While driving along South Beretania, you might notice a business called Amy’s Haven. Unfortunately, this legit business has one of those questionable online domain names. What’s the URL for Amy’s Haven? None other than amyshaven.com.
In any case, amyshaven is on the social media bandwagon with Twitter, Blogger, and Facebook. But what a URL…
Some recent promotions I’ve seen or heard about.
Greetings! Pulpconnection is now more sexy, more intense, with more satisfaction. At least with WordPress plugins that is. In a never ending voyage with WordPress and its limitless plugins, I’m experimenting with a few new ones after previous additions and deletions.
Freshly added are:
And as I learned the hard way, I need to balance all this plugin bling with overall performance of Pulpconnection. Can’t have the site crash with all this sexy, intense satisfaction.
I guess I wasn’t the only one rethinking things after attending [re]think Hawaii. At the event, Chris Pirillo and Coach Deb had a conversation about conversing on Twitter. Coach Deb felt Twitter was a great tool for conversations while Chris disagreed.
The upshot? This video of Chris (recorded in his car while driving) explaining why he doesn’t believe Twitter is geared towards conversations.
I don’t know how better to say it than:
[re]think Hawaii is for the mind, TEDxHonolulu is for the soul
Right after [re]think Hawaii came TEDxHonolulu, the 50th state’s first entry into TEDx, the independently organized TED event. NEENZ was at it again, organizing inspirational speakers for our TEDx. I don’t know to capture the essence of the event and the powerful messages of:
The best way to experience TEDxHonolulu is to watch the (forthcoming) videos. Only then will you truly appreciate Intel’s drive for environmental sustainability, Jill’s passion to go green, Henk’s pursuit of high tech in Hawaii, and Kaiser’s cutting analysis of Sino-American relationships online and off. My words won’t do TEDxHonolulu justice.
Until the videos are available, view the pictures from TEDxHonolulu.
Here’s a summary of posts about [re]think Hawaii.
Here are other posts about [re]think Hawaii as I come across them on the web.
Actually, I forgot some observations in my first post Observed at [re]think Hawaii, so here’s a follow on post.
I talked about the Apple love at [re]think Hawaii, but what I also noticed from over-the-shoulder observations is Safari’s Top Sites as a user’s home page. Instead of having a singular traditional home page, Safari can display a wall of your top sites as your home. Those in the crowd and even presenters would display Top Sites when opening a new Safari window.
I just changed my Safari preferences to show Top Sites for new windows and tabs, and yes, I like it. I get an immediate display of sites I frequent, making it very easy to jump to one.
Another over-the-shoulder observation I saw was the multitasking abilities of the crowd. Many at [re]think Hawaii were armed with laptops and while presentations were occurring, attendees were listening in, asking questions, checking email (lots of Gmail users), posting Facebook updates, tweeting, uploading pictures to Flickr, and so much more. Talk about extreme multitasking!
I sat there, listened, and jotted notes in my analog notebook. Okay, okay, I used my iPhone to multitask at times too. 🙂
One last point about social media that is in the obvious-but-not-so-obvious category. With all the digital interactions we have using social networking tools like Twitter and Facebook, a goal of social media is to be social in real life. All these tools help expose you to a wider audience and start conversations, but that’s where they end. To really cement partnerships and friendships, you need to take the online social activity into the real world. The [re]thinkers in attendance understood this and really took advantage of what Hawaii has to offer with group excursions to Waikiki, our beaches, and other various sights. It’s these real life social interactions that made [re]think Hawaii unforgettable.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.
One of the interesting sessions I attended at [re]think Hawaii was Coach Deb’s Twitter as a Power PR Tool. While she went through her agenda about using Twitter to generate leads and make connections, an active discussion arose around sponsored conversations (ie getting paid by advertisers to blog or tweet). This conversation carried on through lunch with Rick Calvert (@blogworld), Coach Deb (@coachdeb), Kris Krug (@kk), and Ben Metcalfe (@dotben) all weighing in.
What was the final conclusion about sponsored conversations? Everyone was right! Each had his own philosophy and belief, and everyone respected each other’s opinions. In my own words, Coach Deb was an advocate for sponsored conversations since she’s looking at ways of monetizing her online ventures. @dotben believed that once you accepted money from advertisers, your integrity was compromised and objectivity couldn’t be possible. Kris understood the role of sponsored conversations but wished it were more subtle. Following my own thoughts, I would have to side with Rick’s pragmatic approach to sponsored conversations. He knew sponsored conversations were a reality so why deny them.
Again, everyone had valid points about their views, and you couldn’t discount anyone. I thought this discussion was timely as I’m venturing into advertised tweets using ad.ly and SponsoredTweets. From these services, I received offers to promote a New York election, a Twilight contest with Volvo, and a cheese puff snack. Do these promotions reflect me? Maybe, maybe not, and is my reputation worth the price of sponsorship? That’s the question I’m wrestling with.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.
So I learned and observed a few things at [re]think Hawaii, but now it’s time for some uncomfortable questions about the conference that left me confused.
At the outset, I had the expectation that [re]think Hawaii would focus on Hawaii and look at how our islands can be re-thought with respect to startups/entrepeneurs, environmental sustainability, and social media. Of course, my immediate assumption was of major representation from Hawaii in these areas along with international experts lending their experienced views.
The attendee list showed significant Hawaii participation, but my surprise upon arriving at the conference? More not from Hawaii than from Hawaii. Yes, confusing. This was [re]think Hawaii, wasn’t it? I had to re-examine the intent of [re]think Hawaii, and the event is described accordingly:
At [Re]Think: Hawaii, a group of amazing people will be retreating from the day to day that conforms their thinking and venture outside of their digital ponds to meet offline in Hawaii.
There really is no inference that the event is targeted for Hawaii per se, just that it is held in Hawaii to connect:
entrepreneurs and investors during a series of panels, lunches, excursions, dinners, cocktails and aloha style exchange of ideas and relationship building in Hawaii.
So with regards to making connections and building relationships, [re]think Hawaii met its goal. However…
I would have appreciated more Hawaii representation, both as presenters and attendees. Where were Hawaii’s social media pioneers, @hawaii and @bytemarks? Wouldn’t you think @hawaii would be at [re]think Hawaii? There were a few conference go-ers from Bytemarks’ Top Social Media Geeks in Hawaii list, and Hawaii’s aloha ambassador, @alohabruce, was engendering the Hawaii way. But there should have been more. And this is where it gets messy. Why weren’t there more people from Hawaii? One main reason was the conference cost. Daily admission went for just under $300, the entire week for $1300. Luckily discounts were available and for disclosure purposes, my invitation to [re]think Hawaii from @NEENZ came with a $100 discount. I wouldn’t have gone without this discount, and even then I hesitated. It’s my simple belief that more didn’t attend purely because of the cost.
So what about [re]think presenters from Hawaii? Again, I only attended Day 3 Blogworld Social Media Business Summit, and for that day, there were three Hawaii panelists (Nathan Kam, Neenz Faleafine, and Jay Talwar) who participated in the Basics of Social Media and Participatory Marketing. That’s it.
The counter point is should and could there be more [re]think representation from Hawaii? Should, yes. Could, not yet. At this point, I doubt Hawaii could have presented a delegation to match the expertise and experience of the [re]think presenters and attendees. Don’t get me wrong. Hawaii has passionate people fighting for their causes, and I have no doubt their passion rivals that of Jill Buck, Amanda Rose, and others. But as far as launching successful national and global campaigns, Hawaii does not lead the way.
As I mentioned above, I struggled with the cost of attending [re]think Hawaii. Even at the discounted rate of $200, that is costly for one day at a conference. What convinced me to attend was the caliber of people. Known names were attending and when else would these names be available in Hawaii? Maybe never again? And that’s why I went. The opportunity was too good to pass up even at the cost.
Would I have preferred a cheaper price? Sure, but we have to be realistic. There are costs involved with an event like this. There’s renting out the facilities and equipment, providing snacks and meals, paying fees for speaking engagements, and of course, the event hosts have to make a living too.
So in all, yes, I was satisfied with price of [re]think Hawaii. But I was vitalized with the combination of [re]think Hawaii and TEDxHonolulu! This yin and yang duo completed each other so well there’s no question about cost.
I really do hope that [re]think Hawaii becomes an annual event that further exposes Hawaii in new, innovative ways. While I believe outsiders need to comprise a big part of the [re]thinkers, I look forward to more Hawaii representation. Let’s showcase our own high tech, sustainable, and entreprenurial efforts! And a kamaaina discount wouldn’t hurt either. 😉
Finally, I have to say thanks to Christine Lu and NEENZ for organizing this wonderful week. Through my initial confusion, I learned and observed so much to make me rethink Hawaii.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.
Besides learning at [re]think Hawaii, I observed a few things that for whatever reason tickled my mind. These aren’t necessarily derogatory or anything. They just are. 🙂
Ever since my days at the Asian-laden UC Irvine, I always wondered about the noticeable differences between Asians from Hawaii and Asians from the mainland. There is a difference; you can just tell. Hearing Asians from the mainland speak is the dead giveaway. But often times, you get initial, non-verbal cues. Is it the fashion choice, the personal grooming, the hair? Look at this group picture from [re]think Hawaii, and I think you’ll be able to pick out the non-locals.
With the mixture of rethinkers in attendance, I’m thinking the dudes were more well coiffed than the ladies. Yup, just my opinionated observation, but the guys were on the fashion edge at [re]think Hawaii. If I didn’t love my wife so, I might be man-crushing on Kaiser Kuo’s long hair.
There was a ton of Apple and Canon love on display. MacBook Pros and Airs littered the conference along with the iconic iPhones. Usually paired with the Apple hardware was Canon DSLR camera gear. I’m thinking this Christmas would be a good time to personally step into the DSLR world
I think Hawaii is a pretty safe place, but I don’t know if I would leave expensive Apple hardware unattended.  I lost count of the times I saw unattended laptops like these.
Sure, people were around the conference room, but I wouldn’t know whose computer was whose and wouldn’t think twice if someone came by and walked away with a laptop. For that reason (and a bad experience with stolen work laptops at Marriott Hawaii years ago), here’s my notebook that I came equipped with.
I had no reservations leaving this old school notebook sitting on the table as I took a break from the conference.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.
I’ve been mentioning [re]think Hawaii for a while now, so what’s it all about? This three-day conference brings:
a core group of people from our collective networks together who have a shared interest in solving problems and rethinking tech, business and sustainability
I only attended the last day themed Blogworld Social Media Business Summit but other days focused on the economics of Startups aka Startonomics and Sustainability. Here are some tidbits I learned from the day.
National Geographic is a huge social society and is integrating social media into this historic mainstay. There are and more National Geographic resources that support content generated by users, and did you know that the dog artwork on Weezer’s latest CD Raditude
Hawaii is playing catchup in the social media space. There is a lot of interest but also a lot of mistrust in social media, primarily based on Hawaii’s old school/tech xenophobic culture. In the PR field, Social Media is viewed as yet another job to perform which causes some resistance for adoption. Already working longer and harder during this economic downturn, PR and marketing people don’t want additional tasks. Though Marriott Hawaii witnessed huge spikes in site metrics from their MarriottHawaiiTweets contest – 50% more visits per month, 120% increase in pages viewed per month, and users spending more time on the web site.
The reality check for blogging is that there is no check. You don’t make money from blogging. You do get your voice heard and if you leverage that then you can make money.
Getting that first comment and engaging was the reason Jim Turner became a blogger. For Beth Blecherman aka TechMama, she blogged to become relevant and part of a community.
Coach Deb’s session offered up interesting tips. What is the emotional need of your client is where you start. Once you understand the psychodemographics, you can start appealing to your tribes and clients. “How will you become top of mind?”
Favorite a tweet in Twitter to have it persist, especially now with a shortened tweet lifespan. A way to gain an audience is not to talk about yourself, your products, or your services. Instead talk about your story which is what compels people.
Amanda Rose talked about organizing Twestivals and Jill Buck outlined her Go Green Initiative. What was tremendously clear with both women was their passion driving their tireless efforts to benefit their causes. Simply amazing.
You need to watch Jill Buck’s presentation at TEDxHonolulu when it becomes available. Very impressive! As a bonus, you can read how I looked like a dufus while talking with Jill.
Chris Pirillo was back in the islands doing his thing. In this session, he offered up his opinions and thoughts about various social media services depicted on this Social Media “wheel.”
The group also went on a tangent about video recording while talking YouTube. Chris is a big believer in the power of video and supplements his material with video if possible. He recommends the Creative Vado
Yeah, I can understand why Jeremiah Owyang is considered a rockstar strategist and analyst. His presentation about the future of social media was enlightening (need to get the link for the slides) and left many things to think about. He talked about customer trust and how it doesn’t lie with corporate web sites. Trust lies in personal recommendations and social communities. So why not integrate social technologies into corporate web sites? Email is still the largest social network. Jeremiah’s definition of a social network provides a user profile, a way to connect to others, and offers an unique value.
So you might be reading all of this and saying, “no duh.” But it’s the facts and stats provided, the passion on display, the experiences shared that made a difference with these lessons. Sure, you could have learned the same things online or by reading a book, but it’s the social context wherein this knowledge was imparted that really made me rethink.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.
Who’s Jill Buck you say? She’s only the founder of the Go Green Initiative whose mission is to:
create a culture of environmental responsibility on school campuses across the nation
Here’s Jill’s impressive bio. But anyways back to the story…
I was attending [re]think Hawaii during the Blogworld Social Media Summitt day and didn’t recognize many of the haole faces at the event. The entire audience had just finished taking a group photo and was making our way back to the conference rooms. Jill was right next to me, and we started chatting. Keep in mind I didn’t know who she was, assuming she was just another social media junkie coming to [re]think to learn.
She asked what I did and not knowing her background, I started with the lowest common denominator, talking about social media tools and the trouble of figuring out which one to use when. Very basic, kinda dumbed down. Then I asked about her, and she said she was a presenter at [re]think (and at TEDxHonoluu)!!
DOH!
Here I was looking like a dufus, talking about Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to someone who’s mastered the use of these tools in her campaign to educate America about protecting the environment.
Jill was way cool about it and said hi (by name) to me after her emotionally moving and compelling presentation at TEDxHonolulu. You have to watch her TEDx presentation when it becomes available. If she can’t inspire and convince you to go green, I don’t know who can.
Read more posts about [re]think Hawaii.