The gang at Automattic are at it again. Who better to help protect your WordPress blogs, posts, comments, plugins and themes than the ones behind the scenes at WordPress.com.

What is VaultPress?

According the VaultPress site:

VaultPress is a subscription-based protection, security and backup service for WordPress blogs and sites. It’s built on the same Automattic grid that reliably serves over 11 million WordPress.com blogs and 250 million monthly visitors.

The VaultPress security and backup service allows for an easy set-up in 3 steps, real time, continuous backup and synchronization and simple restoration of files when necessary.

Who is VaultPress for?

The answer to this question is one simple word…everyone. VaultPress covers everyone from the personal blogger to large corporate companies and IT managers running a single site or multiple sites using the WordPress platform. Visit the links below for detailed information

• Personal Bloggers
• Professional Bloggers
• Small & Medium Businesses
• IT Managers

VaultPress Video Introduction

Don’t miss out. VaultPress has now begun handing out Golden Tickets. Sign up now and get your name on the list to protect your blogs with VaultPress.

Yesterday, WordPress announced the release of WordPress 3.0 “Thelonious”. This has been a highly anticipated release for WordPress users with a ton of new features, and 1,217 bug fixes, to make WordPress a more powerful, easy and exciting user experience.

WordPress 3.0 New Features

• A new default theme called Twenty Ten
• New API’s allowing for easy customization of backgrounds, headers, shortlinks, menus, post types and taxonomies (taxonomies are are a way of grouping things together).
• Merging of MU and WordPress
• Ability to run bulk updates (I love this one!)
• and many more…

WordPress 3.0 “Thelonious” Video

Watch the video below for a complete run down of the new WordPress 3.0.

You can also visit the 3.0’s Codex page for a more detailed look at the improvements and the WordPress Trac for known issues.

Have you already upgraded to WordPress 3.0? I’d love to hear what you think about the new changes and how they’ve benefited your site(s)…or not.

Is your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program working for you?  A part of what I do as a Real Estate Virtual Assistant, is helping clients streamline their processes for dealing with databases, setting up drip mail campaigns and following-up with contacts. This involves pairing clients with the right CRM. There are numerous programs available to real estate professionals these days and I have used a number of them. For this post, I want to cover one in particular.

Quite a few years ago, I was introduced to Top Producer and I have to be honest, I wasn’t overly impressed. I thought the system was cumbersome and not very user friendly so I stopped using the program with clients. Today, however I have a completely different opinion.

About a year and a half ago, I started using Top Producer again but this time it was the 8i version. Top Producer 8i is a completely different program than the one I used a few years back. The 8i version has a fabulous clean layout, it’s packed full of features, customizable action plan templates and it is by far more user friendly than previous versions. Top Producer 8i is not only a real estate CRM, but rather an all encompassing CRM, sales and marketing tool.

Top Producer Updates – May 5, 2010

This past week, Top Producer released an update for 8i that includes some exciting new enhancements that I can’t wait to try out with my clients (at least I think they are exciting).

New Contact Record Header

The contact record header has been overhauled with a new layout that includes a Contact Status indicator, Buyer Preferences and an icon, when clicked, displays all the contacts primary information. No more searching multiple screens to find important contact details. The right hand side of the header contains a set of three buttons that allow quick access to various actions you can initiate for this contact (i.e. Market Snapshot, Action Plans, Email etc.), report printing and the Things to Talk About feature (love this feature and will discuss it further in a future post).

New Contact Record Summary Tab

The contact record now has a summary tab that houses all the important information about that contact in one place and at-a-glance for easy initiation of new tasks. This includes Contact Notes, Listing Notes and Closing Notes. Along the right hand side there are another set of boxes that make it very east to see, at-a-glance, Next Call and Appointments for that contact. Incomplete and complete activities can also be viewed with a quick click of the tab.

The contact information box shows the primary contact information and by clicking the icon in the bottom right hand corner you can view the rest of the contact information in a convenient pop up window without having to switch screens and move away from the contact record.

Social Media Activity

Lastly, Top Producer has integrated Social Media Activity to 8i. In this third box you can enable your contacts Facebook and Twitter feeds within 8i to have an at-a-glance view of what’s going on in their lives and get to know them better. With this new integration, you are able to view and reply to Facebook posts (420 character limit. Option to add photos) and reply and retweet tweets from within Top Producer 8i.

When viewing a contact record it’s easy to see their social media activity which could also help with your marketing strategies. Engaging with your contacts via 8i is quick and could make a lot of difference to your contact that you’re taking the time to get to know them.

In order to enable Social Media Activity for your contacts you have to configure your own social media account in your preferences. Also at the time of writing this post, Top Producer only has Facebook working in this update, and will be adding Twitter in the next couple of weeks.

The new features added to Top Producer 8i this past week will make tracking your contact details, initiating various actions and engaging with your contacts quicker and more streamlined. I keep crossing my fingers that in future updates I’ll see an announcement that Top Producer is compatible with Mac…wishful thinking, I know. 

Time is a precious thing for agents on the go, and I think these changes will allow you and your assistants more time and added benefits to engage with and market to your contacts.

Do you use Top Producer 8i? What are your thoughts on the new changes?

I am always on the lookout for great new WordPress themes to use on client sites, and the ability to customize them is really important. I am by no means a coding expert, although I continue to learn and enjoy the process.

StudioPress offers a whole line of premium WordPress themes, that I love, and are easily customizable. Brian Gardner of StudioPress recently announced that they are taking their line of themes one step further and launching a new WordPress theme framework called Genesis.

Genesis was developed with the new and veteran WordPress users in mind and they have packed this framework full of widgets, hooks, layouts and first rate SEO optimization for ease of use and expandability.

Brian also mentioned that the Genesis theme will not only be the framework for all future StudioPress themes, it will also be used for the current themes as well.

According to the StudioPress blog, some of the widgets included in Genesis are:

• My Tweets – displays an unordered list of your latest Tweets (view widget)
• User Profile – displays the Gravatar of a user, as well as their biography and a link to an about page (view widget)
• eNews & Updates – displays an opt-in box for users to sign up for delivery of your posts by email (view widget)
• Featured Posts – displays post excerpts and a thumbnail to be used in a homepage featured section (view widget)
• Featured Page – displays page excerpts and a thumbnail to be used in a homepage featured section (view widget)

An added feature that I am excited about in the Genesis framework are the 30 plus hooks they have incorporated. This might not mean much to the new WordPress user, however developers and advanced users love these. My site, this one, is run on the Thesis platform which also uses hooks to make adding content to the site easier and flexible (once you get the hang of them).

In a nutshell, hooks are like “positions” of various content on your site. I’ll leave a more in depth explanation of hooks for a future post.

The Genesis theme platform will also include 3 layout options, BuddyPress compatibility, custom thumbnail image sizing and a Child Theme Marketplace (by invite only). I personally can’t wait to get my hands on this theme and look forward to hearing feedback from all you beta testers out there.

Sneak peak of the Mocha Child Theme for Genesis.

For more information about the StudioPress Genesis theme framework visit the StudioPress blog or click Demo to see it in action.

StudioPress does it again. What a great way to start the new year.

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear people mention the term “Social Networking”? Does it interest or excite you, or is it your knee jerk response to run the other way? Social networking is something we all do whether we realize it or not.

Have you ever gone out for dinner with friends, and friends of friends you didn’t know, and enjoyed getting to know these new people? (That was a mouth full, but I think you get what I mean). Have you ever attended a chamber of commerce meeting and introduced yourself to other members? Well, these are a couple of examples of the simplest forms of face-to-face social networking.

Online social networking is not much different and doesn’t have to be scary or complicated. With a carefully planned out social networking action plan and schedule, it can be fun and extremely rewarding.

Anyone who owns a business, including real estate professionals, rely on their networks and sphere to build relationships and generate business. Social networking, whether it is face-to-face or online, is something you and your business need to operate and grow.

Social Networking Explained

The gang at Common Craft have put together this easy to understand video to explain the basics of social networking.

There are hundreds of different social networking sites you can join and it can be overwhelming to decide which ones to choose. Select ones that are relevant to you and your industry. For the real estate professional, the first networks to join could be Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and ActiveRain.

There is no need to join all the networks available all at once. Start with the basics and work your way around once your network begins to grow.

As a fan of Brian Gardner and the theme development work he does at StudioPress, I am really excited about their newest premium WordPress theme.

Brian partnered with the crew at MyTechOpinion (Nicole Nicolay, Reggie Nicolay and Chad Johnson) to put together the AgentPress Real Estate WordPress theme for agents and brokers.

The AgentPress theme offers all the same great code, sleek design and features as the other StudioPress themes with a couple of added features for the real estate professional.

AgentPress has incorporated a custom property template that enables you to display each listing as a separate post with all the property details and relevant information laid out in a professional, eye catching, easy to read format. The custom property template includes the following:

• Property Details – Square footage, number of bedrooms, bathrooms, MLS#, etc.
• Additional Features – A section to highlight the properties unique features.
• Additional Photos – Various interior and exterior photos.
• Property Map – A section to embed a Google map of the property.

In addition, the auto sizing thumbnail management does all the work for you. Upload your main property image once and AgentPress automatically resizes the image for you and sets you apart from the crowd with it’s incredible display.

As with all Brian’s StudioPress themes, AgentPress offers endless possibilities for a real estate website with its four different theme color options and a little customization.

For more information, visit the AgentPress site or go straight to the Demo and have a look.

Wishing you and your families a wonderful Christmas holiday and a Happy New Year.

Don’t forget to click on the “Details” button for a short personal message from me.

Happy Holidays!

Today is Thanksgiving for my friends in the U.S. and I want to wish you all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. I couldn’t be happier to have come across an amazing blog post today with news that has without a doubt given many of us a reason to be thankful.

Not so long ago, I came across a tweet posted on Twitter by a friend and colleague of mine, Laura Monroe of Creative Agent Solutions.com. This “retweet” really hit home for me and after retweeting Laura’s post myself, I immediately followed the link to read more.

I was saddened to read that Lisa, The Domestic Diva, has a teenage daughter Marielle that was hospitalized due to a deteriorating kidney disease. Marielle’s condition was worsening and they were desperate to find a kidney donor. I proceeded to go back in The Domestic Divas’ posts to follow this incredibly difficult journey Marielle, Lisa and their family had been on.

Today is a good day! Today I learned that Marielle is home and happy to spend Thanksgiving with family. Not only that, with thanks to the news of Marielle’s situation going viral, they have finally found a match. Lisa’s news of her daughter needing a kidney donor was spread over the internet via blog posts, Twitter, Facebook and eventually wound up on Fox News.

It is amazing to see that with the passion of family, friends and even strangers, backed by the power of the Internet, news can be spread globally in a matter of days, hours and even minutes. Without the outpouring of support from these people and the ability to reach them via the internet, Marielle may not have received the overwhelming response of donor applications that they did. Donor applications came from all over the U.S., Africa and Saudi Arabia.

I can’t tell you how happy I am for you Marielle, Lisa and your whole family. I wish you all the best in the coming weeks.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you.

Today I am proud to be a part of the second annual Blog Action Day. Each year on October 15th, thousands of bloggers, spanning the globe, unite to bring awareness to one specific global issue. This year bloggers aim to “bring awareness, initiate action and shake the web” about poverty using their own unique voice.

I would like to bring this to your attention. Every three seconds…

…a child dies from extreme poverty and over 1 million Canadian children live in poverty. These numbers are unacceptable and something can be done. Get involved! It’s not hard and it doesn’t have to cost you a dime. Your voice is a powerful and effective tool to get the word out that we must Make Poverty History, our children depend on it.

For more information about poverty in Canada, and globally, visit the sites below. These sites will help explain the little things we can do that could have huge impact on this battle to end poverty.

Make Poverty History

Campaign 2000

National Anti-Poverty Organization

Last but not least. Today is the day that we have chosen to come together as bloggers and voice the importance of the poverty issue all at once, but it doesn’t end there. Starting October 17th through the 19th, there will be events scheduled across the globe to Stand Up & Take Action Against Poverty and for the Millennium Development Goals. To find out if there will be an event near you visit the Stand Up & Take Action events map.

Currently there are 123 events registered in Canada, 12 events across Alberta and 2 of those events are right here in Calgary.

Don’t wait. Spread the word and let your voice make a difference in the fight to end poverty.

Don’t wait any longer.

If you haven’t done so already, there is still time to register your blog for Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty. On October 15th, 2008, bloggers around the world will use their unique voice and platform to discuss, educate and bring awareness about this crippling global issue.

We are encouraged to get involved in any way we can. There are numerous was to participate including publishing a post, donating a days earnings and promoting Blog Action Day 2008. Choose one or all methods, but get involved.

Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.

You can read more on their website at Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty. I look forward to reading and learning from all your posts tomorrow on Blog Action Day 2008.