Hello? Google? Is Anybody Here?

Google + — You were touted as the next big thing — the savior of social media — the networking platform to render all others obsolete.

I took the bait, sought out a beta phase invite, and was among your earliest users. I connected with a handful of acquaintances (most of whom were already connections on Facebook or Twitter) and waited …  for … the … magic … to … happen.

Just as I began to question the value of Google+, you introduced pages, and, again, I grabbed an account for my employer (a community college in the Philadelphia suburbs) on the very first day. This was it. I was sure.

But, you can’t add people to your page circles until they first add your page to their personal circles. And you can’t even message users to request or suggest that they add your page. Instead, the only way to promote your page on G+ is by posting a message to the people in your personal profile circles.

And here lies part of the problem. Acquaintances in my personal G+ circles have no interest in my employer’s page. So, besides posting the page’s link on Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, WordPress, etc. (ironic, isn’t it?), there’s no way for people to know that a G+ page even exists.

Furthermore, if the right people are already interacting with our accounts on those other social platforms — which they are –  why would they need/want to connect with us somewhere else?

Who, then, you may ask, are the 300+ followers on my institution’s G+ page?

Good question. I have no idea who these people are. They are certainly NOT our students, faculty, local community leaders, members of the media, alumni, etc. Many of them post in languages other than English, and, as of recently, many of them appear to work for Google.

Really, Google? Are your employees now following pages in order to pad circle numbers? These people don’t care about what’s going on at my institution or in the world of higher ed.

Which brings me to yet another part of the problem. Since the people in my circles have no interest in my content, there is NO (zero, zilch, nada) interaction.

And as a page facilitator, I’m doing all the right things. I don’t make it all about my employer. I share and repost links and other interesting content. (How do I know it’s interesting? The same content generates a ton of interaction on other social platforms.) And I interact with other people and pages by liking and commenting on their content. Is there an ounce of reciprocation? Nope.

So, Google, the question is, at what point do I stop investing hours of my time on a platform that seemingly nobody finds useful? At what point is the “cool” factor of having a G+ page outweighed by its complete lack of ROI?

Ashley’s Breaker: Social Connections

My latest post on Ashley’s Breaker, our documentary project about the Huber Coal Breaker in Ashley, PA, discusses how social media (positively) impacts the work of writers and artists, and specifically how Twitter – in the course of a day — changed the landscape of our project.

Check it out: Social Connections

Thanks for reading!

‘Peer Review’ Legitimacy

Apparently, in the education world, being published in a “peer review” journal is a big deal. So, I’m excited to have my third piece of work published in this regard — a case study about how Montgomery County Community College uses analytics to inform decisions that impact student learning outcomes and success, published in EDUCAUSE Review Online.

Check it out: Efficiencies, Learning Outcomes Bolstered by Analytics, Data-Informed Decision Making

While I co-authored other “peer review” pieces, this case study marks the first time I took the lead. It’s a somewhat intimidating process that involves first submitting an abstract for consideration, then, if accepted, providing an outline, followed by several drafts, and — since this is an online publication — a variety of multimedia content. At each stage, the content is critiqued by editors, and revisions have to be made. Also, at each stage, the editors could decide that the work no longer makes the cut.

So, while the case study may not reflect my typical writing flare, it’s a huge boon to my resume and writing portfolio, and I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity!

Finding Inspiration in Coal Dust

Sometimes it takes a little push to get inspired.

I was stuck in a creative rut — doing what I needed to do but nothing truly inspired — for months. Then, I found inspiration from an unlikely source — an abandoned coal breaker in Luzerne County.

A colleague invited me to join a small crew of storytellers in exploring the Huber Breaker in Ashley, Pa. Abandoned since 1976, the breaker is currently part of a bankruptcy suit that will, in all likelihood, see the property sold and the breaker demolished.

We’re telling the breaker’s story through a series of interviews, photographs, videos and first-hand documentation of our journey. Every trip to Ashley seems to expand the project’s scope — which is, at times, both overwhelming and exhilarating.

The outside-the-box-and-comfort-zone way of thinking has boosted my creativity in all things, especially blogging.

http://ashleysbreaker.org is our project’s home base. I’ll post periodic updates to Communication Art. In the meantime, check out two of my recent posts, The Shadow of Blue Coal and In Search of  Ashley’s Planes.

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past few weeks!

Angry Olympics Fans Tweet Their Protests, NBC Responds — Mashable, 7/29/12

The Beginner’s Guide to SocialCam — Mashable, 7/28/12

How BuzzFeed Wants to Reinvent Wire Stories for Social Media — Nieman Journalism Lab, 7/26/12

How We Look at Online Ads – Mashable, 7/6/12

5 Types of Phrases to Avoid in Your Twitter Bio – All Twitter, 7/3/12

How To Turn Mistakes Into Your Best Content – Modern Copy Studio (undated)

Writing Through Tragedy

I was a journalist on Sept. 11, 2001, working for a local direct mail, weekly publication that included several pages of “good news” (read “fluff”) editorial copy. As editor, I had to put the paper to bed two days after 9/11.

I remember going to work the next day, sitting at my desk, and feeling numb…at a loss for what to write. Covering fluff in the Philadelphia suburbs, I had no business covering the horrific event. Yet, I couldn’t ignore it either.

I imagine it’s the same challenge faced by journalists outside of Colorado today and throughout this week. Of course, there are AP wire stories that will undoubtedly run in most papers. But local news must go on locally, regardless.

An obvious answer is to localize the story. And many journalists in my region are doing just that tonight — using social media to ask questions like, “will you still see the movie?”

I did my best to localize the story back in 2001 (oh how I wish social media existed then). Now defunct Philly radio station Y-100 was holding a 9/11 supply drive at a major shopping complex just outside of my coverage area. I interviewed one of the morning show hosts by phone and hung out at the supply drop, which yielded dozens of tractor trailers full of supplies for rescue crews in Jersey City and Manhattan.

In the scheme of things, the supply drive and story were small. But for those of us involved, it helped us get though the day/week feeling like we did *something* to help our fellow man. It helped us move on.

For my editorial column that week, I actually wrote about the challenge of going through the day as if things were normal. And the following week, I interviewed a rep from the local American Red Cross chapter about the ways in which people not impacted by the crisis can help.

Today, my thoughts are with the wounded individuals and victims’ families of the Colorado theater shootings – and with the journalists who must move on with their coverage in spite of tragedy.

Definition: ‘Expert’

How, exactly, does one become an expert in something?

No, scratch that. I know how. I even wrote an entire blog post about it last November.

I guess the real question is, what makes others perceive one as such?

Life teaches us that it’s more than the right degree, training, and experience. It’s even more than documented success or publication in one’s field.

There’s a certain je ne sais quoi that sets experts apart from their peers. It’s a confidence — an honest-to-god belief — that they are the best at what they do.

And while I, like many others, can strap on a game face and appear confident, if I don’t feel it deep within my marrow, the confidence isn’t real.

And it shows.

Is the key, then, to become arrogant? To actually convince one’s self of superiority? Life experience tells us yes.

And there’s the dilemma.

If confidence is rooted in arrogance, then gone is the drive to learn, to evolve, to better one’s self, to create, to explore, to play, to listen.

I am an expert in my field. All of the quantitive and qualitative documentation is in place. But I cannot — will not — surrender humility to arrogance; compassion to apathy; Ego to Id.

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past few months. (yes, I said months … I’ve been slacking!)

Are You Interested? — Life Hacker, 6/19/12

Google+ Wants to be Your New Flickr – Venture Beat, 5/22/12

6 Mistakes That Can Sink Press Release Visibility – Prof Net, 4/24/12

Dear Gracie: When Clients Want to Distribute Non-News – Prof Net, 4/18/12

Reporters Increasingly Looking for More Than Story  – PeRceptions, 4/12/12

Google’s Richard Gingras: 8 Questions That Will Help Define the Future of Journalism – Nieman Journalism Lab, 4/12/12

How to Increase Traffic and Revenue by Writing to Fewer Readers – CopyBlogger, 4/11/12

Social Media Breeds PR Laziness – Spin Sucks, 4/9/12

Mea Culpa, Pinterest

I like to think that I’m an early adopter when it comes to innovation and technology in my field of communications. So it’s a hard pill to swallow that I’m THAT PERSON — the one who spent the last 10 months turning up her nose to the latest social media darling, Pinterest.

Introduced to me early on by different people as a site for sharing “hairstyle ideas” “arts and crafts” and “recipes,” I had myself convinced that it was not my scene before I ever used the tool. Months later, I broke down and created an account, only to have my prior belief reinforced. Why should I “pin” photos from outside websites to illustrate “My Style” to people I don’t know — or for that matter, to people I do know. After all, if they KNOW me they pretty much get my style; I wear it on my sleeve.

But, I AM a professional, so I persevered. I spent a weekend playing with the platform — replacing some of the template “boards” with my own topics:music, art, books, Flyers (!!!), movies, words, and yes, even “My Style” in a homage to vegan Doc Martins & Chucks.

And even though I connected with some friends on Pinterest, I lost interestpretty quickly. The writer and artist in me struggled to get my head around CURATING as opposed to CREATING content. I get the importance of content curation professionally, but the whole “me, me, me” aspect seemed a bit narcissistic (even for a compulsive Tweeter like me!).

A few weeks later at a professional communications conference, I worked the use of Pinterest into a conservation with my peers. The reactions varied from blank stares, to panic, to dismissal. None of them embraced the idea.

Yet, sites like Mashable are chock-full of articles about how some companies, like Whole Foods for example, are using Pinterest effectively — not only to promote their brands, but to engage in meaningful interactions with their customers.

And while I, at first, used my colleagues’ Pinterest reactions (or lack thereof) to validate my own opinions, I realized that the MILLIONS and growing number of Pinterest users must be on to something.

Determined to discover what that something is, I read everything I could find about Pinterest best practices for brands and created an account for my employer (a public higher ed institution). The key, it seems, is to strike a delicate balance between sharing relevant information and promoting one’s brand. When done correctly, the two are one in the same.

To my utter shock, in less than seven days, the account has an average of 50 followers on each of its 12 boards, and dozens of “re-pins” and “likes” — more interaction than we’ve seen on Google+ in close to a year.

In light of this success, it’s easy to say “mea culpa, Pinterest” without too much shame. In fact, it’s a humbling lesson I hope recall next time I start thinking I know best.

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past few weeks:

On Record with NPR Chief Gary Knell: ‘Radio Isn’t Going Away, It’s Going Everywhere’ – Nieman Journalism Lab, 3/4/12

I Was Going To Be a Copy Editor – JimRomenesko.com, 2/16/12

Newsrooms, Not Newspapers, Are the Asset That Needs To Be Saved – WHYY Newsworks, 2/20/12

Agile Alt Media Adapting to Digital Challenges — NetNewsCheck, 1/31/12

Poetry Revisited

The announcement of an upcoming poetry project prompted me to dig out some of my old work. And by old work I mean OLD — as in the disturbing ramblings of a teenager and very young adult from 1991-1997.

A few initial observations:

1) Okay, I now get why everyone was so worried about me. I mean, this stuff was DARK. Lots of blood and death, which — although mostly metaphorical — must have been pretty upsetting to others.

2) Someone should have TAKEN THE THESAURUS from the younger me. Good lord, I don’t even know what half those words mean. Thank god I went on to learn that stringing together 10 big adjectives doesn’t a good writer make!

3) Some of this stuff — if polished — could be really good.

Let me expand on #3. I have spent the last decade+ telling people I’m not a creative writer. I can write facts or opinions, but not poetry or fiction. That the younger me had this spark of creative flair is a kind-of reality check. I mean, that doesn’t go away, right? I’m still creative in other ways, so maybe I should revisit my former passion.

Perhaps I could start small — rework some of my old stuff — make it better, and see what happens…

Before Hollywood, There Was Betzwood

Today, I had the opportunity to write about the centennial anniversary of the founding of the Betzwood Motion Picture Studio. It’s wild to think that one of the most influential studios of its day produced hundreds of films in our own backyards and that people are still discovering studio artifacts on their properties.

Betzwood was founded by Siegmund Lubin in 1912 and remained in operation through 1923 in what is now West Norriton Township, Montgomery County, Pa. Lubin is credited with making the first attempt to mass market movies. In 21st century terms, that’s like being the first business to employ Facebook as a marketing tool or engage customers with Twitter. Cutting edge stuff!

Of the hundreds made, only 30 films and film fragments survived the ravages of time. Copies of 25 of those films/fragments are archived locally and will soon be available to the general public online thanks to a digitization project underway.

Click here to learn more from Lubin biographer Joseph Eckhardt.

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past week!

What Will #PR Look Like as We Approach 2015? — Putting the Public Back in Public Relations, 11/21/11

Penn State PR Majors Get a Crash Course in Crisis, Thanks to Scandal – Ad Age, 11/21/11

The Art of Writing Great Twitter Headlines – CopyBlogger, 11/21/11

Twitter, PLN, and Useful Education Hashtags — Mr. Shortreed’s Ed Tech Blog, 11/24/11

Playing with Paper.li

A few months ago, a paper.li tweet from a colleague showed up in my Twitter feed. Of course, I immediately set up a paper.li account of my own, put all of the Twitter accounts I follow into lists, and linked every single list as a content source of my paper.

Much to my disappointment, the result was a mash-up of information I didn’t care about. I played with it for another day or two, and then lost interest for a while. Then recently, one of my tweets made it into a friend’s paper.li. I checked it out again and liked the way she customized the paper to only a few topics. I drastically reduced the scope of my account, named the paper after this blog, and crossed my fingers.

Visit Communication Art

The results are a lot better than my first attempt — although I did go in and manually edit two of the top stories. And while most of the paper’s categories can be customized, I remain frustrated that I can’t delete the photo section (it seems the people I follow tweet odd and irrelevant photos).

It will be interesting to see how the paper.li tool will develop over time. The website itself notes that it’s still in its early stages of development. One of the criticisms about tools like paper.li is the lack of original content. However, I view it as another platform by which to distribute original content rather than as a means to dilute it.

Do you use paper.li? Add your comments to this post!

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past week!

Penn State’s Long Road Back — The New York Times (Opinion), 11/14/11

What Are People Doing Online? — The Next Web, 11/18/11

How Facebook is Ruining Sharing – CNET, 11/18/11

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past week!

Google+ Pages Won’t Save Search Giant’s Social Network, Slate Says — Huffington Post, 11/9/11

What Google+ REALLY Means for Higher Ed — Higher Ed Live, 11/10/11

On Becoming a Social Media Expert

“Find your niche and become an expert in that area. Stay on top of the latest trends and be confident that you are among the best at what you do.” — This is advice that I offer to aspiring writing and communications students that I mentor. It’s a new piece of advice for me — one I decided to start using myself about a year ago.

My niche is social media. I chose it for myself and followed my own advice. Every day I learn something new. I scour daily tweets from sites like Mashable. I form opinions on what I read. Most importantly, I apply it to my job.

Over the past six months, I started crafting national media pitches in response to queries from HARO and ProfNet (so much more productive that pitching blind!!!). While pitching others as experts in such areas as education, economics and psychology, I discovered that many queries sought experts in social media.

Following my own advice to students, why shouldn’t this be me! So I pitched myself as a social media expert and  was interviewed for the article, “How to Avoid Social Media Messes” published on Information Week‘s blog The Brain Yard on Oct. 31, 2011. 

The interview, for me, served not only get my name out there as a social media expert, but it boosted my confidence, renewing my commitment to, indeed, be among the best at what I do. It also gave me confidence to take my own blog, the one you are reading now, more public.

Author Junot Diaz on Writing & Artistic Process

Last night, I had the outstanding privilege of hearing a keynote address by Pulitzer Prize recipient Junot Diaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. During his keynote, which kicked off Montgomery County Community College’s annual Writers Conference, Diaz discussed his artistic process and the role of the arts in our society. Here are some quotes and paraphrases from the keynote:

Young people choose majors out of fear. The arts are different. “All that is good in humanity is found in the arts.”

“Every time we touch the arts, the little bit of humanity we have grows brighter.”

You can’t serve two masters — art or capitalism. Are you doing something to make the world better?

Who you are always comes out in your art – including human limitations.

“People think that they have to write to be a writer. To be a writer, you have to read first.”

 ”The medium for a writer is other people’s nervous systems.” Most writing fails because the writer exerts too much control.

“The difference between reality & dreams is that the real world resists us.” The world must resist your characters.

“When you are reading you are off line. Literature functions at the speed of the human soul.”

Junot Diaz engages in a Q & A session with students before the keynote.

Media Round-Up

Here are some interesting communications-related articles/info from the past few weeks!

Linked-In Report: Women Without a Mentor – Forbes, 10/25/11

How to Get the Most Out of a PR Major – Ragan’s PR Daily, 11/1/11

Why You Hate Writing, And How to Lust After the Blank Page Again – CopyBlogger, 11/1/11

Linked-In Etiquette

Linked-In has established itself, for better or worse, as the career builder among social media outlets. However, many people, especially college students or recent graduates, make the mistake of using Linked-In the they use Facebook. In reality, the two have very different purposes, and what is acceptable on one is not necessarily appropriate on the other.

While both platforms fall into the category of “social networking,” LinkedIn should exclusively be used to build your professional reputation. Please consider the following tips when using LinkedIn:

• Instead of focusing on how many “friends” one can acquire on platforms like Facebook, Linked-In users should focus on the quality and impact of their connections. It’s not about reconnecting with former classmates or sharing photos of your children.
• If you post a photo, make sure it is a professional looking headshot. Don’t post photos of pets or children or of yourself in a bathing suit or at a party.
• Keep your updates professional. For example, share news about your industry or updates about projects you’re working on. It’s not about sharing 10 status updates every day about what you ate for lunch.
• If you want to connect with someone who is in your industry but who you don’t personally know, write a message first introducing yourself. For example, I have used Linked-In to connect with freelance writers in my geographical area to discuss potential work.
• Don’t ask someone for a reference unless they have first-hand knowledge of your work and skills. Being someone’s neighbor, former student or friend of the family does not, by itself, qualify them to endorse your work. It’s not a character reference.