Assignment #1, Blog #6: Do People Know Your Story? Patrick Meagher

The Story of Us! (apologies to Taylor Swift)

Is it Canadian?

What Is Your Industry’s Greatest Flaw?

The garment industry does not listen! More specifically when it comes to trendy t-shirt, pants and jacket side of all garment things. Both the past and newer generations have always asked for one thing; a made in Canada product, manufactured and assembled with those workers in mind, fairly affordable, and accessible in the Canadian market. Is that asking far too much? Apparently so. Secondly, they continue to use non-recyclable polyester and non-degradable fabric. We do use cotton in Canada (Phillips, 2013).

I’ve talked with many consumers left disheveled and scruffy under pile of shirts, jackets and pants looking, nay, seeking the elusive Made in Canada sticker. Benjamin Cartwright tells me he’s not necessarily patriotic. He may not show up at a park or concert on Canada Day. But he does want to give the working guy a break in his own country. Ben was an online observer looking for such goods and I had met him at a golf and travel show in Toronto. Preening himself after demolishing a table of rag tag clothing, he drew back his hair over his forehead, and I remember him saying, “I just want a break. I’m tired of being a hypocrite in my own country. I just want a few more made in Canada shirts in a world where everything is already from overseas. There’s too much abuse of people in factories in some places”. I couldn’t agree more since studying international labour developments in third and developing world manufacturing centres.

Clothing Ahoy! From Around the World

Clothing Distressed

Some people are not oriented to a label that says Gucci, Ralph Lauren, or George’s; made in China or Honduras, or Mauritius; made of polyester, or spandex, or rayon. In fact, some people are drawn to Jericho, Ethica, or Ludachris.  Manufactured in Canada. They are made of cotton and organic cotton weaved from Canadian and American resources. The workers are within a decent working environment, and many belong to unions. But the real label people look for are not the names above, but on the clothing label that says “Made in Canada”.  Not a label with a large red maple leaf that says “Made in China”, but an authentic Canadian manufactured product (Government of Canada, 2000).

Made In Canada Matters!

Rebecca Morely entered the fray of a discussion regarding manufacturing in Canada and the idea of quality apparel. At Queen’s Park, Rebecca introduced me to a type of ad hoc assembly of researchers and assistants. It was time to gripe and plan as the holiday “buying” season was on the horizon, and Christmas gifts were preoccupying lunch breaks in the legislature.

“Never had a problem buying good solid clothing for the kids. Something that was durable, tough, scuff able (sic). You remember, Great Western Garments and other Canadian clothing. The grandchildren? Forget it. To cloth them would require imported armour as the clothing just won’t stand up like it used to”.

T’was a sign.

Mark up!

Inflated Calculator

She didn’t want an imported shirt with Canadian iron on design, but a real, honest to goodness, 100% Canadian manufactured and made t-shirt. The abused t-shirt. The cool t-shirt. The not wicking t- shirt. The cotton t-shirt. Where do I find it?!!!(Urbankova,2018). Will somebody out there help me? So, I did. Did I wrap myself in a Canadian flag? Perhaps. But as a choice in the Canadian market, it is not easy to find. It is the adventures of Captain Markup of prices on Canadian wear, for that matter, most retailed textiles, that causes concern. Not for me. I look for sell offs, bulk, clearance sales, mutual deals, discounts, and partnerships. Based on trust and based on the stories we tell. They are out there, and I ‘ll find them, damn it. Oops, pardon the malediction, ah, cursing.

Canadian Flag

Give Me Canadian Clothes

We need clothes that will rot, effectively recycle, use as rags, and vanish into the abyss of compost as they have for years. No, the garment retailers do not listen enough (Norrington,2013). The retail industry is doing more than making a living…they are making a killing on imported and non-recyclable goods.

facebook.com https://bit.ly/188dxN0

Twitter.com https://bit.ly/1ckcXew

References:

Balsom, Aly, Image is everything for a successful industry, Poultry World, 00325813, Apr2014, Vol. 169, Issue 4  

http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.eztest.ocls.ca/ehost/detail/detail?vid=83&sid=1c8e0d12-a810-4d2e-af6b-a63e8198f1e2%40sessionmgr4006&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=95584278&db=a9h

Creative Commons;

T shirt Photo

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/f543ad12-2866-41e4-be02-ad4effce94fe

Pile of Clothes Photo

“Hubby: ‘So I think I’ll clear out my wardrobe today…'” by HannahWebb is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0  

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/7845d6ff-a3a1-4102-ab2f-4547d5d3e0a6

“Made in Canada Matters” by mag3737 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/fab55bc4-b838-48a7-90f0-711e1c3f9f8b

“The Canadian flag flyer over the Weber Group building in Kitchener” by Ken Whytock is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/d91f05cc-5653-4838-944c-c67fbde3ae90

“inflated price” by CreditDebitPro is licensed under CC BY 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/732d30b3-afe4-4dca-b2e5-ad54ee81ff17

Ferna´ndez-Llamazares ,Alvaro & Cabeza, Mar, Conservation Letters, Rediscovering the Potential of Indigenous Storytelling for Conservation Practice, (May/June 2018), 11(3),PP. 1–12

Government of Canada, Competition Bureau Canada ,Guide to the Textile Labelling and Advertising Regulations, Enforcement guidelines, September 2000

https://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/eng/01249.html

Jantsch, John, (n.d.) Duct Tape Marketing, Do People Know Your Story?

Do People Know Your Story?

Norrington, Alison, May 2013, COMMUNICATION WORLD, Transmedia Research, Find your voice In our new economy of listening, respect for your audience and open dialogue are paramount. PP. 26-28

Phillips, Andrea, (May 2013) COMMUNICATION WORLD, Transmedia Strategy, Help your brand speak for itself, Three transmedia storytelling principles every communicator should know. PP. 19-22

Reid, Calvin, Publishers Weekly, (April 24, 2017), Storytelling, Innovation, and Digital Disruption At Pub Tech Connect, an eclectic mix of businesses discussed how to adapt and prosper in a perpetually changing marketplace, PP. 4-5

Smith, J. (n.d.). The Sitcom Cringe. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.inoveryourhead.net/2010/10/20/the-sitcom-cringe/

Urbankova, Tereza , Communication World, 07447612, Internal and External Communication Are Merging Are you prepared, Sep2018 http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.eztest.ocls.ca/ehost/detail/detail?vid=60&sid=1c8e0d12-a810-4d2e-af6b-a63e8198f1e2%40sessionmgr4006&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=131875399&db=a9h

Assignment 1 Blog Post #5 Personal Brand; I’m no angel I’m no fool I’m not bragging I’m just cool (Apologies to the Romantics “I’m Hip”).

Any Thing You Can DO, I Can Do Better (Irving Berlin)

Zeus about to throw spear or lightening (bronze statue)

Any attempt to be gracious in such a blog tends to go straight through the cracks in the floorboards, and tempts the Greek fates to spin a destiny not inspired at birth. However, dispensing observation may eventually approach humility. As a figure casting thunder bolts of riddled lightning, and posing greatness from above, colleagues and friends have given this platform, well, and social media, to trumpet aloud, short of bragging.

Spicy Words

I give you WORDS. Such spicy creatures that allows one to spin tales, conversations, articles and speeches. It is I, whom many have sought to write speeches, teach public speaking, write glorious articles, detail formative arguments, find facts, research, smooth communication skills and, yet, still more. I always take risk in such matters. Discovering new and effective words, and having them applied correctly, where possible, and often tuned abruptly toward a correct audience. Am I a logo maniac? Perhaps. I am always learning.

Woman In Bubble Bath Absorbing Environment

Absorb Learning

Several people have asked me to write their correspondence, tune up resumes, send legal documents, and teach them how to communicate effectively. As they learn, I learn. As I may stumble, I learn. As I research everything, I absorb, and categorize and use the wisdom of others, without taking credit. Bless anti-plagiarism. Facts and sources of facts are important (Quicksprout, 2019). It is far easier to attribute research and words to others, than be seen as a source of all knowledge, which is unlikely. I help others promote engagement naturally (Maiy,2018).

“Taking into account a person’s values, beliefs, and needs, a personal brand typically includes a mission and vision statement, a brand statement, and tagline, clearly distinguishing one’s brand from one’s identity (Beata and Leverenz, 2018)”.

“Only the Facts Ma’am(sic)”

Integrity

I come to believe that fact based opinion is far more effective than untruthful judgement. As a personal brand it may instill integrity. This may go to an adage of it’s best to lose the discussion than to lie and ruin one’s reputation. Facts give one reliability. Good research produces good documentation that is reliable. Reliability give one credibility and a good reputation. A good reputation lends itself to a good personal brand (Lake, 2019).

Teaching adult education in a classroom furthers the aspects of attaining knowledge simultaneously with instruction in knowing that collective knowledge in a given classroom will always exceed the instructor, for the most part. Though this may serve as an unwitting proverb, it assists one to keep a humbler perspective and properly attend learners than merely appear didactic (another good word).

The Rensaissance

Attracting People

Mine is a Renaissance resume. A tad sporadic but it always returns home. Instruction, writing, research, risk, and trial and error, are the tools that have lead to legal work, teaching, speech writing, communication skills, and debate that have attracted people and customers to my lair. When I find people using my ideas and my particular phrases and words, I know I’ve done my job.  

https://bit.ly/188dxN0

https://bit.ly/1ckcXew

References:

Alrutz, Megan, Digital Storytelling, Applied Theatre, & Youth, 2015 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN, and by Routledge, 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an information business © 2015 Megan Alrutz

Chen-Chung Liu, Kuo-Ping Liu, Wei-Hong Chen, Chiu-Pin Lin, Gwo-Dong Chen,

Collaborative storytelling experiences in social media: Influence of peer-assistance mechanisms

Computers & Education 57 (2011) 1544–1556

Creative Commons Photos: Zeus:

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/58d5bdd2-3c2d-40a9-8189-a3ee8d71a706

“Bronze statue of Zeus or Poseidon, ca. 460 BCE, National Archeological Museum, Athens (3)” by Prof. Mortel is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Olympus “Looking South from Olympus” by summitcheese is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/d2eff4e5-f581-4c62-9d56-e316a9e9e016

Facts not Opininons

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/0ea26bb9-729f-4269-b8e3-7735ea4c61ed

“Facts Not Opinions” by duncan is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 

Deckers, Erik and Lacy Kyle, Branding Yourself How to Use Social Media to Invent or Reinvent Yourself, Second Edition, 2013, Pearson Education, Inc. Chapter 3, Blogging: Telling Your Story PP. 41-72

Diamond, Stephanie, Content Marketing Strategies For Dummies, Storytelling for Content Marketers, PP. 156-165, Chapter 12, 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Howley, Brendan, Culture Change in Data-Driven Storytelling, THE RAZOR’S EDGE, INFORMATION TODAY, p.13, September 2016 

Howley, Brendan, ICEBOX LOGIC: Revealing Community Value Networks via Intelligent

Storytelling, Infotoday.com, September 2018,  http://www.infotoday.com/IT/sep18/index.shtml

Influencer Marketing: Brand Monitoring: A Complete Field Guide to Owning Your Brand Online, June 13th, 2019, https://influencermarketinghub.com/brand-monitoring-guide/

Influencer Marketing: What is Personal Branding,May 16th, 2019,https://influencermarketinghub.com/what-is-personal-branding/

Jones, Beata, and Leverenz, Carrie, Texas Christian University, International Journal of ePortfolio, Building Personal Brands with Digital Storytelling ePortfolios, 2017, Volume 7, Number 1, 67-91

Kelly, Michael, Telling your story through video, Leadership, Copyright of Leadership is the property of Association of California School Administrators

Lake, Laura, How to Build Your Own Personal Brand Tips on Personal Marketing and Strategy, The Balance Small Business, May 30, 2019,https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-to-build-your-own-personal-brand-2295808

Lake, Laura, Tips on Creating and Growing Your Personal Brand, Why Everyone Should Cultivate Their Personal Brand, The Balance Small Business, January 17, 2019,  https://www.thebalancesmb.com/creating-and-growing-personal-brand-2295814

Lake, Laura, How Creating a Personal Brand to Market Yourself, The Balance Small Business, May 26, 2019 , https://www.thebalancesmb.com/what-is-personal-branding-4056073

Mainwaring, Simon, Master the Art of Telling and Selling a Story, September 22, 2016, http://simonmainwaring.com/webinar/master-art-telling-selling-story/

Maiy, Lauren Pérez, Strategic storytelling elevates organic social-media strategy, INDUSTRY INSIGHTS, Hotelmanagement.net, Questex Media Group,  August 2018.

Niels, Frederik, Cohen, Scott A., Scarles, Caroline, The power of social media storytelling in destination branding, Journal of Destination Marketing & Management 8 (2018) 271–280.

Nossel, Murray, POWERED BY STORYTELLING, Excavate, Craft, and Present Stories to Transform Business Communication, McGraw-Hill Education eBooks, 2018

Pexel Photos: https://www.pexels.com/search/Renaissance%20/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-bath-tub-2306210/

QUICKSPROUT, How To Create Your Personal Brand Vision, QuickSprout, March 3, 2019, https://www.quicksprout.com/create-personal-brand-vision/

Smith, J. (n.d.). The Sitcom Cringe. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.inoveryourhead.net/2010/10/20/the-sitcom-cringe/

Walter, Ekaterina and Gioglio, Jessica, The Laws of Brand Storytelling, McGraw-Hill Education, 2019

Widrich, Leo,  The Science of Storytelling: Why Telling a Story is the Most Powerful Way to Activate Our Brains, Life Hacker, 12/05/12,  https://lifehacker.com/the-science-of-storytelling-why-telling-a-story-is-the-5965703

Zak, Paul J.   Why Your Brain Loves Good Storytelling ,Communication, Harvard Business Review, October 28, 2014, https://hbr.org/2014/10/why-your-brain-loves-good-storytelling

Assignment 1; Blog#4 B2C Case Study

From B To Shining C

Bee flying to Sea (B2C)

H&M

An explosion of fashion and a phenomenal number of social media, dazzling advertisements, movies, tips, trips, cultural promotion, and an array of entry points inclusive of customer service, store locations, and environmental responsibility. This fashion giant, H&M, seems to have the glimmering photographs, splendid navigation, and discounts where appropriate. Nonetheless, there is lacking when compared to some competitors and oddly it is right at the Business to Customer (B2C) level despite all the glory and fireworks when attending their website and social media. Customer engagement is imperative.

Customer engaging for online purchase

Customer Engagement

H&M do a phenomenal job at consumer engagement. At every turn on social media there is a cornucopia of delightful models, blouses, pants, shirts, shoes, men, women, children, exotic travel scenes and the like. They are colourful, fashionable, light, heavy, seasonable, and they know their accessories. However, they are not approachable due to some issues that become obvious and their respective use of social media is more for product promotion than customer engagement.

Social Media Apps

Social Media and H&M

H&M uses a bounty of social media. They employ YouTube extremely well. It encourages viewership by the breadth of topics of fashionable concern. Beauty, swimwear, makeup, designers, back to school matters and travel. There is little interaction by consumers and each video seems to be well scripted and uses models. Thus far, there is a perception that no consumers are interviewed about the product at hand. Very professional, but not customer interactive.

Facebook is well utilized for promotion, but any customer complaint is dismissive and relegated in the language used. Instagram, though colourful and robust, again, has no customer pictures, nor community. Their “Your Stories” is a ruse by nature of every Instagram photo is a given reflection of a fit model without blemish or overweight persons as reflected in the real world.

Twitter reflects the above. It is an ad nauseam of advertisements and a few seemingly directed comments by alleged consumers.  On two social media sights, the Community pages read as “Sorry, this content isn’t available right now”. They also use a magazine format for a blog, but purely for advertising. Where is the communication?

What we have here is a failure to communicate

There is little to no customer communicative interaction. There seems to be no real back and forth as is indicative in B2C. It must affect sales as “social Media is not a one-way street and it requires you to listen and interact (Ryan, 2019).

Nordstrom is an excellent model to follow. Through all their social media there are appropriate and well worded responses to customers and effective email marketing that ensues. They deal with customers diplomatically, make appropriate referrals and point them to an array of clubs and discount points where needed. A good blog is in place to facilitate changes in customer and fashion activity (King, 2015).

https://bit.ly/188dxN0

https://bit.ly/1ckcXew

References:

Barker, Shane, The Most Effective B2C Social Media Marketing Channels to Grow Your Business, Media, Jul 25, 2018, https://medium.com/swlh/the-most-effective-b2c-social-media-marketing-channels-to-grow-your-business-32d4052210f9

Coca-Cola | Facebook. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2017, from https://www.facebook.com/cocacolacanada/?brand_redir=40796308305

Creative Commons Photos:

“at sea” by tamaki is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/e7de3a13-eacc-4456-8f28-eae09182eff8

“Bee visiting for a breakfast” by Theo Lagendijk is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/345c203c-3b08-490d-8a38-2f6553741baa

Dalenberg, Alex Inside Tucson Business, TucsonLikes seeks to corral social media for businesses,JUNE 8. 2012, Wick Communications

De Pelsmacker, Patrick, Geuens, Joeri, Van den Bergh, Maggie,   MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS Fifth Edition, Maggie Geuens Joeri Van den Bergh, © Pearson Education Limited 2001, 2004, 2007, 2010 , Edinburgh Gate, Harlow CM20 2JE, United Kingdom

H&M, https://www2.hm.com/en_ca/index.html

Harris, Jess, Sales & Service Excellence Essentials, 7 Best Marketing Tools For Small Businesses, How technology can help you increase customer base, HR.com Inc., 2016

King, Kim Ann, The Complete Guide to B2B Marketing New Tactics, Tools, and Techniques to Compete in the Digital Economy, © 2015 by Kim Ann King Published by Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458

NAC Podcasts. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2017, from https://nac-cna.ca/en/podcasts

Perry, Patsy,   The environmental costs of fast fashion; Water pollution, toxic chemical use and textile waste: fast fashion comes at a huge cost to the environment, , Independent,  8 January 2018, https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/environment-costs-fast-fashion-pollution-waste-sustainability-a8139386.html

Nordstrom, https://shop.nordstrom.com/content/canada-department-stores?origin=tab-logo

Pexel:

https://www.pexels.com/search/customer/

https://www.pexels.com/search/social%20media/

https://www.pexels.com/search/no%20communication/

Ryan, J., Digital Communication, Lesson 4: Choosing the Correct Storytelling Tools for Your Audience, Lesson Content, Readings, Lesson Notes, B2B vs B2C vs B2G, Algonquin College, 2019

Scollon, Ron, and Wong, Suzanne, LANGUAGE IN SOCIETY 21, Intercultural Communication, A Discourse Approach Second Edition, Chapters 2. Language and Social Networks (second edition)Lesley Milroy, 17. The Language of the News Media, Allan Bell, 2001, Second edition published Blackwell Publishers Inc., 350 Main Street, Malden, Massachusetts 02148, USA

Sibley, A. (n.d.). 10 Things That Take a Webinar From Good to Great. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/webinar-planning-list#sm.000vynto11461f7ossw2rl26phqxt

Wang, Cheng Lu, Exploring the Rise of Fandom in Contemporary Consumer Culture, University of New Haven, USA, Chapter 8, Charging Fandom in the Digital Age: The Rise of Social Media p. 147 Shuojia Guo, College of Staten Island, USA, Chapter 9,Diversity of Fans on Social Media: The Case of Entertainment Celebrity in China p.163Xinming Jia, Zhejiang International Studies University, China, Kineta Hung, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, Ke Zhang, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kon, Copyright © 2018 by IGI Global

Wilson II, Clint C., Gutiérrez, Félix F, Chao, Lena M, Racism, Sexism and the Media, 4^th Edition, 2013, SAGE Publications, Inc., 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, California 91320

Yates, S. (n.d.). 13 B2B Newsletters That Really Shine. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from https://blog.hubspot.com/insiders/b2b-newsletter-examples

Assignment 1, Blog #3 Target Audience, apologies to Marilyn Manson (Narcissus Narcosis)

Finding the Target

The target audience has a proclivity toward a more intelligent profile and also remains culturally and racially sensitive. Our company deals in Canadian apparel, accessories and general clothing. We continue to deal with socially aware and unionized employee manufacturers with whom we can transact in bulk supply, but, more so, clearances and unpackaged “over” sales. Currently, our audience looks, more generally, for t-shirts, hats/caps, raingear, and some pant wear.

We can source through the manufacturer, or other firms, needed embroidery or crests as they need apply on the garments to represent a campaign, group, protest, theme, or other organization as preferred.  To retain smaller customer groups and orders, we can do this in house with iron on or heat press. Protest and issue groups remain specific and adamant about clothing origin and the intention of the themes they wish to promote through such messages.

Indigineous Person in Toronto PRIDE Parade

Indigenous People and Content

Indigenous people of Canada, and specifically in the Bruce Grey area of Ontario, the Saugeen First Nations, are studied and accessed through Statistics Canada, and a monitoring dashboard inclusive of Google Trends and Twitter Moments derived generally in the Politics sub category to examine both local and national trends. More generally, working with constituency groups, environmental groups, works, unions, small companies, etc., There remains ongoing demands for different types of design, material use, their audiences and targets and logo/symbol generation for clients or prospects at hand.

We work closely with the indigenous community for design and content to closely represent and remain inoffensive to both their artists and creative community, and to ensure the most representative product for them with regards to content and production.

Ecological Fabrics Used for Environmental Textile Use

Environmental Textile

Tweet deck has been brilliant in following trends and issues more specific to Canadian materials and local development of like minded industry. We strive toward the use of Canadian and American cotton only product, next to bamboo, rayon, hemp and Tencel (Lyocell/Modal). The critical nature of the above products is that they will degrade, they will work themselves through the compost process, and they are not made from single use plastics as in plastic pop-soda bottles into polyester shirts.

 Monkey Survey has been very useful to get feedback in design, colour and environmental context when allowed on three websites including college faculty, local PRIDE group, and matching sign and shirt design for a given protest group. The use of Monkey survey had provided a path to be discovered by others.

Canadian Flag 150th Anniversary Sesquicentennial

 Flag Waving Beginning

The genesis of our organization came from the national celebration of Canada’s 150^th Anniversary, in 2016, or as is more fitting, our Sesquicentennial, as the City of Toronto used for such an event a very few years ago. The federal government outsourced 70% of all purchases for the annual celebration over that year, despite the fact was very competitive in the textile, plastic and novelties market, just for such an event. Hence, we were born, or awkwardly hatched as an outfit. In fact, our name became was from given slogans we had employed. Many groups tended toward the use of the term “caucus” as opposed to group meetings or committee meetings. Hence, the name “Swag Caucus” was born.

Flooding River

Crisis and Respect

We use Google Trends to cite issues sensitivities to some client and social groups may exist. A brilliant recent example was to send a message of empathy to workers in Ottawa when recent flooding occurred which we discovered through the Canadian Red Cross Society on Google Trends; the nature of emergency, assistance and giving during the crisis. Since, we have worked with Injured Workers Groups locally as a result.

We continue to eek out and utilization every facet available and to give partial or full ownership to products and design where appropriate and where necessary. By nature, we must be very sensitive both culturally and from an issue orientation to both learn from our clients and address them properly as a matter of respect.

Twitter.com https://bit.ly/1ckcXew

Facebook.com https://bit.ly/188dxN0

References:

Balance, C. (n.d.). Tips for multicultural social media success. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.imediaconnection.com/articles/ported-articles/red-dot-articles/2010/feb/tips-for-multicultural-social-media-success/

Creative Commons;

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/b146ba92-cc65-4644-aeac-c4b7895f21cf

“IMG_4151” by sdaponte is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0  

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/d198a9b2-8839-46b0-ad1f-6c6335ccfeeb

“Canadian flag” by Arnoud Boekhoorn is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/cda00107-9398-4361-80fb-1fc163e43a4d

“RSC_1871” by robert shell is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 

https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/8ddd1755-7dc1-4b3d-a11d-b8c62afb3166

“Warm weather yarn options” by savannahchik is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Hepp, Andreas, The Cultures of Mediatization, 2013, Polity Press.

Pexel.com,

https://www.pexels.com/photo/group-of-people-in-a-discussion-1483907/

https://www.pexels.com/search/protest/

Thompson, Elizabeth, More than 70% of Canada 150 swag made outside the country, Government spent more than $2M on clothing and other Canada Day merchandise made overseas, CBC News · Posted: Jun 30, 2017 5:00 AM ET https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada150-canadaday-procurement-government-1.4185265

 

Statistics Canada

https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=FED&Code1=35014&Geo2=CD&Code2=3541&Data=Count&SearchText=Bruce&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&TABID=1

https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=FED&Code1=35014&Geo2=CD&Code2=3541&Data=Count&SearchText=Bruce&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Aboriginal%20peoples&TABID=1

Tweet Deck

https://tweetdeck.twitter.com/ canadian clothing

Wolfe, Isobella, Here Are The Six Most Sustainable Vegan Fabrics, 24 Sep 2018 https://goodonyou.eco/here-are-the-six-most-sustainable-vegan-fabrics/

https://goodonyou.eco/here-are-the-six-most-sustainable-vegan-fabrics/  Tencel is primarily an Australian product  it is 50% more absorbent than cotton, its superior moisture-wicking and anti-bacterial properties make it ideal for use in activewear.

Requiring less energy and water than cotton, Tencel is also biodegradable and according to Lenzing, sourced from sustainably managed eucalyptus plantations. Although it does require petrochemicals in the production process, they are used in a closed-loop system meaning the same solvent is recycled time and time again to minimise harmful waste.

Assignment 1; Blog# 2 The End Is Near, Right Now, Actually.

Batman

The end is here, right now, actually if one is to follow the panacea for digital story telling, or NOT! This lesson has served such purpose as to grasp readers with a solid lead, bent toward the end of the story and never losing the lead. It makes one feel that both Clark Kent and Lois Lane were devoted to the Daily Planet as journalists before all this crime fighting and slug matched occurred. In fact, Mr. Kent often created his own news which remains all things are possible for social media enthusiast and bloggers. One may deduce, there is a little Superman in all of us. Superman always won.

Is this the Birthplace of Kryptonite?

Kryptonite was the evil mineral that could destroy Superman, much like poor grammar, writing style, and story planning. Effective? Poignant? Direct? Don’t let the above criminal misspellings, plurals and awkward flow become the entity that drives fellow bloggers or followers from your story, nor compel other to leave early. That is merely rude. Engage them and cage them into a mania of interest that will conclude in a devoted and interested follower. Certainly, let them know when your next story appears as Batman, would chime, at the same BAT time and the same BAT channel. Certainly leave clues when your serial stories will rise again to thwart boredom and displeasure.  Another words, be punctual on both fronts of timeliness and grammar. Popeye’s spinach!

There should never be a fear to endeavour to find historical matters on issues to be concise in a given story, or the genesis of the subject at hand. Superman eventually found that crystal in his cave in the Arctic, giving not only Canadian content to the story but a perspective and deepening of his personal tale and the audience’s serial attention. If one is to grasp the such attention to keep and encourage readers, knowledge of the age range of the audience remains paramount.

Todays version of carving on a tablet.

I had researched a picture in Pixel.com (2019) for a tablet of commandments as Moses had received from God in the Old Testament and found only a plethora of computer tablets and a series of pharmaceutical capsules of a variety of hues and colours. Hence, research beyond the pale is often necessary to keep our readers happy for both consistence and depth. As with Superman, it gives perspective and interesting content to encourage your blog lovers.

As we continue on this saga, Brogan (2009) encourages a type of teaser to encourage people to make a second visit. The savvy Kryptonite in this blog, serves as only one of the criminal vices used to decimate our super hero. Are there more direct and useful tools to retain readers and strengthen the march of devotees to your site? Perhaps, next Monday may reveal some tantalizing idioms, and morsels of brain food to corral the champions of blogging. Let’s converse.

“People don’t read on the Internet; they scan, even more so than with newspapers. Make sure the most important information comes first, so it benefits both scanners (most people) and those who decide to read in more detail” (Article Alley, 2009).

Superman working out.

Batman had foiled scanners…or was that scammers? Batman had also discouraged children from playing in traffic. Nonetheless, we will! Internet traffic, that is. We will dangerously weave in the oncoming mayhem and those who wish to know. Carefully laying the bait toward the website can be caused by the most quizzical posts and a well articulated blog for deeper thinkers. Clark (2008) states, “it’s your job to close the expertise gap by reading well”. Certainly as the destination to the devotion of our blog readers is of a specific purpose, honing expertise in the field can develop a dedication to your blog, be it for a product, idea or perspective.

Our readers here desire the machinations and ends to be near for their respective consumption to embolden their communication to attract a steadfast following as is gently revealed in this blog. I continually encourage following the appropriate storytelling to engulf your reading kin and follow the dispersed expertise along this path. Excelsior! (Latin).

References:

Blog Writing: Don’t Bury the Lead! (2009, February 13). Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://teddemopoulos.articlealley.com/blog-writing-dont-bury-the-lead-783743.html

Brogan, C. (2009, June 08). 23 Essential Elements of Sharable Blog Posts. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://chrisbrogan.com/23-essential-elements-of-sharable-blog-posts/

Clark, B. (2008, August 27). How to Read. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.copyblogger.com/how-to-read/

Loney, M. (2007, April 10). 20 more writing mistakes that make you look stupid. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.zdnet.com/article/20-more-writing-mistakes-that-make-you-look-stupid/

Pexels.com, https://www.pexels.com/photo/adult-art-artisan-artist-1486470/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/ipad-tablet-iphone-6-smartphone-9038/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/low-angle-photo-of-man-wearing-batman-costume-2304123/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-and-red-superman-print-tank-top-shirt-38630/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/above-abstract-background-desert-288093/

One picture Photoshop altered from two of the above photographs. Man carving on tablet.

Satpaul,Vibhu, The Importance of Social Listening for Brands, April 25, 2014 https://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/importance-social-listening-brands

ShareThis. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://platform.sharethis.com/get-share-buttons

Tierney, William G., Corwin, Zoë B., and Ochsner, Amanda, Diversifying Digital Learning, Online Literacy and Educational Opportunity, © 2018 Johns Hopkins University Press, All rights reserved. Published 2018.

Twitter.com https://bit.ly/1ckcXew

Facebook.com https://bit.ly/188dxN0

COM0014 – Blog #1;Cruising the High Seas without Jack Sparrow

Holland America Cruise Ship (CC)

Avast me hardy!, and other incessant childhood fantasies about pirates, Peter Pan and Long John Silver shan’t apply in this situation. In this moment we are discussing travel, destinations, food, entertainment, cuisine, games, brunches, socializing, midnight buffets, fun, and, did I mention food? This given holiday was, indeed, the cruises that one hears about over the years, yet may not have generated enough intrigue to look seriously at it as a vacation option. Gangplanks are optional.

One gets considerable advantages that other forms of vacationing and travel may leave wanting. In fact, if one views such means objectively, there is a variety of travel and vacation nicely packed into one given bundle when on a cruise. It seems it is a floating resort, a boat of hikers going to destinations, a thespian life jacket, a casino with a rudder, a variety of bars and lounges at sea, an amusement arena weighed anchor,  and both a restaurateur and foodie haven ocean voyage. Contests, games, sport, cooking classes, theatre, comedy, magicians, on board and on shore destinations abound inclusive of good television movies, midnight movies and 24 hour room service included.

Hedonism, you say. Perhaps? But given variety and spice of life this may qualify to your taste. Answer these questions:

Vacation Survey

• 1. Do you look for a variety of things to do while on vacation?
• 2. Would you like to travel to different destinations in one vacation?
• 3. Do you enjoy fine food and cuisine?
• 4. Do ocean voyages interest you?
• 5. Do you like to both relax on vacation and have many activities as an option?

Should you answer “YES” to any or all of these, you may consider a cruise ship vacation or at least research, investigate or talk with friends about it.

Personal Experience

I blog this with enthusiasm. I must say one can enjoy a number of activities and experiences as aforementioned. A given day on a cruise ship can encapsulate a plethora of events, tastes or hi jinx; or you can just relax by the pool with a taco and pizza bar nearby. The fact is, one can do just about anything. Allow me;

In the morning I would have breakfast in the dining room, or breakfast buffet on the Lido deck. The I would make my way to library to enter a quiz contest for prizes. I would then take a leisurely stroll on the wide deck inhaling the sea air. Shortly, thereafter, I would stroll to my cabin to pick up fresh fruit left by the room staff, and head to a discussion given by the chief chef on the boat.

Food, food and more food

Holland America Menu

Certainly, after leaving such a talk, there would be lecture about magic given by the entertainer the previous evening with his magic hats and wands. Harry Potter would have been up for grabs. Post magic, I would then head to the Lido deck for lunch at a variety of outlets, depending on one’s taste for food, given, a variety of cultural and taste genres ranging from Greek salads, smoked meat sandwiches, to a vegetarian repast and health driven smorgasbord.

The afternoon may pack a given round of mini golf on a swerving deck as ball wildly changes direction and speed. Later a steam bath awaits in the spa with a swimming pool to cool down and iced tea and taco stand to fill that micro gaps of hunger since lunch. The ship later docks on an island owned by the cruise line for ocean swimming, chaise lounging (sic) as it were, and burgers grilled just off the beach.

Beach Walking On Shore https://www.pexels.com/video/woman-at-the-beach-1093665/

Ahoy, Dessert

A formal dinner will be required for a sumptuous feast in the dining room where the ship’s Captain joins a certain reserved table and the serving staff later creates a parade through the large room hoisting baked Alaska as the piece de resistance for the well fed patrons.

That evening, I would attend a musical in the theatre hall, and top off the evening with a midnight movie in the show room with popcorn and an enthusiastic crowd of newer movie patrons. Post facto, I would lug my engorged body pasted with a day of activities to my clean cabin for a much needed rest to dream and await a food and games laden day at sunrise.

Fitness on Raft

Spinning Fitness Onboard

At last, for the indulged guilty a cornucopia of onboard fitness centres, training classes, schedules on deck walks, health spas, and pool can begin to cut into the obtained calories and dessert smatterings foisted upon one’s self. Leave a little room for other guilty pleasures.

It may be a obvious that a vacation with Holland America may have impressed me. But, nonetheless, as a consumer of vacation and travel, a given overall critique may later render tips to observe and calculate into your decision making process in choosing a specific cruise and travel plan for yourself. I am certainly not an expert. Yet, with more cruise experience I shall later discern as to what is fitting and what may disappoint. That being said, the entire cruise concept is certainly worth the effort and experience. See what be out there for you. Bon voyage.

References:

46743231381_aaaf8f8835_b Online Survey by Got Credit is licensed under CC BY 2.0, Creative Commons, CC Search, https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/

Bordeau, Jessica, Blogging For Web Designers Editorial Calendars And Style Guides,Smashing Magazine, August 30, 2010 , https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/08/the-importance-of-consistency-using-editorial-calendars-and-style-guides/

Couple Walking on a Beach Filmed with a Drone, Pexel Videos, https://www.pexels.com/

CC Search, https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/

eMarketer, Younger Users Spend More Daily Time on Social Networks, Facebook’s user penetration is more than double that of any other social network, November 18, 2014, https://www.emarketer.com/Article/Younger-Users-Spend-More-Daily-Time-on-Social-Networks/1011592

Hodkinson , Matt, Influence Agents, The Essential Social Media Toolkit for Small Business, June 2018, https://www.influenceagents.com/blog/essential-social-media-toolkit-small-business

Holland America,  https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US.html Holland America

Pexel https://www.pexels.com/ https://www.pexels.com/video/woman-at-the-beach-1093665/

Tam, Simon, Huffington Post, 5 Social Media Listening Tools That Every Business Should Be Using, Updated Sep 11, 2014, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-young/5-social-media-listening-_b_5317531.html

They’re at the P.O.S.T., They’re Off; The Horse Race of Social Media Strategy

Its Facebook by a nose!

https://www.pexels.com/photo/action-athlete-competition-course-158976/ edited

Password is: DASMSCOM0012

 

Get On The Saddle

The imperative for success demands an alliterative handle of patience and persistence. This blog lends its support to the interactive nature of comments and observation, as well as input and continual updates from this site. Therein lies the participation and questions from the well experienced to the green tinted novice. Its never too late to take brilliant advice, nor to pour over the basics for a reiteration of the wisdom that may have escaped our minds. Giddy-up Social Media is there to help.

It is a horse race. Its about practice and breaking old habits, then using newer ideas being all aware of any imminent changes. Just don’t use the whip. It is a strategy of input and support used to garner this brand to use the essential ingredient through recurrent accomplishment named encouragement. Here we will encourage pride and achievement to dwarf ego and boast. Support those frustrated and curate individual solutions.  Easier said than done? Giddy up!

 

Can I help you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.pexels.com/photo/animal-barn-building-cavalry-357321/

 

 

Stable Personalities

Let us introduce the our comments arena otherwise known as the stable. The generous nature of our commenters shall not go unread. We shall corral them into communities and utilize their nature, categorically, which shall go beyond the communities established in more traditional websites and blogs. Giddy-up creates a relationship between a problem, the answer, and the contributor. Dedicated contributors are approached often to ask to volunteer for online workshops and as forum moderators at Giddy-up and help us in the stable. Well, not using brooms nor shovels. More to help us smooth the race track for others, and look for newer trends, we call hay.

Rolling Along.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-hay-stack-65669/

 

 

Making Hay

A major task assigned to those participating in social media realms is to keep an eye on newer methods, innovative brands and progressive social media strategy to maintain our lead on the learning curve. Here we make hay to stay ahead and innovate where possible. Continuing assessment of our analytics is crucial to existing strategy and optimum effectiveness yet any tweak or newer product may fill that niche we require.

The Making Hay category will, of course, be a primary section of our subscription newsletter. The call to action to integrate the nuances researched, found or discovered will be foremost for our community to test and reflect their respective use. Social media are always endeavouring to upgrade the use and application of what already exists. Examples of video length has gone a long way to assist clients and users disseminate information, and allows spectators and views to better “chunk” the materials available in the learning process. I may prefer to pitch “bales” (sic) of related information to facilitate the education of others.

Thank you. Thank you.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-horse-794604/

 

Once Around the Paddock

For the prized stallions, mares, yearlings, geldings and everything above and beyond, the Paddock will be the stage for the best suggestions and/or research for the week. The flourishing of splendid and dazzling ideas and nuances will be highlighted that adds to our repertoire for salient features that makes everyone’s social media life easier.

Again, this focal point of voluntary research and participation adds to a core value of Giddy-up; encouragement. Such recognition of our clients and participants adds to the nature of our brand and our motivation. Passing on such core beliefs and the inherent values within, collectively we can only generate an aura of congeniality and support as well as some enthusiasm to see others succeed in getting around in the digital world.

The Paddock lends itself to the credibility of peers and offsets some of the discouraging overly competitive values  that can discourage such dynamism. Bringing others into this digital realm is paramount in reducing arising generational gaps that may occur with the advent of such technology. We’ve established a program to draw the generations together in a companion program in a peer to peer setting, with one peer in a given educational mode.

 

Hey Pal.

http://www.pexelscom-photo-1462368.jpeg

 

 

Companion Pony

Companion ponies are the best of pals with thoroughbred racing horses and are used to bring calm into a pre-race environment. Often, one will see this in a televised horse race where there are particularly big stakes and purses at hand. Money, that is, not necessarily an over the shoulder accessory. In the same manner and disposition the Companion Pony program puts a knowledgeable social media practitioner together with, in this case, older student to learn the crags, rocky ledges and summits of this mountainous knowledge of the digital world.

Such a “buddy up” program of similar ilk transpired in 2010 at the Peel Region Public Library system in Ontario. Seniors were coupled with high school students to learn some of the basics of computers and the internet. Weekly meetings were arranged in local libraries for periods of two hours and the students guided and taught seniors the machinations and intricacies of the computer world, and made the internet relevant to their lives.

The library system deemed it as successful, but as an observer the participating students were a bit quick, unclear on some definitions and procedures, and a bit inaudible for the group of seniors with whom they were engaged. As an observer, any appropriate training of the students as trainers, could have drastically reduced training barriers for a more effective learning environment. Nonetheless, all participants walked away with solid information and newer interpersonal perspectives.

The Companion Pony Program (CPP) seeks to bring a similar model together with less of a generational gap, and more of a patient and persistent approach. Consequently, the communication dynamics with the older participants program can contribute to the lexicon and vestiges of the digital world to which one’s family can relate.

The CPP is not restricted to just the generational mode, but can be applied as a tutoring system where any instructor-learner combination can apply. It is a different vernacular and the informational and linguistic function itself, is appreciative at any level. Herein lies the means to go beyond the traditional marketing strategy juxtaposed to the social media strategy as learners can identify newer levels of the flexibility of social media marketing.

 

A little ahead of themselves at the post.

https://www.pexels.com/search/horse%20race%20gate/

 

POST and SWOT

The (Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities and Strengths) SWOT model is an exceptionally traditional way to determine one’s market for one’s product. Moreso, can be used at a variety of levels including definition of one’s organization through an organizational review. SWOT is a brilliant approach to many marketing strategy, however the POST ( People Objectives Strategies Technoligies) method assists in directly creating a social media strategy and has a focus on that technology that creates outcomes. Finding excellent niche markets, between major markets, and market segments will assist newer participants at Giddy-up Social Media to find a market by themselves, perhaps, but helps in working at a genuine level that will encourage their abilties and learning process through their involvement with social media.

 

Patrick Meagher is an online student at Algonquin College. Currently, he is enrolled in the Developing a Social Media Strategy course.

 

I can’t get WordPress to cooperate with themes. I can’t get WordPress to do the work instructed by handouts, nor it’s own HELP section. It does not produce the categories nor the sections attributed in any of the help, tutorials, nor handouts.

 

 

Let’s alll get involved.

http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP

See what students can produce.

http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP

Social Media-Shaken, Not Stirred

“Shaker & Dose (HDR)” by DOS82 is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

James Bond, the perennial master sleuth spy, M-I6, of the British Secret Service and dashing sophisticated playboy noted primarily by his handle, 007, prefers his martini to be shaken on ice, and not stirred. A consideration offered to him regularly by inquiring servers and bartenders,  ask where they ask, “shaken, not stirred”? Obviously, knowing his preference as he is, no doubt, a generous tipper (sic).

We have perused the topics directed toward the use of social media as to whether it is, at times, an excellent service, or intrusive. As reflected in our discussion forums, are we being followed by apps for questionable reasons, or will it provide a convenience or satisfy a need. In my discussion paper I quoted;

There may have to be deliberately curtail, either by legislation or as a voluntary decree by the technology industry, the aggressive and personal invasion or the intention of certain “apps” as a matter of privacy and civil liberties and roll back aspects of the searching, following and detecting of the whereabouts of personal devices themselves.

The flip side of that same coin will see individualistic application and personalization of both the affect and direct effect of chosen apps. Nonetheless, Yiu embarks on the privacy and civil liberty aspects in both his video and on Twitter via a blog. He demonstrates exactly how each app, each response and the invasive nature of the internet clings to people on an ongoing basis (Discussion Forum 4).

One may have the ability to intentionally adjust respective apps to apply specific functions. Although that is the case today, the fine tuning may compliment both parties in question. Can a magician bring this to light? Allow me to use an obtuse example.

Photo by Nikolay Ivanov on Pexels.com

Magic Everywhere

Derrek Brown is a magician, mentalist, , illusionist, etc., from Great Britain. He has done some demonstrably spell-binding and effective distractions and “tricks” that tend to astound. One can draw their attention to a feat he had done with some advertising people. Brown had received these advertising people to an office and allowed them 30 minutes to come up with an advertisement for a taxidermy account. Indeed, the preparation and “stuffing” of ex-animal corpses for the purposes of a given client base, no doubt, hunters.

With the above in mind, these advertising gentlemen toiled and brain stormed for the allotted time and presented their findings, ex post facto, to Brown. After the said presentation by these ad gents, Brown pulled out a sequestered folder, hidden in plain sight of the ad gents, and revealed to them an advertising scheme that was “near” identical, despite a couple of similar nuances, that astounded and visibly disturbed the advertising gentlemen in question.

Brown, then went further to explain that on their journey by taxi cab to the office, several landmarks, devices, props, demonstrations, and billboards were visual emblems and milestones placed deliberately en route to the office. The predicted influence and mnemonic retention created the product that Brown presented. Such deliberate surroundings for that purpose create the idea of predicted outcomes for a client based on and with their permission (Brown, 2015).

Photo by Rodolfo Clix on Pexels.com

Can I Be of Service

Allow me. Let us use a dining and beverage establishment. De facto, a restaurant. Let us suggest that the client enjoys a specific restaurant with favourite meal styles, and favourite beverages. Most serving and waiting staff are brilliant at this idea. Especially for regulars, they can remember patrons, their drinks, their menu preferences, their habits and some personal facts. This familiarity establishes good given relationships between serving staff, patrons, the establishment in question, and, that personal brand. Ergo, the client is happy about the product. Good equals good.

However, capitalizing on this pattern and improving the relationship can improve trust and help manage the reputation of the establishment through proper management. If the client had an approved app on their personal device and was allowed to detect the same person’s proximity then the establishment will be alerted. A quick profile emerges in the establishment that may assist the serving staff to make suggestions, establish immediate familiarity, and promote product that the client may wish. The server may say, “oh, yes, you enjoy Creemore Springs Lager beer, don’t you”. The client may be elated by the interpersonal attachment and the perceived personal service (Fisher, 2011).

Photo by ELEVATE on Pexels.com

The constant customer may be rescued from a waiting line at the restaurant and told he was requested for a meeting in another room to defray the waiting time. The electronic signage in the restaurant window may change appearance, colour, pictures, etc., to summon the client into a familiar setting. The quality of lighting, the music in a booth, precision menu specials, and a range of other products and services can be tweaked and modified to attend to the client’s preferences and needs. It need not be complex, and it can obviously occur over a period of time. It’s the tailored, personal restaurant experience. There may be a cab waiting as well, if that is a preferred habit. This is the “stuff” of which science fiction is made.

Social Listening and Call to Action

Several questions may be at hand. Nonetheless, we are listening, we are tweaking, and we are looking for a return on investment (ROI). Our call to action is to service our client base, and this call is for the individual, for the specific person, and their friends. There is little doubt that applying the Metcalfe Law will create a nice networking effect as others, within the sphere of the client, will complement both the service and treatment of the patron (Wikipedia,2018).

Gary Vaynerchuk personal anecdotes and research suggests in this action that the word of mouth will be the predominant fact in this ROI and his adherence to listen, at all levels, socially, will produce great benefit (Vaynerchuk, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5yGJ-1d2l4). Apply your social media skills at all levels of your service and enjoy the returns.

 

Service with a Social smile.

http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP

 

Spin into control on Twitter.

http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP

 

Patrick Meagher is a student at Algonquin College in the Introduction to Social Media course, through Ontario Learn.

 

References:

Derren Brown Advertising Agency Task, Published on Dec 9, 2015

 

Lauren Fisher — Jul 16, 2011 in Social Media, The ROI of Social Media: 10 Case Studies (note Houlihan’s), https://thenextweb.com/socialmedia/2011/07/16/the-roi-of-social-media-10-case-studies/

Donna Freitas,  THE  HAPPINESS  EFFECT: HOW SOCIAL MEDI A IS DRIVING A GENERATION TO APPEAR PERFECT AT ANY COST, Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, United States of America.  © Donna Freitas 2017

Patrick Meagher, Discussion Forum #4, December 2018

Metcalfe’s Law, Wikipedia, last edited on 3 December 2018, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalfe%27s_law

Gary Vaynerchuk, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5yGJ-1d2l4  ;related to https://thenextweb.com/socialmedia/2011/07/16/the-roi-of-social-media-10-case-studies/

 

Do I Bring Flowers and Chocolates to an Update and get that social Engagement Ring?

 

https://www.pexels.com/photo/box-celebration-chocolates-decoration-356365/

“You don’t bring me flowers anymore”©.

 

To be relevant in social media one must update with a call to action and engage. Indeed, we must employ creativity and nuance to generate interest and therefore engage those within our network. Our websites, blogs and postings are in search for not only like- mindedness but also new followers, adherents and contacts. Certainly, we have quietly generated a base of followers, advocates and the “interested” yet we still must court these cohorts and keep their respective interest, as one would in any given relationship.

We shan’t forget to “wow” our followers and those who come upon through the use of video. Oh, there are gif’s, rotating pictures and various types of animation. But a good video can cut to the chase, explain weightier matters lightly and quickly, engage people at a fast frame rate.

Photo by Tookapic on Pexels.com

Video and its historic relationship to television has entertained us, sufficed as babysitting for youth and children, lulled many to sleep, brought emotion and cheers, and has been a plethora for advertising and commercials for generations. I advocate using video as a tool, a significant part of our social marketing strategy and a serious means of engaging spectators and followers. In short, my good friends, a means to step up our dating and updating of relevant and substantial information and call for action.

As maids of honour and best men, YouTube and Vimeo should figure largely in this relationship. However, the video itself, and the temptation to “vlog” are the subjects of focus. Get it, focus. Ahem. Some, about to be shared, experience opened dynamic possibilities to go beyond the pale of struggling for poignancy and push the parameters of affordable professional glitz. In fact I had the occasion to visit a studio that had the capability to place me behind a sports desk.

Imagine

https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/photos/a0927ef4-d1ba-4039-9f2b-e36e4c2375

We had learned from Lesson 3 that Vlogging, the use of video product as a tell a story format, is widely used by YouTube. Vlogging has been a brilliant advantage for both episodic and one time use.

“Vlog” – a shortened form of the word “videoblog,”  which is a blog that features video clips. Pew Research Center; http://www.pewinternet.org/2006/07/19/part-4-the-practice-of-blogging

Some people make a living at vlogging as other parties and social media has paid for such product. The medical field has taken a given shine to vlogging for documenting issues such as medical recovery and the progress of disease. This assists both patients and the community in general, and research shows that it assists people with literacy issues.

Researchers found that these health vlogs can impact patients’ psychological health [Song et al. 2012], promote health education for youth and young adults [Norman and Yip 2012], and improve health information literacy [Greenberg and Wang 2012]. This research trend suggests that health vlogs have great potential to improve patients’ wellness and their ability to self-manage their disease (HUH, LIU, NEOGI, INKPEN, PRATT, 2014).

However, the use of video for our purposes, whether blogs, websites, Facebook, etc., is of a more concise value to attract and engage our respective targets. What remains crucial is not to haphazardly toss-up a smartphone produced video, but to take into consideration the content and production value of such a tool. Updating and content should be both relevant and have a “pop” factor now and then.

I WANNA BE IN PICTURES

 

Photo by Pietro Jeng on Pexels.com

 

During a project in the community a colleague summoned me to a place in our city and made an appointment with a media professional. We entered his establishment to discover there was a video and audio studio in the rear of this establishment. Through discussion we went on a ride. His studio was equipped to make professional videos of individuals or small groups with a huge advantage. He could place you in any situation without leaving the room, and augment the surroundings to give any temperament one would wish.

A quick example is that he transposed me behind a sports desk, as a sport-caster with an enriched technical background, a polished floor and overhead spotlights with a teleprompter in front of me, should I wish to employ it. Wow! Coupled with an incredibly expensive audio system this was, shall I say, big league material, without a big league price. As we were working on behalf of a client the owner implied that with several changes in clothing, solid scripting, excellent content, and an agreement to a number of sets and backgrounds to be used, we could produce between four to six 3 minute spots in an hour. The going rate?  Two hundred dollars ($200.00) and hour.

Time and Money

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Now, two hundred dollars sound like a lot of money, however, and this is a big however, the savings of time and money would be tremendous. The quality, the flexibility, the professionalism and the product are well worth this layout of finances. If properly planned as a part of a marketing and social strategy, if  periodically changed and inserted wisely, and should the content border on excellence, such an expenditure may be wise and preferable to struggling with professional equipment and awkward travel.

Olenski at Forbes.com discusses in an article entitled ” 7 Ways To Up Your Chances Of Going Viral On Social Media” that content is critical and important before one involves themselves in advertising costs. He quotes,

Ayoub tells me that “content is and always will be the key to a brand’s success.” He added further that “I’d definitely say before investing into advertising, make sure your content is on point otherwise you’ll end up wasting money advertising something that doesn’t work.” So If you’re not able to keep customers engaged once they’ve visited your page with content, advertising is useless (Olenski, 2018).

So consider your personal brand, your content, and your overall social strategy before moving forward with professional video in your given node in the network. I re-emphasize that this venue is certainly worth investigating. Hopefully, you’ll get a second date from such an update and get engaged with your target.

 

Join the Discussion

http://bit.ly/2UiNeOr

Starring…your Personal Brand

http://bit.ly/2UiNeOr

 

 

Patrick Meagher is a student with Algonquin College through OntarioLearn participating in the Introduction to Social Media course.

 

References:

 HUH, J., LIU, L., NEOGI, T., INKPEN, K., PRATT, W., 2014, Health Vlogs as Social Support for Chronic Illness Management, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4488232/

Vlogger,  https://www.wikihow.com/Be-a-Vlogger

Todd Kelsey, PhD, INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING, A GUIDE FOR ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS, Copyright © 2017 by Todd Kelsey, Apress

Steve Olenski  Feb 6, 2018, 03 published at Forbes.com, 7 Ways to up Your Chances of Going Viral on Social Media, https://www.forbes.com/sites/steveolenski/2018/02/06/7-ways-to-up-your-chances-of-going-viral-on-social-media/#28aca19b17af

Margaret Rouse, Definition network node, August 2016, https://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/node

You Don’t Bring Me Flowers lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Spirit Music Group Songwriters: Alan Bergman / Marilyn Bergman / Neil Diamond 1978

 

 

 

Don’t Get Squished by Social Media and Depression

Photo by Kat Jayne on Pexels.com

https://www.pexels.com/photo/adult-alone-anxious-black-and-white-568027/

INTERESTING HISTORY

 

The advent of major changes in socialization, time management, leisure activities, outdoor activities, family priorities, after-school recreation, parties, and occasions for individual undertakings have shifted significantly in recent years. The culprit? Hi-tech, ominous changes in personal and business computing, the internet, mobile/smartphones, and, yes, social media.

There is little doubt that the benefits of such change have been brilliant. Business, marketing, science, communication, retail, social organization, medicine, etc., have all benefitted from this era of considerable technological advance. Fighting disease, research, aerospace, entertainment, design, transportation, and the remaining plethora of advantages from this development becomes speechless by nature, yet overwhelming in terms of advancement and its concomitant speed.

I have little doubt that our great class has thought about this issue, made contributions to the news portion of our postings, and hazard to examine this as a serious matter as we move forward through the social media learning process. Certainly the nature of communication and employment are two matters that concern us regularly given the state of technology and changing times. This, indeed, gives rise to worry and creates an era of “catching up” and worry.

GENERATION GAP and TECHNOLOGY

At one time the intersection of mental well-being and technology hardly seemed disquieting. Shopping, travel, communication, services, travel, vacations, work and daily life seemed predictable and orderly. We are approaching the third decade of the 21^st century and the seismic sea of technological change hath wrought havoc on many bystanders in its midst.

“For the Millennial then, technology may mean only digital or biotechnologies. If we were to speak broadly to some individuals from the Silent Generation,Boomers, Millennials, and Generation Y, technology may also mean automobiles,airlines, overhead projectors, flashlights, microwaves, ATMs, and so on. Hence, technology in the 21st century can mean many things. For example, technology could mean software applications, hardware, social media platforms, functional magnetic resonance imaging, mobile technology, and learning and content management systems, just to name a few ”(Tettegah,2016).

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

https://www.pexels.com/photo/planet-earth-87651/

WINDOW TO OUR WORLD

Today, social media provides our proverbial window on the world, and hence, that window is a lens through which we look. In terms of how we interact with that window and, therefore, that world, it comes down to the social media tools we choose, or the tools that are chosen for us in order to interact with others. My friends are on Facebook, your friends are on Facebook, we follow one another on Twitter, everyone appears in certain chat rooms, and previous traditional methods of communication are, somewhat, relegated to a back burner.

We now must rely on texted words, and not facial expression, we may not be able to interpret body language, but allow the text to be determined and delayed with no spontaneity, one may not be able to observe blushing or facial contortions to deduce the true mood of another.

BLUSHING

Photo by bruce mars on Pexels.com

https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-santa-claus-costume-716658/

This disruption of body language, tonal displacement, and physical interaction could lead to a detachment from human interpersonal interaction. We must then “trust” others and avoid aspects of our instinctual nature. Are we disconnecting, or are we too connected. Therein lays the issue and a call to arms for this matter to be discussed. We must look at our media ecosystem in an attempt to create a healthier dynamic between social media and human frailty and study “networked individualism” and its relationship to mental health (Serrano-Puche, 2017).

SOCIAL MEDIA-TORS (sic) IN SOCIAL MEDIA?

A study to be publisher in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology by Hunt, Marx, Lipson, and Young, from the University of Pennsylvania looking at the causal relationship between the times spent on social media and loneliness (CNN 2018).

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

https://www.pexels.com/photo/men-working-at-night-256219/

Social media are here, are now and are bringing its own problems as well as its own advances. Acting as students, users, promoters and beneficiaries of social media, we must safeguard society from any detrimental flotsam and, yes, jetsam that ebbs in from this seascape. As social media-tors, a term I just arrived at, with, no doubt, thousands of others has as well, we can insist on a forum of our peers and those in the industry to mitigate such harm and complications in this matter. Alcohol impaired driving and text driving does not assist the automobile industry.  Tainted food does not assist the restaurant industry. Precarious working conditions do not help employees or workers.  We must provide the insight and Leadership to convene and address this dilemma and assist in resolving matters contrary to mental wellness and social media.

References:

CNN Broadcast, Smerconish; Michael Smerconish, 2018, https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/downtime/study-social-media-increases-depression/vp-BBQ2IZj

Laura Hensley, Unplugged: Why these people deleted social media and prefer life offline, November 17, 2018, Lifestyle Global News, https://globalnews.ca/news/4669640/deleting-social-media/

Serrano-Puche, Javier , Chapter 9, P.202, Developing Healthy Habits in Media Consumption: A Proposal for Dealing with  Information Overload in;  Information and Communication Overload in the Digital Age, Copyright © 2017 by IGI Global

Gary Schwartz, How Haiti Changed Mobile Forever, Mobile Marketer, Posted Jan. 19, 2010, https://www.mobilemarketer.com/ex/mobilemarketer/cms/opinion/columns/5135.html

Jenny Q. Ta, What Impact Has Social Media Truly Had On Society, posted August 13, 2014, https://www.business2community.com/social-media/impact-social-media-truly-society-0974685

Sharon Y. Tettegah, Emotions and Technology Communication of Feelings for, with, and through Digital Media, 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved, Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier.

Patrick Meagher is an online student enrolled in the Introduction to Social Media course at Algonquin College in association with Ontario Learn.

 

  http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP

   http://bit.ly/2FMa3XP