Monthly Archives: December 2011

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We’ll Take a Cup of Kindness Yet, for Auld Lang Syne

Full disclosure: I’m a little tipsy as I write this (thank you, Jameson!). It’s 10:15pm on New Year’s Eve, and I’m more than ready to bid adieu to the bitch of a year that was 2011. Just this past week alone has been more than enough, and I want to be done with it. Some thoughts, as we count down the final hours of one of the most unremarkable, if not miserable, years yet:

  • 2012 will be a year of change. This is a good, wonderful, fantastic thing. Really, there’s no choice after a year like 2011. I feel like I’ve spent the entire year hashing things out, and I suppose, as far as growth goes, 2011 has been good for that (at least it was good for something). I’m looking forward to 2012 being filled with positive energy and progress.
  • This will be the year that I turn 30. I’ve been looking forward to that pretty much since I turned 19. I’m thrilled to wave bye-bye to my 20s. The near-constant grappling with uncertainty is just about done, and I look forward to grabbing the bull by it’s horns and taking what I want from life. This doesn’t necessarily have much to do with age, but I think most would agree that most of your 20s are spent trying to figure out who you are. Well, now I know, and I’m ready to announce it to the world. We’ll see if the world is ready for all I have to give it ;-p
  • Part of the great change (perhaps most of it) in 2012 will be a shift in priorities. Rather than fretting and scrambling to make sure the rest of the world is satisfied, I’m going to do what it takes to keep myself satisfied. Some of the things I have planned:
    • More work. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it’s something I can achieve…and I feel good when I’m being productive. Also, more work = more money, and I could certainly use that at this point.
    • Better health. Some of the things I have planned to achieve this include dietary changes (bye-bye, gluten..at least for awhile) and intense exercise (Insanity!, here I come. I remember how great roller derby practice felt. Since I won’t be prepared to return to the rink this year, the Insanity program will have to do. I look forward to seeing more definition between my waist and hips. Oh yeah).
    • Reading and writing more. I’ll admit, I read a hell of a lot as it is. My blogrolls on Tumblr, WordPress, and Google reader are overwhelming…but I really miss books. I have a list of books that I’ve been meaning to read. This year, it’s going to happen. Also, I’ve grossly neglected my personal writing as a result of work. The truth is, the writing I do for my job is completely different than my personal writing, and there’s no good reason for me not to be able to do both. I had registered this domain as an incentive to write more…so this year, I’m going to use it. So there.
    • Playing and listening to more music. Supposedly, I’ve been playing the harmonica for almost 2 years now. That’s total BS. In all honestly, I’ve played for maybe the equivalent of a week and a half. It’s pathetic. I know I’m capable of more, and I want to be able to wail. This is the year it happens. It just takes regular practice…As for listening to music, I did a little bit in 2011…but I don’t feel that I discovered much. Sure, there was some Bon Iver, Junior Kimbrough, and Karate that came from a dear friend’s influence, and then Florence and the Machine, Adele, and Beyonce on my own…but I know there’s a lot of great music, and it makes me sad that I was so out of touch this past year. This shall be resolved.
    • Making time. I used to argue with my dad all the time that I didn’t have enough time to do one task or another, and he’d always say “make time”. I thought that was ridiculous, because there are only 24 hours in a day, and nothing can really change that. The truth is, however, that it is important how you use those 24 hours. Lately, I’ve been awake from 1:30pm-4am, and sleeping the rest of the time. There really isn’t much you can do after midnight, so there’s no way that I’m making the most of my time. This year, I’m going to turn my schedule around. I’m going to be up between 8 and 9am every single day, so I can maximize my exposure to sunlight and people, and so that I can be more productive when it comes to work and errands. In return, having a regular schedule will make my free time in the evenings and weekends all the more precious.
  • 2012 will be the year I get back on the road. My car’s engine died back in March, and I haven’t driven since. At the moment, my license is suspended because I never turned my plates in (:grumble:), and I won’t be able to reinstate it until February. That’s fine, because I won’t have a car before then, anyway…but god, do I miss the freedom of having my own car. I will save up the money that I need to get everything in order, and then I will hit the road running. I have so many places to go…Boston. Vermont. Pennsylvania. Syracuse. Virginia. I can’t wait to wave good-bye to the municipal bus system, and to drive the winding roads through the fields, and over the mountains here in the Hudson Valley. :sigh:
I feel ready, more than I have any other year. This will be the year that I take control. Don’t let me forget it. What are your hopes/expectations for 2012?

 

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On Ocean Marketing and the Stormy Seas of SEO

integrity-compass

7:58PM UPDATE: I just stumbled across this gem of a post. Back in June, Paul replied to an upset customer stating:

“ Customer service of old is gone were in a new generation now.”

Hrmm. I wonder if he still feels the same way now.

7:07PM UPDATE: Good grief. I can’t keep up. Paul Christoforo has issued a couple of half-assed apologies to both Dave and Mike. Basically, he strings together every excuse he can come up with to try and justify his behavior, and pleads with Mike to call off the internet minions (as though Mike has any control over them). Andrew Galbraith has done a great job of staying on top of info as it rolls in, here in this article on The Examiner. Meanwhile, Paul has kept himself busy writing angry responses on Twitter, and then deleting them. Is this the sign of someone truly repentant? Seems to me Paul is just overwhelmed with his own desperation, which would explain why he thought it prudent to reply to an email  from the editorial director at Kotaku as Brandon Leidel, CEO and Director of Operations at The HAND Media. The insanity is unending. Note to Mr. Christoforo: This is not the type of recommendation you want from a former employer:
a street thug masquerading as a self proclaimed “Marketing Professional”. This guy is a complete fool and somehow strong armed his way into working with the company so we walked away. 

If this is how people tend to describe you, you can rest assured that you are doing something terribly wrong. Also, reputation management. If you’re serious about the web marketing business, you might want to look that up.

6:11PM UPDATE: Apparently, it isn’t just the “services” page that is plagiarized. Unsurprisingly, Christoforo has some questionable credentials: http://ht.ly/8bxcS

Although I don’t consider myself to be much of a religious person, there was a time in my life when church played an integral role. Along with studying the scriptures, I was taught to value particular character attributes, and to develop these traits within myself.  As I sat with other young women my age, I didn’t give much thought to the stories and lessons, but looking back now, these things must have resonated with me. The values “stuck”, because now, as an adult, I consider personal integrity and accountability to be paramount

Unfortunately, there seem to be many who never developed these traits, or who have no regard for them…particularly on the internet. Considering the nature of the industry I work in (SEO and web marketing), there seems to be a disproportionate number of smarmy, disreputable individuals claiming to be experts, who act with absolutely no regard for their business, or anyone else.

By now, you’ve likely heard about the Ocean Marketing debacle. If not, its understandable that you may still be walking around in a residual nog fog, so here’s a quick rundown:

A customer (named Dave) was frustrated with the lack of communication regarding a set of Avenger controllers he had ordered, so he e-mailed the distributor (Ocean Marketing) asking about the status. Upon receiving minimal responses with seemingly conflicting information (They’ll ship by Dec. 17. Oh, wait, they’re still in China. No, they’re not in China, they’re in the US but stuck in customs), Dave was understandably a bit teed. He pointed out that there is a current promotion, granting 10% off any new orders, and inquired why he (or any other customers who had been waiting over two months for their orders) should not be given a similar discount/refund.

Based on my experience in customer service, I probably would have replied to Dave with an apology, and given him the discount on his order if possible. If, for some reason, I couldn’t refund an amount on his order (this happens sometimes when you’re the middleman, working with another vendor or company), I would have either issued him a credit for use toward future orders, or apologized further and referred him to someone higher up who might be capable of resolving the situation. Better to have a happy customer, you know?

Not according to Paul Christoforo/Ocean Marketing. He responded with a series of rants which rival the sophistication of a ten year old, stopping short of insulting Dave’s mother:

“Things happen in manufacturing if your unhappy you have 7 days from the day your item ships for a refund. You placed a pre order just like any software title the gets a date moved due to the tweaks and bugs not being worked out and GameStop or any other place holds your cash and im sure you don’t complain to activision or epic games so put on your big boy hat and wait it out like everyone else. The benefit is a token of our appreaciation for everyone no one is special including you or any first time buyer . Feel free to cancel we need the units were back ordered 11,000 units so your 2 will be gone fast. Maybe I’ll put them on eBay for 150.00 myself. Have a good day Dan.”

Things only escalated after Dave (not Dan, :sigh:) forwarded his response to a number of news sites, as well as Mike Krahulik, of Penny Arcade. Paul/Ocean Marketing continues to berate Dave and Mike, until Mike points out that he is the founder of PAX, and will make sure that Paul and Ocean Marketing do not get a booth at PAX East.Paul seems to reign in his angst momentarily, only to come back flailing in an argument that is essentially summed up as “I don’t need you and your fancy convention. I know important people here. I’ll have the MAYOR get me in!”.

Of course, the internet community was quick to jump on this, especially after the email thread was posted in the Penny Arcade blog, and on Reddit. Despite the backlash, Paul Christoforo seemed unphased.  When Scott Lowe of IGN respectfully requested Christoforo to refrain from mentioning him or the company in support of Ocean Marketing, Paul tactfully responded, calling Lowe a “douchebag”. Eventually, he killed his twitter account (@OceanMarketting), only to come back with another (@OceanStratagy). So what gives? Is this guy completely insane?

Sadly, no, I don’t think insanity can be blamed for this trainwreck. So what is it? Well, Ocean Marketing’s site and social media accounts do a great job of pulling back the curtain, allowing us to see the “great and powerful” Oz. Here’s what stands out to me:

  • The gross misspellings and grammatical errors. From butchering the spellings of basic industry terms in the business’ twitter handles, to nonsensical sentences in business correspondence, the written gaffes are overwhelming. I understand that not everyone is a writer, and grammar and spelling aren’t going to be everyone’s strong suit…but that is why spellcheck and grammar check were invented. As the president of an internet marketing and advertising agency, if you aren’t capable of speaking or writing in a professional, eloquent manner, you hire someone who can. If you can’t be bothered to click a button to check your own  copy, or to have someone else on your team look it over, why should anyone else trust you to do quality work for them?
  • “We are a Premier Social Media Company and SEO Company” Of course you are. :sigh: Why don’t you just go and tack “Guru” on there somewhere?
  • Generic site copy Sure, you’re going to find similar terminology on websites for businesses that perform the same services. That isn’t the issue here…it’s the fact that there seems to be next to nothing unique on the Ocean Marketing site. This, along with the suddenly impeccable grammar raised some red flags for a few savvy individuals, who ran the site through Copyscape, which indicates that the Ocean Marketing “services” page is blatant plagiarism, matching 83% of the copy on rubikzcube.com.

While my mind is completely blown that this company seems to lack any sort of professionalism, ethics, or regard for anyone or anything aside from the almighty dollar, I know that Ocean Marketing isn’t a unique case. Tried and true SEO and web marketing specialists still have to battle to be recognized as authentic professionals, rather than scam artists, because everyone and their brother with access to the internet seems to think they’re a “guru”. What these self-proclaimed “experts” fail to realize is that customer service remains king, whether that customer is the client you are developing a website for, or an individual on twitter. The problem I often see with SEO is that many people become obsessed with pleasing Google that they neglect everything else. You know what? Google is not going to buy your product. (In fact, when you try and cheat the way Ocean Marketing has, Google actually carries some pretty stiff penalties. Just ask JC Penny.)  Regardless of the size of your business, your customers are still your bread and butter. They say that a happy customer will tell three friends; an unhappy customer tells 3,000. In the age of the internet, that reach goes much further…and the idea that “all PR is good PR” is a myth. No matter how “premier” your company is, you remain accountable for your actions. The internet does not grant anyone immunity. I think Paul Christoforo and Ocean Marketing are learning that lesson the hard way.

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A Single Christmas

It’s Christmas. At least, the marathon showings of It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Story tell me that it is. I’ve been watching reruns of the X-Files, instead.

I put up my Christmas tree two weeks ago, because the area near my desk is pretty dark, and I thought the Christmas lights would help. I have some candy canes in a vase on my coffee table, because I like the taste of peppermint. I had tried, for a moment, to get into the Christmas spirit, sending out a few dozen Christmas cards to friends and relatives. I tried, but it isn’t really happening.

I’ve never been a big “Christmas person”. There’s a lot of pressure associated with the holiday that I just don’t deal well with. I remember on year, when I was in high school, my mother got upset with me because I wasn’t “excited enough”. I don’t ever see my family now, and haven’t really, in years, despite the fact that many relatives are local. I occasionally get invited to a holiday dinner, but if I go, it ends up being overly stressful. I get to field questions about why I’m not married, and don’t I want children? I get to explain for the nth time why I’m not teaching. I get to rehash the painful details of my mother’s death, which happened 8 years ago. I get stuck in this weird flux, because some relatives don’t recognize the fact that I’m almost 30 years old. The last time they saw me, I was 12…so I’m still a 12 year old in their eyes. Family get-togethers can be difficult for anyone, but for me, it’s often even more awkward, because although these people are my relatives, they might as well be strangers. We don’t know each other, and I end up feeling like I can’t relax, and I can’t be myself…Rather than deal with that stress, I end up just staying home. Which is alright, except that people expect you to be with others for the holidays.
I have some amazing friends, but they all do things with their families for the holidays, and I’m not particularly close with any of their families…so again, I tend to pass up invitations. I don’t want to be with people for the sake of being with people. I want to be with people who I love, and enjoy spending time with. Since everyone usually has familial obligations, that isn’t really feasible around the holidays. And again, I’m content to sit here, under a blanket, watching X-Files reruns. Until someone asks me why I’m alone, or asks if I got anything good for Christmas.

Here’s the thing. I haven’t done gifts in years. Financially, I just can’t do it. And I know others who are in the same boat as I am, and many more who spread themselves incredibly thin just to be able to fulfill the “obligation” of buying gifts for people. It isn’t that I don’t want to buy gifts…I’m just not going to let a holiday dictate when or what I should buy for someone else. I never really got a lot in terms of gifts after I turned 18, and especially not once my mother passed. My father gives me something whenever she can…my siblings have never really gotten gifts for anyone, and I was probably still in middle school the last time I received anything from my extended family. I don’t expect gifts. But I hate feeling like I’m somehow missing out, or like something is wrong with me because I don’t spend Christmas in a room full of people, unwrapping presents.

I wonder how many other people go through a similar experience. It isn’t something you often hear about…the single person, without close family, spending the holidays alone. It doesn’t have to be sad. I like to look at the holidays as a bit of a vacation…time that I can really spend on myself, doing whatever I want to do (or doing nothing at all!). I feel fine, until someone makes a comment alluding to the idea that I’m missing something…that I must not be loved enough or something, because it’s really sad to not have company or presents.

You know what? I  don’t need presents. Most gifts end up being random trinkets and baubles…and while they’re nice, I don’t need more stuff taking up space in my home. As for the things I do need, I’ll take the money I saved by not doing anything for the holidays, and I’ll buy what I need myself.

Things could be a lot worse than me, sitting in my apartment, watching tv. I know a lot of people complain that they’re broke, or they’re single during the holidays. My baby brother is currently in a warzone, thousands of miles away from his family and friends. If he’s not complaining, I really don’t know who should be.

I don’t have to be lonely, even if I am alone for Christmas. I’m alone today because my loved ones are busy. I could throw a party tomorrow, if I wanted to. And if I really didn’t want to be alone, I could go out and volunteer somewhere. I’m alone because I chose to stay here, by myself. Please don’t twist that into something it isn’t.

On that note, I have some X-Files to get back to. Fox Mulder is waiting for me.

 

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Falling Down

It’s been over a month since I’ve posted. :hangs head in shame:
I know I’ve done this before, but I had actually set a goal to write more regularly, and now I’m just disappointed in myself. I doubt that I have much of a regular readership at the moment, anyway, but really, who is going to hang around a site that is never updated? I’m also feeling a tinge of hypocrisy. You see, I have some friends and acquaintances who blog, and make videos, and draw comics. And they do these things at regular intervals. Well, if they’re even a few hours off in updating, I start to get agitated. And yet, here I am. Slacking.

I don’t want to do the requisite “begging for forgiveness” post. If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all, and it’s really not my style. I will give you some insight as to why I’ve been MIA lately. First and foremost, I’ve been busy with work. Time management seems to be a personal weakness of mine, so my life lately has consisted of working, reading news articles, getting overwhelmed by the news articles, discussing those articles on Facebook, and then working some more. Obviously, this is something I need to work on.

More recently, I’ve been struggling with some health issues. There are a few symptoms which have been nagging for years now, but seem to have become much worse since summer, peaking in the past two or three weeks. I suspect that a gluten sensitivity may be at the root of it all, though I have yet to go for any of the necessary testing. I’ve been researching insurance and dietary resources like mad, and am trying to implement as many changes as possible (read: going gluten-free) by the start of the new year. Of course, this is easier said than done, and as I type this, I just finished off a package of Quickchek chocolate chunk cookies (certainly NOT GF). I feel like I could use a coach, or a trainer. Someone to whip me into shape when my own willpower fails me.

Anyway, I’m looking at implementing a regular schedule for writing. I don’t know how often I’ll be updating yet…it’s going to be kind of trial and error at first, but I’m striving for at least once a week. I’m working on building a regular routine, and the first step in that is actually being awake during the daylight hours (staying up until 4am, and sleeping until 2pm is not doing me any favors). So that’s that. We’ll see how this goes.