In light of the invite-frenzy that is Google+, I got nostalgic for a simpler time - when invites were more accessible and I was on the "in" squad to get an invite for Google Wave. I remember it like it was yesterday... I logged into my Google Wave and stared as the Ouija Board that it was updated with posts from friends, recommended links, photos and more. While it was an awesome tool for our 2009-2010 NSAC team, outside of my 50+ team members, I knew no one else on the Wave. And why is that?
I think it may have been a little to complex for email and a little too simple for a social network, but it had great potential as a cloud business tool. Yeah, I said it. I think some people were expecting Google Wave to be the next Facebook, and even still others expecting it to be the new, complicated Gmail, when in fact, it couldn't fight with either.
Google Wave was great for a closed network of people working on a project. Emails accidentally get sent to the wrong address, whereas in Google Wave, you best believe you have the right person or their picture would be smiling at you from the top bar, almost sneering, "Well, you can't UNINVITE me now."
The realtime editing may have thrown some kids' computers into a tizzy, but it was a great way to quickly change something as people were working. It was nice to watch one person type the body of text for our copy and be editing behind them as they went (as opposed to Google docs, where my changes and their changes wouldn't appear immediately).
Google Wave has left a bit of a hole in my life since its disappearance and, while its faults were many, I prefer to remember it for the good. Also, as a Google devotee and lover of all of its services, I appreciated the thoughts for it - an innovative approach that would create ease, convenience and instant gratification.
RIP, Google Wave. You're missed.
... Okay, Google, I said something nice. Can I have my Google+ invite now?
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Quora: Fun with Strangers
I'm back! After a long hiatus due to a busy schedule, I've picked up the blogging again. Considering I'm an unemployed graduate, I think I'll be laying off of the interview tips and sticking to what I know - social media.
Which brings me to Quora. I got on Quora in the summer of 2010, before it got much buzz on the interwebs, because I pride myself on being an early adopter. However, once I perused the site, I found it to be the ultimate crowdsourcing tool. Quora defines itself as "a continually improving collection of questions and answers." What I would call a hybrid of Yahoo Answers and Wikipedia, this open website wasn't too hopping when I first joined. Fast forward a few months and I remember I have an account. I logged in and checked it out, to find that Quora has developed into quite a community. Here are my reasons why you should be on Quora!
1. Got an burning question? Someone else probably already asked it. The wide variety of questions on Quora, from job advice to car advice to all-out philosophical discussions, is vast. Sure, you could post your question on Facebook and your friends will probably pass it by. On Quora, you can categorize your question and get advice from someone who knows the material. For instance, when I first joined, I asked about the government incentives for buying a hybrid vehicle. Within a day, I had responses that, um... there weren't any anymore. I fact checked the response on Google and what do you know, they were right! For when your Google search results are just a little too complicated, Quora is a great alternative to pages and pages of information.
2. No question is too vague or too specific. No matter how broad your question is (for example, "What are fun things to do in Southern California?"), people will answer it for you. If you're getting very specific, like where to recruit talent for your business, someone will have ideas to contribute. A variety of users means a variety of results - you're getting a human response to your question, rather than a query to be more specific.
3. Face it - it's fun to be a guru. I only lived in Southern California for three years, but every time someone asks about good places to eat, I'm stoked to give recommendations. You know your field, your hometown, your hobbies and everything else in your life better than other people - and they have questions about it. This is a great place for you to share!
So go go go, sign up for Quora now. With people giving background on why they're qualified to answer the question (unlike Yahoo Answers) and specific answers/expansion to what you're looking for (unlike Wikipedia), Quora is a great place to get your knowledge in a social manner. You can find me on Quora here!
Which brings me to Quora. I got on Quora in the summer of 2010, before it got much buzz on the interwebs, because I pride myself on being an early adopter. However, once I perused the site, I found it to be the ultimate crowdsourcing tool. Quora defines itself as "a continually improving collection of questions and answers." What I would call a hybrid of Yahoo Answers and Wikipedia, this open website wasn't too hopping when I first joined. Fast forward a few months and I remember I have an account. I logged in and checked it out, to find that Quora has developed into quite a community. Here are my reasons why you should be on Quora!
1. Got an burning question? Someone else probably already asked it. The wide variety of questions on Quora, from job advice to car advice to all-out philosophical discussions, is vast. Sure, you could post your question on Facebook and your friends will probably pass it by. On Quora, you can categorize your question and get advice from someone who knows the material. For instance, when I first joined, I asked about the government incentives for buying a hybrid vehicle. Within a day, I had responses that, um... there weren't any anymore. I fact checked the response on Google and what do you know, they were right! For when your Google search results are just a little too complicated, Quora is a great alternative to pages and pages of information.
2. No question is too vague or too specific. No matter how broad your question is (for example, "What are fun things to do in Southern California?"), people will answer it for you. If you're getting very specific, like where to recruit talent for your business, someone will have ideas to contribute. A variety of users means a variety of results - you're getting a human response to your question, rather than a query to be more specific.
3. Face it - it's fun to be a guru. I only lived in Southern California for three years, but every time someone asks about good places to eat, I'm stoked to give recommendations. You know your field, your hometown, your hobbies and everything else in your life better than other people - and they have questions about it. This is a great place for you to share!
So go go go, sign up for Quora now. With people giving background on why they're qualified to answer the question (unlike Yahoo Answers) and specific answers/expansion to what you're looking for (unlike Wikipedia), Quora is a great place to get your knowledge in a social manner. You can find me on Quora here!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
And six months later, here we are again.
New internship, senior/junior year of college, plus applying for jobs left and right... that's about all I've been up to since Fall 2010. And trust me, that's been quite enough.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Chevron: I disagree.
Sorry for the long period of absence. A lot has happened between this summer and now, I've gotten considerably busier with freelance clients, a new internship and school. I'm trying to keep this blog up as the whim strikes me, which is what happened tonight.
You may have seen this already: http://www.chevron-weagree.com/
I'm sure there are a lot of ways to view this project. But, as a wishful Californian, I see it through the lens of Proposition 23.
When Chevron says we have "the right to a healthy environment," yet they don't give consideration to the greenhouse gases in one of the most beautiful but also most polluted states, I have to call B.S. on their public relations initiative.
This is the way I see it: a company who is partially responsible for the tragedy that occurred in the Gulf and elsewhere with oil spills. If you're going to participate in the oil business, that makes you partially responsible for tragedies that occur. You add fuel to the demand fire (if you will) and profit from the product, but when it comes to things being messy, you want nothing to do with it? No, Chevron. That's not how this works.
As a future public relations professional, I can't believe that there are people in the industry who believe this "We Agree" campaign is acceptable. All I see is a company profiting off of the sympathy we have for those who suffer from oil damage, hoping to paint themselves as another concerned citizen. True, we all use oil in our cars and all share the blame for the oil crisis - but for those who are raising money to clean up the gulf, putting in time and effort to alleviate the situation, driving efficient cars or electric cars and decreasing their need - they're at least working positively, rather than just pointing the finger.
Where's your call to action, Chevron? You don't have a petition, nor a place to donate, nor a way that the average citizen can join you in fixing the threat of oil spills or oil spills themselves. You have only a few sentences of copy, painting yourself as a good guy, as one of us.
I think you should rethink this campaign, and until then, I'll be making the few gas trips I do make for my hybrid vehicle to a different station that Chevron.
To the citizens out there - what do you think? Is this ok? Are you fine with this campaign? Does this make you want to buy your gasoline from them? Your views are surely different than mine, and I'd love to hear what you have to say.
You may have seen this already: http://www.chevron-weagree.com/
I'm sure there are a lot of ways to view this project. But, as a wishful Californian, I see it through the lens of Proposition 23.
When Chevron says we have "the right to a healthy environment," yet they don't give consideration to the greenhouse gases in one of the most beautiful but also most polluted states, I have to call B.S. on their public relations initiative.
This is the way I see it: a company who is partially responsible for the tragedy that occurred in the Gulf and elsewhere with oil spills. If you're going to participate in the oil business, that makes you partially responsible for tragedies that occur. You add fuel to the demand fire (if you will) and profit from the product, but when it comes to things being messy, you want nothing to do with it? No, Chevron. That's not how this works.
As a future public relations professional, I can't believe that there are people in the industry who believe this "We Agree" campaign is acceptable. All I see is a company profiting off of the sympathy we have for those who suffer from oil damage, hoping to paint themselves as another concerned citizen. True, we all use oil in our cars and all share the blame for the oil crisis - but for those who are raising money to clean up the gulf, putting in time and effort to alleviate the situation, driving efficient cars or electric cars and decreasing their need - they're at least working positively, rather than just pointing the finger.
Where's your call to action, Chevron? You don't have a petition, nor a place to donate, nor a way that the average citizen can join you in fixing the threat of oil spills or oil spills themselves. You have only a few sentences of copy, painting yourself as a good guy, as one of us.
I think you should rethink this campaign, and until then, I'll be making the few gas trips I do make for my hybrid vehicle to a different station that Chevron.
To the citizens out there - what do you think? Is this ok? Are you fine with this campaign? Does this make you want to buy your gasoline from them? Your views are surely different than mine, and I'd love to hear what you have to say.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Cool viral promotion for "The Other Guys"
I saw the trailers on TV, like many other people, for the movie "The Other Guys." Today, playing around on Funny or Die, I found a viral support video that unfortunately has... only about 570,000 views.
Fail, movie studio.
Fail, movie studio.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Is this thing on?
I apologize for the very long break in posts. Work at The Make-A-Wish Foundation got pretty busy! I recently left since school started again this week and I miss the office. It was a wonderful working experience and I learned a lot about nonprofit!
One of the things I love most about Chapman University (besides the fact that it is home to the national champion NSAC team, Circle Advertising) is that the class loads can diverse at any level. I've just left a 300-level internet communications class and now I'm headed to a beginner's Business class. After a heart-to-heart with one of my co-workers at Make-A-Wish, I think I may start taking first-year accounting as well.
General education courses have always baffled me, but I've enjoyed working in other areas of the school and refreshing skills that I haven't used since middle school (I'm looking at you, Statistics). But what are some classes that AREN'T general ed that every person, especially Ad and PR should take?
In my experience, classes I've taken that have really supplemented my degree and encouraged me to expand my view of my future industry have been the following:
1. Communications classes. This should be fairly obvious - if you want to talk to the masses, you need to know how they listen and interact. I took Mass Communications and Gendered Communication specifically.
2. Sociology classes. The impact that mass media communications, such as advertising, has upon the minds of its constituents is incredibly important not just for the purchase, but the social implications that it brings. An advertisement for Dove Beauty that encourages women to think about their bodies differently, the Old Spice man communicating with "women" right in front of their husbands, boyfriends, brothers... these successful campaigns have had a social fallout that goes far beyond the purchase. Understanding the impact they have is essential in keeping your work ethical and anticipating success of a campaign. Social psychology is an examples of courses.
3. Research classes. Social research, communication research, psychological research - the kind doesn't matter, as long as you end up learning how to write an unbiased survey for the purest nuggets of information.
What classes did I miss? I'll let you know how this accounting idea pans out...
One of the things I love most about Chapman University (besides the fact that it is home to the national champion NSAC team, Circle Advertising) is that the class loads can diverse at any level. I've just left a 300-level internet communications class and now I'm headed to a beginner's Business class. After a heart-to-heart with one of my co-workers at Make-A-Wish, I think I may start taking first-year accounting as well.
General education courses have always baffled me, but I've enjoyed working in other areas of the school and refreshing skills that I haven't used since middle school (I'm looking at you, Statistics). But what are some classes that AREN'T general ed that every person, especially Ad and PR should take?
In my experience, classes I've taken that have really supplemented my degree and encouraged me to expand my view of my future industry have been the following:
1. Communications classes. This should be fairly obvious - if you want to talk to the masses, you need to know how they listen and interact. I took Mass Communications and Gendered Communication specifically.
2. Sociology classes. The impact that mass media communications, such as advertising, has upon the minds of its constituents is incredibly important not just for the purchase, but the social implications that it brings. An advertisement for Dove Beauty that encourages women to think about their bodies differently, the Old Spice man communicating with "women" right in front of their husbands, boyfriends, brothers... these successful campaigns have had a social fallout that goes far beyond the purchase. Understanding the impact they have is essential in keeping your work ethical and anticipating success of a campaign. Social psychology is an examples of courses.
3. Research classes. Social research, communication research, psychological research - the kind doesn't matter, as long as you end up learning how to write an unbiased survey for the purest nuggets of information.
What classes did I miss? I'll let you know how this accounting idea pans out...
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Social Media Stalking - Keep Yourself Safe!
I read a chilling article today about a woman who was stalked by a fellow Foursquare user at a restaurant. While the situation is as creepy as it is unique, one thing that many social media users don't own up to is their own accountability in usage. I'm not saying sites like PleaseRobMe (the live Twitter/Foursquare site that announced users home departures) are at all justified in what they do; in fact, I think websites like that cross a major line that takes social media from something fostering open communication to a more fearful type of relationship. Regardless of how you use social media, I think there are four guidelines that everyone has to consider before making that Check-In, posting that Facebook Status or sending that Tweet.
1. What are my privacy settings like? My Facebook is locked up tighter than Fort Knox, and that's because the things I share on Facebook aren't meant for anyone's eyes but those of my friends and family. The best decision you can make before opening an account on any social media platform is planning what you do and do not want to share, which brings me to my next point...
2. Monitor what the news is saying about a platform. Most people know about the Facebook privacy issues that have been on everyone's lips recently, but there are still some users that had no idea. While it's easy to blame Facebook, you have to hold yourself somewhat accountable as well. Taking a moment to Google the platform and see what bloggers or news sites are saying about it is a step that you should take from time to time, regardless of what you're posting (personal or professional).
3. Self censor based on your own guidelines. I spoke earlier about Facebook being for personal use only... while it's tempting to add a co-worker to a personal-use account to share with them some photos, keep in mind your own professionalism. Do you really want your co-worker (or, if your co-worker has a nasty streak, your boss or other colleagues) to know how you feel about working late or what you did during your "sick day?" Now more than ever, social media tears down alibis for everything from work to divorces to a white lie to a friend. I'm not by any means endorsing lying. I'm just saying that by keeping home and friends on one platform and professional acquaintances on another, you'll be saving yourself from a lot of embarrassment, and helping avoid any dangerous situations.
4. When in doubt, Google yourself. As someone who routinely Googles herself to see how high her LinkedIn page is ranking, imagine my surprise last summer when I found that some ex-employees I had worked with at my parents' business were making threats on MySpace about my family and me. Obviously, lessons were learned by both parties that don't need any more discussion. However, the point is that while you may be embarrassed about typing your own name into a search engine, finding a threat to your safety and stopping it before it becomes an issue far outweighs the momentary discomfort.
While social media is fun and opens new doors in learning and communicating, there are always risks when using the platforms. By watching what you say, who you say it to, privacy agreements and monitoring your usage as well as others' usage of your name, you can keep the conversation going without worrying what the cost could be.
1. What are my privacy settings like? My Facebook is locked up tighter than Fort Knox, and that's because the things I share on Facebook aren't meant for anyone's eyes but those of my friends and family. The best decision you can make before opening an account on any social media platform is planning what you do and do not want to share, which brings me to my next point...
2. Monitor what the news is saying about a platform. Most people know about the Facebook privacy issues that have been on everyone's lips recently, but there are still some users that had no idea. While it's easy to blame Facebook, you have to hold yourself somewhat accountable as well. Taking a moment to Google the platform and see what bloggers or news sites are saying about it is a step that you should take from time to time, regardless of what you're posting (personal or professional).
3. Self censor based on your own guidelines. I spoke earlier about Facebook being for personal use only... while it's tempting to add a co-worker to a personal-use account to share with them some photos, keep in mind your own professionalism. Do you really want your co-worker (or, if your co-worker has a nasty streak, your boss or other colleagues) to know how you feel about working late or what you did during your "sick day?" Now more than ever, social media tears down alibis for everything from work to divorces to a white lie to a friend. I'm not by any means endorsing lying. I'm just saying that by keeping home and friends on one platform and professional acquaintances on another, you'll be saving yourself from a lot of embarrassment, and helping avoid any dangerous situations.
4. When in doubt, Google yourself. As someone who routinely Googles herself to see how high her LinkedIn page is ranking, imagine my surprise last summer when I found that some ex-employees I had worked with at my parents' business were making threats on MySpace about my family and me. Obviously, lessons were learned by both parties that don't need any more discussion. However, the point is that while you may be embarrassed about typing your own name into a search engine, finding a threat to your safety and stopping it before it becomes an issue far outweighs the momentary discomfort.
While social media is fun and opens new doors in learning and communicating, there are always risks when using the platforms. By watching what you say, who you say it to, privacy agreements and monitoring your usage as well as others' usage of your name, you can keep the conversation going without worrying what the cost could be.
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