So Long, Xanga

Xanga logo

Anyone heard of Xanga? Amazingly it has been around for nearly 15 years. It is a blogging community, and I even had my own blog so I could keep in touch with my middle-school friends back in the early 2000's. (We were so "cool" back then to have our "own" website..!)

Well the news about Xanga is that it has gone bankrupt. The Xanga Team announced that they wish to relaunch Xanga, and started a fund-raising campaign to raise $60K. I don't think they'll reach their goal because with only 3 days left (donation page here), they've only raised $46K (even after their 15-day extension of the fundraiser).

Why only $60K? Because they want to make the blogging feature a subscription. So you have to pay to blog. Even with the "Vision for Xanga 2.0" from a July 8th post, I think that Xanga has already dug it's grave, and has been dead for a while.

An interesting fact: one of the co-founders of Twitter, Biz Stone, helped create Xanga. Stone designed the original Xanga logo, too. On his old Xanga page you can see how he posted about his new Twitter site.
Ironically, I think that Twitter's micro-blogging contributed to the downfall of Xanga.

Has anyone else had a Xanga blog? I would post the link to my blog here, but it's way too embarrassing. Plus, if/when Xanga shuts down, it will be gone forever unless you download an archive here of your entire blog. I've started my download, but I don't plan on ever looking at my old, silly, teenager posts.

'Til next time,
Amanda

P.S. Rest in Peace, Kidd Kraddick.

What's Your Score?

I guess I am behind the times when it comes to knowing your 'influential' / 'popularity' score. A service called Klout provides users, including famous people, with Klout Scores. These scores indicate how much you influence the people around you. Below shows how the score works:

Source: Klout How-It-Works page

Klout uses your social media connections to determine your score. On your profile, it collects your 'moments' from your recent interactions and posts on your various social media sites. Basically, the more that your friends comment, like, re-post, reTweet, etc, the more your score increases.

I've connected my few accounts and I have an okay-score of 39. What does this mean? I think that for businesses, a higher score means that you are already influencing others, and getting more people talking about your company. For an individual, it's more like bragging-rights material. What do you think?

So now I ask you, What is your score? Do you think this score really matters?

--
Have a great Friday everyone and have a safe, enjoyable weekend.
-Amanda

Vodka Sales Stop due to Russia's Views

I have heard that some people in the Gay/Lesbian community are boycotting the Russian Vodka company Stolichnaya, better known as Stoli. The only reason these boycotters have is that Russia (the country) has decided to go anti-gay and discriminate and that Russia has "no laws protecting against discrimination or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity" (source: Wikipedia).

Well, after some research, I've discovered that the Americans who are boycotting Stoli are making a bad decision. Why? Because the Stoli sold in America is made in America, and has no connections to Russia. So by not selling the vodka, the bar in Chicago is actually just losing money, losing customers, and causing a ruckus even though it is no-big-deal.

What do you think? Would you boycott a brand just because the original company's country has laws that you disagree with?

Source: The Nibble

Claymation: Clay-Animation

Claymation is the most amazing type of animation to me, in terms of the level of difficulty. Back in the day, before computers were in every household, animations could be created by taking actual clay figures as the 'actors,' and photographs of them as the frames for the movie!

Claymation is a form of stopmotion, because after each motion made in the clay, you have to stop to take a picture: The way this worked is a clay scene was set up, then it was photographed 360 degrees around (to get all angles), and then whichever objects/clay figures had to move next were moved a tiny bit, and the photographs were taken all over again. In the end, you had a zillion pictures, and each set for each frame was for only 1/24 of a second ... so for a movie 100 minutes long, you had 8,640,000 pictures! Now, I'm sure that number was decreased if a clay's pose was the same for multiple seconds, but still, it was a lot of work!

To give you an example of what claymation looks like, here are some examples:

Wallace and Gromit

[source]

Rudolf, the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

[source]

Anyways, I hope you appreciate the artists behind the next movie you watch that has been done using clay animation, because they sure did spend a lot of time to make the movie great!

Job Searching

Almost everyone has tried to search for a job. In my father's words, "looking for a job is a job in itself." So what does job hunting have to do with marketing?

Well, I am currently looking for a marketing job! :) And there are many branches in marketing and business, so I'd like to share with you some of my favorite job titles in marketing.

Marketing Manager
This title is very broad, but wouldn't it sound great to be a manager? You can be in charge of keeping things organized, and overlooking the "big picture" of the marketing department. You might work with functions such as training, presentations, technical analyses, and other leadership roles.

Social Media Coordinator
If you love Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, this is the job for you. You'll manage the social media of your company, by planning the content, the calendar, and all else social. Setting up the time/date for posts seems easy, but across multiple platforms and with huge audiences responding with comments - it can get busy and scrambled! (This job is best for the organized marketers out there!)

Digital Media Analyst
This is for those of you who can look at large amounts of data and be able to see trends, problems, opportunities, and other relationships. You'll look at analytics and tracking sources to help your company find new ways to improve the media launches, new content promotions, and other infrastructures.

Anything else?
If you have a favorite marketing job title, comment here and let me know! Plus, I'll keep everyone updated on my job searches! :)


From iconstaff

Google Atari Breakout

Google has done it again with a new game featuring Atari! Just type in "Atari breakout" on the Google Images page and you'll start a classic Atari game!

Can you beat my high score of 477? Good luck & Have fun! (Don't waste too much time!)

Atari Breakout!

Pinterest

Hey everyone!

I wanted to let y'all know that I have connected my blog with Pinterest! There is a neat feature where you enter some code into your website, and Pinterest verifies it, so you get to have a red check-mark by your name. It also gives you access to Analytics, and they're neat so far - it even gives impressions and reach stats! (Note: The analytics is available after you've updated your Pinterest to the new look. Check KludgyMom's blog for more info.)

As for today's neat marketing topic, I wanted to show a pin I found on Pinterest. It looks at Google Advertising and how HUGE Google really is!

The most startling thing for me is that 97% of their revenue is from advertising!

Here's the image and the source. Enjoy! 

Source: Wordstream

When to Post Your Social Media Links

Do marketers really ever sleep?
The world never stops revolving, and there is always someone awake. Sure, marketers schedule their big announcements or hot new prices at the "best times" of the day. But when are these best times?

The fact is, each industry is different. For example, the pizza industry gets much more traffic on Friday and Saturday, but the insurance industry gets more hits on the weekdays. Simple to understand, right? But what about the hour in the day; how do we know which hour to post our Twitter message so that the most users will see it?

Most companies have found these results rather quickly. Through trial and error, and some common sense, the best times to post are at 12 noon and 6pm, which are during the "best times" for social media users because they are on a lunch break or are returning home!

Thanks to Modea, this visual shows the click-through rate of Twitter links. The data is from last year, but the concept remains the same for 2013.

From Social Media: Not a 9-5 Profession

Don't Rely Only on What Others Say
Since this is generic information, the best way to select a time is by your own company's trial and error. For example, noon is not the best time to post an advertisement about insomnia (but you should try midnight instead).

One last tip: your Twitter followers can also help you decide when to post your link or new message. Find out if your followers are students, in the workplace, or are international; these demographics can help you choose Tweet times to fit their schedules.

Or better yet, try out these Twitter Analytics and Visualization Tools by a great blogger, Garin Kilpatrick.

Until next time, have a wonderful new week in this lovely month of April :)

Career Expo Day 2

The Career Expo was a great event, held for two days at The University of Texas at Dallas (March 20-21, 2013).

Day 2 was for all non-STEM majors, so all of my Marketing friends were roaming about, looking to talk to employers!

The key to success during any career fair is to be yourself, be upbeat, and "sell" your qualities and your good attitude. A firm handshake goes a long way, too. I found myself eager and excited, and my smile made the employers smile back!

In other news, I hope no one got too much hassle today (since it was April Fool's all day). My favorite internet gag was Vimeo, which changed to Vimeow - your cat videos belong here. :)

Credit: Vimeo

Career Expo

Always be sure to visit a Career Expo or Career Fair if you can! These fairs are great places to connect with employers, show off your résumé, and get possible job interviews.

A spotlight today on the University of Texas at Dallas, in Richardson, Texas:
UTD hosted its first ever two-day Career Expo, with Day 1 for STEM majors (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and Day 2 for all other majors.

Day 1 has been a success and Day 2 should be great as well! Here is the link for UTD's description of their Career Expo.

I will be attending the Career Expo on Day 2, so I will post to let you know how it goes!

Cheers!
-Amanda

Learning LinkedIn

In case you don't know, LinkedIn is the next best thing in the world of work. Why?

1. When you apply for a job, the employer most likely searches your name on the internet, and your LinkedIn profile could greatly enhance your online image (if you have made your profile correctly!)
2. Recruiters browse the people on LinkedIn and send emails or invites to people who they want to recruit.
3. LinkedIn is the best way to literally connect to all of your professional friends, and keep track of their contact information for the future.
4. Companies post job openings, and if you connect to the right people, you can get an interview for your dream job.

How do you get your LinkedIn profile to attract employers? I've compiled a few major points that you need to remember when creating and editing your profile. 

**Click on the links to see YouTube videos for more help!

• URL: The first step is to change your URL to your name. If your name is already taken, do not add numbers - rather, add a descriptive word, such as "marketer" or "artist" so that your URL describes you.
• Image: Your profile photo needs to show you wearing professional clothing, with a solid-color background. Make sure you are smiling, don't use an outdated or much-younger photo of yourself.
• Headline: Your headline is the message that says "This is How I can Solve Your Problems and This is What I am Seeking"
• Demonstrate how you can be a solution to your dream employer. You can use your job title (Account Executive) or a set of action words that describes your capabilities (Organized Media Professional)
• End your headline with a call to action, or an ASK, such as, "Seeking Grade school Teaching Opportunities" or "Let's Get Connected!"
• Summary: This is all about you, and rather than tell a life story, it is best to highlight your key qualities, qualifications, and anything relevant to your job life.
• Job History
• List your most recent jobs, with a simple and direct explanation of your responsibilities, achievements, and correct dates of your employment.
• Students: If you do not have work history, then write about your volunteer history! Anything and everything that makes you different from the next person is important.

My last piece of advice is critical: UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE. If you are happy with your current job, then say so! If you are actively looking because you are unemployed, then don't leave your status as "happily working!" (True story: a man wondered why recruiters never called him for a year. It was because his profile still said he was working!) 

I will post more about LinkedIn in the future, but for now, this should give you a great start. Leave a comment if you want specific advice - I know more, and I know professionals who create LinkedIn profiles for a job, so I can get you connected! 

Bonus: A neat picture with these same tips.

From LinkedIn-Makeover

New Beginning

Hey everyone,
I am starting to blog again, and I hope to show you all my creative side with my posts!

A bit of an update about me: I'm graduating in May with a Marketing degree :) In my free time I love to scuba dive, read books, write poetry, and play with my Furby.... yes I'm still a kid at heart. I also enjoy bowling, window-shopping, bike rides, and delicious Italian food.

Here's to a fresh start on my blog! Enjoy!

-Amanda