Hi Mike, I'm assuming you're talking about including the recipient's name in the Subject line of the email itself, as opposed to the Signature line in the body of the email? If so, the answer is yes. But, that's a task that is more easily accomplished with an email autoresponder service like Aweber, Mailchimp, etc. Their platform will handle that easily.

Seriously?? Check out... "How BAD08 Made The Efforts Of a Local Non-profit Manager Shine. Way Cool." http://www.businesscasualblog.com/2008/10/how-bad08-made-the-efforts-of-a-local-non-profit-manager-shine-way-cool.html "Blog Action Day October 15, 2008. You Can Get Involved." http://www.businesscasualblog.com/2008/10/acti.html "Blog Action Day 2008 Recap" http://www.businesscasualblog.com/2008/10/draft.html ""The Working Poor." Resources for you to help." http://www.businesscasualblog.com/2008/10/the-working-poo.html

Ha ha. Bravo. :)

Hi Jennifer. I love that, "change has always been the norm." So true. Put another way, "change *is* the constant", isn't it? I think you're right. So many folks out there are either unwilling OR are just coming on to the scene brand new and declare an epiphany. This was actually the topic of discussion at a meeting I attended last Saturday where it was discussed that everyday, it seems more and more new "social medians" declare a "new revolution" as they retire from the workforce and seek new business opportunities and discover the social web -- quite often in the guise of (yet another) "social media consultant" or "guru". My hope is that more of those who've been in the space a while can move beyond the "revolution" and set the tone that, as you've alluded, much of this "phenomenon" is really closer to a time-old process of managing change. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts. :)

Hi Lisa. I love the link you shared for the Start parameter in embed codes. That's a good one which I wasn't previously aware. Awesome tip. Thank you for taking time to share. :) Mel

Hi Gogo. Quick update: I've since been able to verify it... your opt-in form *will* show in embeds of your video on someone else's site. :)

Hi Tim. You're right on point. YouTube is a good vehicle to get visibility to postings on your blog--especially given YouTube's standing as a powerful search engine in its own right. But, while you're correct that the forms and buttons afforded by this software won't show inside your YouTube videos, I think you can still leverage the EasyVideoPlayer software (EVP) on your own blog as a lead-capture tool while combining the overall strategy with a YouTube series that serves to generate awareness and interest for the video(s) on your blog. In short: You might consider using videos on YouTube for lead-generation and awareness, while using videos on your site for lead-capture and calls for action. Keep in mind: Even as powerful as YouTube and EVP are individually, i don't recommend using either as standalone solutions to replace a larger / coordinated marketing strategy that leverages multiple channels. (i.e., YouTube, Blog, EVP, email autoresponder, free content offerings...) A couple of resources I might recommend are the following: 1. Check out the segment about the Marketing Funnel Workflow in Section 5 of the Social Media Marketing Essentials guide... (**link removed-obsolete**) 2. Also, for an interesting viral campaign leveraging YouTube, check out a post I wrote about "An 8-step case study..." on my post at my other blog on MelAclaro.com... (**link removed-obsolete**) Thanks for reading and commenting. Please keep in touch, my friend. Mel

Hi Sandra. I can't speak to the mic he was using in the example, but there are lots. One that I've found to be a quite capable "cardioid" microphone that plugs into your computer via USB is the Samson CO1U. About $75-$85 via Amazon.

Thanks, Jeff. And, my pleasure. It was a great checklist. I appreciate you sharing it with us on your blog. Best regards, Mel

I aegre, Lslelle. The mnid is a wunedrfol tnhig, eh? ;)

Thanks, Phil. I appreciate you sharing that. Worth looking into.

Hi OK_E, Yes, since my original post on this I've allowed the JoomlaLMS component license to expire as I've since launched JaraUniversity and some additional client work. That said, I'm still a fan of both Joomla and JoomlaLMS. For the small biz professional and "light-lifting" requirements, it's surprisingly robust. Good luck! :)

Hi Neha. Thanks for commenting and sharing an online resource with us. But, without more to go on by way of description, we had to remove the link. Can you give us more to go on? Thanks! :)

Thank you, Art. Thanks for reading and for commenting. :)

Hi Neha, I agree. I'll also add YouTube to that mix, as well. Interestingly, LinkedIn has been pretty good, too. But, I admit, I spend more time on the other three platforms (four, if you count blogging) than I do with LI. Thanks for reading and commenting.

I still respectfully disagree; the burden of attribution must rest with the person who is taking action to copy the content. It's the least she/he can do if they're not inclined to put in the work to develop the original work. And, quite simply, it's common courtesy. But, on one point we can agree... you ARE a more compassionate man than I, it seems. :)

Hi Sumeet. Thanks for sharing the link. Interesting...there's more than one. (And, not surprising, huh?) I need to make one point of clarification: One did not swipe from the other. The case is that they BOTH swiped from the same source...namely, the Description section of the vid on YouTube. Word for word, as a matter of fact. Interesting, too, your more forgiving view about attribution. But, while I can appreciate your point about plagiarism (only insofar as I'll concede their INTENT is technically uncertain without further questioning), I maintain respectful disagreement with you about attribution. If you use somebody else's words, you have give proper respect. But in any case, it's bad form to use somebody else's content and then slap your own copyright on top of it. Which is exactly what the guy in the snapshot above did with my work. That's bad form. Would you agree? Thanks for taking time to comment, my friend. And, thanks for reading. :) Mel

Hi Kingsley, I agree. Especially after having further tested their new system a couple of times after they initially rolled it out. Truth be told, there are a couple of refinements to work out yet, but overall it's been a hit with me. Also worth mentioning is the fact that not only is there 1-on-1 support, but it's refreshing to see that they've also engaged "social monitoring" in order to be informed whenever anyone mentions them in online conversation. (Ref: "Monitoring the Conversation"... http://www.businesscasualblog.com/2009/10/monitoring-the-conversation.html) Since having posted this blog article, and to their credit, I've since received several notes of thanks from various members of their team. Thanks for dropping by and commenting. Mel

Right on, Danny. So far so good. :) Nice to meetcha.

Thank you, Jenise. Your thoughts and remembrance are very much appreciated. :)

My pleasure, Loren. I enjoyed presenting with you and Eric. Let's do it again soon. ;)

Thank you. I was so encouraged to see a lot of folks respond --and take action--as a result of this post. It showed me the refreshing desire for people to seek resources for helping others. Awesome.

My pleasure. :)

Good analogies.