NowSourcing.Com

Gentlemint, Start Your Engines: A Pinterest for Men

Brian Wallace — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:00:43 +0000

I’m sure you’ve heard your female friends obsessively talking about Pinterest, the greatest social network since sliced bread. But what about men? We need our mancave of a pinboard/social network to show off our wares. Luckily, Gentlement has accepted entered the foray. We couldn’t wait to hear more news about them, so we decided to sit down and interview them:

1 – Tell us a little bit about yourselves.
The site is co-founded by myself (Glen Stansberry), a web designer. The other co-founder is Brian McKinney a designer and developer. Since starting the site, we’ve added Alex Kritikos, a fantastic programmer and sysadmin. Oh, and we’re all based out of Lawrence, KS.

2 – Why the name? Why the moustaches?
The name: we had a few picked out before we started building the service, but after deliberating for a while, we just settled on Gentlemint. It was a play on the world Gentleman and mint, but mint in the treasury sense. Gentlemint is a mint of manly things

3 – How do you plan to beat Pinterest?
We don’t. Everyone has kind of taken to believe that we’re trying to be the male version of Pinterest. While we do have similarities with Pinterest, we have features (and many more on the way) that make us very different.

At the core of our service (and Pinterest’s) is link sharing, and link sharing sites have been around a long, long time before we entered. Also, we’re focused around a specific set of content, whereas Pinterest houses everything under the sun.

4 – Besides targeting men, how do you plan to differentiate from Pinterest? (or how do you currently)
Well, like I mention above, we’re only focused on one type of content. That alone makes us very different from Pinterest.

5 – Do you censor what people put on there to make sure it’s manly enough?
We censor flagrant and inappropriate posts, and posts that objectify women. (We actually have a healthy community of ladies who post to the site, and we want them to be comfortable too.) As far as the “is it manly enough?” censoring, we kind of just let the Gentlemint community do that. For the most part, everyone understands what type of content should be on the site even though we haven’t created guidelines or anything yet. That’s actually one of the best parts about the community: everyone seems to understand what should be added to the site.

6 – You’ve just started advertising. Do you think the community will be resistant to it? Other income streams?
So far everyone has been hugely supportive of our advertising, actually. We have other revenue streams in mind, but for right now we’re just focused on making the site much better. After all, we did put the guts of the site together in 12 hours. (See more here)

7 – What’s the road to profitability? Any funding / acquisition plans in the future?
Not really. We’re just taking everything one day at a time.

Thanks Glen, Brian, and Alex – we wish you best of luck on your awesome site! We’re big fans.

Bonus:We’ve got 5 Gentlemint invites to give away. Leave us a comment to get in on it. First come, first served.

Weekly Meme: Socially Awkward Popcorn

rose — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:30:11 +0000

I fail at making microwave popcorn, and fail even more at eating it. More often than not I end up burning it, resulting in stinking up the whole office. A mess ensues every time I open the bag because of the delicious, drippy butter that is so enticing. No work gets done because, frankly, popcorn stops everything. So lately I’ve been opting to only popping it after everyone has already left. After several weeks of this practice, I have come to realize just how weird it is. Waiting until everyone else leaves so you can gorge your face with an entire bag of microwave butter-lovers popcorn. This situation deserved to be our Monday’s Meme:

Facebook IPO: Can Facebook Beat the Google Display Network in Online Advertising?

alexkenemer — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:47:37 +0000

The Top 12 Benefits of Digital Menu Boards

kevin — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:59:32 +0000

Value Menu: The Top 12 Benefits of Digital Menu Boards [Infographic]
Compliments of QSRweb.com

The Real Cost of BYOD

Kristina — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:12:26 +0000

This Week in Infographics: The Easy Way Isn’t Always So Simple

Kristina — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:36:50 +0000

The theme this week reminds me of watching fairy tales as a child. Remember how there was always a shortcut for the traveler? The shorter path was always dark and stormy, and the long path was sunny and lovely – the shortest distance between two points isn’t always the easiest way to get there. The interstate will have more traffic than the back roads during rush hour, and the seven day fad diet will ultimately create more work for you in the long run.

Our first infographic takes us back to a “simpler time,” and compares it to today – the topic: poker. Taking a look at how the cowboys of the wild west played poker compared to our modern day gamer, will make anyone insecure. Next, companies are making it a little easier on their employees by allowing them to bring their own devices to work, however the price isn’t so simple since personal use is on the company’s dime. Then we take a look at yesterday’s internet vs. today – the design, and how it has changed things like how we get an education. Finally, the oldest tricks in the book are still alive and well today – the seven deadly sins. Luckily, our modern brain hacking abilities may actually put these psychological issues to rest for good.

1. | Poker: Wild West vs. Online

2. | The Real Cost of BYOD

3. | The Internet of Yesterday vs. Today

4. | How has Internet Changed Education?

5. | Brain Hack the Seven Deadly Sins

Poker: The Wild West vs. Online

Kristina — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:13:02 +0000

Brain Hacking the Seven Deadly Sins

Kristina — Mon, 07 May 2012 18:59:41 +0000

From: Become Career

Weekly Rage: The Kentucky Derpy

rose — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:53:21 +0000

The Kentucky Derby: the most exciting three minutes in sports and the most famous horse race in America. Every year thousands of people flock to Kentucky to experience all the Derby has to offer. It starts out promising enough, with all the traditions, gimmicks and food. But the build up may seem a little much for the short race, so we’ve created a Rage Comic to illustrate this very concept.

This Week in Infographics: A Social Media Timeline

Kristina — Thu, 03 May 2012 16:03:19 +0000

Obviously the theme of this week’s infographics is social media. We begin with Mark Zuckerberg and a Facebook timeline of his career based on the movie Social Network. Then we look at the accomplishments of another technological genius, Steve Jobs, and how an Apple a day really does keep the viruses away. Next, we will explore the latest craze that will inevitably change our way of life just as the previous advances did. But is all of this greatness putting a damper on our creativity? Turns out we may be facing a war between productivity and creativity. Those joining the workforce have completely different views from those running the show. Finally, our baby millennials know nothing before computers and social media. How will the leaders of tomorrow view privacy and corporate mentality in a world where they live out loud and would rather have time on their side than make millions?

1. | Social Life: A Timeline of Life of Mark Zuckerberg

2. | Just how big is Apple

3. | Wake up Call

4. | Global Creativity Gap

5. | The Millennial Teenager

Courtesy of: Online Schools

This Week in Infographics: How to Break Your Heart

Kristina — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:03:24 +0000

While the theme of this week in infographics is loose, I know you are awesome enough to get the gist. So to begin, our first infographic is quite literally how to break your heart. It shows the truth about sudden cardiac arrest, and puts a pin in some of the myths we’ve heard over the years – all you hypochondriacs out there should not read it. Next, we’re going to talk about Gen-Y and cause marketing, and how now we have gone from hipsters to slacktivists (insert sarcastic, weak “yay”). What rhymes with slacktivist? Hacktivist! Our third infographic is about cyber security, and how big companies are really scared about the fact that they will probably be hacked in the next six months. Now for the more metaphorical side of breaking your heart: we will talk about infidelity, who is more likely to engage in it, and how to come clean about it. Finally, I have included an interactive infographic from NYTimes about how many families out there are just like yours?

1. | What You Don’t Know Will Kill You

2. | The Rise of the Slacktivist

3. | Cyber Security

4. | Coming Clean About Infidelity

5. | How Many Households Are Like Yours?

What You Don’t Know Will Kill You

Kristina — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:06:40 +0000

Cyber Security

Kristina — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:31:43 +0000

This Week in Infographics: Tips for the High School Senior

Kristina — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:32:51 +0000

It’s mid-April, which means a whole batch of 18 year olds are about to hit the real world. For most, the blast won’t be too heavy starting out, but we wanted to prepare you for what you’re getting yourself into, and give some good ideas to get you through. First, we have prom: sweet, magical, life (up-til-now) validating prom. Ladies, you may have already noticed that you’re about to spend more money on your prom dress than you have on anything, ever. Unless you plan on walking the red carpet in that dress too, just say no. And when it comes to the fancy lingerie you will probably be all about for the next 10 years, find out what your taste says about you. Next, we want to introduce a possible career path, something that your generation could really excel in: app design. We have included a profile of Android app developers, so see if you fit the mold. Now for money, we are about to see some huge changes in banking, so know the info now, and follow it like you do Perez Hilton – it will make life so much easier in just a few short years. Finally, we have 15 ways to put money in your pocket, because you are about to be really poor.

1. | Pretty in Pink

2. | What Does Your Lingerie say About you?

3. | Following the White Rabbit

4. | Bank on it!

5. | 15 Ways to Fill Your pot of Gold

Following the White Rabbit

Kristina — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 19:49:50 +0000

Fan Mail Response: What it Takes to be a Social Media Strategist

Kristina — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 19:19:53 +0000

Last week we received an email from a 13 year-old, with an interest in working in the social media field. The following is the inspired, and flattering correspondence:

Hi,

My name is Terry. I’m 13, and I’m in seventh grade. I’m always thinking about what I want to do with my life, and while I’ve thought of nursing, engineering, ministry, and countless other professions, I’ve never settled on one idea for more than a few days. Except one. When I was in forth grade I saw an article on the Google, Twitter, and Facebook offices, (I think I was on stumbleupon.com and looking at design, which I was in to at the time,) I decided to do further research on them. This led me to looking at more than the offices, but program development, advertising, and things like that that went on in all three. Ever since, on and off I’ve considered jobs at places like Google or Facebook. The two, especially Google, continue to impress and interest me. But recently my friend and I were in class school on our schools MacBooks, we had finished the work early and were just looking at things on Google like the Google Gravity, Let It Snow, and the Google PacMan, when I begun thinking more and more about the work that goes into programs like Google Chrome and the tricks on Google. That night, I was on Pinterest, on the geek section, and found a link to your website. It was something about color, and for the last few weeks I have been thinking about a career at a company like NowSourcing or Google or Facebook. I know that I’m in seventh grade, but I really want to know what kind of work you do, what school you had to go to, what that requires. I’m really, really interested in a career like that in the future, and want to know what it requires. I really hope you respond, because I’m very interested in this type of work.

Thank you,

Terry

We wanted to publicly respond to Terry, in an attempt to possibly help others understand this field better.

The wonderful thing about social media, SEO, infographics, and so on, is that it allows you to use your imagination, communicate with a wide variety of people, and create identities for people and businesses online. At NowSourcing our degrees range from advertising, and interactive media, to business administration, and journalism. Being motivated and passionate are two key ingredients if you want to succeed in a field like this, as well as setting boundaries with clients, and maintaining good character throughout. Without these things, no amount of talent will give you any long-term satisfaction.

Now, what do we do? a great definition of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) would be: the art of moving to the top of a Google search – that’s what this is really all about. If Google likes you, you’re in. Doing this organically takes a lot of fine tuning, and you can find yourself sitting on the line of being real and sounding like an advertisement. Advertising, in it’s actuality, is not a bad thing – manipulative, and invasive advertising is where people stop paying attention or even become irate - and it’s understandable. As an outsider it can be difficult to see people in promotions, advertising, even public relations, as human – but even the advertiser gets advertised too, and probably hates the same things we all do.

Blogging is a great way of building credibility with Google, but what some tend to forget is that it has to be good and consistent. It is very important to put out interesting, quality content. Which means, in this field, you need to be a bit of a writer. You also need to be able to write on many different subjects, sometimes on a whim. We often use blogs for links, which is a way of getting page views, that’s not invasive. This is also where you would want to launch an infographic, like the Psychology of Color (which you saw on Pinterest), because when it goes viral that page and your website get a lot hits – organically moving you up in a search.

When it comes to the social media side, you are not only building social networks, maintaining them, and creating an identity, but this is where you are the public relations department. How do you deal with a bad review right there on your client’s Facebook page for everyone to see? If you take any public relations courses when you get to college, the case studies show that the ones who take full responsibility, and fix the problem makes it in the end. This is an area where that good character comes in. You need to be honest with your customers, and your clients, and you need to make them happy. Sometimes this can be hard because they don’t actually know what is going to make them happy down the road. You may find yourself in a bind when these situations arise: you’re the expert, but they’re the client. This is why boundaries are so important, and need to be set in place from the beginning.

Terry, your interest seems to be on the more technical side, app design may be something you would enjoy. However, all the previously discussed aspects will be your business at some point – some more than others. I urge you to continue looking into the whole big world that is social media, and keep up with it, because it is constantly changing. There are a lot of areas you could major in when you get to college that would compliment this field, so I would choose one that you may be able to do multiple things with. You may consider blogging, as well. Try sitting down and thinking of what you would really enjoy talking about (maybe new applications, Google, Facebook), create an outline, and then write something once a week or twice a month. This will sharpen your writing skills, help you to be in the know about what’s launching, and by using a site like WordPress to do this, you will become familiar with the tools and mechanics. You can also explore the SEO side through your blog by including keywords, links, and promoting it on social networks. I can say that if you came to me at 22, looking for a job in social media, and I see that you have experience in these areas, and a strong understanding about the latest and greatest technology, I would be very impressed.

There of course are so many other areas, and aspects, but I hope this helps you to get started. To those of you our there who have questions, or maybe also have input for awesome people, like Terry, feel free to comment.

PPC Jobs Salary Guide

Kristina — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:09:28 +0000

This Week in Infographics: The Life and Value of a Social Butterfly

Kristina — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:11:38 +0000

We know that social media, across the board, has done great things, but where would it be without we, the people making it such a sensation? This week we take a look at our lives as “social butterflies,” and what our value or worth really is. First, the reason we do it: we want things now, no, yesterday. We are a fast paced society, and always ready to move forward. Next, social has bled over into our love lives: if you can’t find true love on the streets, just login to any online dating site, and you can enjoy romance in the comfort of your own home. Now let’s think about the younger generation, the teenagers: a group who was born with a cell phone in their hand, and bionic thumbs. Turns out most of a teens social life happens via text. Now, we will take a look at social economics – literally what a tweet, or pin, or Yelp review is worth. Finally, Pinterest: how are teachers using this popular site to communicate with their students?

1. | Instant America

2. | Looking for Love Online

3. | A Day in the Life of a Mobile Teen

4. | Social Economics: How is Data Valued

5. | 16 Ways Educators Use Pinterest

Social Economics: How is Social Data Valued?

Kristina — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:11:38 +0000

This Week in Infographics: I Love you to Death

Kristina — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 19:28:30 +0000

The common theme this week amongst our hand-picked awesomeness, is relationships and death. First, is it possible that your birth order may influence your financial behavior? Let’s hope not! Also, traditional dating is a thing of the past, the virtual world is taking over – the good news: avatars don’t need birth control, yay! Speaking of birth control, what is the debate between contraception and health care? For those of you who live in a cave 6 days a week, this will be helpful. And now for the dark side of this week in infographics: find out interesting facts about death, and what your chances are of dying doing the most basic things.