Week 4: seesterhoodofthetravelingnerds.com

I can't remember when the last time is that I have been so excited about a project with my girls!  When I say, "my girls," I am referring to my daughter, mom, and sisters (seesters).  My class on social media marketing has pushed me to start a business.  My girls and I talk daily on Skype, text, etc and we are forever discussing how we must be much more interesting that those reality show girls on TV!

So, since we are all quite nerdy and love to post and rant, I have decided to start a blog and include them on it.  My goal is to make a place that will lure in sponsors with it's popularity but also to have a safe haven for me and my family ladies to spread the word about how to overcome life's challenges, be good parents and have fun no matter what!  I mean that, NO MATTER WHAT!  If life gives us lemons we squirt it in our drink and throw the peels at that jerk! The twist of course is that three of us are in the technology industry so there will be a section to cater to women in technology!

Our ideal customer will be those ladies and guys who are out there thinking, "The struggle is real", and need some encouragement, the single teen parent, the battered woman putting her life back together, the man who wants to know how he should deal with his daughter, and the random person who just want's to laugh at the crazy stuff my daughter's mom says that she cannot post on facebook! We will also be there to encourage women in the technology industry and include random technical blogs about the latest in Cloud Infrastructure, Continuous Integration, Open Source projects, etc.  This site will definitely be for those over 18 because I feel like it should not have a swear filter.   Viewer discretion is advised!

Stay tuned but I have already registered the domain so this baby is on it's way!

Week 4: The Diaper Debate

For this week I have been asked to review the following websites and comment on their demographics and/or psychographics. I found this quite easy because, despite the fact that these two sites represent very similar products, they are indeed completely different from each other.

http://www.econobum.com
http://www.justcheapdiapers.com

I think that in general you can put parents of infants into two separate consumer categories.  Those categories are broke parents and not broke parents.  However, there are many sub categories within these like trendy, organic, negligent, cheap, realistic, paranoid, etc.  I found these two products and websites very interesting because the do have that one BIG crossover demographic which is, "People who need to catch the tiny human's waste."  Still, they are very different in their marketing approach because one of them is catering to the broke or cheap crowd and the other is catering to the tree-hugging, organic hipster parents.  One site is flashy and busy like some place to buy bulk finger puppets, while the other site is family oriented and more about the makers of the product than the product itself.  One site is focusing on the environment and the other is focusing on saving you money.  These are two completely opposite messages going out to two completely different type of people, right?  But these people have one huge thing in common, BABIES!!!

This is a very fascinating comparison to think about and an excellent way to get me thinking about who I am reaching out to when I start my business.

Week 3: Blog Two: My Frequently Visited Websites

This week I have been asked to discuss two websites that I visit frequently.  I really did not realize how many sites I access on a daily basis until I tried to pick two of them!  I spend a significant amount of time on so many sites!  Sites like Facebook, Google, Amazon, AWS (Amazon Web Services), Netflix, MiraCosta, Bitbucket, Chase Bank, Blogger, etc. are just a few and I access these almost every single day!  Since I am supposed to choose two, I went with the most interesting of them all and the two sites that I am quite certain have in some way shape or form a hand in the making and maintaining of each and every one of the sites I am touching every day.  Is that possible?

AWS is Amazon's cloud.  When people talk about "The Cloud" they are usually referring to AWS if they know it or not.  It is the world of virtual machines!  AWS owns and maintains data centers across the world that they basically rent out.  Netflix is one company that uses AWS.  Have you ever wondered how everyone can be watching movies at the same time and it does not slow them down?  They have a highly reliable and scale-able system through AWS that fires up new machines when too many people are logging on at the same time and shuts them down when they are no longer needed.  I am a DevOps Engineer for a Media Broadcasting Technology company that uses AWS so I am on their console every day at work.  If you would like to check it out, it is free to sign up for an account as long as you don't activate any services you should be ok.  Go to console.aws.amazon.com if you would like to see it.  I have included a screenshot of the console home page for you to get an idea of how many services they offer.  Clicking on any one of these services will take you into an entirely new area that covers that service.  It is probably the most intricate, fast and reliable site that I have ever depended on and I am quite sure that is one of the reasons they are the leading cloud technology services company out there.  Keep in mind though that this site is for people who are already customers.  You wont see a lot of marketing frills which is probably why it is so fast.  However, if you go to aws.amazon.com you will see that they have that front page set up for marketing and keeping this console separate is what makes it so efficient.  You do not have to search through propaganda to find what you need.  There is one little thing that I would like to improve on this site and that is the sorting of the services.  I can see why they need to have it this way and have grouped them for people who may not know the name of what they are looking for.  However, it would be great if we could sort them alphabetically to make it easier to go straight to what you are looking for when you know what it is called.

For my second site I have chosen another site that I use at work called Bitbucket.org.  Bitbucket is a web-based hosting service for projects that use either Mercurial or Git revision control systems.  Am I speaking another language? Basically, it is a place where we can collect all of the code for our projects and share and make changes and store the information for version control of our software.  That is why I say that it is another site that probably touches all of these other sites in one way or another.  In fact, I just read an article that 1 in 3 fortune 500 companies are using Bitbuket!  And how do they do their marketing?  Well it most certainly is not through their site!!  So, I googled that and the best I can come up with as far as their biggest marketing tool is.... wait for it...... BLOGS!  Hmmmm So, now this has me thinking and on to another subject for another blog at another time but I will leave you with the thought.  How important IS the money and effort put into the design of your website if you have a solid product and aggressive Social Media Marketing campaign? 

The Bitbucket site is not colorful, it is not pretty, but it is organized well.  And much like the AWS console, if you are looking for the fluff and want to be sold on something, just click on the "Plans and Pricing" or "Documentation" links at the bottom of the page and BAM!  There is an instant change in font size, color, graphics, etc.  It seems to me that they also saved all of the features that slow down your website and put them in their respective areas for those who would like to view them.  Nicely done!

This week I have commented on the following student's blogs:

Skylar hunter

Nina Sokol

Matthew Truss

Jen's Website Review

Here is a fun assignment!  Choose two of the following websites and identify at least three potential problems for visitors.  Then choose two websites and identify what they have done right.

• http://tectorch.com
• http://www.exmouth-view.co.uk/
• http://spotmetering.com/
• http://www.roverp6cars.com/
• http://www.headhunterhairstyling.com/
• http://www.riversideartcenter.org/
• http://apple.com
• http://www.ford.com/
• http://www.toyota.com/

It did not take me long to choose the sites that I wanted to critic.  It just seems that every art center website I have ever visited has been an utter disaster!  I am not sure if it is a budget issue, or if that is just the style they go for.  My daughter has been a dance performer for about 7 years now and because the performances tend to be at art centers, I have visited a lot of these sites.  The www.riversideartcenter.org site is a prime example.  It is difficult to view because of poor coloring.  It is not pleasing to the eye at all and the layout is quite confusing.  The year is not included with dates and since they have not changed many things like photos since 2013, I am led to believe that the announcements could be from really any year!  Boo to this site.  Get your life together Riverside art people.

Next on my list was the www.spotmetering.com.  What on earth is that anyway?  Well, I can tell you what it is not.... CHEAP!  And how do I know that without there being any prices listed on the page?  Thanks to the very crude wording on this page (once I was able to read it and get passed the bright yellow font on the black background) I was very easily able to read between the lines.  Statements like, "When you buy an expensive GUITAR, you KNOW that playing skills DO NOT COME with it!" are pretty much a sure sign that you are about to spend a lot of money on something you don't know how to use.  I don't know about you guys, but I for one do not like being yelled at regarding my attitude about purchases I have not even made yet!  So then, where could I find the answer to my question, "What on earth is spotmetering"?  BELOW, yes I said BELOW all of the lectures about buying expensive things is where they explain what the product is that they are yelling at me about.  I just can't with this website.  

Oh how I love my Ford truck.  His name is Steve and he is a finely tuned machine that I am thankful for every day.  I bet you can guess what website I decided to praise first.  Of course it was FORD!  I did not just choose FORD because I believe them to be the best truck manufacturer out there or because Henry Ford opened the doors for countless others to build and create on their dreams and make our automobiles better and better every year.  I chose Ford because their website is an example of excellent marketing/sales and web design.  The page organization and structure is easy to view and user friendly.  The site caters to both the potential and existing customers with places to order accessories, give feedback, receive quotes, etc.  You can see what is coming out and what has been around.  The only thing I would change about this site is a big FORD Raptor hauling tail through the desert on the cover.  :-)  However, I suppose the point is to draw in new people and not the already hooked truck enthusiasts so, the scrollthrough of "a vehicle for every lifestyle" that starts with the Fusion was probably the smarter way to go.


Jen's Dream Truck - 


Here is another something that I love.  I know, I kind of cheated by choosing sites that I already have good things to say about.  Can you guess what else I am passionate about?  It is my iphone!!  So, I decided to take a trip to www.apple.com to take an objective view of their website.  I wonder how much money they had to pay to buy the name "apple.com" or did they corner that before everyone was buying up domain names?  Hmmmmm.... I am going to google that!  Ok, I am back (speedy one) So according to an article on Quora.com by Erik Fair, they did not pay anything for the apple.com domain name because it was registered prior to 1988 when he started working there.  However, you should really check this article out regarding what they paid for the iphone.com domain!  Wowza! Click on this link to check it out. AppleInsider.com  Back to the subject at hand.  Their site is of course, flawless.  I tried to find something wrong but I just could not.  They Highlight the latest products and information, the pages are all well organized and not too much information is thrown at you at once on any item, and there are no formatting errors.  The colors are easy on the eyes and the speed of the site is excellent as well.  Caching is our friend!

So there you have it folks!  My week 3 blog one assignment.  Let me know what you think!

5 business websites and the social media they are using.

Click on this photo to view the 5 businesses that I selected.

This week I commented on the following group members posts:

Jamie Blaise
Charles Guzman
Adrian Mandujano

Business Communication via Social Media

Have I ever experienced difficulty communicating with a business?  Does a one legged duck swim in circles?!  Of course, I have had many experiences where I got frustrated communicating with a business.  I would say that 9 times out of 10 it has something to do with insurance.  This is typically related to the insane hold times on the phone and applies specifically to companies that only will communicate with you via the telephone.  Yes, Blue Cross Blue Shield, I am talking to you!  I have been on hold for 15 to 20 minutes and then hung up on accidentally by the representative when they finally answered on several occasions.  I don't even like to go to the doctor because I don't want to set an appointment.  It is just too much of an ordeal.

However, there are some healthcare companies who do things differently and are following suit with other businesses that use the internet to communicate.  Kaiser is a perfect example of this.  Kaiser has developed their own type of user interface that resembles LinkedIn or Facebook.  The doctors have profiles, you can actually email them, you can see your test results and order prescriptions, you can even submit reviews and complaints.  This seems to have changed the way their customer service responds as they are being held accountable for their response times and demeanor.  

At the end of the day, responding to your clients in a timely and effective manner and treating them with the utmost importance is the quickest and easiest way to build a good reputation.  Public responses to complaints that show a resolution to the issue and respect for the person complaining is respected by most of those viewing it and will actually end up helping your company rather than hindering it. Written communication also leaves a paper trail so that you can track the progress that you have made with feedback and issue resolutions.

In the examples above, you can see my opinion of the difference in communication styles between two healthcare companies.  The interesting thing is that I really like the doctors with Blue Cross Blue Shield and would probably prefer to visit them.  However, if given the choice between the two companies at this point, I would choose Kaiser because I am more likely to actually go to the doctor and understand my test results and communicate effectively if I have a good user interface and social network to use.

Social Media Platforms are Marketing Ninjas

Social media platforms are like marketing ninjas!  I have been asked to specify what is geared toward personal use and what seems to work better for business.  My head is spinning.  Let's look at this for a moment...

Facebook - You get on for personal use.  You post pics of your kids, like some other posts and maybe agree to join your friend's Mary Kay party.  Wait just a minute!  You joined a Mary Kay party through Facebook?  So, this is being used for business?  That funny meme you liked and shared is phishing your information, your friends are having you like their business pages to get more coverage with their advertisements and suddenly Facebook is offering you t-shirts with #! on them (how did they know you know Linux?).  Well, looks like this one is more business than personal underneath it all...NEXT!

Pintrest - I used to think this was an  innocent way for us all to share and say, "OMG look at these cute shoes" and "I want a fountain of Brides Maids tears at our wedding!".  Wrong again, after reading a classmates blog I realized that this is just us all advertising product after product via the most effective form of marketing, word of mouth.

LinkedIn - Thank you so much, LinkedIn, for being honest about your intentions and providing a place to organize the hundreds of recruiters that stalk our lives once we step into the technology industry.

Twitter - This one is yet another business orientated platform but I have to say, hats off to Twitter!  When there are fires in San Diego, new technology announcements, political debates and of course, Jimmy Fallon being his amazing self I get notified right away and can get instant updates before they even hit the news.  Definitely another business related platform but this is also a great network of instant updates on current events.

Instagram - In my opinion, this is the most "personal use" geared platform.  Still, it's moving quickly away from that.  If you don't believe me, go to a dance competition.  The only reason I even downloaded this application is because of a contest at one of my daughter's dance competitions.

So, there you have it.  The bottom line of my synopsis is that almost every social media platform out there is geared to look like it is for personal use while sneaking marketing propaganda right into your own posts on Aunt Martha's page.

I have been wanting to do this for so long!  I now have my very own blog site where I can just rant endlessly about nonsense!  For today's nonsense, I would like to discuss the reasons I chose this specific template.  The simple answer to that is, "It is Pink and that is one of my favorite colors!".  However, I believe that my teacher would like me to go a little more in detail about it so I will try to elaborate on my pink template as best I can.  

I am a very manly girly-girl at times. I like to keep my home clean, I have a certificate in makeup artistry and I host slumber parties at the age of 38.  However, I think more women should be able to look and act feminine while doing things that are unexpected of their character.  An example of this would be the industry that I work in and the vehicles that I drive.  I am a DevOps engineer who rides a Harley and drives a Ford truck.  I love to fish and camp but  I also like to wear dresses, false eyelashes and select girly looking backgrounds for my blogs.  Is it odd to think that maybe I can attract the attention of some other women with my pretty pink flare and then dazzle them with knowledge?   

Everything that I do though, at the end of the day, is for one big reason.  It makes me happy and makes me feel good about myself.  I think that you can trace every one of my actions back to that answer including my Pink template.