You are here: Home / Archives for Product Reviews

Google Plus iPhone App

July 20, 2011 Leave a Comment

I waited for a week to get the chance to download the Google Plus iPhone App from iTunes.

There were a lot of rumors about Apple intentionally delaying the app because Google is a competitor.  Shady if true, but it is out now.

Also, here is the huge issue I ran into.  I could not find the Google Plus iPhone App when searching for the app on my iPhone.  I finally located it by looking at the top 25 free iphone apps because I heard that it had made the list.

If this is something Google did, it is just plain dumb.  If it is Apple, then very shady again by making it hard to find Google Plus app but easier to find 3rd party apps with bad reviews.

Initially the App itself got bad reviews also, but do not let that stop you from trying it.  Initially a test version of the software was uploaded and Apple released this older version of the software first, which was not stable.

Next, when you do install the iPhone App for Google Plus be sure to think carefully before allowing it to push notify you.  I selected yes and it is annoying me now because I am a very popular Google plus user and I get messaged constantly.  I have not figured out how to deactivate the iPhone Google Plus push notification yet.

Lastly, I do like the app.  I am sure it will get better over time and I know there is a lot of complaints about Google Plus iPhone app features, but Google Plus itself is still in beta so you cannot expect the iPhone app to be perfect yet.  Enjoy it and watch for updates, I am sure they are coming.

Filed Under: Product Reviews, Social Media Tagged With: ,

Market Samurai Review

July 6, 2011 Leave a Comment

One of the best purchase I have made is Market Samurai.  This article is a detailed review of why I have continued to be a happy Market Samurai customer and why I am not very concerned about the recent nixing of the Adwords module.

First of all, what is Market Samurai?

In the world of membership sites, Market Samurai is a wonderful change.  No monthly subscription.  You buy it and they keep updating it and you do not have to worry about what it costs to keep the SEO software updated.  This is no small thing.  I am a software engineer myself and I would not want to have the pressure they have to keep their system in sync with so many other services.

The Market Samurai software helps you identify keyword phrases worth pursuing as well as the competition for those keywords, which help you decide if it is worth the effort.

I started doing keyword research with this tool and over the years at least half of the website and blog traffic is because I did a better job of targeting keyword phrases.  This makes me some serious money.  It has also given me some better tools for helping clients when I do custom SEO consulting.

When I use Market Samurai in combination with the Buzzoodle Lead Generation system, I am able to help clients create very effective lead generation websites and these sites can earn $1,000 per month for our business.  And it is money well spent by the clients because the targeted keywords identified by Market Samurai combined with the targeted blogging of Buzzoodle bring in the right kind of traffic to those sites.

Now Market Samurai has many features I do not use.  They have back link tools, article tools and more.  Mostly I just use the keyword research tools to know what to write about for niche websites and that does the trick.  You can also use the Market Samurai rank checking tool, which is excellent.  I use the Buzzoodle rank checking tool because I do not need to manually run the SERP report and because it creates a better PDF report that can be delivered to clients.  But if you only need to run the rank checking manually now and then, Market Samurai is a good tool.

I often tell people that Market Samurai is one of a handful of tools that I consider an extremely good value and essential to my business.  You will want to check it out.

Filed Under: Product Reviews

Buzzoodle Review

July 5, 2011 Leave a Comment

This is a review of the Buzzoodle Lead Generation system.

Now you first have to be warned that I am the owner of the lead generation software, so my review is hardly unbiased.  However, I thought I would do one anyway because I can give you some details here that are not available on the main Buzzoodle sales page.

History of Lead Generation

To begin with, I did not plan to build lead generation software.  I was actually building business blogging software that would help me manage a group of business blogs built in WordPress.  Then, as I refined my system over several years, I realized that the combination of business blogging with WordPress, combined with great SEO and a firm call to action was the best way to build a low cost lead generation system online.

Does the Software Work?

The lead generation software is great.  But the real question is whether your product or service works well with SEO and online lead generation.  Some products and industries work much better than others.  While you should always get some results, the question each person has to ask themself is, is the effort worth the outcome?  In other words, will I get a positive ROI on my lead generation effort?  Since the software is only $9.95 per month, it is not a big risk.  However, you will need to buy domains, set up WordPress sites and write articles, so there is some other time and expense involved.

I have seen people make six figures in a month and I have seen people not get any leads after six months of effort.  Assume it will take at least three months of effort to get an idea of whether it will work for your product or service or not.

What Does Buzzoodle Include?

Buzzoodle has some significant benefits.  This Buzzoodle review is only a summary.  Basically, you get training on setting up and working your lead generation system.  You get some automatic back linking services.  You get many different ways to create blog content that is targeted to your search terms.  You get SERP reporting (Search Engine Ranking Report) which alone is worth more than the monthly cost of the membership.  And you get keyword targeting, where the system automatically targets and tracks keywords.

Gushing About My Own Product

Lets just keep this short and sweet since if I start gushing about the product you would not and should not believe me.  I discounted it from $67 per month in 2010 to $9.95 per month in 2011 because I wanted more people to give it an honest try and not give up after just one or two months.  Many people are now using it to grow their business.  It is about as risk free as I can make it.  I hope you will give it a try if you think people are out searching for your product or service.

Filed Under: Business, Product Reviews Tagged With: ,