guest blogger: “quickiechick” laurel house gives readers a sneak peek at tasty tips from her new book, “quickiechick’s cheat sheet to life, love, food, fitness, fashion and finance on a less than fabulous budget” (st. martin’s, may 2012)

it takes more than a perky attitude, cute smile, and sexy dress to have a good date. that’s why every chick needs a set of power tools. dating power tools. i’ve got an arsenal of tricks to up any chick’s chances of putting her best self forward – a combo of confidence-boosting, body-perfecting, skin-beautifying secrets. here are a few…

power tools:

• first you need a base- popchips
• hangover prevention- asparagus
• de-puffing- yams and cucumbers
• calming- sunflower seeds and soybeans
• beautiful glow- greek yogurt
• slimming- coffee grinds
• confidence- power panties
• quickie workout in bed
• confidence- post-its
• focus- intention board
• how to stand out- fab bag or stilettos

let me explain…watch here for the full scoop on these power tools.

oh, and all of these tips, plus a lot lot more, are in my new book- “quickiechick’s cheat sheet to life, love, food, fitness, fashion and finance on a less than fabulous budget” (st. martin’s, may 2012). hangover prevention, better sex, weight loss, finding an awesome job…it’s all in there. pretty much every chick needs it (and every dude who wonders what’s happening in a chick’s head too).

why laurel pops: i’m laurel house, a fit lifestyle author, personal trainer, and the “quickiechick.” no, not the late night booty call kind of quickie. my “quickies” are all about making the most out of every moment- whether it’s a saddlebag-burning “quickie workout in bed,” a metabolism-boosting “bites with benefits” meal, or how to get a $150 spa-quality skin peel out of a $1 tomato and lemon at-home refrigerator facial. my youtube videos have received over 7 million views and now you can get even more quickie tips in my new book “quickiechick’s cheat sheet to life, love, food, fitness, fashion and finance on a less than fabulous budget” (st. martin’s, may 2012). 

guest blogger: frank o’brien, founder of “the pitch” winning conversation agency

when we got the call to pitch popchips, we were already familiar with the brand and  were surprised to find out that more people weren’t. we were even more excited when we heard that the goal of the assignment was to raise awareness because at that point we were looking at all of the great marketing material already put out by the brand thinking “holy (pop), how are we going to top this?!”

something special stood out to us about popchips – something you don’t see in every brand, much less a brand that has been around for only a few short years. it’s something that we at conversation see in ourselves: a strong culture, a focused brand, and an unwavering attention to detail. we were a perfect fit to work with this brand.

it’s rare that you feel, or know, that you’re going to hit a home run. agencies tend to have a level of superstition around them and talk a lot about karma, so throughout the process we didn’t want to be too confident but we knew that we were on to something special. all of the pieces lined up – the assignment, the brand, our process, the idea – but there was still one piece outstanding. no matter how right we felt, you never know until the decision is made. the brand has the final piece to the puzzle, the final say.

fortunately for us, our initial instincts and feelings throughout the process were dead on:  the popchips team gets it. from the agency side, winning a pitch isn’t always about what concept you pitch. it’s about who you are, how you pitch, and what you show while in that pitch room. if

all you’re pitching are ideas, then you’re only as good as your last idea. we pitch partnership, creative thinking, an ability to “get it done,” and a true focus on our clients’ business. by choosing conversation, it was clear that popchips was committed to adding that building block to their story to take it to the next level, which is something we focused on most in developing our campaign – a campaign that worked just as hard and that was as passionate as the agency and the client in the pitch room.

everyone at conversation puts their heart and soul into our business and our clients’ business. (after all where would we be if we didn’t have a hand in making our clients successful?)  we live our mission the way popchips lives theirs. it’s special when you find that kind of synergy, and we’re proud to be a part of the extended popchips family.

thank you, popchips, for the opportunity to work with such an amazing brand, amazing team, and an amazing business. let’s keep poppin’ with the year of pop…

ok, now that you know whose pitch popped, we’re excited to announce that we’ve brought conversation agency’s winning idea to life….

introducing, the year of pop, where snackers everywhere are uniting over their love of popchips. and we’re loving them right back.

join the year of pop by adding a photo, video or message. and we’ll give you something tasty that’s worth remembering.

the chip’s outta the bag – we’re popping on amc’s new original series, the pitch!

from the network that brings you mad men, and the producers of undercover boss, the pitch offers viewers a gripping, never-before-seen glimpse inside america’s top ad agencies. and this sunday, may 13, we’re getting in on the action…popchips style! with only seven days to prepare their pitches, the pressure is high, the drama is delicious, and the show is, well, popping!

tune in to amc this sunday, may 13, at 11/10c, and laugh with us as we watch our ceo keith & our marketing team pick whose idea pops! until then, tide yourself over with this delicious sneak preview.

guest blogger: stephanie m., regional marketing manager, pacific northwest/vancouver bc

hi!  my name is stephanie, and i’m the proud and honored to be chosen as popchips’ april ‘popstar’ of the month!

here at popchips, a big part of our our company culture is giving back to causes we believe in. each month, an employee is honored as a “popstar of the month,” and (in addition to scoring a really cool trophy) empowered to donate $1,000 to their charity of choice.  not only is this a great way to recognize the hard work, passion, and dedication of individuals that make up our company – it’s also a great way to see what organizations and causes are near and dear to each co-workers heart; and allows you to know and understand people on a different, more human level.

so i bet you want to know what charity i chose, right?! i’m getting there…

since watching the movie FOOD INC., i’ve been inspired and fascinated by the impact that food, and the business of food has on our society.  growing up in the midwest and having ‘farm fresh’ and ‘free range’ food my entire life (my uncle owns a farm) – i never gave much thought to ‘where’ my food was grown, or ‘who’ was growing it; it was just there.  but as i grew older, and lived in bigger cities where these labels are seen and used as a premium in selling and marketing items – it really put it in perspective that not everyone is in control of their food sources, or choices.  the film also does an amazing job at bringing to the forefront the impact that food has on our society.  land must be maintained for growing crops and animals.  doing this in a humane and ethical manner means higher prices at the grocery store; and in an economy that demands bigger, cheaper, quicker – these two hardly (if ever) go hand in hand.  pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers are added to make plants more robust and increase the likelihood that a farmer can harvest a good crop to feed not only his family but hundreds of others – and animals grow bigger and quicker with the ‘help’ of growth hormones and scientific feed.  and that is just the tip of the iceberg.  if you haven’t seen the film, i highly encourage you to watch it.

the film doesn’t support any one charity or cause.  what it does do is list a plethora of ways that we can all get involved.  one of those ways is to support farming practices that are good for animals, humans, and the planet.  for this reason, i chose to donate to my local chapter of the humane society.  as part of their mission statement, the humane society “seeks a humane and sustainable world for all animals—a world that will also benefit people. they are america’s mainstream force against cruelty, exploitation and neglect, as well as the most trusted voice extolling the human-animal bond.”

you can find out more about the organization, and find your local chapter at: http://www.humanesociety.org

when I was growing up, i never thought or intended to be working in the consumer packaged goods industry.  however, i’ve somehow managed to work for some pretty amazing brands.  brands that not only fulfill a desire or a need; but brands that are striving changing the world for the better – one bag or bottle at a time.

“be the change that you wish to see in the world.” ―mahatma gandhi

follow @popchipsSeattle @popchipsPDX for more of how how we’re chipping in to make a difference in the community.

diane mizota:  what are your top picks for mother’s day gifts this year, both giving and receiving?

jessica alba: giving?  i love to give my girlfriends and my grandmother and my mom, some sort of pampering present, so i’ll make salt scrubs and some kind of lotion.

dm: do you make them from scratch yourself?

ja:  sometimes, yeah. i like to play with oils and stuff, so i’ll infuse our honest co. bubble bath with some lavender and then make a little scrub out of some salts and olive oil with a couple essential oils.

dm: what are some mothers’ day gift ideas from you new company?

ja:  i’ll take some of our stuff as the base, and then just kind of tweak it a little and personalize it, for my fellow mommies.

dm:  you’re one of the most chic and stylish moms out there today, how do manage to always look so cute?  some days it’s a challenge for me to even get out the door!  i see the pictures of you with your girls, when you’ve got no makeup on, and you still look adorable!

ja: oh my goodness, thank you!   i don’t feel like i have enough time in the day, so one of the things that i started doing is to pick out my clothes, and my kids clothes the night before, so you’re not sitting there rummaging through the closet.  it’s set out, so you don’t even have to think about it.  you can wake up, put it on, and then you’re ready to go.

dm:  what’s your parenting snack style?

ja:  i’m definitely mindful and thoughtful around snacks.  if we do have a packaged option, we also always have something fresh.  so, whether its grapes, or sliced apples, or a homemade trail mix that i’ll put together, we always have something like that, for sure.

dm:  i’ve noticed you tweet that you’re a fan of popchips. do your kids like them too?

ja:  yeah!  totally.  i mean, who doesn’t love popchips?

word.  who doesn’t love popchips? and who doesn’t love jessica alba?  thanks so much to jessica to chatting with us! wishing everyone a very happy mothers’ day!

-@popvp diane mizota

our team worked hard to create a light-hearted parody featuring a variety of characters that was meant to provide a few laughs. we did not intend to offend anyone. i take full responsibility and apologize to anyone we offended.

– keith belling, founder and ceo of popchips

now it’s time to get your friends, your mom, your dog groomer, and fellow do good-ers to rally the vote for the local causes you’d like our game changers to support. on june 1, each athlete will select one of the top five most popular ideas to support in their community. then, we’ll host exclusive events (between june 1 – july 6) with each athlete and chip in to make a difference together.

now get out there. spread the word. share the news with your friends on facebook. tweet @popchips #gamechangers.  and rally the troops to vote for your idea once a day through may 20!