International Women's Day Feature

Idea: Promote International Women's Day (March 8) within MWH and inspire others with stories of women leading change within the organization

Medium(s):

• 45 stories created in blog post format
• 1 landing page with 45 tiled images
• 1 web home page graphic
• 1 internal news story post
• 1 internal social post (Yammer)
• 1 executive email
• Social posting on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Google+ (a series of messaging will be created following to promote each individual story)

My involvement: Wrote the Q&A template, distributed call-to-action throughout the organization, compiled and approved all submissions, inputted submissions into a web page, created landing page, created all graphics (except landing page graphic), distributed internally through internal news story and CEO email, distributed through all social media channels

Links:

• Feature: http://www.mwhglobal.com/careers/working-at-mwh/diversity/international-womens-day/
• Personal story: http://www.mwhglobal.com/blog/people-mwh-meet-piper-fairbanks/

Understanding the Terms of Use for Social Media

Yes, the 20+ page terms that each social media site posts are really important to understand, but do I read them? No. Who has the time?! And who can really understand all of the legal language that has taken lawyers months to compose? But I think it has peaked my interest to understand the terms more than ever given the latest news in the socialverse.

This became very important and relevant yesterday when Instagram (a photo sharing social site) announced changes in their 'terms of service'. Essentially what they said in their new terms was that they now have the right to use user images and account information for marketing/commercial purposes. So, that photo that you posted of you and your dog could potentially be used for an Iams Dog Food ad. Are you comfortable with that?

I knew that when I opened an Instagram account that it would be a public platform, I think of it that way for other sites like Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+. I would never put something onto my site that wouldn't be ok for the public to see. But I would be appalled to see if another company using my images to make money (e.g. sell something). * I must note, that I don't follow this same rule for Facebook, I'll explain more below.

Thankfully there was immense public backlash yesterday to these new terms. Users were cancelling their accounts every second. I personally think that Instagram will never recover from this. But with the backlash, something great came of it. The CEO of Instagram came out and told us that the terms were misinterpreted. First, it's very disappointing to hear that response from the CEO - admit fault and move on, don't turn it on your users. But that's a separate conversation. The positive is that the CEO said that he 'heard us loud and clear' and will be modifying some parts of the new terms to make it clear. It's great to hear that the public outcry will actually influence social sites to adapt. But there is an underlying issue…terms are too confusing to the average user and often we sign up for something we don’t know what we’re signing up for.

So, back to understanding your terms of service for social media. Understand first that these are free sites for a reason. You are sacrificing something getting things for free, and that is that these social sites own the code behind the functionality and own the servers where things you post are saved. Because of this, Facebook and other sites have a history of your content, your behavior, etc. and they have the potential to use it to their advantage. Next, at the bottom of every social site should list the terms and conditions. If you are in doubt, read the fine print. Take the time to read the language. It might be confusing, but it's good to know what is allowed and what is not.

Also, when in doubt - keep your profile private. Make sure you understand your security settings and know what information is available for public consumption. If you select your profile as private, photos will only be seen by those who you've granted access too. This goes for most other social sites, Twitter, Google+, Facebook, etc. I especially do this for Facebook. I started using the site when I was in college and have hundreds if not thousands of photos saved on this site that I don't necessarily want available for public consumption. If you're in doubt on what people can and cannot see for your account sign out of your account and then view your profile from a public view point. That will give you an idea on what people can see. Otherwise, your other move will be to stop using the sites altogether - these decisions are purely up to you.

Don’t take this as a scare tactic. There are a lot of great benefits to social networks; the friendships made, the photos shared, etc. just make sure that you are educated on what you are using. 

Reducing your social clutter

For most of you, spring is in the air. Typically in the U.S. that means spring cleaning – a time to get rid of old clothes, clean out that junk drawer, dust every nook and corner, and eliminate this past year’s clutter. What we often forget to purge is our online media. I’m constantly reading tech blogs, websites, listening to webinars and watching presentations on the latest and greatest in social media. With the amount of information out there this could be a full-time job Companies and individuals are creating new apps, sites, and platforms that are the “most cutting edge” to stay on the cusp of innovation and to get the most of their minute of fame. As a result, we are bombarded with an abundance of information to look at and choose from. If you’re like me, you’ll hear about that cutting edge site, sign-up right away, (try) to be that trend-setter, and then never use it.

The overload of info floating around got me thinking on this topic of de-cluttering our social use. Is the Myspace account I created in 2000 still useful? Not right now it isn’t; and to be quite frank it’s just another site that uses my name. I recently found an article about a user whose profile (or social page) was hijacked and didn’t know it because they hadn’t used that site in years! This just opens you up for more identify theft if you’re not aware.

So, I’ve put together a few ideas when adding to that 2012 spring cleaning list. Write down: “De-clutter my social sites, profiles and other online media”.

Here are some tips:

• Be aware of the social media websites that you have signed up for – Keep a log of the URLs, usernames and passwords. Re-visit these sites every couple of months to make sure they A)still exist B)don’t have any posts from followers that you don’t agree with C)haven’t been hijacked by a hacker. 
• If you’ve been sitting on a site for years (ahem Mypace) consider changing the password just in case the profile has been hijacked. 
• Do you receive pesky SPAM emails from that one time you contributed to an online community or a professional association portal? Don’t just delete the email, unsubscribe to the emails and never receive them again. At the bottom of your email will be an option to unsubscribe or change your contact information. Not every company offers this although it’s standard practice.
• Understand what sites you use and why you use them. Do you use Facebook personally, LinkedIn for networking, Twitter for the latest news and Google+ for business?. Determine a strategy, look at the other sites you belong to and decide how they fit into your social life. If it’s too much, cancel your account. 
• All those apps on your phone take up room, room that you could use for an extra song, extra photo or for faster speed. Take a look at those apps and delete what you don’t use. 
• Update your profiles. Take an audit of the top sites that you’ve been using. Have you updated your information? There is a lot on these sites that needs constant updating, including: address change, email change, job promotion, working for a new company, changes in family, relationships, and so much more. Updating this information makes you more relevant to those you are connecting with online. 
• If you have a Flickr account or any other photo account, make sure you’ve updated it. This means not only add photos you’ve taken the past few months, but also review the old ones and get rid of duplicates to get more storage space. This applies to music as well. 
• If you sign up for of promotions, subscriptions, or do a lot of online shopping, would consider opening a SPAM email account. Email setup is free for Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo accounts. Set something up (like piperlikesretail@hotmail.com) that will serve for those times you have to provide an email but don’t want to use your personal email. This will reduce the amount of SPAM email that you have to see on a daily basis. You will need to audit your new account every once in a while, but your personal account will be clutter free and you won’t miss that one email from your friend because you deleted it with the other 100 SPAM emails received. 
• I personally have more than 30 passwords that I use for online banking, email, social media, shopping, and work. It becomes impossible to remember these and thus I’m constantly forgetting my password and resetting it online. Consider coming up with 5 passwords. Typically some sites require a number, some require caps, or some a certain length. Come up with 5 passwords that are similar, e.g. social1, Social1, Social1!, socialmedia1! you get my point. The key is to stick to a consistent password. Please DO NOT use anything with your name and your birthday. This is a dead giveaway for hackers. Once you’ve audited all of your profiles, update with your new password so that you A) know what the password is B) stick to a consistent layout so the guessing is much easier if/when you forget. 
• Make sure that all your computer equipment is up-to-date and running smoothly. Install any updates and clear your cache. 

Being social shouldn’t be a burden. A lot of people tend to get overwhelmed because there are too many choices and information overload. Focus on eliminating that clutter this spring by adjusting a few things at a time. Life will be made much simpler.

PASSIONATE. DEDICATED. ENTHUSIASTIC. SINCERE.

• "Nothing great in this world has ever been accomplished without PASSION."~ Hebbel
• "Obsessed is just a word the lazy use to describe the DEDICATED."
• "Every memorable act in the history of the world is a triumph of ENTHUSIASM.  Nothing great was ever achieved without it because it gives any challenge or any occupation, not matter how frightening or difficult, a new meaning.  Without ENTHUSIASM you are doomed to a life of mediocritybut with it you can accomplish miracles." ~Og Mandino
• SINCERITY makes the very least person to be of more value than the most talented hypocrite." ~Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Portfolio

Below is a list of my capabilities and links to prior work.  Don't hesitate to inquire for any additional questions.

SOCIAL AND WEB
Responsible for managing search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) campaigns including pay-per-click (PPC) and retargeting. Also developing a comprehensive digital marketing strategy, including content and web marketing, blogging, SEO/SEM. Also managing social media strategy and developing an approach to deploy global email marketing practices.

• Responsible for developing and executing a clearly defined online strategy in a manner that supports corporate objectives while increasing brand equity and online awareness. 
• Ensures superior quality of interaction and support to external community with the help of various communications tools. 
• Creates, manages and grows presence through strategic web and social media channels. 
• Manage a cross-departmental team, vendors, industry experts, executives and focus groups to develop, write and create a new corporate website. Implemented same process for newly introduced employer brand. 
• Monitors and analyzes all social media, online mentions, and website metrics to recommend ways to improve through testing and new initiatives.

SALES AND MARKETING

Display Advertising - Below is an example of display advertising done by me for Thunder Mountain Custom Cycles.  Areas of responsibility included negotiating spaces for all three terminals at Denver International Airport, create and order display materials, coordinate pick-up and drop-off, create survey questionairre, sort questionairre data, use data for direct marketing initiatives. Click link for a picture of display

• Place Advertising -  Banners were created in each department of TMHD to entice customers of the top 1- services provided within each department to better assist customers. Click for example 
• Visual Advertising - Below is an example of a full-page full color ad placed in Denver's ONE Magazine a high-end luxury magazine Click link for example
• Marketing Plan & Budget - In order to plan and promote the following years products or events, I  created a marketing plan that included demographic, SWOT analyis, competitor analysis and much more coordinated with a timeline and budget of the following years advertising, promotion, and sales initiatives.
• Sales Presentation - Presentations such as this one were created to educate and sell consumers, distributors, and individuals on company history and product offerings. Click link for a downloadable file
• Sales Support Manual - Manuals provided below are collateral written, printed, and distributed to distributors and all sales force for education on products.  Click link for example

EVENT PLANNING

Logistics - Manage the transportation, accomodations, set-up, tear-down, staffing, displays, and location of over 50 events a year.  Events included consumer events, trade shows, and annual dealer meetings.

Advertising - Event advertising is necessary to promote largely attended events.  Below is a full page magazine ad for an event I planned. Click link for example

COMMUNICATIONS & MEDIA

Press Releases- Below is an example of a press release sent out to all media within the state of Colorado announcing a new finance program introduced in a retail environment. 
Click Link for a downloadable file

Radio - Placed ads, wrote ads, worked with on-air personality for product and company mentions.
Radio Mentions Click link for example

CUSTOMER SERVICE

coming soon...

MANAGEMENT

coming soon...