Facebook has just announced Places, a new feature that will allow users to share their location with other Facebook users via their smartphones. A lot of questions have been raised over this new feature, so here is a helpful guide Mashable put together that explains what Places is and what it will mean for businesses, you, and your privacy.

First of all, in order to use Places you will have to have a smartphone. This feature works best on the iPhone, but if you don’t have one, you can still access Places through Facebook’s Mobile Touch Site as long as your browser supports HTML5 and geolocations. Facebook plans to release versions of Places for Android and Blackberry devices, but no official dates have been released yet.

The first time you click on the Places tab on your iPhone or your Mobile Touch device, you will be asked for permission for Facebook to know your locations. Once you accept, you will be taken to the Places interface. From here, you can share your location with friends, find where your friends are located (provided they are using Places), and discover new areas around you. You have the options to add places, check into existing places, and tag people who are with you.

In order for businesses to show up on Places, they must submit an official document such as a business license or a Better Business Bureau accreditation. Facebook also plans to launch an API so developers can incorporate this feature into their applications. Working with sites such as Yelp and Gowalla, this feature will allow third-party apps to pull information and run queries from Places’ data.

So what happens when Places goes wrong? If Places displays a wrong location, or you feel that it is infringing on your privacy, you can report this incorrect data and it will be flagged for removal. Unfortunately, this removal is not immediate, but you can immediately untag yourself from these locations.

One of the main concerns with Places is user privacy. While this feature is designed to share your location with your friends only, your checkins will automatically show up in your newsfeeds and status updates. Friends can also check you into locations without your permission. Steps to make places more secure are available; however, you just have to know where to find them. By carefully going through the various “Customize Setting” for Places, you will be able to control who sees your locations and who can tag you.

This new feature is generating a lot of hype and is sure to raise many questions. Check out the full article for more on Places.

One thing to remember is that your logo is a first impression. Before consumers know anything about your company, the first thing they notice is your identity. Instantly, consumers know if they want to continue or click away. As Silverman states, “Like the clothes you’d wear to a business meeting, your logo has to say, “I’m smart, I’m savvy, and I can compete,” at first glance.”

This is especially important for small businesses because they have to compete with large, multi-national corporations. This is a great opportunity, however, for small business owners because they can adapt to an ever-changing online market much easier than a large corporation. That’s why it is so important for small businesses to stay up-to-date on current market trends.

Another thing to know when it comes to your logo is what makes a logo “sticky.”  This means that your logo will “stick” in the consumers’ minds. When they see your logo they automatically associate with your brand. Making your logo memorable can be tricky, but thinking outside of the box can help. Try to be unique. Avoid what has been done countless times, and try to create something that is specific to your business.

Read the full article for more tips on creating the perfect logo for your company.

So what do you do to cope with this ever-increasing list of to-dos? Defren offers five steps that might make your work day a bit less stressful: decide on your goals, ask for help, set a reasonable pace, “under-promise and over-deliver,” and measure. These steps may not make your day easier, but it will make it more manageable. Read the full article for more on how to change your workday from a sprint into a marathon.

An article by Kathryn Roy on MarketingProfs discusses this report and provides a few tips for getting your message heard in such a crowded market. Roy points out that many businesses are setting themselves up for failure right from the start by defining target segments by consumer types and not by consumer needs. As Harvard Business School marketing Professor Ted Levitt says: “People don’t want a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole.”

Figuring out what consumers want your product to do is the first step in building brand equity. Instead of focusing on a specific consumer segment, focus on what that segment wants your product to do for them. What job do they need done, and how can your product achieve that goal? By marketing the unique job that your product supplies, you will have a better chance of standing out in such a crowded market. By address the specific needs of a target segment before your competitors do, you can increase company revenues and morale.

Read the full article for more on how you can be heard in today’s crowded market.

Many experts believe that in today’s technology driven market, “old-school” marketing techniques are out dated and will not work on newer markets such as Facebook. Dean Rieck, writer and direct-marketing consultant, thinks otherwise. In a recent article published on MarketingProfs, Dean lists 13 “old-school” marketing techniques that he believes will take your Facebook fan page from “wimpy to wow.”

Dean’s first technique is to advertise your page. He believes that if you want people to come to your site, you must drive them there. At a minimum, link your Facebook page to your website. Increase your advertising by using Facebook ads, blogs, banners, and any other advertising to get your fan page noticed.

He also adds that to beef up your Facebook fan page, you need to research both your fan base and your competition. Using Facebook’s Insight feature, you can view metrics on your fans, such as how many active fans you have and how many comments and interactions are taking place. You can also access your competitions fan pages to see how their pages compare to yours.

Check out the full article for the complete list of Dean Rieck’s “old-school” marketing techniques and see how you can turn your Facebook page from wimpy to wow.

When IPv4 was created, smartphone technology had not been created yet, and the idea of devices such as refrigerators needing an IP address was absurd. Today, however, almost every electronic device can connect to the Internet.

One solution to this problem is IPv6. This new IP service would provide nearly 4 billion IP address to every person in the world. Unfortunately, this service has been frowned upon by many service providers because it would require a large amount of upgrades, and some users would completely have to purchase new hardware.

Until IPv6 is release, or a new solution is created, service providers may force customers to share IP address. This could ultimately cause some services, such as Gmail and iTunes, to cease to work.

Read the full article for more.

His first tip is to write category descriptions. On many e-commerce sites, optimization focuses on keywords from category pages. Thompson points out, however, that most category pages are mostly images and links with little to no descriptions. One way to fix this is to write descriptions or introductory copy for each category that can be displayed before or after the product listings.

Another tip for increasing keyword-targeted content is to write expert product reviews. Writing and publishing reviews that include images, video, detailed product testing and analysis, and other value-added content that shoppers might find useful is a great way to generate searchable content.

Thompson provides other tips, as well as examples of how these tips have been successful. Read the full article to see how you can increase your e-commerce SEO.

According to an article on Media Post, companies need to think of social media as an interconnected web. By making your Twitter feed visible on your website, your online stores accessible through Facebook, and placing your YouTube videos everywhere, your customers will easily be able to access and navigate your business regardless of the channel.

The trick here, however, is to make sure you can maintain your authenticity. When integrating social media into your various sites, it is easy to simply automate your responses. You can have your Facebook updates post to your Twitter, your Twitter feed to your LinkedIn, and so forth. This may seem like a great idea to save time and effort, but this can get annoying for the customer.

If your followers are constantly receiving updates from your social media sites, they are more likely to simply “hide” you rather than being bombarded by messages. Media Post suggests that whenever you are tempted to automate your social media, as yourself, “What will this do to the customer experience?” Try to find a balance between automated responses and personal ones.

Check out the full article to see how you might can achieve that perfect balance.

The iPhone is one of the most popular smartphones on the market, and much of its popularity is due to its App Store. The App Store allows iPhone, iPad, and iPod users to download applications for free or for a cost. These apps range from business apps to games and entertainment apps.

One app in particular is starting to generate a lot of buzz. This app is Talking Tom Cat. Created by Outfit7, Talking Tom Cat is a fun, entertainment app that allows users to interact with a 3D cat on their iPhone. You can interact with Tom by petting, poking, punching and tail pulling. Each action will get a different reaction from Tom. These range from Tom purring to yelling OUCH! If you poke or punch him too many times, he will fall to the floor dizzy. If left alone for too long, Tom will begin to yawn or sneeze to get your attention. Additional props, such as a glass of milk, also surround Tom.

This simple interaction is amusing, but the real value of Tom is his ability to mimic everything said to him. Tom records what is said and replays it in a humorous cat voice that varies in pitch based on the voice of the person being recorded. Whenever Tom is recording, he will turn a listening ear and a paw to the screen.

This feature gets even better by allowing you to record up to 30 seconds of Tom in action and send it directly to Facebook, YouTube, or send a direct email of the video. Sending this video to a friend is sure to get a few laughs. This fun and entertaining app is free to download and is a must have for people wanting to liven up their iPhone.

Check out Talking Tom Cat for yourself.

According to the article, before you create a landing page, you need to understand the idea of “call-to-action buttons.” In order to convince people to navigate to your landing page, you need a call to action message that will motivate them to learn more about your business. Once you have a compelling message to drive people to your landing page, there are a few easy things you can do to improve your page.

First, make sure your landing page matches your “call-to-action message.” People follow a link expecting to immediately find information of the topic. If they don’t recognize the information on the landing page right away, they are likely to leave.

Second, keep the required information fields to a minimum. Four essential fields exist for starting lead generation: Name, Phone Number, E-mail, and Company. If any additional information is needed, consider making it “optional.”

Third, make your landing page flexible, so it can prove useful later down the road. Keeping your landing page easy-to-change will save you valuable time and resources.

These are just a few quick tips to help you build a successful landing page. Read the full article for more information.