Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes has introduced a new site named Jumo, which will work much like Facebook only this site is to help a project or issue of your choice. As Facebook has become a very common social network, Jumo aims to be a social network that also gives back to your community. With Jumo, issues such as cancer, public schools, poverty and 3,500 other organizations are brought to light.

Each individual one has their own page with information on the cause like how to help, locations of these places, and who you would need to contact. Providing information or “likes” about yourself can connect you to issues that you personally are interested in or local areas that may need your help.

While Facebook is concentrated on things like friends and social gatherings, Jumo offers a place for people to gather to share or explore issues that others are also concentrated on. Although many focus on the Holiday season to give back, this new site is an outlet to bestow charity all year long.

The incentive we give out to people we work with is the key for their success and ultimately for ours. It’s the same with your publishers as it is with your team members. Having good communication, a positive attitude and giving people an opportunity for growth will give you ten times more in return.

From the LeadPile Family to yours.. We hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving! Gobble Gobble!

With so many advances in technology, people are constantly buying new computers and updating to the latest models. This leaves the older model PCs in many people’s storage areas or eventually even thrown away. Thankfully, there are other options. A recent article explains different ways to recycle your PC so they aren’t wasted space any longer and you are being green at the same time. Check out some options to give back or clear some space for the Holidays below.

-The National Christina Foundation donates your old PC or parts of equipment to schools or other non-profit organizations.

-Without a fee, you can drop of your old PC at a Dell location and they will find a Goodwill that is in need of the computer or recycle parts that would otherwise be garbage.

-Your local Best Buy will recycle your old PC for a $10 fee, but this is returned to you in the form of a $10 Best Buy gift card.

Will your site survive Google Instant Previews? I’m sure many publisher sites out there are full of rich content for SEO, banners to bring in extra revenue, Opt-in links here, contact us links there… Now Google users have the ability to see a small snapshot preview of your site before actually clicking through. So all of these “extras” could actually be hurting your chances of getting customers to land on your site and actually convert. Design is now number 1, your site better be clean and to the point. Clear out some of the banner ads, clean up your font and color choices to make your site cohesive. Have a catchy headline since this is about all your customers will be able to read from the snapshot.

Go check out your site today using Google Instant Preview and ask yourself if you would click through based on your snapshot!

Last year, 57 million people hit the stores for Black Friday and even

more are expected to show up this year. The day following Thanksgiving has become one of the most popular times of the year for retailers to offer large discounts to customers, making about a third of retailer’s sales for the year. About 31 percent of households are predicted to shop on Black Friday.

Stores like Walmart will be selling high-definition TVs for under $200 and cameras for around $60 offering prices that are largely discounted compared to the rest of the year. The economy’s current state is also expected to make an impact on the number of people looking for lower prices.

Let’s face it, the economy is in a slump and this is affecting people being able to pay their bills amongst many other things. The good news is, that the economy is going to get better, which means lenders are going to start lending again AND credit will be extended to consumers again. However, if you do not have your credit in check, you will not be able to take advantage of this. The first thing to do, when trying to fix your credit, is understand what your credit score is AND what makes up that credit score. First, you need to understand who the credit reporting agencies are that are gathering this information. The three credit reporting agencies are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Secondly, you need to understand what a good and bad FICO (also known as a credit score) is. A credit score can be between 300 and 850. The higher your credit score, the better. Finally, you need to read your credit report and understand what is on it. To understand it, you must know the main things that make up your credit score:

1. How you pay your bills- your payment history on your credit cards and loans is the biggest factor in making up your score. This means if you have not paid your bills on time, now is the time to start.

2. What do you owe on your credit cards and loans- if you have your balances maxed out on all your creditors, this will negatively affect your credit score. Stopping charging immediately if the balances are close to their limits.

3. How long have you had each of your creditors-the newer the credit, the more it will negatively affect you. If you are applying for new credit cards, stop now to help your credit score. Keep a few creditors for a long period of time and that will help your score.

4. Do you have all sorts of creditors like car loans, credit cards, installment loans etc-the credit bureaus likes to see a diverse selection of creditors. This is not a major factor in your credit score, but something to think about if you are thinking about getting a new creditor.

Leadpile is currently working on generating this sort of lead and will welcome publishers that will eventually be interested in connecting those consumers that want to know their credit score, with the company that will be able to provide this service. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!

Based on a research by Robert Kaplan and David Norton (founders of Balanced Scorecard), only 5% of employees understand the company’s strategy. Are you in line with the company’s goals and future strategy for the company? If you are in the executive team, makes sure you communicate it over to your team members. If they are on board with your strategy, it will be much easier to execute. Also, one thing to remember is not to “dictate how”, and instead let your team figure out the best approach to accomplish the goal. Your affiliates will definitely be a lot more receptive to your company’s message.

Based on a research by Robert Kaplan and David Norton (founders of Balanced Scorecard), only 5% of employees understand the company’s strategy. Are you in line with the company’s goals and future strategy for the company? If you are in the executive team, makes sure you communicate it over to your team members. If they are on board with your strategy, it will be much easier to execute. Also, one thing to remember is not to “dictate how”, and instead let your team figure out the best approach to accomplish the goal. Your affiliates will definitely be a lot more receptive to your company’s message.

The downturn of the economy has left many people with high credit card balances and not many options. Payday loans have been and will continue to be a great source of necessary and quickly needed funds for a large number of consumers however don’t always offer the larger amount loans or longer payment terms that personal loans once offered. Prior to the economy taking a downward turn and home-equity loans becoming the popular choice personal loans were the main option for many people.

Recently, as the demand to borrow money has become necessary for many, personal loans have been in demand and the supply is starting to make a comeback. Personal loans, can offer the longer terms and higher borrowing amounts than payday is typically able to and offers a much better option and interest rate than credit cards do.

Recently, according to CBS MoneyWatch, banks including Wells Fargo, Discover Financial, Citi and CapitalOne are all currently offering personal loans.

Wells Fargo – loaning $3,000 – $10,000 for lengths as long as five years
Citi – $300 – $7.500
Discover Financial – lending up to $25,000

Monday will mark another step forward for Facebook.  The social network giant is looking to expand its communication hub even further by offering an email platform.  Expectations are that this could have a very large impact on Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail and other email systems.  The impact on email marketers has yet to be addressed, but it will certainly have an impact on the display marketing in current webmail providers as consumers make a switch to the Facebook platform.

With Facebook’s functionality already replacing traditional email services, it is likely the use of Facebook will grow as it offers an email platform. It will likely put its own twist on the typical webmail platform, however details remain to be seen.  A large concern over the privacy capabilities and policies of the company may hinder the popularity of such a service.

Stay tuned to see what the big announcement on Monday entails and how usable this email client is.

Holiday season is quickly approaching, and shoppers will soon be hitting the malls and websites! This season there is a new twist to the shopping discount war from the retail giant Walmart.

Walmart has announced this week that it will offer free shipping on 60,000 online items (including toys, electronics and jewelry), NO minimum purchase required! This could add up to a huge savings for those of us who like to spending time shopping online rather than pushing your way through crowds of people in the stores. Wal-Mart is offering this deal through December 20th.

The free shipping combined with the “Site to Store” program (allowing customers to buy an item online and have it shipped for free to their local Walmart) will save an estimated $25 million on shipping costs for Walmarts customers.

Target and J.C. Penny are also offering deals on shipping from their sites – Target offering free shipping on select items over $50 and J.C. Penny giving free shipping to customers spending $69 or more in online purchases.

Free shipping, avoiding the crowds at the stores while still getting your shopping done – Sounds like a great plan to me!