What are Smileys?

Smileys, also known as “emoticons,” are glyphs used to convey emotions in your writing. They are a great way to brighten up posts.

What Text Do I Type to Make Smileys?

By default, WordPress automatically converts text smileys to graphic images. Text smileys are created by typing two or more punctuation marks. Below are some Smiley images and the text used to produce them. In some instances, multiple text options are available to display the same smiley.

Start to use these lovely smileys to make your blog more interesting!

Note: You will see some smiley face showing up in the list below. Those are the sharable smileys that work on WordPress as well.

Popular Facebook Emoticons and Smileys:

• smile :] =)
• frown :[ =(
• gasp :-O :O
• grin =D
• tongue :-p :p =P
• wink
• curly lips :3
• kiss :-* :*
• grumpy >:( >:-(
• glasses 8) B-) B)
• sunglasses 8-| 8| B-| B|
• upset >:O >:-O >:o >:-o
• confused o.O O.o
• shark (^^^)
• pacman :v
• squint -_-
• angel O:) O:-)
• devil 3:) 3:-)
• unsure :/ :-/ :\ :-\
• cry :’(
• Chris Putnam :putnam:

Here is how:

1. Click Embed this Tweet, located at the bottom of any Tweet permalink page. Hover your mouse on any tweet, you will see “… More”, click it and a pop-up window where HTML codes will show. See the screenshot below.

2. Select HTML or Shortcode from the pop-up dialog box.

3. Copy and paste the code provided in the dialog box into your blog or website.

Below is an example:

We copied and pasted the HTML code of one of our tweets in this blog post. What you see below is a live tweet from our SmallBiz Web Design Twitter page. You can follow our Twitter page, reply, retweet or favorite this tweet right from here. Isn’t that cool? It makes your blog more interesting and engaging. Try in on your own blog and share it with your blog visitors.

10 Business Blogging Topics – smallbizwebdesign.ca/10-business-bl…

— SmallBiz Web Design (@SBizWebDesign) March 22, 2013

1. Knows how to create a Facebook page

2. Knows how to post a tweet

3. Reads over 30 blogs

The #1 and #2 are not that difficult. The #3 one is very challenging for most small business owners. By reading over 30 blogs a week/month will definitely give you insight/inspiration on what to blog about in your own blog.

We highly recommend small business owners to integrate a blog on your website to promote your business online. Business blogging is a cost effective self-marketing tool for small business. If you would like to learn more about business blogging, check out Why do You Need a Blog in Your Small Business Website?

If you don’t know what to blog about, check out 10 Business Blogging Topics.

Hope this helps and have a great weekend!

If there is only one thing you want to do in January, that’s to check your copyright year on your website. If it’s still showing 2012 or even 2011, you might want it updated to 2013.  To make the copyright year automatically updated each year, a JavaScript or PHP script has to be inserted into your website’s HTML code. If you don’t know how to do this, we are here to help. Contact us at info@smallbizwebdesign.ca, we will make your life easier.

So what are the new Pinterest tools for small business?

Signing up on Pinterest business site allows you to specify your business name (instead of first name and last name) and go through an optimized new user flow to help you:

• Verify your website. The verification badge helps people identify high-quality sources of content and more easily find the business they want in search results.
• Add new buttons and widgets. Integrate the Pin It button, Follow button, Profile widget, or Board widget to get more engagement from pinners and traffic back your site.
• Access to upcoming features. Receive updates on future products and services that will provide more powerful ways of reaching and understanding your audience on Pinterest.

Do you have any questions regarding how to set up your Pinterest business account? SmallBiz Web Design can help! Email us at info@smallbizwebdesign.ca or leave your comment below. Hope you can utilize Pinterest to promote your small business.

1. Share your expertise with your clients

   By shearing your expertise, you become the helpful resource.  If you are an financial planner, you can share with your client on how to lower your tax by investing wisely on your business; if you are providing computer tech support, you might want to share some tips and tricks on how to make your computer run faster, etc. For us, we always share some web design and internet marketing related tips with our clients, such as:

   • Why do You Need a Blog in Your Small Business Website?
   • How to Promote Your Small Business on Facebook?
   • Search Engine Optimization Tips – SEO
   • What to Share on Social Media Sites?

2. Product/service reviews

   Are you selling a new product or promoting a new service? Write a details review and share it with your clients on your blog. Describe the features, specifications, photos, benefits and advantages of this product/service.

3. Case Studies

   Have you helped your clients resolved their issues by providing awesome solutions? Write a case study, describe client’s challenges faced, your solution and the end result. We are preparing a few case studies to showcase how we help small business owners resolve their online marketing concerns so that they can focus on developing their business.

4. Client Testimonials

   Whenever a client sends you a nice testimonial, share it on your blog and thank your client for their kind support. In the meantime encourage other clients to write you a testimonial as well.

5. News or regulation related to your small business

   From time to time, we will share some news from Google about their search engine algorithm updates; we also share some small business related news since our target clients are small business owners. If you are a computer consultant, you can write a post if there is a new virus spreading to warn your clients.

6. Pictures

   People love seeing photos. People share photos more than anything else. If you have a photo of your new products,  from an industry exhibition, a seminar, networking event, etc. Share it on your blog.

7. Funny cartoons

   Make people think and laugh – share funny but thoughtful cartoons from other sites.

8. Run an online survey

   For example, if you wan to find out what your clients like or don’t like most about your products/services so that you can improve it, run an online survey to get the answer.

9. Create a list of something helpful or interesting

   For example, as you are reading, we are writing a list of 10 business blogging ideas to share with you! You can also dig into your clients’ questions and create your own list.

10. Guest blog posts

    If you are running out of your blogging ideas, ask your strategic business partners to write something about their services/products that might be helpful for your clients. By doing so, you are helping your business partners as well as providing valuable information for your clients.

Hope this list of business blogging ideas inspires your blogging. Would you like to share your blogging ideas? Feel free to click the comment link below to share with us. Thank you!

Wait, if you think this post is helpful, tweet, like or share it with your clients or business friends by clicking the social media share button below!

This is another tip to help you promote your small business through blogging and social media! If you have a business blog, integrate social media share button below each blog post. If you don’t know how to do it, contact us and we are here to help!

Tweeters share photos more than anything else, and pics make up more than a third of all links shared on the social network. Articles make up just 16% of shares, while videos come in at just under 10%. I bet Facebook users share photos more than anything else too.

If you know what people are sharing, you can apply the same tactic to your own social media marketing activities – focus on what people like to share – image of your products, portfolios or clients; articles of your own or from other sites, etc.

We are planning to share more images of our projects on our Facebook and Twitter profile. How about you? Feel free to share any tips on how to use social media to market your small business.

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