egoddess weblog

Intrigued by Twitter

egoddess — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:13:07 +0000

Slowly but surely I’m getting used to Twitter. I have my personal Twitter which I mainly use for social media purposes, but I also Twitter for work to market our upcoming Trade Show. Lots to learn, but I’m getting used to it. While Twitter is a great resource to find social media information, I find it more fascinating to read posts from sports figures. I am a huge sports fan, my favorite sport is football and I’m following several players from my team, I’m also following Ocho Cinco.

My team is in Ocho Cinco’s division so while I don’t like his team, I like him, he is good and I fear facing his team 2x each season! I specifically mention him because he has a new UStream that is very cool and entertaining! I watched some today and got a kick out of him talking about himself as he drove to the gym for one of his awe inspiring workouts. His Twitter updates are entertaining and while this may sound weird, they make me feel like I *know* him, same goes for watching his UStream, it is like I am there with him and he is talking to me.

I also enjoy reading the updates from players from my football team. Same deal with them, sort of feel like I know them. It is especially cool that I can retweet their Tweets or respond to them. It is a way of connecting with them without actually *knowing* them personally. I “friended” a couple of them on Facebook and while I am almost certain it is really them, one never really knows, even so, Twitter makes it possible to connect with them in a way that I can’t do on Facebook. At least Ocho Cinco is *verified* so he is legit and it I find it cool to follow him, just hope he doesn’t win this week because I won’t be happy about it.

Happy Tweeting!

Overwhelmed by Social Media

egoddess — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 00:29:09 +0000

As much as I love social media, I sometimes feel overwhelmed by it. It is a great marketing tool, a great way to stay in touch with friends, a great way to get news before everyone else; sometimes I feel it is too much. Social media is a small part of my job, though the goal is to do more of it, perhaps make a career out of it, but I can’t help but feel overwhelmed because it is so time-consuming to keep up with everything. Work has been busy this week and I’ve barely had time to check out Facebook or Twitter, let alone read about the latest and greatest things happening in the world of social media.

When I’m on Twitter, I often wonder how everyone has time to research what they post and keep track of who they are following. I don’t follow many people, I wonder what it will be like to follow hundreds or thousands, how will I keep up with it? I enjoy reading Tweets, but don’t always have time to do so and I don’t scroll past the first page of results so I don’t know what I missed. How can I keep up with everything when I have a job to do and a life to live?

I feel the same about Facebook. Work has been very busy for me this week and I haven’t been on it much. At first I wondered what I missed, but then I liked not being on it. I have a love/hate with Facebook, I like keeping in touch with people I don’t see very often or blasts from the past, but on the flip side, I really don’t care that you’re drinking a cup of coffee or that you’re meeting friends for drinks. I’m not one to update all the time, I’m a private person and prefer to keep most of my business to myself.

I just can’t figure out how everyone stays on top of this stuff without feeling overwhelmed or going crazy. I’m sure that productivity has decreased because everyone is wrapped up in the lives of everyone else instead of focusing on their own lives. I’m trying to figure out how I can keep up with it and not feel overwhelmed; I suppose time will tell if this happens. I still feel like social media is so new that it is exciting and people play with it like it is a new toy and since I hope to do it professionally, I hope it sticks around for awhile.

Even blogging can be a challenge at time. I don’t always have time to read other blogs, something I enjoy doing, but I also enjoy writing my own entries, but sometimes my mind is blank and I struggle to figure out what to say, I also need to find time to do it!

How do you find time to do it all, Facebook, Twitter, etc…?

The Next Big Thing in Social Media?

egoddess — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 01:21:22 +0000

I have worked in the web/online world for eight years. Way back when, I decided to pursue a career in the wonderful world of the web because that was the wave of the future, everyone had a website! Things have changed so much from when I first stated. It used to be enough that one knew HMTL, but now that is only a tip of the iceberg. Over the years, websites have gotten more complex, they do more and we are doing more with them.

I am constantly amazed at how much things have changed and always wonder what the next big thing will be! Right now the hot spot is social media and I am very excited about it, it is something that I enjoy doing because it is a constant challenge and I can do it professionally and for myself. I enjoy writing this blog and updating my Twitter page. I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook, but I do like Linkedin.

What will next thing be? Wish I had a crystal ball so I could do it before everyone else finds out! The online world is fun and exciting, it has come so far, yet this is only the beginning! What will happen next?

Ode to the Annoying, Yet Sometimes Helpful Banner Ads

egoddess — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:39 +0000

I’ve been sick this week and home from work so feel a bit disconnected, however I’m starting to feel better and decided to write about something light and airy. I have a love/hate relationship with banner ads. One job ago I created banner ads for the product line I worked on and at times it was fun coming up with the creative ideas. Other times it was like beating a dead horse, hard as heck to come up with anything new and we never had miraculous results.

My “hate” for them happens when I see them ALL the time for things I have no need for! They can be quite distracting especially when they are poorly designed with horrible color palates and flashing images that go against anything that anyone should ever do. They remind me of movie trailers, well sort of…Trailers can be entertaining and fun to watch if they are for movies I’m interested in seeing, but usually aren’t and I just want to see the movie I just paid for so can we get this over with please? Banner ads work in the same way, I go to a website for specific information and sometimes the banner ads are relevant to me, but again, they usually aren’t and even though I can choose to ignore them, they can be distracting.

My “love” for them, well not really “love”, but a certain bit of “like” happens when they serve as reminders for things I’m searching for. For example, recently I’ve been checking airfares to San Diego in the hopes of planning a trip to visit friends. I do the occasional search on various travel websites and when the fares aren’t to my liking, I move on. Now because of this brilliant thing called cookies, the banner ads are personalized for little ‘ole me and the next time I go online I am presented with banner ads for San Diego. I like this because it serves as a reminder to do a search or informs me of a sale on airfare. I love getting a bargain and usually luck out and find a deal so I’m kinda holding out on this one…

Also recently Victoria’s Secret had a sale and I was poking around on their website and added a few things to a later abandoned shopping cart. The banner ads “talked” to me, well not exactly, but they served as reminders that the sale was still going on and that I should check it out and sometimes there is free shipping!

So to wrap this up, this entry is nothing new or earth shattering, just my opinion of banner ads and my constant amazement about the power of the Internet. Yes, I know a bit about Internet marketing, but sometimes I find it fascinating when I am one of its end users and take advantage of the pesky banner ads, “big brother” can be helpful every once in a while. Hopefully this makes sense, my body is full of meds and I feel like a medicine head right now!

The “New” Town Hall Meeting

egoddess — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 01:00:48 +0000

Today was a new beginning for presidential Town Hall Meetings. President Obama held a Town Hall Meeting on health care reform in Annandale, VA. Most attendees probably feel lucky to attend such an event, but through the world of modern technology i.e. Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, you too can listen in and participate in the meeting! No matter your political views or party affiliation, this is a very cool thing and will set the tone for future Town Hall Meetings and other events in the political world.

So Joe Schmoe (not “Joe the Plumber”) sitting on his couch at home can submit a question via Twitter or make a video and post it to YouTube. And how cool would it be if Joe Schmoe’s Twitter question was presented or his YouTube video question was shown at the meeting? VERY!!!

Social media makes us equal, it allows us to communicate to anyone in the world, in this case the most powerful person and makes us feel like we made a difference, that our voices were heard and if we’re lucky, even answered! I’d probably freak out if I Twittered a question that was answered by President Obama. Seeing that the odds of ever actually meeting him are less than zero, this would be the next best thing and I’d feel empowered.

I didn’t submit a question this time, but I hope to do so next time. Health care reform is an important issue to us all. I can only hope that President Obama got a real feel for what is going on in the lives of his citizens and does something about it.

Sad News and Social Media

egoddess — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:07:45 +0000

While I am shocked and saddened by the news events of this week, I’m amazed at how I found out. Yes I realize that social media has already taken off and I should be used to this, but I’m not! First off, I live/work in Washington, DC and learned about the metro crash via a friend’s Facebook status update. It was right after it happened and I immediately checked the news websites to find out the details. Word spread quickly and that evening friends who live elsewhere posted updates asking if their DC friends were ok.

Today I read the news about Farrah Fawcet online, but saw how quickly it spread via Facebook. However, I did not know about Michael Jackson till I logged on to Facebook and saw the updates. I was in shock and disbelief and immediately turned on CNN.

It just amazes me how fast news spreads via social media, good, bad, sad, happy, shocking, however you call it, it spreads like wildfire! Aaaaahhh, to only harness this power to market, to market and market…what an amazing thing! I heard today that social media networks will be used even more in the future, I can imagine the possibilities…I can’t wait to see what happens and I hope to be a part of it!

The Future of Social Media is Now

egoddess — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 16:47:44 +0000

I am still amazed at the way the Internet has changed the world, the way we live and the way we marketing products and services. I never imagined a world like this! It cracks me up to think that what I want to do professionally didn’t exist when I grow up, as a matter of fact, it didn’t exist until I was an adult and hasn’t really taken off until a short while ago. After working in the online field for 8+ years, I think I figured out what I want to be when I grow up…I want to work in online marketing/social media. While online marketing has been around for some time, social media has not and I find it fascinating and exciting!

I suppose it lies along the lines of viral marketing, but it is more like viral marketing on steroids! I actuall have a love/hate with Facebook. I caved and joined last summer when most of my friends were on it and seemed to talk about it more and more. I was somewhat freaked out about it because I’m a very private person and didn’t want all my sh*t out there, they assured me that there are privacy settings and I could be as private as I wanted to be. I was amazed at how fast my “friends” list grew and how I was in touch with peeps I knew from long ago.

Facebook is a also a great marketing tool. I started a page for work last year, well it is for the trade show I work on and it was exciting to see the friend list grow. Of course we target a very specific market and there are a limited number of people we target using Facebook, but nevertheless it is slowly growing and it will be interesting to see how things progress for the next show in 2010. The new website will launch in August and this year will are including the Facebook link on the homepage, something we did not do in the past. I can’t wait to see how things go…