Cinque Terre, Italy. You have no idea how many stairs I climbed to take this picture, but it was worth every step! Happy Friday!Friday, February 29, 2008
2/29
Cinque Terre, Italy. You have no idea how many stairs I climbed to take this picture, but it was worth every step! Happy Friday!
Greetings From Indy
Rodger and I are on the road as Sharon Alt’s official fan club for her “America’s Health Care System on Trial” event that has become the “it” presentation for state associations of health underwriters. I'm a little jealous of her rock-star status among her fellow professionals!
I can officially say I never knew health care people could be so fun! They welcomed us with a great reception last night with lots of great food and drinks and even some live music.
And, for the record, the “I’m with the band” line doesn’t work…
Event pictures coming soon!
I can officially say I never knew health care people could be so fun! They welcomed us with a great reception last night with lots of great food and drinks and even some live music.
And, for the record, the “I’m with the band” line doesn’t work…
Event pictures coming soon!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Social Media: What to Adopt, What to Drop in '08
Happy 100th post!
My savy advice has been published on ragan.com -- one of the holy grails for the true PR pro.
Here's My excerpt below:
"....Allison Brinkman, account manager at Eisen Management Group in Cincinnati, is in the opposing camp, finding MySpace conducive to doing good PR, versus Facebook, which is not, she says.
“It’s hard to tell which sites will give your client the most leverage,” Brinkman says. “Most PR professionals put them on an equal plane and waste time on social media sites that aren’t as receptive to viral marketing. MySpace, for example, is much more receptive to commercial profiles, and MySpace users generally are more willing to accept companies or products as ‘friends,’ whereas, in my experience dealing with Facebook, members feel that the site is the wrong platform for commercial networking.”
Networking sites like MySpace and Facebook may end up becoming non-starters for PR not because of what they are, but because PR pros don’t invest enough time in them, says Lenhoff-Wise. “It can take two hours a day to reach out to potential audiences on MySpace,” she says. “And then you can only send out 400 messages day. Is reaching out to 400 consumers for that two-hour investment meaningful for you?”
View the full article:
http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=FDBEAEFEABB64E84B4CC9D1C66383CEA&AudID=3FF14703FD8C4AE98B9B4365B978201A
My savy advice has been published on ragan.com -- one of the holy grails for the true PR pro.
Here's My excerpt below:
"....Allison Brinkman, account manager at Eisen Management Group in Cincinnati, is in the opposing camp, finding MySpace conducive to doing good PR, versus Facebook, which is not, she says.
“It’s hard to tell which sites will give your client the most leverage,” Brinkman says. “Most PR professionals put them on an equal plane and waste time on social media sites that aren’t as receptive to viral marketing. MySpace, for example, is much more receptive to commercial profiles, and MySpace users generally are more willing to accept companies or products as ‘friends,’ whereas, in my experience dealing with Facebook, members feel that the site is the wrong platform for commercial networking.”
Networking sites like MySpace and Facebook may end up becoming non-starters for PR not because of what they are, but because PR pros don’t invest enough time in them, says Lenhoff-Wise. “It can take two hours a day to reach out to potential audiences on MySpace,” she says. “And then you can only send out 400 messages day. Is reaching out to 400 consumers for that two-hour investment meaningful for you?”
View the full article:
http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=FDBEAEFEABB64E84B4CC9D1C66383CEA&AudID=3FF14703FD8C4AE98B9B4365B978201A
Thursday, February 21, 2008
The Importance of Customer Service
No organization, no matter how big, is impervious to the effects of poor customer service. It’s when you fall subject to that mindset that someone will notice your weakness, improve upon your offerings and pull the rug out from under your success. Given, this might happen anyway throughout the natural lifespan of products/services/brands, but basic offerings (i.e. great customer service) will provide a higher client retention rate and help ward off competitors lurking in the shadows.
I can’t stress the importance of this feature if you’re relying on vendors to fulfill selected services. My experience, for example—
On Tuesday my car had some issues, so I pulled over and hastily called the AAA for a tow. As always, they promised to rescue me within the hour and instructed me to stay in a safe place. Not a problem. Two hours later in below-freezing temperatures, the tow truck arrived to an Allison-sicle on the verge of screaming grotesque expletives .
Thankfully, I maintained my cool (which, for the record, is not hard to do in 16 degree weather,) and no lives were lost in the process. As it turns out, the fault was with the vendor (tow company) who didn’t respond when called. And, in true form, the AAA maintained a high standard of customer service by making apologetic follow-up calls with promises of never using that tow company again, and discounting my membership for the upcoming year.
That’s all it takes. A little TLC goes a long way.
I can’t stress the importance of this feature if you’re relying on vendors to fulfill selected services. My experience, for example—
On Tuesday my car had some issues, so I pulled over and hastily called the AAA for a tow. As always, they promised to rescue me within the hour and instructed me to stay in a safe place. Not a problem. Two hours later in below-freezing temperatures, the tow truck arrived to an Allison-sicle on the verge of screaming grotesque expletives .
Thankfully, I maintained my cool (which, for the record, is not hard to do in 16 degree weather,) and no lives were lost in the process. As it turns out, the fault was with the vendor (tow company) who didn’t respond when called. And, in true form, the AAA maintained a high standard of customer service by making apologetic follow-up calls with promises of never using that tow company again, and discounting my membership for the upcoming year.
That’s all it takes. A little TLC goes a long way.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Lunar Eclipse!
Hope you got a chance to brave the cold to see the lunar eclipse this evening. Apparently taking shots of the eclipse itself as it was happening didn't pan out, so here's a quasi picture plus some thoughtful gazing action.Monday, February 18, 2008
A Little Fun...
What better way to spend Valentine's Day weekend than at a monster truck rally? I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but for those of you who haven't been- it's everything you could imagine it to be.
Happy Monday!
Friday, February 15, 2008
Social Networking & the Consumer
Advertising is no stranger to social networking sites. Naturally, it’s part of my job to create and maintain Myspace pages for clients who wish to have an enriched viral program accompanying the PR front.
I checked one such page this morning for some routine updates to discover that this page had attracted a very large following of men. This is extremely comical not only because the brand is heavily skewed female, but that these same gentlemen requesting to be added as friends were also sending messages asking this ‘person’ for more information about herself.
You must understand that this page was not created with any intention of deceiving people, in fact , the picture used is of the model on the product’s packaging and advertising and readily available in the public domain. This issue, of people who do misrepresent themselves presents a constant problem on those sites to credible people/companies, (though apparently not even blatant advertising can deter a lonely profile surfer.)
It will surely come as quite a surprise to these mistaken fellas when they see our model’s face on a billboard!!
I checked one such page this morning for some routine updates to discover that this page had attracted a very large following of men. This is extremely comical not only because the brand is heavily skewed female, but that these same gentlemen requesting to be added as friends were also sending messages asking this ‘person’ for more information about herself.
You must understand that this page was not created with any intention of deceiving people, in fact , the picture used is of the model on the product’s packaging and advertising and readily available in the public domain. This issue, of people who do misrepresent themselves presents a constant problem on those sites to credible people/companies, (though apparently not even blatant advertising can deter a lonely profile surfer.)
It will surely come as quite a surprise to these mistaken fellas when they see our model’s face on a billboard!!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Happy Valentines Day!
While I fully recognize that Valentines day has become a 100% commercial holiday that we’re all forced to celebrate in order to avoid a nasty reprimanding, I really enjoy it.
Gifts, roses and sparkly things aside, it’s important to have a little love, and express it once and awhile. Conversely, if our society best shows love through spoiling each other with gifts, I’m not necessarily opposed. (Although, for the record, I've had many nightmares involving Kay Jewelers commercials/Jingles!)
Thankfully, this is a blog and they haven’t yet invented blog gifts that I know of, so I’ll have to verbalize my affection:
Much love to my clients- I wouldn’t be here without you!
…and of course the family who supply me with an everlasting supply of holiday socks ;)
…and all of my special friends who make my life complete!
Love all around!
<3
Gifts, roses and sparkly things aside, it’s important to have a little love, and express it once and awhile. Conversely, if our society best shows love through spoiling each other with gifts, I’m not necessarily opposed. (Although, for the record, I've had many nightmares involving Kay Jewelers commercials/Jingles!)
Thankfully, this is a blog and they haven’t yet invented blog gifts that I know of, so I’ll have to verbalize my affection:
Much love to my clients- I wouldn’t be here without you!
…and of course the family who supply me with an everlasting supply of holiday socks ;)
…and all of my special friends who make my life complete!
Love all around!
<3
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
2/12
The results of our ongoing ice storm-taken at lunch
(I don't know what I'm going to do in the summer when there isn't any interesting parcipitation to take photos of!)
Monday, February 11, 2008
Covering Your Bases
So it’s Monday, and it wouldn’t be a true Monday if there wasn’t at least one roadblock or some sort of unexpected slowdown that will warrant some unscheduled attention.
We can’t always cover our bases, especially when we don’t even know that some of them existed until it’s too late. Take a deep breath, do a little yoga, and remember there’s a team behind you to help out.
I’d like to pull a quote from Edmond Dantes, making a toast in the Alexander Dumas classic The Count of Monte Cristo:
“Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout as you did in Rome. Do your worst, for I will do mine! Then the fates will know you as we know you: as Albert Mondego, the man!”
(and, of course, by "worst" we mean "best"...Some creative license had to be taken in order to prove my point! )
We can’t always cover our bases, especially when we don’t even know that some of them existed until it’s too late. Take a deep breath, do a little yoga, and remember there’s a team behind you to help out.
I’d like to pull a quote from Edmond Dantes, making a toast in the Alexander Dumas classic The Count of Monte Cristo:
“Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout as you did in Rome. Do your worst, for I will do mine! Then the fates will know you as we know you: as Albert Mondego, the man!”
(and, of course, by "worst" we mean "best"...Some creative license had to be taken in order to prove my point! )
Friday, February 8, 2008
Odds-n-ends
I’ve been a bad, bad blogger. In my defense, it’s been a busy week.
Lots of great things have been happening-
We’re finally settled into our new office which has a stunning view of the Cincinnati skyline (picture to come soon.)
I was also invited to attend a Cincinnati Rotary luncheon. What a wonderful, diverse group of people! Thanks for having me- it’s so refreshing to meet a group of people that get together with the sole purpose of bettering their community! Thank you, Rotarians!
Unfortunately Oscar wasn't selected as a finalist for the cutest pet in Cincinnati, but as far as I'm concerned he'll always be the most handsome...unless anyone wants to join me in protest!
Have a great weekend!
Lots of great things have been happening-
We’re finally settled into our new office which has a stunning view of the Cincinnati skyline (picture to come soon.)
I was also invited to attend a Cincinnati Rotary luncheon. What a wonderful, diverse group of people! Thanks for having me- it’s so refreshing to meet a group of people that get together with the sole purpose of bettering their community! Thank you, Rotarians!
Unfortunately Oscar wasn't selected as a finalist for the cutest pet in Cincinnati, but as far as I'm concerned he'll always be the most handsome...unless anyone wants to join me in protest!
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
2/6
During Carnival people dress up and ride into Venice on gondalas. Although I wasn't dressed up while on my ride (though I was there during Carnival,) here's a little something to picture yourself there...
laissez les bontemps roller!
Happy Belated Mardi Gras to you and yours.
What a fun tradition, only rivaled this time of year by its European equivalent- Carnival. In honor of it our friends at Multi-Craft opened their doors, fed us some jambalaya and treated us to a full tour of their facilities.
I can’t say I’ve ever been to a printing facility that was capable of so much! Blame it on the good food, or the degree to which our sales rep spoils us, but I was thoroughly impressed!
If you’re in need of a mailer, sign maker and all around high quality printer, multi-craft may be the place. Check them out www.multi-craft.com.
What a fun tradition, only rivaled this time of year by its European equivalent- Carnival. In honor of it our friends at Multi-Craft opened their doors, fed us some jambalaya and treated us to a full tour of their facilities.
I can’t say I’ve ever been to a printing facility that was capable of so much! Blame it on the good food, or the degree to which our sales rep spoils us, but I was thoroughly impressed!
If you’re in need of a mailer, sign maker and all around high quality printer, multi-craft may be the place. Check them out www.multi-craft.com.
Friday, February 1, 2008
whew...
Moving is tough work! But at least now I know that if my stint in PR doesn't work, I have a promising career ahead of me in "desk assembly." ha!
I'm spending the weekend in Columbus this weekend and will be taking Monday off. Great blogs to come next week, though!
Happy February!
I'm spending the weekend in Columbus this weekend and will be taking Monday off. Great blogs to come next week, though!
Happy February!
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