks to a desktop search tool, I had it 10 seconds later. I knew I’d archived the proposal, and using normal keystrokes I could have found it…eventually. It was great not to have to wait for eventually.

If you don’t yet have a desktop search tool, the good news is that there are several good ones out there that are both free of cost and apparently free of spyware (some free software plants spyware on your computer, tracking the websites you visit and other actions you take).

Desktop search tools track and search files on your computer so that you can locate them easily in a few seconds by entering a filename or a few key words from the email, contact or file. A good desktop search tool helps you simplify and be more productive by eliminating the need to search through file folders for something you haven’t used in a while.

I’ve used three desktop search tools that are quick and powerful enough to warrant mention here:

X1. This is the one I use currently and it’s the one that found my proposal in less than 10 seconds. As of last month, the basic version is completely free.

Copernic. Also free, it’s powerful and effective and I used it until I found X1. It’s interface is a bit different than X1’s and you should look at both to see what works best for your own brain.

Google Desktop. When initially available in 2004, Google’s free tool created concern among privacy experts about some of its less-than-secure features. I haven’t found any recent buzz about this, though, so tend to believe that those concerns have been sufficiently addressed.

Questions about desktop search? Leave a comment below!

Mediation Business Promotion with Postage Stamps: Introducing PhotoStamps

Many of you know we have two dogs, a giant Newfoundland cross named Hugo and a wee Shih Tzu named Luigi. When we found Luigi running down a busy road 10 years ago, I campaigned to keep him when his owner was nowhere to be found. My husband’s response, essentially: Not a chance. We had always had large dogs and Rod did not want to be seen or put up with a “rat dog.”

Things change. Within a few months Luigi (formerly Rat Dog) and Rod became inseparable and they still are. Since Rod’s 6′3″ and Luigi’s nine pounds, they’re quite a pair.

So when I heard of PhotoStamps, I knew just what I had to do. I ordered a set of stamps as a gift for Rod. And they feature little Luigi. Yes, they’re real USPS-approved stamps. All you need to have your very own is a credit or debit card and an uploadable digital photo or graphic file.

While not cheap (about $1 per stamp with shipping if you buy only 1 sheet of 20 stamps), the price declines the more stamps you purchase. They’re being marketed as gifts, for use in special event mailings (weddings, birth announcements), and for special mediation business promotion mailings (with your logo, for example).

I see myself as a periodic purchaser of their cool product. What about you—how would use them? Leave a comment below!

[tags]marketing mediation[/tags]

Technology in the Mediation Room: Innovation from Colorado Divorce Mediators

Lawrence King of Colorado’s Divorce Resolutions was kind enough to let me know of a new way his firm is using technology in the mediation room.

In Colorado Divorce Mediators Innovate Family Mediation with Large Television Monitors, Divorce Resolutions describes how they’ve replaced flipcharts with large, flat-panel LCD monitors connected to laptops via the office’s wireless network.

They use them much as you would a flipchart, but with obviously greater professionalism, the ability to use a variety of software tools to manage and present information, and with no need to copy material from paper to computer later! Feedback from clients sounds pretty darn clear:

After only several months of working with the large flat panel Dell™ television monitor displays, the power of their visuals in mediation is clear. Our clients consistently rave about their use. They tell us that the television monitor displays greatly facilitate their considering options and finding mutually-satisfying divorce solutions in their work with us in mediation. As mediators, we look back and wonder how we earlier practiced our craft without these tools!

This is innovative stuff and it sounds like it’s been a worthwhile investment for the firm. Thanks for leading the way, Lawrence!

Do you have questions for Lawrence? Leave a comment below and I’ll pass them along. Do you know of other innovative ways mediators are using technology in the mediation room? Please, let me know!

Work Around Email Attachment Size Limits: YouSendIt

Your internet service provide (ISP) probably sets a limit on the size of the attachments you can send or receive. I’ve occasionally run into situations where a client has tried to send a very large file, and even when zipped (digitally compressed), it won’t come through. This may also occur with multiple or very large digital photo attachments.

YouSendIt offers a solution by allowing you to send as many 1 GB files (that’s a lot of data!) as you’d like. For free. You don’t need to have an account, though by having one (they’re also free) you can send files to up to 100 people at once and have inbox and sent items folders to track what’s been sent and received. For fees, there are also business accounts available with power-user features.

I think YouSendIt’s a great solution for working around attachment size limits or for transferring huge files from one computer to another without having to rely on copying onto multiple CDs or zip drives. Since it requires uploading and downloading files via the Internet, though, you’ll still need to plan for the time it takes to transfer very large files. If you’ve got dial-up service, don’t even bother to try.

According to YouSendIt’s site, Mac users may be out of luck…Mac’s Safari browser doesn’t display YouSendIt’s progress bar properly.

Email Marketing Tools for Mediators

Common wisdom out there is that you need both a blog and an e-zine to maximize your mediation marketing reach online. While that initially seems like a lot of writing, keep in mind that you can often “re-purpose” your e-zine or blog writing for use in the other tool, because subscribers to your ‘zine may not be the same people who subscribe to your blog.

There are several good, no- or low-cost e-zine services that make producing and distributing an email newsletter easier. You will, of course, want something that looks very professional, complies with spam laws, and has simplified distribution mechanisms. These programs can help:

• Constant Contact is highly regarded and easily the most frequently used service I see for ‘zines I receive. It’s free for lists with 50 or fewer people on them, then $15/month for lists up to 500. Constant Contact offers a number of templates you can use as is or adapt slightly to reflect your own business colors, logo and look.
• IntelliContact charges $9.95/month for lists up to 500 members. The interface is straightforward and like most good services, they offer templates as well.
• Campaign Monitor is also highly regarded. As with Constant Contact, there are no setup fees, but Campaign Monitor charges a flat fee of $5 plus 1 cent per recipient for lists over 5 people. They say they structure their fees this way because they anticipate that users will pass that cost along to clients (such as web designers who manage lists for their clients).

There are lots and lots of other such programs out there. Is there one you use and love and I haven’t included it in the above list? Do tell! Write a comment below.

And if you haven’t yet taken my most recent poll on marketing mediation, I’d love it if you’d do it now! You can find it at Marketing Mediation: What Are Your Obstacles?

Tags: marketing mediation

Mediation Marketing Isn’t About Convincing

When I lived in the Burlington, VT area there used to be a car salesman who ran pretty bad commercials on one of our local television channels. The commercials were the kind of low-quality often associated with low-budget ads. The guy wore a weird red wig (like Raggedy Andy!), and his tagline was something like, “I won’t stop wearing this wig until I convince you to buy a car from me!”

A few weeks ago I asked a group of mediators what words come to mind when they think of marketing. The most common answers were “convincing” and “selling.” Of course, my thoughts went immediately and hilariously to Raggedy Andy! No wonder so many mediators seem to shy away from anything that smacks of “marketing.”

Fellow mediators, it’s time to reframe the way you think of marketing. Instead of trying to convince, think inspire. What can you do today to inspire a prospective client to consider mediation?

Copyright © 2006 by Tammy Lenski. All rights reserved.

Building an Online Presence: Ways to Expand Your Internet Profile

Earlier this week I blogged about the importance of a credible and rich online presence as part of your marketing strategy. While you won’t be the genesis of all that’s out there about you on the web, with forethought and purpose you can—and should—build your online profile. Here are a few of the most effective ways to get going with little or no out-of-pocket cost:

• Blog. Blogging creates repeat visitors to your site, encourages other sites to link to you or one of your good articles, and search engines love blogs. For more on blogging, visit the articles I’ve written about blogging.
• Create a link network. Ask those who also serve your target market to mention and link to you on their websites and you’ll do the same for them. Better yet, write a short article for their site and link the article to yours. They benefit by the value your article adds to their site, and you benefit by reaching more of your target audience.
• Buy an online directory ad. Verizon offers online Superpages ads and directories such as Yahoo also offer geographically-targeted ads.
• And more. Thanks to my friend and colleague Diane Levin for forwarding me this information, here are a few additional ways to build your web presence: Slaw’s Building Online Profile Beyond Blogs

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Tags: online presence, marketing mediation

Protect Sensitive Information on Your Computer: Microsoft Private Folder 1.0

If you’re like many of us, you have a few computer files that are intended for your eyes only. To protect those files from others who may use your computer, you’ve probably relied on their honesty, individually password-protecting each file, or encryption software.

Now Microsoft steps in with a neat little free program that makes it easier to keep your sensitive data private. Private Folder 1.0, just released, is designed to “protect your private data when your friends, colleagues, kids or other people share your PC or account. With this tool, you will get one password protected folder called ‘My Private Folder’ in your account to save your personal files.”

It’s free for downloading at the Microsoft Private Folder 1.0 page. For PC users only, Private Folder requires Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Professional Edition, or Media Center Edition with SP2 installed.

Using my high-speed DSL line, the download completed in about 12 seconds. It installed seamlessly, walked me through the folder set-up in about 30 seconds, and then plopped my private folder on my computer’s desktop. Any file I want to keep private I can now just save to that folder. I like it because it keeps all my sensitive data (journal, a few financial records, one or two particularly sensitive client files) in one place.

How secure is it really? Most of us don’t have hackers sharing our home or office computers, so I think this software’s got good use for average users like you and me.

Tags: practice management

Your Online Presence: What Clients See When They Research You

Having a website is not the same as having a web presence. A online presence is bigger: It’s the overall profile you have on the Internet, coming from a variety of online sources such as your website, a blog, association and directory listings, articles you’ve published, forum postings, and any site where someone has written about you or your work.

A web presence is important because your prospective clients will probably research you on the web. Mine certainly do. And the more references there are to your good and valued work, the greater sense clients can get about exactly who you are and how you work. And the seed of a connection is planted in that moment.

Or a seed of disconnection—though probably not for professionals reading this blog post. The past week’s national news had several painful stories about prospective employers researching their freshly minted college graduate applicants…and finding embarrassing photos and partying stories on sites like MySpace and Facebook. Said one college career counselor, “There are lots of employers that Google.” There are lots of prospective clients that Google, too.

A strong web presence also increases your search engine rankings. And while you may not rely on clients finding you via online searches at this point, as search engines become much more adept at regional searches, this is likely to change. It’s already happening. The print yellow pages are destined to become far less important as an advertising vehicle for you.

What kind of web presence do you have? Here are two ways to find out:

• Google yourself and your business name. It’s not a shameless sense of ego to do so. It’s sound business practice these days, because it’s an excellent way to find out just what kind of online profile you have. While you’re at it, do the same in directories such as Yahoo.
• Set up a Google alert for your name (unless you have a very common name), business name and website URL. Google will send you emails with links to websites that reference you, your business name or website URL.

Tags: marketing mediation, online presence