If we do not back up our words with action or if our actions do not coincide with our promises, then we are not living authentically. That lack of authenticity will speak volumes to those around us.

We can not hide the discordance. We can not hide the duplicity. It is there for all to see.

Exactly how much do you believe in what you say? Are you willing to back it up with action? If not, it would be better to say nothing than to live with dichotomy. People today will know the difference.

Be true to your heart. Say and live what is there. Your authenticity will ring true to all those around you. You will sleep well knowing that what is in your heart is who you are and your actions will speak to the honesty there.

In peace and love always,

Richard

Words are one thing, do your actions back them up? is a post from: A Passion for Connection

Some of you know that last year I started a program called “Business with a Heart”. It is a three pronged program.

1. To set the example ourselves by making a commitment to help small business by offering them a sliding scale of fees to keep our services affordable. It is our belief that giving back must be more than just the token things like sponsoring the local little league team.
2. To challenge other companies to do the same thing in their communities.
3. To celebrate the people who are going above and beyond by working together to spread the message.

As part of the “Business with a Heart” mission I have been fortunate to find others who at their core really do want to help small business.

The first project  I am working on is a utility called “Triplefy”. The mission of Triplefy is to give small businesses some tools that can help them compete with big national brands.

With Triplefy, a business can sign up and create deals and gift cards for their site as simple as cutting and pasting some HTML.

The HTML can be pasted on a website, in an email, or on Facebook so that it encourages people to shop online at local places. The money for the purchase of the card goes directly into the retailer’s Paypal account.

Triplefy tracks the value of each card for the merchant. When someone purchases a gift card they can print out or email the gift card to the recipient. The person receiving the gift can simply bring in their smart phone to the retailer to show the email, or a show a printed copy of the gift card.

The idea and programing of Triplefy was from the mind of Mike Morris in New Haven, Connecticut. According to Mike, statistics show that of $100 spend at a big box store, about $14 stays in the local community. Of  that same $100 spent at a local retailer, about $45  stays in the community creating a “Triplefy” effect.

Triplefy also has a “deal” component that gives the local retailer a much fairer way to create and publish deals. With out heavy fees and heavy discounting found with deals offered through Groupon, Mike hopes to create a system that will build loyal, happy repeat customers instead of people who will just me looking for the next deal. You can learn more about Triplefy at:  http://triplefy.com

The second project I am working on is called “PizzaGram” with Randy and Rudy Danowski.  Rudy came up with this cool idea of being able to send a pizza to anyone in the country.

Mom and Dad will be able to send a pizza to their kids in college. Grandma will be able to send little Jimmy a pizza to say congratulations for winning a soccer game. We combined the ideas of Triplefy and PizzaGram to make the system work.  PizzaGram uses the Triplefy engine to fuel the transaction. You can learn more about PizzaGram at:  http://ItsAllAboutPizza.com

Small business working together to grow the pie. is a post from: A Passion for Connection

We have to be the best we can be. In life and in our online lives we are called to be the best we can be. Are they separate, our online lives and when we are physically with others? I try so hard not to let them be. I want my online persona to be, Who I AM. Do I succeed? Not always.  Life is full of dramas and events that not all need to be shared. It is the core of who we are that does though. We need to be real in out struggles. We need to be able to reveal our vulnerabilities in a way that is real, honest and trust that others will not swoop in and use those same vulnerabilities against us.

I have to admit that it is a very hard line to walk.

You can not “Skate” in Social Media. is a post from: A Passion for Connection

I am fresh of the phone with people at Godaddy with an important message to website owners who post to their Facebook pages from their website. Starting October 1, 2011 Facebook will require sites that connect their websites to the Facebook Business pages to have an SSL Certificate.

An SSL or Secure Socket Layer protects visitors information like Credit Cards and other personal information. You can tell if a site is secure by looking that the URL. It should have, ” HTTPS://” as opposed to “HTTP://” Although your Facebook Login information is secure, pages and games you visit may expose your information to others.

Most Facebook users will not be affected but you may notice a warning that the site or page your are visiting may not be secure. It is your choice to follow that link or not.

For business owners with pages, you may be required to provide links within a Secure Socket Layer. This is relatively easy depending upon your web host. The cost for an SSL Certificate should be between $50 and $100.00. There may be other costs depending on whether you have a static or variable IP address. If you would like to read more, please follow this link.

For clients of A Passion for Connection who have their sites hosted with Godaddy, you can purchase the SSL Certificate for your site here.  If you need help in setting this up, please feel free to contact us and we will guide you through it. (Note: We are affiliates of GoDaddy. )

Facebook to require SSL for sites that link to pages is a post from: A Passion for Connection

One of the first steps we take when working with new clients ( after ensuring the fundamentals are spot on) is to evaluate their presence on the web. Far to often companies have a fragmented web presence. They may have a website, a Facebook page, and maybe even a LinkedIn or a Twitter account, but there may be no coordinated effort to integrate those online tools and they may not even integrate their online presence with their offline marketing activities.

With strong fundamentals, a strong business plan, mission statement and customer profile a company’s online presence can be coordinated with its core values and integration can be planned with offline activities to create synergies. When this happens, the brand is strengthened, and strategies can be developed and implemented that will foster communications across channels and possibilities for real growth can have the most fertile atmosphere.

Think Web Presence instead of just Website.

Think Web Presence Instead of Website is a post from: A Passion for Connection

First, I would like to introduce a new addition to A Passion for Connection, Sandy Collins.
Sandy is an artist and graphic designer. She is working on the new look for a Passion for Connection as I write this.  Her vision is amazing. You can connect with Sandy on LinkedIn .

Second,  We are working on reorganizing the layout of our site to help make it easier to navigate while making it cleaner, simpler while at the same time defining our core services and how we can best help you and your organization connect with the right people through social and emerging media.

Our services include:

1. Website and Blog Design
2. Social Media Integration- How to best communicate with your constituencies through social mediBlogs
   • Blogs
   • Facebook (business and personal)
   • LinkedIn
   • Twitter
   • Yelp
   • Google
3. Content development
   • Writing blog post and website content
   • Photography
   • Graphic design
   • Logo design
   • Presentations
   • Brochures and business cards

   Click on the slideshow below for samples of Sandy’s graphic design work.

Shoemaker’s Kid with no Shoes is a post from: A Passion for Connection

Getting back to nature is a post from: A Passion for Connection

The newest member of Business with a Heart is Cheryl Fehlberg of Enhanced Editing Services. Cheryl helps bloggers and writers over the world present their best work by editing and proofreading their writing before it is published.

Cheryl was wondering how to price her work.  She had read a blog post that was highly shared on Facebook and Twitter.  The piece was excellent in its concept and spoke to the idea of supporting creative people and encouraging them not to be afraid to put their work out there.  It was nicely written but had its own share of grammatical errors.  She wanted to offer help in a way that was supportive.  If the blog was making money and could afford to pay for editing then she would like to be compensated in a little way.  If not, because it was so good and she wanted to support the author, she would do it without charge just to help.

I suggested offering help through the Business with a Heart model.  The model has three components:

1.  To set an example by giving deeply from our hearts

2.  If other businesses receive help through discounted rates then they commit to do “Paying it forward” by doing the same for theirs.

3.  The members work to promote the businesses and non profits that are doing good things in their own communities.

By offering this to a potential client, she sends the message that is at the heart of who Cheryl is.  It codifies the idea that Cheryl is working from her heart to do good things for others.  She can work hand in hand with other businesses whose values she supports.  The other business receives needed services at a rate they can afford and is challenged to give back in a way that works for them while both businesses mutually support each other in a team like fashion.

Cheryl provides a much needed service, editing blog post and other writing at a very affordable rate and on demand.

To learn more about Cheryl and her very affordable and needed services you can visit her blog site, contact her on Twitter, or learn more about her on LinkedIN.

Business with a Heart – Enhanced Editing Services is a post from: A Passion for Connection

One way that Stockbridge’s Gourmet Cheesecakes helps  local organizations is by discounting their award winning cheesecakes so organization can sell them to raise funds. The Cheesecakes with all the love and time put into making them are discounted to the organization down to cost.

You can listen to our interview with Lisa Grimmer from Shelton High Girls Cross Country Club. The Club sold 52 cheesecakes and raised over $300.00 for the organization.

You can learn more about Stockbridge’s Gourmet Cheesecakes by visiting their website or Facebook Page, or stop in to their Shelton Location at 509a Howe Ave, Shelton,CT 06484

Business With a Heart | Stockbridges Gourmet Cheesecakes is a post from: A Passion for Connection

There is a little plug-in you can install called Picasa Image Express.  After installing that plug in you will notice a Picasa Icon added to the area where you create and edit wordpress pages and posts.

1. Position your cursor near where you would like the image inserted.
2. Click the Picasa Icon (In the media insert area)
3. In the upper left corner there is a button ( prefilled with a Picasa account name). Click that button, enter the Picasa account name you would like to use, and click “change user”
4. Select the album and image you would like to insert. With the image selected, a button called “Insert Image” will appear. Click that button.
5. The image will be inserted where you can then edit it and position it just like any other image you insert into pages or posts.

Here is a little video if you need more help.

Insert Images Directly From Picasa to WordPress Post is a post from: A Passion for Connection