Google (and when I say "Google" that includes Search, YouTube, Gmail, Google Calendar, and all the Google-related products) collects the data that you submit through search and the optional profile that you can create.  They have record of all the searches I’ve completed, websites I’ve visited, and YouTubes I’ve watched.  I’m not shameful of any of that, although I have seen some pretty weird stuff on the Internet. 

However, people are envisioning Google’s new actions as, "we’re gunna sell your data to a bajjillion marketing companies and give them all this super-secret information, so they can sell you stuff."  They’re envisioning hundreds or thousands of new daily email solicitations, random mail through the post, and salesmen knocking on your doors… because Google sold them your information.  That’s not true, people. 

Let me explain why. 

Google makes all their money on advertising to people using those FREE services.  Those ads on the side of the page or in videos that you probably never click on when searching the internet are their money-makers.  They are not spam.  They are not viruses.  There is a strict process for getting your ads on Google and even larger consequences if you’re found abusing it.  Those ads are pieces of information. 

They are tailoring those advertisements to get the best information in front of you QUICKER.   It’s not a lie that we buy stuff online.  Heck, we did $197 Billion in online sales alone in 2011.  That’s more than some country’s GDPs, I would think. 

True Story.  I bought something online yesterday and it arrived this afternoon.  That is freaking quick, but I honestly wanted it quicker.  Google is fast and they’re good at helping YOU become fast.  That’s what this process is all about.  It is about efficiency.  It is about being quick and getting quicker.  It is about finding information at lightning-fast speed and making quicker decisions.   It’s about becoming a better society and growth. 

So, let’s toss out an example.  If I Google “Mexican Restaurant” and up pops 3,500 results from New York, California, Canada, Kansas, Mexico, and San Antonio… I’m going to be pissed.  I want Mexican food in Annapolis and I don’t want to be searching for 20 minutes to find an Annapolis-based restaurant.  I’m hungry now.  So, Google knows my proximity and I get my information is 4 seconds instead of 20 minutes.  That’s efficiency. 

I could sit here and work through these examples all day.  And that example above was the simplest of examples.  But, just trying to get this point across…

Google is not being Evil.  Google is being Innovative.  They are helping our society become smarter, quicker, faster, and more efficient.   I’m always on board for becoming smarter, quicker, faster, and more efficient.   

So, all that being said…

I will proudly keep my past Google History for them to see and learn from tomorrow.

I will proudly continue to use Google every day so that I can learn. 

I will proudly continue to watch funny and weird YouTubes.

I will proudly become smarter, quicker, faster, and more efficient.   

Thanks Google. 

P.S. If you are still freaked out by this whole privacy situation, I’ll see you at the finish line. 

P.P.S.  Google released this video to illustrate what’s going on and I think they did a great job.

Good for them.  They had an idea, worked hard, and implemented.   

Teachers, Coaches, Doctors, Military, and Policemen have the same attributes.  Leadership.  They put others first.  They work hard. And make a difference on others.

Heck, I’m also one of the only remaining fans (and I’m a big fan) of Redskins Owner, Dan Snyder.   Why?  Because he is our team’s Leader, plain and simple.  No matter how many crazy decisions one might make, he is at the helm of the organization and I respect that.    

Some may consider my adoration of Leadership as a problem (mainly because of Danny Boy), but I come from a family of leaders.  Check out the Mint Media About page when you have a second. 

So…

———————————————————-

Let me paint a picture for you. 

Meet Kevin.  Circa 1993.  Kevin is a senior in High School.  He has spent the last 4 years on the Varsity Lacrosse team in a school that is known as a “Lacrosse Powerhouse.”  He has played Varsity Soccer for 3 years.  He has played Varsity Basketball for 3 years.  Senior year arrives and he is elected as Team Captain on ALL of those teams:  Lacrosse, Soccer, and Basketball!

Better yet, his classmates elect him as their Student Body President.  Ohh, and his grades are stellar… he is a member of the National Honor Society.  The only thing he wasn’t doing was teaching the classes, but my money is on the fact that he would have if given the opportunity. 

Guess who is the proud recipient of the following high school awards?

The US Army Reserve National Scholar-Athlete Award

It wasn’t me.  Get the idea?  Good. 

So, Kevin gets recruited to University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill to play for the country’s Top Lacrosse program and study at one of the most demanding institutions on the East Coast.  Guess who is named to UNC’s Dean’s List in 1993 and 1994?  Guess who joins a couple extra-curricular activities, such as Athletes in Action, the Athletic Director’s Student Advisory Council, and becomes a peer mentor for Carolina Athletes Coming Together?  That’s right.  Kevin did.

Talk about a leader. 

He is a mover-n-shaker.  He worked hard.  He implemented. Look at those results.

Kevin’s life was cut short during his sophomore year at UNC, when he was shot in a random act of violence while riding his bike across campus. 

———————————————————-

I never met Kevin. I was 12 at the time of his death.  My sister Kate was in Kevin’s class all 4 years at St. Mary’s High School in Annapolis, MD.  My brother Will was 3 years behind them at St. Mary’s and on the lacrosse team.  It was a big deal.  It was on the national news.  Kevin affected that many lives over those short 20 years.  Again, I was only 12, never met him, yet I remember it vividly. 

It hit hard in the Annapolis community and specifically in the St. Mary’s community, as I was in St. Mary’s Elementary School at the time.  (A proud member of the 13-Year Club)

Shortly after Kevin’s death, it was a no-brainer that an official Non-Profit Foundation needed to be setup, so Kevin could continue to inspire.  That’s exactly what was done.  Today the Kevin Reichardt Foundation has provided college scholarship to students that have attended… Get ready…

Harvard, MIT, Yale, Stanford, Cornell, Navy, Notre Dame, Dartmouth, Penn State,  Loyola, and my Alma Mater Towson University.  And that’s just a fraction of the schools.  There’s a full list on their website.

Which brings me to the reason I am writing today… 

A couple months ago, Mint Media was approached by the Kevin Reichardt Foundation to help upgrade their marketing efforts.  They needed a new logo, needed a new website, wanted to accept donations online, improve their social media efforts, and just an overall boost in their web presence. 

My decision… Absolutely! I wanted to be involved.  That’s what Kevin instills in people and I can’t explain it.  I just wanted to be involved, work hard, and implement!

So, head over to www.ReichardtFoundation.com and check everything out.

Today, Mint Media leads Strategic Marketing Communications & Public Relations on the Kevin Reichardt Foundation’s Advisory Council. 

Thanks Kevin. Go Saints.  

You may be asking, what the heck is a CRM or Infusionsoft? Simply put, it is cloud-based software where you can manage you prospects, customers, and clients with a unique combination of record-keeping, accounting, email marketing, sales automation, e-commerce, and a robust shopping cart to sell your stuff online. Plus, about a million and one other items, I don’t want to explain with right now. To learn more, check this out. WATCH DEMO

Today, Infusionsoft is sitting on the Inc. 500 list, has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Entrepenuer Magazine, BusinessWeek, and a ton of other publications.
Back in the early days, I often worked directly with Infusionsoft founders Scott Martineau and Clate Mask. To this day, I still think of Scott as one of the greatest web-based problem solvers I have ever worked with. Just a super-smart guy. Here is Scott and Clate talking about those early days:

For the next 6 years, I built and managed the Infusionsoft application for Dan Kennedy, Bill Glazer, and the Glazer-Kennedy Insider’s Circle (GKIC). I was the implementer, meaning the guy that mapped all the processes, managed all the campaigns, and fit all the square blocks into the round holes. I even was given the name “The Infusionsoft Guy” in a company that had grown from 4 employees to 35+ employees in those short years. Now, for those of you who know Dan Kennedy and Bill Glazer, you understand that those marketing campaigns were no easy task. 100% segmented, 100% personalized, and 100% effective. And we moved quickly, often with multiple overlapping campaigns running simultaneously.

When I decided to leave GKIC in 2010 to start Mint Media Agency and Unique 360 Tours, one of the first moves I made sure of was getting an Infusionsoft application for my own businesses. In addition, I proudly help about a dozen regular clients manage their Infusionsoft accounts, implementing custom API programming, launching marketing campaigns, and helping them fully utilize the software.
If you, your boss, or your company is using an out-dated system for tracking you prospect, customers, and clients… I urge you to check out Infusionsoft immediately.

View the Demo

View Pricing

The reason we were so nice…. we have a hefty Christmas List and we know it.  Most of the items are really expensive.  I’m talking like outrageously expensive and hard to find.  However, we paid it forward and now it’s time for you to deliver. 

We’re expecting to receive the majority of the items below and will be bitter if they don’t arrive on Christmas morn.

Love,
The Mint Media Agency   

————————————-

Here is the List. Click on each graphic to learn more.

A Google TV – We finally got cable at the office. Corporate doesn’t allow us to watch TV during the day, however, we often work late and need to mix it up a little bit when clocking 12-15 hours a day.  Cable is installed and just need the TV.  And forget that 3D non-sense… not a fan and think it will be about as popular as a laserdisc. Make sure its a big one, too.

iTree – We often measure things with a “need vs. want” type attitude.  This definitely falls into the NEED column.  Like, I don’t understand how we’ve worked this long without an iTree.  Sitting here like suckers listening to our expensive super-high-quality Dr. Dre Beats headphones all day when we can just bring in a tree that plays music from our phones and devices.

2011 MacBook Pro loaded with CS5 – You can never have too many Apple products, right?

GoPro HD Hero 2- I know this is more for the "extreme-sports" enthusiast, but what a great concept. Strap one of these things to your head and start recording. Think about the creativity that could be built up when we have a GoPro HD Hero 2 to play with.

Infinite iTunes Gift Card – I read in one of the Steve Jobs books that some Apple employees have an “Unlimited iTunes Card.”  No limit, no restrictions, all music, all apps, all free.  We want one…  really bad.   

Cannon XF-305 HD Video Camera – As you know, we offer Video Production Services to our clients, but lots of animation and motion graphics. When a client needs a video shoot and content, we outsource it. Time to bring that in-house with our own equipment. And listen, that Flip Camera you got us a few years back didn’t do the trick. We need top-shelf.

Center Console Boat – Well, this one is obvious and long overdue. A boat slip comes with our office at Pier 4 Marina in Eastport, but we don’t have a boat.  We asked for this last year, but you must have not seen it.  And make it a newer 20-22 foot Whaler or Grady White.  We have already named it, so leave the back blank.

Under Armor Dress Suit – As you know, a combination of Under Armour polos, tees, shorts, pants, socks, and shoes makes up a typical uniform at Mint Media on any given workday.  Most of the gear has the Mint Media logo embroidered on it.  Sometimes we need to dress up for a client.  You know, the whole dress-to-impress attitude.  However, the average suit doesn’t do the trick.  We want Under Armour Dress Suits with Under Armour Ties.  The whole 9. Don’t think they exist, but you’re a persuasive guy.  Let’s make this happen.   

Cuisinart Espresso Machine – We drink a lot of coffee and espresso during the work week.  I’m talking about a lot.  Probably an unhealthy amount and the costs add up.  Corporate is starting to get pissed. Let’s simplify things and bring it in-house with an Espresso Machine.  A nice one, too. 

Thats it. Nothing outrageous, so lets make this happen. And I cannot reiterate it enough. Don’t bring us knockoffs. We like name brands.

P.S. Ohh yea, a drum set. We also want a full drum set.

—

The Go-Giver, Bob Burg- Was a recommendation from my Father. Short book about a young businessman learning an important lesson about giving. I’d call it a adult version of "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein. Good book. Short and Easy.

Quitter , Jon Acuff - A book about "how to quit your job." Truth is, this book was no longer relevant to me. It was aimed at someone who was still in a job and itching to get out. That was me 2 years ago, but decided to make the leap on my own. If you hate your current job or thinking about doing something new, it is a good fit and provides some good insight. The book follows the true story of a guy who had an unfulfilling job and the choices he made to venture out to do something new.

Grouped , Paul Adams - This book was okay. It is all about social networks, people in your life, how to influence them, etc. Touched a bunch on the subconscious mind, selling power, buying influence, and proper marketing techniques, which I found weird at some points. I downloaded it in an effort to help (well, learn more) about the Mint Media social media presence.

Steve Jobs Biography, Walter Isaacson – Boom. Great book. People knew about this autobiography for several months (maybe even years) before the release. It was officially scheduled to be released in the Spring of 2012, however, due to Steve’s declining health concerns… rumors started floating about the released being pushed up. Steve died in early October 2011 and this book was released about 2 weeks later. It is the full (uncut) story of the greatest innovator of my time. Lots of LSD, crying, and yelling. Steve was a unique guy and the book showed a side of him that I never knew (super-intense, detail-oriented, and borderline crazy.) However, still consider him the greatest innovator of my time and it was interesting to get a first-hand look at how his companies were built, how he operated, and how he thought. After reading this, you’ll see Pixar movies in an entirely new light. Really long book. Highly recommend.

The Knack, Norm Brodsky – Honestly, I only read the first chapter. A book written by 2 Inc.com columnists, which is a magazine I read monthly and follow online. I figured I would enjoy their book. I got caught-up with the Steve Jobs Biography. So, will revisit at somepoint.

The Undercover Economist, Tim Harford - This came from a recommendation from a friend. A book about the economy, measuring, working, living, buying, selling, etc… in the US Economy. Sounded cool when my friend told me about it. Upon reading the description, I learned the book was actually written in 2006. Bummer, it completely lost credibility. It was written before the recession and lost all relevance in my opinion. I gave it a shot anyhow. Got through about half of the book and gave up. Sorta dry and I kept second-guessing the author based on the whole "Not our current economy" basis.

Talent Is Overrated, Geoff Colvin - I don’t remember reading this book. My Audible.com account says it is 75% complete. Weird. Sometimes these generalized buisness books all mesh together. My recommendation, it is worth skipping, I guess.

Delivering Happiness, Tony Hsieh – Awesome book. Easy, entertaining, and inspiring. It is the story of Zappos.com. I didn’t think a book about selling shoes would be good, but the reviews were off the charts and everyone love it. Well, they got another fan. It dissected the Zappos business model and intertwined the Zappos story. Highly recommend.

Onward, Howard Schultz - I did not finish it. It is the story about Starbucks. Figured it would be right up my alley. I love the 60-minute specials on CNBC about Starbucks, Home Depot, McDonalds, Wal-mart, and other big businesses. Heck, I watched the one on Target and another on America’s Coffee Addiction last night. The book just did not keep my attention for some reason.

The Lean Startup, Eric Ries – Mint Media is lean. My other company, Unique 360 Tours, is lean. Very little overhead. Easy to operate. That is intentional and I designed both companies to be lean. Flat and Fast. That is the model. (Thanks Tom Peters and Bill Gibbs). Anyhow, figured this book would be right up my alley. And it was, sorta. At the time, I was hoping that it would help form Mint Media, but it was going a different route. More along the lines of Venture Capital, Funding, Manufacturing, Mass Markets and how to streamline those entities. Interesting, but doesn’t directly correlate with what I was trying to do with Mint Media at the time. Good book if you’re in the product-based industry, opposed to service-based industry.

In the Plex, Steven Levy – Ahh, the Google Story. Good book. I love everything Google does. I own a Google Droid, Mint Media is a certified Google Engage Agency, there are google stickers on the windows of my office, and I own 2 Google hats. (I know, sorry) Just big fan of the Google Business Model, what they do, what they build, and how they operate. This was the perfect book for getting an inside look at all those things, including their corporate culture, lifestyle, and work habits at GooglePlex.

Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs, Carmine Gallo – Another book about Steve Jobs. Cool story, good insight, and inspiring. However, if you are going to read about Steve, read the Biography listed above.

The 8th Habit, Stephen R. Covey - (NOTE: See the last book on my list). This is an addendum to the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Time changes and the original book has been around for decades. This updated version included one more "today" version of his theory/methods. Good book. Read the main book first, though.

Anything You Want, Derek Sivers - Coolest Book I read all year. Story about CD Baby and their founder, Derek Sivers. I never heard of CD Baby prior to this book. If you’re a fan of music, small business, entrepreneurship, or simply good business I highly recommend you read this book. Super short. Audible listening time is like 90 minutes and I’ve listened to it maybe 5 times since. At the end of the book, he said to email him a question. We shared several emails back and forth. Cool guy.

Go the F–k to Sleep, Adam Mansbach – Uhh, this was on the Best Sellers list and was $0.99. I guess I was intrigued. A childrens book narrated by Samuel L. Jackson with the F-word in the title. Go figure. Not sure I have an opinion about it. Funny. I guess. For 99 cents, it was worth it.

The 4-Hour Workweek, Timothy Ferriss - So, I attempted to read this book a few years ago. Physical copy on the beach one summer. Never finished. Gave it another shot and finished it this time. I still don’t buy into his methodology or theory of taking mini-vacations. I sometimes think I’m addicted to working and building my companies… and I’m okay with that. It takes a certain person to accomplish the "way of life" that he teaches. Interesting book and you should atleast look into it.

The 4-Hour Body, Timothy Ferriss - Same author as above, different topic. Instead of Work, Job, and Money-related topics… this book was about Body, Mind, Diet, Health, etc. Normally, not a book that I would get into, but I did. I think I listened to it twice. Even today, I still semi-follow pieces of his diet and eating advice. Good book. If you’re looking to shed some pounds or improve your health, read this.

Your Brain at Work, David Rock – This book followed a husband and wife through their daily schedules, roles, jobs, duties, etc. Huge emphasis on science, neurotransmitters, brain development, etc. That part was 50% interesting and 50% boring. Taught me alot of time management skills that I already knew about… and already do on a daily basis. Nerd Alert.

FREE: The Future of a Radical Price, Chris Anderson - This was a Free book about the Power of giving things away for Free. I didn’t even start it. Just downloaded it and added it to my library. Goes to show you about things that are free. It is an interesting topic. I bet if he charged a dollar or five or ten or twenty… I would have read it. Weird, right?

I’m Feeling Lucky, Douglas Edwards – A book written by one of Google first employees (#59 to be exact). A very cool and almost intrusive look at Google, how it was started, who was involved, why they did it, and how they did it. Okay book.

The Prince: The Strategy of Machiavelli, Niccolò Machiavelli – Rookie mistake. This book was stupid. Made it about 20 minutes in and gave up. Uhh, even just writing this… I’m getting bored. I guess I’m not cultured enough to get it. It is similar to my attempt a reading Don Quixote. I was given a piece of framed Don Quixote artwork years ago. I figured I needed to read the book, which I tried to do. After about 2-3 failed attempts, I found myself reading the cliff notes on Wikipedia. Like Machiavelli, Great Concept…Boring Book.

The Steve Jobs Way, Jay Elliot – My first Steve Jobs book. If you’re going to read about Steve, read his Biography instead. This was a good book, but the biography was better.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey - Probably the most important book that exists. If you haven’t read it, do it immediately. I’ve read it 4-5 times. It will change the way you think and operate in life (work, home, everywhere). Highly recommend and borderline demand that you read this. If everyone in America were to sit down and read this book, we would reverse this economy in 48 hours. I was first forced to read this book for the Towson University version of "Senior Thesis." Changed my life.

PPHHEWWW…

I didn’t realize this list was going to be this long.

Pick one and read it… or download it at Audible.com.

If you’ve read one of these, let me know what you thought!

Call it whatever you want… Blogs, Articles, News, Whitepapers, etc.  One of the most important things that website owners need to do is continuously and regularly add content to your websites and blogs.  Otherwise, they will join the ranks of millions of other sites out there that had a blogging revelation one day about spreading the word about something… did it for a week and haven’t touched it since.  And I’m not sitting here pointing fingers, as I am horrible at it.  Personally, I have maybe 3-4 blogs out there that were created, updated for a couple weeks/months, and haven’t been touched in years.  That’s the absolute worst thing you can do for finding/keeping an active readership and showing up in Google searches.  I’ll explain below.

Quick Story…

Last night, I’m sitting at the office about to wrap things up for the night.  I’m on Gmail and a friend has her blog’s website address listed as her status.  I’ve read her blog before and consider myself a follower, checking it every week or so. Her style is funny and it’s entertaining.  Here’s the Blog: http://ayobatime.wordpress.com/  The past couple times I’ve visited the site, the latest post was a story that I already read… and I quickly left her blog to check another day.  I obviously took note that her last blog post was on November 4st (27 days ago) and subconsciously made myself aware that I don’t need to check her blog again for another month, whereas I used to be on a weekly check schedule.  Big Mistake!

I proceeded to send a G-chat over that said "Whens the next blog post? You’re slacking!"

But here’s the kicker… after sending that G-chat I realized it has been awhile since my last Mint Media blog post.  And truth is, Damn it, my last post was on November 1st… 30 days ago!  I’m a bigger culprit and am now kicking myself for it.  I’m caught up in the same mess once again.  For example, go look at the dates of all my blog posts.  As time goes on, more time passes between each post.  That’s the worst thing that I could be doing to Mint Media’s website.

WHY, you might ask?

Well, there are about 174,908,428 theories and arguments floating around the internet, but I am going to tell you about 2 PROVEN ones.

2 Topics to Discuss – Google and Retaining Readership

First, Google.  There are only 3 people in the world that know the exact Google formula for showing up in the highest spots on the Google results page, Larry Page, Eric Schmidt, and Sergey Brin.  However, over the years, I’ve figured out parts of the formula and, implemented them, and it works.  I’ll give you the SEARCH 101 version right now.

Google has a thing called a spider that “crawls” every website over a given period of time.  Big websites like ESPN.com get crawled constantly.  Most get crawled every few days.  Some get crawled monthly.  Others don’t get crawled because the information hasn’t been changed or added to in years, therefore no longer relevant. Mint Media get crawled every 2 to 4 days.  If you want to know how to find this out, call me.  Not going into it right now.   

So, when this so-called spider crawls your website, they “index” your website every time and learn a bunch of information, pretty much everything about the site.  When it was last updated? What links you refer to on your site (called Backlinks)? What keywords are being used? How many people visited that site since the last crawl? And thousands of other data pieces that they plug into this secret formula.  However, the ones listed above are some of the most important.  Google is looking for relevance.  What is the content? How new is the information? Are lots of people reading this?  Are people sharing this? Etc. The more positive results the higher you show up when someone searches given keywords (Remember when Google took an inventory of our keywords?)  Get it?

The easiest way to overcome this is to get on a schedule.  Post a new story every Tuesday and stick to it.  Done, you’re relevant to Google.  Simple, right? 

The second proven method does not include any insects.  It’s actually just human nature and our unique ability to kill time. Retaining Readership. 

An example – Groupon has 1 new post each day… and I go there 1 time EVERY DAY. There is a sports blog that posts 10+ times a day… and I go there about 5 times EVERY DAY.  There’s a tech blog that posts 40+ times a day… and I go there 10+ times EVERY DAY.    Facebook statuses are updated 100’s of times each day… and I go there WAY TOO MUCH.  Get it.  See the trend?  You learn a website’s posting schedule.  I know how frequently new information becomes available and visit their site accordingly to see the new stuff.

For Mint Media, I hope to give the impression that there is a new post once a week to get people coming to my website about, well, once a week.  That is all I need.  However, someone that came to my website last night would have noted that my last post was 30 days ago.  Therefore, subconsciously, they now think they only need to come to www.MintMediaAgency.com once a month.  And I’m hoping that they come once a week.  Do you see disconnect?  That is a big problem at Mint Media Headquarters if people aren’t regularly coming to the website.  Big Problems.  Someone might be getting fired for this one.

Anyhow, that is my 101 version on the importance of blogging.  I could talk about Search Engine Optimization for hours, as some of my Mint Media clients know that first-hand.  If you want to learn more or would like to hire Mint Media to help your business show up in Google.  You know where to find me. 

And don’t forget to check my blog and my friend’s blog ONCE A WEEK!!!  http://ayobatime.wordpress.com/

 P.S. See how I included her website’s name on my website. Google spider will take notice next time it crawls my site and helps grow her "Google Ranking." It’s called a Backlink. Happy sharing, People.

Check out the changes here:

Thank you to everyone who submitted entries and spreading the word about the Mint Media Agency.

Don't stop here. Continue spreading the word! If you know anyone that would benefit from the following services, drop my name, give them my contact information, and tell them to let us know YOU sent them. If they turn into a client, I'll make sure you a rewarded!

Kayak.com had been my go-to resource and before that it was www.Travelocity.com. I think we might have a new winner, Google Flights.

Google Flights is an online flight booking service which facilitates the purchase of airline tickets through third party suppliers. As you know, I’m a big fan of everything Google, so I’m really hoping this thing succeeds. The problem is… there is nothing unique about it except the friendly Google Search interface and filtering tools. It’s all the same info/prices… just pulling data from other sites.

These days, everyone is looking for a deal. Groupon and Living Social are dominating by offering huge discounts… and consumers are buying millions of them, Read this Article. Groupon even introduced Groupon Getaways, which discounts trips to Resorts, B&B’s, and destination locations all over the US and Internationally. Great concept, but doesn’t help me get to Atlanta on the cheap.

To throw another wildcard into the mix, I’m thinking about heading to South Carolina for a couple days after Atlanta and before heading back to Maryland, which will require a flight from Atlanta to Savannah or Charleston. All these flight websites give me multi-destination options, so not awarding Google any points there.

Subconsciously, I’ve always thought Southwest.com was the cheapest option. I guess that is just a job-well-done by their Marketing Department. Give those people a raise. Finding flights on Southwest.com was a nightmare.

So, Hotel is booked. Flights are still up in the air. I hope Google Flights comes through as the clear winner, but right now, I’m not sure if that will be the case. To me, Kayak.com is still the most elaborate database of flights, options, and costs.

3 Questions:

1) Will I get a better deal if I wait until closer to the date to buy?

2) What sites do the frequent travelers use?

3) Do you know the super-cool story about how Richard Branson started Virgin Airlines? See Below.

—-

Read the Long Version by Entrepenuer Derek Sivers – http://sivers.org/book/RichardBranson

Here is the Short Version:Travelers (including Branson) were stranded trying to get to Puerto Rico after a cancelled flight. Branson made a few calls to charter companies and agreed to charter a plane to PR for $2k. Divided the price by the number of seats and wrote, “Virgin Airways, $39 single flight to Puerto Rico.” Walked around the terminal and soon filled every seat on the charter plane. Virgin Airlines was born.