Google and Their Algorithm Changes Being Worked On

Google and Their Algorithm Changes happened again recently. 

Hello, and Welcome back to LilacsNDreams, and nice to see those for your first time visit too! First of all, till I get a few more things accomplished at home with some of this remodeling I will be posting different things right now that I see mentioned, is being reported, and if I find something interesting to share. I have not been able to do much creating, thrifting, and having the extra room for things now too. Till then I am listing things for sale with different places to down size my collections, lower the inventory, and....hopefully to get ready with moving in the next few months. Not quite seeing the light at the end there yet, but it will come:)

I am going to share a link with ya'll to go visit, and see a bit about the Big Google. Yeah, we have to play nice with them, but sometimes they are too over powering for some of us smaller sellers too. As we know Google is always making changes. Sometimes for the good, and a lot of times....what a headache too. LOL:) They recently have been working with their algorithm again. Going through things involving content of what we are sharing with our sales, if we are doing too much of linking...like over doing the keywords....they are trying to keep things in an area they say that is good for everyone, and is suppose to help us all. Hmmm....wonder sometimes, right? 

Anyway, from LinkedIn I followed to this link titled Link Building Networks Fall to the Mighty Hand of Google. Give it a peak to see some of what Google has been up to. I know it is not everything, but it gives you an idea, and little bit of an insight as to some things happening around the net. 

Thanks so much for visiting with LilacsNDreams everyone! Always glad to have you visit with me. Take care, and see you again soon. Have a Happy Hump Day All!:)

 

Pinterest The Copyright Question and New Terms

Pinterest The Copyright Question and New Terms.

Hello, and Welcome to LilacsNDreams! Glad to have you back, and thank all of you for stopping by to visit. Pinterest is a really big issue these days, and still has many people in an uproar over items being pinned there. What is legal, what is not legal, copyright infringements, should you pin or not pin items from other people, and so on. Many are against the pinning issue, and then there are many others who like it because it is showing their things to everyone else as well. It's all great as long as you are doing it correctly. Yes, I have pinned different things on boards there. When the pins are from a seller, maybe a blog, one of the social networks I deal with, etc. I make sure that the link to them is included with the pinning, and I do give the site, or the person credit for it too. I have always given credit where it is due for things used, and offer the corrected links with the names as well. 

Since the uproar has started Pinterest has updated their terms on their site, and they have sent notices out to those who have an accounts with them notifying of the changes. I will share with you the notice that I had received. See it copied below for you. 

Updated Terms of Service

Over the last few weeks, we've been working on an update to our Terms. When we first launched Pinterest, we used a standard set of Terms. We think that the updated Terms of Service, Acceptable Use Policy, and Privacy Policy are easier to understand and better reflect the direction our company is headed in the future. We'd encourage you to read these changes in their entirety, but we thought there were a few changes worth noting.

• Our original Terms stated that by posting content to Pinterest you grant Pinterest the right for to sell your content. Selling content was never our intention and we removed this from our updated Terms.
• We updated our Acceptable Use Policy and we will not allow pins that explicitly encourage self-harm or self-abuse.
• We released simpler tools for anyone to report alleged copyright or trademark infringements.
• Finally, we added language that will pave the way for new features such as a Pinterest API and Private Pinboards.

We think these changes are important and we encourage you to review the new documents here. These terms will go into effect for all users on April 6, 2012.

Like everything at Pinterest, these updates are a work in progress that we will continue to improve upon. We're working hard to make Pinterest the best place for you to find inspiration from people who share your interest. We've gotten a lot of help from our community as we've crafted these Terms.

Thanks!

Ben & the Pinterest Team

I would also like to share another link with ya'll that was shared on Facebook, and that I have been sharing to others as well. This article comes from Mashable titled The Copyright Question: How to Protect Yourself on Pinterest. 

I know this is a lot to take in, and I am not going to tell you all that it is ok to pin with Pinterest, or it is not ok to pin with Pinterest. Many use the site as a Virtual Bookmarking place, others use it to organize things with some of the items they offer themselves, but also wish to share the great items that are offered by others too. Many are addicted to the site because they enjoy seeing things they are not already seeing, and they enjoy sharing everything too. But, it is up to You to be the judge if you wish to use Pinterest, or not. Sadly, the internet is a big open space, and not only is Pinterest doing this, but many other places have been doing some of the same things for even a longer time. 

Thanks again for visiting with LilacsNDreams everyone, and hope you enjoyed what articles I was able to share with you. I wish you all well, and hope to see you again soon. 

Facebook and the Timeline Countdown Begins

Facebook and the Timeline Countdown Begins

Hello, and Welcome to LilacsNDreams! For many who have accounts with Facebook we have been watching different changes over time. Well, the one that is coming at us right now is the new Timeline. Whether you have switched to it, or not it is coming. The Facebook Timeline Pages countdown has begun for this week. 

I myself am still drying to navigate through it, and understand it. I am still not sure if I like the new addition of this, or not. But, whether it is acceptable by us, or not it is mandatory to have it by the end of the week. So, if you have been avoiding it, now is the time to catch up with the Facebook Timeline to work with it, and try to understand it. 

The Facebook Timeline Countdown is On is a link that was shared by Barbara of Out of the Attic 2u with The Vintage Village. Hopefully this will help some of you with some of the things that need to be done, and to learn a little bit about it too. 

Hope everyone had a beautiful weekend, and wishing you all a super week coming at us. Remember, don't be afraid to share something if you have more links, or knowledge of something being discussed. The more, the merrier, and it is helpful for all of us too. Don't forget to say Hi if you visited so that I can drop in on you too. Thanks again everyone. Take care, and see you again soon. 

  

When Online Sales Are Made and Completed

When Online Sales Are Made and Completed.


Hello, and Welcome to LilacsNDreams! Glad to have you stopping by. 


Every Seller does things differently when it comes to the completion of a sale made. How do you handle things yourself as a seller? What kind of routine, or system do you have set up? I myself have a routine of once a sale is made I like to send a note to the customer thanking them for their purchase, and to please notify me if there are any changes with their mailing address so that I can note it. Sometimes a customer will already have paid right away once they have made their purchase too. That is always good too. If they do this, then I send a note thanking them for their purchase, and their quick payment they made. Once I have delivered the box to the post office I will then notify the Buyer that their box has been shipped, and I will also include the tracking information for them at that time. I ship everything Priority Mail including insurance, and the tracking number is always included with this method. Other methods of shipping are done upon request. Keep in mind not all sellers will use priority mail. It depends on the items bought, and if they offer other methods. 

That is a smooth, and fun sale when things can go like that. Sometimes there is the issue of a purchase made, but it is unpaid. How do you then treat this? How long do you wait before you relist the item for sale again if this happens? I always allow up to 7 days for payments to be made. So, by this time if I have not received payment I am generally listing it for sale right away. Prior to that I have generally gotten a response from a Buyer, and correspondence has been shared. This is helpful with making a sale. Sometimes you have Buyers who do not respond, but still pay quickly, and things are good. Then, there are those who do not respond at all during this 7 day period that I myself allow for payments to be made. Keep in mind there might be explainable reasons for this too. Something might have come up, there has been an unforeseen emergency, and so on. Generally if I have not heard anything within 3 days from the Buyer I do send a small reminder asking if they received the invoice ok, asking if there is a problem, etc. More than likely I will hear from the Buyer. Then...there are those that do not respond at all. They have changed their minds, decided they do not want the item, and do not respond. This is not fun to work with, but a part of doing sales too. 

The biggest thing that all parties can do is Communicate. Having Communication is one of the best things to have with the procedure of sales online. I know that sometimes the notes I email to customers might be a repeat from what the systems from some of the market places themselves are already sending out automatically. I don't mean to spam anyone, and it is not my intentions of doing of upsetting anyone with this procedure. But, sometimes the systems have glitches with things being sent in a timely fashion to the customers, and I have no way of knowing this. So, to be safe, and more secure I still send my minor notes to the customer just to make sure we are connecting.

Something I like to remind customers about is if you have any questions, or any problems to please contact me. I am friendly, and easy to work with:) Hope this helps some of you understand a little bit of my procedures I use for when the sale is made. There is more, but this is one of the steps of the process. I have never been taught a true correct way, or told if there is a right or wrong way that is a rule to follow. In my mind Communication is the biggest thing that should be shared, and this I am a firm believer with when doing Online Sales.

Thanks for visiting with LilacsNDreams, and see you again soon! You are Welcome to share, and comment with this subject. I always like hearing from everyone, and enjoy the things you share too. Make sure to say Hi when visiting so I can come visit you as well too. Take care everyone till the next time. Have a super weekend!:)

     

Picnik Photo Enchancing Site is Now Picmonkey

Picnik Photo Enhancing Site is Now Picmonkey!


Hello Everyone, and Welcome to LilacsNDreams! Always happy to see you here. I am excited, and hope that others will be when hearing this too. How many of you like using Picnik for your photo editing, and enhancing? The ease of it, the simplicity, no sign in or registration, but just hop on in to do what you needed with your pictures and then be on your way. I have adored Picnik, and was heart broken when I heard that they would be closing by April 19. What to do, What to do? There are many many programs out there, many of them have their own things to use, but many many of them did not have the simplicity of Picnik which was actually very popular, and used by many people too. I seen someone in the forums at Etsy announce that Picnik is now Picmonkey, and it is now active too! I know I had read something about this earlier, and the site was not fully functional at that time. But, I have popped on over to the site tonight, and played with one picture there. It all worked, no problems, very simple, and Whew! What a relief too! So, now I do not have to worry at all. Picmonkey will now be replacing Picnik for me, and I also have found that I like BeFunky to use for photo editing too. They also have many qualification as Picnik had.

So, when you get a chance hop on over to Picmonkey to see what it can do for you, enjoy the simplicity of the photo enhancing site, and see if this maybe is the site for you to replace Picnik's closing with. Hey, thanks for stopping by to visit with me everyone!:) Remember, you are always welcome to share, leave a comment, and of course.....Please say Hi also so that I know you visited, and can come visit with you too!:) Take care everyone, and see you again soon. Later..........

 

Solar Flares Knocking Out Electronics on Thursday

Solar Flares Knocking Out Electronics on Thursday


Hello, and Welcome to LilacsNDreams! I had another post in mind, but thought I would share this instead with everyone. Just in case you did not see the news, or hear about it. On Thursday, March 8th, if you find all of your electronics of sorts . . . internet, cell phones, cable, and any electronics is acting kind of funky, there is a reason for it. On the news tonight they gave notice of this, and what the results could be from some Solar Flares that will be happening. This is something that happens every so many years, and our time is coming to see some of it tomorrow. If you are in the right location you might also be able to see some Northern Lights displays too. 


So, remember....if there are any issues with your electronics of sorts that you use there is a reason for them flickering, coming in and out, and so on. Our Solar Flares from above will be rippling things for us a bit down here:)


Thanks for stopping by LilacsNDreams, and hope ya'll survive the Solar Flares on Thursday. Take care, and see you again soon. 

Pinterest is Good Useful Sharing Learning and With Copyrights

Pinterest is Good Useful Sharing Learning and With Copyrights.

Hello everyone, and as always Welcome to LilacsNDreams! Pinterest . . . We have all heard of it, or most of us have heard of it. It is a growing Social Network that has intrigued many people to join with them. It has been a pass time, place to share, place to learn, is useful for many reasons, and has been very addictive for many people too. What you do at Pinterest is you pin items that you have found on the internet that are creative ideas for you, maybe you would like to follow a website or a blog, make a list of items for weddings ideas, and etc. This is the place to do all of these organizational things for yourself. Whenever you pin something, that item when clicked on by someone else visiting your boards, will take them to the original place, or link of where the picture came from that you found it at.

Copyright issues with things like this? Visit ddkportraits.com to read what this person has done, and about her phone call with Pinterest Founder Ben Silbermann. Get an idea and feel for what was discussed, and what is being done by Pinterest with this issue raised by many people of copyrights. I know many of the issues have been from photographers, and some of their concerns are very understandable too.  Also, see the Pinterest - Copyright as they have it at this time.

I think Pinterest is fabulous, and has been a great source of seeing or meeting people, and new products too. Because of Pinterest I have been able to visit many other Websites, Blogs, Online Stores and Market Places by Sellers, and have seen some things that I would have not otherwise seen myself. With the issues at hand of concerned discussions, I do believe things will work themselves out too. 

When you have a chance, come visit with Pinterest, and you are more than Welcome to start with boards that I myself have started at Pinterest. All of them under LilacsNDreams of course. Always organizing, and rearranging things with items I wish to view later, keep in mind, and etc. Always welcome to visit with me there too!:)

Nice to see ya'll again, and hope you enjoyed your visit with LilacsNDreams. Remember, you are always welcome to share things with us here....keep it clean, and no arguing please, and remember everyone is very much entitled to their own opinions. Also, don't forget to say Hi so that I can hop on over to visit with you too!:) Take care everyone, and see you again soon!:)

Use Search Engines in Searching For Products and Stores

Use Search Engines in Searching For Products and Stores. 

Welcome to LilacsNDreams! Glad to have you visiting here. I was thinking of something the other day, and thought maybe it might be helpful to share this thought with you as well. When you are searching for treasures you want online, how are you searching? You go to the computer, sit down, and what do you type into the keyboard to look first when searching for items to buy? I think many people assume they should just go straight to Ebay. There is much more out there to see. People, Buyers, and Shoppers should also learn to go to the search engines when you are shopping, or searching for things. Your common search engines to use are Google.com and Bing.com. Sometimes searches are done with Yahoo, and actually other small places too. 

When you have a specific item that you are looking for use the search engines to shop with. By using the search engines you will get a nice variety of things to choose from, and you will see and realize the other market places that are available to shop with too. Sometimes prices can be better because a fee structure for a seller is so much better than what is offered to them with Ebay, and other places too. Also, you will find different payment platforms that can be offered for you to pay with. Not all places are Paypal only. For instance, with Artfire I offer Paypal, and Amazon Payments, and try to note that I can invoice you with Google Checkout at Artfire too. Some of the other sellers there also offer pro-pay with their stores too. At Ecrater I offer Paypal, and Google Checkout. Remember, I can also invoice with these places if you would like to contact me separately from the market places to purchase too. You know, like if you seen something of interest in my LilacsNDreams Shoppe page. 

With search engines if you know the name of the shop, or store you wish to look for you can also connect with that name too. Once the pages with that name come up you will see all the places they are associated with, and sell with. Give it a try. Google, or Bing my name of LilacsNDreams. You will see my blogs, my stores, along with different places I am also associated with too.

Hope this little tid bit of information was found to be helpful to all you reading, visiting, and stopping by LilacsNDreams. You have any questions, don't hesitate to ask them. You are more than welcome to comment, and share here too. Don't forget to say Hi so that I know you visited, and I can hop over to see you as well. 

Thanks for dropping by everyone, and see ya'll again real soon. Take care, and have a wonderful Day/Evening!:)