We just posted that we are hiring a Web Developer and Programmer. While the job description offers a well-rounded overview of the skills and expectations this position will be faced with, I thought it might be fun to provide a different perspective as well ...
These are the Top 10 questions you should answer "YES!" to if you are thinking of applying:
Can you walk on water?
Do you want to learn something new every day?
Are you willing to give most any project a try?
Do you have a sense of humor?
Are you a problem-solver?
Can you collaborate easily with others and enjoy spirited conversations?
Do you know how to brew a pot of great coffee and stock a refrigerator? (This is actually a requirement for everyone in the office.)
Do you have a Facebook page or a Twitter account that keeps you connected?
Are you able to take constructive criticism and direction?
(And, the last ...) Do you have a list of questions for us???
A recent article posted by BizReport.com highlights the recent rise of this blogger's favorite online pastime ...
In my last post, I bemoaned and contemplated the notion that Hulu.com might become a paid service. Call it fortuitous then, that this morning I found an interesting e-mail in my inbox from BizReport.com.
In BizReport.com's daily e-news was an article speaking to Hulu's rise and the overall increase in online video viewership. The stats (which were not cited, so bear that in mind) were interesting and I thought I'd share them with you.
Hulu delivered a record 856 million video views for the month of October.
Research shows that more than 84% of the total US online audience is currently watching online video clips.
Google delivered just over 10.5 billion video views to the 167 million consumers now watching video clips online. That is a 37% share compared to Hulu's 3% share.
In October consumers watched an average of 83 clips each, spending just over 10 hours with online video.
The average clip is still less than four minutes in length.
With viewership nearing 1 billion, Hulu.com may not mind losing some of its viewers if it adopts a subscription business model and competes head-on with the cable companies. The potential revenue could be enormous.
That being said ... I still will cry and rant and debate about my true need to watch House.
In this post, Brenda Haines shares the results of Blue Door Consulting's quest to build a charitable event team, using social media...
Good news!
Earlier this month, we shot out an invitation to our social networks, asking friends, fans and followers to join Blue Door Consulting's Race for the Light Team.
A Team of 17 Within two weeks, we had assembled a team of 17 walkers and runners - double the size of the team we built through direct invitations last year!
I am excited to have Andrea, Natalie, Carrie, Kristen, Komal, Nidhi, Kristi, Amanda, Greta, Megan, Adam, Samantha, Mandy, Laura, Gary and Robin join the Blue Door Consulting race team!
Background
For those not familiar, Race for the Light is a charitable 5K benefiting Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services. The evening event begins December 5, 2009 at 5 p.m. The race route includes Oshkosh Celebration of Lights in Menomonie Park. (Disclosure: My husband, Alex Hummel, is the agency's Prevention Education and Outreach Coordinator and I am a former Board member.)
Takeaways
What did we learn from this experiment?
Facebook was, by far, the most effective tool in attracting team members. With the exception of our staff and one other, all of our team members expressed interest in participating via Facebook. We promoted the run-walk via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Friends invited friends. Five of our teammates were invited to participate by other team members. In some cases, I've met them before but am not connected via social media. (I'll fix that, of course.) In other cases, we'll be meeting for the first time.
Using social media for this cause helped us attract team members from near AND far. More than 1/3 of our team is traveling to participate - from Appleton, Madison, Viroqua, Chicago and Fond du Lac. To me, this was the most exciting part and one I think bears passing along. Charitable organizations and businesses may make incorrect assumptions about how far people will travel to attend their event. Social media provides an inexpensive way to help you attract an audience from a wider geographic area that you might otherwise think possible.
Bottom line: Though we didn't hit our goal of 20 team members, this experiment feels like a great success. We'll post photos from the race next week.
And, if you would like to join the team, contact me today. I'll be sending in our team registration form later today - just as soon as I figure out everyone's age categories! (This is just one more way I'll be using Facebook!)
In this vlog post...the ladies of Blue Door Consulting present their thoughts on the future of social media in their first edition of an industry haiku series.
There's no doubt about it, social media is here to stay. Most of us have witnessed firsthand the shift of social media from questionable trend to useful necessity, and we are continuing to witness it change as we figure out what works, what doesn't and how best to use the tools in front of us.
Here at Blue Door, we often wonder what social media will be like in the future and thought that this question would make an interesting vlog post. But...we wanted to do something different. Something that showcased our unique viewpoints and personalities. Something that could perhaps be part of a larger project. Possibly succinct. Maybe dramatic. Definitely fun.
In this vlog post: Jaimy Szymanski tackles the decision of whether or not an organization should have a corporate account on Twitter ...
What say you? If a company already has employees on Twitter, tweeting on its behalf, is there a point to having an ambiguous, corporate Twitter account?
P.S. I'm aware that there are sometimes sound-quality issues with these videos. I hope you'll all bear with me until I find a solution - perhaps an external mic! (Thanks to Matt for this BLUE recommendation.)
In this post, Brenda Haines invites you to join our Race for the Light Team...
Are you a runner or walker? Would you like to join the Blue Door Consulting 'Race for the Light' team?
Race for the Light Oshkosh is home to one of the coolest 5K run/walks in the NEW North. It's called Race for the Light and it goes through Oshkosh's Celebration of Lights display in Menomonie Park. The race is a fund-raising benefit for Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services. (Disclosure: My husband works at Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services and I previously served on the board for the organization.)
This year's race is December 5th at 5 p.m.
The Experiment We're planning to again sponsor a team of 20 to participate in the event.
This year, we are going to build our team by passing the word on our blog, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. We have 8 signed up so far - which means we have about a dozen spots available.
If you'd like to join the team, please email me - brenda at bluedoorconsulting.com. (Replace the word 'at' with the @ sign.) We'd love to have you.
Why call this an experiment? We're curious to see whether we can build a 5K run/walk team using social media alone. Stay tuned for a follow-up post with the results.
In this post: Jaimy Szymanski wraps up her three-part series for LifeMeetsWork.com, sharing some initial tips and tricks for the new virtual worker ...
Enjoy the last of this epic trilogy, brought to you in vlog format!
In this post Andrea explores stereotyping, assumptions or cliches in advertising and marketing...
Every month, I anxiously await the arrival of the latest issue of Marie Claire in my mailbox.
(Yes. My actual mail box. You know…that funny thing with the aluminum flag just outside the door? No, really, it’s not just for decoration. I know this because I am one of exactly eight people left in the world that pays for magazine subscriptions and still gets paper mail. But that’s not what this post is about.)
Anyway, I came home the other day to find that it had arrived. Barely in the door, I immediately threw off my jacket, kicked off my shoes and plopped on the couch to dive into the December issue.
As I read, I was introduced to a clever and hilarious woman by the name of Sarah Haskins. Ms. Haskins hosts a series on Current TV called Target Women that pokes fun at the ridiculous (albeit hilarious) gender stereotypes of modern advertising.
Apparently her videos have been making the rounds on the interwebs in recent months, but this was the first I had heard. I decided to check them out, and I must say the girl’s got a point.
While I find it annoying that the commercials in the above video make me as a female appear to be a ravenous Countess Chocula freak, I’d be lying if I said I have never made those faces or squealed for chocolate like that. Don’t judge. As I watched a few others, I started to wonder which came first—the stereotype or the ad? Perception or reality?
Usually, I find stereotypes in marketing and advertising to be caricatures of harmless heightened reality. Many appear to be based on the old advertising adage that says “Don’t sell the steak, sell the sizzle.” This traditional advertising and marketing view often can aim to tap in to the stereotypes and perceptions of target audiences in order to get at the feelings that motivate, entice and even entertain in hopes of positioning a product or service at the top of consumers’ minds and shopping lists.
This view can either succeed in forging connections with consumers, or it can fail and end up alienating them. I’ve seen how some ads that are steeped in stereotypes or false assumptions end up backfiring on a brand, like the recent backlash of the Motrin Moms ad campaign, or end up upsetting consumers at the entire advertising and media industries over things like racism, sexism, body image and self esteem. And rightfully so. But...sometimes failure can still be success--controversy and visibility are a package deal--I guess it just depends one's relativity of the term 'success.'
What's more, I think this view (sans the use of stereotypes) is still what great advertising and marketing is all about. But increasingly so, the message is becoming less effective from traditional advertising channels like television and print. Instead, this view has become more about fostering a strong brand and then engaging advocates of the brand to sell the sizzle on the brand's behalf.
As word-of-mouth and social media marketing and advertising prevails, I'm interested to see if the stereotypes of adland prevail with it.
I predict they won't. At least, I hope they won't.
op 10 questions you should answer "YES!" to if you are thinking of applying:
op 10 questions you should answer "YES!" to if you are thinking of applying:
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