The Numbers Say, Take Social Media Seriously

What's social media worth to your business? Do you need a blog?

Consider this scenario:
A business has an overall bounce rate of 44% - but the bounce rate for visitors coming (to the same website) from social media channels is 18%.

Stats from the same business, same month:
(Overall) average page views from organic traffic: 1.7
Average page views from traffic referred by Facebook: 2.8
Average page views from visitors referred by blog: 4.4

Old-school sales people like to talk about priming the pump and filling the funnel...and there's a reason social media and content managers use the same phrases.

Sales and marketing have always been about relationship building. Only the tools have changed.

Prospects are referred, customers are educated, leads are nurtured, relationships are developed and sales are made...when people connect with your content.
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Get Writing that Works, and grow your business with excellent content. 

Picture Yourself Not Plagiarizing

Plagiarism is theft, it's wrong, and it's rampant. In 2016, it's hard to sell the ignorance defense convincingly. It's 2016. We've had Google for a good long time. Google images, too.

And for several years now, Google has had a tool at our fingertips to help us stay legal. So, use it.

Screenshot: Google.com

Also, your mom just called. She wants me to remind you that just because "everyone" is doing it doesn't make it right.

More opinions on the subject, and a nice explanation from a lawyer, can be found with a quick - what else? - Google search. Although it's not the freshest piece on the subject, I'm fond of CNET's article on the subject.
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I don't like thieves, and I definitely don't want to be one. When managing websites and social media accounts for my clients, I opt for original art first, vendor-supplied art second, and then search for images "labeled for reuse" - and credit the source in most cases when I use them. Need some help managing content that will get you more sales - and no letters from lawyers? Get in touch. 

Facebook + Hashtags = Lower Reach

There's experiential learning, and then there's science, numbers, and "proof." When it comes to Facebook marketing, I've learned "trusting your gut" or at least, trusting your experience with Facebook page management is about as good as "real research" gets.

For what it's worth, here's a bit of Facebook experience I've picked up in the past 6 months: 

Posts on Facebook that included hashtags got 10 to 50% of the reach as other Facebook posts without hashtags. Yes, that's half or less of the reach of posts without hashtags. 

Posts in my sorta-professional study appeared on 5 different pages, with a mix of local and national audiences, including a non-profit, 2 B2B, 2 B2C businesses. All posts included in the semi-scientific results were created in Facebook, not a third-party posting tool. 

Facebook Page Management and Confused Gurus 

Yes, I know Facebook hashtags are clickable. Yes, I know Instagram is hashtag heaven, and Facebook owns Instagram, so ... yeah. Go figure. Like I've said before, there's as much social as there is science in Social Media Science.

Or as Buffer's Kevan Lee says, the best way to know what works is to keep trying new things. 

Here are what some other social watchers are saying about Facebook and hashtags, and those ever-changing reported reach numbers:

Studies show Facebook posts with hashtags have lower engagement, so limit yourself to 3 hashtags: 

http://blog.brand24.net/how-to-use-hashtags-on-facebook/

Don't use hashtags, or limit use to one per post:

https://www.ideamktg.com/blog/how-is-your-hashtag-game/

Facebook hashtags are clickable! But they hurt your reach. 

https://bangordailynews.com/sponsored/what-hashtags-can-do-for-your-business-on-social-media/?ref=series

File under #MixedMessage

I'm still a big fan of Facebook for marketing, a fan of Twitter (especially for customer service) and I suspect I'll always be a fan of experiential learning. For the record, I'm a really big fan of learning from others' experience ;) so if you have any to share, I'd love to hear from you. (Seriously. Want to post your guest blog here?)

You might also like:

3 Old School Social Media Tips

3 Old-School Tips for Using Facebook & Twitter

My three favorite pieces of advice for using social media sound pretty old-fashioned:

1. Plan.
2. Schedule.
3. Be Nice. 

By plan, I mean go way old school and have a marketing plan and a content calendar.

By schedule, I mean use the built-in Facebook scheduling feature and either Buffer or HootSuite on Twitter to time your posts for (your) maximum efficiency and (your posts) maximum effect.

By be nice, I mean - it's a social network, folks. If you want people (customers) to like you, to socialize with you (and patronize your business) then you need to be sociable, helpful, nice. If you need a primer on being nice, there is none better (in business at least) than the Dale Carnegie classic, How to Win Friends and Influence People.

Read the book, or take the course, and get on with (a better) life and (more) business.

If you are organized and understand common courtesy, you can do a great job with social media tools. Why complicate things, right?

Want more old-fashioned advice for social media management? 
I'm a writer who understands business. Maybe I can help. 

Tweet Away: 5 Quick Reads That Will Make You A Twitter Power User

Is Twitter worth your time? f you have something - anything - to do with growing a brand, attracting or serving customers, yes. YES, Twitter is worth your time.

Twitter is Good for Business, Customer Service, Marketing, and Sales

It's also an excellent tool for research. This is not a screwdriver, however. While we probably watched someone use a screwdriver about1,000 times by the time we turned 10, we didn't grow up watching people use Twitter. (*Ahem* well, most of my cohort didn't, anyway.) 

Want a free crash course in using Twitter effectively? Read the articles linked below, selected from some heavyweights in the social media-watching world.

1. Start here: The headline is "get more engaged followers," the article is really a good overview/introduction to setting up a solid Twitter account. From Full Bundle

2. Practical advice aplenty in this article from Postcron, including:

If you put your URL in the middle of your tweet, you are 26% more likely to get retweeted than if you put it at the beginning or end.

3. RiteTag offers advice on hashtags. The article is slightly geeky but all the tips are actionable items.

4. Buffer analyzed one MILLION tweets and shared its findings, for free. This is not a surprise; Buffer is a social beast, constantly sharing super-helpful content about content. And yes, I'd tweet that. (More on customer-as-advocate in another post...)

5. Here's how to give your Twitter account a big bump when you apply SEO tactics to your tweets from Social Media Examiner, another beast I love to follow.

Bonus Quick Tip: Match Your Corporate Color on Twitter

On your Twitter feed, click your profile to open your home page. On the right hand side of the page, click "edit profile." You'll see options to change your header and profile pictures, and in the left column, about mid-way down the page, a bar titled 'Theme Color.' You can pick from a basic selection or get crafty and choose one to color-match your corporate logo. The only tricky part: you'll need to know the HTML color code. No worries - there's a site for that.  

Have You Heard That Is Twitter dead? 

To paraphrase Andy Grammer: Oh no, honey - it's good. In fact, Twitter's a very-accomplished 10 year old. Pew Research recently gave it a good look - maybe you should, too?


Next: My three favorite tips for using Twitter and Facebook are rather old-school. 

Want to start using social media to share great content? 

Need a little help creating great content? 

I can help. 

Previously: Is Facebook all washed up? 

Really? We're still asking this question? It's a social-crazy world out there, folks, and just like #POTUS, I'm a big fan of Facebook.

Q2 2016: Twitter and Facebook Still Alive, Still Making Marketing Easier

Do you think Twitter is feeling Facebook's pain? 

Facebook has been reported dead or dying so many times in the past five years, it's a wonder it's still ....reporting that 2015 earnings were up nearly 30% over last year. A year from now, my social friends, we will not be lamenting the demise of Twitter. We will still be here, bashing it and proclaiming it dead. In fact, we'll probably tweet about it.

Facebook 2015 earnings.
In millions.
Not too shabby.

And yet we'll still be asking, what is Twitter good for? 

In a rather far-ranging article last week, Barrons suggests that Twitter is barely breathing, is still a powerful business, and maybe the failure is all in Wall Street's head. Hm. Well, I'm a Twitter fan and a big fan of Facebook. Here's my take: They're excellent marketing tools. 

Oh, and Instagram? Yes, it's viable too. And so is Snapchat. The key is to know your business, your prospects, and where they are when they're thinking about purchasing...and to be there for them. 

Twitter and Facebook Are Alive and Well, and Can Grow Your Sales 

If you're trying to increase sales and grow your business, and you're not using social media, well, we're nearing the end of the first quarter....of 2016. Sorry to be snarky, but it's high time to reconsider.

Social media is a sales tool that's here to stay.

I've created Facebook pages and Twitter business accounts for many small businesses and several non-profit/government organizations. They weren't all excited at the outset...now, they are.

Whether you're a personal fan of social media or not is no reason to ignore a powerful tool. Especially one that can help you reach a lot of prospects, quickly, easily, and free (!) or at least, very cost-effectively.
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If you'd like to learn more about how to use either (or both) to marketing your business and reach and serve customers, I can help you get on your way, in just a few hours.  Let's get started!

Who Needs Facebook?

According to Pew’s 2015 report on social media, 72% of US internet users – that's 62% of adults in the US - are on Facebook. The majority of Facebook users use it daily. According to PR firm Burson-Marsteller, 87% of United Nation member countries are on Facebook. So is the POTUS.

Yet, I still get “the look” when I tell some small-medium sized business owners, “you should be on Facebook.”

 “Yeah. I know,” the principle often says, sometimes shrugging and adding almost apologetically, “my wife says that.”

(Yes, I'm serious. I really have heard that. But I digress.)

“I Don’t Need a Facebook Page; I Have a Website”

Years ago, when I first encouraged some friends and business owners to create a business page, they weren’t all sold on the idea. 

“People get their news from Facebook,” I’d say.

“I know, but they’re not looking to me for news,” they’d say.

“That’s true, but you need to be in the room," I’d reply. 

“It just seems like a waste of time,” they’d say.

“It certainly can be,”I’d agree. “But the effort will pay off.”

 “I don’t think it’s worth it,” they’d say, nearing exasperation. “Especially since _(I don’t have anything to sell/I’m not a celebrity/I have a website/insert other reason here)_.”

That's when I’d nod agreement and repeat, “you need to be in the room.”

Very Comfortable Virtual Gathering Space 

Facebook is a room where the conversation is always in full swing, where users visit day and night, ask their friends whether they'd recommend certain plumbers, find out a favorite former teacher recently passed on, and catch up with far-flung family members. It’s very social and in that atmosphere, our guard is just a little bit relaxed. 

We’re looking for advice. 

We’re asking for recommendations.

In that room, the conversation is flowing and we’re receptive. 

So, sure - you don't need to be on Facebook. I mean, what business needs a friendly, receptive forum in which to share its message? 

Just How Nice is Your Website? 

Of course, when Facebook users search for your business and don’t find your Facebook Page, they may look for your website.  Or they may not, if a similar business pops up in their feed, and that page appeals to them…I think the business term for that is "lost opportunity."

Now, assuming said user goes off to find your website, well – when they find it, it better be good. 

Because for Facebook users (remember, that's 62% of adults in the US) the medium shapes their expectations. Facebook is a friendly, engaging, comfortable place.

Newsflash: most websites aren’t.

So, when Facebook users encounter clunky, less-than-responsive websites, “yuck” is a pretty common response. And “yuck” dramatically increases bounce rates.

So yes, Virgil/Virginia, your business really does need a Facebook page. Even in 2016, when Facebook is reportedly “over.” (Just ask Fox News if there’s any value in it.) 

Facebook Maturing, Young Audience Returning

Some of the more adamant “I don’t think I need Facebook” folks will toss out the “common knowledge” that Facebook is no longer popular, and cite a stat about the droves of young people who no longer use it.

Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat and other forums have each taken a turn as the rising star of social media. It's not Facebook's turn. Been there, done that. Snapchat is the undeniable winner right now for reaching young (tween, even more so than teen) audiences. But there is plenty of anecdotal evidence and empirical data suggesting that Facebook has serious staying power.

 Remember those rascally teens who jumped onto Facebook, then departed when their parents showed up en masse? They’re back.

Facebook Group pages are one reason. Colleges and universities are among the many organizations using group pages to reach young adults – whether it’s professors posting that classes have been cancelled or clubs sharing internship opportunities; as kids get older, there are new attractions to the original social network. Many professional organizations use Facebook groups to share news - a la LinkedIn, but with a more interactive nature (and much better photo sharing capabilities). And let's not forget, Facebook is fun. A Facebook group page is an almost-perfect collaborative tool grads can use to plan a High School reunion. (So, if you’re a banquet hall or bar owner, and you don't have a page, you might want to get started it. Now.) 

The return of older teens/young adults has inspired several new apps designed to clean up some of those teenage indiscretions on Facebook. Because the kids who signed up in ‘04 and ’05 are now …drumroll please… entering the workforce. And as Mark Zuckerberg’s sister has said, “even the most incompetent HR manager can find and judge you based on your Facebook profile.”

And if that’s not proof that you and your business should find your way to (or back to) Facebook, what is?

# #

Two things I should tell you:  This post originally appeared on LinkedIn. And I manage Facebook pages for business clients. Get in touch with me here, on my website, or via Twitter.

Stunners: People Like to Share Pictures and LinkedIn Will Publish Just About Anyone's Post

Fridays! I like to use them as a social media catch-up day. Because a metric ton of MUST READ articles appear every minute, I try to be selective. And I hate clickbait.

So when I was drawn in with the great headline WHAT DO PEOPLE LOVE TO SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? I was miffed that the answer was....
...wait for it...

...pictures!

I took my rant to a new (to me) venue and created my first LinkedIn post.
~ - ~ - ~ - ~ -

What did you write today? And where?

If you're a freelance copywriter and would like to use this space for a guest post, I'd love to hear from you. Let me know in a comment on the LinkedIn post, or find me on Twitter.

More Reasons, More Ways for Writers to use Buffer

If you write - for business or for pleasure - chances are very good you're a serious social media user. Possibly addicted. Well, you won't find a 12-step program here. I'm not exactly an addict (am I?) but I'm definitely a user, and an enabler.

Why Writers Love Buffer

Most of us use Buffer (or Hootsuite; really, both tools are great) because of the "obvious" features:

• Scheduling social media posts is a breeze.
• The link shortener works as advertised, and is trusted. (Translation: gets clicked.)
• The "change to a quote" feature makes it easy to modify a tweet and get more milage and attention from it. 

But look past the obvious reasons to use a Buffer or Hootsuite tool and you'll see... more reasons! Below are some I really appreciate. (These refer to Buffer, but Hootsuite has similar useful features.)

Using Buffer Analytics to Work Smarter

Buffer's posts analytics feature makes it easy for you to not only see which posts have worked well for you, it also serves as a nice repository of ready-made posts to re-purpose. You can:

• Run through the list as you plan your next few months' editorial content.
• Identify and follow up on campaigns that could use a fresh jolt of social jabber
• Identify steady re-tweeters who deserve a "random" shout-out for their support of your brand/campaign.

Why Writers Should Use Buffer 

Sure, it saves time, theoretically eliminating one more reason to procrastinate. On the other hand, I find reviewing the recent history of tweets and other posts is a source of inspiration (also known as a positive form of procrastination).

But it's not "just" inspirational. I also find a whirl through my analytics page reminds me of those great, pithy turns of phrase (crafted by others) that I loved enough to share, and by reviewing them, I can learn from those writers all over again.

So, there you have it. My reasons for using Buffer and Hootsuite. Feel free to add your own. And if you're not using a social media scheduling tool that you love, do yourself a favor and install one today. I think you'll be glad you did.

Below, snips of last year that I've recently reviewed. A review of your own analytics would be much more useful, but hey - this is my blog. And I hate to post without an image or two.

Cheers ~

~Diane Stresing

Social Media Management: What's it Cost? What's it Worth?

Social media, the "free" advertising vehicle, isn't free, of course. Even if you're a small business owner dedicated to doing it yourself, there's a significant time investment. Not only do you need to learn the tools and keep up with the constant changes, a little advertising/marketing/communications savvy is necessary.

Like most everything else, you can learn to do it, and do it well. And like everything else, the time you invest in learning social media will take time away from something else - probably something you're already good at, where your time is more wisely spent.

Social Media Management: How Much Does it Cost?

Social media managers, whether managing Facebook only or handling the broad scope of all social media tools (Instagram, Pinterest, Reddit, etc., etc.) and - if you're lucky - blog content and email messaging - are more than "just" writers, more than "just" marketing professionals. Technical skills count and again, there's a tremendous time investment to stay on top of the game.

So what should you expect to pay? The low-end packages right now hover in the $800-$2000/month range. More complete packages go for in the neighborhood of $8000/month. (Sound high? a ballpark figure from a 2011 article puts costs higher, at $75-$200/hr.) And the bad news is, packaged social media/content management rarely gets the job done well. The "softer side" of marketing is getting to know your customers, your product(s), your niche, your industry... and speaking the language in a way that will turn prospects on without turning search engines off.

Those softer skills, including the all-important voice and customer connection, don't come cheap. However, many marketing consultants offer consulting services on an ad-hoc basis. What's that cost? Average figures from 2014 for Facebook Page or Twitter account creation come in at around $400-$800 for the initial creation. (Figures from a couple of years earlier say $500-$2500. Go figure.) Ongoing account management varies depending on activity level

DIY Cheaper, But Results Are at Stake

This isn't intended to scare you out of doing it yourself. You don't have to be a genius to learn social media tools, you probably understand your audience and your products better than anyone, and marketing is much more forgiving than rocket science - if you make a mistake, you can recover.

The question you need to ask yourself is:

Will I really put the necessary time in to get the results I need, and at what cost to my business?

Great Free Tools Available

If the answer is yes, you've committed to doing it yourself, great. For heaven's sake, don't reinvent the wheel. GREAT tools are available free, many from Hootsuite - like an article on changes to Facebook in 2015.

And if the answer is no, great. Like I said, marketing is a lot more forgiving than rocket science. If you choose a consultant, or designate someone already on staff to handle your messaging and it doesn't work out, try something else. If that doesn't work, try, try again.

Because when it comes to marketing (but not necessarily rocket science) doing something is better than doing nothing.

Here's to time well spent, in 2015 and beyond.

Manipulated by Words? Only if You Don't Think

Words can manipulate. It's up to readers to think, harder than ever, about the written (or at least typed and disseminated) word. 

Two examples - quite worthy of consideration together, methinks - are Truth Goggles, another annotation tool for journalists, which Poynter breaks down nicely, and (yet) another little experiment by Facebook. 

Please writers, write well. Honestly, even. And people everywhere - please, read thoughtfully. 

In case you're not inclined to click on embedded links and read/decide for yourself, I'll offer my opinion here. For free, even. (#luckyyou)

That Facebook is attempting to make its product more popular using some of the principles psychology isn't surprising, nor is its rather manipulative "sharing" of the data. (Read the article and you'll see why I used quotation marks.)

As Poynter writes: 

The Truth Googles launching today is a tool to enable anyone to annotate an existing piece of online content to raise and answer questions about what's been reported/written. It can also offer a layer of personalized commentary.

Whether Truth Goggles is a tool or yet another shade of social media apps, I'm not sure.

I'll keep watching, reading, and thinking - and hoping you do, too.  

Slide Share by the Numbers

Athletes know their stats; they measure by them daily. Weight-watchers count calories. Writers live by their deadlines, and word counts.

My point is that even if you're a communicator - a "word person" - it's foolish to ignore the numbers.

The best Slideshare presentations (at least according to Slideshare) contain about 14 slides, with each slide containing about 10 words.

I struggle to be so brief!

Struggle can be good, though. So, here's the Slideshare presentation I created to drum up some interest in my newest book, Dumb Things We Say to Dogs. I welcome your comments! And, of course, you're welcome to buy the book :D

Send a message via my Dumb Things Facebook Page or on Twitter, and I'll be happy to share a discount code with you to cover the cost of shipping when you order a copy.

Looking for more tips to succeed with Slideshare? I think this is a good list:
http://www.exacttarget.com/blog/13-solid-strategies-for-succeeding-at-slideshare/

Goodbye, Grumpy Cat

Disclaimer: I'm not much of a cat person.

However, that doesn't explain why I quit following one of America's favorite - and meanest - cats on Twitter.

I love sarcasm, even (especially?) sarcasm that comes with a little (heaping side of) nasty attitude. Hello, Jon Stewart, Chris Rock, George Carlin, and I could go on...

But sarcasm that's smart is what separates the greats from the just plain mean. And I'm not saying the snarky feline is a dumb bunny, but after a year or so of following, I certainly haven't learned anything from Grumpy Cat. Let me put it this way: Grumpy Cat is hilarious - but it's much more like Itchy & Scratchy than The Simpsons. I like The Simpsons because sometimes I have to think while I'm laughing (even if it is at someone else's expense).

Grumpy Cat or Itchy & Scratchy fans, I'd be happy to publish your rebuttal.

~Diane Stresing

We're all writers so read this before sharing on Facebook (or anywhere else)

This is something of a public service announcement. If you use Facebook, please invest a little bit of time into understanding the basic functionality of its privacy settings. Also set aside a few minutes every couple of weeks to review them, as they change frequently and frankly, you may not fully understand that by clicking on something, you can change your own settings quite unintentionally.

For example, I have changed my own posting/privacy settings multiple times and for various reasons (some I understand, others not so much) they have changed back, or changed again.

Here's an example: it's extremely easy to set your status-posting setting to "private" - which means, of course, it's not private at all, but shared with all your friends.  It's also very easy to change your status setting to "public," which means it's really public, out there for anyone to see, like, forever, or until you delete it.

Ok. Those of you who are Facebook gurus know exactly how these things work. And you can still make mistakes.

What's worse, a disturbing lot of you are thinking, well, I don't use Facebook enough to worry about all that or I don't have time to mess around with all those settings and to you I say, yes you do.

If you use Facebook at all then you should learn how to use the privacy settings to your advantage, and be vigilant about understanding the changes. And there are always changes!

It doesn't take that long to learn the ropes, and Facebook has helpful "help" pages that explain things well. Use them. Don't take the advice of post-of-a-repost on one of your friend's friends' walls. Go directly to the current Facebook help page and learn how to do it.

I manage Facebook pages for nearly a dozen businesses and organizations (and my own book!! < that's a plug) and I assure you that if I can screw up a "simple" privacy setting, you can too. Shame on all of us who don't take the time to learn how to use them properly.

Lecture over! Class dismissed! Thanks for reading!

Tweet Inspiration for Writers

Is this sweet, or is this a reason to tweet? Yes. Yes it is.

~Diane Stresing

Twitter in Good Form (a SM Tip for Writers) (and another excellent example!)

Writers wanting a good example of how to use Twitter effectively need look no further than the online home of The Associated Press Stylebook.

The venerable reference Tweets as @APStylebook uses #APStyleChat to manage online discussions and to alert followers to upcoming chats.

Clean, simple, useful. Social media as it always oughta be!

Tweeting: A Modern History

But if the internet allowed for a new (twisted?) meaning of both "social" and "media," there are many who remind us that the very-pithy phrase was worth sharing long before we tweeted. One of the more astute pre-'net observations: There is no There there. And there you are.

Writers Beware, and Be Smart

Among the many opportunities for writers, I'm seeing an increase in ads soliciting bloggers to write 250-700 word posts for $15 a pop and to basically pimp the copy on the writers' personal social media accounts.

From an ad posted last week:

"Writer MUST HAVE a STRONG social media presence on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media websites. If hired, articles MUST be posted on social media accounts. Please provide links to those accounts."

The best way to describe an opportunity like this is "Ew," because it stinks. In case you were left in a cabbage patch yesterday, I'll offer this advice that otherwise should go without saying: Don't do it.

Unless you want to sell your social media credibility for $15. Then, by all means, apply today. 

Stories Set to Song, and Storified, and other Social Media I Haven't Tried Yet

Today I thank Tommy Tomlinson for doing many writers a great service, delivering a lecture on good writing structure without making it sound like a lecture. Rather, it sounds like a classic ballad. It's The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

It's not the first time Tomlinson has waxed lyrically on Nieman's Storify Storyboard.

(Yes, that's the correct spelling, as it belongs 

to the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at 

Harvard, not the high-end department 

store. Although I must say, Neiman 

Marcus is doing some interesting 

stuff with social media, too.)

While I'll admit that I'm really glad Tomlinson did it, and he did it really well, I'm kicking myself for not doing it - or something like it, just not as good - because I've always thought songwriters make the best storytellers. Elton John, David Bowie  (Ziggy Stardust), Billy Joel, James Taylor, and John Denver are the first that I think of, and there are many more. 

But instead of focusing on one thing I haven't done yet, why not worry about two or more? "Learn how to use Storify" hovers near the top of my lonnnnnnnnnnnng list of "things to do." (I haven't figured out what Pinterest is good for yet, either, but Storify is a much higher priority, at least for me.)

When I searched for a "Storify primer" Google coughed up one on the Harlem Shake, which didn't exactly make me feel like dancing. 

So now that another deadline is looming and I have to get back to my "real" job, I ask you, dear readers:

What do you use Storify for? where can I find a free, Storify 101 course online? Is there a Storify for Dummies?

You know where to find me....

~Diane Stresing

Write On, Wordnik, Grammarsnark, Chaucer, and God

The more time I spend on Facebook, the less I like it. Yes, I know that makes me sound like a joiner - ever since its IPO, the social media behemoth has been losing fans (friends?) at an alarming rate. But after a mere three years, apparently Twitter and I are still in our honeymoon period.

There's something deliciously challenging about Twitter. The wittiest wordsmiths seem to hang out there, and they offer up their fruits in tempting bite-sized morsels, because they have to - which leaves me almost gasping for more.

I wonder if other writers feel the same?

A sampling of the morsels I haven't been able to get enough of, just recently:

Favorite words of The Week, thanks to Wordnik

Grammarsnark's bio alone is worth reading, as are most of its tweets.

Am I smitten with Twitter? You betcha. Where else can you read the tweets of God and Chaucer and learn how to rhyme like Eminem? Plus there's Twitter's inspired use of hashtags. As a journalist nothing gives me a sense of satisfaction quite like seeing so many in one place.

##

5 Things I Love About Working at Home

Following Yahoo's rather clumsy announcement that its workers were to report to the office, pronto (without sugarcoating the accusation that some were just plain slacking off), Herb Greenberg wrote an excellent, concise piece in defense of working from home.

Go ahead, read it - I'll wait.

I agree with him about the serious side of things - thinking is underrated, and too often hard to do well in a bustling office. He's right, too, about the greatest drawback to working from home: you never leave work behind. Ever. <sigh>

Now, back to the more positive aspect of things: I'm especially eager to second Greenberg's praise of phone calls.
 ( What's this Retro thing?  Tell me again, how do I use it?)

Perhaps because texting and instant responses from social media are so prevalent, the good-old-fashioned telephone is enjoying a certain glow. I swear I've noticed the person on the other end of a phone call is MORE attentive than he/she would have been a couple of years ago - which I attribute to the phone's relative novelty.

Speaking of the phone, that's just one of many things you don't have to worry about when you work at home: annoying your co-workers when you talk too loud, or place every call on speaker.

Add to that list - no worries when you burn popcorn or re-heat fish in the microwave. Well, at least you won't upset your co-workers when you do; your spouse and/or kids are still likely to complain.

I'm quite sure Yahoo and Marissa Mayer don't care, but for what it's worth, here are five of my favorite things about working from home:

1. The obvious: no commute, dress code, or office politics
2. My neighbors recognize me - and I them.
3. The softer side: my dogs are the fluffiest co-workers a girl could ever have.
4. Health bennies a-plenty! Comp time is no problem; I can manage my schedule and doc appointments, walk at lunchtime (or mid-morning, or both) eat super-healthy leftovers, and enforce my own no-toxic-perfumes and other policies without risk of offending someone.
5. I get to pick my own background music, every day - and if I get up to dance, no one complains.*

It's not all fun and games at home, of course. It is work, after all. Without a boss looking over your shoulder, you've got to find your own motivation to get things done, and when things go wrong, it's all on you. But I'll cover the drawbacks of working at home (staying fully charged, for one thing) in another post. For now, I guess I'll just put on my dancin' shoes and work away. 

~Diane Stresing

*as long as I remember to close the shades