Road Warrior Princess

Content Was Never Unthroned

I've heard this a lot lately: Content is now king.  My question: was there ever any question?

A recent blog piqued this idea in my mind - content marketing may have briefly fallen out of favor for things like search and social marketing, but in reality it is and always has been the best way to build SEO success.

Content Marketing for Search

Search marketing truly is content marketing, just with a very singular focus.  When developing your strategy for backlink curation, or keyword optimization - it comes back to content.  Without content, who will link to you?  Without the content to surround your keywords, you will eventually fall from the ranks, even if you experience initial success.

Content strategy requires that you spend time planning to curate valuable content - according to your industry - that will add to the body of knowledge.  Content strategy focuses on value and relevancy.  The more valuable your content, the more links you'll receive and the more relevant your content, the more you will benefit from slightly different search terms.

Content Marketing for Social

Similary, writing valuable, relevant content is something that readers will be proud to share.  With social sharing driving huge amounts of web traffic today, users are more likely to respond not to mass exposure, but to trust.  Consumers trust their friends, and the social marketing model relies on trustworthy references to convert those consumers.

Thus, compelling, relevant, and reliable content provides the framework for a successful social marketing endeavor.  Write content that people trust, and they will pass it on to others that - get this - are interested in the same subject, whether you work in a B2B or B2C industry.  Pre-qualification at its finest!

Invest Where it Counts

Content is king, and will continue to be king.  Create value, relevancy, and reliability, and not only will you see results in your marketing, but you'll see results in your morale, too.

End of an Era

You are totally expecting this to be an homage to Steve Jobs, aren't you?

Well, I do own an iPad and a brand-spankin-new MacBook, but frankly, I'm no fangirl.  I was so very sad to hear the news of the passing of one of the great marketers and visionaries of our time.  However, this post is not about him.

This post is about, well, the same thing this blog is about - me.  I've officially made the commitment to leave the unnamed employer in this blog and join another unnamed employer, in a totally different industry.

Everyone wants to know where, and what I'll be up to once I'm there.  Everyone is also thinking, but not asking, why I left.  

Frankly, I'll be joining a small company doing BIG things, and I'll be lucky to be doing big things to as the Manager of Digital Marketing for both internal and external projects.  I'll also be calming down the travel, much to my parents' glee!  No more desperate text messages from Mom, wondering if I'm out of the country, and if so, if I'm in a friendly country!!  (Well, those may continue, but it will be funsies trips rather than all business)

And, thanks to Delta's Rollover program, I don't have to slum it in coach until AT LEAST 2014!

I won't reveal the reasons why I'm leaving on this blog, Precious Reader, but I do want to tell everyone that I still care immensely for the unnamed employer, and will always fight the good fight alongside our clients and against false clouds.  

So - to the end of one era and to the beginning of another - both for Apple and for me.

The Upper Decker

Yes, I had to - I have the maturity of a 10-year-old so...NO, MOM, I couldn't just call it "The Upper Deck."  

What I am referring to, of course, is the fact that during this month's trip to Rome, I had the distinct pleasure of riding up top on the brand-spanking-new full two-story Airbus 380 via Air France.  What a way to kick off a Mediterranean adventure!

This was my second exposure to the Air France Business Class product, and it was fine - food was good, seats were comfortable, and the Clarins lotion in the amenity kits continue to be my primary reason for ever flying AF.  However, since I was straying from my usual international airline, I was mostly interested in the equipment, not the service, and I was NOT disappointed!

The upstairs cabin was incredibly spacious, unlike the 747 (my only other two-deck airline experience).  Not that I minded, but it seemed like there was even a little too much space - the staircase was exceptionally wide, and the forward right section of the cabin was dedicated to some sort of art installation.  Apparently, somewhere on the plane there was an espresso bar (didn't find it, but it was mentioned in the menu).  Seriously, it can't get much Frencher that this!!

The thing that I will never forget, however, is the totally amazing decision to mount cameras on the plane...and make their video available to passengers.  That's right - you get to watch your plane take off from above.  

Three separate cameras (mounted on the tail, the front, and below the fuselage) provide three completely different perspectives, though the tail camera is the one that gives the best perspective of weather in-flight.  Unfortunately, because of cloud thickness, the fuselage camera is only valuable just after takeoff, just before landing, or on a clear day.  It does give you a clear understanding of how fast you are moving, however.

Between takeoff and landing, I just couldn't get enough of this flight - until DH turned to me and asked, "Can you believe that there's someone sitting immediately below you right now?"  

That question blew my mind.  

Then I remembered that if there weren't a person below me, I wouldn't get to say that I was The Upper-Decker.*  Commence the giggling.

*I do realize that some readers may not understand why I am so bent on this term...so to those people I recommend googling the phrase.  I take no responsibility for what you find.  Blame my sisters.

Traveling Sick

Ever done it?  It sucks.

I don't get sick very often - probably because I love to sleep, work out regularly, and try to eat right (and stay hydrated).  However, when it hits me, it...hits...HARD.

At the moment, I'm sitting at home, suffering from my summer cold and dreading the fact that I've got to get on a plane tomorrow.  I'm also thinking back to some of the worst business trip illnesses I've lived through...

...like the onset of a head cold the day before I left on a 30 hour trip to Sydney...

...or the weeklong flu that prompted the client's consultant to give me her entire container of Airborne...

...or the time I had to go to the ER in the Cinci-nasty airport.

Yikes!  It's bound to happen to a traveler at some point, so what can you do?  Since there is no way to outright avoid ever getting sick while traveling, the best thing that you can do is plan ahead.

Plan ahead in order to keep your body healthy.  When traveling, drink as much water as you can, get some work outs in, and eat right!  Eat enough.  Wash your hands.  Drink some more water.  

Plan ahead to keep your immune system up.  Don't take the last flight in.  Get a full night's sleep every night that you can.  Don't take the red-eye.  Seriously, it's not worth it.

Plan ahead for the times when you will be sick.  Travel with whatever OTC medications you turn to - a few days' worth of aspirin or cold medication will be worth their weight in gold when you wake up coughing in the middle of the night (and when you don't feel like getting out of bed to get some).  Prepare a travel kit to keep these things together.  Remember to replenish.

Plan ahead for the times you will be direly ill.  Make sure you always have a cheat-sheet with your insurance information and any rules or other information.  Ensure you know where to find it.

Proper planning is the only way to survive the times that you do fall ill - because when you're struggling, you will fall back into the habits you establish.  If you know that you have some tools at your disposal to help deal with your discomfort, you can execute with those tools more quickly, and feel better sooner.  

Finding Your Cheers

When you travel like I do, sometimes the only thing you want is to be somewhere that feels familiar.  You miss your home, the streets you know, and that joint that has become your "Cheers" - where everyone knows...well, maybe it's just Don, the bartender with the lazy eye...at any rate, someone remembers your name.  Or even if they call you the wrong name, like Norm, at least they're consistent.

Most travelers collect something on the road to help with coping - it makes it feel like the trips are part of a quest.  I happen to collect postcards, primarily because they are cheap.  However, I have very stringent requirements - whatever is on the postcard must be something that I personally saw or experienced, and it must have the name of the city or country.  Until I find the card that meets those requirements, I will not buy it, so there have been numerous frantic search runs at airports on my outbound trip just to get that momento.

These requirements have served me well, though, because my goal in collecting the card is to jog a memory - to call up a heart-print.  I remember faces, places, and sometimes names (though I generally assign them to the wrong people), but the postcards bring all of those jumbled details back into perspective.  The visual represents something to me that stimulates my mind, and acts like a photograph of an old friend - or possibly someone I never want to see again, like in the case of a city in Mississippi that will go unnamed*ahem*Jackson*cough*pleasedon'tmakemegobackthere*AHEM!.

It's my third trip to this city, and it has become for me a bit of a European headquarters.  Each visit, I've learned something new.  I've conquered the train and tram system, mastered the art of avoiding those deadly bicycles, and heck, I even hugged a windmill (one of the REAL ones, not those new-fangled sound abatement ones).  Despite doing all of these things, I realize that you can learn the facts and history, the geography, and you can take a lot of pictures of a city, but you can't truly create a feeling of comfort within that city until you are exposed to its soul.  The only way to do that is through the people.

You have to get out amongst the people, and you have to meet a few of them.  You must build that base that will provide that feeling of comfort and familiarity.  Lucky for me, I have some friends (met them in China, believe it or not) who live here and were obliged to introduce me to my first hyper-local Dutch restaurant (and the owners).  This is what a traveler lives for - that new favorite, introduced by a local, and run by good people who can personify that city for you always.  And La Cacerola is that place for me now.  Incredible food, a warm welcoming environment, and bubbles by the glass (natch), gave me that precise combination of local flavor and worldliness.  

It may not be a restaurant for you - it may be a pub, it may be a park, but it really is the conversation and the laughs that happen there, the feeling that you are sharing a part of someone's sphere of influence that makes that place feel comfortable, familiar.  It is that feeling that makes you think, "Hey, I can come back here time and again, and I will feel like I know these people and this place, and that they know me. This could be my 'Cheers'. "

...Even if they pronounce your name wrong.

Great Lengths - Snake on the Town!

I must admit, I'm a little jealous of the Bronx Zoo Cobra.

He/She's been tweeting for two days so far, has 130K followers (and counting) and is currently on a whirlwind tour through one of my all time favorite cities.

In reality, though, this is a totally amazing marriage of technology + pr + awareness.  I wonder if the cobra really is missing - it's even better if not.  Better - because it means someone on staff is pretty much a genius at getting the public motivated around a decidedly unfriendly species.

The formula for success?  I'm not sure on the ratios, but terrifying protagonist + minimalist communication platform + cryptic/hilarious postings + shoutouts to local hotspots (and hidden gems) = perfection.  

Fear of snakes is a genuine fear - many people are terrified, and many of a snake's qualities (you know, the slithering, shiny-looking scales, venom, tendency to speak in a deep & evil whisper) do nothing to help its cause.  The idea that a nearly-two-foot-long member (ha ha) of the snake kingdom (or is it genus?) would go missing is basically the theme of untold numbers of horror movies (and nightmares), and fear is often the playmate of fascination.

Whether the snake truly is missing or not is inconsequential for me - what is amazing is the way that the Bronx Zoo architected this marketing scheme, executed it, and activated over 100,000 people to tweet, retweet and listen in 48 hours.  

The choice of Twitter over something like Facebook really works here - the short, simple messages leaves people wanting more, checking often, and asking questions.  The coupling of location-based mentions is a secondary benefit, because it adds a dimension of familiarity with local businesses/attractions and creates loyalty amongst the local populace (hey, the cobra's at my fave cupcake joint! Awesome! Now I totally want a red velvet cupcake!).

It certainly doesn't hurt that the snake has a totally cutting sense of humor (Charlie Sheen references? The creation of the #snakeonthetown hashtag? Brilliant!), but that just adds to the level of rawk here.

If the Zoo has calculated this fully, they will begin to launch opportunities around this Twitter frenzy: perhaps a "Find the Cobra Fund" or a "Cobra Search Party" event to invite kids to search for the cobra on zoo grounds; perhaps a "Cobra Search Tips" aimed at kids to teach them about snakes in general and safety.  The possibilities are endless, but so far, I've been disappointed by their response.  Does this mean it's not a brainchild of the zoo at all?  Or is their distance an even more brilliant tactic?

Now all we can do is wonder what happens next - where will the cobra pop up?  Will there be twitpic cobra sightings?  What sort of media bash will ensue when the cobra is "found" safely (I hope) back at the Zoo?  Would love your comments!

What to do with a Few Spare Hours in Europe

When you think of Brussels, or Belgium in general, you probably think of the waffle, perhaps chocolate, or if you're a bit of an "alcohol connossieur," you may think of beer.  I thought of all those things (bier first, of course), but I also took great excitement in the fact that Belgium counts German as an official language.  So, I embarked on an excursion to Bruxelles from London today with a goal to drink bier and speak in meine Lieblingsprache.

Brussels is a small city, which is perfect when you only have about four hours to spare (which I did).  In fact, I was able to visit the Grand Place/Grote Markt, Kathedraal St. Nicholas, and the Parc de Bruxelles in about an hour and a half. However, please notice that none of the words above are German...and remember my goal #2.

Turns out that even though German is a recognized official language, most people completely ignore that and are, quite frankly, stunned when you approach them speaking it.  I managed to find a handful (okay, maybe three people - that doesn't quite fill a hand) of people.  I was beside myself to have a simple conversation auf Deutsch about directions with a gay couple - I'm surprised they didn't take off running with the way I threw myself at them.  Auf Deutsch, of course.  By the way, throwing yourself at someone auf Deutsch is the equivalent of showing emotion.  For the record.

I'd achieved my goal of German speaking, but I still had to redeem myself by drinking a beer/bier...and there was one more sight left on the list after I'd tackled the park and the palace.  The Manneken Pis.

There's nothing that goes better with beer/bier than urination - they go hand in hand, and please don't go any farther with that statement.  Too late, I know you already went there.

The Manneken Pis is quite famous, and very old - nearly 400 years old.  The peen that launched a thousand imitators is located in close proximity to the Grand Place, but unfortunately, not easy to find on my little map.  No matter, I set off in search of the Little Pee Boy and ultimately a bier/beer.

I found plenty of cherub statues, but this boy was hard to find!  Little did I know - all I had to do was follow the giggling masses and I'd find one of the two substances I was looking for.  At long last I reached him, and - I couldn't even get a good shot.  He was dressed.  Turns out, the Belgians dress him up several times per week, and I totally missed the schedule.  Yes, there's a schedule - and if you happen to have any old suits that you/your children have outgrown, or maybe your dog - you can offer them up for the lil guy.

As you can imagine, all this walking really worked up an appetite!  My time was waning in Bruxelles, but I managed to finally fill my belly with a long-awaited beer/bier (probably not the makings of a filling meal, but nonetheless...).  It was worth the wait - a delicious Witbier - at a proper Belgian bar, complete with inattentive, terrible service.  

I wouldn't have it any other way.

London in (Literally) a Day

I've had quite the adventures in my time.  I can proudly say that I've run a race on the Great Wall of China, I've conquered the ancient Viking village of Birka, Sweden, and now I can add that I've been trapped in the Tower of London to my resume.

Seriously, that place it easy to get lost in!  I was gifted with may wonderful traits, but a sense of direction was not one of them...so when I found myself utterly confused amidst howling battle cries and the sound of iron helmets clanking, I wondered if I was going to be able to escape.

The Tower of London is a large place - full of lawns (prime spots for a private beheading, or maybe a picnic), pathways, exterior towers and turrets, giant cheeky ravens, and of course the prime building - the White Tower.  It may look fairly straightforward from the outside, but don't underestimate that building!

When you don't have much time in a place you'll be visiting, the absolute most important thing to do is prioritize.  Secondly, you must plan.  Plan your schedule, your budget, your route - and of course, plan your mode of transportation.  Plan as much as you can, because...someone or something is going to try to blast your plan to high hell, so you'll need to salvage what you can so you can do what you set out to do.

This is exactly why I had crafted an itinerary with carefully planned directions for myself to get around - timelines, even - so that when I learned that London had shut down the entire Jubilee Underground line in honor of my arrival, I could deal with it accordingly.  And by "accordingly", I mean a dumbfounded shriek followed by a gigantic sadface.

I managed to make it to my hotel, only to learn that I couldn't check in.  One whorebath and an SFRB later, I was ready to hit the sights!  (If you had to click that link, and/or don't know what an SFRB is, you are dead to me).

Incidentally, since I was staying across the Thames from the Tower of London (priorities & planning, people), it was a short jaunt over to what would fill my afternoon.  I was awestruck by the stories of death and dismemberment, torture and treason that took place on these ancient grounds.  I was also really entertained by those wacky ravens.  They eat better than the yeomen employed there (which is amazing as some of those guys are really plump).

The Tower was a great location to point me down towards the next items on my agenda: a walk along the Thames (check), Big Ben (check), the London Eye (forgot about that one, but check), and the Houses of Parliament (government? okay, check).  I got close to Westminster Abbey, but it was getting dark.

My feet exhausted, my belly empty - it was time to meet some friends for drinks - at the wrong place.

It seems that despite all my plotting and planning, I left out one of the most important things that a girl like me can't miss...drinking ales at a legitimate English pub.  What have I done?!?  I don't even know who I am anymore!  Instead of dumping smelly vinegar on greasy fish and chips fried in century-old peanut oil, I found myself sitting in a forgettable bar/restaurant by the Wimbledon station.  The company: Fabulous.  The service: Poor, on a good day.  The beer: American.  

I leave in the morning for Bruxelles, Belgium - the land of beer and chocolate.  Perhaps I can redeem myself there.  Wait, what time do London pubs open?  Maybe I can redeem myself at breakfast...

Sleeping with the Fishes

I realize that the title of this post is totally inaccurate - with the amount of adrenaline coursing through my body (and the fact that I haven't been able to sleep past 4 am yet), there is no way I would have been caught sleeping.  Still, it's catchy.

I was a little wary when "Flo" at the hotel travel desk suggested that I sign up for scuba diving.  I'd been planning to visit the Great Barrier Reef and was convinced that snorkeling would be incredible enough.  However, if you've ever watched a Progressive Insurance commercial, you know that women named Flo can be very convincing.  So, she signed me up to board the SilverSonic destined for some of the Ribbon Reefs.

The Ribbon Reefs are called such because they lie at the outermost portions of the Great Barrier Reef.  The Great Barrier Reef lies at the edge of the continental shelf surrounding Queensland, Australia.  In fact, there were a couple of times that I could hear the water breaking out on the continental shelf, and I must admit that it was fascinating.

Not as fascinating as the life below, however!  When I boarded the SilverSonic, I was certain I knew what to expect - after all, I'm a strong swimmer, don't mind diving down to catch something cool, and I've snorkeled all over the Caribbean as well as Hawaii.  None of these experiences came anywhere close to the teeming life I spied on the breathtaking reef.  I was literally surrounded by species of coral, fish, sea worms, and other things I never actually saw but certainly saw me.  Let's face it, when you're wearing a bright blue bodysuit, you're hard to miss.  Don't mock me, I was wearing it for protection from sun/jellyfish/cold of the water...okay, you can mock me.

The first dive site was a great opportunity to warm up at Agincourt Reef, swimming all around the Nursery Bommie chasing reef sharks (see video) and diving down to test my ears.  Unfortunately, I was having quite a problem with my right ear from a cold I'd had, but no amount of poor acting on training videos was going to convince me to not try the diving at our second site.  I'd paid up front - I don't take that lightly, and I wasn't about to disappoint Flo.

My instructor, Matt, was the friendliest of the staff and probably the most patient, which is why I was assigned to him (these people are pros; they can smell trouble).  I was determined to be on my best behavior, but that darned ear kept me from descending as quickly as I wanted.  Thanks to the aforementioned poor acting in the training video, however, I finally managed to equalize enough to realize the human dream of breathing underwater.  I couldn't believe it!  This perspective was unlike anything I'd ever seen, and once the fear of choking/air running out/lungs exploding had subsided (to be honest, I got distracted by the view), it was a total game-changer.  I'm no longer a mere snorkeler, I'm big-league now.

To bring me down from my pedestal, a cheeky hump-headed wrasse nearly knocked me in my head as I fondled a sea cucumber on the seafloor.  The fondling was sanctioned, but "Wally" was not happy that he wasn't the center of attention, so he poked his snout into our business.  However, no amount underwater drama was going to take back the fact that I had completed my first dive - I have the certificate to prove it! 

With proof of my experience, endless memories, and photos to share with you, I only regret leaving one thing behind: my trusty blue jumpsuit.

First Day Down Under

Time travel is fun, but wears a girl out.

This trip to Australia represents many firsts for me - my first trip to the Southern Hemisphere, my first time on a lie-flat bed on an airplane, and my first time crossing the International Date Line.  Needless to say, the trip was long, and when someone asked me yesterday how long I had been awake, I honestly couldn't say.  After all, since I left the 15th of September and arrived the 17th, do I count the 16th or did I skip that day entirely?  And where did that day go?  A black hole?  Can I apply to have that day back when I leave to go home?  Too much math. 

All things considered, the trip has been fairly smooth so far.  Flights were on time, my bags arrived, and so did I - fairly alert.  However, what a MADHOUSE when I tried to leave the airport!  You'd think they were giving away free Tim Tams at the Exit.  Travel tip - when faced with the International Arrivals area in Sydney, do NOT wait in the line to exit.  See if you can find a uniformed staff member, get him to stamp your card (and btw don't bring any snacks into the country), and bail out the back way.  This will save you approximately an hour of standing around and possibly add two years to your life.

Now, after a heavily caffeinated day at the office (well, to be fair, a day at the office and at Union Pub with friends and colleagues, new and old), I'm next off to Cairns.

Cairns is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the northern coast.  It's quite warm this time of year, and is also best known for access to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest.  My hope is to visit both - and to get some rest and work in while I'm there.  I don't see a lot of fancy shopping or eating in my future, though, because this joint is expensive!

My stomach is telling me that a steady diet of beer and coffee just won't do.