Polosoft technologies, a growing company in the field of GIS web and mobile application development with a highly experienced team. Recently, we have developed an android survey application (GIS Surveyor) for surveyors and GIS professionals. 

The application will be most useful with lots of features for land surveying, agricultural, farming, forestry, timber inventories, site surveying, environmental systems, and highway road surveying. 

Top 5 Benefits of the GIS surveyor application:

- Possibility to view multiple layers including points, lines and polygons at the same time.

- Possibility to group data into survey layers - each survey layer may have a default set of attributes.

- Four methods of data collection are supported, GPS/GNSS location, map cursor location, GIS Tracker, point projection using angle and distance.

- Direct export to Dropbox, Google Drive at anywhere location.

- Import point, line and polygon features into layer from CSV, KML or GeoJSON file.

Download Required on Android OS 4.4 and up.

We will be adding more technical features in the application in the coming few days. Go through this Playstore link to download the GIS Surveyor application.  

The last time you browsed our members directory page , you may have noticed a sub-navigation which takes you to categories based on different member types.  If you are somewhat new to the network, you answered a question in your profile which allowed you to place yourself inside a category which describes your role in the geospatial industry.    That subnavigation looks like this:

Our goal and mission is to create an environment online which represents your roles in the real world as closely as possible.  Our other purpose for this categorization is to provide as much transparency in relation to the members on our network as possible so that its is not difficult to associate yourself with trustworthy professionals online.  We hope to recognize and celebrate real world authority and classify our members according to their hard earned experience.

Guide to Member Category Badges

	Network Administrator Moderators and network administrators who you can go to for advice or feedback
	Energy Surveyor Surveyors working in energy efficiency and renewable energies
	Government Professional True to life government professionals involved in geospatial sciences
	Surveying Guru Members who have demonstrated knowledge and expertise time and time again on the network. These guys know what they are doing!
	Surveying Jobs Director Responsible for keeping track of available surveying jobs and helping those in need of employment find available positions
	Machine Control Professional Members who are primarily experienced with Machine Control technology
	Maps Administrator Responsible for placement of members on our Global Member map and continued development of better and more precise network mapping.
	Military Surveyor Members who work primarily with the military and are trained by military in geospatial sciences
	Professional Relations Director Similar to an administrator, these members have clout and continue to help us make decisions regarding the professional relations of Land Surveyors United Global
	Professor or Instructor of Geospatial Sciences or Surveying Can also include published authors of academic texts for the surveying sciences
	Surveying Publications Rep Members who work or consult for industry publications
	Regional Administrator Leaders and moderators for specific location-based group forums on Land Surveyors United
	Seeking Employment Hire these professionals if you have a surveying position available. Take a look at their profiles for qualifications and skills they'll bring to your company
	Software Pro Members who either work in software development or represent a surveying software manufacturer
	State Leader True to life state board representatives for states societies in the surveying industry. These members have earned their position!
	Student Surveyor Members who are currently surveying or geospatial science students. Teach these guys the correct way to survey and learn something in return
	Surveying Equipment Pro (aka Vendor) When it comes to surveying equipment, these guys know their stuff! When having emergency trouble, it would be wise to have these members in your personal network
	Transportation Surveyor Members who work primarily in DOT or transportation related surveying, such as road and bridge construction, for example.
no badge	Just a Surveyor (basic member) Members who are just here to teach and learn and do not fall into a specific category.

Some of these categories are selected only by administrators, but the majority of them can be easily changed inside your profile by selecting your "Member Status" when editing your profile.  If you find that you have been mis-categorized or would like to possibly be considered for one of the categories not available in your profile options, feel free to send us a note and we'll make the adjustments accordingly.

Are you looking get involved with Land Surveyors United but have no idea about what to discuss?  Well, the one thing you can be certain of is that we all have a shared interest on this network.  And whether you are pondering adding a story or a discussion, the fact remains that if you keep your subject related to surveying, you will get some feedback, make some friends and build your personal network.

20+ Conversation Starters To Get Your Fellow Surveyors Talking

1. What is your favorite ………. ? Asking your fellow surveyors about their favorite anything might stimulate a response. Try it.
2. What is your average day of surveying like? Most people like to talk about themselves. Surveyors on the other hand (as a whole) are a tough bunch to get talking.  Ask your fellow members what their average day of surveying is like and chances are they’ll tell you. They’ll also compare it with anyone else that answers.
3. What do you think about ……….? Giving opinions is human nature. When you ask for opinions you’ll get a lot.  The surveying industry is undergoing a lot of changes so let's discuss them.
4. What advice would you give to the person above you? Careful about these. Can stimulate a lot of activity, but can also get way out of hand. Useful for a light-hearted touch to your community efforts.
5. Can anyone recommend ……….? Most people like to be helpful and show off knowledge. Again, land surveyors seem to need a bit of inspiration to get talking about what they recommend. Nevertheless, asking for recommendations will solicit knowledge and engagement from other surveyors..
6. What is the worst thing that has ever happened to you whilst ……… ? Self explanatory. Entice your fellow members share their stories. It’ll almost certainly boost your presence on the network and build you some clout.  The goal here is to inspire members to slowly get to know and like each other. 
7. Can anyone fix ………. ? Present a difficult problem, let your fellow surveyors try to suggest ways to fix it.
8. What is the best/worst ………. ? Opinions, opinions, opinions. Begin this type of discussion in as many different ways as possible. Pick a sub-category and ask people for their best/worst suggestions.
9. Who do you most admire? Pick someone in your surveying life you most admire and tell others why.  You never know... some of us might admire the same mentors.
10.  Is {x} really better than {y}? Feel free to make it controversial, if you like. Pick an issue other surveyors will be split on – but not divisively so. Ask questions about it. Let your fellow members take sides.
11. If you weren’t ……… would you ………. ? Create a hypothetical situation in which all surveyors can give their opinion on something radical.
12. Who/What are your top 5 ………. ? Ranking can be addictive. Ask your fellow surveyors to rank their top 5 anything and then we'll try to create an overall ranking based upon the community. This could be a fun community event.
13. How would you handle {topical issue}? If you were THE BOSS in charge, how would you handle a topical issue in your sector?
14. What ………. do you use? , ask people to compare what relevant products/services they use. Companies love this information too. This type of topic is relevant in almost all online communities
15. Does anyone know how to …… ? Does anyone know provokes interest, the how to can be broad or specific. People are likely to participate.
16. Has anyone tried……….? Again, has anyone is all-encompassing and people are likely to share their experiences.
17. Is ………. right about ………. ? Take someone’s stance on a topical issue and throw it open to comment by the entire community.  Again, there are many daunting subjects to discuss among your fellow surveyors.  Simply pull one out of your hat and ask!
18. What would you do if ………. ? Create a hypothetical situation, perhaps a problem lots of other surveyors face, and ask your fellow members what they would do. Life problems work well here, not just surveying.
19. What should every newcomer know about ……….? Well, what should every newcomer know about something relevant in the land surveying industry? It’s great advice – perfect for making a few friends across borders.
20. Share your pictures/top tips here. Sharing advice and pictures can be an easy win for stimulating engagement and building your personal/professional network online. Try it. I suspect you will find it easy to gain lots of valuable insights.

 
Add a Discussion

Do you have a question or something pressing on your mind? Share it in a community forum post and get feedback from your fellow professionals. "Groups" all have their own dedicated forum for discussions which are specifically related to a topic, type of equipment or location.   There are approximately 300 group forums for finding a topic and getting targeted advice.  Is your question or problem, surveying equipment related?Post it in the relevant Group forum based on your equipment manufacturer.   Get targeted feedback from your fellow members who are using the same equipment that you are.

Add a Surveying Story
That snake you saw today would make an excellent photo submission, but an even better surveying story! Tell us how you got away! Do you have an interesting client story or a peculiar survey you'd like to share? Post it as a story and pull in photos and videos from around the network to give your story that extra punch! You can include documents, maps, quotes and more to give us the BIG picture! You can become more legitimate and respected as a surveyor when you can say to your friends that they should check out your story or video on Land Surveyors United.  We are all here to learn about the similarities and differences in surveying practices in every part of the globe. Show us how you survey where you live!

New! Post surveying stories to LSU using 3rd Party blogging Apps

Add an Event

When is the next surveying conference in your area? Add it here and increase exposure and attendance by promoting it with both the network and the social media world. You can also embed Google+ hangouts, live streaming video from your meetings and even embed live commenting, voting and social engagement features. With this approach, there should be no reason for lack of attendance to your meetings any longer. Stream it live so that those who aren't able to physically attend, can participate. If you need assistance or directions on how to make this happen, send us a note and we'll help you make it come to life!

 ?  Find a Member

Using the link above you will be able to search members on the network based on location, types of equipment, level of experience, and the type of surveying they are involved with. Likewise, there are other methods for finding reputable support from your colleagues. You can use our Explore page and search the various sections of our network for topics, members, media etc. You might also try our Locals page, which allows you to search by location with a single click or simply visit our ever-growing Global Member Map. With a little persistence, you will surely find someone to discuss your particular topic with.

As a professional surveyor, building your reputation and putting yourself out there for hire is a constant task.  You've probably spent years cultivating a brand for yourself or your company and I am proud of you.  But the fact of the matter is, your reputation as a surveyor is two-faced.  You may think that you have built a bulletproof reputation in the real world and do not need an online reputation, but you are dead-wrong.  Your reputation online is just as important (if not more important) than your offline reputation, if you are planning to stay in business.

Consider Yourself Warned

If you do not step up and say your name online, someone else will.  And when that happens, your reputation online is no longer under your control. 

The only way to ensure that internet searchers find you and your company in a positive light is to build a solid reputation online through helping others, sharing your experiences and being a positive citizen of the interweb.  Build a well rounded online presence using twitter, facebook, and Land Surveyors United. Connect those accounts to your profile on the network and share share share.  You should be in control of your online reputation and to do this, simply make it a point to attach respectable and compelling content to your profile a couple of times per week.  You may feel like it is a waste of your time to socialize your business, but when you consider the amount of time that it can take to recover from a bad review online, you'll be glad that I reminded you.

 Why a Unified Body of Professionals Is Better for You in the Long Run

It takes just a little bit of your time every week to maintain your reputation online.  However, if someone criticizes your company online and you do not have a buffer of positive content, it will take you 3 times as long to push those search results down and recover from a negative blow.  I built Land Surveyors United so that all geospatial professionals can easily build their reputation online, simply through sharing what they have learned in their experiences.  A united body of professionals who respect the challenges of each others' daily tasks and provide each other with positive feedback is the ONLY way that the everyday land surveyor can stay on top of their reputation without spending a ton of money every month.  Take this seriously and engage with others on the network.  I assure you that your reputation will climb and you will GET MORE BUSINESS!

We have an entire group forum for discussing Reputation Management! Ask Questions!

 Why do I care? I realized the direction that this industry was headed a few years ago and began building LSU because there is simply no one else in this industry who would take the time to teach you guys the power of social media.  No one else had the knowledge and ability to help you build your future-oriented online reputation.  Connect your company's online account to your profile on LSU and passively build your reputation before someone actively destroys it for you. 

If you found this note because you are facing the wrath of a displeased customer or have an unjustifiable bad reputation online, contact me and I'll do what I can to help.  Just take a look at what Land Surveyors United has done for your fellow surveyors around the world. Enough said.

Further Reading:

The Conversation Prism - A Missing Link?

Member Profile Checklist!

How to Get More Clients as a Land Surveyor

What is a Status Update, anyway?

Status updates on Land Surveyors United can be an important method to employ when building your reputation online. While you can sync your profile to Twitter and Facebook and simultaneously update your status, you can also use this feature to keep track of where you have been, where you're working and the types of surveying you are performing.  Status updates on Land Surveyors United appear in the latest activity feed and show up on your LSU profile.  They can be updated either from your profile page, on our network's main page and now on the new mobile LSU interface.   I realized a while back that surveyors would have little use for this feature until there was a way to archive them and revisit them years later.  That time has come!

So What's New With Status?

Since my initial revamp of the network Activity Feed (main page), we've been steadily improving it and adding more based on surveyor requests on the network. One of the biggest requests on networks for other industries has revolved around status updates. For a long time, when someone would post a status update directly in the Activity Feed, it would exist only as long as it remained in the Activity Feed. Once it dropped out of the bottom of the feed, it was nowhere to be found. The reason: the status update had nowhere to "live" — it existed as a temporary item with no place to call home in our network.

This is no longer the case! We're happy to report that each status update now has its own individual page.

Notice in this screenshot above that this page has its own dedicated URL (click the image and you'll see that you can comment and share a status now). This is where this particular status update lives — along with all of the replies that have since followed the status update.

What's visually different with this release?

Now that status updates have been beefed up, you'll notice a link in the Activity Feed whenever you see a Status Update, like so:

This link will lead to your associate's status update page. On that page, you can edit or delete a status post. You can also edit or delete comments on a status post.

As you might expect, commenting on a status post will be reflected in the second location. Comment on someone's status update, and your comment will also show up in the Activity Feed. Comment on someone's status update in the Activity Feed, and your comment will also show up on the individual status update page.

Why Should a Surveyor Care About Status?

If anyone in the world should be focused on their status update, it is a surveyor.  Why?  Because you're not telling people what you ate for lunch or the fact that you've lost your keys, you are creating a timeline of your work history.  You can simply log on to the network or your mobile phone and simply type what type of work you are doing and where and then go about your business.  This simple 140 character or less update now lasts forever (on it's own page) and you can go back to it anytime in the future and make remarks.  Whether you believe me or not, this type of activity WILL help your reputation online, as long as your updates are positive and eye-catching.  Now that you have the ability to comment on status updates, your network will increase and your brand will have more exposure.  As long as you sync your social accounts with your profile, your social media work has been cut in half!

I have engineered every aspect of Land Surveyors United in such a way that your social networking activity with your fellow surveyors doubles as marketing for your skills and experience.  Using the network to build your reputation online is using it correctly.   I hope you enjoy these improvements and create a more enjoyable surveying life for yourself, both on and offline.

A network of this size comprised entirely of professional land surveyors and geospatial professionals naturally attracts LOADS of search engine traffic when anyone searches for land surveying services. For this reason, I monitor new member signups VERY closely, so as to maintain exclusivity for the industry.   It is like a library of surveying information, which serves a dual purpose.  It is helpful for surveyors to find support and offer support through sharing of knowledge and experience, but it is also equally, if not more effective for attracting business from those searching for surveying businesses to perform work.  I know this for a fact because I built it to perform in this manner.  Of course, the ways in which you utilize this to your advantage are entirely up to you, but if you are not using it with this in mind, you are simply missing the boat.  With that said, here are a few ways that you can use LSU in the future to make your life and business online simpler, more effective and to your advantage. 

Getting The Word Out About Your Services

Your niche market is your location and what you do better than any other company in your area.  Hundreds, if not thousands, of queries for 'land surveyors' in your geographic region are being made every single day.  How do you compare to those who show up first in search engines for your area.  Cover all the surveying news for your town or community, an industry event, or on any topic that you are interested in–large or small on Land Surveyors United, inside the group forum for your location. Investing a small amount of time into creating buzz around your company and the services you provide will shoot you strait to the top of search.

Related Topic: How To Get More Business as a Land Surveyor

Content Marketing

Content marketing is an umbrella term encompassing all marketing formats that involve the creation and sharing of content in order to attract, acquire and engage clearly defined and understood current and potential consumer bases with the objective of driving profitable customer action. With this in mind, you may or may not know that you can easily publish relevant, curated content to engage your your fellow surveyors and your community, attract new visitors to your profile, and help convert leads into customers.  Those looking for a land surveyor in your area will be pleased to have found someone with such vast knowledge of surveying practices.  Your credibility is yours to claim and build.  If you do not believe me, take a look at our member testimonials or for a first person account, just ask Deward Karl Bowles of Texas how much the network has improved his business.

 Related Topic:  Your Reputation as a Land Surveyor is Two-Faced

Monitoring and Build Your Web Reputation

Syncing your social media profiles to your account on Land Surveyors United not only makes it super-simple to update multiple profiles simultaneously, it builds your reputation online.  You can show the world that you are not only knowledgeable and credible, but you are also approachable and easy to work with.  I have personally spent hundreds of hours making this possible for you and you can even share while on the go using the mobile rover.

Related Topic:  Build Your Reputation Online Through Sharing

Explore the Land Surveyors United Network's Mobile Rover and all of the tools and features that you can use, while on the go, from any mobile device. View this full screen here.

Mobile Support and Collaboration from the Field!

The moment we've all been waiting for is finally here! Please allow me to introduce the all new Land Surveyors United Mobile Version of the Network (in Beta)! You can access the mobile version from any and all mobile devices here:

http://landsurveyorsunited.com/m

 

ANY Device, ANYwhere. ANYtime

This new mobile version has many unique features not available in previous version or even the Iphone version. Let's take a look at some of these new features and learn how they are used.

Quick Links to Pages and Features on Mobile Rover

For Your Convenience here are links to the primary landing pages on the new Surveyors Mobile Network:
Your Profile on Mobile: Will take you to your profile on the network
What You Missed: The latest network activity and discussions since you last visited
Stories: Quick access to the network blog and your mobile blog for sharing surveying stories or anything longer than a forum discussion.
Mobile Group Forums: Allows you to search and find group forums based on location, types of equipment, topical and type
Mobile Network Forum: Allows you to take the network forum with you anywhere you go. Search, respond and discuss virtually anything related to land surveying and geospatial industry.
Surveying Photos: Surveyor submitted photos from all over the world. Upload photos from the field and never lose a marker again!
Member Map Mobile: Our global member map is under constant state of development. Here you will be able to see and interact with the mobile version.
Network Members: Find and connect with other geospatial industry professionals by searching.
Mobile Videos: The latest and most popular surveying videos to date. Take them with you and learn while on the go.
Change Language of your Interface: Go here to change the language of your mobile network
Network Notes: Quick access to the latest network updates and guides
Geospatial events Mobile: View and add land surveyor and geospatial events to the network calendar
Network Search: Search for solutions and across the network for topics and content from anywhere on your mobile device.
Surveyors Rover: A page dedicated to quick links to all areas of the mobile interface.

New Features for Mobile Network

Endless Surveying Photos

One of the requests we had was the ability to see more photos than the limiting 15 or so photos you see from the network feed. So this version satisfies that in a huge way! You can sit and scroll through land surveying photos all day if you want! Enjoy!

Endless Scrolling

When using the mobile version, there is no possible way that you could not find something to interest you, while surfing from the field. All pages on the mobile version endlessly scroll when you reach the bottom of the page, serving you up more and more topics.

New Sign-Up and Sign In

New Sign-in with options of signing in with Facebook, Yahoo,Twitter, Linkedin and Google (if you have them configured in your profile). Easy connect and simple communication from anywhere, on any device.

Manage Your Group Forums on the Go and Stay Productive!

Finding Your Groups While On the Go

When you're out surveying in the field and using our mobile network interface from your phone, it occurred to me that you would have an easier time finding which group forum to post to, if you could just click My Groups and proceed to starting a discussion in the relevant group. So I've done the leg work and made this easier for you. Take a look at the new drop-down menu beside the search bar, which will make it super simple for you to find your groups on the mobile version of our group forums page. Take a look at this image (above) for reference on how to find it inside the mobile network.

Share Surveying Stories From the Field

The same search functionality has now been added to the Blogs section (aka Stories) to make it easier for you to share surveying stories from the field. Just click the (+) sign and share your most interesting story...maybe even the story being made right this minute.

Manage All of Your Social Media Profiles From Your LSU Profile!

Connect Your Social Profiles to Your LSU Profile and Update From The Field!

It can be a chore to send multiple status updates to all of your social profiles, especially when away from a computer. The fastest and easiest way to keep all of your social media profiles like Facebook and Twitter is to sync them with your Land Surveyors United profile and update from the field using the new LSU mobile.http://landsurveyorsunited.com/m

Stay Connected Locally and Survey Globally

Network With Your Local Group Members

We are all part of a dynamic group or society of professionals based on the geographic location of our homes. By searching the new mobile groups, you can join a group forum based on your location and share experiences right from the field. This will give us all a better understanding of what it is like to be a surveyor in your area. Tell us about the challenges you face such as environmental hurdles, wildlife safety, weather conditions, etc. In our pursuit of a more global understanding of how surveyors operate around the world, we can better equip ourselves for the challenges found within the industry through creation of awareness.

Share Important Announcements in Your Area

State Boards, Professional Associations and Societies can all benefit from the ability to keep everyone on the same page by making your most important announcements known by sharing them in the local group forum based on a location. This will also make it simpler to notify everyone of changes in a calendar or having local chapters RSVP for important events.

Fix Your Broken Equipment

Ever had something break in the field? Sure we all have. By searching for the manufacturer of the equipment and asking a question inside the correct group forum,you are effectively targeting your question towards other members who are familiar with that type of equipment. You could, for example, ask if some other surveyor out there might have a user guide for the type of equipment you are using. Now with Mobile Group Forums all of this can be possible without having to pack up and head back to the office.

Troubleshoot Errors and Issues While IN the Field

Errors can destroy a productive day of surveying. Nevertheless, many errors can be resolved quickly by asking a fellow surveyors who have dealt with and over come those errors. Many errors for equipment simply have never been documented and therefore you may never find the solution without asking a fellow experienced surveyor. Use theMobile Group Forums feature as your Get Out of Jail Free Card and contribute solutions to common problems so that other surveyors can benefit from your experience, while on the go!

How to Upload Photos From the Field Using Mobile

You can and its simple. Just 3 Steps

Step One: Head over to the Mobile Interface on your phone and Visit the GEOPhotos Page inside the navigation on the right (as pictured above).

Step Two: Click on the (+) Button and [Browse]your phone to find the photo you would like to upload to your account on the network.

Step Three: Add a eye catching and descriptive title as it will be what everyone sees when deciding which photos they would like to look at on the network. Then add adescription which tells us about whats going on in the photo and where the photo was taken.

Less Bugs and More Features

Bug Smashing Mobile Rover Update

Tighting up the final stages of this phase for the Mobile Rover, and just wanted to let you know of a few of the bugs we fixed, features added and things you can do with the newLand Surveyors United Mobile.

~We provided an option for you to set the view for a Stories, Forum, Event or Groups page to My Blog Posts, My Events, My Discussions etc. This will mean that signed in members see their own list of items.

~We added the day of the week to the Event listing heading, so that surveyors can see at a glance what day of the week an event is on. If you know of an upcoming event in your area, please add it to the network. Events for now can only be added via the desktop version of Land Surveyors United, but working on the mobile solution.

~For Forums, Surveyor Stories and Photos, we've added a "Show Search and Filter options" checkbox to the management screen that will put a search field and dropdown filter for available views into the mobile page. Groups and Events currently have this, and now you have the option to provide it to members for other page types as well.

~We fixed the issue where members couldn't friend other members via mobile.

Supercharge Your Network

Finding like-minded and/or local surveyors to network with has never been easier. In fact, finding associates in any part of the world and staying connected is now possible in mobile rover.

No More Packing Up!

Having trouble with equipment? Post your question in the appropriate group forum will get you targeted replies from other professionals who are familiar with your equipment.

Learn Something New!

Why pay thousands of dollars to add a skill to your belt when you could just as easily find an expert to teach you and show you the ropes? Your network is now equipped for mobile learning. Show and tell!

Thank you for continuing to make Land Surveyors United the Best!

Facebook@landsurveyorsu

Many thanks for the solid and helpful feedback you've provided as we worked on this project! For ideas, bugs and feedback on the mobile version, please send feedback here. Stay connected and update your professional profile often and you will see your online reputation soar!

Stay Connected Locally and Survey Globally

I just spent the past couple of hours playing around with the newest release to our mobile network- mobile group forums.  I must say that I believe this feature could be a HUGE game changer for mobile communications between professional surveyors in the field.

Network With Your Local Group Members

We are all part of a dynamic group or society of professionals based on the geographic location of our homes.  By searching the new mobile groups, you can join a group forum based on your location and share experiences right from the field.  This will give us all a better understanding of what it is like to be a surveyor in your area.  Tell us about the challenges you face such as environmental hurdles, wildlife safety, weather conditions, etc.  In our pursuit of a more global understanding of how surveyors operate around the world, we can better equip ourselves for the challenges found within the industry through creation of awareness.

Share Important Announcements in Your Area

State Boards, Professional Associations and Societies can all benefit from the ability to keep everyone on the same page by making your most important announcements known by sharing them in the local group forum based on a location.  This will also make it simpler to notify everyone of changes in a calendar or having local chapters RSVP for important events.

Fix Your Broken Equipment

Ever had something break in the field?  Sure we all have.  By searching for the manufacturer of the equipment and asking a question inside the correct group forum, you are effectively targeting your question towards other members who are familiar with that type of equipment.  You could, for example, ask if some other surveyor out there might have a user guide for the type of equipment you are using.  Now with Mobile Group Forums all of this can be possible without having to pack up and head back to the office.

Troubleshoot Errors and Issues While IN the Field

Errors can destroy a productive day of surveying.  Nevertheless, many errors can be resolved quickly by asking a fellow surveyors who have dealt with and over come those errors.  Many errors for equipment simply have never been documented and therefore you may never find the solution without asking a fellow experienced surveyor. Use the Mobile Group Forums feature as your Get Out of Jail Free Card and contribute solutions to common problems so that other surveyors can benefit from your experience, while on the go!

FYI: The Internet Can Kill Your Business

Don't let the search results online control the success of your business in the real world. Especially when you can be passively proactive about building your reputation through sharing what you already know and create a buffer of positive results, using this network!

What Goes Down Only Sometimes Comes Back Up

It takes a very long time to build positive reputation and image for a business using traditional methods, but alas it can be demolished by a single negative post or feedback easily in just few minutes by anyone and that anyone can also be your competitor. Review websites are promoted by the search engines though for a good cause of helping people identify the right products, companies and service providers, it has now become one of the most severely abused platforms. Reputation of several good companies have been damaged by unscrupulous competitors through these review websites by posting false comments and feedback. Though legal action is possible, it is a time consuming and expensive process and meanwhile you can lose a lot of business. If timely action is not taken, you could easily lose customers and um... millions of dollars.

Your reputation is also at stake every time you post a negative comment or reply on industry forums toward your fellow surveyors. In the 90's and early 00's you couldn't even find a surveying forum that you didn't have to sift through endless pages discussing the latest major sports event or surveyors bashing other surveyors simply for asking a question. This is one of the many reasons why Land Surveyors United is intolerant of negative, off topic and abusive commenting. The goal is to help each other build more positive reputations through sharing what we know and constructive criticism.This is the only way to improve the image of the surveying industry in the public eye and improve the findability of surveying companies amongst all of the garbage online.

An Exercise in Findability

Go ahead and search for your name or company on google in another window (I'll wait). Now imagine if that entire first page of results was filled with awesome surveying photos from your area, helpful tutorials in surveying and links to thank yous and appreciative comments from your associates and customers. That is what I am talking about. You tell the search engines how you want to be portrayed when people search for you. This is how you build reputation online.

Chances are, you initially found Land Surveyors United by googling something related to surveying. This is because our network is highly search engine optimized, thanks to thousands of hours of work since 2007. What would make you think that your content is any different?

Be a Mentor

In today's world, your company name and brand are dependent upon how you are found on the internet. Your reputation depends on how you show up in search results when someone googles your name. Do you really want a negative review or an abandoned profile to be the first thing a potential customer sees? This is why we have created simple methods for building and maintaining your social media presence online through sharing useful knowledge with your fellow surveyors. By sharing something positive from your surveying experiences, you are placing positive and helpful information for others to find when searching for the services you offer.

Today, a professional land surveyor must learn new channels of communication and ways to market their business online. Newsflash: Online reputation is driven by social media action.  Since 2007, Land Surveyors United has been committed to not only simplifying and teaching methods for accomplishing this knowledge, we have streamlined the process for you. On this network you will be able to simply and effectively maintain your social media presence right from your profile. Have a twitter or facebook account? Sync it with your profile and with one single click you can update all of your profile statuses at once.

Using the power of social media combined with social support of your associates, you can create not only a credible image for your brand, you are building a legacy. On Land Surveyors United, we are building a living library of surveying history, for the future. You may be an experienced surveying veteran or a geospatial student, a professor of geospatial sciences or a rodman in the field- we all have something to learn. Through teaching what you know, you are documenting your life as a professional land surveyor and ensuring that the future for the industry is not simply robotic. Our network is a venue for mashing up the old tried-and-true traditional surveying methods with the new and exotic. All land surveyors have a voice on Land Surveyors United. Use yours to change history!

Share Your Surveying Stories from the Field in a New Way!

Actually, i should have said that you can now add blog posts (aka Stories) to Land Surveyors United using several compatible 3rd party apps and browser add-ons, when off of the network.  First, I will show you a few apps that will work and then I will explain how to set up Scribefire inside your browser so that you can publish storiesto the network with ease.

3rd Party Apps Compatible with Land Surveyors United

How to Set Up Scribefire for Google Chrome

Much of the process I am going to show you will be similar on any of the third party apps listed above, as long as it supports the Metaweblog API.

Install Scribefire

Google Chrome users, download ScribeFire 4 for Google Chrome here.

Safari users, download ScribeFire 4 for Safari here.

Firefox users, you can download ScribeFire 4 for Firefox here.

Opera users, you can download ScribeFire 4 for Opera here.

Configure Scribefire

Getting started is easy. When the application prompts you to set up your blog, simply enter your blog's name (you can enter whatever you'd like) and the following for the URL: http://landsurveyorsunited.com/profiles/blog/list. Once prompted, log in with your e-mail address and password for that network. That's it! In fact you can now enjoy using Scribefire to post blog posts to any type of blogging platform that you choose, such as wordpress, blogger,tumblr, ect.

A quick video Introduction to Scribefire

Surveying as a Community in Real Life

You may or may not have heard about our recent partnership with Surveying.org  Today, if you visit http://surveying.org and click on LSU Member Map in the right hand sidebar, you will see our member map appear.  This is a static version of our member map.  Soon, this will be converted into a dynamic surveyors map which updates every time you update your status on Land Surveyors United.  So, for example, if you are surveying in Cape Town South Africa and you update your status, say from your mobile device (http://landsurveyorsunited.com/m) you will be able to see it show up in Africa.  It will be like the entire community is 'surveying together'.   The same will go for photos and videos uploaded to the network, so please pay special attention to geolocating your uploaded media.  If you already have photos uploaded to the network, you can simply go back and edit them to include geolocation and detailed descriptions.

I don't believe that I need to tell you that this is yet another first-of-its-kind breakthrough for the surveying industry.  And it will become a valuable feature as Land Surveyors University progresses.

If you haven't yet began experimenting with the all new Land Surveyors United "Mobile Rover", i encourage you to give it a try.  Our mobile version works on all devices and makes it incredibly simple to interact with your location based group forums and share information right from the field.

Tips for Ensuring Your Information on the Member Map is Correct:

~Head over to your profile settings and make sure your location is correct.  It should either be in Lat/Long (which you can get from our Geopicker) or City/State/Country

~Be sure to tell the other surveyors a bit about yourself so that your place marker isn't blank

~Post status updates from your mobile device often and when you upload photos, tell us as much information as you can regarding the subject and location of the photo.