Fired From Using Facebook?

MSN.com posted an interesting article today about people who have been fired because of their social media status posts.  

I ask...is this fair?  The internet is free speech right?  Yes and no.  The meat of the article claims that posting negative comments via Facebook and Twitter are public and can be used against you - especially comments about your job.  

For example.  An employee emailed his boss saying that he had an emergency around Halloween.  A couple days later, pictures of that person at a Halloween party surfaced - the day he supposedly had his "emergency."  The business took action by firing the person.  

In a situation like this the employee shouldn't have lied.  But at the same time a person should be able to take time off for whatever reason if they have personal time available.  Posting pictures of yourself dressed in a fairy costume makes him one crayon short of a full box.  And not because of the costume choice, but because a number of his Facebook friends are co-workers. 

Moving on... 

My friend at a local agency said she got a nasty email from her boss asking her to refrain from using text messaging and Facebook during work hours.  I'm shocked to hear this micromanaging from a media agency (especially when she wasn't using Facebook excessively).

As technology moves forward, social media is becoming a vital part in any business - especially businesses in media, advertising and sales.  If we plan on marketing social media we should be fluent in it.  Practice what we preach. But that's just my opinion.  

In the meantime, check out Social Media Pitfalls posted today on MSN.com and let me know what you think.  

Someone you know get Facebook fired?  If so, I want to hear their story.  Post a comment or send it to quinn.kathner@gmail.com.  

How Twitter Makes You A Kick-Ass Writer

As a copywriter, we often lean towards long copy.  It's no secret.  And I'm guilty of it myself. Projects that should take minutes to write turn into hours of long, drawn out copy that ends up on the cutting room floor.  

My problem? I take too many words to get to the point.  It's a rookie mistake, too, that's the burning part of it.  So how does twitter help us become better writers? Simple.  

Space.

With tweets, you've only got 140 characters so you'd better get to the point.  It's nice to have a limit so you know what space you're working with.  Before I start projects (after the creative process begins) I like to do mock-ups of where I want graphics and copy. 

Headlines.  

You also need to kick up your headlines to get attention.  Check out the headline.  See?  It's much more attention-grabbing than "How Twitter Makes You A Better Writer."  Blah.  Add some zing to your headlines.  

Edits. Edits. Edits.

I'm also guilty of writing tweet headlines in a flash.  Meaning it's easy to mistype words. And with only 140 characters, a typo reflects a rather high percentage of error. 

From space and headlines to edits, Twitter can help your short game writing. So have I convinced you to sign up for Twitter?  

The Loop.

I'd never imagine that I'd have a different opinion about 12th street.  

I grew up in rural South Dakota.  The population sign was (and still is) in my front yard.  It reads, "Woonsocket, SD, Population 741."  In high school I was that girl who didn't have a lot of friends, but I had a few really good friends.  One of those good friends lived in Sioux Falls, her name is Chasity.   

Now Chas and I have lost contact throughout the years, but I always look back to my high school years and know that I survived because of her friendship and her location.  I'd visit Chasity as often as possible.  But there was one activity in Sioux Falls that our parents told us explicitly not to do.  So naturally, we did it: cruise the loop.

The loop was made up of 11th and 12th streets - one way streets that looped around.  It was a dangerous-esk area of town.  People would linger, smoke pot or crack or whatever.  Apparently my parents thought that if we cruised the loop we'd become pot-smoking hippies or whores.  

My first perception of 12th street was bias.  I was 16 years old girl, easily influenced by my parents and other adults perceptions.  Their perception became mine.  It's true that a 16 year old girl   

So fast forward 10 years later.  I'm now 26.  That paranoia about downtown SF still lingered.  Until I started working downtown at 6th and Main at Fresh Produce.  

Sure we get our share of sketchy people walking by, but rarely do I ever feel that they'd sell me drugs or murder me.  More often than not, people have said "good morning."  My perceptions changed by going outside my comfort level and learning to block out the negative perceptions of others.  To not be so easily influenced.  These are good words to live by.  Everyone can have their opinion, just don't try to persuade me into believing yours.  Easier said than done.  

I love downtown Sioux Falls - so much culture and history.  We live on west 12th street (not downtown, but it's still on 12th), my kid goes to a daycare center downtown and we do activities and businesses in downtown.  And without the fear of being shot.    

Over the past years, I'm sure downtown Sioux Falls has changed, but what I'm most proud of are the changes that I've made as a person.  I'm able to think for myself and not be influenced by others irrational paranoia.  Maybe that comes with age or maybe I've just grown up.  Or maybe I grew up with crazy people.  Maybe it's all of the above.  For what it's worth we all need to go outside of our comfort area and see it's really not that scary.  

Freevertising - Did You Get Your Big Hug From McDonald's?

Every Monday from July 13th through August 3rd, McDonald's gave away a free sample of their McCafe Mocha's.  According to corporate execs, it's one of the largest sampling initiatives done by McDonald's.  And giving away free stuff is a very big part of advertising and marketing plans right now.  In this economy, why?  

People are constantly being bombarded with advertisements.  System overload.  That's why McDonald's turned to "freevertising," a new twist on an old technique of sampling.   

According to trendwatching.com - "Free Love," also known as "freevertising," is an all-out war of getting customers attention - the handshake - well, more of a full-body shake.  

While companies literally open their arms and give consumers free stuff it's clear that consumers win.  We love free stuff, but we also feel the need to say "thank you" which translates into a purchase.  In McDonald's case, it's one delicious way of increasing business.  Sneaky, but delicious.  

Check out Trendwatching's article on "Free Love."  It's worth a hug. 

Having Problems? Don't Fix It, Shave a Bear.

Normally I don't read every post made by Seth Godin, but today I read a real home run. It talks about how we cover up problems instead of fixing them.  

The big elephant in the room is global warming.   And instead of fixing the problem, we cover it up.  Seth Godin lists of a bunch of examples, but one I can think of is our government.  Instead of reducing federal spending and cutting back we print more money.  I hope some of that newly printed money was allocated to razors because we just shaved a bear.  A big bear at that.    

In this ad, it's the poor bears who are forced to shave to adapt to the rising temps.  (Speaking of temps, the one degree of separation battle rages on).  

What a great concept for a PSA.  Attention-grabbing and deep.  Very deep.  Excellent perception.  No one wants to see a bear shave itself.  Click here to watch the PSA.  

Read the full article on Seth Godin's page by clicking here.  

The Silence of the Lambs

I'm 26 years old and watched The Silence of the Lambs for the first time last night. Yeah I know, but I was a very protected kid forced to watch PG-13 movies until I was 18. So my excuse for waiting 9 years to watch this thriller is fear. I was very afraid of this movie until I sat down and watched it.

It was tastefully done meaning the acting was good and the graphic scenes weren't that graphic. Check out CSI: SVU and tell me that's worse. And when The Silence of the Lambs came out back in 1991, graphic displays were a HUGE deal. People weren't used to seeing or imagining that kind of disturbia, now you can't watch your local news without going into shock mode.

TV desensitizes our minds. Radio rapes our ears. YouTube viloates our souls. Yeah yeah...life's full of smut. If you haven't watched The silence of the Lambs in a while, you should. Takes us back to simpler times. Times when people could be canabals and gentlemen. But that's another topic for another post.

Degree of Separation

As temps outside heat up. Temps inside go down. Makes sense. Does it make sense to fight about a thermostat degree? Probably not, but inside our house it's the different between an igloo or a hot box. We translate that into a happy house and a not-so-happy house.

Enter ringside weighing in at 160 pounds - Lincoln "I hate air conditioning" Kathner (aka my husband). He sleeps in sweatpants in 90 degree weather. His internal thermostat is a thing of wonder.

I enter opposite ringside - weighing less than Lincoln but trust me, I'm ferocious. My internal thermostat is programmed to go into shock if our house temp climbs above 73 degrees. Trust me, it's hot.

Nevertheless we compromise. Meaning I'm dressed in a tank top and shorts while Lincoln looks like a human snow globe. It's go time.

I set the temp to 73 and walk away. An hour passes - it's now set to 74 and I'm getting red in the face. Literally, I'm getting hot. I gaze down upon a snugly wrapped up Lincoln sitting on the couch. I ask myself if it's worth the fight - the lousy one degree of separation!

If you're living in a one degree of separation battle with your significant other, roommate or life partner please, let me know how you solved it.