Archive for the ‘Caleb’ Category

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HELP WANTED: New Contributor!


2010
03.07

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Hey y’all! You’re reading the title right, I need another contributor to add to the roster. Earlier this week, Caleb Gardner told me that he will no longer have time to write for DR. WHAW? And why exactly? Because he’ll be one of my new coworkers at Edelman Digital.

With that in mind, I would love to have a new contributor jump on board to continue helping me out! Below is an excerpt from my previous post asking for contributors. Please share with anyone who may be looking for some blogging experience or who just loves DR. WHAW?

Ideally, I’d like to have one or two regular contributors who are willing to help me out a couple nights a week to make sure that DR. WHAW doesn’t fall by the wayside. You don’t necessarily have to love measurement, you just have to be willing to share what you Didn’t Read While Hard At Work. I prefer that you pick one general topic or passion and highlight it, but hey! I’m flexible!

If you would like to help me out in this venture, please send me the following information to denison.rebecca[at]gmail[dot]com:

1. Your Name

2. Previous blogging or writing experience (Twitter handle is OK, too!)

3. Why you want to write for DR. WHAW?

Also feel free to reach out if you have any questions! I hope to hear back from at least a few of you soon! :)

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DR. WHAW? – March 4, 2010


2010
03.04

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Posted in Branding, Caleb, DR. WHAW?, Social Media | View Comments

This post was written by DR. WHAW? Contributor (and soon-to-be coworker!) Caleb Gardner.

I made it public this week that I’m joining the crew at Edelman Digital here in Chicago. I’m very excited to work with such a great group of people – including Rebecca! But with the new position, I’m stepping back from some other fun things I’ve been doing.

So unfortunately, this will be my last post for DR. WHAW (Cue the sadness). It’s been a blast. I know Rebecca’s already working hard on replacing me, but don’t forget you can always chat with me on Twitter, Facebook, or connect with me in other ways.

So without further ado – here, for the last time, is what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to):

  1. Will Personal Brands Ever Eclipse Agency Brands? (Daniel Prager) And…
  2. Personal Branding: Not a New Concept (John Morrison) I know Rebecca’s going to be mad at me, because she was probably going to post these tomorrow. But they were posted today, so – ha! John, Daniel and Rebecca were apparently having a discussion about personal branding recently, and these two posts came out of it. Makes for really interesting reading. Does personal branding negatively or positively affect agencies?
  3. Jump Out of Your Social Media Clique (Scott Bishop, for LAF) A great reminder from Scott that even social sites aren’t immune from cliques. In fact, they can can be even more cliquish as we define our space online.
  4. Life Without Twitter (DJ Waldow) DJ explores what his life would be like without Twitter, both personally and professionally. I know mine would be completely different. In fact, I know for sure I wouldn’t be about to start at Edelman.
  5. The Internet Continues to Permeate Reality (Len Kendall) So glad I started writing this late, so that I could catch Len’s post. This will blow you away, and get you thinking about the way the Internet has changed and will continue to change our lives.
  6. The Importance of Being Urban (Fanis Grammenos) An interesting (if lengthy) overview of the “ideology of urbanism”. Fascinating stuff.

That’s it for me, folks! Thanks again for letting me be a part of the DR. WHAW project. See you on the other side.

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DR. WHAW? – February 25, 2010


2010
02.25

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Posted in Caleb, Community management, DR. WHAW?, Marketing, Measurement, Social Media | View Comments

This post was written by DR. WHAW? Contributor Caleb Gardner.

Trying to collect myself to write this post. I’ve been feeling sickly today, but I know the DR. WHAW audience is counting on me to deliver. So I’m mustering the strength!

Here’s what I Didn’t Read While Hard at Work (and feeling sickly):

    DR. WHAW? – February 25, 2010

  1. Considering a Social Media Monitoring Investment? Ask Questions First. (Beth Harte) Writing for the MarketingProfs Daily Fix, Beth reminds us that all social media monitoring tools are not created equal, and as such, the decision about which one to spend money on should not be taken lightly.
  2. The Dark Side of Blogging: When Free Gets Ugly (Dave Navarro) Great post about how “free” for bloggers usually doesn’t mean free, and if you give everything away, you’ll get a backlash the minute you start charging for something. Great things to ponder.
  3. Webtrends Launches Analytics for Facebook Marketers (Mashable) This was great news to me, because Facebook’s native analytics sucks.
  4. Do You Know Your Customers Enough to Be a Social Media Hit? (Susan Baier) Great post on the power of knowing your customers; of being like your customers. Plus it uses ThinkGeek as an example, so that’s a plus.
  5. The Paradox of Building Stronger Online Relationships (Jackie Adkins) Fascinating post on the power of physical touch, and the importance of taking your online relationships offline.
  6. How to Kill Innovation: Keep Asking Questions (Scott Anthony) On the dangers of asking, “What about… ?” in the face of potential growth.
  7. Mad Men vs. Bewitched (Kara James) As an avid Mad Men fan, this is just amazing. Coincidence? You decide.

And now I’m going to go sleep away my germs. G’night.

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DR. WHAW? – February 18, 2010


2010
02.18

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Posted in Caleb, DR. WHAW?, Marketing, Measurement, PR metrics, Social Media, public relations | View Comments

This post was written by DR. WHAW? Contributor Caleb Gardner.

I’m going to call this post what I Didn’t Read While Wishing The Snow Would Melt. (Although DR. WWTSWM isn’t as pretty as DR. WHAW.)

  1. We Are Still Learning Lessons When it Comes to Social Media (Beth Harte) The Kevin Smith/Southwest Air debacle of the last few days reveals questions marcom people still need to ask themselves about their social media strategy, including what constitutes a ‘crisis’.
  2. The Dividends of Trustworthiness (Andrew O’Connell) Great article that reminds us that companies are still intensely social environments, and the benefits of being perceived as trustworthy.
  3. Why Some PR People Deserve and Get a Seat at the Table and Others Do Not (Katie Paine) What’s more important? The media placement, or the impact on organizational goals? (Preach it, Katie!)
  4. 25 Things Email Marketers Don’t Seem to Know–But Should (Kara Trivunovic) Little nuggets of (not so) conventional wisdom about email marketing. My favorite? “Blast” is a dirty word.
  5. Confessions of a Recovering Measurement-aholic (Blagica Bottigliero) OK, so this was technically published a few days ago, but I just read it today, so I’m cheating. Blagica reminds us that accountability “made the web what it is today.”
  6. How to Rock Facebook But Maintain Some Respectability (Matt Stratton) If you’re still treating Facebook like you’re in a college frat, it may have negative consequences on your professional career. These are some practical tips to find the balance between personal and professional.
  7. A Facebook Petition to Stop Facebook from Powering Its Data Center with Coal (Fast Company) Lastly, a bit of disappointing news. Facebook, the number two most popular web destination, is powering its first data center with coal. A bit disappointing considering the lengths Google has gone through to cut down on data center power use. (Joined the petition after reading this.)

PS, If you live on Chicago’s north side, you must see Colbert do Illinois’s 5th. Hilarious.

Caleb out.

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DR. WHAW? – February 11, 2010


2010
02.11

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This post was written by DR. WHAW? contributor Caleb Gardner.

It’s Round 2 of my guest posting for DR. WHAW! Let’s get to it, shall we?

  1. The Hidden Power of a Gift (Seth Godin) You’d have to be living on another planet to not know the name of Godin by now. There’s simply no better resource for short, mind-blowing thoughts about marketing and business than his blog. This post is no different.
  2. Is It Curtains for the App Store? (Bob Dennis, guest posting for Jay Baer) Developers are getting fed up with the iPhone App Store. Will the rise of HTML5 allow them to go around Apple, like Google has successfully done?
  3. 6 Truths of Building a Successful Online Community (Mack Collier, guest posting for Lauren Fernandez) Some very simple but worthwhile tips on managing a community. My personal favorite (because people tend to forget it): Fish where the fish are.
  4. Making Love to the Customer (Jackie Adkins) The title sure catches your eye, huh? Part appeal for better customer service, part actual case study of a situation involving our very own Rebecca Dension.
  5. 10 Ways to Show Your Community Love (David Alston & Teresa Basich) It’s not often you see two people collaborating on a post such as this, but David and Teresa pull it off nicely. My favorite tip of theirs: Admit your mistakes.
  6. Screw Inspiration. It’s For Saps. (Micah Baldwin) A blunt (and graphic) critique of the common practice of looking for inspiration anywhere but inside ourselves.
  7. Ways to Reduce the Bounce Rate on Your Website (Benzing Technologies) Let’s end on a practical note. Many of you reading this may not know what your bounce rate is, much less how to measure it or reduce it. This article has some practical tips to do just that.

So there you go. Lots of lovey-dovey community stuff today. It’s almost like Valentine’s Day is right around the corner…

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DR. WHAW? – Week-ending February 7, 2010


2010
02.07

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Posted in Caleb, Clay, DR. WHAW?, Entrepreneur, Melissa, Social Media, public relations | View Comments

Hello y’all! I am so thrilled with the first week of DR. WHAW? contributors! I hope that y’all appreciate having this daily feature as an actual daily feature (I know, I was falling down on the job before), and I’m so excited to keep bringing you what we Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to!). Without further ado, here’s this week’s digest.

DR. WHAW? – Week-ending February 7, 2010

1. Notes From a Conversation With Y Combinator’s Paul Graham by Om Malik — Paul Graham is an accomplished entrepreneur, essayist, and venture capitalist (through his Y Combinator program).  I always enjoy reading things he writes and watching interviews with him.  I thought these notes were kind of the Paul Graham CliffsNotes, as it gives a nice, quick 30,000 view of his overall philosophies on entrepreneurship.  If you enjoy this, I definitely recommend you delve into some of his writing on his site.

2. Is Real-Time Search Good for Businesses? by Michael Brito – This article discusses the impact real-time search results will have on your business – timeliness. You/your clients have to be ready to respond! Also see the post from ZDNet’s Jennifer Leggio: Google real-time search + Twitter = a wake-up call for brands.

3. The Taboo (But Critical) Community Skill by Amber Naslund – While social media is about community and building relationships, we need to keep in mind that it’s also about sales. I’ve been asked before about providing ROI for the activities we suggest to our clients. They want to know that they’ll be getting something ($$) out of the time they’re investing. Be sure to read the comments as well for additional nuggets of info!

4. How Is PR Changing? by Jeremy Porter – Everything changes, we know that. Porter makes a good point: PR itself isn’t really changing; however, our audience now has a voice. We also need to think about technology and its impact, new skills we need to possess to stay marketable in the workforce and different ways to effectively measure results.

5. Facebook Develops Conversation Tracking Tool: What’s A Fan Worth? by Laurie Sullivan — Facebook has developed a tool that will allow users and companies to track conversations on the social network. I was excited to hear about this because other tracking tools do not always track Facebook posts quite well. I wonder if it’s useful or how it compares, has anyone had a chance to try it?

6. Google Analytics Releases Mobile Search Tracking by Paul Teitelman — I am so pumped to see this! I was just wondering a few weeks ago how to measure the new mobile craze. Can someone please try this out? Tell me how it is? While this doesn’t measure all aspects of mobile that I would like to explore, it is definitely a start.

7. Do the Old Timing Rules Still Apply for Media Relations? by Dave Fleet — I read MarketingProf’s Daily Fix quite often. I love its practical, straight-forward advice for how to do communications well. In this post Dave Fleet asserts that the old rules for when you should pitch to journalists are outdated.

What a great first week, y’all! I can’t wait to bring you more, and I can’t wait for you to better get to know the three new DR. WHAW rockstars!

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DR. WHAW? – February 4, 2010


2010
02.04

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Hello, there. I’m grateful to Rebecca for letting me participate in this great DR. WHAW tradition. And I must say that I feel an awful lot of pressure coming off of three great DR. WHAW posts by Clay, Melissa and Rebecca so far this week.

I do a variety of things, from consulting on social media and marketing for businesses and nonprofits to managing the Save the Cups community, so likewise you’ll probably see me point you to a variety of things in this space. But in general the things I read tend to focus on entrepreneurship, marketing, public relations, tech and social media.

Oh, and I’m also a new dad, so maybe I’ll spice things up every once in a while with parenting advice.

So without further ado, here are the things I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to!):

  1. Paying the Price for Truth (Jamie Notter) Fascinating read about the power of truth, and where it should come from. Should it come from the top down? Or should employees at the bottom demand it? Whose responsibility is it?
  2. Do the Old Timing Rules Still Apply for Media Relations? (Dave Fleet) I read MarketingProf’s Daily Fix quite often. I love its practical, straight-forward advice for how to do communications well. In this post Dave Fleet asserts that the old rules for when you should pitch to journalists are outdated.
  3. Mastering the Art of Client Relations (Freelance Folder) I love client relations being portrayed as an art form. Because those who treat it as such are better at it. In this article those who approach client relations as a chore are contrasted with those who really go the extra mile for their clients.
  4. Facebook Could Eat the Web (Steve Rubel) Leave it to Steve Rubel to portray Facebook as a monster that should have starred in Where the Wild Things Are. There’s no denying the reach of Facebook these days, and here Steve makes it clear just how pervasive that reach is becoming.
  5. The PR Schism: Divided We Fail (Katie Paine) Katie names all the arguments we’ve heard over the past few years (trust me, you’ve heard them), and then asserts that it’s time to move past division for the sake of the industry. (Hear, hear!)
  6. How to Write a Blog That Matters (Justin Kownacki) Justin, whose snark and insight I am constantly a fan of, goes through great lengths to tell you why your blog probably sucks, and what you should do about it.
  7. Sometimes It’s Better to Brainstorm Alone (Andrew O’Connell) Since Rebecca recently raised the question of brainstorming versus crowdsourcing, it seems timely that this post from the Harvard Business Review blog should assert that sometimes its better to go it alone completely. What do you think?

There’s great stuff here. As I would say over on my blog, time to go forth and learn!

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Three rockstars and now DR. WHAW? Contributors


2010
02.01

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Posted in Caleb, Clay, DR. WHAW?, Melissa | View Comments

I have incredibly exciting news! DR. WHAW is officially back and here to stay! With my crazy and unpredictable schedule, it’s sometimes too hard to keep up with this daily blog feature, but I know it is something that many of you have come to love. So I found the perfect way to keep the good doctor around without pulling out all my hair and feeling guilty when I miss a post.

I found three absolute rockstars to help me keep DR WHAW a daily feature! I have added a page to my blog to highlight these three, but I wanted to share a bit about them with you here, too. I am so grateful to these three for throwing their hat in the ring when this is still such a young blog. And I cannot wait to start working with all of them!

Caleb — Caleb Gardner is someone I met at a Social Media Club event in Chicago in December, and I could tell from the beginning that he was a unique and insightful guy. I was so happy when he volunteered to contribute, and I honestly cannot wait to see what he’ll come up with.

Clay – Clay Schossow is a fellow Tar Heel, and someone I wish I could have met while still at UNC. Clay brings an incredible entrepreneurial spirit to the team, and I am really excited to get more of his perspective. I only hope that one day we can meet in person!

Melissa — When Melissa Cafiero and I first chatted on Twitter, I was struck by her intelligence and to this day her opinion is one I value quite highly. Even though we have never met in person, I am so thrilled to have Melissa join the team and put in her two cents.

Please read more about these three on the new DR. WHAW? Contributors page, and look out for great content every single day!