09/30/2005
Today's Friday Fun is dedicated to the Airport Divas - Elizabeth and Kristie from Akron-Canton Airport.
Came across this ultra fun site ... the Social Diva knows what's hot on the scene in Hotlanta, NYC and Miami.
Peg Samuel has put together a cool site (shoulda been a blog Peg!) for Divas "who are sassy, independent fashionistas who always know where to be see and be seen." Social Diva has the inside scoop on where the hot dudes are in NYC to Bubbles Butt Boosting Lingerie in Miami and Oktoberfest parties in Atlanta.
If you're into vintage 1920 or 1930 cameras the Chip Chick is the place to go. Or how about a little leopard for your laptop?
Or if you're just in the mood for some down and dirty dishin' the A Socialite's Life is the place to hang.
Sidebar: Graphics complements of Social Diva
09/28/2005
Welcome visitors from wonderful Wonder Branding! It's a thrill to be highlighted by Michele Miller during Wonder Women Week. Even more so it's an honor to be included in a community of smart, savvy women. All I can say is WoW and thanks Michele!. Girlfriend, you sure made my day ... I feel like a Hollywood Star.
While I'm thanking talented women of the blogopshere a huge pink boa throw to Yvonne DiVita for her very kind and generous words on Lip-Sticking. I'm turning this one into a holiday card.
The blog world is not without its divos. Earlier this week I had the pleasure of meeting up with Josh Hallett, hyku, at a Starbucks of course. Josh shared some great blog stories with me. He's doing some interesting work in this space.
When my friend the brilliant marketer,Ken Bernhardt, asked if I would conduct a workshop on blogs for the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau's art council members it took all 2.5 seconds to say Yes! In another lifetime (we all have many of those!) I was a theatre major. As you might imagine developing this program was a labor of love.
Sidebar: This divo needs to blog!
Blogging seems made for the arts ... cheap, easy, not a lot of resources, creative and all that good marketing stuff. I sure was surprised to find that not a lot of arts groups have taken up blogging. Here are a few:
- St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
- 42nd Moon - theatre
Sidebar: Thanks to Elisa Camahort Worker Bees Blog
- Katzen Arts Center
- Moxie Theatre
- Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
Stay tuned for a few Marketing Diva Biz Blog Profiles on the arts blogs...coming soon!
09/27/2005
Biz Blog Profile is a behind the scene look at how
corporations, non profits and higher education institutions are using
blogs to support their marketing goals.
Nicholas Jacobs', President and CEO of Windber Medical Center & Winder Research Institute, blog story began with a suggestion to blog from an 80-year old friend. Nick is no stranger when it comes to innovation, risks or pushing the envelop. He quickly got it and realized that a blog could help him connect to "...the people who are making your personal future possible. I write, they comment we connect. That's what it's all about."
What makes Nick's Blog important, from a blog history perspective, is that it's one of the first blogs written by a hospital. And I love that the blog is not buried deep within the website. Not only is it linked from WMC's home page but is prominately highlighted.
Nick is using the blog to communicate to multiple audiences from employees to patients to docs, the public, and of course, his board. On May 25th he leveraged the blog for crisis management - to hault rumors about a layoff. Nicholas Jacobs' Nick Blog is an excellent example of how to do a CEO blog right.
Biz Blog Profile: Nick's Blog
About Windber Medical Center & Windber Research Institute
At both WRI and WMC, we are attempting to change the delivery of health care in the United States. Both Windber Medical Center and Windber Research Institute are organized and run unlike any other hospital or research institute in the United States. We don't want to deliver what people will like. We want to deliver what people will LOVE.
While offering all the latest technology found in only the best hospitals, the people of Windber Medical Center understand that the true power of healing lies not only in the tools of medicine but in the hearts of the people providing the care.
The Windber Research Institute is a catalyst in the creation of the next-generation of medicine, integrating basic and clinical research with an emphasis on improving patient care and the quality of life for the patient and their family by providing clinical answers to the problems posted by physicians, translation medicine.
Why Windber Medical Center & Windber Research Institute is Blogging
In 1985, the former publicity director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Zane Knauss, came into my life as a consultant and a friend, and he has been there ever since. Although Zane is approaching his eighth decade, his mind is a as active and exciting as ever. Several months ago he called us and said, "Why aren't you Blogging?" After he explained what he was talking about, we replied, "Okay we'll start today." And we did.
How Blogs Fit Into Windber Medical Center & Windber Research Institute's Marketing/ Community Outreach Strategies.
As one of my former CEO's use to say, "The secret is there is NO secret." We have always tired to run an organization that shares everything with our employees. The Blog serves us well.
We are in an area where the average person has lived in their own homes for 38 plus years, and we have had a very difficult time becoming "heroes in our own home town." Even though we have appeared in the Wall Street Journal twice, Fortune, Forbes, USAToday, The Today Show and a dozen other prestigious media outlets, we are still just Windber Medical Center to many of our local citizens. Consequently, we have tried to pull out the stops to ensure that our public has as much access as possible to our successes and challenges. The Blog services us well.
Marketing & Promotion
How Windber Medical Center & Windber Research Institute is Marketing/Promoting Its Blog
Obviously, it's promoted on our website. Other than that it's been word-of-mouth, and the fact that only 5,000 people have hit the site so far tells me that we are not dong a real bang up job of promoting it.
>Is the blog integrated into other marketing or community outreach strategies/programs?
Because my background is marketing, our community outreach and marketing strategies are an integral part of this effort.
>In addition to the great article in Fortune, has there been much media coverage?
None
Selling-in Management
Reactions of peers, physicians, patients, staff and board members
Truthfully, the only feedback that we've gotten from our docs, boards, patients and staff has been "I read it in your blog." With issues that cost under $50K, my philosophy has always been don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness.
>Did you have to first gain permission from your board?
Actually, I never even considered getting permission from our board.
>How are you handling HIPPA regulations?
HIPPA is a daily part of everything that we do, but every time we believe that we have taken every possible HIPPA rule into consideration, we walk into a semi-private room and realize how very stupid this program can be because there's nothing HIPPA between those curtains.
>What were the reactions from your peer?
"I saw that on your blog." " Read Nick's Blog if you want to know what he's really doing."
Do You Think Blogs Will Gain Acceptance With The Healthcare Community to the Extent that Blog Strategies Will Be Adopted?
It's been my belief that, unlike me, hospital administrators are usually very conservative and don't want to be first in most things that could have backlash of any type. They're not typically risk takers when it comes to public relations. It will be interesting to see.
>What will it take to get hospitals, docs and other healthcare providers blogging?
What did it take to get them to use computers? A wave of public support or outcry, or the chance that they will be left financially in their own dust?
Lessons Learned
What would you tell other healthcare organizations and docs that are considering launching a blog?
What are you waiting for. It helps to fill in those extra 50 minutes a week that you would have spent "having a life." I love it but I love to write.
Has Blogging Been Worth Your Time, Energy and Resources?
Sure, it's worth it. It's worth it every time an employee thanks us for the update or a perfect stranger says, "Yeah, I read that in your blog." It's getting the word out in ways that would never have been possible even five years ago.
Nicholas Jacob's Take On Blogs
Having started my professional life as an educator, the one thing that has made hospital administration difficult is not having a daily shot at the people you care about most away from home, the people who can impact your life the most deeply, and the people who are making your personal future possible. The Blog has returned a small sense of connectedness to my life. I write, they comment, we connect. That is what it is all about.
09/26/2005
AMA is taking its highly successful workshop Blogs: Marketing Beyond the Website to one more city. On September 30th a group of talented marketers, who happend to also be some of the best bloggers in the business, will hit Hotlanta for an intense day of talking about how marketers can leverage blogs.
If you can't join us at the workshop, meet-up at the Marketing
Wonk*. The happy hour is an open-invitation
to Atlanta area bloggers and marketers who want to
talk blog or just hang out with some cool people.
*What's a "marketing wonk?" Glad you asked. It's a Dutch treat
networking event where people meet and mingle. There is no agenda. No
speakers. A great way to kick off your weekend.
When:
Friday, September 30, 2005 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.
Where: Loca Luna
836 Juniper Street
Atlanta, GA
30308
404.875.4494
Cost: Free.
(Dutch-treat food/libations)
09/26/2005
Some people know how to turn customer service into customer delight. Recently I ordered a special wedding gift for a dear friend. Since the gift is being created by Soup Studios the order will take a few weeks to ship.
I was feeling a bit blue about the non instant gratification, when Jamie Voivedich, the talented artist, offered to send an email note to my friends telling that a surprise was on its way. The eMail directs them to her website to "ponder the possibilities."
Sidebar: Click the graphic to see the email.
3 Smart Marketing Strategies: 1. Jamie delighted me 2. Great email strategy 3. Directed a potential customer to her website.
Now let's add 2 additional marketing strategies that makes it - 5 Marketing Strategies for 1.
4. Jamie turned me into a customer evangelist. You're reading the blog post about Soup Studios. 5. The post may get a bit of viral marketing buzz. By the way, Soup Studio's work is quite unique and fabulous ... would you expect a Diva Marketing wedding gift to be anything less?
Lesson Learned: Customer Delight works beyond expectations.
09/25/2005
Hey ABC Radio! I found the first advertiser for your new women's radio programs. Finish Line is launching a chain of athletic specialty stores targeted to 18-to-40 year old "active" women. Alan Cohen, ceo and chairman feels that the new concept will complement the company's existing businesses and they're "extremely excited about the growth opportunity." Well they should be since it's anticipated women's athletic apparel sales will top $38 billion by end of 2005.*
Heard it from: WSJ. Subscription needed
“Marketers and retailers are belatedly realizing that today’s woman is
no longer satisfied with male-oriented retail options, afterthought
products and limited availability,” said Claire Madden, VP of Marketing
for MarketResearch.com. “But, while the shift in attitude will be
positive for the overall market, competition will heat up for athletic
apparel powerhouses due to traditional fashion labels’ marketing muscle
and ability to adapt quickly to trends.”
Time to call in the Marketing-to-Women A Team!
Yvonne DiVita - Lip-Sticking
Michele Miller - Wonder Branding
Holly Buchanan - Marketing to Women Online
Andrea Learned - Learned On Women
Karen Barnes - Womantum
Teri Whitsel - Attract-Her
But...when it's all said and done girlfriends, I don't think The Manolo, The Shoe Blogger, will have to worry much.
Lessons Learned: Are you over looking a hot-hot-hot niche that with a slight diversification of products/services you capitalize on?
Read More About Trends in Women's Athletic Marketing
International Assoc. of Shopping Centers
Retail Traffic
Market Research.com*
*Sidebar: Free registration gets you exec summaries
09/24/2005
One more example that podcasting is entering the mainstream - CBS To Podcast Segments Of '60 Minutes'
"I can assure you we wouldn't be doing this if we weren't seeing a strong demand for our existing podcasts," Betsy Morgan, senior vice president of CBS Digital Media and General Manager of CBSNews.com.
Read More on Online Media Daily
09/23/2005
Today's Friday Fun is a salute to our friends who bring joy to our lives and often help us make it through the night.
Anyone who's ever loved a pet knows that some of your best talks can happen between just you and your special friend. When I say something he finds particularly interesting, Maxie has a way of cocking his head that is so sweet. Okay...you can say ahhh...
Listen in while my friend Bob May shares his Conversations With Malamutes. I ask all nay sayers, who don't believe that dogs can communicate, to keep an open mind when you read the wise and witty posts from Luky (pronounced "Lou-Key").
Luky talks about marketing: "Coke is a brand, Luky says, "and no matter how clever the campaign might be, there's no way to 'brand' a mousepad or a futon dog bed." He hates "...wimpass, tentative drivers..." and wanes poetic about life -
He says that happiness and contentment are the same thing when it comes
to mood and identity . . . that when we say someone (and he says it's
the same for humans) is discontent, we mean they are unhappy - at
least, when we are not talking about a particular existential
circumstance, like running out of Milk-Bones.
Sometimes humans do nice things for pets too. Jane Genova posts how bloggers have influenced changes in pet polices during disasters.
Now go give your pet some scratches..and maybe a treat or two.
09/22/2005
A special blogosphere community has launched a Carnival of Compassion.
The purpose of this Carnival is to discuss
how patients, their families and healthcare workers deal with life,
death, healing and disease.
Heard it from: Cancer NewsWatch
09/22/2005
Recently Steve Rubel, MicroPersuasion, posted about MOMA offering podcasts ... which led to a comment from Shel Holtz, A Shel of My Former Self, that what makes a podcast a real podcast is the ability to subscribe. Looks like SFMOMA has a real podcast!
Subscribe to SFMOMA's podcast feed.
Simply copy and paste this URL into your aggregator:
What Is a Podcast?
Podcasting is a hybrid of the terms broadcasting and iPod. It is a relatively new method for distributing audio, video, and other media files over the Internet. A true podcast is distinct from other types of online media delivery because of its subscription model. Just as a reader subscribes to a magazine, a podcast is fed through a subscription "feed" whereby subscribers receive regular updates on the media files available for download from selected Web pages.
Steve - guess SFMOMA agrees with Shel on this one ;-)
Heard it from: Zeke's Gallery
Today's Friday Fun is dedicated to the Airport Divas - Elizabeth and Kristie from Akron-Canton Airport.
