Building a Southwest Airlines Jet
Interesting behind the scenes time-lapse video on the making of Florida One, a new Southwest Jet at Boeing. Very cool to see the way their production line works and how the evolving airplane rolls through the facility. I don’t think I have ever seen a plane being made, but every time I go on one, I wonder about it and how it stays together and up in the air! Of course I know how – but I still think about it. And here Boeing and Southwest share something unique – Think about the potential audience that could be interested in this video – starting with those who fly and and those who are interested in planes and these on there own are HUGE audiences and are very likely to share this video. FYI – It was posted on April 22 and already has 822,000 views.
Age of Conversation 3 Coming Soon!
Age of Conversation 3: It’s time to get busy! is on its way. It will be available shortly directly from Amazon and some other online book stores. The cover was designed by Chris Wilson.
The third in a series of a crowdsourced book on conversation, I am happy to have written one chapter for this edition. The series has grown exponentially and boasts an remarkable list of authors that tackled a series of categories – in ways that are both interesting and enlightening. All authors contributed their chapters knowing that all proceeds would go to charity.
Please by the book when it is published and support our charity efforts. More to come on all accounts!
How Long is Too Long?
I have been helping a doctor setup a web presence that includes a website a blog and some social media applications. With new clients, especially those that don’t read blogs let alone blog themselves, I help them understand and train them on how to blog. In one of our first sessions we discussed frequency, recency and consistency of posts. I had mentioned that she should aim for about 250 words per post and try not to go over 500 words – especially if she was going to post frequently.
The doctor and I have just begun and she sent me a question this morning about the optimal length of blog posts:
“I have been thinking about the limitations of 400 words on a blog. There may be days when that suffices but I think I need more space.”
Here’s the deal -
THE BLOG READER
The 250-500 words is about readability and is really for a web or smart phone audience. This is where people are looking at a ton of articles every day and they get quick hit updates. No reason you can’t write longer – but the longer articles or papers – 500-5000+ words – are for a different audience. This audience will probably not want to read long articles online or on a pda. They will be the people that will print and read.
THE BLOG WRITER
The 250 words is also for the writer who may be writing a post daily or 3-5 times a week or more. The 250-500 is more for those that are trying to post often and want to build an audience in our ADD world.
QUALITY VS. QUANTITY
If the quality is there, don’t worry about the length. there are people who post long pieces once a month anf people will wait because they like what they read. Just write about what you know. And add value.
FIND YOUR VOICE
Over a few months, a blogger will find a length, a tone and a style that is comfortable for them and works for their audience. It takes time and perseverance. The best way to do this is to setup some time in your schedule to do some writing every day. And it will come. That may be during a commute. It may be between calls. It may be first thing in the am or last thing at night. But it is easier to make it happen if time is set up and a habit is formed.
Blogging is not hard to do. It is hard to do well and it takes dedication and effort. Now I am off to revise my schedule so that I can find time to blog myself!
Maya’s first plane trip
We have not been shy to travel with our kids. Starting with Ethan when he was 3 months old, we have traveled with our kids and happily they have been excellently behaved and we have not upset too many people.
We have been out of practice when it comes to traveling with an infant for about 4 years. It’s a lot of work especially when it’s an infant + 3 siblings and the 6 of you have a whole row from window to window. My second eldest kept saying: “Dad – take a photo of Maya on her first plane trip.” I could not take the nagging so I hauled out the iPhone (and a few minutes later the real camera). And as she stared out of the window at 9 months old, I thought about how much a baby absorbs and sponges up information with those wide and inquisitive eyes. Thanks Zach – I am so glad that I did listen to you.
These photos were taken with the iPhone and the B&W effect is from Photoshop Mobile. I was speaking to a client who was berating me for not posting ANYTHING in months. Of course I copped the excuses – 4 kids, too busy with work, etc. He said: “BS – you would tell me it takes a few minutes and you could do it on the subway or between calls or while the kids sleep! Take your own advice! And tell me how it goes- I challenge you.”
Using the iPhone or PDA to post is not new. I’ve done that and many do every day. But many people do not and it really is easy. So, here it is, I am back and yes Paul- I am sitting on the bed in Colorado, and the post took less than 5 minutes to write. It was done on the iPhone using the Wordpress iPhone APP. The images were on the iPhone and you too can do it! 
. Thanks for pushing me. I thought that 1 of my 4 valid excuses would be a good subject to post on.
As a parent – Watch this video
This will shock and inspire you
Last year there was Paul Potts and two of his audition videos have been watched by over 42 million and 11 million people respectively on YouTube. Then this year (a few days ago in fact), Susan Boyle arrives. I challenge you not to jump to conclusions when she first appears.
I have heard this song performed many times on Broadway and I have listened to a number of different recordings. This is an outstanding version of “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables. Even though I am a biased because an uncle of mine wrote the lyrics, I LOVE this song and especially this version. Yes, we can all dream a dream – and sometimes they do come true. Just ask Susan Boyle.
For old time’s sake, here is Paul Potts.
In challenging times, it’s nice to have inspiration like this.
Blast from 1998 – Dot Com revisited
Sometimes you just know
Making Great Music
A long long time ago
I can still remember how that music used to make me smile
Don McLean
Back in summer camp as a newly minted teenager, I met a guy who could play the guitar and sing. He was cool – and he could really play. Turns out we were distantly related and we would end up at the same school and university – but that is another story.
Recently, I have reconnected with friends from long ago through Facebook. I have been disconnected from them for over 20 years – in many cases with absolutely no contact. From time to time I thought and wondered – Where are they now? What happened to them? What do they do? Where did they go?
There is a familairity born from shared experiences that 20+ years has not changed. And my friend’s music which was largely covers in those heady camp days – has taken a circuitous route to get to this post. Because at 17, he stopped playing.
After 10 years in Philadelphia, he returned to Cape Town, South Africa and as he told me, rekindled his love for music and art. and he gave me the URL for his website. And as Don McLean sang in American Pie:
…something touched me deep inside,
The day the music died started again
Go to Paul Abro’s site Read his story and listen to his music – you won’t be sorry. Even at 13, I just new. The voice has mellowed and it is good stuff.
Bravo Paul and thanks for sharing.
Twitter explained to a 90 year old grandparent
What I Learned This Week From You – Installment #1
When I started focusing on marketing and communications and the massive changes that were occuring a few years ago, I went from not knowing what a blog was to reading 200 blogs a day in about 6 weeks. Soon it was 300 a day and I was learning a ton and running out of hours in the day! I was reminded of this during a fun presentation I gave to a Women President’s Organization group this week. I was asked about how I gathered information and found out about things. Much like how people find you or your company, it is through recommendations or Google. It used to be my RSS reader, but more and more it is through Twitter and Facebook referrals. So I am going to – time permitting – share some of the interesting things I see each week. Herewith installment #1
1. 12 easy mistakes that plague newcomers to the SEO field from SEOmoz.org
2. 11 ways to find brands and companies on twitter from Lee Ogden
3. Social Media Cases Studies SuperList from Robin Broitman at iiG
4. 10 Tips for creating a brilliant landing page from Chromatic
5. Skittles goes Modernistawith a distributed experience by David Armano
6. Moving Needles from Chris Brogan
7. What the young people say about social media from MarketingProfs and Allen Weiss
8. The “Fall in Love” and “Now I Know You” Effects by Valeria Maltoni
Thanks for sharing and to those who commented on these posts – I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. Have a great weekend.
