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One of the greatest advantages you have by using us as your technology solution is the way we add new features and make improvements on a regular basis. When we update, your site is automatically updated allowing you to take advantage of these changes right away.

We have been working hard at developing improvements and features for your future enjoyment. Many times we will post inside information on our Twitter page at http://twitter.com/spruz

Below is some updates on features we have been working on and we have planned for release.

New and Improved Event System

Our new event system that was originally slated for release at the end of last month will be ready for roll out in the next few weeks. The new event system greatly improves the look and functionality over using the existing event calendar. Once released we will begin to phase out the old event calendar system. Some new features include a whole new look, better moderation options, event commenting options, event photos, setup pay events, and much more!

Overall system improvements

Over the next few weeks you will see changes with how elements work and the way things are loaded on the page.

• We are moving forward with converting a number of our elements with the way they load and request information using Ajax (Ajax is a programming method of loading in a block of HTML rather then the whole page). This will reduce full page load time and give the appearance of a faster website.
• Featuring of Videos, Blogs, Photos and other information
• Adding Content Moderation to areas like Videos, Blog, Photos and more to allow you to approve content before it is viable by the general public.
• Adding more RSS feeds to things like the forums, site activity, etc
• We are tackling a whole list of small tweaks, adjustments and usability improvements to polish out current systems.
• New element options to add more personalized customization.
• New Admin/Management Area Welcome Page Coming Soon.

Major New Features on the Horizon (Slated for completion by the end of the year)

• Wiki type knowledge base system. This system will allow anyone to edit and create pages with full moderation controls with a very deep page structure.
• Member Points System. This will be a customizable system that allows you to set point values for site participation from your members
• Member Titles and Prefix Options based on access level.
• Element Viewing Options similar to the Profile Elements. So that you may select elements you want to show only to people visiting your website then show something else to someone that is member on the page or display the element to everyone.

Need more help? Want to Contribute? Visit our Website Owner Support Community at http://my.spruz.com today!

Ever wanted to automatically start your members our with a new friend? Well now you can! Next time you visit the Site Profile Settings page you will see a new option called Default Profile Friend. Type the name of the member you want to be the members first friend and click save. Now when a new member joins that member account will automatically be a friend of that person.

You will notice that we have added an auto complete function that searches your members as you type to make it much easier to set the default friend and default profile template user account. More information on the setting the default profile page element arrangement go to http://my.spruz.com/?page=content&cid=32021&show_id=40570

Important If you had previously set a UID number for the default profile template you need to go back and use the new by name for the default profile template for your default profile to get copied to newly created member profiles.

Remember you can change your site and profile settings from the Settings link located in your website management area.

Comment Boxes have a new look

We have changed the styling of the comment boxes so that blend better with websites. The new look takes out the rounding and we kept it open for 3 slicing so that with CSS you can customize the comment boxes to have rounding if you chose.

Basic Content Editor the default

A while ago we released a new basic version of our content editor and the editor for Free websites. Now free and upgraded sites can use the Advanced editor and we have set the basic editor as the default content editor in admin. If you rather use the old editor (Advanced Editor) just click the advanced button and it should remember your setting.

Please make sure to report any bugs you see in support tickets to help us improve current features.

There have been many new changes that have taken place over the past few weeks. Make sure to follow us on http://twitter.com/spruz to get the latest as it happens.

Site Properties on website administration has been renamed and revamped.

To make it easier for people to find where to change core site settings we have updated the Site Properties link with the label of Settings and on that page you can access your global website settings and update the site profile settings. These areas provide you with a number of options to further tailor your community to your liking.

New Display options on the Members Box Element

Our goal has and always will be to provide our users with an incredible level of customization. That is why you will now see a new Display Style option when editing some elements. The display types will change the look of the information within the element. Right now there are 4 display styles (List, Card, Small and Tile) for you to play with. To check this out just click on any members element on your website.

Profile Comment Notifications

With the shout box element users can set an option to get an email every time someone comments directly on their profile. This can be turned off from the element settings on the shout box element if added to their profile page.

Customize the default profile elements members start with

Be default all profiles normally start with a Friends box and a Shout box, but now you can create a custom profile arrangement for your members to start with when they first join your website. More information on this can be found by going to http://my.spruz.com/?page=content&cid=32021&show_id=40570

New Themes Added to the Theme Library

Want to try a new look for your website? We have a theme library that allows you to quickly install new themes to your website. To check out the theme selection go to your theme library by going to your website, login, then click on Manage Site, then the red design tab. You will see an option in the menu for Theme Library, new themes are added all the time.

Blog Preview Element Changes

On the Blog Preview element that you can add to your home page you can now set the number of words to display and it will automatically post the first Image or Video from you post to display in the preview.

Blog Changes

We have removed the large date block next to the title of a blog entry when viewing and replaced that with the Picture of the person that posted the blog entry. We have also corrected an issue when editing a blog where the category box was not keeping the category selection properly.

Some new SPI codes have been added.

$code_off - $member_profile_image will return the URL of the members profile image, and we have added #load_xmlpost(http://example.com)# that is designed to allow you to post to another server page information. Thus allowing developers to really intergrate 3rd party features into our platform. More information about SPI

In addition to the above we have made a number of other small fixes and adjustments.

In our latest update we have made a few small changes and fixed a few things.

New Videos Page, this page allows people to add, view and search videos added from Youtube. If you are using the old video search page please delete it, and click on add new page then select Videos Page.

New Group page, we have revamped the group page to make it a little easier to use, to update your current group page delete the one you have and then go to add pages and select groups. Don't worry you won't lose anything in the process.

In addition these pages are fully element based, thus allowing them to be customized with addition supporting elements.

A few fixes that we have applied:

• Link Directory - We have corrected an issue with the link directory where if the page was set to allow anyone to add links they would get a access denied type of message when submitting there entry. The page should now follow the correct access rules. We have also addressed the problem with deleting link categories.
• Members Photos and Video Pages - We have added options directly on the photo or video view to make it easier to delete, and edit the video or photo. This is also where the new featured option will be soon where you can pick photos and videos to be featured in a photos or videos box element.
• Profiles - Profile shouts no longer will show in the main site activity. It was intended that those should be more private and not broadcasted to the world.
• File and Uploading Speed Improvements - In some cases sites with alot of files would see slow downs when loading any file uploader, such as when uploading a photo to profiles or going to the file manager. This has been improved so those things should load up much quicker now.
• Elements - When you leave the header text blank on an element it will no longer draw the top header row. Thus making a much cleaner look, so if you do not want to have a title header on an element you can leave it blank and it will now draw correctly.

A snap shot of what you will see in the next few weeks:

New and Improved Event System, Member Search Page, Site Settings page and member titles

We have just completed a new simplified viewing mode for the Content editor. In this mode many of the more advanced or less used options are hidden allowing for a more streamlined editor. Designed with the new user in mind particularly; we have worked to make the most common tasks, such as dragging elements to change their layout, the primary focus of the editor. Element editing has been removed from the Content editor when in basic mode, and is strictly front end. Check out the changes and give your feedback. You can switch to Basic View by clicking the Basic View tab in your Content section.

Also in this update:

• Fix for the Change Layout tool to make the saving the new layout beheive more consistantly.
• Fix for Chrome and Safari title positioning in the Design editor.
• Front end edit options now display on all elements even if they do not have header text.
• Content editor nav buttons now display options in a cleaner format that is easier to use.

And many more bug fixes and styling tweaks.

We have just released a new publish that brings a new and improved link directory system, and other improvements.

Features of the new and improved Link Directory

• Allows you and your site members to post links to other sites complete with an auto image URL preview, title, description, and tags.
• Admin created categories with unlimited depth category type structures. Meaning you can create sub categories upon sub categories.
• Control the member level of who can add links to the directory
• Tracks clicks and loads the clicked website into a frame that allows visitors to quickly return to your website.
• Very search engine friendly structure.

To add the link directory to your website go to your Site Administration, then click on the Blue content tab and click New Page. You will see the link directory in the pages list. If you have the old link directory you will need to add the new link directory in order apply the update to your website.

Like any major improvement to a system, we will still be working on making the link directory even better over time thanks to feedback from our site owners.

Other updates released with our platform update today.

New basic XML site map support. This was added to address the many questions about submitting a site map to Google. Your site map URL will be http://YOURWEBSITE.COM/sitemap.xml

New Member Map Element. This is a new element that displays the members of your website on a Google powered map.

Miscellaneous Styling/Design Related Fixes

In Case you missed it

We have a few other updates to tell you about that were applied to the platform over the last 2 weeks.

We have many more new features and improvements coming your way, so make sure you subscribe to our RSS at http://www.spruz.com/main/xml/ or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/spruz

As part of our business model we are always working on improvements, new features, usability adjustments, and new information that will help you grow a better community. If you see something that can be improved for the good of all then please tell us about it on the Spruz Support Community forums at my.spruz.com.

We have recently made a few changes on free websites with how they are supported. As you know, to provide a free service that service must in the end be paid for by someone. In the case of anything free it is normally advertisers.

With our free websites we have decided to take a new direction in regards to supporting their service. Today we released a new update that puts more focus on Site Sponsorship. As part of this adjustment we have added a top Sponsor bar to all free websites. The bar does brand the website and provides a spot for a site sponsor of the free website.

Here is a website where you can see an example of how the sponsorship bar looks http://disneychannelstarz.myfanwebsite.com/

Don't pay any attention to that websites colors, but notice at the top of the site is a Grey Bar that we will use to promote more of our services and rather then loading a free site up with advertisements we want to offer a simple up to 40 characters Text Link next to Sponsored By:

What does this mean for you? If you are one of our many paying customers we are now going to give you a 10 website block to sponsor for Free where you will have text and a URL link of your choice in the Sponsored by:

The Sponsor Bar displays on every page of a Free Website and up to 4 sponsors will be displayed per active free website.

When you get your 10 site sponsorship block you then would customize your advertisement by entering your Text such as you site name, then enter your sites URL, and finally pick the site categories you want our system to pick the sites you are sponsoring. Our system then picks 10 sites for you to sponsor based on their recent site activity.

To get started visit our Site Sponsorship page, remember you are the site sponsor as a paying customer of ours. The page it not for seeking sponsors. Anyone can purchase site sponsorship blocks for an very affordable, low cost way to purchase true text links.

Are you currently using an overlay as part of your website design? If so then you will want to change your theme to one that does not use an overlay. On Friday August 14th we will disable current overlays on all sites. This will not remove any theme customization, only the overlay portion that may be on some themes.

Overlays were a method to apply a quick graphical overlay on top of a theme to give it a different look quickly. However the way they are designed prevents links under the overlay to be clickable, in addition with the flexiablity the platform offers in design overlays are no longer needed. There are many other reasons for this change, and while I am sure it will be missed by some this change is needed.

Before you worry, overlays are only in use by a small number of websites powered by our platform.

The internet is a great and wondrous place, with a few clicks of your mouse you can journey to places around the world within minutes. If you are like many others, building a website for people to visit and join can be allot of fun, build reputation, and even earn you an additional income source. If you are serious about building and growing your own whitelabel social community then continue reading, if not then you can find communities with your interests in mind by going to http://spruz.com/?page=spruz&cmd=search.

Getting Started

Building and growing a website takes time, patience and some dedication, but it does not have to be work. It should be fun and exciting, and the website should be about what you like to do.

The first key to creating a successful website is to think small. To often people try create social websites thinking they will be the next MySpace or Facebook. The need for those communities is already filled, but you can be very successful filling different more targeted needs, this brings us to the beauty of niche social networking and social websites. A niche is a smaller targeted group of people that may share your interests.

Now that you can take advantage of DIY (Do it Yourself) Social Platforms, you can create a community that will attract a strong following if done correctly. The great thing about a Social Website is once you offer your visitors something that they are interested in, those members will grow your site for you. All you need to do is define your website, setup the framework, add some information and begin using it.

You are asking now what do you mean "If Done Correctly"? Just like anything in life, making the least amount of mistakes and using your time effectively is very important. That is why we put together 5 steps to getting started with a social website from a person with extensive experience in the field, Jay Roberts Co-Founder of Spruz Inc

Step 1. Decided your focus

Your websites focus is extremely important, would you get in your car before knowing where you are going? Nor should you begin you website without first thinking about your target. What need is your site filling for your visitors through information, social interaction, and/or e-commerce channels.

Example 1: Lets say you want to create a website about dogs, Well there are already many sites about how to care for your dog, find a dog, etc. But there are not many sites about a certain type of Dog, So lets start with a website about German Shepherds. On Google over 250,000 people search just the using the term German Shepherds just last month. So when you begin building the site it should have information very focused about German Shepherds You can use the Google Keyword Tool to find search volume of a key term. Now just imagine if you just had 10% of those people searching using only the words German Shepherds clicking to your website that would turn into 1000's of dollars a month is just ad revenue. Important to note that search engines favor sites with very focused content and will rank higher then sites about many different things.

What's great about a focused site is people like Niche networks that are only about just want they are into and does not present them with information they just plainly don't care about, plus advertisers will pay you 10X more for advertising on a site that has a focused demographic of users.

You have filled your first need! By giving a place where people can meet and share their interest with other German Shepherd Owners. BTW there is not a social community online that is just about German Shepherds. This is just one example on how you can focus on just one small segment and in turn build a large following around it.

Step. 2 Setup your website and pick a good name you can stick with.

Rome was not built in a day, nether will your website. While getting your site started on the Spruz Platform is quick and easy, configuring it to your needs and focus will take a little time. The same goes for any other website platform, but Spruz is by far the most flexible for expandability for you. It is important that you pick a social platform and a domain name for your website and stick with it.

The single biggest mistake people make after they setup their website, they want to change it out or delete it and start over. DO NOT START OVER. If you get bored or tired just create a new website and come back to your first site later. Search engines rank your website first and foremost based on the domain name and how long your site has been up and accessible. To learn more about how to get a good ranking in Google, read our "How to get your site in search engines like Google" article that has some great information.

Step. 3 Add Information about the site

It is important that, when your German Shepherd Fans visit your website they need to know that your site is just about German Shepherds and nothing else. Don't worry about not being able to expand upon this later. All to often we see sites that get created and they miss the most important part (A Clear Description). Making your site description obvious to your visitors is very important! Your site description should be no more then a paragraph long, with maybe a link to your about us page for your visitors to read more about you, your website, and maybe a mission statement. About you and your site should not be something that is left out.

By making the description clear and telling others about your site clearly, helps you in 2 ways.

1. When people find your site they can tell right away what this site is about.
2. Search Engines Rank you higher and quicker if you have focused content.

Think about how you use the internet, how many sites do you visit in a day and what captures your interest to browse a few pages on a site you found. The goal is to keep your site visitors from bouncing. Bouncing happens when the visitor only visits one page of your website. We recommend adding Google Analytics to your site so you can see how long your visitors are saying and make changes.

Step. 4 Begin Adding Content - continue to do it regularly

Use the blog, photo and forums modules to build content at first, you must start using your site first before anyone else will. Make it a goal to spend 1 hour a week making some form of update to your website, This is often the hardest part, it is hard sometimes when we feel the only person we are talking to is the wall. However what you are doing is building content, letting search engines know your site is active, and when you post content it is automatically syndicated and used by our system, to assist you in getting traffic. If you are dedicated to adding blogs, forum posts, and images to your website regularly traffic will come! Trust me!

Future "Your Social Website" Series articles will go into more detail about content ideas you can apply to your website.

Step. 5 Spread the word!

This is the last key in getting building the success channel people to your site, that in turn will promote and grow it for you.

Here are 5 things you can do quickly, easily and for little to no $$ that will start opening the flood gates to your website.

1. Invite your friends! We have built in inviting features that allow you to import your address book and send everyone a message with everything they need to know in order to get to your website and help you build content.
2. Post your web address on your Facebook, Blog, twitter, and your other social places. This will let your friends know what you are doing and will help search engines find your website quicker. Remember every place you post your website address is another place for people and search engines to find you. Any place you are posting information to, try to mention your website address as a place where people can contact you.
3. Put a free ad on Craigslist with information about your website, and why people should visit it. They have categories like services, and so on, that are for the most part free to post and will get a lot of views.
4. Link Exchange! There are a lot of small sites that will exchange links with you if you ask them and you have information that would be useful for them to link to. In a lot of cases they will just add a link to their website without a link back from yours
5. Advertise on Google or Yahoo Search, if you have a very focused website in the way of content and structure your keywords the same in your ad campaign, you can buy a lot of traffic for just 5 cents a click.

The key here is building your website about one interest you have and finding others that share that interest. It is all about you and what you are going to do. If you follow these Getting Started Steps, and you stay dedicated to your goals you are really off to a good start at building that successful website you are dreaming about.

Good Luck and Best Wishes!

Please feel free to post your questions and comments. Your success is our success as well!

We have just applied a new update that makes it a bit easier to manage your blog. We have added edit and delete options directly on the blog category list, improved the way blogs entries are created, when editing blog entries you can now change the category, the blog is now paged so that it returns all entries rather then only the top 20 on a given search, category, or view and we will have New Blog Approval options coming really soon.

On the Shopping Cart we have added some new options, including Quality Control for items and we have added a new Save and New Button when saving a new item that makes it easier to go right to the next item you are adding.

Some fixes and updates:

• We have carried over design 9 slicing so that on themes with 9 slicing the style will apply to the event calendar, forums, knowledge base system, search pages, and so on in order to give a more consistent look to websites.
• Corrected a problem that still pops up with image uploading where on occasion some images won't process correctly. (Please report if you still see issues)
• Updated the member email confirmation process to make it easier to understand and we added an option right on the confirmation page for the member to change his email address just in case it was miss typed when registering. When the email is changed it automatically confirms the account as well. Remember you can change how long a member is on your site before they must confirm their email address by going to your site properties page and setting the require email confirmation option.
• We addressed a couple other usability issues that mainly would apply to people first creating a website.

Remember to visit our Owner Community at http://my.spruz.com and post your suggestions, ask for help, and check out the knowledge base. If you see something off, or have a suggestion on small improvements we can make to existing features then post them in our idea room forum at http://my.spruz.com/forums.

Follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/spruz for fast notifications when new updates are released or to get the inside scoop!