It is hard to believe but another year is almost in the books. One of my favorite parts of the year’s end is reading all of the great zeitgeist and ‘Best of’ posts that get published this time of the year. Twitter’s Year in Review and Google’s Zeitgiest were particualrly fascinating to look at.

I figured we’d take a look back on 2010 for WebpageFX too. Here’s a peek at our top posts from a few different metrics:

Most Popular Posts

1. The Cost of Advertising Nationally Broken Down by Medium
We compiled advertising cost data for a bunch of different mediums and compared their costs with the costs of web advertising.We have numbers for both national and local sources. The national advertising cost data is below.And we were right: the web is the most accountable, cheapest, and easiest way to bring in new business.

2. 10 foolproof ways to promote your app in the App Store
The App Store houses over 250,000 apps. Even if users know exactly what they’re searching for, it can be difficult to find a certain app. Nothing is more frustrating than designing something like an awesome RSS reader for the iPhone only to end up buried on the fourth page of the search results for “rss readers.”

3. Brainwashing at Abercrombie: Retail Manipulation Part II
Sensory manipulation at Gap is subtle. But Abercrombie smacks you in the face with it. Here’s how they mess with your senses to get you to buy more clothes.

Most Shared on Facebook

1. 5 Rock Star Business Twitter Accounts
There’s no golden rule when it comes to corporate Twitter accounts. Tons of companies have succeeded using lots of different methods, but there are certainly things you can learn from some of the best Twitter accounts out there. Here’s a look at 5 companies from 5 different industries who have excelled at using Twitter.

2. How To Decrease Your Bounce Rate
Landing page bounce rate is one of the most important metrics to monitor constantly. If yours is too high here are some ways to improve it.

3. WebpageFX Office Photos
The new office has two main sections: a ‘phone room’ for our project managers, SEO specialists and other members of our team who are on the phone frequently and a more open ’stage’ area for the rest of our staff including designers and programmers. We’ve also got plenty of whiteboards, couches and tables for collaboration.

Most Shared on Twitter

1. Are You Interesting or Happy? You Can’t Be Both
People either tend to want to do more or are happy where they are. So which are your customers?

2. BP, and Social Media: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
With all of the applications and studies surely to come of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, one of the more fascinating is BP’s reputation management. Here’s a look at some of my thoughts about BP’s post-spill campaign from a social media perspective.

3. The URL is the Next Great Music Format
Even though my music listening preference has held steady for years, it turns out that I’ve also found myself using the MP3 less and less in recent years too. I haven’t calculated the exact percentage, but I’m probably using the URL for at least 75% of my music listening these days.

I am not a programmer. I can edit code and cut out bits and pieces of a few languages to make something function, but I can’t sit down and pound out code like a true programmer. It is rare that a day goes by in which I don’t wish I knew how to program though.

As somebody involved in the Internet/technology realm, I feel like my lack of real programming ability constantly handcuffs me. I can’t truly create anything great myself. I’m not the only one having this problem either. I’m also stunned by the amount of requests and ads I find online by people searching for technical co-founders. Their lack of technical knowledge is costing them half of their company before it even gets started.

What’s sad is that most people who want to create something never even make it that far. Lots of people have awesome ideas but they never get off the ground because they lack the technical knowledge. “Somebody needs to build…”

Programmers are modern day architects and builders. Or as Paul Graham elegantly states, programmers or ‘hackers’ are modern day painters:

What hackers and painters have in common is that they’re both makers. Along with composers, architects, and writers, what hackers and painters are trying to do is make good things. They’re not doing research per se, though if in the course of trying to make good things they discover some new technique, so much the better.

As is written ad-nauseum, we are living in a digital age driven by the Internet. The backbone of our infrastructure and society lies online. Our work. Our social lives (sadly). Our commerce. Our government.

Programmers are the builders behind all of this.

Just browse through the recent headlines and you’ll see the fingerprints of programmers all over the place — in areas you wouldn’t expect too.

Philanthropy
Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are  who are now giving away their fortunes.

Government change
WikiLeaks has certainly made some waves.

Communication
Word spreads faster than ever. Services that have been created like Twitter and Notifo make communication completely instant.

When you think of a profession or job that has a major impact on a lot of people, you might first think of a teacher, politician or doctor. But behind almost everything — even the tools of those respective trades — is a piece of code written by a programmer.

That is real power.

Photo by Fredrik Lundh

It’s common sense these days for businesses and individuals to utilize several layers of security protection for their computers, networks, servers and hard drives. The network security market has been growing for years and, even with the transition to cloud-based computing, the security software market grew from $7.5 billion in 2005 to an estimated $16.4 billion in 2010.

Despite implementing all of this security protection, no amount of money can stop the biggest danger to your digital security. I’m not talking about a world-class hacker, or Firesheep or even some newfangled polymorphic virus. The biggest threat to your digital security is yourself. (I found this out the hard way when my email was hacked.)

I recently picked up “The Art of Deception” by Kevin Mitnick, perhaps the most prolific hacker of all time. Mitnick details the importance of the human element of security and tells story after story of how computer-related hacks were pulled off through social engineering, not technical expertise. Mitnick used social engineering to ride the LA bus system for free, make free cell phone calls and gain access to numerous corporate networks.

The common myth goes something like this: “the only safe computer is one that is turned off,” but Mitnick argues this is a false statement because a skilled hacker would find a way to persuade the owner to turn the computer on. Perhaps the scariest recurring theme from the book is how often hackers would simply ask for information and the victim would just hand it over, no questions asked.

Let’s look specifically at the corporate world for a moment. No matter the industry, if you have customers or clients, you are in possession of some pretty delicate personal data. Client contact information. Checks. Credit card numbers. There are a lot of things that could be dangerous in the hands of the wrong person. While these examples may be more obvious, many times the ‘innocuous’ info actually presents the biggest threat; spouse’s name, department name, phone extensions, co-workers, account or store numbers.

One common “hack” is to get a manager’s name and a store number of a franchise and then impersonate them. In “The Art of Deception,” a hacker bets his father $50 that he can get his credit card information by making only one phone call. He calls a local video rental store his father uses and identifies himself as a manager at a nearby branch of the same store. He tells them his father is waiting in line at his branch of the store and he needed to verify his card on file at the other branch. The video store then reads off his credit card number and the stunned father handed over $50.

Another example: After learning the names and contact information for a few recent employees of a large company, the hacker would call them and identify himself as somebody from the company’s IT department calling to walk them through some of the best practices for security. Eventually, the hacker would con them into changing their password to one suggested by the ‘IT department’. Ouch.

These social engineering hacks can seem impossible to prevent. After all, some information like store number or job title is pretty much out in the open. But by no means does that suggest it’s alright to be oblivious to the threats out there. Companies ought to have detailed policies on security and information disclosure and enforce them. Employees should report suspicious calls and shift technical questions to qualified personnel. In addition, always be wary of revealing sensitive or technical information over the phone.

Depending on the industry you work in, the chances of this kind of social engineering attack happening to you or your company may be slim. However, it’s important to know and remember there’s another face to security beyond the technical side. For as much money as we all pour into security, it would be foolish to neglect the human element of things.

I haven’t purchased a CD since 2007. That might sound startling, but I’m just one of many that has been moving their music purchases to the web. Album downloads are poised to overtake CD sales very soon and there’s a good chance that the CD will simply fade away into oblivion. It certainly wouldn’t be an unexpected death of technology.

Even though my music listening preference has held steady for years, it turns out that I’ve also found myself using the MP3 less and less in recent years too. I haven’t calculated the exact percentage, but I’m probably using the URL for at least 75% of my music listening these days.

When I’m at work, I’ll stream tunes from Spotify ¹, Hype Machine, The Sixty One or Grooveshark. Same when I’m relaxing at home. The only time I turn to the MP3 is when I’m traveling. But even then I can use Grooveshark’s mobile app or stream other jams via 3G. ²

There are drawbacks to listening to music this way. The quality isn’t as good as that of some high-quality audio files and I don’t physically own the files. But the benefits are many.

Gone are the days where I need a second hard drive just to house the thousands of MP3s in my music collection. I don’t have to wait until I can pay $9.99 over a secure connection to hear a new album — I can stream it right away at no cost. ³ And, perhaps best of all, I can quickly share the songs I love with my friends with just a couple of clicks.

It wasn’t too long ago that if I found an awesome song, I’d have to download and burn the file to a CD and  physically hand it to somebody. Downloading and attaching the file to an email isn’t much better either. It takes me seconds to click a “Tweet this” button or copy a URL of a great song ( http://awe.sm/5CXMb ).

Nearly 50 percent of US adults browse the web on their phones. That number is growing fast and very few people will be without an Internet-connected device by their side 24/7. There is even 3G service at the top of Mount Everest now. While some sort of audio format will always be needed on the server level, the URL as a vehicle to stream and share music is much more compatible with the mobile world of today than the MP3 ever will be.

¹ Yes, I’m in the US and no, I don’t have any invites.

² Apple refuses to accept many music streaming applications into the App Store, most likely because they would lower the number of music downloads through iTunes. Grooveshark Mobile, for instance, is available for download on all other major mobile platforms but can only be installed on a jailbroken iPhone.

³ Most streaming services offer a premium plan too. Spotify delivers higher quality audio to premium subscribers (320 kbps). Grooveshark’s VIP plan is only $3/month for ad-free streaming on a bunch of different platforms.

I don’t think I’ve read too many books that tell a lengthy list of people to stop reading two pages into the first chapter. So, in keeping with that spirit, if you need to learn how to get more links ASAP or don’t believe in using quality content as a marketing tool, this book review probably isn’t for you.

Ontolo‘s approach to link building is, in a word, fresh. The 100+ page ebook walks the reader through all the steps of their link building process and provides insight into why they go about their unique approach.

I won’t spoil all of the fun, but two of the areas that are especially interesting in the Link Building Book are linkable assets and the concept of “preciprocation.”

Authors Garrett French and Ben Willis spend a lot of time on linkable assets and I believe it’s a concept that a lot of link builders need to rethink. A few types of assets are easy to come up with — a blog post, a resources list, etc. — but the book does a good job of detailing an audit of your entire organization’s linkable assets, both real and abstract.

A few examples: Many companies have experts in one or more areas. Their knowledge and skill can lead to links in prominent publications, blogs and other media outlets. Does your company frequently hire? A lot of college sites frequently link to pages with relevant job openings. The Ontolo Link Building Book challenges the reader to think beyond traditional link building opportunities and to learn to leverage all of the existing assets at their disposal.

The concept of “preciprocation” is talked about at length too and is my favorite topic in the book. It is what Garrett and Ben call their biggest “secret” to their link building success.

The “preciprocation” concept is simple: promote the best content of others(especially including your link prospects) before they ask for it via links from your site and placed content, votes, newsletter mentions, Tweets or whatever platform or medium you have at your disposal. Link out lavishly to deserving content, even from competitors if appropriate. Use followed links. Expect nothing in return, though certainly do occasional outreach to let folks know that you appreciated and cited their work.

This is a philosophy that is rare in the entire online marketing world, but especially so in SEO and link building circles.The benefits of this strategy are numerous, but there are a few risks too. Openly sharing and promoting quality content is good for everybody. It educates readers and lets the ‘promoter’ become a trusted industry source, as well as providing a few links. The downside? Time. Actively searching for and promoting good content is a time hog. Not many organizations will have the time on their hands to spend an hour or more each day “preciprocating.” Another danger lies in “over preciprocating” and becoming the platform instead of the experts.

Garrett and Ben really believe in this idea, though, and it is a recurring theme throughout the book. They even go as far as recommending that “preciprocation” occur in every email that a link builder sends:

For example, if you haven’t contacted someone yet you could send preciprocation signals like this: “I really enjoyed your piece on X. In fact I mentioned in our email newsletter, to my twitter followers and added it to this massive roundup of our industry’s top resources (URL). Check it out and if you think it’s worthy, please mention it to your readers! Also, I’d like to interview you for an upcoming article – are you open to answering some questions for my readers?”

The Ontolo Link Building Book has tons of other goodies like link prospecting queries and even some quick email templates for link acquisition. If you are interested in getting  more out of your link building campaign or want to understand the strategy behind Ontolo’s success, definitely check it out.

Ontolo also has an extensive (free)  list of 77 resources for link builders that is a must-read even if you don’t read the book!

You can’t escape Facebook news these days. Next week’s nationwide premiere of ‘The Social Network’ – a highly fictionalized account of the company’s founding – has focused the lens of the media squarely on the social networking giant. I’ve read through in-depth profiles on founder Mark Zuckerberg, leaked log files and IMs from his days at Harvard, and a few financial projections on Facebook’s worth.

While all of those pieces were at least mildly interesting, the last topic was the one that most grabbed my attention. How much is Facebook worth? It depends who you ask.

Forbes says $23 billion. Sharepost says $26 billion. And Financial Times says $33 billion.

Those lofty numbers certainly jump off the page, but do they make Facebook a successful company?

In the technology world, success can sometimes be a hard thing to define. Profit has always been the best measuring stick for true success. After all, the reason almost all companies get into business is to make money. It seems simple enough. However, today the business model for most startups looks something like this: build/create something awesome, get users, figure out how to monetize or sell to the highest bidder.

Monetization is often low on the priority list and success is too often measured in users, followers, or fans, not dollars.

Certainly, it takes time to properly monetize a service on the web. Amazon, for instance, didn’t start turning a profit until 2001, 6 years after they launched. The wait was well worth it for them.

But was Amazon a ‘success’ in, say, 1998? Not at all.

In Facebook’s case, they are pulling in revenue. Since they are a private company there’s no way to know all the numbers, but reports have projected that they are making over $1 billion in ad revenue.

Don’t let that number fool you either though. Facebook has taken almost a billion dollars in venture capital alone. And 500 million users requires an awful lot of overhead.

As David Heinemeier Hansson wrote: “Facebook has been around for seven years. It has 500 million users. If you can’t figure out how to make money off half a billion people in seven years, I’m going to go out on a limb and say you’re unlikely to ever do.”

So while the wild popularity of companies like Facebook and the billions that they are said to be worth are nice, the numbers aren’t real. Headline-grabbing valuations are not indicators of success at all. They are just ‘Monopoly money.’ Somebody can say your company is worth $1B dollars but unless you are selling for that figure or bringing in that amount in profits it is all just fantasy money.

If you step away from the online world for a second, it helps to clarify how ridiculous some of these valuations are.

Let’s look at an overly simplified example of two coffee shops:

Coffee Shop A – 800 people per day with an average of $0.20 profit per customer

Coffee Shop B -  300 people per day with an average of $0.75 profit per customer

It’s clear to anybody who can make a couple quick calculations that Coffee Shop B is the more profitable and more successful company. Coffee Shop A might be more popular and maybe it has really cool events and a great location, but it isn’t monetizing nearly as well as Coffee Shop B.

If these were two Internet startups, things would end up backwards. Coffee Shop A would get all the buzz. You’d read about it on Techcrunch. All the ‘cool kids’ would be talking about it.  Some ‘expert’ would compare the two and choose the hip, more popular one. Then the expert would come up with a ridiculous method of assigning a dollar value to each of the users. Projections would be made and suddenly  Coffee Shop A is a billion dollar company. This is why you read headlines like “A $65 billion dollar value for MySpace?” (2007).

An inflated valuation figure is not ‘success.’ A million users is not ‘success.’ They may end up as by-products of success but if you are chasing after followers instead of dollars, you are doing something terribly wrong.