SmartJob.com Shares: It’s Not What You Know But Who You Know… Online

As a rule to success, effective networking is a key people skill you must learn as you climb the corporate ladder. While nothing beats the real life experience of meeting new people and getting to know them, there are now many online sites that simplify this for you. As Hong Kong’s leading online job portal, SmartJob.com has some great social media networking advice for you to follow.

LinkedIn is considered the Holy Grail of professional networking online. It is no longer just nice to have a LinkedIn profile; not having a complete profile can put you at risk of being ignored by potential recruiters and employers. Many of your colleagues past and present have a profile on the platform, and connecting to them opens up their connections to you. Build your LinkedIn empire tactfully and professionally with the help of SmartJob.com.
Although Facebook is quite the “social” website, joining the right Facebook groups with members from your industry or profession will be well worth the effort. Most of these “honeypots” are invite-only groups, so work on those relationships and get clued in. A great way to start is by joining social media events in your area and to get to know digital influencers. SmartJob.com also lists great professional smartevents to further help your networking.

Twitter and Sina Weibo make networking easy. Since messages are public, you can join any ongoing conversations and meet like-minded people. Following hashtags is the easiest way to get started. You can also follow SmartJob.com to meet other local professionals like you!
The key to success network online is to bring your relationship offline and nurture it in real life. Having a digital life certainly makes connecting with like-minded professional easier, but nothing beats a firm handshake and a smile.

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How Business is Adapting to a Design Driven World

Business is changing, and PRDA can help you build bridges between information and graphic design. The economy is no longer driven by information alone, but relies heavily on graphic design now as well. Simply put- businesses with well designed materials make more money. Design is constantly changing and updating, so keeping up with what consumers want is a full time job. This is where PRDA comes in.

Design is everywhere. With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter growing exponentially, it is crucial to have an online presence. Having a well designed brand is only the beginning. Every business, especially small business, must carry their brand across a wide range of platforms. You can hand out business cards on the street all day and still only reach a small fraction of the business that social media will bring in. The internet and social networking target your specific audience, and then reel them in with aesthetics. Graphic design may seem like art, but in reality it is extremely deliberate and strategic. Business everywhere is changing to accommodate the consumers’ appetites for instant access. The only way to be successful is to join PRDA on the social media bandwagon.

The business world isn’t the only thing that’s changing. Graphic design professionals can no longer hide behind a computer screen playing with the pen tool. Design skills and business skills are converging. Without the ability to manage both, designers will soon find themselves out of work. Find out more about how design is changing in our next blog post!

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Let your child decide what to do with the Bilibo!

Ever heard of a toy that comes with no instructions at all? A toy that does not have any how-to’s but instead lets the child who receives it decide what to do with it? Now if that piqued your curiosity, then be baffled no more!

Presenting the Bilibo – a product designed in Basel by a young Swiss designer named Alex Hochstrasser. The Bilibo was made possible via a collaboration between Hochstrasser and the Head of the Department for Growth and Development at the University Children’s Hospital in Zurich. And yes, it looks pretty interesting.

Hocusadabra met with Hochstrasser and we can definitely say that he’s quite an inspiration.

The Bilibo, Hochstrasser’s masterpiece, is made from high density polyethylene. Hocusadabra.com currently has the mini and the standard versions available. The Bilibo Mini comes in various colors while the standard Bilibo comes in pink, blue, red and yellow. And the magnificent thing about all of this is that the Bilibo is currently 25 percent off!

So order yours today at www.hocusadabra.com (Enter CNY25 at the checkout) – don’t wait, just do it – place an order and heave a sigh of relief! This is one purchase you will surely be thankful for!

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Great gift ideas for you to kickstart the New Year!

And it’s finally 2012! A brand new year, a fresh new start! And what better way to say hello to 2012 than by buying two great products from Hocusadabra? Mind you, these are not just any kinds of products. These are products that will for sure delight your little tots!

Who wouldn’t be happy to receive the Kids World Party CD? Every child loves world music. Feed their passion and fondness for this kind of music by buying this Kids World Party CD. The CD (which comes in a cardboard case, by the way) features Putumayo music which is guaranteed to make everyone feel good. What’s also great about every purchase of this special CD is that 7 percent of the proceeds goes to Amnesty International.

Another great gift idea is The Giving Tree book, which you can easily buy online through our Hocusadabra.com store. The Giving Tree is a classic that depicts the unconditional love between a tree and a boy. You can read this beautiful story to your kids before bed time and you may even be able to stir up his or her imagination and inquisitive mind. The book is available in hardbound version, black and white.

So are you ready to face the new year? Arm yourself with these two great products and you will be at your most ready! Visit www.hocusadabra.com today and order online. Shipping options are available for just about anyone around the world!

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Great gift ideas for you to kickstart the New Year!

And it’s finally 2012! A brand new year, a fresh new start! And what better way to say hello to 2012 than by buying two great products from Hocusadabra? Mind you, these are not just any kinds of products. These are products that will for sure delight your little tots!

Who wouldn’t be happy to receive the Kids World Party CD? Every child loves world music. Feed their passion and fondness for this kind of music by buying this Kids World Party CD. The CD (which comes in a cardboard case, by the way) features Putumayo music which is guaranteed to make everyone feel good. What’s also great about every purchase of this special CD is that 7 percent of the proceeds goes to Amnesty International.

Another great gift idea is The Giving Tree book, which you can easily buy online through our Hocusadabra.com store. The Giving Tree is a classic that depicts the unconditional love between a tree and a boy. You can read this beautiful story to your kids before bed time and you may even be able to stir up his or her imagination and inquisitive mind. The book is available in hardbound version, black and white.

So are you ready to face the new year? Arm yourself with these two great products and you will be at your most ready! Visit www.hocusadabra.com today and order online. Shipping options are available for just about anyone around the world!

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Products to celebrate the new year of the dragon with Hocusadabra

Eagerly awaiting the year of the Dragon, we thought we’d highlight a few of our favorite Hocusadabra Dragon’s.

Red Dragon BPA Free Plate
Made from 100 percent recycled food grade plastic, this Smiling Planet Dragon plate is not only safe, it’s contemporary design is eye-catching and guaranteed to be a success at the Chinese New Year table.

The Pet Dragon Story Book
With extra time over the New Year celebrations, your little ones will love reading about Lin and her pet Dragon. Designed in New York by Christoph Nieman, this book also even features written Chinese characters (they’re infused in the story oh so ingeniously). Your children will love and learn something from this terrific story.  

Wooden Chinese Character Blocks
Whilst learning all sorts of characters and new words, your children can build their very own Dragon with these beautiful hand crafted wooden blocks all the way from Michigan.  A hocusadabra favourite.

Visit www.hocusadabra.com today and order these Chinese New Year gift ideas. Absolutely fun way to welcome the new year!

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Christmas items that can be passed down from one generation to another

It happens all the time – we buy Christmas decors, trinkets, gifts and the like, we use them or give them away and they only usually last for a good year (or even less) and then we do the same routine. Buy, use, buy, use. Over and over. It’s already an endless cycle – which is a pity, really, since Christmas need not be commemorated with expensive things. The simpler, the more meaningful, the better.

Now if you want to buy affordably priced Christmas decorations that can actually be passed down from one generation to another, then we have good news for you. Hocusadabra.com carries two beautiful Christmas sets that you and your family will love. These can even make absolutely great gifts!

First – the wooden Merry Christmas Decorative Block Set. Designed in Grand Rapids, Michigan Basswood, the Merry Christmas Decorative Block Set items are both handmade and are made from embossed Michigan basswood. These are sustainable decoration for Christmas, too, as you can use the blocks year after year. All 14 blocks are painted with non toxic ink, the wooden Merry Christmas Decorative Block Set are suited for kids 2 years of age and above.

The second great Christmas gift idea we would like to share with you is the wooden Nativity Set. Also handmade and carved from maple, oak, birch or beech wood, there are 8 items included in this set. With the items found in this set, you can retell the story of Christmas to your kids. The set is complete – you have Mary, Joseph, the 3 wise men, an Angel and Baby Jesus in his manger.

See both of these sets on Hocusadabra.com You can order online through their safe and secure payment gateway and they can arrange for deliveries anywhere.

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Social media mistakes small businesses should avoid

It’s easy for small businesses to be social media rockstars. Since social media is cheap (and in most cases, free) and readily available, small businesses can just tap social media and use it to their heart’s content. However, while it’s great that small businesses have begun to acknowledge the power of social media, there are also a couple of social media mistakes that these businesses should also try to avoid. These mistakes can easily be committed by anyone and, yes, by small businesses.

First social media mistake is not having the passion. Sure, it’s easy to just register or sign up, create a social media account, post a link to your company website and that’s it. Sure, you may have claimed your social media accounts and all other blogs but that does not mean that you can now just sit back, relax and wait for the magic to happen. Social media marketing should be an ongoing campaign and if you or your employees do not have the sheer passion to interact with other people (especially target customers) online, then don’t even try to start at all. Leave the task to a reliable digital agency like PRDA Asia.

Second social media mistake is not offering something once in a while. Let’s face it, people like asking the “what’s in it for me” question. So why not give your online friends a little something once in a while? Take the case of Edible Arrangements Hong Kong. They create special fruit bouquets and their stores are becoming more and more popular among Hong Kong residents who want unique gift ideas. In order to thank their loyal customers, Edible Arrangements Hong Kong thought of starting a drawing contest for kids! It was a great way not only to promote their products but more importantly, to interact with their customers. In turn, the customers were pleased with the attention given to them so they themselves promote the business through their own social networks! Talk about great PR!

These are just two social media mistakes that must be avoided so that small businesses will not risk committing very critical and perhaps even expensive mistakes. Better re-assess your own small business now and see what you can do in order to keep these mistakes at bay.

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Graphs show how China is comfortable with online retail

Two charts recently released by iResearch show the top 10 B2C platform market shares and top 10 B2C online retailer market shares in China for the second quarter of the year 2011. The graphs showed several facts and realities, two of which are: that Taobao Mall and 360Buy have the top 2 platform market shares and that 360Buy enjoys a pretty good share in the online retailer market (35.1% is not bad but this does not represent the majority or even half of the online retailer market share, obviously).

However, more than those two facts, the graphs released by iResearch shows a healthy and truly positive fact: that China is comfortable with online retail and/or online shopping. Truly, one can deduce that China is an online shopping paradise.

Case in point: Edible Arrangements Hong Kong. Edible Arrangements is a business in Hong Kong that is engaged in producing fresh fruit bouquets. These fruit bouquets are truly delicious and healthy and are arranged in such a way that even non-fruit lovers may be so tempted to try the pineapple daisies and chocolate dipped strawberries. Now, Edible Arrangements Hong Kong does not only allow the customers to come visit and order through their stores (they have two branches in Hong Kong) but their website also allows online shopping or online ordering. Individuals can order for fresh fruit bouquets through their website (http://www.ediblearrangements.hk). Business owners can also order for quick corporate giveaways through Edible Arrangements Hong Kong’s website. A lot of Edible Arrangements Hong Kong’s customers do the online route since it’s not only hassle-free but the payment gateway is safe and secure. With the many orders coursed via online retail or online shopping, it truly shows how comfortable the Chinese people are with the idea of online retails. Truly, this alone proves that going digital or going online is the way to go!

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Where to find online consumers in China

Are you a businessman in China who wants to attract not only the Chinese consumers online but more importantly, the consumers who have the buying power? Do you want to know where to find online consumers in China? You might think that you know where and how to find them but if you consider the latest data gathered by Burson Marsteller China, you might just be in for a surprise.

According to BMChina’s latest gathered data on China’s top websites with the largest percentage reach, Baidu.com remains to be the top website in terms of percentage reach. Admittedly, no argue there. With a powerful 88.9 percent reach, Baidu remains a powerhouse. QQ, Taobo, Sina and Youku come next. Hence, if you want to reach out to consumers in China and you have a website, to submit your URL to these websites is definitely a great idea.

Now if you’re interested with what’s going on in the social media world, then you might be surprised to know that social networking website Sina Weibo is not the runaway winner after all. Interestingly, Renren has a bigger reach compared to Sina Weibo. Were you surprised as we were? The data gatherers had an explanation, though. Renren, apparently, had a bigger “population” compared to Sina Weibo. And we all know what that would entail — the bigger population, the better chance for you to tap more people. Hence, concentrating on Sina Weibo may no longer be a feasible idea these days. Still, you must consider that making a mark in other sites aside from Sina Weibo may also require the expertise of an established digital agency. By the way, other top social network players are QZone, Pengyou and Kaixin001.

In conclusion, if you want to reach out to online consumers in China and you want to know what they want, what they need or what they are looking for, then perhaps it’s high time that you divert some of your efforts to other social networking sites now. Don’t just concentrate on what you think or perceive is popular.

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