Starting by quoting The Rolling Stones? Hey, I want to quote somebody, and the song was playing through my head all morning, so I had to use it! Anyway, welcome to my first editorial for PC-Software. We are here, and we are here to stay! Over the past there have been some changes at PC-Software.com, with content and format changing, but here is the final result! That’s why I think I need to introduce myself. I’m the new kid on the block, and have been asked to edit the best online resource for games there is. Quite an honour I’d say.

So, who am I? I’m a British guy who has been a PC user ever since Amstrads were considered good value for money in the 1980s. See, I’m old enough to quote The Rolling Stones (sob). I started my PC life as a games player and fanzine contributor, but gradually moved into the more serious camp of games publishing – the other side of the fence. Some of our games got 80% reviews, others went down as well as Fishing Simulator and its ads for a Southern European dance music site. Just when I thought I played my last game, I was asked to edit PC-Software. This puts me in the lucky position where I can play games, and tell my girlfriend I’m working!

Learning the Family Trade

Still, you will see my “commercial background” in this website. Don’t be afraid, we won’t put too many “heavy duty” boring industry PR news pieces in. Instead, emphasis will be on looking at any serious software and games that comes out with download trials and shopping links. Fun, informed and relevant.

Printed games magazines are in decline from the halcyon days of the 1990s and 2000s. Even market leaders are declining from 100,000 readers down to 20,000, whereas we have improved to about 400,000 hits in a few months. Not comparing like with like there obviously, but you’d take my point. Why? Because why pay £5 to hear about games you aren’t playing, when for free you can have reviews of 100s of products (give us a few months!) with direct links to videos previews and free downloads. Not only that, but the option to instantly purchase (alternatively, to slam it and tell us how crap it is) and have it on your PC in 5 minutes for an average price of less than £10, rather than traipse to Dixons on a wet Tuesday for double to see if it’s in stock. Don’t believe me: the youngest Director of the market leader for games magazines quit his job recently, saying the same thing. They’re finished!

What else do we have in store for you? You can leave comments, or feedback david AT pc-software.com. Ratings, charts and forums, they’re in the future!

You want to know whether you should buy a game or not? Just read PC-Software and you will find out. There will be dozens coming at you in the next couple of months. Oh, and downloading the free trial, which we like to insist everything we cover contains, will also help. We provide these links for you in reviews, and all in one place in the Downloads section. See if you agree with us, and write back if you don’t!

Closing for now, but I’ll be back next month.

OK, let’s get right to the big pink elephant in the room: social media is not just for playing ‘Farmville’ and talking about your kid’s potty training. Sure, plenty of people use Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and so forth to let the world know about the fact that they just had a great massage (I wish I was kidding) but the truth is that, beyond all the junk and nonsense, there is actually a lot of gold in those virtual hills when it comes to finding new customers for your small business and creating revenue.

Rubbish you say?! Social media isn’t anything more than a playground for those wishing to stay in touch with people they haven’t actually cared about for years and others that have nothing better to do but jabber on all day about the type of breakfast cereal they love? Well, it’s true. People do jabber on about their silly corn flakes but they also go to social sites in absolute droves and if you present them with something interesting, funny, valuable or sometimes even just downright silly you will find that they reward you with their business.

The simple fact is that social media is huge and, if your message is delivered the right way, it can create an affinity for your brand, your service or your product that very few other types of marketing can match. Social media can be used to build trust, convert people’s views and provide them with knowledge that they will find valuable enough to give you their hard earned money. In fact, if you do it right by the time it comes to make your ‘pitch’ they will more than likely already be sold.

With social media you have an ‘in’ into the private worlds of millions of people, a fact that can’t be overlooked. If you deliver them content that is helpful and engaging (and believe me, it’s being done very day by your competitors) you can convert them to customers without having to sell them anything. By creating and sharing meaningful, useful or entertaining content (a must on any social site) you can create a following that will, with time, promote your business at no cost. That’s the really cool part about social media: it’s social. If someone likes something they share it among their family, friends and colleagues.

There are a number of ways to do this, to engage people with content that they like and thus create attraction for your particular brand. Pinterest uses pictures to do it on their site and they have used it well. As one of the fastest growing social sites in the last couple of years they have created a following that has sparked the creation of thousands of small businesses all over the US and have even been used by the big name brands to do the same. Facebook fan pages allow a business small or large to do the same and some of the best brands have visually rich sites that engross visitors and attract them en masse.

The most powerful part, to be sure, is that social media is personal. Today’s mass media is completely impersonal and that’s why social media has been such a big hit; it’s personalised to every person’s unique tastes. If you get it right you can create a powerful connection that, in the long run, will pay off in new customers and greater revenue. Sure virtual farming makes about as much sense as virtual meatloaf but, if you can get past the silliness, social media offers something that can put your small business on the map; a real connection to the consumer public. So pass the virtual meatloaf and get going with your social media today.

For information about the author, please visit www.nyacommunications.com

www.thephotobattle.com – discover your Top 10 photos on facebook and vote on your friend’s Top 10 facebook photos.

With 250,000 million photos upload everyday on facebook, it hard to view all your friends photos and you are bound to miss out on some of their best photos if you’re not on facebook 24/7.

Last Month, the Canadian based startup www.thephotobattle.com, a website that lets facebook users vote on their friend’s favourite photos, launched with a vision that it should be easy to find and view a facebook users Top 10 photos. The Photo Battle believes that their battle voting platform will encourage facebook users to decide what friends photos are Hot and Not.

“Nowadays, there is so much garbage on facebook. Too many people use facebook for the wrong reasons like self promotion, sending annoying game invites or posting way too many status updates.” says Aaron Lindsay, founder of The Photo Battle. “We want to highlight what we believe is the best part of facebook… beautiful photos.”

The battle voting platform is a simple and easy way for facebook users to vote on their friend’s facebook photos. The Photo Battle connects with facebook to access your friend’s photos. Next, you’ll see a battle; photos posted by two of your facebook friends, asking you to choose which photo you like better. Click one, and the site will show you how many votes (battles won) both photos have received. Click on top photos, and you can view your Top 10 facebook photos and your friends Top 10 photos on facebook.

The Photo Battle also has public battles, where users can create and share their own Photo Battles like, Who’s the hotter celebrity?, Who’s the better singer? Or Who’s the best athlete?. Not only does The Photo Battle track the popular vote but it also allows you to view your facebook friends answers to popular questions.

More information can be found at www.thephotobattle.com
Start Battling Today!