Blog Post #2 – Strong and Weak Organizations

In this post I will discuss social media strategy for a strong organization which is Emirates Airline and an organization that needs to adopt a social media strategy which is Farley Mowat Public School (FMPS).

Emirates Airline on social media

Emirates airline knows how to make social media work for its benefits. They have an impressive social media plan within their marketing strategy. Some of the marketing campaigns that had high echo across all social media: #BeingThere campaign which was transmitted on different social media platforms, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Below I will explain how Emirates Airline was able to grow awareness about their network, inspire travellers, and engage people with their social media channels.

#BeingThere campaign

Emirates Airline had chosen 7 Globalista (travel is their passion) to travel to different cities, capturing shots & videos and post it on the social media platforms. I will highlight 2 social media tools that have been used successfully in promoting for the campaign.

Facebook:

• Facebook was powerful at this campaign as it helped to reach higher targeted people and video view volumes and greater interaction.
• 120 Million people reached on Facebook
• Over 60 Million Video views on Facebook and YouTube

Twitter:

• Emirates partnered up with many traveller bloggers, who shared Emirates content with their followers allowing Emirates airline message to reach out for more people on Twitter.
• High amount of positive tweets on #beingthere @Emirates
• Globalistas posted daily tweets about their trip and engaged people by asking them where do you think our next trip will be?
• Varieties of contents were posted on twitter to encourage people who are passionate about travelling to like, comment and share.
• Over 50 Million impressions on Twitter

In my opinion Emirates #BeThere campaign was victorious in all standards, their Goals & visions were clear, the media efforts was appropriate to the targeted audience, and they have chosen multiple social media channels that go well with their campaign.

Farley Mowat Public School (FMPS)

I believe Farley Mowat Public School can establish a professional presence that allows them to capitalize on this social space in many important ways. Facebook Page is an excellent opportunity for schools to supplement their web presence, although FMPS has a Facebook page but it’s not active.

If FMPS is consistent in keeping the information updated and accurate, students and families will likely come to rely on the Facebook Page as a resource to find information about what’s going on at the school.

Successful presence on social media provides an opportunity to showcase the unique culture of the school and promote the academic development of the students.

Also if the school is active on social media, it will be easier for community members to get involved and share their opinions on a variety of fronts.

First steps into the world of social media

• Understand the audience, where they are? What platform they use? What they like to read about. Most popular social media platforms are Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.
• How often to post and when
  • Facebook: school can post once or twice every weekday
  • Twitter: 2- 3 times a day
  • Instagram: 1 photo per day or many photos if there is an event or school trip.
• Timing: it is important to determine the best time to post. Most people are consistently checking in before they begin their day or after school/work.
• Well-constructed posts are essential to attract the audience’s attention and make them engaged.

References:

• “Emirates Be There Campaign.” Shorty Awards, http://shortyawards.com/8th/emirates-be-there-campaign
• Hersh, Fadi. “Emirates Airlines And Social Media Marketing.”Waterloo,19,June.2017, https://smbp.uwaterloo.ca/2017/06/emirates-case-study/
• “Be There with Emirates.” CREAM Inspiring Innovation , Havas Media, http://www.creamglobal.com/case-studies/latest/17798/37670/be-there-with-emirates/
• https://mashable.com/2011/04/26/facebook-for-schools/
• https://www.schoolwebmasters.com/Blog_Articles?entityid=233110

COM00014 Blog 7 – Personal Reflection

We’ve learned in this course that storytelling is a great tool to capture audience’s attention and make them engaged if done accurately. Carolanne Mangles in her post Storytelling is the future of Content Marketing strategy in 2018

Wrote “The power of telling your audience a story is a technique that must not be overlooked, because when done correctly with strategic planning – knowing who your audience is, where they are and what story they want to know – will provide great engagement with your content and brand.“

Also we’ve learned how to create messages that are appropriate to the brand of an organization or individual and this is explained perfectly in Carolanne Mangles’ post, she gave an example about National Geographic while they are masters at engaging their followers on social media platforms following great techniques such as posting high quality, colourful and unique visual content, using interesting, unusual, shocking, or emotional engaging first sentence to grip the audience, and writing texts that are full of detail and rich with every description of the subject of the image, their reason for being there / why they are important and descriptions of their surroundings.

retrieved from:http://yoursmallbusinessgrowth.com

The story that I would share with others about the challenges that I had faced when I decided to move away from family, friends & places where I grew up and came to live in Ottawa, new city, new people, new environment, how I had to start to learn new language, and earn a new certificate to work and blend into society.

 References:

https://www.smartinsights.com/content-management/content-marketing-strategy/storytelling-content-marketing-strategy/

image :http://yoursmallbusinessgrowth.com/3-ways-personal-reflection-can-help-you-grow-your-business/

Personal Brand

I was born and raised in Dubai, an advanced, luxurious, and the multicultural city that shaped my feelings and personality. Living in Dubai made me proud of my Identity as a Muslim woman who is wearing veil, speaks Arabic and English fluently, and believes in diversity and multiculturalism.

It gave me the skills and the strength to move and live in another city that shares almost the same values which is Ottawa Ontario in Canada.

In Ottawa, I easily built relationships with many people who speak different languages, have different backgrounds, religions, and skin colors. Living in two different cities: one in the east and another in the west played a critical role in defining my values and who I am. This is one of my characteristic that sets me apart from others

Another characteristic is, I like to be perceived by others as highly educated person who is always learning something new. I have finished my Master degree in Human Resources Management, studied French language and now I’m pursuing a social media certificate. I’m also a reader interested in reading books about human development and emotional intelligence.

Retrieved from:http://www.mongolia-travel-and-tours.com/horseback-horse-riding-tours-mongolia.html

 

I am an athlete, which is my third characteristic that makes me different from others. I enjoy different type of sports and every year I add a new sport to my list. When I was younger, I‘ve been always one of the top 3 winners in Bing Bong (Table Tennis), swimming and running races. I played Karate for 10 years and I have the brown belt. Since two years I’ve started learning Back horse riding and my next sport is learning kickboxing.

Voluntarism is my last characteristic. I learned voluntarism here in Ottawa. I found joyfulness in engaging with people from different places and contributing to the community I Live in. Right now I’m volunteering with Blood Canada and in the future I would like to volunteer with Food Bank here in Ottawa.

 

Reference:

http://www.mongolia-travel-and-tours.com/horseback-horse-riding-tours-mongolia.html

B2C-Emirates Airline

retrieved from Emirates.com

Emirates Airlines

Emirates Airlines are one of the leading airlines in the world. Its a brand to youth, innovation and adventures. In order to reinforce this image, the airlines are engaging proactively with its customers 24/7 by developing a high quality campaigns resulting in a strong presence on social media platforms.

Emirates Airline on social media

Emirates airlines know how to make social media work for its benefits. Some of the marketing campaigns that had high echo across all social media: #BeingThere campaign which was transmitted on different social media platforms, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Below I will explain how Emirates Airlines were able to grow awareness about their network, inspire travellers, and engage people with their social media channels.

#BeingThere campaign

Emirates Airlines had chosen 7 Globalista (travel is their passion) to travel to different cities, capturing shots & videos and post it on the social media platforms.

I will highlight 2 social media tools that have been used successfully in promoting for the campaign.

Facebook:

• Facebook was powerful at this campaign as it helped to reach higher targeted people and video view volumes and greater interaction.
• 120 Million people reached on Facebook
• Over 60 Million Video views on Facebook and YouTube

Twitter:

• Emirates partnered up with many traveller bloggers, who shared Emirates content with their followers allowing Emirates airline message to reach out for more people on Twitter.

• High amount of positive tweets on #beingthere @Emirates
• Globalista posted daily tweets about their trip and engaged people by asking them where do you think our next trip will be?

• Varieties of contents were posted on twitter to encourage people who are passionate about travelling to like, comment and share.
• Over 50 Million impressions on Twitter

 

In my opinion Emirates #BeThere campaign was victorious in all standards, their Goals & visions were clear, the media efforts was appropriate to the targeted audience, and they have chosen multiple social media channels that go well with their campaign.

 

References:

1. “Emirates Be There Campaign.” Shorty Awards, http://shortyawards.com/8th/emirates-be-there-campaign

2. Hersh, Fadi. “Emirates Airlines And Social Media Marketing.”Waterloo,19,June.2017, https://smbp.uwaterloo.ca/2017/06/emirates-case-study/

3. “Be There with Emirates.” CREAM Inspiring Innovation , Havas Media, http://www.creamglobal.com/case-studies/latest/17798/37670/be-there-with-emirates/

4. picture: https://binged.it/2yjRUKD

Analyzing your Audience

There are different methods to analyzing our audience on social media as mentioned in lesson #4; below are guidelines that I have used to analyze the audience for motherhood and parenting blog.

Analyzing the audience:

• Identify the target audience: Who the audience are? Where are they communicating? What are they discussing? For example, my blog is about motherhood and parenting, my targeted audience are parents, psychologist and educators. After identifying my audience, I have set a Google alert to notify me when articles are being posted that contain keywords such as: children and parenting, raising children, how to be a great mom. On twitter I followed influencers in my area of interest, these influencers post on regular basis. On Facebook I have chosen to join Facebook pages that has a high number of members to learn what type of topics that engage them and who are the active members on these pages. On Instagram i have kept my eye on the most active hashtags that discusses childhood & family topics. Implanting this detailed research guided me to have a great understanding what are the topics that interest people to talk about it in my blog.
• Understanding the industry: using specific keywords search related to childhood & family in Twitter search, Google alert, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram helped me to understand clearly my industry, how tough it is? What topics engaged followers more than others? This understanding played a great role in the way I choose my contents.
• Learn about my competitor: by doing quick search on the same social media tools mentioned above, I was able to identify my competitors, how they are perceived by their audience and what tools they are using. This step was very beneficial as I was able to determine my competitor’s weaknesses in order to use it for my advantage.

Successful online campaign:

#worldstoughestjob: A campaign that went viral in 2014, when a American Greetings Card store and Mullen made an uplifting video ad for Mother’s Day that offered a fake job. They posted it online, printed it in newspapers, and then held real interviews with a dozen unsuspecting people looking to take the position of Director of Operations. What made this job so interesting? Unlimited hours, no breaks, no time off, and no pay were just a few of the crazy requirements for the job. By the end of the video, the interviewees realize the job they are applying for is what many people feel is the most important job – being a Mom. In the last few seconds of the video, it reaches out to the audience saying, “This Mother’s Day, you might want to make her a card.” Steps For Viral Campaign Success: #WorldsToughestJob Videos (2014, June 12). Retrieved from http://www.pagemodo.com/blog/3-steps-viral-campaign-success-worldstoughestjob-videos/

 

References:

https://blog.hootsuite.com/how-to-create-a-social-media-marketing-plan/

http://ccol.algonquincollege.com/com0014/lesson-3/lesson-content/\

http://www.pagemodo.com/blog/3-steps-viral-campaign-success-worldstoughestjob-videos/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_3941651401&feature=iv&src_vid=MWcJZ210AaM&v=NDmHcTLdKGk

Blog 2: How to stand out

(Image via Bronco Round Up)

 

This week, I learned that writing is a great way to express feelings and in order to engage people with our stories, our writing style should hook the reader and make them excited to come back to the blog and even leave a comment or a like.

In the past, I used to think that I’m not a good writer and that’s why making a phone call has been easier for me than sending an E-mail. However, since I have written many blogs I feel more confident and I realized that being a good writer is not as difficult as I thought as long as I follow the right steps to reach out. The first step is to define my gaol, which means I should understand what I need the the reader to do; for example if I’m writing in my blog, my expected action from thereader could be to click “like”, leave a comment, or even share my blog. Second step, I need to understand clearly who my audience are and how to interest them to stick around. Third step is my writing should be clear and concise and this comes only if I have a clear understanding for the topic and I have the ability to simplify my thoughts, discuss, and engage with my audience. Fourth step is using active voice instead of passive voice. There are different points of view about writing in passive or active voice. Some advice that writing in a passive voice is more professional , While others advice writing in active tone is clearer and make readers more interacted. Personally, I’m interested in reading topics written in active voice and this is what I prefer while writing my blogs. Finally, Checking spelling and grammar is very important while writing an article or a blog. Reading a piece with many spelling and grammar mistakes show lack of credibility and professionalism.

 

Referances:

https://inspiredm.com/persuasive-writing/

 

Darwin-et awards

 

In 1985, the Darwin awards were created to honour those whose moronic behavior got themselves killed. Named after Charles Darwin and his theory of natural selection, the award is given, posthumously, to an individual who ends his or her life in dramatic, idiotic fashion.
Past winners include: Karmic Valentine Schadenfreude, who pushed his girlfriend into an icy river, then jumped in to kill her. Problem was she could swim and he could not. She swam to shore while Valentine drowned. A man named Anthony G died while driving around safety cones, placed around downed hydro wires, ignoring screams from passing pedestrian.

And then we have the story of Nguyen of Vietnam. While drinking with his friends, he got into a heated argument over whether the old detonator he found could explode or not. Nguyen assured his friends that it was too old and rusty to work. They disagreed. To prove to them that he was right, he put the detonator in his mouth and told his pals to connect the wires. He died on the way to hospital.

 

It’s not a stretch to suggest a Darwin award, which I like to call the Darwin-et award, to someone who is moronic, idiotic, whose ill advised tweets or posts gets them in hot genepool water. ( click )Twitter has become the go-to media for anyone who wants to chime in on the topic of the day.  To vent their displeasure on the goings on is society, it has become the soap box, on which anyone can impart their, sometimes ridiculous, dogma.

Now not everyone who joins Twitter does so with the sole purpose of espousing their misguided lunacy on the rest of us. According to the (Click) Huffpost, there are 10 types of twitter users: the egg, the lurker, the contester, the retwitter, the Bot, the #Teamfolloback, the Celebrity, the Guru, Business, and a whole bunch of normal people that don’t fit into the above categories. But for the purpose of blog, let’s focus on the moron. The celebrity moron.

There have been alot of celebrity mistweets in the past.(Click) Buzzfeed has a list of their top twenty five mistweets. And they are funny. But the best, and this year’s winner of the Darwin-et awards goes to: Roseanne.  Roseanne, an actress with a hit sitcom, flamed out in the most moronic, the Donald Trump of moronic, way with her tweet about Valarie Jarret, a black woman and  former senior adviser to President Barack Obama, looking like a monkey. Within hours of the tweet, ABC, the network that carried the program, cancelled her show. Thus ended her career.

 

C’mon down Roseanne Barr — you’re this year’s winner of the Darwin-et award!

If anyone wants to nominate next years winner, feel free. (Donald Trump is too obvious.)

Roseanne Barr

 

 

#celebrity tweets

 

 

Social Media- A Modern Addiction

How many “likes” are you earning a day? How many “followers” do you have? A race to be famous…

My friend…he was having an accident before an hour, broken his legs and had numerous fractures; seems not concerned about his health but his cell phone. He hungrily wants his phone back. Busy in watching the posts on Instagram and emerging into such fantasies. He now feels his existence as he was online. He might not believe but he was addicted to social media.

Never before have had the habits penetrated the unprecedented speed of the proliferation of social media around the world. Using the social media has been an inseparable part of our lives. Years ago, there were cigarettes, now it’s the fame on social media by getting “likes”. As the people are engaged with such stuff, much the data is uploaded and leaked, more the time is wasted. Same like in the gambling business, social media companies use intermittent variable compensation to hook their users.

I completely agree that social media has several benefits and advantages: from skill learning to skill showing, making contacts to making big companies and enterprises; only by using certain functionalities of social media and modern technology. But according to various experts, there is a major impact of social media on our mental health. “Everyone who has scrolled through Facebook knows how, instead of imparting wisdom, the system dishes out compulsive stuff that tends to reinforce people’s biases” has been stated in The Economist with their issue “Social media’s threat to democracy”.

One does not exist until it is recognized in social networks. The evidence is clearly in front of our eyes – like not leaving a phone while doing any damn easy thing. People are now decreasing the use of their minds and are moving further to be dependent on machines; which are remarkably increased after the introduction to the field of Artificial Intelligence. Although every technology has its pros and cons, one is here to use it in some better deeds. Nowadays, it is acting least as media for news but has more dumps of images and information that is not much relevant and reflects the stupidity of one’s thought.

I just wonder; would there be special seats for social media addicts in a movie theater or on the bus? Does large consumption of social media cause social cancer?

Twitter: Social Media … A Modern Addiction

Facebook: Social Media … A Modern Addiction

3 Reasons: Facebook should be integrated into High School Classrooms

High school students procrastinate more than six hours a day on Facebook (Tsukayama, 2015). For some students, it ends up costly toward their final grades. Facebook has become part of their daily life. It is almost impossible to stop them from using it. High schools can change the use of Facebook for these students by making it part of the curriculum- make it more positive. Therefore, Facebook should be integrated into the high school classroom because of following reasonable reasons; first, it is an effective way to connect students around the world. Second, students can use it for educational purposes.Third, it is a tool to engage students in the learning process.

Mind Map 

1. Facebook is a great way to connect students around the world.

Facebook creates an effective platform for students to build International communication between each other. Students in a various way can share their ideas by posting on their Facebook wall and comment on each other’s posts. For example, they can create a short survey research with five to ten questions. They can collect data from all over the world, by sharing it in their Facebook walls. Moreover, Facebook makes Group collaboration easily accessible for students internationally. They can work in a singular assignment or a group project by connecting and collaborating with each other through Facebook. Recently, in 2016, Finland ranked as a top education system in the world by the world economic Forum. Let’s say students are assigned to do a group project about “high school education system in Finland”. They can create a Facebook group chat and add students from Finland for collecting raw data from students. Most important of all, Facebook is a free online social network. Usually, other websites need a bank account or other information to have access to their data. Facebook is a network that most of the students are already a member of it, so they do not need to start everything all over again.

2. Students will learn to use facebook for educational purposes.

Since most of the high school students are already a member of Facebook and they know how to use it. They only thing can be school’s responsibility is to teach them how to use it for education purposes. In Facebook, students can create groups for each of their classes. For example; They can have a separate Facebook group pages for mathematics. They can share all of the related documents and discusses the related topic in separated pages so that they don’t get messed up with their school work. Another interesting way to use Facebook for education purpose is to follow academically informative pages on Facebook. For example, I am following a Facebook page that regularly posts mathematics formula including funny memes about math. All of the posts of these page appears first in my newsfeed. To be honest, I have learned and have always been refreshed about mathematics topic by following these particulate academically informative pages. Students can easily find related pages to their own subjects of interest in Facebook and follow them for gaining further information. Once of my favorite way of using Facebook for education, the purpose is to post school related blog on Facebook with my friends. I took social media for entrepreneur online class this semester. Most of our Assignments was to post blogs in word press. And most of our grades were based on those blogs. If students get used to posting blogs on Facebook with their friends by using Facebook, they basically learn new skills.

3. Facebook is a tool to engage students in the learning process.

 

Facebook encourages students to improve their writing skills. For example, Facebook has improved my writing skills. Every time I want to post something on Facebook –I want it to be grammatically correct –Because my friends are going to see it. Same with other students, they can express their ideas in Facebook. It might not be as academic as school teachers, but at least they get motivated to write and get creative with it. This leads to another crucial point, Facebook makes learning more fun. For example, students can make memes about what they learn in class and share it with friends on Facebook. Memes make learning more fun. Most important of all, students who use Facebook regularly, they have a great knowledge of computer. They get to explore computers themselves. Then there will be no need for computer class.

All in All, Facebook provides the opportunity for students to connect with other students globally. Students will learn that what they are using for procrastinating can be used for learning too. In addition to that Facebook is an exciting tool that can encourage students in learning process. With considering the above reasons Facebook should become part of high school classroom curriculum. Integration of Facebook in High school classrooms will bring a massive change in the traditional learning system. The high school will become a fun learning institution.

 

References

 

Obrien, A. (2014, September 23). Edutopia. Creating a Dynamic Facebook Page for Your School. Retrieved March 20, 2017.

Schelten, K. (2009, December 21). Do You Spend Too Much Time on Facebook. Retrieved March 20, 2017.

Tsukayama, H. (2015, November 3). Teens spend nearly nine hours every day consuming media. The Washington Post. Retrieved March 16, 2017.

The Irony of It…

This coming July, it will be 10 years since I got “popped” for having 6 small Cannabis plants in my backyard. A “reliable human tip”, according to court documents, was the catalyst for this interaction and it almost Ruined my Life. It caused me huge suffering, professionally, personally and financially. I almost lost my Job and my Pension. It cost me Thousands of Dollars in Lost Wages and Legal Fees. It was 2013 and Cannabis was Illegal in Canada. I was embarrassed and humiliated by what had happened but I was not ashamed of what I was doing. I was growing for myself, I wasn’t selling it, I wasn’t supporting the black market and I knew I wasn’t hurting anyone by Growing my own Medicine. The O.P.P. descended upon the Love Shack, (I wasn’t home), as if I was Pablo Escobar, no doubt spending thousands of tax payers’ dollars in the process. They found six, knee high tall plants and less than an ounce of weed in a jar. Hardly the stuff Cartels are made of but the “O-dots” always get their man, or is that the “Mounties”. Anyway, maybe you or someone you know has been Charged with Growing their Own. This story ain’t done but please feel free to share yours with us here at Pirateboarder Life. I’d love to hear from ya, right on.

Home is where your heart’s at and the Love Shack is mine…

“Hell hath no Fury…”

The saying has Biblical origins but I was living it in 2013. The Police had come to my house for a reason. They secured a search warrant based on the information they had. They did not fly over the Love Shack in a Helicopter and inadvertently spot my tiny crop. Someone pointed them in my direction. I was advised by a Lawyer not say anything to the Police. It’s standard and really good advice too. I’m sure from a lawyer’s standpoint, defending you, the less you say, the better. He said “We’ll beat it on a Technicality with the Search Warrant”. Well, I didn’t listen to the Lawyer. I came clean to my Employer and to the Police. I admitted that I had been growing my own Medicine for years and didn’t think I was hurting anyone. I even told the Cops, “the only reason I grew 6 plants this year was because I ran out after growing four last year and I didn’t want to run out again”. Like I said earlier, I was not ashamed of what I was doing by growing my own medication. I took my lumps like a man, but was deeply affected by it.

“What doesn’t Kill you makes you Stronger…”

Loud and Proud, Feeling the Love in the Ganja Garden

How times have changed. Ten years have flown by, it’s 2023, the Archaic Laws in Canada are gone and Cannabis is widely recognized for its Medicinal and Recreational use. I ain’t no philosopher and I don’t know the dude but German Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche coined the term “what doesn’t kill you…” and as you can see with the flex in the pic, I’m feeling it. 10 years ago I was hiding my ganja in the reeds. Look at me now! With legalization and the advent of Social Media, I have found the ability and the avenue to spread and pass on my message and story. I created Pirateboarder Life and started making YouTube videos and the creative outlet has spread to FB, Instagram and Reddit. This Old Dog has been well received Sharing the Love. With Tens of Thousands of Pirateboarder Life Crew Members (followers) and Millions in Combined Views across the platforms, I’m Feeling the Love too! My Old School approach to Growing your Own Cannabis is being followed by and helping thousands of people do the same. Believe me, that feels pretty damn good. It Validates in my Heart and Mind that I wasn’t doing anything wrong ten years ago when the Po Po swooped in. I knew I wasn’t hurting anyone back then but I had no idea ten years later, because of it, I’d be helping people now. I still don’t know who the “reliable human tip” is who dropped the dime on me ten years ago, and it don’t matter. I’m sending positive vibes their way, right on.

FaceBook has been the platform that has provided me the most opportunity to share my message and spread the love.

This Old Dog has yet to Tweet but I suppose this is what it would look like, right on. Screen shot of a Tweet. #pirateboarderlife

The Impact of Social Media in My Life

We all know that in today’s world, social media has become part of our daily lives.  Whether it be Instagram, Facebook, etc., most of us use one or more of these platforms on a regular basis. 

For years the only social media platform that I used was Facebook and LinkedIn, but I wasn’t a regular user in those days.  I joined Facebook because I had so may friends and colleagues asking me to join, and a lot of my friends were posting pictures of their many adventures or kids.  As for LinkedIn, my cousin had sent an invitation for me to join, so I did!

When I lost my job back in 2009 with the only company I had worked for since I was a teenager, things changed.  I became a regular LinkedIn user connecting with former colleagues, recruiters and constantly checking the job board hoping my next job was around the corner.  Truthfully, I hated it!  Although I am naturally an outgoing person by nature, I really hated sending blurbs asking complete strangers to connect with me or asking former colleagues to write a recommendation for me.  Its hard to do this when you are still having trouble coping with your job loss. I got more comfortable as time went on and was making great connections, landing interviews but things still weren’t working out.  Then, one day a connection shared a posting for a job that I was the perfect fit for.  I had a good feeling that this was the one!  I sent a quick message to my connection indicating my interest and formally applied on the company website.  I had 3 back-to-back interviews and got offered the job in which I happily accepted. 

Then, in 2017 I went through a horrible time in my life and needed a way to channel how I was feeling inside as talking to friends just wasn’t helping.  I remembered a friend previously showing me what Instagram was all about, so I decided to create an account.  I used my nickname and a different email to signup as I didn’t want to link my Facebook account.  I wanted to post things freely and express how I was feeling inside without judgement.  I connected with so many wonderful people who were complete strangers, but we had one thing in common- our feelings!  To my surprise, it was those interactions with complete strangers sharing their feeling and personal experiences that helped me feel like myself again.

I kept the account and then in 2020 I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition- Type 1 Diabetes a few weeks before the pandemic (Yup!  It no longer is known just as juvenile diabetes; it happens to adults too!).  This made it very difficult to get the proper support I needed to understand how to manage this life changing diagnosis.  Phone calls were too short, and I had a million and one questions to ask and not enough time to ask them in.  So here I am with a broken pancreas in the middle of a global pandemic!  As much as Google is helpful, I used to hate it when people would say ‘Just Google it’.  I have always been of the mindset that Google is not always your friend!  I needed to connect with people who lived and breathed this disease.  So once again, I turned to Instagram.  To my surprise there is an entire Type 1 community who were extremely welcoming, helpful, and super supportive.  They weren’t giving me medical advice, they were sharing their journey living with this disease, helpful tips, resources such as books to read, and most of all offering a shoulder to cry on when you have hard days- the highs and lows in the life of a Type 1 Diabetic as we say.  I have made some real connections within the community and am so thankful to them for helping me through. 

Although not all experiences on social media platforms are always positive (we all have heard, seen or experienced the negatives as well), there is no doubt how powerful and impactful it is in our lives.

Facebook or Instagram. Which is better for a Photographer?

Over the last 10 years, I have battled through all the ins and outs of social network platforms Facebook and Instagram, figuring out which option is the best way for me to express my work but at the same time tell a story through each photograph without having to write too much in the caption. Something I really noticed when posting on Facebook was it was more about the caption and what was actually written in the post that grabbed the attention of others where as Instagram it only grabbed the attention of others if it was a bright and characteristic photo that was relatable in some way to the followers or something unique that they had never seen in their life.

I was able to build a following over over 2,000 followers through Instagram just from posting an image every day with an average of about 20-30 likes and 5-10 comments per post. It started out with me posting unique photos of the city scape where I would capture a unique angle of the city from a vantage point that wasn’t as accessible as your average tourist spot ie. Centre Islands, Polson Pier, Nathan Philips Square etc. That same image posted on Facebook with the same caption and details as Instagram would only produce about 5-10 interactions total with a combination of likes and comments. Now, that being said if I posted that photo with a little bit more context, maybe a story of how the Image was taken, what camera settings were used etc. It may have done a whole lot better.

Hannah Butler  Feb 20, 2020

It has been proven that Instagram can be explained as the better option for a Photographer to express their talents through Instagram as a digital portfolio for brands and organizations to look for when potentially considering an individual for professional work.

IF you are a photographer/videographer or any sort of media enthusiast, which social media platform is your top choice when trying to present your work publicly in the social media world.

Help! What is the Best Social Media for Photographers?

Expert Advice: Facebook for Photographers

Nikky K – The hockey guy!!!

COM0011 – Introduction to Social Media

I love hockey! Social media plays a huge role in professional sports. I am going to share with you some of the ways hockey players use social media to promote themselves and hype up the game. I am only going to cover hockey players and invite you to comment on my pics for the best vs the worst. This article shows how serious the NHL is taking social media as a marketing tool. https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-expanding-social-media-communication/c-292994654

In trying to explore the best and the worst social media accounts of NHL players, I used this resource https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-players-discuss-best-social-media-presence-in-league/c-312104462 to explore the social media platforms that the actual players in the NHL think are the best and the worst. As there are many areas to explore when judging what makes a good platform, I am looking at their ability to cover many aspects of their lives and how they connect to their careers.

The BEST – https://twitter.com/PKSubban1 PK Subban has the most interesting Twitter account of current and retired players. He played for 13 seasons and retired last year (2022) Although this is an interesting account, I am going to stick with current players. Please explore his account to see how it is done right. So… moving onto current players, my pick for the best current Twitter account is….drumroll….CONNOR MCDAVID. Not only is he the best hockey player in the world. His twitter account ROCKS. https://twitter.com/cmcdavid97. He shows not only his talents on the ice, but also his charity work https://twitter.com/cmcdavid97/status/1600990562596683776?s=20 and promotional commercials. https://youtu.be/fCJz2YtNdjQ. I love this commercial. The greatest player of all time with another potentially GOAT. Tell me what YOU think. There are many articles that show that the younger players know how to use their social media much better than the older ones. Who would have thought?

I think the best players in the world make the players around them better. And I’m always trying to do that.

Connor McDavid

THE WORST (cont.) – Now let’s look at Facebook for the more “experienced” (older) fans and hockey players. I don’t like facebook as much as say my mother and grandfather do but let’s take a look because they are the fans who can truly afford the tickets to the games (especially the Leafs). Brad Marchard (https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=brad%20marchand%2063) with the Boston Bruins is not a very well like player, except maybe with Boston fans. His Facebook page is just as uneventful. Most of his posts are about himself and his accomplishments. There are a few charity posts, however, he is cocky, rude and mean. This comes out on the ice and also on his Facebook page. If players are trying to get more followers etc….his Facebook platform won’t. His arrogance and boring posts will definitely keep fans away and won’t promote his team.

I don’t play in spite of people, I play for the people who pushed me along, the people who have helped me succeed. Brad Marchand

My social media promotions posts

Facebook –

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href&show_text=false&width=846&t=0

Twitter –

Hint: #97 and #23.
I am Nikky K the hockey guy!
NICKKHANHOCKEY

— NikkyK hockey (@NikkyKhockey) May 23, 2023

Blog 2 – Storytelling in the Digital Age

This week’s lesson was ‘Storytelling in Digital Communications’. Here are a few things to consider when you want to break out into the digital space as a writer.

Storytelling

To keep your audience engaged, you need to tell a story. Storytelling has been fundamental throughout history – it is still as fundamental now as we change our world to the digital space. Now that anyone and everyone who has access to a computer can post online, ensuring your ability to tell a story can help set you apart from the crowd. No matter that platform you’re using, whether it be social media, blog posts, writing articles – it is important to remember you’re telling story to your reader that is meant to captivate, motivate, and entertain (no pressure or anything).

Communications Styles

A communication style is how you, as a writer, decide to share information with your audience. Think of every person in your life. Think of how differently you speak with your mom vs, your teacher, or your friends. You are exhibiting different communications styles based on your audience. When posting online, in such a saturated space, you want to ensure the way you choose to communicate has the style that best suits your audience. This can include being succinct, using an active voice, and proofreading your work for any errors. This is a small part of your overall style, but with simple adjustments like that your writing can have more of an impact.

Interacting with your Audience

To make the most of the two-way abilities social media has to offer, you must entice your audience to engage. Interacting with your audience is a great way to build your following, learn more about them, and boost awareness of your content. However, to achieve this you have to be specific about what you want from your audience. Do you want them to leave a comment? Share your post? When you create your call to action in your post, be specific so they know exactly how to engage. This also allows them to engage with other people in the comments as well, it creates healthy discussion amidst your posts.

Many people underestimate the thought that goes into web publishing. There is so much content out there it is important to keep your audience in mind and be true to your communication style and you will shine!

Cold Weather

Daily writing prompt

How do you feel about cold weather?

View all responses

I hate it. Done

COM00014-Blog 2 — Storytelling lessons: Think about these Three Things First

There are many different ways to tell a story.
© BillionPhotos.com/Adobe Stock

The approach to writing strong online content is based on storytelling, but it’s important to understand that not all stories are built the same. As an avid reader of fiction, I appreciate the impact and resonance of stories. Humans are natural storytellers and respond positively to messages presented this way. However, I can’t help but contrast digital communication with creative fiction, if only to help myself gain a better understanding of the subtle differences between these types. Three characteristics that distinguish the types of storytelling include:

1. The reader
2. The story structure, and
3. The value of brevity in the writing. 

How is your reader accessing your story?
© Prostock-studio/Adobe Stock

The reader

Readers accessing online content have a myriad of choices. Many are driven by an objective and arrived to a site through a search engine. The competition with other similar options is strong and if the reader doesn’t get the point of the story, they’ll quickly bounce to another page. In contrast, readers settling down to creative fiction are seeking entertainment and are prepared to spend 300 pages or more with the same story.

The story’s structure

Online articles and blogs begin with the most important concept to grab their audience’s attention. This structure is often referred to as the inverted pyramid (check out this great explanation of the inverted pyramid from MindTools). The key message or point of the story is stated at the beginning. Subsequent paragraphs drill down into the details. Appeal to readers’ tendency to skim! On the other hand, a novel has the luxury of a captive audience. This provides the opportunity to build a narrative and reveal clues slowly and strategically to move a story forward until the big reveal at the very end. Would the murder mystery genre be as popular if the killer was revealed in the first paragraph?

Brevity

Visitors to a blog or website are looking for information quickly. Too many details increase the risk of losing the audience’s attention. In contrast, novels use long, detailed descriptions to transport a reader into the story’s universe. Great pains are taken to describe minute details of a crime scene, or the lush background of a clandestine rendezvous. Plots are developed slowly and strategically over hundreds of pages.

In summary…

It’s essential to know what kind of story you want to tell. The skills of a great novelist don’t automatically translate to the online environment. To communicate effectively, consider the type of reader targeted, structure the story accordingly and use detail strategically. What kind of content will you be creating?

TikTok Obsessed

Let’s go back in time to the age of Musical.ly which started in 2014. This app is exactly like TikTok, you can record videos with sounds over them, duet or collab with other videos, comment, like, and share. The most famous video were influencers lip-syncing over known songs and moving their arms in a robotic way. This article shows that in 2017, ByteDance – a Beijing-based tech company, transitioned Musical.ly to TikTok since it was worth $1 billion.

Vine Wannabe

Personally, I and people in my friend group would compare it to the very missed app Vine. Vine was a great social media platform, similar to TikTok, where you only had six seconds to film a video. Vine was only five years old when it shut down for multiple reasons. You can read about those reasons here. Since Vine shut down and everyone moved to TikTok, there was some hardship towards the new app since we all loved Vine so much. Eventually, we got hooked on TikTok. Although, we never forgot about Vine.

My TikTok Story

I downloaded TikTok in 2018. I just started university and my friends convinced me to download the new and upcoming app. After posting my first TikTok, I was hooked. I would post videos (almost daily) with sounds that were trending to try and see if I could get some followers. In December 2019, I posted a video that went viral. The video was a duet with a known influencer about a demon (myself) convincing an angel (influencer) to tell their secrets. The TikTok got 447.6K views and I gained around 2000 followers. Today, I scroll on TikTok every day and post on it occasionally when I like a trend.

Screenshot from Ray Lasorsa’s personal TikTok data.

Pandemic Blow Up

When the pandemic started in 2020, TikTok blew up and got very popular. This was caused by Gen Z’s boredom and trying to connect with one another. Most of the content in February and March was about people’s frustration with the pandemic canceling and shutting everything down (More data here). Afterward, the trends started to expand into dancing, singing, and comedy skits. Influencers like Charli D’Amelio (150.6M), Addison Rae (88.7M), and Khabane Lame (159M) started their careers from TikTok. There are also some influencers like BabyAriel (36.2M) who was famous on Musical.ly and moved to TikTok to continue creating content.

Are you on TikTok? If so, how addicted are you?

My #Trashtalk Project

One day, after having experienced a particular challenging day at the office, my mind was in a spin trying to figure out how I could help improve communication with my coworkers and how I relate to them. As I was walking down the isles of a local business, I spotted a little recycling bin (which could be used as a pencil holder) with goofy little eyes. Eureka! #Trashtalk was born! I bought a bunch and placed these little bins on their desks and inserted inspirational messages, jokes or treats before they got to work in the morning in order to start their day off positively. This eventually did help to spark some interesting conversations.

Inspiration for Messages

While researching what to put in my little bin, I stumbled upon a book by Lori Deschene, Founder of Tiny Buddha. In her book, Tiny Buddha’s 365 Tiny Love Challenges, Lori shares a wealth of information and inspirational thoughts which I incorporated into my little positivity project at work.

Exercises in Personal Reflection

In her book, Lori takes us on a journey whereby we are challenged to a personal reflection or an act of kindness every day of the year. She also writes her personal reflections or stories and invites her readers to do the same, often times journaling or thinking about the task that was assigned and the outcomes produced. Every once in a while, with my #Trashtalk project, I shared some of Lori’s wisdom with my colleagues. Below is an example of one of her challenges.

On page 184 of Tiny Buddha’s 365 Tiny Love Challenges, Lori challenges us to ”Spend a little time clearing your mental clutter by writing down everything that’s on your mind so that you can release your worries and be more present in conversations today.”

Have you ever tried to hold down conversation with a person who just does not seem to be focused on what you are saying? I have, many times. It does not exactly make me feel like what I have to say is important or of interest to the other person and certainly does not want to make me engage with them. But when I feel like I have someone’s undivided attention, communication just seems that much easier and fulfilling. Even more gratifying for me is being able to listen to and understand what the other person is telling me and picking up on some subtleties which may have otherwise been lost on me.

How about you try this little exercise out for yourself and see how it makes you feel. I welcome your thoughts in the comments section.

Click here if you would like to find out more about Tiny Buddha and feel free to participate in my quick poll below. You can also follow Lori on Twitter.

Photo by Jopwell on Pexels.com

Small Fish in a Big Pond

Swimming with the Sharks can be frightening and dangerous. As a rising Content Creator/Influencer, navigating the waters of various Social Media platforms, you may experience some rough sailing. On top of trying to create Quality Content on a Consistent Basis, your Personal and Professional Goals will have to be tempered by the fact that the Internet is full of predator fish lurking. We’re gaining a bit of traction and I’m finding that very thing at Pirateboarder Life. I also know full well that not everyone that swims in the ocean gets bit by a shark. Creating content can be as enjoyable as a day at the beach, you just don’t want to get burned.

The PBL Crew recently reached 15K in Subs on YT. Decent numbers but still a small fish in that big pond.http://www.youtube.com/@pirateboarderlife2684

Don’t be “Bait Fish”

Protect yourself. Two-factor authentication, strong passwords and other tools help protect us against scammers, hacks and thieves. Use them, they’re there for a reason and although they aren’t foolproof, they’ll slow the bad guys down. It’s a lot quicker and easier to take Precautionary Measures than it is to Recover your Account(s). Clicking links can be at your own peril and is one of the easiest way to fall prey. You want people to click on your Link but clicking on Strange and Unfamiliar Links can possibly Sink your Ship. You’ll get to know if something looks “funny” and hopefully with a few laps of the pool, you won’t knowingly swim into any unchartered waters.

“Imitation is the highest form of flattery”

Oscar Wilde was bang on when he coined a similar phrase back in the day. Be prepared though, the platforms are full of “flatterers” and if you’re creating quality content, you will be “flattered”. Remember the basic rule of thumb, once you post something to the Internet, it’s not your’s anymore. Posting a pic or text leaves us open, to whoever sees it, to do what they will with it. Fake accounts, identity theft and scams is just some of the nefarious business these people are up to. I’m sure we all know someone who has been victimized. Please feel free, to share any stories, situations or incidents that you’re aware of (and feel comfortable doing so). I know it’s happened here at Pirateboarder Life and I didn’t feel so flattered. Picture thieves have used our images to promote their profit seeking on FB and Instagram. A fake Pirateboarder Life Insta account was created by someone brazen enough to basically copy and paste my screen shotted posts to the fake account. A couple of alert Pirateboarder Life followers recognized the fraud and the fake account was shut down after numerous complaints. They had acquired over 1500 followers in the short time they were up and no doubt attempted to scam and defraud people while they were operating. Watermarking and copyrights mean nothing to these people. They have used pics with the old dog’s mug, while wearing PBL merch in their posts. One dude used it as his profile picture. I don’t have a choice, that’s my mug, I was born with it. If I was a picture thief/fake content creator and had a choice about what picture to steal for my fake profile, I wouldn’t pick me. Or maybe they picked me for my mug and not the quality content. It’s hard to say because we all know ”beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. In the meantime, don’t stop creating quality content on a consistent basis. Your hard work will be rewarded because the brand you’ve built to this point is already recognizable by those efforts. It’s pretty easy to screenshot and steal pics but your Crew will pick up on it and hopefully the bad guys’ fake accounts and nefarious ways will be Swimming with the Fishes.

That’s me in that pic but I got nothing to do with Zaza. He stole my pictures and was using the captions on some of the posts almost verbatim. Frustrating to say the least but this dude was shut down, probably only to resurface somewhere else. Check out the real Pirateboarder Life on Youtube, FB, Instagram and Reddit. This Fraudster has got nothing on the Old Dog, right on.

Facebook is the most widely used social media platform today and Pirateboarder Life has almost 22K in followers or as I like to call them, the PBL Crew.

Reddit might be my favourite Social Media platform. It’s a bit like the old Wild West but there’s something for Everyone here, right on.