Last Blog: BFF

Brittany and I have known each other for so long. We meant back in Elementary, in the 3rd grade. We were both in the same class. During Elementary we were pretty good friends on and off. We became best friends in the 8th grade. We had the same teachers during our 8th grade year. 

So far Brittany and I have known each other for about 15 years. We are pretty different people, shes is an extrovert were as I am more introverted. She thinks more with her heart was me I am more logical and think with my head. Even though we are different we have this uncanny ability to say the same thing at the same time. This can get pretty weird, its like get out of my head. 

Even though I am an only child, I can honestly say that Brittany is a sister from another mother. We have just gone though so much, heck we even argue about things which if I think about it is pretty stupid. But she is one of those people who love to argue about anything. And me who likes to be right about everything but at least I can admit it. 

Over the years we have been though some pretty interesting scenarios. Going though guy troubles is definitely one of them, of course I was more of the should to cry on. 

The main tradition we have is going on trips, because I am an only child so I just invite her on some of my vacation. We went to Arizona before my sophomore year, for my moms 40th birthday. We also have gone to Florida, and actually we went this spring break.  

The other thing we would do is going to sports game, we have gone to three Indianapolis Colts games. We also have gone to so many concerts, from Taylor Swift to 3 Doors Down.    

We also were dorm mates at EKU. We though our freshman year of college together. Than she decided to move in with a guy that she though she "Loved" and went to Moorehead and I ended up going to UofL. Of course now in 2011 she ended up at UofL as well so now we get to graduate from college together. 

Relfection: Awesome Class

This semester I've learned so much about social media. I also can't believe that after this semester, I am done with college. I will definitely be using what I've learned from this class to the future. 

My favorites topics we covered were managing your online reputation. It really makes you think how one presents themselves, that its important to make sure you think before you post. Whether its on twitter or on Facebook. The example we gave in class was interesting as well, about the Justine, who tweeted about Africa. This shows just how fast one tweet can get around. Before we talked about the tweet itself I actually saw it before we talked about in class. I just couldn't believe some one could be so thoughtless.

During this semester we also had a lot of guest speakers. These speakers were great, I've learned so much from them. I especially like Lizelle and Melissa presentations. I liked Lizelle's because she talked about how she is utilizing social media fro the Dallas Mavericks, she also talked about how she got the job as well. I liked how the Mavericks were using Vine in a lot of their content online, being they are the first pro team to adapt. Melissa's presentation on crisis communication was really interesting, she showed us the top 10 rules to crisis communication and how using these 10 rul



es can help a company in a crisis, come out the other side without to much damage or reputation loss. 

Over all the blogging we had to do was fun and got me thinking about different topics I could write about. My blogs that are personal don't really have a theme, they are more just what I am interested in and what I have done up until now, especially with traveling. I hope to continue blogging, my goal is at least once a week. Hopefully I can post something more frequent but I think I'll start small and expand when time goes on. 

The two major papers we wrote gave me some insight. With the managing online reputation paper, I really got to see how much I actually am invloved. I realized with this paper I should probably post more and show that I am in fact on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Also that I even blog with Blogger. The other paper, was the Google Glass and proposing an app, that definitely got me thinking. I liked being able to explorer a new wearable technology, needless to say Google Glass is very interesting. 

During this semester we got certified in HootSuite. This is pretty awesome because we have the chance to be certified and have the option to continue to use HootSuite in the future if we chose to. 

The last area I enjoyed was our social media campaign proposals. This helped by giving me actual hands on expereince and actually coming up with ideas for a real client. Its interesting to see idea that could help some with a childrens book. 

Overall this class was awesome and I learned a lot.    

Ole Bull State Park

My family in the past has always gone camping. Whether at a small camp ground called oil creek or my favorite location to go camping Ole Bull.

Since I was about 8 years old, my family on my mom side are the ones who would plan our camping trips. We would go for about a week during the summer. My favorite part was being in the cabin that the park has available. Its pretty huge it has about three rooms and most rooms have bunk beds. The cabin can fit about 10 to 16 people pretty good.

One camping trip me and my cousin camped out in a tent instead of the cabin. I love camping here because its so quite and there are so many trees around. Also I love how its a big family gathering. We haven't gone back to Ole Bull since 2007. The cabin has to be reserved up to a year. I hope possibly we can go back in 2016 if possible. There some pretty good hiking and there's a creek that's pretty darn cold, but me and my cousins would still swim in it. Some people might now really enjoy going, because at the park, there's no cell phone reception at all. To get some you have to go to the nearest city which is a good half hour a way, so no twitter or Facebook is possible. But I've always gone there so young and when I was 16 the last time we visited, I never really was dependent of my cell phone and wasn't really using social media, it was probably MySpace, back than. Of course that could all have changed, there could very well be cell phone towers near the park depending on the phone carrier. It has been 7 years since I last been there.

It would be pretty awesome if I could get my family to go back. We could try next year, we would have to call in June or July, to see if the cabin is even still available. But it would definitely be pretty cool to be able to see all my family, its been years since we all been together in one place.

March Madness. March Mayhem.

March Madness. March Mayhem.

So looks like both Kentucky and Louisville made it to the Sweet 16 and they are playing each other. We now have another battle of the bluegrass. This city is going to be dead, except for the bars on Bardstown Rd and other bars location. Also any restaurants that have Televisions, pretty much everybody is going to be in a bar, restaurant, at the game or at home. 

I can be honest, this is the only time when I actually watch games. I try to watch some games during the regular season but most of the time it doesn't happen. Its because I am a bandwagon fan, because I've been a Kentucky fan ever since I've moved here. Its just I've so busy, but never too busy for March Madness because its awesome and it only happens once a year.

Its so weird being a Wildcat fan and going to UofL. But I don't care, I'm going to school with my blue on. On Friday its going to be interesting to see how many people have on Blue and who has on Red. On social media its already blown up, ever since Kentucky won against Wichita State, people have posted things about Kentucky and their are people posting things about Louisville. I can say their are some funny posts where fans are dissing each other.

Friday during the game is definitely going to be interesting to watch on social media. Especially Facebook and twitter, I can see hashtags becoming a worldwide trend and people wondering what is going on in Kentucky. Also the visual content that is going to be posted, not only on Facebook and Twitter but on Instagram too. I can see us breaking Twitter with all the content going on. Also it will probably be going on until the next day because whoever wins gets bragging rights.

I am super excited for the game in general but I will definitely going to pay attention to the feed on Twitter and Facebook. 

Though I hope people do realize that no matter how much one argues about who is better, its pretty much a never ending battle.

Dedicated to My Cat: Blue

Spring break was a great break from school. I did absolutely nothing related to school. I did go on vacation. I went to Florida. Spent time on the beach and did some shopping. Luckily my grandparents live down there so we had free boarding. Even though Florida was awesome coming home wasn't so great.

My past blog I did one on my pets. My dog, Elvis we brought him with us to Florida. But my three cats we had a cat-sitter come over and check on them, basically to make sure they had clean litter boxes, water and food. The oldest cat blue, when we got home from our week vacation, wasn't looking too good. Now blue is usually pretty alert and jumps around on the furniture. This time he just to me looked really weird. I said something to my parents about him and said he looks really bloated. Well we had to unload our van because of the snow storm and the car top carrier which was frozen shut. After we got every thing we needed to do done. We decided that taking Blue over to the vet would be a good idea. Unfortunately I didn't think he was going to make it. I think my parents though he just had something blocking his bladder. But it was more serious than that the vet mention it could be kidney failure or even cancer. I wasn't with them at the vet but they decide to put him down. Spring break was awesome but coming back was pretty depressing and having to put down one of the family pets is so sad. Of course Blue is in a better place because the poor thing looked like he was in pain and he was so old, putting him though any tests would have been unfair to him specially it being kidney failure or cancer.

I do miss him. He was a great cat. Blue had so many different quirks. We he was younger he didn't like moist food. I don't know why he was against eating it. Than one day he decide that I want some moist food and starting eating it. Another quirk was as a young cat he didn't like strangers he would always hide but I guess as he got older he didn't care. He would start coming out more and more.

We determine that Blue must be about 20 years old. That is pretty old for a cat. I remember getting from my aunt because she couldn't take care of him and his sister Angel, who is also still alive. He lived with us when we were in Ohio and when we moved here. So Blue has been a part of our family for about 16 or so years.

It was a depressing thing to come home to and I wish he didn't pass away so soon from coming home to spring break. It is definitely weird being at home and not hearing him trying to jump to the other side of the counter.

The grey and white cat is his buddy Sammy (Captain Chaos)

     

HootSuite Part 2: I'm Certified

Now that we are back from spring break, its time to get back in the groove of things. I can be honest its taken me about the whole school week to get back into school mode. I also gotta get back into the blogging mode.

Before spring break I got HootSuite certified. I finally announced being certified on twitter today. I do think Hootsuite is a good tool for business. The only thing about getting Hootsuite certified is the test was difficult if you didn't pay attention to the videos. The videos I felt sometimes were interesting than boring, I think this is because the video showed more towards a business side than personal use.

I really like Hootsuite, I do think its a program that I could use in the future for businesses. I also like it for personal use and being able to keep track of both my Facebook and twitter accounts. I can also keep track other accounts that I get more involved in like Google+ as of right now I don't really use Google+.

The process of getting the certification was actually pretty simple. All you had to do is watch several videos and than take an exam. This was pretty easy because the exam allows you to take it as many times as you want. It only took me about two times to take the exam and pass it to get certified.

        

Dream Vacation: Italy

Ever since I can remember I've always wanted to go to Italy. I've already been out of the country once to Australia, but that trip was pretty much planned out. Going to Italy is one of my items on my bucket list. Hopefully in the next's several years I will be able to afford a trip there.

I would love to stay for a month and just explore all the tourist locations. I also would love to find those "secret" locations that every destination would have. The main spots I want to see is the Trevi fountain and the Colosseum in Rome. Another place would be the leading tower of Pisa. Then I would love to visit Vatican City, Florance and Sicily. I would also love to sample the food in Italy.

 I don't really know why I was so obsessed with Italy. When I was younger I would get certain presents for my birthday and Christmas that would revolve around Italy. One year I got a calender, with certain tourist spots. The place always fascinated me, all the rich history and how buildings are really old; older than any place here in the US. The landscape too, was another thing that I loved, I thought that it was really pretty in postcards. I always wondered what it would look like in real life and actual be able to visit Italy. 

Another aspect I would love to see is not only the old buildings or history but the architecture. It's so different than any other place especially here in the States. Its even different than in Australia.

I can't wait until I have the money and the time to be able to go to Italy.

   

Social Media Monitoring

Its always good to track who is visiting sites. Its always good to know what is being said about a company. There are a lot of interesting programs to help monitor your social media.

Another good thing about social media monitoring is the fact you can look at all your social media on one platform. Like Hootsuite, this is a good tool to use when you want to monitor a number of social media accounts. This tool saves you time and helps keep you organized when you have to run multiple accounts at once.

Now comes the why. The main reasons is understanding who your audience is. Also being able to determine what content works and what may not work on certain sites. Also you can measure your reputation and your perception from others.

Three important things to remember about social media monitoring is to remember to listening is important, another is measurement, and the other is engage.

You can get certain benefits back one being insights into audiences. You also can get real-time feedback and engagement from different consumers. Also another important benefit is providing actual number data to upper management about the power of social media.

Here's an article about social media monitoring in real time - http://bit.ly/OIay5K

There are certain challenges that is involved with social media monitoring but if you can cut though them all, the benefits can out weigh the challenges. Some challenges are having a lot of data, also with that information overload. Also it can be a challenge to determine what is of value in a particular tweet or like. Also a new service can come pop up. Than there are the issues with privacy and ethics, lack of education and training the software that is used.

Going West

Last blog I posted about going to Australia. This time I decided to scale it back but keep with the traveling theme. When  mean scaling it back I mean staying in the US. My favorite trip I took, was going out west. I was 15 years old and we went over a three week period, during the summer. I went with my parents and my grandparents Brittany, also came along (we known each other since 2nd or 3rd grade, and been best friends for pretty much forever) because I'm an only child and it always boring not to have someone your own age.

The thing I remember about the trip is when we first took off we traveled to Illinois to drop off our dog to my other grandparents. We were traveling from Louisville to Anna, Illinois and ran into a really bad storm. The storm was so bad that we got stuck in Indiana and we weren't sure if we were going to make it. The sky actually looked green and there was at least golf ball sized half. We got stuck under the over pass, and had to ride out the storm. From Kentucky to Illinois it only takes four hours but it took a lot longer.

On our way out west the vehicle we took was jam backed we everybody's stuff. On the way back some of the bigger pieces and other things we didn't need, had to be ups back. It was always fun getting in and out of the van, I felt like a clown coming out of the clown car. We were specifically traveling out west for my moms forth birthday. She wanted to go to the Grand Canyon, but we also went to Vegas and stopped in other states. We went though Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. 

The Grand Canyon was really amazing to view. I would love to go back. We went to both the North rim and the South Rim, Talk about a difference. The North rim, is more woodsy and a lot cooler. Also the squirrels there were very friendly probably because they wanted food. The South Rim wasn't as vegetated and was a lot hotter. At the south rim we went down a trail called the bright angel trail, I can't remember how long the trail actually is but i know when people did the trail it took them a few days. I would actually love to do the trail, its on my bucket list.   

The one experience that I don't want to remember is getting sick. This is we went to Vegas. This where I got a pretty nasty stomach bug and my parents were worried that I would become dehydrated. I ended up going the hospital in Vegas. That wasn't fun, I waited for hours in the waiting room and they ended up checking for food poisoning, lucky it wasn't and they determined it was just a bug. Lucky me. After that though I felt like crap for a few days, and this was while I was in Vegas. Luckily I was only 15 so I couldn't really do much while I was there in the casino (we stayed at Circus Circus).        

Overall, even though I got sick the trip was awesome and we did so much over the three weeks. I would love to go back west again in the future.  

Sochi Olympics and Social Media

The Sochi Olympics, I have to say I've been watching on and off. I have been following the different events that interest me, such as the figure skating competitions, snowboarding, alpine skiing and hockey are among the many sports that I follow and see if the USA can medal.

Now the other thing that I have been following is the social media going on during the Olympics. So far I am following the official twitter page of the Olympics which gives up dates of the actual Olympics. Another twitter page that I thought was pretty funny is the one about all the problems have been having called @SochiProblems. This shows funny pictures of the Olympians and also problems that Sochi have been having ever since the opening ceremony. Also its interesting how a look can become a meme, I'm talking about Ashley Wagner's "angry face" which has been photo shopped in so many photos.

Also I noticed that the Olympians have been utilizing instagram a lot and I've seen articles and I agree that you could call Sochi the Visual Olympics. A lot of other people like commentators and journalist have also been using instagram. My two favorite are the live commentators for the figure skating Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir. They not only take pictures but also have been posting videos on the app. There actually pretty funny and entertaining.

Overall I've been enjoying following the many Olympians on different social networks. Also I've seen the games be called the Viral Games. Which i definitely agree with that term because social media explored when the games started and have been everyday since.

Article on Sochi Olympics: http://usat.ly/1jNSuAW

Which talks about the London Olympics and also calls these games as the Viral Games.  

 

Australia: My First Trip Out of the Country!

Australia is such a beautiful place to visit. I would love nothing but to go back and explore more of the country.

This year will be the 10th year since I've been to Australia. The reason the trip for me was so special is because I was chosen by a teacher to travel with a organization called People to People Student Ambassador Program. I went with 34 other students in grades 7th and 8th, round the Kentucky and Indiana area. I couldn't believe that at 13 years old I would get this opportunity. The trip lasted a total of 19 days and it was a totally awesome experience. I would love to go back in the future and if possible stay longer.

During my trip to Australia we got to see so many cool things. I saw where the 2000 Summer Olympics took place; we toured the dome, that is now used for Rugby games. We also got to see inside of the Sydney Opera House, where we saw an orchestra playing the score to Lord of the Rings, the lady that was taking us around said it was a very rare opportunity to hear anyone play there. I remember going to a town were we panned for gold, I didn't find very much, just a bunch of rocks. We were able to talk a tour of the Parliament building in the capital of Australia in Canberra. We went to so many places, one place went to a Jail and learn about a famous Australian outlaw named Ned Kelly. I went to the city of Melbourne, which very beautiful. 

It was weird also because Australia was in winter and I went in June. Of course the coldest it got was when we were at this camp on the coast of Southern Australia, it got pretty chilly. Especially at night. The other thing is because Australia is below the Equator the northern part is warmer than the southern part.    

One of my favorite parts about my trip was the host family I got to stay with. They were simply awesome. Each member of our group got to stay with a host family. Some got paired, but with my host family; I was the only one to stay with them. The host families we all stayed with were located in Cairns, Australia, which is in the Northern section of Australia. The part that fascinated me the most was that they were just like us, a normal family. There wasn't any surprising differences between american families and them, the most obvious is their accents. The other experience would have to be holding a kola bear, she was so cute and it was pretty awesome, unfortunately I don't have a picture to show; actually a lot of pictures from my trip I don't have on my computer, I only have a few pictures, most of the Parliament Build (see above) and one of the landscape (see below). I wish I had more picture on my computer to be able to show in my blog. 

There was some much that happen from my trip. The experience itself was some times overwhelming that I couldn't believe that I was able to be here especially because I was only 13 at the time.

      

Pictures are Better Than Words?

Who knew that social networks like Instagram and Vine would become so popular with people. Of course these two aren't the only sites that show pictures and videos but it seems like now people don't want a wordy explanation they much rather have that picture. Brands are now finding out that posting creative visuals is a good marketing strategy. When following brands I see a lot of fashion, make-up, and shoe brands. They post pretty stuff and show off unique items; but there is one brand that I feel wins it for their Instagram content, that would be Starbucks. The page is just visually appealing to me and I don't even drink or like coffee or tea, (a lot of people think I'm crazy for this) but i like some of their other drinks. Some of the pictures on Instagram, convince me to actually go to Starbucks and get a drink even if I didn't want one. Some Instagram examples, these pictures are pretty recent posts: 

Superbowl Picture, Just So Cute - http://bit.ly/MP3fI9

This is my recent favorite - http://bit.ly/1jCzHvu

Than you have Twitter where you can only post 140 characters or less. With a picture the possibilities are endless you can tell a story or show information with one tweet and a caption, than with a long drawn out post on Facebook. Now a days people aren't patient with anything; they want stuff here and right now, and don't want to waste the time to get it. With a picture/visual - like a info-graphic and a short explanation people are more likely to look at it and not only that but get actually information. I also think people would retweet or mention a picture more than a bunch of word even if its under 140 characters. There so much more to learn about Instagram but first off you need to know the basics and how to use Instagram as a actually marketing tool. Here's a article: "Instagram publishes best practice guide for marketers" - http://bit.ly/1bQ41L7 

Dullest Superbowl Ever!

So where was Omaha? All I can say about the Superbowl that it was one big disappointment when it came to the Broncos playing. This years Superbowl was more like the Loserbowl. I had more fun looking at twitter and watching commercials; so instead of droning on about the humdrum football game, I'm going to blog about my favorite moments on twitter and my favorite commercials.

The first brand I want to talk about and my favorite from the Superbowl was Doritos. I thought they were really on point. The largest human Doritos Photobomb was pretty creative. Also the the banter back and forth between different brands was entertaining. The most specific one I remember is Verizon tweeting on Doritos Photobomb and than Doritos having a witty tweet back.

Also another thing about Doritos on twitter is that they tweeted other brands. There was the Oikos tweet about the Full House reunion and them talking about a past brand of theirs, which i though was clever. Also tweeting Kia after their car commercial and showing the bag colors that went with the key colors in the Kia commercial. Overall I do think Doritos did a good job of using twitter as a platform during the Superbowl. Also the commercials were one of my favorites.

The way Doritos did the Photobomb was creative also. The fact they put the process of how they did it on YouTube is even more interesting to me. 

Just to name some of my favorite commercials would be: Coca-a-cola, The Budwiser called puppy love, and the Doritos.

Last but not least the brand that i though kind of bombed the twitter feeds was JCPenney's . It was an interesting tactic but I don't think it went over real well many people and brands thought they were "drunk tweeting" during the game. 

    

HootSuite: First Impression

http://bit.ly/1bAxWKp

Having the opportunity to learn how to use HootSuite is a pretty magnificent in a nutshell. I actually heard about HootSuite through IComm, the president mentioned about it. Now through the social media class, I get to learn how to use the tool efficiently.  

After watching the first video for HootSuite University, I can seriously say this tool look really awesome. I definitely think HootSuite will be very useful for me when it comes to managing social media. Its also a great tool to use when you are managing multiple brands at one time; this will save you so much time. By not going back and forth between different social networks and multiple brands; everything is on one site for you to access.

At first setting up my account, HootSuite can be intimidating and kind of confusing. That is why I like the in depth videos that help with different areas of the tool. By watching the videos you get an idea how to use it and also using HootSuite in the right and efficient manner that ultimately saves time.

The main components that I like about HootSuite is the fact you can post a Facebook, Twitter, LinkIn and any other network one time and not have to switch back and forth. The second is the way to tool is set up, you can see your twitter, Facebook and Instagram all by going back and forth through the tabs.

I feel knowing how to use HootSuite can help with gaining possible employment. I think brands will be impressed that we know how to use the tool and what the benefits are.

I think as I learn more about the ins and outs of HootSuite this will be one of the tools I will turn to if I continue with social media. Also I'm going to make use of HootSuite in the future when I have a more active role on social networks and start interacting more. I definitely think this tool will help me become more integrated with social media and start to have a presences.

What my HootSuite looks like right now with Twitter and Facebook Tab.

I can't wait to learn more what HootSuite can do and how to use it for everyday.   

Blogging: Sharing Your Opinion

I've always had this interest to blog but never the drive to actually try. Late last year I tried to blog about my favorite NFL team the Miami dolphins. I think I posted about 2 blogs on them. I never knew what I should blog about and I wouldn't be consist with my blog posts. My first blog was in November than my second didn't happen until January.

The only blog that I actually kept consist was for a class last spring for comm technology. This blog after the class was done I didn't continue. I never really thought about that blog until now and I don't even remember the last time I saw it.

I never really thought how blogging could earn money for people. Its differently a awesome opportunity for people who love writing and can do it for money. I never thought my writing was very good. I'm a okay writer but nothing fancy. I think when it comes to my writing and blogging, I could be more creative with my posts.

This gives a more depth view into blogging and some interesting facts. The video is a little old, it was published back in 2012. Which is crazy to think but of course social media changes everyday, so in essences so does blogging. Never the less I do think it offers some interesting ideas.

                                                                  http://bit.ly/MCqntN

I do think blogging is important. By being able to blog you can get different messages out there. Also you never know who you could impact with your blog. Its amazing how blogs can connect people around the world. I find it interesting when you can look at your blog stats and see people from different counties reading about what you wrote and what your passions are. I like this article that talks about the importance of blogging for businesses http://bit.ly/1ntooG3.

I would like to think that blogging is a good way to share an opinion or thought that you had. Blogging could also serve to talk about a certain passion of yours. You never know who reads your blog, it could one of those post that you feel isn't the greatest but some one comes along and loves your work. In my mind blogging is a great tool to express your personality.

With that said after this class, I want to keep blogging. For me its a way to express things that are on my mind and I couldn't really say it or just my everyday feelings towards a topic.

tweet me

   

Livin' in a Zoo!

Sometimes I feel like I live in a zoo. Now mine you I don't live on a farm, (although that would have been awesome) I still feel like I'm surrounded by animals 24/7.

I absolutely love animals.

As I was growing up I never had a time when I was animal free. We always had a pet running around our house. At one point we had 5 cats and a dog. I've also have had 3 hamsters in the past. Currently I live with 3 cats and 1 dog.

Being an only child there's always this running joke about the animals being my brother and sisters. It kind of creeps me out but its always funny when my mom or dad say that. One of animals I feel like I have a special bond. My cat Paris is always around. Whenever I'm in my room either doing homework for classes or typing away on this blog she is right there wondering what I'm doing. We got her back in 2006 and learned she was a stray that the pet shop rescued. to this day I can remember her climbing the pen she was in to catch a fly. My mom and I looked at each other and said "Yep she will fit in real well".

I have some crazy animals. First off Paris, she's a ball of lovin', but don't make her mad or her diva side comes out. We like to have batting fights because she sits on the island of the kitchen and watches me cook stuff. I have to make sure she doesn't come onto the counter to try to eat the food thus our fights. She is also a known biter and she likes to bat a you when she doesn't get her way. My next cat is just as crazy. His name is Sammy though he has a nickname of captain chaos. He is always getting into trouble. If you leave the door open to long he escapes to the outside but the funny thing is he doesn't run away he just runs around the yard. The farthest he's ever been is my neighbors front yard. He also likes to climb trees, I have had to climb many of our trees in order to save the cat. My oldest cat is Blue. He's been around forever but is still kicking. He's going to be twenty this year which to me is crazy. than there's my dog Elvis. No one would know he's a sweet dog, because he barks at everyone that he sees. Also he is a dachshund so he suffers from small dog syndrome, because he thinks he is bigger than he really is.

Sammy Paris

Elvis

 Blue

 

 In the future I can't wait to have my own animals so I can take random animal pictures and post them on different sites, like twitter or Instagram.

https://twitter.com/redvelvet1343 - tweet me

The Power of YouTube

http://bit.ly/1jtOqZb

Never in a million years did I think watching a random person on a website (YouTube) would be a form of entertainment.

Now I couldn't imagine not watching.

It's strange to think that posting a video on YouTube can build up a social present.

Here's to a new way to blogging. Video + Blogging = Vlogging.

Here's to a new kind of celebrity called a "YouTuber - definition: someone who uses YouTube as a platform to form there thoughts.

I have been watching YouTube videos on and off since about 2009, maybe even before then. When I would go on YT I never thought about it being an actual community where you could discuss your thoughts about any ideas. Also people give advice, show a tutorial, gaming and comedy. I always went to YouTube to mainly look up music and watch the occasional funny video. Now its a whole another ballpark.

It was just in 2011ish maybe early 2012 that I discovered a new side to YouTube. I started out watching random videos of people showing DIY's or tutorials on certain things. After that I found people who just sit in front of  camera and film themselves talking about a particular subject.

In recent years YouTube is a new way to advertise for companies about their different brands. I've seen The Nokia Windows Phone, HuluPlus, different make up brands, hair care products, hair tools, even Puff Tissues and so many more. These companies have fond a gold mine. Now they don't have to go though television to reach an audience you use a YouTuber. One brand that utilizes many different YouTube communities is Audible.com who is own by Amazon. I've watched so many videos where they offer a 30-day free trial just by using the invite code from that YouTuber.

Also these people have a present on other social media sites. You see different YouTubers who have a million or so people subscribed to their channel and this is the same for there twitter. Other social sites might not be as popular. I see with YouTubers that that people are more likely to follow them on twitter and Instagram than Facebook or Google+. 

Now there's so many people on YT who post weekly videos or even post everyday. You never know what kind of people you can find, its all a matter of seek and you shall find.

What I like about YouTube is the many communities that I see. You have the "Beauty Guru's" ( they post video on makeup, etc.), Comedy community, LGBT community and so many more that I've yet to discover.

If you want to check out some YouTubers and experience a whole new community: Here's my top 5 YouTubers I recommend -

Tyler Oakley - http://bit.ly/1fjGFzS
Grace Helbig - http://bit.ly/1l7JRp8
Ryan Higa - http://bit.ly/1mED1TL
Hannah Hart - http://bit.ly/1el90Uq
devinsupertramp - http://bit.ly/1d1vdWv



     

Privacy on Social Media.

when it comes to privacy, everyday people need to know that some posts that we put on social networking sites can either help us or bite us in the butt. You should always think before you post something. I like this picture, to me its a pretty good visual to sum it up.

bit.ly/1hU52X1

Mainly making sure that even though you want privacy on Facebook, Instagram or even twitter, something might not be worth posting about. The number one thing is to ask yourself will this come back to me and the usual answer is yes.

Its crazy to think just typing your name on Google and all kinds of websites pop up with your name on them. In class we were shown a few websites we could use to see if anything would hit. I tried out www.whostalkin.com and also "Googled" myself. It was interesting to see things from MySpace, I haven't been on that site in so many years. So far I didn't see anything that would put up a red flag to an employer.

Now I was talking more in a personal use of social media. Now companies need to make sure they have privacy conducts. Its always good as a company to have a code of conduct incorporated with your social media so your employees know that, they could potential be fired for posting something unethical. Also to remember that social media changes everyday and privacy along with it.

There are so many things to consider when posting on social networking sites. Because in reality you don't have much privacy. You can always set your privacy setting so only people you know can view your profile. But doing that limits you because its social networking and your on there to connect with different people. Just remember to think before you post. also ask yourself some questions before you are posting beer pong pictures, do you really want strangers seeing these. Also its good to know when you are putting out maybe to much data to people, some things in your life are meant to be private and not blasted on social networks.

To sum up just be conscience of what you are posting. Also don't get sucked up in "everyone can see me", it can be creepy to realize just how un-private our lives can be on social media.

I found a website that could be useful its full of interesting tips on social networks titled "Fact Sheet 35: Social Networking Privacy: How to be Safe, Secure and Social" - http://bit.ly/LSSnZd




 

What is Social Media?

 

What is Social Media?
 
That is a very good question. For many people its the usual Facebook and Twitter. For others it's Vine, Instagram, Tumblr, Blogging (Blogger or Wordpress), YouTube and any other sites you can name. Here's a wheel to see how much is actually out there on the internet.




Social Media Wheel - http://bit.ly/1eRD5i7

 

As you can see there are so many social media outlets; so many more are being added.


How I would describe social media is simply a way for me to connect people who I haven't seen in years. I see social media as a well to keep up-to-date with someone from high school or even people from past colleges. Social media gives you a quick glimmer in someone else life. This can be quite creepy if you think about it. With social media you have no private life virtually, you can try but people can find you. Here's a video from YouTube that shows just how easy it is:

http://bit.ly/Kbwq7f

This brings me to another point about what social media is. It's a tool to analyze people. A job can potentially view your profile on Facebook and get a feel for you. LinkedIn is a professional way to network. When it comes to anything social media you need to be conscience of what you are putting out there. If you don't want your mama to see it than chances are you shouldn't post it. Just being smart on social media is always a plus.

Companies can use that information on your Facebook to figure out the best advertising. Competitors want their customers or in the social media world their followers to see their brand. I found an article, on a pretty interesting topic "How to Steal Your Competitor's Social Media Followers" - http://bit.ly/1eHm9sp. The article gives some good tip and tricks on social media. When it comes to companies all I know social media isn't going anywhere, and if you aren't plugged in somewhere now, the sooner the better.

With social media its here to stay. Who knows where it will go from here in 10 years we can have a new Facebook or a new Twitter. Someone can come up with a new social media app with another element other than pictures or video. You just never know what the future holds it can be different tomorrow.

https://twitter.com/redvelvet1343 - Tweet Me



    

 



        

Let Me Introduce Myself...Again.

I'm originally from a small town in Ohio called Ravenna. Though I've lived most of my life here in Louisville.

I am finally graduating this spring, I'm very excited but extremely nervous at the same time. The reason for this is because I don't know what I'm going to do after graduation. I know I'm interested in PR and social media, but i also have an interest in video editing. The main goal  and theme I want to accomplish is I want to work with sports in some way, possibly.

 I am a major sports fan, I love watching football, hockey, basketball, baseball and soccer. I have favorite teams that I follow in these sports. For football, i love the Miami Dolphins (I actually have blogged a little about them only 2 post thus far), for hockey its the Pittsburgh Penguins, for basketball I'm a Boston Celtic fan, for baseball it would be the Cleveland Indians, and soccer I don't really have a favorite team, I just like watching it. For college I'm a University of Kentucky fan (Go Big Blue).

I hope to get more in depth with blogging as the year progresses. I want to expand on other sports teams and also blog about more of my interest. I love finding new music, I want to blog about a new band that has come into the scene. I think blogging more about my interest is where I want to see my blog go. Right with my online reputation is I don't have a present right now, I would hope in the future it would show that I'm passionate about sports and possibly music, also any other interest that I find to be relevant to me. I do see that these topics are a bit odd to combine but I feel my blog is about me and who I am; I just happen to have a mixture of interests that i want to blend into a melting pot if at all possible. I want to do this now and into the future. 

My long term goal for my blog is to kept writing. I feel if I kept writing on the topics I'm interested on than I might become a better writer in the process. My writing will sound more professional and have that quality were people want to read my blog.   

https://twitter.com/redvelvet1343 - Tweet Me