Send Free Postcards...from your phone?!

When's the last time you've sent a postcard? I couldn't tell you when the last time I've sent one, but thanks to the new application, Hippopost, I'll be sending them a lot more often.

Hippopost is a new service that allows users to send post cards for free via facebook, mobile smartphones, or their website. Hippopost pays for the printing and postage thanks to their sponsorship agreements with companies whose advertisements appear on the postcards. There is a limit of 2 postcards per day. Of course, you'd have to be some kind of weirdo to need to send more than 2 post cards per day. (for those of you who are bad at math, that's an allowance of over 700 postcards in a year)

If you're a blackberry owner (like me), you can download the blackberry app at http://mobile.hippost.com

In Preparation for Movember...

Great Deals on Amazing TV's

For those of you readers who might be looking for a TV in the near future I've discovered a great resource where you can get some amazing TV's.  SonyStyle.com offers refurbished and clearance TV's through the outlet page on their website.

While most of these are refurbished, they are still amazing TV's and you can purchase extended warranties, up to 6 years, for cheap compared to what you would be paying at Best Buy. 

In addition to the already great prices on SonyStyle's outlet site, you can also find coupons to cut even more off the price.  Where's the best place to find coupons?  Twitter.  All you need to do is sign up for twitter or check out Sony's Outlet twitter page.  I'm not a big Twitter guy, but I do follow my favorite retailers and organizations, which in turn has given me access to special online sales and promotions.

TV's aren't the only deals you can get on Sony's outlet site.  You can also get cameras, speakers, and other electronics at significant discounts.

Getting Rid of Vices

A former co-worker has decided to give up smoking and I could not be more happy for her. She has made it twenty days and has not had a single cigarette, which I think is incredible. She has inspired me and I, too, am going to give up a vice. Problem is I can't think of one. I could give up drinking but that is going to come to a stop for a while for reasons I don't need to talk about in this forum. I could stop eating fast food but is that a vice? I guess it is keeping me being a fat piece of crap so I suppose I could give that up...

Maybe I could start doing something instead of giving something up. Maybe volunteer around the community or maybe just start running or something. I've got to do something.

Give me your suggestions. I'd be interested in hearing some advice. Additionally, let's keep this clean.

And speaking of vices...

Lessons Learned in Vlogging

Drinking and video recording don't mix. Hard to believe, I know. I haven't owned this camcorder for a week and I'm already realizing that not every situation calls for video footage. I have no plans to bring the camcorder back to Iowa City. There are some things that don't need to be documented. I also realized that I can't drink like I used to in college. Lessons aside, I had an amazing time and can't wait for the football season to begin. Go HAWKS!

After recovering from a great night in Iowa City I must turn my attention to a greater priority, which is work. It's after 11:00 p.m. and I'm at the office printing off a series of projects that need to get done. I leave for Colorado tomorrow afternoon and project deadlines must be met prior to my departure. That leaves me in a shitty situation that I would like to avoid, but inevitably the work needs to be completed. Just like my experience in Iowa City, there are also lessons to be learned from my procrastination here at work:

1. Vacations are fun, but are more enjoyable if you're not worried about the work you didn't complete prior to leaving.
2. A little planning goes a long way: I've known for weeks what I will be doing each day on vacation, but couldn't have told you two weeks ago when exactly I would be finished with my post-season project.
3. Dependability: A co-worker is depending on my work to be completed in order for him to effectively do his job. By not completing my work I would be effecting someone else's work which in turn could be effecting many others.
   

Each of these is pretty obvious but they seem a lot more apparent when you are stuck at work into the wee hours of the night.

As far as the Colorado trip goes, you can expect some blogging and/or footage posted while I'm on the trip. While I can't predict what will go down during this adventure, I can tell you that the many fun/interesting occurrences will make an appearance on this blog.

I think I'm 25% done with my work for the night, no big shake.

Now Playing on No Big Shake

I recently purchased a camcorder to document my upcoming trip to Colorado with a few other friends. As I searched for camcorders online, I realized that this would also be a great way to add video to NoBigShake.com.

I haven't given a lot of thought to what kinds of videos I will post. There will be a few updates on my half-marathon training which I recently started. I will also be posting some highlights from my upcoming trip to Colorado. Whatever videos I add, my goal is to make them fun and interesting.

With that said, here is my introductory video blog (vlog). I realized that the online reviews were correct when users claimed that it doesn't shoot well in low-light areas. Bear with the crappy video of this first post. It is bound to get better.

Twitter Creates Full-Time Jobs

I hope by including Twitter in the title of this post you don't automatically dismiss this article. Even though it's mostly about the social craze and microblogging site, it's also about companies reaching out to their customers in unique ways and providing a valuable resource in the process.

A large part of my job is digital marketing via the Menace's website, email newsletters, facebook, and Twitter. I add new stories to our site, update photo galleries, sent out invites and post tweets about upcoming Menace events and promotions. I like to think that I do a pretty good job at what I do, but there is always room for improvement. This was very apparent to me when I stumbled upon Panchero's Twitter page.

Reid is the social marketing guru for Panchero's and his full-time job revolves around Twitter. Although "tweeting" isn't the only thing he does, it seems to me that his job wouldn't exist without Twitter. In addition to connecting to Panchero's fans via Twitter, Reid also runs a blog for Panchero's which contained a few interesting marketing initiatives:

• Vlogs (video blogs) of weekly trivia questions and the winners who receive free gift cards
• Free Burrito Tour: Reid includes details about where the Panchero's Hummer will be each week to hand out free burritos
• Burrito Eating Contest: There was also a story about Panchero's third annual eating contest where the winner won free burritos for a year!

Each of these are simple ideas that Panchero's carried out using Twitter and a blog and is creating some great marketing opportunities for their organization.



Best Buy has also started a Twitter initiative with the creation of the Twelpforce that consists of Best Buy associates answering any and every question submitted through Twitter. It's free to use, and a great way to connect with customers who are in need of technology support. The twelpforce also helps to highlight Best Buy's major strengths, knowledge and customer service, compared to other electronic retailers (ie: Wal-Mart) who exhibit little to no knowledge about the products they sell.

Best Buy and Panchero's are just two examples of companies who have used social networking to their advantage and helped them connect to their customers. It's more than just tweeting but developing creative ways to connect via Twitter. Because Twitter provides a way to connect to many customers in an effective way, social networking jobs have been created at many companies.

Thumbs up to both companies for their use of social networking, and thanks to Panchero's for the free steak burrito!