New Adventures in Marketing

The Political Awkwardness of Social Media

2010-11-03T19:49:00.000-04:00

As another election cycle has come to an end there was a new element in the coverage on CNN last night that caught my attention. Utilizing the wonderful world of Twitter, CNN was able to analyzing and measure the conversation around the Tea Party. It was not only exciting from the social media side but entertaining at the same time to watch Wolf Blitzer talk about something he wasn't very comfortable with. He ended up just reading the information and I'm not sure if he even understood it.

During the 2008 election we saw a great use of social media, by now President Obama, that really changed the game of campaigning. Last night we saw a change in the pre-analysis of election results. I'm looking forward to see what the 2012 election holds.

Let's Start Again

2010-10-30T16:14:00.004-04:00

It's always been said that once you put something on the Internet it'll be there forever so I'm not going to try to start another blog. Instead if you want to look back at things I've blogged about before you can see it all here.

I'm focusing my blog on marketing specifically digital and social. In my current job I have an opportunity to see what other people/companies are doing in the digital space, along with my own adventures. When I started in my position 2 years ago I had website experience...that's it! Looking back over the past 2 years I've learnt so much. As I've been able to stop and reflect I want to share, through this blog, little tidbits I've been and will be learning.

When some people hear I'm an Interactive Manager they get a look on their face like I'm crazy. Interactive marketing is just taking traditional marketing principles and putting them online. It's just a change of location and being able to have a conversation with consumers instead of talking at them.

The Wheels Keep Spinning

2010-03-13T08:55:00.004-05:00

There have been a few developments this week with the Indy Racing League putting 3 good drivers back behind the wheel.

Grahal Rahal signed a two race deal with Sarah Fisher Racing and Dollar General. The two races that Grahal will run in will the the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Sarah Fisher was instrumental in bringing Grahal in when she found out Rahal was without a ride. Watch for Graham in the March 28 race.

Mario Moreas reached a deal with KV Racing and will be starting in the Sao Paulo Indy 300 tomorrow for the 2010 season. Moraes will the the seventh Brazilian in the race making a third of the starting grid local talent.

Alex Lloyd has signed with Dale Coyne Racing for 2010 and will also be driving in the Sao Paulo Indy 300. Lloyd spent 2009 as the main test driver for Chip Ganassi Racing. Alex did run in the Indianapolis 500 in 2009 and was the fastest part-time driver qualifying in 11th position and finishing in 13th position.

Drivers Start Your Engines

2010-03-07T10:16:00.006-05:00

Hard to believe it's March already. With the warmer weather comes my favorite sport next to football, auto racing. No not NASCAR but IRL (Indy Racing League). I went to my first Indianapolis 500 race in 2001 and I've been hooked on racing ever since. Something about the roar of the engines and speeds on the track that gets me sucked in.

I listen to what's going on around the league who's in and who's out and try to follow all of them on Twitter to keep up but there's a new look to the IRL this year; a strong female presence this year. There are 5 females in this years line up with 2 of them being new faces to IRL regulars; Ana Beatriz and Simona De Silvestro. Ana arrives via the Firestone Indy Lights Series and Simona by way of the Atlantic Championship. I'm very excited to see Sarah Fisher making more of a presence each year and now with her own racing team has added a second driver. I look for great things out of Sarah and Jay Howard this year.

The usual fan favorites are back this year too. Penske Racing has brought back Ryan Briscoe and Helio Castroneves. Andretti Autosport (formally Andretti Green Racing) has brought back Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan and Danica Patrick (who's pulling double duty in some NASCAR races). The team has added a new face in the form of Ryan Hunter-Reay. And then there's the unstoppable Target Chip Ganassi Racing with the dynamic duo of Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti. Dan Wheldon is back with Panther Racing and I would expect great things from him building off of last years performance. Hideki Mutoh made it back for 2010 with a new look this year racing with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. After what could have been a career ending injury during the 2009 Indianapolis 500 Vitor Meira is back with A.J. Foyt Enterprises. Davey Hamilton and Raphael Matos are both back racing for de Farran Luczo Dragon Racing. Mike Conway has stayed with Dreyer and Reinbold Racing for 2010 and is now teammates with Justin Wilson who moved over from Dale Coyne Racing.

Some new faces in the IZOD IndyCar Series are Mario Romancini, from the Firestone Indy Lights Series, who is now with Conquest Racing. Takuma Sato comes to the IRL series from the Formula One circuit; he last raced in 2008.

There are a few faces that are missing from this season. Vision Racing doesn't have a team for 2010 leaving Ed Carpenter without a ride. Graham Rahal lost the McDonald's sponsorship leaving him out of the season start. Graham is still modeling for IZOD so he's some what involved in the series but I think he would rather be in the car. Rumor has it that he may have a short deal at the beginning of the season so stay tuned. Mario Moraes and Alex Lloyd are also without rides in the series as of right now. Dale Coyne Racing and Panther Racing could potentially be adding second cars to their line ups so stay tuned to see what they decide to do.

I don't want to make any perdictions before the season starts but if testing last month shows anything, watch out for Will Power and the Penske boys. I'm looking forward to the first race next weekend in Brazil and where a lot of the IRL races got their start.

You can follow me on Twitter at @tamsul. If you have any questions or comments please leave them below.

GE Money Was The First To Stick It To Us

2010-01-19T19:43:00.003-05:00

Today we received a credit card statement from GE Money. I noticed that our payment went up. There were no charges on the account this month so I looked at the interest rate; it went up 10%! I was floored! I knew changes were coming but not this drastic of changes maybe only a few %. This was outrageous! This the same company in 2009 who dropped our available credit by $6,000 because they needed money.

I have a lot of concern on what's going to happen to the economy over the next 6 months as all the banks establish new interest rates for everyone. The government changed the law a few years ago so you can't file bankruptcy on your credit cards but what happens when they raise all the interest rates and you end up not having enough money? Do you give up your home because that's the only thing left to change?

Dear President Obama, if you don't step up and take notice now of what the banks are getting ready to do you're going to have another economic crisis on your hands in 6 months when people can't make their credit card payments or have to let their homes be reposessed.

2010 Changes

2010-01-03T11:36:00.005-05:00

Wow I can't believe I haven't blogged in a while. I've been busy but that's no excuse for not writing. The best news I have from 2009 is I completed my Masters Certificate in Internet Marketing and I'm very excited I did. The biggest issue I had in 2009 is being diagnosed with Gasto Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD for short) which is a more complex form of acid reflux that causes you to change your lifestyle. I've started working out again and eating right which has caused me to lost 9 pounds in a little over a month and makes me feel better.

I've never been one to make resolutions but it's a great time to start something new. I decided that our family health will be #1 change for 2010. By the end of 2010 my goal is to lose 35 pounds and start to get this GERD thing under control.

If you make changes or resolutions what are they?

Tour Comes to an End but Friendships Don't

2009-07-18T23:22:00.002-04:00

It’s July 18th in Indianapolis. Normally it would be 90+ with humidity to match but today the high was in the low 70’s and our windows are open. The weather today is right in line with my thinking and my mood…strange.

Every NKOTB fan has their own story about how they got where they are today and here's my abbreviated version. Back in the day I was a big fan of NKOTB and was disappointed when they broke up but every good thing must come to an end at some point. As the time went I got on with my life. If I saw one of the guys doing a show or performance I would see how they were doing but I never thought they would ever do a reunion tour. A couple of years ago there was rumor they were starting to talk and do some work together and from there it just blew up! A new album with some of their best work to date, a series of television performances, a fall tour followed by a spring and summer tour and to top it all off a cruise (where they were actually on the boat the whole time).

As I started to think about going to a concert I got in touch with some of my old NKOTB friends and no one was interested; they had moved on to the point they didn’t want anything to do with it. As I started to meet some ladies on the boards I realized that a lot of people were running into the same issue.

Tonight in Houston is the last show of the Full Service Tour. We all knew at some point they would need a break but we’ve all pushed it to the back of our minds. Well today is the day they take a break and enjoy life off the road and with their families. And they deserve it!

I’ve met some AMAZING and AWESOME ladies that I’ve become friends with. The last place I ever expected to meet friends was online but I’ve had a great time meeting them and hanging out. I want to thank NKOTB for bring a group of friends together from the around the world. These ladies keep me laughing on a daily basis.

I plan to continue to tweet and enjoy everyone’s company till the 5 bad brothers from the bean town land come back for another tour. They will be back; not sure when but I do believe it won't be long!

Clash of Cultural…Likeness?

2009-05-04T20:46:00.005-04:00

I was having a conversation today over email (I know archaic isn't it?) with my friend in Australia and we were talking about her trip to the US next month. I have the honor and privilege of having her and her fiance here in Indianapolis for about a week. I sent her links to visitor sites for Indianapolis, Louisville and Cincinnati to see if anything looked fun to her. She made a comment that completely caught me off guard: "I want to experience everything American while I'm there".

Why this caught me off guard I'm not really sure. As I thought about that statement today I couldn't help but think about what is really American. I know what there is to do here and what being an American is; but what is it to experience American? Should I let them pay my bills or clean my house? No they probably already do those things. Drive my car? Now there's a thought but I don't think my insurance company would like that. Do I take them to the Amish Country? Now there's something you have to see to believe (I still don't believe it and we have Amish within 15 minutes of us).

So my question really is how do you experience another culture that's similar to yours? I was in Japan a couple of years ago and it was easy to experience the culture because it's so different. But I don't think that American and Australian cultures are as different as we might think they are. I'm looking forward to their visit and showing them the Midwest and I know they'll love it because Indianapolis is a great city. But if they have the same types of foods and entertainment, how do I help them experience culture?

Another Approach to Governmental Healthcare

2009-02-06T14:54:00.001-05:00

I love Whole Foods and know they're a great resource for finding food that it all natural and preservative free. In an attempt to eat healthier and cut as much Gluten out of my diet I went to Whole Foods today because they carry Gluten-Free products. When I started walking up and down isles looking at what items they carry that are Gluten-Free (they have everything) my chin hit the floor. Now I do understand that you pay extra for specialty food but Gluten-Free products are double the price of their normal merchandise.

Which brings me to the point of this blog. If our current government wants to help with the health care of our population lets give more tax cuts to the food manufacturers to cut their costs. If junk food is so cheap and eating healthy is to expensive why not have the government charge more for junk food and less for healthy food? This is a great way to get our country eating right first so we’re not full of preservatives and/or fat. I believe that if the government took an interest in the basic health of the country first then the cost of healthcare would more than likely go down.

What are your thoughts?

What do SE Cupp, Michelle Malkin, Saul Anuzis all have in common?

2009-01-19T23:15:00.004-05:00

They are helping Smart Girl Politics celebrate the inauguration at the 1st Annual SGP Twitterball!

What is the Twitterball you ask? Twitterball is an online chat party on Tuesday, January 20th from 9pm to 10pm EST with some of the biggest names in the Conservative Movement.

Twitterball will have a main ballroom and four additional chat rooms that feature leaders from the top conservative movements online such as Dontgo, New Republicans, SGP, Rebuild and TCOT.

Weighing-In LIVE on the present and future of conservatism are special guests including:
Saul Anuzis - RNC Chair Candidate

Chip Saltsman-RNC Chair Candidate

Sharon Day-RNC Secretary Candidate

Michelle Malkin

Amanda Carpenter

and our very own "Smart Girl", SE Cupp with a special video presentation.

Being part of the Twitterball is easy! Go to http://tweetchat.com/; enter your Twitter username and password (if you don’t have an account just take 2 minutes and set one up); use the tag #SGPball to enter into the “room”.

Please join us for this historic event in the Conservative Movement and Smart Girl Politics.

You can follow me on twitter for more information as well @tamsul

smartgirlpolitics.ning.com

FB: Conservative Women's Movement

Hope to see you all there.

Thank You for Giving to the Lord

2009-01-08T23:51:00.003-05:00

There are many people who touch us throughout our lives but a select few will be remembered for a lifetime. My former youth pastors, Bob and Sue Kring, are two of those people in my life.

Recently I received The Olivetian from Olivet Nazarene University (ONU) and saw that Bob had passed away. I felt like I brick had been dropped on my chest. But in the very next thought I knew he had completed God’s work here on Earth and he went home to live with our Lord. Bob was an amazing man who cared so much for the kids in the youth groups he led over the years and it showed in his actions.

I really never felt like I fit into the youth group at our church whether it was just me being an insecure teenager or the fact that I didn’t come from a Christian home I’m not really sure. But Bob and Sue always made me feel welcome, a part of the group and made me want to come back every week.

I have many great memories and photos of youth group from going out west for 2 weeks to a dude ranch in Wyoming to pool parties to Celebrate Life meeting. There is also one memory that caused me to leave the youth group. We were in Howell, Michigan for an event (not sure what for) and one of my friends was next door at the high school for a football game so I left our event to go visit without letting anyone know. My thought was that I had plenty of time and I would be back about an hour before the event was over. Well I didn’t think about things wrapping up early. When Bob found me I could see that he was upset with me; actually it looked more like disappointment than anything else. I can’t remember if I apologized (I hope I did) or what was said but I was so embarrassed I didn’t want to show my face again and I didn’t…that was the last time I remember seeing Bob.

Because of the influence that Bob and Sue had on my life in the formative years I always maintained a relationship with God and would not be the strong Christian I am today without them. God has an ultimate plan for each of our lives and the role we will play in everyone else’s life. For me, I would not be who I am without God leading Mr. McMullen to invite me to church when I was in kindergarten, my parents letting me go, the friends I made at church and ultimately the Kring’s love and guidance.

There is a song by Ray Boltz called “Thank You for Giving to the Lord” that has touched me whenever I heard it but I was unsure why. Today as I’m writing the words came to me and I truly believe this song was written for Bob.

To everyone from the Plymouth Church of the Nazarene thank you for playing a part in my life and helping me become a better Christian. And to Bob and Sue, words can’t describe how grateful I am to you for touching my life and showing me what it truly means to give selflessly. To you I say, “thank you for giving to the Lord, I am a life that was changed. Thank you for giving to the Lord, I am so glad you gave.”

Twitter and the RNC; is it a good match?

2008-12-07T16:19:00.001-05:00

I recently had an experience on Twitter than made me realize organizations have a long way to go to completely understand why they are using Twitter. I have gone back and forth about whether or not to mention the Republican National Committee (RNC) in this blog and I decide to so I can bring attention to the issues in the party today.

My experience started out well with the RNC putting a link out on Twitter to the site Republican For A Reason for people to go to so the party could get an idea of what people want to see done within the party. When I went out to the site it worked fine in the beginning. I spent about 15 minutes giving the RNC my opinion and when I submitted my response it gave me a character error. At this point I sent a Twitter to the RNC expecting to get a response and after waiting about 15 minutes I got no response.

Let me stop here for a minute. If you’re an organization please take this comment to heart: Twitter is not about talking at your followers it is about talk with them; this will be how you really learn what people are wanting from you.

Back to my story…after no response on Twitter I decided to call the RNC headquarters and got stuck into an automated system and after not being able to get at least an operator (and a little ticked off) I hit the number for the Chairman’s office. I actually got a person who ended up transferring me to the department who is responsible for the site and I went into voice mail. I left a message and asked for a return call so I knew when it was working again and you guessed it they didn’t call back.

I’m going to stop there because I believe you get the picture. We have a problem in the RNC today that truly came to light in this past election; we don’t know how to communicate properly. Things are not as they were 20 years ago or even 4 years ago; we are a very different group of people with very different communication needs today. We want to feel like we are part of something and making a difference.

To the RNC: PLEASE change the way you are communicating with conservatives. I’m personally grateful that you are using Twitter but start talking with us not at us.

To the Chairman candidates: Thank you for using Twitter to communicate. Saul Anuzis and Katon Dawson keep doing what you’re doing because you are engaging your followers. Michael Steele and Chip Saltsman please start engaging your followers and working toward talking with us not at us.

Presidential Election and the Internet

2008-11-05T08:20:00.006-05:00

As I reflect back on the last year worth of politicing for the Presidency, I can't help but think about how the Internet played such a big role. We continue to talk about how the uses of the Internet have changed over the last 2 years but how it changed this election is amazing to me. Even though I saw the same bombardment of television ads as previous campaigns I couldn't go on the Internet without seeing an Obama banner ad or article about his campaign.

Looking at how the Obama campaign targeted the youth is a great lesson in social media. They looked at where thier "consumers" were and went to them. The campaign gave the voters a forum to voice their opinions and they listened. I couldn't go to a social networking site without seeing someone write something about Obama or his campaign.

When I registered to vote almost 20 years ago never did I think this was where campaigns and elections would end up. Future politicians and political parties need to step back and take a look at what has been accomplished and learn from our next Presidents campaign. If you don't make changes you will get left in the microdust.

Get out and vote!

2008-10-31T21:21:00.001-04:00

I'm writing this not to give you my political view or persuade you to vote for any specific candidate. It is to remind you that voting is always important. Stick with me for a minute and you will understand why I feel it's important to vote.

Last year I ran for re-election to retain my seat on the Shelbyville City Council. On Election Day my election was a tie; yes that's right 345 for me and 345 for my opponent. After a recount the numbers were still the same. In the end of a very long and emotionally draining court battle absentee votes were thrown out by the Shelby County court and the Appellate Court upheld the decision and I lost 336-330 (if you would like know why the absentee ballots were thrown out let me know; another story in itself). Now come on no one likes to lose but after you have spent 4 years being a public servant and representing citizens in your community it is hard to hear a court say you have to step down. I occasionally have my moments where I can't help but think if 1 more person would have come out I could have won (although I would have needed 7 more since the absentee ballots were disqualified).

We live in country where voting is something that is taken for granted by far too many people. Most citizens feel that voting in the Presidential Election is important and the turn out is usually decent every 4 years usually between 50%-60%. But don't forget you have other candidates on the ballots too. Use this election as a time to start a new important habit for your city, county, state and nation. We have the privilege, duty and right to elect those that represent us...please get out and vote!

Macaroni Grill Pasta Dinner Kits

2008-10-27T20:35:00.001-04:00

When you think of Macaroni Grill you think of the restaurant right? Well at least I do. General Mills now has a new product out that brings Macaroni Grill to your own kitchen. As part of a test market I'm lucky enough to receive new food products as they are coming out. This being my first item received I can see that this is going to fun and filling.

The Macaroni Grill dinner kit that I received was Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken and Pasta. We made it this evening, it was delicious and we loved it. The directions are a little difficult to understand and could be a little better organized and easier to follow but a good purchase for a new taste. The sauce was creamy and flavorful and was different from most dinner kits. There are 4 flavors to choose from: Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken and Pasta, Garlic and Herb Chicken Penne, Chicken Marsala with Linguine and Chicken Alfredo with Linguine.

Overall I believe this is well worth the purchase. Next time your at the grocery store pick one up and try it.