How is your business branding supposed to be performing right about now? Almost good enough, but not quite exquisite, doesn’t get it in business and in the garden. Recently, I took this picture of a vine that was supposed to be in full flower – according to the garden’s site that lists plants in…
“You’ve got to go create a ripple.” Those words came to me as our youngest son and I tromped around the woods. Early in the evening or late in the afternoon, depending on how you measured it, we were doing what we do best: an adventurous young man now, once a boy, coaxing a mom…
I like to cover conferences. If you know me, you know that. Do you like to share conferences? Covering and sharing are two different things – or are they? To me sharing, happens via social media. Coverage can, too. Today I’m combining the two to bring you shared coverage from people I talked to on…
Question: What is the most difficult AND most effective social marketing tactic? a.) paying celebrities to tweet for you b.) designing a kick [insert word choice here] Facebook landing page c.) throwing an open bar event for 10,000 people with [insert talent choice] d.) engaging bloggers in a long-term relationship
First, let me be completely up front about the fact that this my daughter, Phoebe. And, yes we’re both wearing wedding dresses. Well, dresses we would wear to weddings. After all, we are in the Gold Coast Room at the Drake and this is the eve of the Royal Wedding. Now that you have this…
Wondering what went on at SOBCon? Let me tell you . . . this post is one of several in a series. Deciding who to sit with can affect your SOBCon outcome. Your table is your group. This year, I got really lucky. Two people left our table because it was too busy for them,…
A first, a news release about a porch, led to ways to use storytelling as landscaping to plant PR. Disclosure: Hursthouse Landscape Architects and Contractors is a CoryWest Media marketing and public relations client. CMP.LY/4 View the release, Once Upon a Porch Project Wins Landscaping Gold Award in Glen Ellyn. Please share comments on your…
Over the weekend, I’ll be attending my third SOBCon. Thanks to Liz Strauss, I am an SOB. Make that a week 123 SOB. What is an SOB? And what does being an SOB have to do SOBCon, Leadership and Loyalty? I’ll have more to say about that after this weekend, but for now here’s a…
Hi there! My name is Barbara. One group of friends calls me that. Another calls me Barb. Once, on a conference call, someone asked if the could call me Barb because they like shorter names. Why don’t you just call me B? I suggested. Is shorter better? After reading the latest report from LinkedInsights on…
April is National Poetry Month and before it slips away, let’s celebrate together. Share your favorite poet or passage in the comments section, will you please? Need help finding one? Check out the poem flow app or read about an inspiring collection of poems.
Everybody’s making videos, but who really knows how to marketing them? For the answer to that question, I’m passing this topic over to a guest author. The last time this special guest posted here, his post about keys to writing a press release for SEO and page rank landed in the top social media posts…
Is the third time the charm? In this case, maybe. If you’re anywhere near Chicago next Thursday night, April 28, I hope you can join Social Media Club Chicago and SOBCon at The Drake. It’s our third anniversary of celebrating the opening of SOBCon, the Successful and Outstanding Blogger Conference founded by Liz Strauss and…
You might call this week a LinkedIn hat trick. With two media interviews and a LinkedIn personal and corporate branding training session, this trio of events got me thinking about how it was time to update the checklist I use in my workshops. I’m sharing it with my readers – will you let me know…
Why yes, that would be my name on the same page as the Wall Street Journal. Thanks so much to Marla Tabaka, a fantastic success coach for women entrepreneurs who writes The Successful Soloist column for inc.com, I got assigned to write How to Launch a LinkedIn Company Page. On Marla’s blog, this quick…
Today I’m honored to be presenting a program on best practices in higher education digital communication at the Higher Learning Commissions Academic Quality Improvement Program [AQIP] conference. Here’s the presentation guide that includes an outline of what I’m covering as well as links to resources. Following along or want to contribute? Use the #3Dedu…
The last question our personal branding panel got at Affiliate Summit West was, to me, curious, “What would you do if someone hijacked your brand?” Being an overly trusting person, I never thought about the possibility of someone intentionally hijacking your brand – or your work. Yet, it’s happened to me before. Recently I discovered…
I can’t stop talking about it – the ocean, the spa, the oysters, the lobster, the views, the restaurants, the boardwalk, the lighthouse, the cooking school, the paparazzi. It is Atlantic City. Disclosure http://cmp.ly/3 – and thanks – to Spirit Airlines and Caesar’s Entertainment for the #ACGetaway girlfriends weekend away with Duong Sheahan and…
Ready to spring out of Chicago? Looking for travel or PR ideas? Welcome aboard! Let’s take off with lessons I took away from a recent blogger press tour to Atlantic City. Disclosure: Thanks to Spirit Air, Caesar’s Entertainment and DKC for transportation, lodging and entertainment. Watch for more entertaining coverage. Let’s get there first…
Ever sent out a social media update – or an email – and wished you could convey a bit more emotion? Thanks to a New Yorker cartoonist, now you can. Smurks, drawn by Pat Byrnes, is an app that lets you amp up your emotions on Facebook, twitter and email. You will need to go…
Michael Jackson: “You got to be startin’ something.” In 1996, I started a group called IWOW, Independent Writers of the West. In 2008, a small group of folks, including me, started Social Media Club Chicago’s Chapter. Now, it’s time to start something completely different . . . and that’s DIF.
Get ’em while they’re almost 50% off – only through March 15!BlogWorld New Media Expo 2011 in New York City tickets just went on sale. You’ll pay only $695 instead of $1295 for an all access pass. There’s a reason I’ve attended every single BlogWorld ever: this is the very best all-around event for anyone…
Wondering what’s bubbling up in our lab? Here’s the latest from our CoryWest Media client [disclosure] project portfolio. Today, we’re featuring Drury Design, a Glen Ellyn custom kitchen and bath design studio. Their releases were among the first we ran in our pioneering online newsroom. Way back in 2003, we posted releases online where reporters…
Can’t you just smell fresh paint when you look at this picture? Today is March 1 and spring is in the air. If you like to paint, like I do, you know that a primer sets the base coat, especially when you’re using dark and rich colors. Here’s a public relations primer that shows you…
How much does it cost to hire a professional speaker to speak at an event? Budgets drive decisions. But before you settle on a specific professional speaker – or number, think about how you want the speaker to engage your audience: as an entertainer, motivator or educator.
UPDATE 03.01.11 Thanks so much to Facebook for restoring my account! After two weeks and three attempts, I’m back in. Two days ago I submitted my third or fourth request and today I got an email from Rick in User Operations letting me know my account was restored. Yay! Thanks to everyone for all the…
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