Monthly Archives: May 2007

Can we please use real words?

Companies love their acronyms and initialisms. The thinking seems to be, why waste your breath to say the full words when you can abbreviate? Thus I am working on revising an article today that contains three acronyms I had not yet seen (and I keep a list for this client because there are so many, [...]

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Customer service files

Dave Traynor‘s post on customer service on Sunday (hey, I’m trying to catch up on my feeds!) reminded me of another customer service experience of my own the other day. Son #2 wanted to get his G1 license — that’s what used to be called a learner’s permit, his license to learn how to drive. [...]

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Things we can learn from dogs

One of the enjoyable aspects to working in a home office (and there are many!) is the loyal dog snoozing at my feet. He makes sure I get some fresh air at noon so I get back to work with a clear head, and he’s just good company. Of course, there are times when he [...]

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A great tool to get rid of comment spam

After coming back from Las Vegas to 200 pieces of smelly comment spam, I knew it was time to get help. Thanks to Joan Donogh of In Formation Design, who designed and hosts this site, I discovered that WordPress has a built-in filter for comment spam. All I had to do was register for a [...]

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10 tips for enjoying Las Vegas

As you will expect, I didn’t come home Las Vegas with a suitcase full of money. The good news is I didn’t leave behind a suitcase full of money either. Here are my tips for having fun in Vegas, whether you gamble or not: Have a plan. Get a map of the strip and figure [...]

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Las Vegas, here I come

Warning: delays in blogging ahead. I’m off to Las Vegas this morning so will be out of commission for several days. I’ve heard a lot about this crazy town, and I’m sincerely hoping it’s true you don’t have to be a gambler to enjoy it. I’ll let you know when I return!

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I love awards in the spring

Last night, after a quick change from capris and bare feet to Little Black Dress and heels, I attended IABC/Toronto‘s Ovation awards night in downtown Toronto, “applauding excellence in communications.” I’m pleased to say that I was part of a team accepting an Award of Merit. Over two years, Cyrus Mavalwala, Veronica Feihl, Lee Weisser [...]

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Moms worth our weight in gold

Last night at a meeting of IABC independent communicators (AIP), a colleague mentioned the Reuters news item that said: If the typical stay-at-home mother in the United States were paid for her work as a housekeeper, cook and psychologist among other roles, she would earn $138,095 a year, according to research released on Wednesday. The [...]

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New way to promote a book

Fellow writer Gloria Hildebrandt of Orchard House Communications pointed me to this very funny Web site promoting a book by Miranda July. Follow “the link” written on the stove top (really!) and you’ll find Miranda’s Web site with more detail about this filmmaker, performing artist and writer. The book promoted on the site, “No one [...]

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Proof that buzzwords are taking over

MarketingSherpa’s free weekly newsletter led me to the wonderfully named Gobbledygook Manifesto, which was cited as a winner in its 2007 Viral Marketing Hall of Fame. David Meerman Scott calls himself an “online thought leadership strategist” (hmm, speaking of gobbledygook), and posts the results of a study showing the appalling number of times marketers use [...]

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