Top Ten Internet Tools for Experts for 2008

I'm sure you've heard of "Web 2.0" and tools like Facebook, Flickr and YouTube. But you might still be wondering exactly how to use them in your speaking / training / coaching / consulting business.

Fair enough. After all, if you don't know how these can help you, it's difficult to get the motivation to find out more about them, isn't it?

In this article, I'm going to list what I think are the most important Web 2.0 tools for information experts. But I won't just tell you what they are. I'll also show you ways you can use these in your business. I've deliberately chosen practical examples for experts like you.

These are in no particular order, but they are all important.

1. Blogger

Blogger is Google's no-cost blogging service. You can have a blog up and running in 10 minutes, and join the tens of thousands of other bloggers world-wide.

Practical application: Create a blog that answers the most common questions you get from clients, audiences and colleagues. In other words, it's a "FAQ" site, which demonstrates your expertise as it grows.

2. Flickr

Flickr is one of the world's leading photo-sharing sites. Upload photos, organise them in albums and search for related photos.

Practical application: Use Flickr to find photos you can use in books, newsletters, PowerPoint presentations and articles. Yes, you have to respect copyright, but if you know how to search, you'll find thousands of photos that their owners have made available at no charge - even for commercial use.

3. YouTube

YouTube wasn't the first video-sharing service, and it's spawned off a host of other copycat services. But it's still the most popular, and a must for presenters. After all, you're already making live educational presentations - why not make them available on YouTube as well?

Practical application: Get recordings of yourself, and put short extracts on-line. Tom Murrell does this with brief extracts from presentations; Matt Hern does it with interviews he conducts as host of a TV show; and I do it with an educational video clip I created in my lounge room.

4. SlideShare

SlideShare is like YouTube for slide shows. It makes it easy to upload PowerPoint presentations and share them with the world.

Practical application: Create a PowerPoint presentation and upload it! That's exactly what I did with my "Internet Marketing in a Web 2.0 World" presentation.

5. Skype

Skype is the world's most popular software for making phone calls over the Internet. At first, you could only make calls from one computer to another, but their most recent services allow you to make low-cost calls to other telephone users.

Practical application: Use it for recording audio products (e.g. CDs or MP3 downloads). Get "Pamela for Skype", a low-cost software program that records Skype calls. Then use it to record interviews with clients or other experts.

6. Shelfari

Shelfari is a relatively new (but rapidly growing) book sharing site. Upload your list of books to the site, and then connect with other readers with similar interests. If you're an avid reader (and you should be, if you're going to keep up with your area of expertise), this is a high-quality networking tool and an excellent way to find other important books published in your field.

Practical application: Publish book lists - e.g. a "Recommended Reading" list - on your Web site. For example, I publish my "wish list" so people know what to buy me for gifts!

7. Facebook

Facebook is the phenomenally successful social networking site that started as a service for Harvard students to keep in touch with each other.

Practical application: Join Facebook and join discussion forums related to your area of expertise. And if nothing else, get the experience of a social networking site so you'll be ready when you create your own membership site for your community (see next item !)

8. Ning

Ning lets you create your own little version of Facebook. Granted, it probably won't turn into a multi-billion-dollar company, but it can still be a powerful tool for building your own "membership site".

Practical application: Sean Weafer created the Rebel Island community for like-minded thinkers. I've also created my own private community for First Step clients.

9. Hipcast

Hipcast is a low-cost service for uploading your audio and video files, and for publishing podcasts. It takes all the "heavy lifting" out of publishing multimedia clips on the Internet.

Practical application: Publish a "podcast", which is just a fancy name for an audio newsletter. I do mine by simply reading out articles from this e-zine, then recording them and uploading them to Hipcast.

10. Elance

Elance is one of the best-known outsourcing networks. It gives you access to suppliers around the world, ready to bid on your projects.

Practical application: Use Elance for outsourcing work that you don't have the time or expertise to do yourself (or in your team). I've used it for ghostwriting, graphic design, book layout, audio transcripts, programming, logo design, and more.

OK, that's enough for now ...

That's ten! And I didn't even get to mention eBay, iTunes, Clickbank and a few other important Internet tools.

The important thing to do is to start using these tools. Not all at once, of course. But as soon as possible. You really must experience them for yourself, because they will open your mind to other possibilities.