Google Analytics recently rolled out the new “Intelligence” section of Analytics – adding more features to how we track and manage web conversions.  I thought I’d take a few minutes to show you the basics on how to set them up and why you might want to use them.

The more we know about our web site’s performance, the better we can plan for upcoming drops in traffic (based on past trends), or prepare for increased traffic with successful marketing campaigns.

Annotations can be an effective tool in placing reminders right into your analytical data that you can refer back to when pulling historical data.  A couple of examples of where you might do this:

• Large/Sudden drop in traffic due to perhaps a power outage – note the power outage so a year from now when you look at historical date you remember that.
• A jump in traffic could be due to an email campaign, press release, blog post, new product intro – note the specific event in your Google analytics account.
• When you are working with tools like Google AdWords you often make budget changes, create new Ad Groups, pause Ad Groups.  Creating an annotation is a good idea to track these events.
• Perhaps you launch a full site redesign that includes all new content that will need to be re-indexed by the search engines.  Create an annotation.

There are many reasons to create annotations in Google Analytics as they are quick ‘at-a-glance’ checkpoint when looking at your data.  Below is a quick snap-shot of annotations and how to create them.

The above image shows the same data point and how to view/create annotations.  Here’s the breakdown:

Image A shows the data point (date) where there was a jump in traffic.  Notice in the image the little thought bubble at the bottom. This is the indicator that lets you know there is an Annotation associated with that date.

Image B shows what you will see if you mouse-over the annotation bubble.  It shows you the date, how many site visits on that date, and how many annotations have been created for that date.  (If you have clicked on that, you’ll see your annotations just below this graph).

Image C is what you see when you click on the annotation bubble – this is where you get the option to “Create New Annotation.”

Once you’ve clicked on “Create New Annotation” you have the option to insert text associated with the event you want to track for that date.  (See image below)  It’s pretty straight forward – just put in a very brief description of the event you are tracking.  “BLOG POST:  Creating Google Annotations” would be the description I would create if I created one for this post.   Save it, and your done!

Creating Annotations in Google Analytics

I am finding Google Analytics Annotations to be a good tool to use when doing specific tasks related to Social Media tasks.  I know we use monitoring and tracking tools for Social Media, and Google Analytics was not built specifically for that, but often times customers want that quick ‘at-a-glance” view of how things are going, how a Facebook change may have been successful or generated new fans, if a blog post drove traffic to your site, etc.

I hope this was helpful.

Just a quick post – something I thought was totally cool.  Many folks still don’t get why they should use Twitter.  Businesses don’t understand the benefits to their local customers.

Upstate NY, until very recently, has had less than normal snowfall, where the rest of the nation has been pounded.  Areas that generally get little or no snow have been debilitated because of the snow, and have had to act accordingly.

A friend living in Washington DC left a note on my Facebook page in reference to a previous post titled “What makes MY Tweets Interesting“.   These were the words she shared with me today in response:

.. during the DC blizzard in Feb, I monitored the Twitter feed of the local hardware store to find out when the new stock of shovels arrived (mine broke shoveling wet snow). I got my new shovel 15 minutes after they had arrived. Customers pay attention.

That is a perfect example of how businesses can work their Twitter feed to attract more customers, and built loyalty with existing customers.

I recently attended a Social Media seminar hosted by a local Chamber of Commerce.  My goal for this first part in a 3 part series was to make sure I wasn’t missing the mark on any major social media networks I have been using.   By no means do I consider myself to be a ‘guru’ in social media, but what I found interesting was the number of business professionals who were not using what I consider the 3 major social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn).

It was a reminder to me that the small business owners I represent each day in my role as their eyes and ears on the internet is that most of them don’t have a clear understanding of what social media is or, or what it can mean to them.  I have to think of my clients as those of the 50 or so professional folks in that room who were not yet on Twitter and barely have a LinkedIn profile, let alone how those things will help them.

After the meeting I got talking with a few folks, two of which admitted they were on Twitter, but just not ‘tweeting’ yet out of fear of not having anything interesting to say.   Questions immediately started running through my head about how to pull out information from these folks about what was tweet-worthy info, or what their respective communities may be interested.  What would I want to know about if I were in their follower base?  Here were a few questions I had:

• what is your line of work
• who are your first line customers
• what questions are you frequently asked
• what problems or concerns do your customers or audience typically have
• what praises do your customers or audience typically have

So a municipality might tweet about leaf pickup, plowing policy and village or town events.  A manufacturer might tweet about supply and demand, industry news, or product innovations.  A politician might tweet about the issues that are pressing to his/her constituents.  A student might tweet about what’s going on in school or look for input on that thesis they’ve been working on.

As for a social media enthusiast like myself?  Well I just tweet about any and all of it.  I find watching what others are doing to be the most interesting.  I am intrigued by how much people value their relationships in the twitterverse and it’s evident in their tweets that they do.  (which I think is just about the coolest thing).

Twitter has also brought the world together during crisis – look at this past week with the earthquake in Chili and the predicted tsunami.  The waves turned out to be smaller than expected, but if you watched the Twitter stream in the hours prior, everyone was working together to get the word out – in concern for the well-being to those at risk.

Still not sure you have anything interesting to say?  Start spending a few minutes here or there watching your followers – as someone tweets something you find interesting – send a reply – open a dialog.  You might be surprised to see a new relationship unfold with the conversations that follow, and the folks that end up following along as a result.

Good luck and happy tweeting!

• How to Add your Google Analytics Tracking Code to Blogger Blogs http://bit.ly/afuBrI (Review for most) #
• Meta Keywords Impact Google Search Rank – Myth or Fact? http://is.gd/825o3 #
• Brand new blog from a young JV Baseball Coach on the love of baseball, coaching & mentoring youth. Should be great! http://bit.ly/bdhIyA #
• @CoachCharrise Congratulations! That’s awesome! There is nothing that isn’t doable! Keep it up in reply to CoachCharrise #
• 21 days tobacco free! Woot! Woot! #
• @CoachCharrise It doesn’t get much better than that does it? 540 lives who can go out and positively impact 540 more! #payitforward in reply to CoachCharrise #
• @Gorpdc Thanks! I feel pretty good (and smell better too!) in reply to Gorpdc #
• Thanks Mark! How are things for you? Haven’t been out to any of the meetups lately. I need to get back into that. #
• RT @CoachCharrise: old leadership paradigms don’t work. If you’re to lead people, you need to care about them. It’s more fun & productive #
• Google Buzz for Mobile – compete with FourSquare? http://bit.ly/anhjnp #
• Coworker turns 50 today so we honored him w/ a coffin cake from @JMCCustomCakes http://tweetphoto.com/10968939 Check it out! #
• Just signed up for Vertical Response Marketing Lounge – hoping to find some great info there! http://bit.ly/2cKM #
• How to Add Email Opt-In Forms and Custom Tabs to your Facebook Pages. http://is.gd/8fy3r #
• My mantra today is “attitude of gratitude… attitude of gratitude… attitude of gratitude…” #
• Uhh did WordPress just go down? #
• RT @HennArtOnline: The ocean always puts me in my proper place. It humbles my thoughts, words and wishfully, my actions thereafter! #
• RT @VR4SmallBiz: Hey thanks! I already learned something today – so I was psyched. I think I will be able to make great use of the lounge. #
• Love the analogy “60,000 seat snow globe”. #olympics. Cool #
• I want a jacket that lights up! #olypmics #
• @extremejohn extra chargers. Gotta love it! in reply to extremejohn #
• Good friend is leaving tomorrow to climb Kili. What an inspiration. I need to find my great adventure. #
• @extremejohn I hear yah! Same with my iPhone. I can grab my kids’ iPod chargers. Tons of them layin around. in reply to extremejohn #
• @extremejohn yep. I got the iPod extra chargers layin around for mine. in reply to extremejohn #
• @andreacoventry it is impressive. I am truly in awe. in reply to andreacoventry #
• @JonathanLWade I just saw that. How incredibly sad. #
• YouTube discovered poet on opening ceremony. Outstanding. #olympics #
• @craigritchie never heard that before. Thought “huh?”. Then I looked up at my TV. Big HiDef #neckbeard. Woah! in reply to craigritchie #
• @jennyjo70 hi Chica! Xoxo. in reply to jennyjo70 #
• Lives of great significance begin with a spark. #olypmics. Awesome. #
• Call be lame but I’m lovin this Hallelujah. #olympics #
• Ok. I’m starting to ‘mistweet’ my words. Time for sleep. #
• And so my 48 hour nonstop marathon begins with a meeting at church this AM & ends with 14 car winning the 500 tomorrow. Start my engine! #
• @ChazAtCaz hey Chaz. Thx for the RT love! in reply to ChazAtCaz #
• @TBMarketingBuzz thanks for RT. It is truly appreciated. in reply to TBMarketingBuzz #

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Having spent the time today teaching myself how to add an email opt-in form to a Facebook page from Vertical Response – I found myself getting a little frustrated.  Now that I’ve got it figured out – I’m going to save you tons of time in digging for the info (it’s not altogether straight forward for the basic user).

Assuming you have a business page on Facebook – AND – you are using Vertical Response for email marketing and list segmentation, you can create a tab on your Facebook page that will invite your page fans and visitors to sign up for (or opt-in to) emails from your company, group, etc…  My assumption is that other email marketing tools will work too, but I have only tested VR at this point.

So to start out – head on over to Vertical Response and create your new list.  I recommend creating a list that will store only the opt-ins from Facebook.   After all, we want to know what conversions (if any) are coming from our Facebook pages.

To add a new list – follow the steps under Lists and then “Add New List” in your Vertical Response account.  You then need to create an opt-in form just for that list.  Follow the instructions to create your opt-in form and copy and past that form script into a text editor like notepad – we’ll need that when we get our Facebook page tab ready to go.

Note: When creating that new list and opt-in form, I do recommend using a custom thank you page that can be added to your Google Analytics Goals.

Now here’s where I got hung up – you need to add a customizable tab to your Facebook page, so before you can do that, you have to install the Static FBML application to your Facebook Account.  (I am now a fan of this application since I know how to use it

To find Static FBML, click on the “Edit Page” link in your Facebook page and scroll down to Browse More Applications.  Click on the Static FBML link (shown at right here).

This will take you to the application page on Facebook.  You will need to add it to your Facebook page before you proceed.

The nice thing is, if you manage multiple Facebook pages you can add it to all of them at once.  Scroll through the list and select the page(s) you want to add it to and we’ll continue on.

Once you’ve done that, head back to your Facebook page and click on “Edit Page” – don’t worry we are almost done!  Once you are in your Edit screen you should scroll down and see the Static FBML link you’ll want to click on Edit.

Note:  Have your text editor open where you’ve saved your form code so you can copy it to Facebook.

Change your title and then simply copy in your form script and then add any additional content.  Note that FBML does not like <html> <body> and <head> tags, so you can format tables, paragraphs, etc – but avoid those few tags.

UPDATE (2-19-2010): Due to Facebook updates – you’ll need to add a “&” to the end of your FORM METHOD String to enable this feature to work.  I had to go back to the Vertical Response Lounge to get this resolved (which by the way is a great resource).

<form method=”post” action=”http://oi.vresp.com?fid=26230b1027&” target=…..>

In the completed example below I have included a basic table format with some additional content to let users know what they’ll be receiving once they opt-in:

There you go!  You have just learned (much quicker than I did), how to add email opt-in forms to your Facebook pages.   (See the live example.)  This Static FBML application can do much more than just adding email opt-in forms.  My next experiment will be with promotional content and coupons – but the possibilities are limitless (within the confines of the application) as to how to utilize this application.

Here’s a quick an easy “how to” on adding Google Analytics tracking code to your blogger site.

First – if you have  a main web site for your business that your blog is supporting – hopefully you already have an Analytics account set up for tracking your site traffic.

Assuming that’s the case you will be adding a new profile to your already existing Analytics account so we can track your blog traffic.   We covered how to add profiles in our post about applying IP Filters to our analytical data (which you’ll want to do for your blog also).

Got your profile added?  Now grab your analytics tracking code from Google Analytics (copy it into Notepad or some text editor) – and run on over to Blogger.   Under “Layout” in your Blogger account select the Page Elements option (which should like the image shown below)

See that “Add A Gadget” field along the bottom of the image?  That represents your blog footer and is where you’ll want to input your Google Analytics Tracking Code.

Click on that “Add A Gadget” link and select “Html/JavaScript” (shown here)

Clicking on the blue “+” will open a window.  DO NOT enter a title in the Title field.  Simply copy your tracking code from NotePad and paste into this Content field of this pop-up window.  Click SAVE and then it should take you back to your layout screen and show now show an HTML/JavaScript item in your blog footer.

For good measure SAVE your changes on this screen as well and then go back to Analytics.  Lets verify that your tracking code is installed properly.  Click on “Edit” in your Google Analytics profile.  When the profile edit screen opens, look to the top right for a link that says “Check Status”  - once you click on that – Google Analytics will check the tracking code you just installed on your blog and will either deliver an error message, or tell you that your tracking code has been installed properly.

Those are the basics.  If you need help with setting up your blog in general, or are not quite sure how to get your Google Analytics Tracking Code – drop me an email.  I can answer any questions you may have about installing your tracking code, setting up your IP filters and so on.

Good luck and happy blogging!

Read more on IP Filtering through Google Analytics.

• Good Morning World – Day 14 Free of Tobacco is looking pretty good (and smellin' good too!) #
• RT @copyblogger How to Quit Hitting the Snooze Button on Your Blog http://bit.ly/cyxfcq #
• RT @sewatch Universal Search 101 – Search Engine Watch (SEW) http://bit.ly/b0ABAD #
• Google Analytics now allows annotations by date – excellent news! #
• Sitting in doctors office. Just noticed A LOT of dust on closet door in my exam room. Hmmmmm. Kinda really bothering me. #
• http://twitpic.com/11c9hi is that normal dust in a doctors office? Or am I being over dramatic here??? #
• @AllWomenStalk I'm thinking I'm looking for a new PCP after today. in reply to AllWomenStalk #
• CNN Breaking News: Toyota President Akio Toyoda apologizes for recall, says "Toyota's cars are safe," Kyodo news agency says. #

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• @rochrazorsharks congrats on the home opener win against Buffalo. Saw it in today's paper. #
• RT @microgeist: Conduct internal customers satisfaction surveys (how about blind employee satisfaction surveys too) #
• RT @sewatch Apple/Google Turf Battle Rages On: Mobile Search on the Block – Search Engine Watch (SEW) http://bit.ly/52iGFx #
• RT @SkeeterHarris: The Kandle is obviously a LED light for the Kindle http://is.gd/70mJb (@surrealVAD Do you have one of these yet?) #
• Day 7, No tobacco. T/U to all my Social Media friends who tweeted their support & left encouraging words on FB. http://bit.ly/6jQml6 #
• @surrealVAD You must get your Kindle fully accessorized! in reply to surrealVAD #
• RT @Flipbooks Most failures could've been converted into successes if someone had held on another minute or made more effort ~N. Hill #quote #
• @GeekMommy That would have come in handy for me this weekend in reply to GeekMommy #
• Tip: If you are going to auto reply to my following you, please check your Auto-Reply for errors… #
• @maryhruth Hey friend… I'm struggling today (day 7 no nicotene)- what have you got for me? #
• @jennyjo70 Just stopping by to say hello. in reply to jennyjo70 #
• My latest quit smoking aid… virtual bubble wrap… http://bit.ly/7w44f1 #
• RT @mashable Google Toolbar Keeps Tracking Your Browsing Even After You Choose Disable? http://bit.ly/5hFIkR (Big Brother is watching?) #
• @maryhruth I'm good Day 8 no tobacco still plugging along! 153 comments from FB friends kept me going too! in reply to maryhruth #
• Pack of cigs $8, Regular gum to quit $3.50, nicotine gum $52, Support of my Social Media friends – PRICELESS http://bit.ly/6jQml6 #
• Apple Announces the iPad today http://bit.ly/9EIUbI #
• Thank you Lindsey from Twitter support! You saved my week! #
• Checking out weRead app on Facebook – hoping to exchange great book info #
• @lorenpmatthews That is a fabulous question! I'd much rather ponder that than #sotu #
• When you are feeling down – a random act of kindness for someone in need is a great way to improve your spirits (and theirs)! #
• @Theresa111 Imagine if everyone did one small random act of kindness a day. Can you imagine? How simple! #payitforward in reply to Theresa111 #
• @kidsareheroes Hey Gabe. Just wanted to say hello! It's been far too long. #
• I'm thinking about writing my bucket list. Who has theirs written and what's your #1? #
• Today's Daily Challenge: "Choose your most available resource (time or $$) & donate a little each month. Schedule it." #payitforward #
• RT @ShootHistory: Turnbull Restoration Firearms Stolen From Dallas Safari Club Gun Show – Press Release http://bit.ly/9ccjgX #
• Tim Hortons in Victor, NY gets my vote for #customerservice. Ed the manager there rocks! (even without the chicken stew bread bowls!) #
• RT @maddiegrant: RT @sharisax: #smsci Your brand should be a box of crayons NOT a rubber stamp, so people can input their own needs, ideas #
• Are you prepared in a roadside emergency? AAA/CAA discount on safety equipment – good stuff (Please RT) http://tinyurl.com/yh44veq #
• #followfriday shout to @ShootHistory new to Twitter – specializes in accurate restoration of antique firearms – Doug is an artist! #
• @SkeeterHarris Stay warm my friend! in reply to SkeeterHarris #

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• @Buzzy5025 thanks for the vote buzzy! Tweet yah later! in reply to Buzzy5025 #
• RT @tessa: Shoes That Tweet (Yes, Really!) http://bit.ly/8CgnhQ (That might be a little too far for me!) What will they think of next? #
• CNN photos of Haiti – Very powerful & gut wrenching. http://bit.ly/7pf4sV One thing we can do that's free… PRAY for them! #
• RT @Kibler: "Everything that is done in the world is done by hope." Martin Luther King, Jr. #
• RT @inspiredguru: Faith is a positive feeling. Cultivate it. #lawofattraction #
• Welcome @RochRazorSharks to Twitter – Rochester's Professional Basketball team! Cool! Looking forward to following you guys! #
• @MsGreene I'm told by @AvenueZ (who rocks!) we should connect! I'd love to chat #
• RT @Flipbooks: "The time is always right to do what is right" ~Martin Luther King Jr #MLK #quotes #
• @RochRazorSharks Never been to a professional basketball game my friend – the last game I went to was probably our Blue Devils! in reply to RochRazorSharks #
• I just learned about FourSquare today (am I too late?) What a cool concept! I'd love to be the Mayor of anywhere! #
• @JMCCustomCakes Hey – get your logo uploaded as your Twitter Avatar. If you need a smaller file to do it let me know. in reply to JMCCustomCakes #
• Adoptive Family finds that Haitian baby (Ester) they were to adopt survived the quake – family to be united. Finally some good. #
• US military rifle sights with secret biblical code? http://abcnews.go.com/m/screen?id=9575794&pid=574 #
• My Advice: When you're wrong, just ADMIT IT, take responsibility. It's easier to move forward in a positive direction. (I just did) #
• @KelleyMoore I am passionate about God & working to let that spill out into other areas of my life, from my career to my children, etc. in reply to KelleyMoore #
• RT @AceConcierge: * “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin (Oh how true that is!) #
• @JonathanLWade OK Jon, blushing here. Thanks for the vote of confidence – you are too kind! in reply to JonathanLWade #
• @AceConcierge Oh Thank you! I love hugs! (and thanks for the content that is worth the RT!) in reply to AceConcierge #
• RT @guyro: RT @Beaker: You can outsource responsibility but accountability is on you. <- wise words even out of context (now that's deep) #
• Just fought the urge to have my "after work cigarette". Phew! 24 hrs and counting. Lord, give me strength! I can do this. #
• Quick! Someone tell me something funny to take my mind off smoking a cig. #
• @B_BMom Thanks for the encouragement – I'm chewin' gum like mad! in reply to B_BMom #
• @maryhruth It's been since Monday – so far so good Just keep telling me I can do this! My lungs will thank me for it in reply to maryhruth #
• Is there any way to have a twitter account deleted that was perhaps not set up properly? Please help! #
• Check out these amazing high speed photos http://bit.ly/6tzUmQ (RT @GuyKawasaki ) Incredible stuff! #
• "When you start feeling sad, stop being said and be awesome instead" ~Author Unknown (just saw that on facebook and love it)! Just Be! #
• I just unlocked the "Newbie" badge on @foursquare! http://4sq.com/5cjhk4 #
• I'm at Basin Pub (637 Pittsford-Victor Rd, Marsh, Pittsford). http://4sq.com/78IqCp #
• New to Twitter Brunings Wine Cellar – Check them out! Welcome @brunings #
• Not loving the follow limits. How am I supposed to gain followers if I can't reach new folks by following them & building new relationships? #
• @maryhruth Thanks Mary! I'm toughin' it out but great to have an online accountability partner – since that is where I spend my days in reply to maryhruth #
• @maryhruth 48 hours tobacco free! Doing pretty well. in reply to maryhruth #
• Rise and shine! Day three with no nicotene/tobacco. Thank you God! #
• How I'm using Social Media to quit smoking (please RT so someone else might quit too!) http://bit.ly/6jQml6 #
• @askmanny Thanks for the RT! in reply to askmanny #
• @maryhruth Thank you thank you! in reply to maryhruth #
• Day 4: Tobacco Free. I'm using Social Media to quit smoking (and it's really working). http://bit.ly/6jQml6 Please RT. #
• #followfriday shout to @JonathanLWade cause he's just all around #coolfolk. Check him out! #
• Please follow @JMCCustomCakes she's new on the scene. Her custom desserts are edible art (and she's a sweetheart!) http://bit.ly/8dHNBF #ff #
• One More for all you basketball fans – @RochRazorSharks – Rochester's own basketball team! #followfriday #
• @maryhruth You definitely deserve some #followfriday love just for being genuine and truly caring! Thanks for being you! #
• RT @DanielleCyr: YouTube has some new features: http://tinyurl.com/ybfdyqr #
• #followfriday shout to @leedrake because he's all about quality relationships. #
• Time to get back to basics on Twitter – clean out the cobwebs & work on building some quality relationships both new and old. #
• Found these stunning infrared photos via @speedmaster http://bit.ly/8Irpvj Some breathtaking shots worth taking a moment to enjoy! #
• RT @rachbarnhart: I love how this guy turned a layoff into work…http://bit.ly/7L0qLA #
• @jimmerz213 is #coolfolk. Happy Friday Jim! #
• Dr Seuss Memorial Garden (via @successnations ) http://bit.ly/8vEJYH #
• Some Jokester put up a cube wall at the entrance to my office – guess I cannot go home for the weekend #
• Lentils & Spetzle for dinner with the parental units in B-port. #
• @MarkShepard more often than I'd like! That's a great shot! in reply to MarkShepard #

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What a horrible image! Makes you think doesn't it?

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010 I woke up and said to myself, “I don’t feel like smoking anymore!”  It wasn’t something I planned or thought much about in advance.  I have talked about quitting smoking but always told myself that I had other things to fix in my life before I gave up the tobacco.  Here was my list:

• Get my spending/bad money habits under control (working on this!)
• Lose 40-50 lbs (already did that)
• Wait for my significant other to be ready to quit (he’s just not ready)
• New Year’s (or this date or that date – like ‘after my birthday’)
• When I move into my new place (that didn’t happen)

Excuses, excuses – and sometimes the spontaneous things we do in life are the most effective.  So with Tuesday morning’s revelation, I just gave it to God and decided to run with it.  I should note, I’ve been on a spiritual recovery journey these last 2 years anyway, and have overcome a gambling addiction, and have vastly improved my unhealthy relationship with money.  The foundation for my recovery has come from Celebrate Recovery and the work I’m doing there has allowed me to gather up the tools I need to get my life in order.  This time around, the quitting smoking is entirely different for me because I’m viewing it as an act of worship that is pleasing to God.

Some days, this is how I feel.

So what brought this on?  I’m not 100% sure, but I know it’s a God thing.  This past weekend in church a very wise young pastor talked about the importance of community – he shared statistics that stated that a person who is totally healthy and totally lonely will typically not live as long as the person who smokes and drinks but is actively involved in community.  The by-line was something to the effect of – it’s better to eat a twinkie with friends than to eat an apple alone. (Remember this is all a paraphrase, but the message was profound).  So, since I am actively involved in community, I thought it would be even better to get healthy AND be in community – so I can live to be 120!  (I’m sure my kids will love that!)

So in line with that, I am leaning on my community to hold me accountable.  I currently co-lead a women’s 12-step study at my church to help others through their journey to let go of life’s hurts, habits and hang-ups, but I’m also realizing that I need far more than that small group to hold me accountable. That’s where Social Media comes in.

The rough math – in my real “in person” life, I probably have about 20 people who I would look to keep me in check and hold me accountable to not smoke – but knowing myself and my lack of will power I decided to take it to the masses.  If I add up my current online social networks – just including Twitter, Facebook & LinkedIn, the numbers amount to about 3,300 connections.  To some that number may seems small in the world of social networking, but for me that’s over 3,000 that can hold me accountable to not smoke.

I hadn’t intended to use my online connections for this purpose, but one Tweet and one Facebook status update (both which fed to my LinkedIn status) amassed many many comments in just mere moments, and the comments and praise continue to come.

The kinds words from all of my Social Media “friends” and “tweeps” and “connections” are truly helping to keep me motivated.  The only one I’m truly accountable to is God, but the “You Go Girl!”, “You can do it!” (and my personal favorite) “Just think about how much money you will save!” are really helping me to stay motivated.  Here are my other 3 reasons for quitting:

So for those that don’t want to hear about it – sorry, but I will continue to tweet and post until I feel I’m free and clear – and to those who are taking the 30 seconds to leave an encouraging word – I AM TRULY GRATEFUL!

If you would like to join my accountability team and watch my progress, please send me a friend request, or catch up on Twitter!  Not only do I already feel better… but I smell better too!  :)

Please Re-Tweet this post! Maybe we can get just one more person the encouragement they need to quit smoking too!  We can do this!