"Why I Like Associated Content" Facebook Contest Gives Us the Warm Fuzzies!

We recently hosted a contest on our Facebook page, celebrating the milestone of 3,000 Facebookers "liking" our page. Participants were asked to post a status beginning telling us why they "like" Associated Content in order to win one of three $15 open assignments, which of course will also earn unlimited Performance Pay.

The responses were touching, poignant and sometimes funny. Our three winners, Kyla Matton Osborne, Patricia B. Hill and Wendy Dawn stood out, but every entry made us smile. We like you all, too! Here are the winning reasons to like AC:

From Kyla Matton Osborne:

I like Associated Content because of all the warm, generous, talented people I have met, because it offers me the chance to work from home at something I love doing, and because it has challenged me to stretch myself and write about things I never would have thought to tackle in the past. Thanks AC!

From Patricia B. Hill:

I like Associated Content because it was the alpha to freelance writing for me. AC's platform design allowed me to get articles into the mainstream while building a portfolio of content; necessary when applying to other writing venues. Associated Content has been my connection to other writers, writing opportunities, extra income, and provides me with a peace of mind during tough economic times. Thank you AC!

From Wendy Dawn:

I like AC and it aint no lie - though other writers might deny - It's good for my mind and good for my brain -- Join us there if you got game!

Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone who participated!

Want to get in on the next contest? Make sure you like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!

AC Twitter Challenge Winners: Congrats to Our Grand Prize Winner and Runners-Up!

Congratulations to our AC Twitter Challenge grand prize winner, JoAnn Selke, whose participation in the AC Twitter Challenge won her an ASUS Eee PC Netbook with the brand-new Windows 7 operating system!

You can find Joann on Twitter as @Jselke. Joann is a Chicago resident who published her first article on Associated Content in October, 2008. She's got three lovely children and a wonderful husband of 15 years. That's a lot of competition for the first chance to try out Windows 7 when JoAnn's netbook arrives!

Our five runners-up each won their choice of either a $100 ThinkGeek gift certificate or a Laplearner Lap Desk. In no particular order, the runners-up are:

Ari Berenstein, who discusses his experiences on Twitter here. Ari is a Brooklyn resident who writes a popular column on professional wrestling. Follow Ari as @AriBerenstein on Twitter.

Rissa Watkins, a writer from Sunny, Arizona who is working on her first novel. Follow Rissa as @RissaWatkins on Twitter.

Viktorya Hale, who discusses her Twitter challenge experience here. Viktorya is a top 1,000 AC contributor living in Vivian, Louisiana. She can be found on Twitter as @ViktoryaHale.

Kara Andersen, a twenty-something actor/writer/student living in Chicago. Kara tweets as @KaraAnders.

Vanessa Rochea, who writes about the power of Twitter here. Vanessa is a Kentucky University student and the author of three upcoming books. She's on Twitter as @VRochea.

Congratulations to all six AC Twitter Challenge Winners!

AC Twitter Challenge Contest Recap and Some Outstanding Content

The AC Twitter Challenge is over. A whopping 460 entrants used Twitter to enter the sweepstakes and/or accepted the AC Twitter Challenge assignment through the AC Assignment Desk, for a total of 1,056 entries!

Six winners have been randomly selected and will be announced publicly as soon as we have contacted the winners privately to share the good news. For now, let's take a look at some outstanding content published by AC contributors who took the Twitter Challenge and wrote about their experiences.

Lyn Lomasi was an active Twitter user before the Twitter Challenge and took the contest as an opportunity to increase her participation and connect with other AC contributors. Her article, "Twitter Is a Must for AC Contributors," describes her experiences with HootSuite and gives props to a few AC Twitterers who are especially good Twitter pals.

KK Thornton is a savvy Twitter user who took time to share her best tips in her Beginner's Guide to Tweeting for Fun and Profit. KK discusses privacy, the correct use of hashtags and how to get others to retweet you, among other witty and helpful nuggets of advice.

Tamara Waters didn't fall in love with Twitter at first Tweet, but as she dove further into the community she began to see the value in microblogging. She's discussed her evolution from Twitter skeptic (Tweptic?) to True Twit in her post, "Microblogging with Twitter: True Confessions of a Twit." Tamara even Tweeted to keep up with friends and family while turkey hunting recently!

Jolie Du Pre knows that Twitter is only as useful as you make it. In, "How Twitter Works for Me," she shares her favorite Twitter applications, tips for organizing your Tweets and advice on how often to Tweet for maximum efficiency.

Check these great articles out while you wait for the big results announcement. We'll feature more top content tomorrow. Look for an "awards show" post from AC Jelena shouting out some excellent AC Twitterers later this week.

Also, please be sure to read the addendum we added to the Offical Rules of the contest. Due to limitations in our ability to search Twitter's archives, we are unable to verify repeat entries by the first week's entrants. To account for this, we gave all of week one's entrants an additional content entry. Click here

Are you Friends with AC on Facebook?

Social networking is not just for teenagers anymore. If you're looking for new ways to promote your work, meet fellow Content Producers, make business contacts and reconnect with old friends then look no further than the many social networking sites out there.

It may seem intimidating at first but if you tackle one site at a time the experience will be a lot less overwhelming. I recommend picking a single place to focus based on what appeals to you. Your entry into social networking society will be much smoother.

Do you like to know what many people are doing at every moment throughout the day? Try Twitter! Are you into connecting with other CPs in a cozy community? Head to Ning! Looking for a more formal feel to your networking? LinkedIn might be the best place for you to start.

Associated Content has an official Facebook page and a MySpace profile. Both sites are useful for sharing your content links with "friends."
If Ning sounded appealing above, head to the the official CP Ning Network. If you're feeling saucy, you can even set up a Ning network of your own!
Follow us on Twitter for brief, frequent updates on news and events.
AC's LinkedIn group will allow you find other professional networking-types. Come on over to one or all of these spots to keep up with your fellow CPs and make new friends!

We have some super-cool social networking applications for our CPs in the works right now. That's all I can say at the moment but we're really excited see what creative uses you make of them after they're launched!

Follow AC on Twitter

Associated Content is Twittering! Tweeting? Anyway, we are on Twitter and you should follow us by adding acnews. Click here for a link.

We're updating daily with fun links and brief AC updates. That character limit on Twitter really does go a long way in teaching us to economize our thoughts. It will force us to be pithy and get straight to the point.

If you don't Twitter yet you should sign up and follow us! If you're already on please add acnews so that we can follow you, too!