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July 2, 2009

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June 22, 2009

One of the best parts of my job here at Hammock Inc. is getting to grab my camera, photograph a person that I might never run across in my everyday life, and learn a little bit about them while I interview them for an article for one of our client magazines.

This morning, I got to do just that.

I spent a few minutes with a local toymaker, taking pictures of her skilled hands at work, learning about the local materials she and her husband use to make their toys, and talking to her about their business and how they got started 34 years ago.

And the whole time, my iPhone was working, recording every word. I didn't have to worry about writing down every single word as she answered my questions. We just visited like newfound friends with a common love for wooden toys, and my little iPhone captured it all for me with an app called Recorder.

There's an app for almost everything you can image: finding a restaurant, finding your car and even finding a date. But when an app can help me get my work done in an easy and efficient way, I just have to share!

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June 1, 2009

I don't think that's officially what it was called, but, cupcakes did cross oceans last week here in Austin, Texas.

Jess Pryles of Sugadeaux Cupcakes in Melbourne, Australia, set up shop with Olivia O'Neal at Sugar Mama's Bakeshop, the best in town! The result? Pure deliciousness.

The short story goes like this: The two cupcake connoisseurs were featured on a prominent cupcake blog and then became fast friends on Twitter. Less than a year later, they planned five days of co-baking in Olivia's Austin-based shop.

I had the chance to stop in on Saturday, Jess' last day at the bakery. Her "Malteser" is hard to resist, so I didn't even try. Her website describes it as "moist dark chocolate cake with luscious malted frosting, finished with a malt chocolate ball." And this week, she took it a step farther and mixed crushed malt chocolate balls into the frosting. I'm a little ashamed to admit, I could have eaten about six all by myself. But I didn't.

And for me, no trip to Sugar Mama's is ever complete without a Marilyn Monroe. "The original bombshell," made from buttery vanilla cake topped with vanilla buttercream.

Twitter and buttercream. How could they really go wrong?

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May 13, 2009

Many of us here at Hammock Inc. have been using Twitter for more than two years now – a couple of us pushing two and a half – and we've learned that Twitter does lots of things. It allows telecommuters to keep in touch with the "home" office; it affords small businesses the opportunity to reach out to potential customers free of charge; it encourages conversation on hundreds of topics at any given moment; it allows news organizations to reach their audience before the 5 p.m. telecast; and so much more. And, it's teaching me to be a better writer.

How, you ask?

Twitter forces you to keep your tweets to 140 characters. Now, I've never thought of myself as long-winded, but it's tough to keep my thoughts concise enough to fit within that constraint. So I have to work at it. I have to always keep the pages flipping in that thesaurus in my mind. Why use a word with 14 letters when a different word with just six will work?

I have to remind myself not to use flowery language, but to stick to the point without the fluff. Short and sweet is key.

Twitter also forces me to proofread, and read again, and read one more time before I hit the post button. I don't want to be the girl who uses "there" when I meant "their." Twitter is conversation in an instant, and you can't take those little mistakes back. Sure, I can delete them from my own page, but if someone has looked at that particular tweet as it was posted, they instantly think I can't spell.

If you haven't joined Twitter yet, I encourage you to do so. Be sure to look me up there too, I'm sure I'll have something short and sweet to say. And I'll do my best to spell each word correctly!

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May 11, 2009

How We Collaborate Through Brainstorming

I don't play an instrument. I sing, but only in the shower. I've never really had any musical ability at all. So when I got the opportunity Thursday to sit in on a recording session with a singer/songwriter friend, I jumped on the chance to see true talent in such a raw form. Little did I know I would be able to apply what I saw to my own work.

There were six musicians in the studio that day: Robyn and her acoustic guitar, and a drummer, pianist, bass player and two electric guitarists. Robyn had a song in her mind complete with the verses, chorus and her acoustic take on it. It was lyrically complete. She played it for the five other musicians in the room who had never heard it before, and the magic started to happen.

All of their heads started moving to the beat. The drummer started softly tapping the high hat to try to find a groove. The pianist added a very 1970s-feel tickle of the ivories. And the two guys with the electric guitars whispered a bit before adding some riffs into the background. Not everything they tried worked, but they kept on trying and offering their musical input until a magical thing happened. Within an hour, the record button was on and the full track was being laid down.

So, what did I learn from their musical collaboration that I can apply to my work here at Hammock?

1. No matter how small or fresh an idea is, getting others to offer their input will allow an idea to grow and blossom.
2. I'm surrounded by smart and talented people who are more than happy to offer their thoughts. We should always allow each other to share our strengths and talents, knowing that something amazing will always result.
3. We all dance to a different beat -- writers, editors and designers -- and we all want our ideas to be heard. Even if my ideas aren't chosen, somewhere along the way we always find an idea that we can all agree on and work on together.
4. No one "wins" or "loses" when brainstorming great ideas for a magazine feature or online article. If my idea gets tweaked or if it spurs someone else to think of an even greater idea, we all win!

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April 23, 2009

I don't get Explore. It's a section of Flickr where they highlight photos with the most "interestingness" every day. Think of the thousands and thousands of photos uploaded to Flickr every minute of each day -- 500 of those will make it into Explore for that particular day.

Interestingness is based on a behind-the-scenes formula that no one really knows, but it's somehow determined by the number of views that a photo gets, combined with the number of times it's marked as a favorite by other Flickr users and the number of comments the photo receives. Tags also come into play, as well as how many groups the photos is in. Again, I don't get it, but I have 23 photos in there, and I think it's kinda cool to unexpectedly find one there. Like I did with this balloon photo this week:

To see if you have photos with lots of interestingness according to Flickr and your fellow photographers there, visit the Big Huge Labs website. Their "Scout" feature will tell you.

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April 17, 2009

Thursday evening, I sat in on a panel discussion called "Old Media Rises From the Dead." Sponsored by Austin's Social Media Club, the discussion brought together panelists representing three local news outlets and one of Austin's most-read blogs.

Moderated by Omar Gallaga, Austin American-Statesman journalist, tech culture writer, and a funny, funny man, panelists included:

• Chelsea Stark, web producer, Twitter lead for KEYE and video game champ
• Robert Quigley, Internet editor and the Twitter face for the Austin American-Statesman and a super nice guy
• Elise Hu, political reporter and blogger for KVUE and fellow dog-lover
• Elizabeth Stoddard, news editor for the Austinist who doesn't want her mother to follow her on Twitter

There were several questions they were hoping to answer:

• Some outlets are doing better jobs than others at adapting to the social media shift, particularly some in Austin, but is there still more they can do?
• What changes do mass media outlets need to make to survive, and what can they bring to the table that bloggers can't?
• How are members of the new guard getting changes made to their newsrooms, and what kind of resistance are they meeting?
• Are journalism schools preparing graduates to deal with the many forms of online journalism, or are they losing some relevance?

As Omar asked these and many other questions to the rest of the panel, a couple of key words emerged: agility and adaptability.

"Trying to evolve as social media grows" is key, said Elise. And the rest of the panel agreed. Newspaper readers and television viewers aren't going away. Social media just gives these news outlets a new mode of communication for reaching them. If they'll embrace it.

Statesman editors witnessed the power of social media during Hurricane Ike in September 2008. Robert created a Twitter account specifically for tracking the hurricane, an account that also pointed followers to the Statesman's coverage of the storm online, generating more than 300,000 hits from Twitter alone. Robert joked that those numbers got him a "play-on-Twitter-free pass" with his bosses. Since then, Robert has used Twitter to engage with followers and readers to create real-time weather maps and cute-dog galleries and to work directly with the community on breaking news stories.

Why the success?

"It's because I'm listening," Robert says. Getting involved in social media is not just about throwing your information out there; it's about conversation, and it works best if the conversation is a two-way street.

The folks on the panel – and most of us in the room – understand that. And for old media to truly rise from the grave, they'll need to grasp the concept as well.

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April 14, 2009

Despite the fact that she's 900 miles away, I work closest with Conversational Media Director (and talented photographer) Summer Huggins. Thanks to IM, it's like she's at the desk right beside me! (Except she can't chide me for eating candy all day.) I caught up with Summer to ask her a few questions about a typical day for her, and have to admit working from home sounds like a sweet gig. Even if she does still have to get out of bed in the morning.

What's your favorite non-electric tool you use for work?
It has to be my FranklinCovey day planner. I've relied on it for several years now. If it's not written in there, it just isn't going to happen! Also, purchasing my inserts for the following year is always a scheduled shopping trip I make during a visit to Nashville. I know I can buy them online, but doing it just down the street from the office feels so official to me.

Which meal fuels you better for the day: Breakfast or lunch?
I eat all day long. All day long. I'm a grazer. But I have to say, without that kick-start from breakfast, I'm a shaking, drowsy mess. So breakfast definitely gets me ready to work (and snack) for the rest of the day.

How do you refocus if you're having trouble concentrating or getting the creativity flowing?
A couple of things actually: 30 seconds on the back porch to take in some sun and fresh air does wonders for my brain. And a quick IM session with a coworker will get the creative juices flowing again. Chatting with someone energizes me and helps me to brainstorm and move forward.

What's your favorite on-the-job responsibility?
Oh, that's a tough one. I think it's a tie really: I really love getting to talk with client contacts all over the country. And when I say all over the country, I mean I have someone in all 50 states on my speed dial. It's really cool to talk to someone in Florida, Hawaii and Iowa all in one day. That and the freedom we have with new and social media. It's great to get to dive into the deep end of the Internet and social media pool to soak up and learn all that I can, and then get to share those lessons and our expertise with clients.

What do you like best about working from home? What do you like the least?
Best? The productivity. Without the distractions of people in and out of my office, fire drills and the noise of printers going crazy, I get to buckle down and work. It's not for everyone, that's for sure. I've heard from many people that they just wouldn't be able to concentrate and be productive. For me, a quiet home office is the perfect place for getting projects knocked out.

Least? I miss my coworkers! Working from home, I don't get to go out to lunch with the Megans or shoe-shopping with Lena or Jamie. I normally have three snoring dogs around me and sometimes I found myself talking to them as if they are coworkers. I definitely miss the social aspects of working there in Nashville.

And sometimes I only comb my hair about once a week, but I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

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April 2, 2009

I got to bust out my mad photography skillz yesterday at a photo shoot for a client. It was a beautiful day for it: blue skies, a slight breeze and temperatures in the low 70s.

The group I was photographing was a family of four and included a very energetic five-year-old boy. He taught me a thing or two (well, five) about photographing children during our time together:

1. Get kids in their element. If I told him to smile, he showed me his teeth. Most kids will do the same and you won't get a genuine smile. But watch for their eyes to light up while doing a puzzle, playing a game or listening to a joke – things they like to do that don't include posing for you. That's when you'll get the best natural smile.
2. Have some shots in mind. Have some thoughts about what you want to see through your lens before you even go into the shoot. Do you want them outside kicking a ball, inside eating a snack or maybe during the peaceful quiet of naptime? Be prepared with a ball, a snack or scheduling during that naptime to get the most of your time and your photo goals.
3. Have a joke or two ready. It's a good distraction, plus the faces that a child will make while he's concentrating and really laughing are great for candid shots. Here is one that I used yesterday (hat tip to my seven-year-old friend Thomas): Why do skeletons like milk? Because it's good for their bones! It got me a great silly smile.
4. Let them direct the shoot. But just for a minute. There were a couple of times yesterday that the little guy wanted me to take a picture of him or of an airplane flying overhead. I did. He enjoyed looking at them on my digital display, and then we were back to the business at hand.
5. Snap, snap and keep snapping. You never know what a kid is going to do, how his expression is going to change or what (or who) else might come into the frame. I took 271 pictures during this shoot, but not all were perfect. I was able to delete the ones with closed eyes or those that turned out blurry or overexposed. That's one of the many beauties of digital cameras: Keep the best, delete the rest!

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March 18, 2009

Tuesday was the last day of SXSW Interactive in Austin. The five-day conference brings together thousands of people, valuable information and a flood of tweets on every topic. I attended panels and core conversations (small, more interactive groups) on such topics as company culture, managing online communities and politics. And yesterday, I was very happy to end my time at SXSW sitting in on a panel about food blogging!

I snapped lots of pictures, ate some great Austin food and met people in real life that I only previously knew as tiny avatars on the web. With so much information to share and an exhausted brain, I thought a great way to reflect on my experience might be to look back at my twitter stream to see if I had any gems. But you can judge for yourself. Here are a few things that I found:

During the "Blog on Company Time and Get Promoted" core conversation. I like these small core conversation sessions quite a bit. Rather than a panel of experts talking to each other at the front of a room, these more intimate sessions invite dialogue and questions from everyone in the room. Many of the folks in the room are simply trying to convince their bosses/CEOs of the importance of blogging for their company. I handed out a few business cards during this conversation to show what I think is a great example of a business blogging -- hammock.com, of course!

During the "How to Create a Great Company Culture" core conversation. The king of cool company culture at SXSW was clearly Tony Hsieh of zappos.com, so I was interested to see how the two guys from dogster.com running this conversation would follow Tony's Saturday remarks. The cool thing was that they spoke from a small-business perspective, and lots of entrepreneurs in the audience were able to share helpful stories of implementing great cultures in their own businesses.

One of the speakers from dogster equated a business, especially a small one, with a close family. What did I take from his statement? A good balance of education and discipline with praise, and okay, maybe a hug, will in itself help promote a great company culture from the top down.

From the "From Flickr and Beyond: Lessons in Community Management" panel. I wish I could remember which of the panelists said this because it is a great tip! Anyone who runs an online community will inevitably hear from someone with harsh criticism or "crazy" ideas. Being a good administrator of such a community means that one of your many roles is to answers those questions and comments. All of them.

From the "Start-up Management: OMG I Have to Manage People?" core conversation. This question got quite a response from the folks in the room, some of my followers on twitter, and even at dinner with some friends the next evening. The thought behind salary transparency as I understood from the other attendees is that everyone would try harder to work up to their paycheck. If person A makes more than person B, maybe that would serve as incentive for person B to work a bit harder, longer or up to person A's example. And should we name our own raises? I think we all might take a harder, closer look at our work if we did.

During the "Building Strong Online Communities" panel. Not everyone in your online community is going to love everyone about it. Give those people a place to offer comments, suggestions and criticisms in a constructive and welcoming way.

From the Tuesday Keynote Interview with Chris Anderson, Wired Magazine, and Guy Kawasaki, Alltop. Guy interviewed Chris about his coming-soon book, "Free". The conversation was lively and entertaining. Some of the things they talked about included the semantics of the word "free," twitter charging for use of a service we all think of as free and paper. "There will always be a market for great design, great production and great implementation of long-form journalism," Chris said.

During the "Nom Nom Nom: The Secrets of Successful Foodblogging" panel. This was a fun and entertaining way to end my time at SXSW. One of my new foodie friends from Austin was on the panel and I recognized several other local/foodie friends in the audience that I hadn't seen a single time during the previous four days. The panelists gave the attendees some great pieces of advice, including a single word: Focus!

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Summer Huggins

Conversational Media Director

o: 615.690.3428

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