Reflecting in the Waves of Integrative Waves

The ocean that is social media has been all very interesting but Integrative Waves is now dragging our tail. The year is almost at an end and we need some well-deserved vacation. Heading off to relax and consider all that we have learned.

Going to the southern hemisphere to get some sun and to think on the right side of the earth. The 'wa' of Integrative Waves needs a reboot!

Last bit of work before we leave. To review and reflect on what we have learned - to look back so that we can go forward with knowledge and insight.

We started using social media only recently. Now we understand a lot more. We have dipped and dabbled in quite a few coves. Now it is time for a swim!

Integrative Waves began a Facebook Page and found we have been getting increased interaction. We have not posted any real business promotion on it yet. We wanted to get accustomed to using it and posting regularly before the real work began. Now we definitely have a better working knowledge and so can proceed with a more certain step. But a business does have to be creative and interesting to get and hold attention.

Twitter has been extremely interesting and rather fun, LinkedIn and Google+ need more of our attention. Newsletters are being planned and organised, blog topics scheduled.

Will social media and the like be the main way we interact with our clients? No. Integrative Waves is a very much hands-on business and face-to-face works best for us. But the combination will be powerful, the blend potent.

What is the nice thing is that now we have a solid foundation upon which to build and grow. The waves can depend on the sand for support.....


Blogs commented on:
Nate Scharff
Mella Webster

Scheduling Integrative Waves

Now that Integrative Waves has dabbled our feet in the wide blue ocean that is social media and decided on some waves to catch, it is now time to design a schedule that will allow surfing those waves successfully!

What will we become all aTwitter about and tweet, focus on for Facebook, and become goggle-eyed on Google+? Chit-chatting and blabbing in our blog, note-worthily newsy in our newsletter ....The list goes on.

How much time to do all this? Again reality is a very important factor. What is feasible and sustainable on an on-going weekly schedule? What will be enough to keep the work enjoyable, to obtain results without it becoming drudgery and building feelings of resentment?

Will an hour a day be enough? Or is it better to spend a larger chunk of time twice a week writing and scheduling posts and blogs for the future?

Too many questions without answers at this time! Integrative Waves will just have to go for it, try a schedule out and then modify if it is not manageable or working. We will spend an hour or so a day attending to our online presence.

OK, enough said about the time commitment! Why choose these particular tools? The interaction that is possible and the unlimited potential reach is quite mind-boggling!

Our business lends itself well to Facebook and Google+ - small bits of information combined with photos about health and beauty. Questions are a fun way to involve the viewer. It can also be a way to find out more about what people want to know in this area. There are many ways to be creative and not always have to be the author of the post such as sharing interesting articles regarding skin care or health. Facebook Insights will help us fine-tune our posts as we monitor who likes what.

A weekly blog - some short articles, some longer - will help demonstrate our expertise. This will be a useful reference for clients and potential clients and will keep Integrative Waves more as a presence for them.

A monthly email newsletter, as mentioned in a previous blog, helps reach those people who do not use social media. If someone does not use a computer very much at all or maybe never, this is something that can be printed out and mailed to them. A business must meet clients at the client's comfort level - do not expect the client to adapt. The blog posts can also be printed if needed.  The newsletter can also be handed around at events.

Goals for online marketing strategy for the next six months -
1) Increase online audience to social media sites.
2) Increase traffic to website from these sites.
3) Increased online interest translated into potential clientele becoming actual clientele.

After much consideration, the schedule for the first month, January 2014, is:

Twitter - daily tweets.
The topics will be varied - inspirational, health related.  There will be a mixture of original tweets, interesting quotes retweeted, and articles shared. Facebook and blog posts are linked to Twitter, reducing the daily workload.

Facebook - twice weekly posts.
 - Essential Oil highlight each week with photo of the plant:

• Lavender
• Rose Geranium
• Lemon
• Eucalyptus Radiata

- Skin care product highlight and photo of product - Cleanser. Ask a question - What do you clean  your skin with?
- Share a health related article such as "Sitting may be shortening your life". Ask what people are doing to help their health.
- Nutrition spotlight on different seasonal fruits and vegetables. Orange - photo of it and its' nutritional information,

Google + will be gradually introduced with similar scheduling style and similar but not the same posts as Facebook.

Blog scheduled weekly - articles of varying length - midweek day such as Wednesday.

• Week 1 - Battling the Post-Holiday and Winter Blues.
• Week 2 - Lavender Essential Oil.
• Week 3 - Battling Winter Colds and Flu.
• Week 4 - Water and Lymphatic Drainage

Email Newsletter - monthly.
January's newsletter topics:

• Essential Oil of the Month - Lavender
• Monthly Skin Care Product - Regenerating Cream 
• Skin Care Tip - Winter skin issues
• Why use? section - Why use sunscreen during winter? 
• Seasonal Recipe - Winter Essential Oil Blend
• Special of the Month - Facial Extraordinaire

LinkedIn will be a work in progress. Small steps forward.....

Google Analytics will be used to monitor our progress and help us adjust as needed.

Well, now that our January is decided, planned and scheduled, Integrative Waves is going surfing.....

Blogs Commented On

The blogs that I have commented on:

• Cameron Sufficool
• Mella Webster
• Manuel Acero
• Becky Beamer
• Jessica Ipina - commented on Sunday. 

Integrative Waves Makes Social Decisions

Over the past few months Integrative Waves has examined and sampled some of the social media platforms. Now it is a good time to reassess our goals for integrating social media into our business. Too many businesses start off over-enthusiastically with social media and then 'crash and burn'. Integrative Waves does not want to be one of those casualties! So how to avoid this...

We need to consider two very important issues. What do we enjoy using and what can be realistically maintained in the longer-term. What is a good schedule that will fit in with our everyday business life of hands-on care?

We have enjoyed using Facebook and Twitter, blogging, and trying out an email newsletter. We have only dipped our toes into the waters of Google+. LinkedIn is a work in progress.

The only media that will work on a daily basis for us is Twitter because it is very quick to do. We are still discovering the potential of Twitter but have discovered that it is a very useful tool to find out quickly what is happening in many different areas. It has been helpful for keeping up with new social media and other news.

Facebook (and Google+ once we use it more!) can work twice a week for us. Since we found, via Insights, that questions and content with photos capture the most attention for us, we are becoming more creative with our camera to make our posts on Facebook more visually eye-catching. Integrative Waves wanted to become accustomed to regularly posting before we completely focused on more business oriented posts.We have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Facebook since we really am  unsure how many people get exposed to our posts. The rules seem to change quite regularly. We also need to revisit scheduling posts which will make life easier.

Even though we are very new to Google+, I  believe that it will be very powerful and useful for us. There are things we have not done yet that will aid Integrative Waves such as joining some communities.

A weekly Blog is planned. I have enjoyed writing regularly and feel this suits our business goal of consumer/client education.

A monthly Email Newsletter is planned. This will help reach clients who do not use social media regularly or at all.

LinkedIn is another avenue that will be useful but needs to be expanded.

This is enough to begin with! Remember reality....

Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr have not been investigated except for a cursory perusal and they need to wait. Small steps to avoid the 'crash and burn'.

Now it is time for Integrative Waves to plan an online marketing strategy. Part of that will include designing a content schedule for the next month to become organized and also begin testing this strategy! It might also be time to investigate a social media management platform like Hootsuite.....

More Analytics For Integrative Waves - Insightful Facebook

The work of Integrative Waves is never done.... First it was Google. Now we are assessing Facebook analytics - looking at the Page Insights over the last week.

Integrative Waves has recently entered the hallowed ground of having over 30 Page Likes. (I feel like it is Starbucks and I have my 30 stars for the year (or the month???) Now we are deemed worthy by Facebook and 'allowed' to see our Page Insights.

Thank you, Facebook, for revamping Page Insights recently. It looks very nice - it is easy to read and understand. That is very handy for us Facebook neophytes, especially in the land of Insights. However, reading the comments of other more savvy Facebook users, there are those who are decidedly NOT pleased!

Well, enough small talk! Let's get down to analyzing. (It is actually quite amazing what you can find out, even down to the viewers' demographics such as age group, gender, and country of residence.)

Firstly, there was much more activity on Integrative Waves' page this week! A few things can explain this. One, it was Thanksgiving week - maybe people had more time to peruse Facebook. Secondly, Integrative Waves may be developing an interested audience. Thirdly, there was an assignment to visit each person's business page in our group. Seeing who was liking and commenting, our activity was a mixture of 'all the above'.

We now have 32 page likes from individuals - not many in some business's eyes - but when there is a very 'laid-back' (read 'hesitant') approach to asking for 'likes' from friends and clients, the growth has to happen fairly organically.

Regarding our posts, there are fairly equal amounts of 'likes' and 'comments' but no 'shares'. I guess that is one area that we definitely need to examine further to see what our audience considers 'share' worthy. There is decidedly more reach and engagement recently. We can see what kind of posts get the most likes and engagement. Asking questions and posts with photos appear to get the most involvement. There have been no posts that have really been promotional types such as advertising a skin care product sale, so the reaction to these types of posts is unknown.

Fortunately, there have been no 'unlikes', 'report as spam' or 'hide posts' so that is a good thing. Integrative Waves' posts may not be 'shared' yet but at least we are not annoying anyone too much!

All this is very interesting and useful information. However, Facebook is still holding out! It appears that engagement demographic information is not given until you have 30 people engage with your post.

Oh well, I guess it is 'onward and upward'......

Analyzing Analytics for Integrative Waves

Integrative Waves has finally established a web presence. Great, terrific, hallelujah, congratulations.....we did it! Being Thanksgiving day and all, we are very thankful for that! But is being thankful enough???

Well, appreciate the gratitude because it is good for our health. But we cannot rest on our laurels because now comes the REAL work to see if that web presence is worth anything to this business. Is it effective in any way to entice customers to learn more about Integrative Waves? Or are we just talking to ourselves?

How to do this? Well, along comes Google Analytics to help make it easier to assess this...

However, first we must determine what the goals are for our online presence. At present it is to build our audience and gain interest for our physical business.

This is a small business with a new web presence. Analytics, like anything else, can get overwhelming if everything is considered all at once. Google Analytics contains a lot of very useful tools but there is a learning curve that needs to be considered.

So Integrative Waves is curbing the enthusiasm and looking at only a few at first.

Which analytics would be the most useful properties to monitor?
We decided on:

• Audience Data and Reporting - this will allow us to discover our audience - from who they are to where they are coming from, whether and how they like the content, and how engaged they are. We need to know whether we are pleasing anyone and what is pleasing them? How did they discover us and do they want to return?
• Flow Visualization - to monitor how visitors moved through the website - which pages did they visit before they left. This will help us refine the pages that are of low interest and improve the content.
• Social Media Reports - Integrative Waves needs to know how social media is affecting our business - do we need to modify some of our goals? We have a social media presence. This data that integrates web and social media will give us a full picture of our content and community
• Traffic Sources - we need to know how are people finding our site. Are they coming through direct referral, organic keyword search or some other way?

The web presence of Integrative Waves is small right now. If we are smart, we will learn to use the many useful tools that Google Analytics offers. This will allow us to grow in the direction that will provide the best service and fulfill the needs and wants of our audience.

One step and one analytical tool at a time.....

The ABCs of Coupons - Attracting Business Coupons

Coupons are an interesting phenomenon for businesses and consumers. How can there be a win-win situation so that both parties are happy at the outcome? There has to be enough perceived value provided for the consumer to want to spend their hard-earned money and support the business. For the business, there must be enough business to be potentially attracted to make the coupon financially feasible.

So does Integrative Waves jump into the world of coupons? The decision was already made not to use a third party coupon service at this time.  However, does this mean no coupons at all? Is a bit of 'couponing' (I think I just created a word!) beneficial to Integrative Waves?

Hmmm.... Well ok, coupons have been decided to be of benefit to Integrative Waves. The next big question is what to offer and why? Who are we targeting and for what goal?

Integrative Waves is a wellness practice - our goal is to help people achieve their full health potential. We utilize the modalities of Vodder lymphatic drainage massage, clinical aromatherapy, and professional skincare therapy to achieve this. So what kind of coupon deal would attract our potential target clientele? Our target clientele are 35-70, interested in integrative therapies, are wine drinkers, gardeners, love to care for their skin and like to cook and eat tasty food. They like to enjoy all aspects of life - they like to have fun.

 What would appeal to these people? What kind of coupons would make them want to come to Integrative Waves? Are they coupon people? Remember, there are some people who would rather 'die' than use a coupon! These people are often not the richest people but they do not believe in discounting their health! Interesting, huh???

Well, to the potential clientele that do believe in saving a bit of money - here is some (hopefully) enticing specials in the form of coupons -

'Buy a series of 5 facials, get the 6th one free! Get 6 months of skin care for 5 months cost - a savings of $110. A half a year's worth of in-clinic skin care therapy for only $550!'

Why would this entice? - You are saving $110 just by prepaying $550 (almost a 17% savings), your skin care for 6 months is already paid for, and you have made an important investment in skin care and overall health. The facials of Integrative Waves are extremely relaxing, skin-rejuvenating, and brain stimulating through education. The facials are extremely 'hands-on'. The powerful effect of touch stimulates endorphin release thus reducing stress. Reducing stress helps reduce inflammation. Inflammation now is being found as being the root cause of many diseases.....and part of the cause of aging. Ahhh, the power of facials......anti-aging and health-inducing :) It definitely makes one want to smile....

'Buy 5 facials, get $100 worth of free products!'

Again, there is a cost benefit of saving $100 (over a 15% savings). The products usually last for at least 6 months so there is also a savings in time. There is also a health benefit - people feel better when their skin is looking healthy - good for mental, physical, and emotional health.

So one gets the drift of 'couponing'. Integrative Waves wants people to have fun and enjoy their skin and health. If coupons will help people to enjoy life a bit more and attain better skin, health, and morale then so be it.....

Will YOU coupon with Integrative Waves??

More Marketing Choices for Integrative Waves

Integrative Waves is enjoying discovering the wonderful worlds of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and email newsletters with Constant Contact. All the while we have been blogging merrily away, finding our voice, socializing on social media. Now it is time to look further afield and consider other online marketing tools.....

We considered quite a few. However, what was interesting is that very quickly there became a realization of what was NOT a consideration for Integrative Waves. Perhaps later but also ........maybe never.

Not considered were the coupon sites such as Groupon and Living Social. This absolute distaste of third party coupon companies dates back to when I started my first esthetics business. I did not have a good experience then so it has tainted my outlook! I think coupons work in my industry when one is trying to fill time slots that are slow - a little money is better than no money is the philosophy, I guess. For me at this time, not a good idea.

 An important thing for a business to always keep in mind is what type of brand image and reputation is the business trying to build and maintain? If you charge one client X amount for a service and another client buys a coupon from a third party site and pays a deeply discounted price (50%+ less) for the same service, what is that really saying about the value of your service? What does it say to your clients that paid the 'real' price?

So no coupon sites for Integrative Waves!

Okay....what are good choices?

LinkedIn - will be very useful for me. Joining relevant groups, providing answers when applicable can develop my reputation and demonstrate my expertise in certain areas.
I have had a LinkedIn account for a while. Now I need to delve into LinkedIn and use it to a fuller extent. I will link Integrative Waves' Twitter account and blog to support this.

Google + - I like the idea of Communities to gain more knowledge. As a sole practitioner, it is very easy to get busy and not keep up with industry advancements. I also like Hangouts where online meetings for clients can be held to discuss interesting topics. This avoids the inconvenience of people having to travel and can demonstrate respect for people's time.
I already have an individual account but need to establish the business side. I have been hesitant to use Google+ since I did not really understand the intricacies. Now it is time to play!

Google Maps - When first considering Google Maps, I was concerned about displaying my address since it is a private residence-based business at present. However, this is rather ironic because Health Grades tagged my address years ago. Another of my professional memberships also has my address Google mapped. So why am I concerned? It will help people find me and allow them to have confidence that Integrative Waves is a real 'bona-fide' business.

Yelp - To tell the truth, I am rather undecided regarding Yelp. Their credibility regarding reviews is an issue for me. However, many consumers look to Yelp for opinions and recommendations  for businesses so Integrative Waves does need to have a presence there. But that presence need to be monitored regularly so that good and bad reviews can be responded to in a timely manner....

All these tools are useful. However, like everything else, they have to be managed well to be truly of benefit to Integrative Waves. Time is a factor - how much can be managed on a regular basis, realistically? Time can help or hurt Integrative Waves. Basic old-fashioned commonsense must prevail here.

Where will Integrative Waves appear next? The saga continues. Stay tuned for the next installment.....

Integrative Waves Chatting and Calling..

Now that Integrative Waves has looked at paid social media ads and decided that it is not the time yet, the next question is how to effectively market on social media without spending money.

Social media interaction is all about producing interesting content that provides some value to the viewer. Businesses can use different media such as video, photos, and text to stimulate interest and engagement and communicate with their audience.

If we engage our audience and they answer our Call to Action, does it not still mean we are getting noticed? It may be a slower way but isn't it more effective in the end? Credibility and trust are not earned overnight....

Proposed Facebook Posts that include a Call to Action:

1) Give a small amount of interesting information to the audience but require that they take some sort of action if they want to read further.

Introducing Integrative Waves blog.
Avoiding Pain at the Dentist "Well I was not planning to have Integrative Waves' first blog being on dentistry and lymphatic drainage....." read more. Please share. (Provide a link to the blog).

2) Ask questions of readers that require action.

'What is your Favorite Essential Oil?' Mine is Lavender. Lavender is known for its calming and healing properties....read more and find your favorite oil - (provide a link to the page on Integrative Waves website that has the information on Lavender and other essential oils).

3) Provide useful links to interesting articles, ask a follow-up question and then the Call to Action 'If you like this, like our page.'

 '6 Unexpected Ways Writing Can Transform Your Health' - (provide a link to this article by Huffington Post and write comment) " I guess it is time to start writing again - stimulate your brain, helps you sleep better, and heal faster. What will YOU write?" "If you like this, like our page."

I am very much a novice at Facebook and it is still very difficult for me to promote my business easily via this platform. I feel that I am still 'learning the ropes." While I am still doing this, I do not want to 'hang myself' by inadvertently doing things that annoy my audience enough that they 'unlike' me and leave.

Integrative Waves Commenting on Social Media Ads by Others

Regarding the social media ads, I commented on:

• Lenah Parente
• Manuel Acero
• Becky Beamer

To Ad or Not to Ad? - That is the Question for Integrative Waves

Integrative Waves is out on the Social Media scene, displaying our content and continuing to chat. Enjoying ourselves a lot! However, there is coming a time when exposure and promotion plans will turn to the thought of paid promotion on the social media sites. This is a bit scary as one wrong move and the very people who you have attracted with interesting content could 'unlike' you and move on.

So should it be considered at all? And if so, how can Integrative Waves achieve a successful campaign? Especially as a start-up with a moderate amount of funds. 

Advertising has to be done subtly on social media sites. There has to be a lot of thought put into the design of the campaign - the goal of the advertising, the available budget, the ad design, and which social media sites to use.

As I was trying to figure out how to do an ad,  I found an interesting article regarding Facebook ads and how the users are finding the ads annoying. Hmmm...
http://www.technologyreview.com/view/519716/facebook-admits-its-ads-are-too-annoying/

If Integrative Waves considers Facebook ads, at first it will be to increase the exposure of the Page. When I designed the ad, it was to increase the 'Likes' for Integrative Waves' page. The potential market included women 35 - 70, living in San Diego, with  interests including aromatherapy, facials, manual lymphatic drainage, wine tasting, and alternative medicine. The budget was $10 a day on CPM (impresssions) for about 2 weeks.The timing would be 'immediately' so I could test it out and see what results were obtained before continuing on. I could not determine exactly how much exposure $10/day would get me - Facebook is rather obscure regarding this - however 2 weeks suited the budget.

Apart from Facebook ad Likes, the other options for Facebook ads are Standard Ads, Page Post ads, Sponsored Stories, and Promoted Posts.

I had difficulty doing this - the 'Ads Manager' button did  not show up on my page, just when I was in my personal page.I  must be a Facebook dunce because when I tried to get a preview of my ad, Facebook wanted me to pay first. Sorry Facebook - not happening! So, apologies, I took a screen shot of my order and what the ad would hopefully look like.

This ad shows my logo which reinforces my brand - and a short sentence "Integrative Waves - a wellness practice where health meets fun, caring and knowledge."

When I tried to do anything else, nothing would show a preview, except like this, without paying.

Paid social media advertising works for many businesses. At this time, however, the universe could be telling Integrative Waves to wait a little longer.....

Newsletters - Who Did Integrative Waves View?

Continuing the newsletter discussion, I commented on the following blogs:

• Sharin Kinsey
• Jessica Ipina
• Nathan Scharff

I also commented on Mella Websters blog on Sunday.

Continuing the Chat - Integrative Waves gets Newsy.

Email newsletters can be helpful to a business but, as always,content rules. Newsletters can contain a lot of information but is it the RIGHT information? Email marketing is a useful tool if done correctly - that is the key. How many times have you been bombarded with frequent emails from a business. They contain nothing but sell, sell, sell - no helpful hints about anything. After a while your patience ends, you finally decide "Enough"! And opt-out! - For the business, a customer lost to the competition.....

So then what does Integrative Waves want to include in its newsletters? In what format? For what purpose? How often?

How often? is a very important question. As with all marketing, there needs to be consistency in what you present to people. When a business decides on a schedule for a newsletter, it must be able to maintain it. A monthly newsletter is most practical for me since I am a sole practitioner. Does this mean that this is the only communication from Integrative Waves for the month? Definitely not! Different social media platforms are also used to showcase the business. I consider it is very important to involve a variety of platforms. This way people do not get overwhelmed with information from one source, get irritated, and seek the dreaded OPT-OUT option!
 If I also used my blog as a newsletter, I could increase the schedule to bi-weekly (or, as we say in Australia, fortnightly).

Integrative Waves is a wellness practice specializing in Vodder manual lymphatic drainage, clinical aromatherapy, and skin care. People who seek my services are looking for information and assistance in these areas.

If this is what my potential audience is seeking, how can I entertain them enough for them to want to act instead of just look? The Call to Action is important but the supporting content has to be interesting enough for them to stay around for this!

Different newsletter topics that Integrative Waves could use -

• Skin care product information - explain how the different products work. 
• Description of different facials - explain what a facial is and does.
• Lymphatic Drainage massage - what is it? How does it work? For what conditions?
• Peels - how do they work? Contraindications and precautions.
• Sun protection - information regarding sunscreens.
• Monthly tip for maintaining good health - such as drinking more water.
• Essential oil of the month - describe the properties of the oil, how to use it and why.

These are only but a few..... But why would these generate interest? Many people want to learn about these different areas so they can understand more and make better educated choices regarding their skin and body.

Some Calls to Action that could accompany the topics -

• Product of the month special.
• Seasonal service special.
• Essential oil of the month special.

So Integrative Waves is ready to make news - will YOU take action?

Categories and Categorizing - Getting Integrative Waves Organized

Integrative Waves is a wellness practice specializing in the therapies of Vodder manual lymphatic drainage, clinical aromatherapy, and skin care. Many different topics for our blog are possible. How do we organize or posts to make it easy for readers to find what they are interested in?? To reach and keep our target audience interested enough that they want to use the services and products that Integrative Waves offer?

This is where categories and sub-categories enter the wonderful world of Integrative Waves! So which categories??

I began with the simplest categories - skin care, lymphatic drainage, and aromatherapy. Wow, lots of different topics would go into these categories - maybe it would become too overwhelming for my audience?

What to do to simplify...? Next, I took those categories and expanded them into sub-categories. Skincare expanded into such areas as facials, skin care products, and skin diagnosis. Lymphatic drainage expanded into treated conditions, explanation of the lymphatic system, and inflammation. Aromatherapy went into areas such as the different essential oils, uses for the oils, and essential oil safety.

What is interesting is that as I contemplated the kinds of categories to use, I discovered more and more topics for my blog.

OK, that is all well and good for more topics but how does all this help Integrative Waves to grow?

These categories helps viewers to quickly access information that they are looking for. It helps them save time. The categories also can show my expertise in different areas, and introduce Integrative Waves in different ways . As they read and learn, they will become more familiar with this business. They will also gain an idea of my personality. Using categories will also help Integrative Waves to stay focused and more easily determine what content people prefer. Preferred content tends to be shared and the business exposed to more people which will help Integrative Waves to grow....

Names of blogs commented on - discussing Personality, Personal, & Personable.

• Nate Scharff
• Manuel Acero
• Mella Webster
• David Harris

Being Personable, Personal and Showing Personality - Should Integrative Waves Show the 3 Ps?

People like to read interesting blogs that are well-written and entice them to continue reading. What comprises this type of article? Often, the writer includes a personal touch so their personality shows through their writing. However, is this appropriate all the time? Should every article  be personable so that the reader feels like they know the writer? Or are there times when information needs to be presented in an impersonal way?

So the question is - How personable should Integrative Waves be in its blog? Hmmm...

Integrative Waves is a wellness practice - a very hands-on, touch oriented practice. One of the goals is to have people relax when they visit in person. So why would Integrative Waves not want people to relax and enjoy reading when they visit our blog?? Our words on-line should produce the same healing results as our hands do in person. Of course, unlike the physical visits where clients often fall asleep (a desirable response), viewers falling asleep reading our blog is NOT a desired result!

One of Integrative Waves' objectives is to educate. It has been found that people learn better when the information is presented in an interesting manner and if they can relate to it. They can relate better if they feel they can develop some sort of a relationship with the writer. In my opinion, it is important for Integrative Waves' writing to show personal touches and personality.

However, does including personality mean that serious subjects cannot be discussed? I do not believe that this is true. As a registered nurse of many years, I found that many difficult discussions regarding health were dealt with better when the healthcare professional, whether it be an MD or RN, showed some of their personality. People felt more connected and comforted than with someone who just stated the facts.

When a blog is written as though the writer is having a conversation with the reader, it can effectively impart both the personality of the writer and the information, whether serious or more lighthearted. By its very nature, a conversation is looking for a partner. Will YOU be Integrative Waves' partner in conversation???

Twitter Tweeting - Who should Integrative Waves Follow?

Twitter is a very interesting and fun social platform. Tweeting is definitely an art and Integrative Waves is exploring all the ins and outs and ways of tweeting. 140 characters total helps one to communicate precisely, creatively, and without verbosity!

However, an important consideration for Integrative Waves is the purpose for being on Twitter. How can Twitter be used most effectively to promote Integrative Waves? The question is WHO to follow and HOW to find them!

So lots of decisions....

I used both the search and advanced search functions to search for different people and businesses to follow. It was an interesting but a bit frustrating task working out the keywords and search terms. Perseverance was definitely needed!

The first word I used was 'Facials' since Integrative Waves performs many types of facials. This was NOT the best word as I found out - a few of the first tweets to appear were very graphically tweeting about a different type of facial - related to sex! Hmm, I thought, probably not the best word for Integrative Waves to use....

The search words I ended up using were 'Lipedema', 'Clinical Aromatherapy', 'Lymphedema', 'Professional Skin Care', 'Beauty in San Diego', and 'Lymphatic Drainage'. These search words are all related to the business practices of Integrative Waves.

The people and businesses found and chosen to follow were a diverse range. Focusing on San  Diego first, one was a local competitor, another a friend and holistic business owner, and yet another was a potential client. Others were an aromatherapy school, an authority on Lipedema, a specialist in Lymphedema, and a skin care school owner who is on the California Board of Cosmetology.

Decisions made but now I need to assess.......

Is this a good group to follow? Have I chosen well? Will they help my business grow? Will their tweets be interesting? Will I be able to 'retweet' them for my clients or use their information in other ways?

Many questions with no answers at present. After decisions, patience is next......

Visual Media - Will it Work for Integrative Waves?

Will the visual platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr work for Integrative Waves? Will they help or hinder the brand that is Integrative Waves? Will the use of videos, photos and other images effectively promote this business?

I pondered this question and deliberated..... Finally I decided I needed some help. I looked at other businesses who are similar to Integrative Waves to see what and how they were using visual platforms to promote their businesses.

I actually had a very difficult time finding another business which is very similar to mine who actually used much visual media. Integrative Waves is a wellness practice run by a solo practitioner. I looked for other solo esthetician practices or small full service salons. I examined many of the esthetic/wellness practices that I personally know and most used no visual media. This surprised me because facial services and products lend themselves to visual media. Some had Facebook Pages - that was the extent of their social media use. Maybe they think that their website and Facebook Page is as far as they want to go with regards to 'online stuff'. Remember wellness is a very hands-on field and social media is at the other end of the spectrum in 'hands-off' land! They may consider it too time-consuming.....

So I widened my search and turned to bigger practices... Still tough, however finally lucky!

Beauty Kliniek is a large day spa and wellness practice that uses a wide variety of visual media, some very well and some questionable.
YouTube: This business uses YouTube very effectively. Videos are used to educate regarding different treatments such as massage and regarding different conditions such as lymphedema. They are also used to advertise the salon directly speaking about the different services offered. I personally know Linda-Ann - she speaks well and is very effective in communicating and educating.
Pinterest: uses Pinterest for advertising treatment specials and the salon in general. Some of the pins are eye-catching. However, I am not sure how effective these are.
Instagram: not used. Instagram is a mobile platform only. To use this platform, this business would need to delegate someone to posting on Instagram - easy enough, but obviously not considered.
Tumblr: there are very weird posts from this business on Tumblr. Unfortunately they read as if the person who is writing is on drugs or does not write English very well. The blogs are very difficult to understand. I do not feel that this is a very good advertisement for the spa. They are also long which compounds the problem of non-comprehension. (I thought Tumblr was a micro-blogging site!). It is a pity because I believe the person has a lot of knowledge that is worth sharing. Unfortunately the writer is unable to communicate this knowledge at all well!

Bella Tosca Day Spa is another large day spa in San Diego who uses some visual media.
YouTube: this business uses YouTube for advertising the spa.
Pinterest - they have one pin which is advertising the spa.
They do not use Tumblr or Instagram.
In my opinion, this spa does not use visual media at all effectively.

Despite the mixed reviews on how other businesses have used visual media, it will work for Integrative Waves if planned out well. Through videos, we can demonstrate services and products and also educate about different conditions. Products and services can be showcased through photos and short blogs.

Regardless of what visual platform chosen, the most important thing is to be consistent, post regularly, and have interesting content! People will then seek you out.....

Are We Liking What We Are Seeing - Connecting With Visuals

Will Integrative Waves use visual platforms to market and showcase the business? How many to use - and what to use. Where does our target market look when researching businesses - that should be the focus for the decision of what we will use. Integrative Waves will definitely use a visual platform - the services and products can be promoted very easily and well through visuals.But what to use and why?

Let's look at the four main visual platforms -
1) YouTube - videos
Who wouldn't use YouTube? Especially with Google owning it! Video can help the viewer in getting to know my business - feeling as if they know me - and establish a stronger relationship. They can be inserted into the business website.When people watch videos, they stay on the website longer, assisting the stickiness of the website.
Videos can showcase my services and products in such ways as demonstrating the use of skin care products and facial massage techniques. It can also help the viewer feel as if they are seeing 'behind the scene' secrets, as if they are being included in a special group.

2) Pinterest - pinboard-style platform
People can "pin" images and videos from other websites - things that they find interesting. Businesses can link images to product pages on the business website - this can increase product sales. This platform has a lot of potential for my business but I have not used it yet. It looks fun and different and a new way for me to connect with my current and potential clients!

3) Tumblr - microblogging platform
This appeals to a younger demographic - teens and twenties - something. It is a microblogging platform where text, video, audio, video and photo content can be shared in a short blog. A lot of it is recycled.  I have not used Tumblr yet as my target market is not really using this platform. I may find more relevancy for my business as I explore this platform further.

4) Instagram - photos shared only on the mobile web.
Photos/pictures are worth a thousand words -they are very powerful! Instagram is a mobile web  platform, only available on smartphones. It is very user- friendly - snap a photo, apply a filter, and share the photo. Instagram is also owned by Facebook - a definite positive in using this platform. For a small business owner with limited time, this platform can be used 'on the go', which is very appealing.
My services (such as photos of facials) and products (such as photos of essential oils and skin care products) lend themselves well to this platform - these can be made to appear very appealing and pleasing to people's senses and make them want to investigate further.

The most applicable visual platforms for Integrative Waves are YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest. The underlying message for all of them is to keep it simple, interesting, and visually appealing so that viewers will want to engage further with Integrative Waves!

Looking to the Future in Facebook

How to engage your audience on Facebook is an on-going question for all of us in business.

Integrative Waves is no different. I try to vary my posts using a variety of text-only, text with photo, and mainly photo with minimal text. I post on a variety of topics related to my business of wellness - both news and information that I feel viewers will find interesting and useful. The posts that I have scheduled for the coming week include topics such as sleep, happiness, and one of my definitions of stress relief! Previous posts have included discussing conditions that I have treated lymphatic drainage with, and a reminder about the importance of drinking enough water. Open-ended questions are asked, and information is given in a brief yet explanatory way that the viewer can quickly understand what I am discussing.....

Take a look at my page and see for yourself - do you find this interesting enough to stay around and rest for a while reading....??

Pondering Strategic Connections and the Facebook Page 'Like'.

What comprises strategic connections for businesses? What do we look for in other businesses that could help our business grow? Does it sound cynical or is it part of a healthy marketing plan?

Considering potential strategic business connections for Integrative Waves, I focused on who is my target market and what might they be looking for in other businesses.

Some of the businesses I 'liked' and the main reason for the 'Like':

• The Standing Sock -
  part of my practice involves the treatment of primary and secondary lymphedema and lipedema. This affiliation with a local compression garment store that caters to clients with lymphatic problems can help grow my lymphatic therapy clientele.
• Core Orthopedic Medical Center -
  the MDs there are aware of the results that I obtained with a client with a fractured ankle which healed 2 and a half weeks ahead of schedule after treating her with lymphatic drainage. This affiliation with a local orthopedic group can help grow my orthopedic clientele.
• Skin Inc Magazine -
  a professional magazine for the esthetics industry. This has content that I can share regarding skin care with my followers.
• Stillpoint Aromatics -
  an essential oil company who has content regarding aromatherapy and essential oils that I can share.
• Rhonda Allison Skin Care -
  one of the skin care product lines I retail - has information regarding the different products that I can share. They are also a referral source.
• Vodder Schools International -
  has information regarding manual lymphatic drainage and lymphedema that I can share.They are also a referral source for consumers searching for lymphatic therapists. 
• Beauty Kliniek -
  a direct competitor. I can see what this company is doing to engage the customers and learn from them.

This 'Like' feature of Facebook can be a useful tool to aid the growth of Integrative Waves. By 'liking' businesses who have some kind of pertinent relationship with my business, whether it be useful information to share with my followers, a competitor whose customers are similar to our potential ones, or business sites that my potential customers are using, it will help Integrative Waves to become more visible and add to the benefit offered to followers. More interesting, pertinent content can attract more followers and more interest in the business. More interest and exposure will help growth.

The Search for Facebook - Are We Reaching or Engaging?

When a business launches a Facebook page, it is for a definite reason -  to increase exposure of the business and gain new clients. The business wants to be heard and seen.

So how does this happen and how does a business know whether its goal is being achieved??

Ah, welcome to the wonderful world of Facebook Insights - the world of post Reach and post Engagement; of Likes, Comments, and Shares.  For a Facebook newbie like me, these terms meant absolutely NOTHING until this assignment made me dig further into this Facebook world.....

So I wondered how many other people had no clue either and decided to help by defining these terms in common, non-Facebook, English. (Yes I do appreciate that you, Facebook, want all of us to speak YOUR language. However, there are some of us who still want to live a normal life!)

After this defining work (excuse the pun - this article could be considered a dissertation on Facebook!), I then want to discuss why understanding all these terms must be important to a business...

So....speaking about business, let us continue!

Post Reach - is the number of people who have seen your post. According to Facebook, this number is for the first 28 days after the post's publication. It includes people viewing on a desktop computer AND on a mobile device. Your post is counted as having 'reached' someone "when the post is loaded and seen in News Feed".
O...K.....News Feed?? - a list or a collection of updates detailing 'friends' activity to give a person a quick look at what their 'friends' have been doing.

Hmm. OK, so far so good...

Post Engagement - people engage with your post and become involved by liking, commenting on and/or sharing your post - they actually do an action regarding your post.
Yep, more definitions -

Likes - indicator of how well people like your content.
Comments -  these can show how people feel about your content, products and overall your brand.
Shares - when people share content, it raises the exposure even higher to those who see it.

So why is knowing the difference important to a business?

A business needs to engage people, not just reach them. Reach does not expose your post and brand to any other person except the viewer. It does not include engagement. However, engagement does include reach. How many people saw your post and became engaged meaning they were motivated enough to take some kind of action? How many people found your content interesting enough to want to do something?

When people engage, their activity with your brand, such as their comments, appears on their timeline. This is very important. It means your post (and your business brand) also becomes visible to their friends. Post engagement is a major factor in Facebook's EdgeRank Algorithm. This determines which news feeds your posts get displayed in. This will ultimately determine how many people you will be able to reach.
The amount of the engagement with your posts can show the quality of your audience and engagement on certain types of posts can help show what they are interested in.

So how a business can use Facebook Insights to better serve their customers? 

Facebook Insights provides page owners metrics about their content. What does this mean? They can see if people are engaging with their content or just looking. If they are, what are the viewers liking? Are they just giving a quick thumbs up, or are they taking time to comment? What content are they commenting on? What are they sharing? What are they talking about?

The business can also discover at what times their audience is on Facebook. Do they respond better to content that is text only or with photos? What content obtains the most reach? What percentage of the reach audience become engaged - the virality?

The business owner can analyse this information and make better decisions about what content they post. They can modify their approach to better suit their engaged audience - their customers and potential customers - so they can engage them even more by providing them the information that they are seeking.

And isn't that what a business is all about - finding ways to provide the answer and benefit to the customer's need instead of our competitors......

The Introduction of Integrative Waves - the Search for the Ideal Audience.

When we launch a business, we can either do it haphazardly or we can carefully consider whom we would like as our clients - in other words, who is our target market??

My company, Integrative Waves, is a wellness practice that integrates the holistic therapies of skin care, manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) and clinical aromatherapy, to help clients achieve their full health potential. I am a holistic RN, esthetician, certified Vodder lymphatic therapist, and clinical aromatherapist. My clinic is located in San Diego. Hmm, a bit dry but you get the gist of my business...

However, it is all well and good to have a business but you need to have an audience who wants what your business is offering AND who is willing to pay money for it, to remain in business longer than 5 minutes!

Ah, now we have got to the tough part.....

So I contemplated and reflected and contemplated some more on my ideal target market.... And this is what I decided. Now this is not completely set in stone, you realize - I am a Gemini with all my different sides having a say!

My ideal customer is a woman between the age of 35 and 70 with an income of $60,000+, living in San Diego. She will have attended college and may either be employed or be a homemaker. She may or may not have children. Leading an active lifestyle, she still takes time out regularly to read a good book and enjoy stillness.Her interests include organic gardening, cooking, and an appreciation of good food and wine. Believing in regular self-care for stress relief and health maintenance, she has a strong interest in integrative therapies. She likes to take care of her skin, using professional skin care products and having regular facials. She appreciates the need for western medicine but prefers to use essential oils and lymphatic drainage to maintain a healthy body.  She is passionate about learning and will be a life-long learner. Her belief that a person should be fully involved in life carries over to all her decisions - she wants to participate fully in all that concern her!

Now, I can hear men saying that I am being sexist and they feel like I am excluding them! Am I? Not at all, but my main market is women, just by the nature of what I do! Just a numbers thing - sorry, boys! However you are always welcome....

So what's that saying? Seek and ye shall find? Put it out to the universe and you shall be rewarded??

Hmm, I wonder....

On that note, I will leave you with our awe-inspiring (tongue-in-cheek) mission statement -
'Integrative Waves is dedicated to improving the well-being of the whole person by providing individualized, innovative, holistic therapies in a highly professional, knowledgeable and caring environment. Integrative Waves integrates different therapies to realize the full potential of each person's health through the combination of hands-on and education. A priority is to have people allow themselves to enjoy  their skin and feel good about themselves.'

Surfing on the Web...

Where do I go when I go into the land of websites? Who do I visit? I have to admit that I tend to favor websites that involve some kind of booking for travel whether it be an airline or hotel site. I do not tend to surf much on the web; I like my surfing to be done on water! I usually go to websites for a reason.

Some of the websites that I visit I usually access via links in their newsletter.  This is how I often view the news articles on the Huffington Post and the specials for the flights to Australia on Qantas. This time I went directly to the websites of both these companies in order to review them. Their urls are: www.huffpost.com or www.huffingtonpost.com to access the Huffington Post and  www.qantas.com for Qantas.

1. The effectiveness of the websites -
Huffington Post - makes it easy to look at news related to what a person is interested in
Qantas - makes it easy to book a flight to different destinations. People can also book hotels, cars, and vacation packages.

2. What specific principles of good design do they include and why
Concept -
Huffington Post - to disseminate news on different topics
Qantas - to sell flights
Both  these websites definitely show what their purpose is.
Contrast
Huffington Post - the home page has a big image and large headline to attract attention
Qantas - the colors of red and white provide contrast to allow visitors to see the important areas.
Repetition
On both websites the top section with the logo and the navigation never disappears when a different page is opened. This makes it easy for visitors to explore these sites.
Alignment
Huffington Post - there is enough white space around the images so they can breathe. The text is not too close
Qantas - things are aligned to the left.
Both website layouts have been designed to attract rather than distract the reader.
Proximity
Both sites allow the reader to see how things relate on the page by keeping the appropriate text near the images and the headlines.
Hierarchy
Huffington Post - has a bigger photo at the beginning of the page with the story that the editors consider most important
Qantas - the first thing you see is the box to book flights.
The reader does not need to guess what is the most important content and where to begin.
Typography -
Both  websites are easy to read - there is no concern with not being able to read any content. Headlines stand out and grab attention.
Ease of Use -
Qantas has its logo on the top left.
Huffington Post- their title/logo spans across the top. They have links back to the top on their pages that are content-dense.
As soon as the reader sees the home page on both websites, there is brand recognition .The navigation bar is very obvious on both sites and both are situated at the top.
Depth of Content
Both these sites have numerous pages making up their website. They also both have their social media icons prominently displayed to link to their social media sites where they can have dialogue with their customers.

3. What makes you come back?
Qantas - I use this airline to fly back to Australia to visit family about twice a year. I am also a member of their frequent flyer program.
Huffington Post - the articles are well written and there is always something to interest me.

4. What could be improved?
The home page of Qantas is beginning to look dated. However it is still user friendly
The ads on Huffington Post are very annoying however they are there to bring in revenue for this company. If there were no ads, the access would be subscriber-based.

Both these websites are user-friendly for me - they provide the information I need without making me work too hard for it. I very much appreciate that!

The Good, the Bad and the Really Ugly.....

Isn't it amazing how some websites are absolutely fascinating and captivating - they are well-designed, appealing to the eye, inviting and welcoming.... They draw you in and you never want to leave...
While others - oh dear, you just want to leave IMMEDIATELY and never go back! The problem arises when a consumer has to remain on a bad website because it is the only show in town for that particular product.

So let's discuss the Bad and the Ugly first ......

1) http://www.tectorch.com, the website for TEC Welding Products, Inc.
This is one website that has BIG problems, really too many to count. This website has the feeling of having been around for a long time, a very lo-o-o-ng time.......!
Four of the most obvious problems for visitors are-
1) the Home page - really, did this business have to put literally everything AND then the figurative kitchen sink as well on the home page??? and, actually, the whole website in general. Very confusing.
2) very small font - a person needs a magnifying lens to read the content  - if you really wanted to!
3) contact details at the bottom of the page - nowhere else. Why not at the top? Do they not want people to call or email them- maybe THAT is why they have everything on their website!
4) home page button only at bottom at the different pages - this website gives a person a workout! You can't even go back to the home page without having to go to the bottom....
What needs to be improved? -  Everything - probably the best thing would be to start over again. However, this is a website selling welding products. Maybe it does not need to be aesthetically pleasing for welding guys (and girls) but I am sure that they would want a more user-friendly website! I think that at least the users would like the contact details up at the top of the page so they don't have to scroll all the way down to the bottom for them. Just my opinion...

2) http://www.apple.com, the website for Apple.
OMG, you gasp, not Apple, not our god...! Oh yes, I was quite frankly disappointed when I went to the website. Yes, it is clean and glitzy but, to me, it is boring. And, by the way, I own an IPhone so I am not anti-Apple. I may be a bit controversial with this, and yes, I definitely can hear the hyperventilating of some of the readers as they are perusing this section of my screed for this week! I found that the different pages sometimes took time to load due to the graphics. (Hey, don't tell me my server is slow and it is the reason for this - please tell it directly to AT&T). Maybe the site was a little too sterile for my tastes. Or maybe I have become jaded and everything Apple looks the same now - the brand has lost its unique edgy look because it is ubiquitous. What could help this website? Apple, please release something that does not look rehashed - a different color and plastic (really?) doth not make an exciting new product!

Now for the Good.....
1) http://www.swagelok.com, the website for Swagelok.
Even though it is an industry website that I would not normally visit, this website was attractive to me. Very well laid out with good use and mixture of text and photos. The graphics aid the text, they don't interfere. The website is easy to navigate, with clear headings. On every page a visitor knows how to contact the company. The pages load quickly. It is easy to bookmark and share about this company on many social media sites. The logo is simple but aesthetically pleasing. This was a website that I wanted to remain on and investigate. The good design and pleasing aesthetics definitely helped. Swagelok, please, please, please give the name of your web designer to TEC Welding....

2) http://www.apple.com
What - this website in both categories??? How can that be?? Because.... (normally I do not begin with a subordinating conjunction but Apple is a special case!) I must admit  that for most people this website would be really appealing - very clean, visually stimulating, and very easy to be directed to the right place. The site map is very user-friendly for all things Apple! The site gives the visitor lots of information about the different products. Most visitors to this website are expecting to see exactly what it gives them - the Brand that is Apple!

So design and aesthetics play a very important role in attracting visitors and making them want to stay on a website, especially if they do not know the brand.

Oh, by the way, when I looked at the Apple site a second time a day later, the pages loaded faster - interesting, huh? Must have been the Harvest Moon having some fun with technology on Wednesday night...

Businesses and how they are talking socially

1. Qantas: www.qantas.com
I use this airline when I fly back  to Australia to visit family.
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, RSS feeds, mobile app, email newsletter.

2. Starwood Hotels: www.spg.com
I prefer to stay at this brand of hotels.
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Foursquare, RSS feeds,  mobile app, email newsletter.

3. Huffington Post: www.huffingtonpost.com
Facebook, Twitter, Google+, RSS feeds, mobile app, email newsletter.

4. Skin Inc magazine: www.skininc.com
One of the professional skin care industry publications that I follow.
Facebook, email newsletter.

5. Beauty Kliniek Day Spa: www.beautykliniek.com
One of my competitors.
Facebook, email newsletter, Twitter.

Not Being Wined by Business

Doesn't it annoy you when you patronize a business and give them your hard earned money and all they give you in return is a bad experience?

A few months ago on a Saturday evening, a group of friends and I went to Fish Public, a restaurant in Kensington. It was about 2 weeks after the restaurant had opened. We had all heard good reports and were eagerly anticipating the experience. We are a bunch of Foodies - we like to eat and drink good food and wine. We were seated and served by a waiter who was very knowledgeable about the food selection. He offered good recommendations. The food was fairly tasty. So far so good - no problems.

Unfortunately, the wine service was another world. There appeared to be a separate wine staff. Problems began early and never ceased....
Firstly, a couple of us had brought bottles of wine. When our first wine waiter, a young woman, opened the bottle that I had brought (which was in front of me) she offered the taste of the wine to the man sitting next to me. Not a big mistake but ... I corrected her,  and tasted the wine. No big deal.
Secondly, when we ordered bottles of wine from the wine list, we found that the wine staff did not know the wine list very well. The wine list was not long or complicated. Why have a designated wine staff if they are not trained?
However, the biggest mistake occurred with the last bottle ordered for the evening - a Italian red wine, a Barbera, not that expensive. One of the guys at the table had tasted it and said it was OK, that there were no flaws. The wine was poured. However, when I tasted the wine, I noted that it was 'corked', affected by TCA. I called the wine waiter over and told him this.He disappeared, ostensibly to get another bottle....
Alas, that was not the case. A gentleman in a suit appeared at the table ( we had never seen this person before) and proceeded to tell me, without smelling or tasting the wine, that I was wrong! that there was nothing wrong with the wine, it was just a cheaper Italian wine, and a new bottle would taste exactly the same, that I just did not know what to expect! (I am very surprised that he did not add "since you are a woman"). The problem with that statement was 1) the wine WAS corked, very evident of TCA 2) he never smelled nor tasted the wine to assess it himself, and 3) THIS woman IS trained in the sensory evaluation of wine and its defects (I studied winemaking at UC Davis). I had the very strong impression that this gentleman saw a middle-aged, glasses-wearing woman and made the very old-fashioned assumption that women do not know anything about wine! Bizarre! He also never introduced himself - I gather he was the wine manager. He strongly suggested that we should choose another wine, that he knew that the 'defect' was just a property of that wine. I was adamant in asking him to bring the same wine again. Not once did he taste the wine. Incredible! Finally he gave in and huffily brought another bottle of the same wine. Quel surprise! This bottle was TOTALLY DIFFERENT in taste and smell! and not corked. He never apologized or did anything to help make up for the bad experience.

So what does a person do these days with bad service but Yelp their displeasure..... However, I was a social media novice then.... so no Yelping, no Facebook comments, no tweeting, nada!

What DID I do? I did the old-fashioned thing -  I bitched and moaned in person to all the friends I could reach about my bad experience!

This dated approach was not as effective perhaps as social media because it did not reach so  many people and it also did not allow the restaurant owner to address the problem. But it still allowed me to vent and feel better.

So what if I had Yelped? What would their response have been? Would they have responded at all? Hopefully they would have addressed the issue and resolved it in some positive way.
However, I am not at all sure because my husband had previously experienced problems with wine knowledge and rude, untrained wine staff at their sister restaurant, Cucina Urbana.

So who knows, would using social media have made someone listen?? Maybe I should write a review now and see what happens?? What do you think??

Social Media Chitchat

The world is a busy place and a person does not want to waste time on the wrong social media site for their message. Which to use for what? Is my message personal or is it business related? Who do I want to have a conversation with? Friends, family or potential customers?

I am still a social media newbie but I would like to give you my impression of some of the different sites. Are they suited more for business or personal use?

Facebook - the grand-daddy of them all but one of the most recent for me. Wonderful for personal conversations and communication. Businesses are using it with good results - in the form of pages. I still believe that it is more for personal use but I may change my mind the more I use it....

Twitter - this has been  taken over by businesses, large and small, to demonstrate their expertise in 140 characters or less. Celebrities use it to enhance their brand or in some cases show why  they shouldn't be a celebrity (by their not-so-smart tweets!).

LinkedIn - this is the first site I experienced. It is definitely business-oriented. It  has a more formal, business -like tone to it - no chitchat allowed.

Google+ - trying to become Facebook - undecided where it is heading yet. More personal at present? Hmmm...

YouTube - for videos - a mixture of business and personal. Great for businesses to demonstrate their expertise visually - a very useful tool. So many people are visual these days. For personal, well, everyone has heard of a personal video that has gone viral.

Yelp - this site gives consumers a voice to talk about businesses. This site is suited for personal use but businesses better be listening!

Well, those are my opinions. I have no or little experience with the many other sites but look forward  to learning about them.

Last night a friend told me to look into Pinterest. Off I go to explore........

Template Decisions

I thought that this would be a fast and easy decision! Little did I know where it was going to lead me - into the world of template decisions....

The decision for the choice of a template for a blog must involve many different facets. Decidedly, it must be very attractive to people so they will want to remain on to read your blog. To that end, it must be user-friendly and easy to read. It must also reflect the personality of the blogger and represent the message that they are conveying. It should not conflict with their brand.

I like black and grey for a background. Am  I depressed? I don't think so. However I can be very dramatic! These colors (is black a color or a non-color or all colors combined? Hmm, I should have studied harder in art class....!) provide a dramatic backdrop for the white, lighter grey, and orange script. This stark contrast provides the easy readability for the viewer and will hopefully entice them to peruse my blog.

The white and dark blue around the edges prevent the page from being too dark.The blue allows the tags at the top to be easily read.

The hazy, unfocused mountains in the background (they also remind me of clouds) and the in-focus closer impression of raindrops on a window give me a feeling of being warm and cozy, lying on a couch inside on a cold winter's day. It also gives me a feeling of having traveled somewhere. And traveling is always good....

Template decisions - an interesting world.....