Communication Shifts – Away from email?

I love how media has evolved to inspire more community discussion (WSJ is an example of this). It is one of the ways that traditional media has fought to survive as their industry has been turned upside down and inside out in the face of social media.  Knowing how things have changed in the recent years, it should come as no surprise that communication itself is shifting… again.

Many will remember the days when email was rumored to mean  pending doom for traditional mail. Yet we still have a purpose for traditional mail, and I for one look forward to those few more meaningful pieces of real mail I get each week (don’t mock me, I’ve moved so many times most people can’t keep track of my address). Now email is being challenged by social media platforms.

In a discussion-provoking article in today’s WSJ, Jessica Vascellaro wrote “The End of the Email Era” which basically predicts that email’s “reign” as communication king is coming to and end. It’s not the end-all  for email, but a change that will require a new way of communicating. And just like anything new, there will be a learning curve involved and new technology to be adopted.

I could go into a lot more detail here, but I’ll let the WSJ discussion pick it up from here. Read the article and check out my comment!

Weekend Edition: Holiday Decorating Begins!!

Having just settled into a new apartment myself, I can’t help but think about decorating. My friends know me to be a bit of a decorating and themed freak coordinating everything from my desktop and IM characters, to my office area, and of course my home.

Well October 1st has always meant the beginning of three of my favorite months for decorating and theming. Oct (Halloween), November (Thanksgiving), and December (Christmukkah) make up a very exciting time to have fun and get crafty.  You might recall that last year I provided some creative and low cost Halloween decorating ideas and this year, I’m not going to let you down! I’ll be getting creative and posting decorating tips and pictures here and on Facebook, so stay tuned. In the meantime, I encourage you to check out good ‘ol Martha Stewart’s website for some great indoor and outdoor decorating ideas. You can’t deny it, the woman (and her staff) have skills.

Also get social and theme your personal Twitter avatar, desktop backgrounds, and Facebook pictures to reflect the season.

If you have good pictures of Halloween decorations, please share as well.  I’m always looking for new ideas!

BREAKING NEWS: I’m Going to Jail

BREAKING NEWS: I’m going to jail. And my bail is set at $2500. Luckily they’re giving me a month to come up with the funds and YOU can help.

Okay, so I’m not really going to jail, but I am getting locked up! You may have heard of the concept before, but it was new to me so let me explain. Nonprofit organizations will organize these professional “lockups” where business owners or business representatives are enrolled into a fundraising event with the lockup date as the deadline for your fundraising goal.

I was contacted a couple weeks ago to participate in Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Lock-Up where the fundraising goal is $2500 by my incarceration date on October 28th. So I’m charged with the task of raising money in the next month to “make bail” all to benefit local health care programs to fight against muscular dystrophy. It’s an amazing way to charge a group of agents to raise awareness and money through their existing community relationships.

Here is where you can help- or help me help MDA. Visit my MDA Lock-Up website (which the organization kindly provides all those who agree to participate) and do a few things:

First – laugh at the video which shows me as one of the MDA’s Most Wanted

Second – donate. I’m not asking for your next paycheck, but perhaps a sacrificed Starbucks? (That’s a solid $3-$5!)

Third – share the site with colleagues, friends, and family. The beauty of this type of fundraiser is that it can be viral.

I’ll keep you posted on my progress, but feel free to let me know whether you’ve donated, shared, or joined the cause. I’ll be tweeting and posting updates across my social media platforms. Let’s see what social media can do for this cause! If I make bail, I promise I’ll post some pictures of me being taken away by the cops – something you probably won’t see otherwise.

Thank you for your help!

Patriots Get into the Social Media Game

As a Patriots fan I’ve been slightly disappointed with their activity, or rather their inactivity on social media. Sports fans were one of the first groups to truly embrace the community aspect of social media and develop engaged sites, groups and content. Do a Google blog search for “sports blogs” and you can spend the rest of your day (or month) looking through the 157,178,995 sites. Hop on Facebook and you’re almost guaranteed to find your favorite team. Twitter, Youtube, Flickr… the list goes on.

Sports fans. We’re everywhere.

The Patriots finally recognized the opportunity and decided to leverage their existing 160,000-plus Facebook fans by teaming up with Buddy Media to launch a Patriots Fan Zone page within their current fan page. The new page is designed to engage fans with trivia, polls, giveaways, Facebook gifts, calendars, and more. Want to talk about the upcoming game and predict the outcome (without involving a bookie), then jump right in!

The Super Bowl champs haven’t done much to publicize their efforts or add much else to their Facebook presence, but that hasn’t stopped dedicated fans from uncovering it. I for one will be checking this page before next Sunday’s game to see what fellow-fans are saying. Perhaps once the Patriots have a few social media wins under their belt, they’ll be willing to spread the word a bit more. In the meantime, GO PATS!

A New Start, A New Direction!

So after uprooting my Boston-based life and making the big move to SW Florida, I’m now settling into a new job as a Social Media Marketing Manager at a growing marketing company in Fort Myers.

For those of you who know me, you know I’ve always worked to keep my professional and personal (blogging) lives somewhat connected, but still separated. Yet as a social media professional, my very instincts are telling me to take my own advice and merge my two selves (professional & personal) into one transparent identity.

I’ve thought about it before, of course.  Yet the idea of letting go of my “personal” life online was a challenge. I have LinkedIn, Skype, Twitter (several in fact), YouTube, Facebook, and [the rather outdated] MySpace accounts. Yet I’ve never merged them together. Well, I must admit that the time has come to take that big step.

So who the heck cares right? What does it mean for my readers? Well, for one I’ll be blogging more! You’ll also see more social media, marketing and PR insights creeping into my posts. Still the same me, but just a new direction. Secondly, you’ll be seeing me, for ME. The me no longer hiding behind a username, but the me on all my other online social platforms.

I hope you will stay tuned, comment, criticize and give me your feedback. So speak up! If you want to hear about something in particular (or not hear about something else), let me know.

Have a Blast this 4th of July!

Forget the rather disappointing summer we’ve had thus far, the economic concerns and the job stress this Fourth of July and kick back old-school-style. You don’t have to spend a fortune to have fun on this holiday.

For Bostonians, embrace the free events at your fingertips including the Boston Pops/Fireworks show. Show up early and claim your patch of grass along the Charles River and then relax all day (in a mass of other enthusiastic fans) until the Pops begin their performance. For those outside the city, tune in to any of the main networks for a great show. This year’s fireworks show is said to be the biggest EVER with over  20,000 lbs. of explosives  set to go off in time to music this Saturday night.

Beware public transportation though as it will be mobbed, and don’t go looking for any parking on Saturday, you fine a spare spot of pavement anywhere.

For those not inclined to pyrotechnics, check out Going.com’s roundup of parties, fairs, shows, and fun in your city. Boston, here is your roundup.

If you’ll be staying home, then just remember that all you really need for a good time is some friends, family, some good food (probably a BBQ) and tunes to get your party going! Have everyone bring one dish to keep food costs down, and skip on the huge amounts of beer (unless you go the keg route, which is in fact more cost effective for the big ragers).

Now let’s hope for some sun…

Boston Marathon Monday ‘09 – Winners & Winners

 

Courtesy of Boston.com - Fancy runner promoting Kickass Cupcakes

 

 

Patriots Day is an especially important day for Bostonians. Not only do many get the day off, but it’s the Boston Marathon! Hundreds of thousands of people will be watching this legendary race today as the world’s best runners participate.  The Boston Marathon, which dates back to 1897 is actually part of a three year old World Marathon Majors series which includes next week’s London Marathon as well as races in Berlin, Chicago and New York. The top five winners in each of these races will be competing for the $1 million prize next year based off their cumulative results in this year’s races.

The 26,000 entrants in this year’s Boston Marathon battled some chilly weather, but otherwise decent conditions. Get a feeling for course by taking a virtual tour of the it here.  Racers pounded down the streets tracked by folks sending race updates via Twitter (search for #BostonMarathon) and live blogs. The first to cross the finish line was Deriba Merga who took first for the men finishing the 26.2 mile run in around 2 hours (wow). Salina Kosgei meanwhile, took gold for the women, finishing around a half hour after Merga. 

There are no real losers on Marathon Monday though. Finishing this race in itself places you among an elite group of people who have accomplished the incredible challenge. Congratulations to all the runners including friends and colleagues. No matter your finish time, you’re still heroes to all of us who just sat and watched!

Check out Boston.com for some great recap and pictures. The photos from the finish line are great as are the funny scenes!

GirlsInTech Boston Chapter Launches!

Last Tuesday marked an important day for Boston based female professionals with the official launch party of the Boston Chapter of GirlsInTech. If the name sounds familiar, there’s good reason. This national networking group was made for the engagement, education and empowerment of women in the technology industry. Founded by Adriana Gascoigne in 2007, this social network now includes some of the most intelligent and influential women in technology. Read posts from GirlsInTech members from across the nation and my personal account of the event on the official blog.

Though just launched, the GirlsInTech Boston Chapter will include educational seminars, networking events and community outreach. Join the upcoming fun and check out the upcoming events and seminars! No doubt we can expect to see a lot from this organization. In the meantime here are some photos from the event:

 

 

Times Square Goes Green with Bicycle Power!

I’m sure some of you have heard the rumors that New Year’s Eve in Times Square was going green this year and were going to power the legendary ball drop with power harnessed by fitness bikes. Honestly, the first question I had was – Cool, but where are they going to find a spinning class at 11:30 at night? Haha. (I am  blond remember)

Well, Jenna Wortham at the New York Timesshed some new light on this green initiative in her Bits blog post yesterday. Turns out Duracell marketers were hit with a genius stick and set up a “power lodge” in downtown Manhattan where six stationary bicycles (that look like snowmobiles for some reason) have given visitors for the past month the opportunity to hop on and pedal for power. The energy generated by the pedaling, or rotary technology to be specific,  is then stored for later use. Pretty cool huh? Not to mention fantastic publicity for Duracell!

Watch the ball drop tonight to see how the whole thing goes!

Now if only we could have these in our houses. Burning calories and powering our house. What more motivation would we need to keep those New Year’s resolution of getting in shape, saving money, and being more sustainable??

Budgeting For Fashion – Yes, it’s possible!

 

Courtesy of Hubpages.com

 

 

We have two things working against us currently as we look to get some warmer winter wardrobes: 

 

1. The Economy is… shall we say floundering??
2. The Holidays – they always put us into debt, how can we buy anything for ourselves right now?

 

Luckily, you don’t have to sport those hole covered sweaters or stained pants from last season. All you need is a little planning. Here are some tips:

 

• You’ve heard it before- focus on the essentials and basics. I had a client once tell me that in the fashion world, the tougher the economy the more basics will rule, where as in a high flying economy fashions will be more adventurous and border on the scandalous. You don’t need to spend a fortune on you clothes, but turn to some more classic looks that you can buy at lower prices.

 

 

• I’m all for splurging on a good pair of boots, jacket, or pencil skirt, but you need to spread these bigger purchases out. If you have a budget, don’t bust it because you want the $250 pair of brown leather boots that would look oh so good with that $380 cream knee length coat. Chose one BIG purchase at a time.

 

 

• Don’t stress about paying off your credit cards (unless you’re really close) during the holidays. Life is tough enough, and you might actually need some of that money that you’re putting towards your credit cards to prevent you from getting more credit cards. So take some of the access (significant amounts over your minimum payment) money and get yourself what you know you need. 

 

The Frugal Fashionista at iVillage’s Steals & Deals blog has some additional pointers in one of her recent posts, so be sure to check it out. And don’t despair! We all run into a fiscal shortage every once in a while, but there is always hope!