It's Friday! Time to throw a little jazz into your weekend gatherings. No, I don't mean getting in step with a Richard Simmons jazzercise tape. I'm talking about being the hostess with the mostess.
Before you reach for a Valium and a martini, don't worry: no pressure to be the next Martha Stewart. It's easy and simple and fun to change up your appetizer routine, and you can do it with the help of YouTube.
I come from a traditional, Lutheran, Minnesotan family: canned soup is practically in my DNA. I can make a tatertot hotdish in my sleep.
But no one likes eating Jello molds before the football game or while playing Wii (Jello and Wii do not mix, unless you're 22 and the Jello is prepared with cheap vodka).
I've learned so much from YouTube cooking demos. To get started, surf the channels (FoodNetwork has one, for instance), search by the food you like, simply search "appetizer"--you can even search by the cook, if you have a favorite.
This is old school Rachel Ray. She's making easy Grilled Green Quesadillas with Brie and Herbs. Deeelish. You can even make them on the stovetop if certain Hennepin County regulations prevent you from keeping a BBQ on the deck of your condo. I'm just sayin' it's easy, that's all.
So tonight, when you're with a group of friends watching Brett Farve make his debut (hope he doesn't break a hip), surprise everyone with something a little bit different that doesn't require you leaving work early to make it.
Be the fabulous person you are -- and have fun!
8.19.2009
Five Tips to Reduce Technology-Project Anxiety
If you need a boost of motivation to embrace conversations with those who worship in the church of technology, do I have the article for you.
A little background: about 8 months ago my former team was trying to patch up a back-end problem with our Web hosting system. The problem was bigger than us. Bigger, but not impossible to fix.
A day later a consultant returned my emails with the solution implemented and the problem identified. Yet I clearly remember sitting back in my chair and reading the email, rubbing my forehead in frustration.
"What in the world is a problem with pods??"
I was too exasperated to put up a fight; I settled for the fact that the problem was resolved - I reasoned that I didn't need to know how it worked.
Fast forward to a month ago: by this time I was buried in marketing technology projects. Over eight hours a day tweaking, explaining, structuring, problem-solving - any kind of "ing" you can think of pertaining to marketing I was working on it with our marketing technology. And, just like being immersed in Spain when learning Spanish, I began to learn how to talk the language. Guess what? It wasn't all that scary, nor that complicated to understand (with a little help from YouTube demos and blogs!).
I wish I had discovered the One to One Interactive Marketing blog months ago, particularly an article entitled "Don't let the geek speak intimidate you (Five tips to reduce technology-project anxiety)." The five pointers are uber helpful, the writing is friendly, and it's empowering.
A little background: about 8 months ago my former team was trying to patch up a back-end problem with our Web hosting system. The problem was bigger than us. Bigger, but not impossible to fix.
A day later a consultant returned my emails with the solution implemented and the problem identified. Yet I clearly remember sitting back in my chair and reading the email, rubbing my forehead in frustration.
"What in the world is a problem with pods??"
I was too exasperated to put up a fight; I settled for the fact that the problem was resolved - I reasoned that I didn't need to know how it worked.
Fast forward to a month ago: by this time I was buried in marketing technology projects. Over eight hours a day tweaking, explaining, structuring, problem-solving - any kind of "ing" you can think of pertaining to marketing I was working on it with our marketing technology. And, just like being immersed in Spain when learning Spanish, I began to learn how to talk the language. Guess what? It wasn't all that scary, nor that complicated to understand (with a little help from YouTube demos and blogs!).
I wish I had discovered the One to One Interactive Marketing blog months ago, particularly an article entitled "Don't let the geek speak intimidate you (Five tips to reduce technology-project anxiety)." The five pointers are uber helpful, the writing is friendly, and it's empowering.
8.18.2009
Kill The Troll: Copy That Simply Doesn't Work
So I've been absent for a bit - within a month I started working in communications for another law firm (which I'm loving) and I've made plans to move out of my beloved Minneapolis neighborhood (I confess that I was hook-line-and-sinker for a place with underground parking; the less I have to use an ice scraper on my windshield, the happier I am).
I just read a clever article that inspired me to make time to post: "The #1 Conversion Killer in Your Copy(And How to Beat It)."
It's a big promise, but this is what Sonia Simone writes:
"What makes people almost buy? What makes them get most of the way there, then drop out of your shopping cart at the last second? What makes them stare at your landing page, wanting what you have to offer, and yet, ultimately, close the page and move on to something else?
It turns out there’s a hideous troll hiding under the bridge. Every time you get close to making a sale, the troll springs out and scares your prospect away. Get rid of the troll and your copy will start converting better than it ever has before."
Although you might not even sell a single product that can be put into a "shopping cart" on the Web, it's good to know that it's a widespread belief that the average Web surfer can tell the difference between copy that 'sounds good' and copy that is good.
The unfortunate (or fortunate) side of that statement is with good copy, people don't even notice it's copy: it's a company.
I just read a clever article that inspired me to make time to post: "The #1 Conversion Killer in Your Copy(And How to Beat It)."
It's a big promise, but this is what Sonia Simone writes:
"What makes people almost buy? What makes them get most of the way there, then drop out of your shopping cart at the last second? What makes them stare at your landing page, wanting what you have to offer, and yet, ultimately, close the page and move on to something else?
It turns out there’s a hideous troll hiding under the bridge. Every time you get close to making a sale, the troll springs out and scares your prospect away. Get rid of the troll and your copy will start converting better than it ever has before."
Although you might not even sell a single product that can be put into a "shopping cart" on the Web, it's good to know that it's a widespread belief that the average Web surfer can tell the difference between copy that 'sounds good' and copy that is good.
The unfortunate (or fortunate) side of that statement is with good copy, people don't even notice it's copy: it's a company.
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