by Nicole Ouellette | Apr 26, 2010 | Marketing Monday
The whole power of the internet is the idea of collaboration. At first, I was worried that people doing similar work to me would be competition but the more I spend time online, the more time I realized these people were my colleagues. We trade information and ideas, refer each other for work, and are otherwise friendly.
I had a meeting today with Phyllis, the Director for the Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce and she told me about theBar Harbor Bed and Breakfast Association. Here’s what’s neat about this group:
They chose a shorter domain name: sleepbarharbor.com.
BarHarborBedAndBreakfastAssociation.com would have been way too long to remember, not to mention print on business cards. Sleepbarharbor.com is much more descriptive and equally memorable.
They refer each other via their website, and word of mouth.
On the top of their website, there are two clearly marked places to check availability. This one location allows an internet user to check all 26 locations at the same time. You can also narrow your search for rooms that include certain amenities, like a television in the room or a water view.
If you call one of the inns and they are full, I am also sure that the person working at the front desk would help the person over the phone book a room at another inn using this website.
by Nicole Ouellette | Apr 21, 2010 | Too Cute Tuesday
Every Tuesday, it’s a cheap craft, fun cocktail, and good friends. To learn more, check out Facebook or see all the Too Cute Tuesday posts at www.toocutetuesday.com.
This week at Too Cute Tuesday, a lot of our usual suspects were off on school vacation so it was just Sue and I tonight, holding down the crafting fort.
A while back, my Fort Kent friend/fellow blogger Kellie sent me a link to some cheap and easy homemade laundry detergent she made. When I realized how many jugs of plastic (not to mention dollars) this would save over time, I realized it was a perfect craft for Earth month. This April, we’re doing all Earth-friendly crafts this month.
I halved Kellie’s recipe since it was just Sue and I taking home the booty…but one penny per load of laundry?! That’s amazing, and so easy!
Materials
1/6 bar of Felds-Napta
1/4 cup Borax
1/4 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda
Cocktail of the Night: Dirty Underwear
1 oz vodka, 1 oz peach schnapps, several drops grenadine. To make a cocktail, fill with lemonade.
1. Head to the grocery store cleaning aisle to find needed crafting supplies. Just as you’re about to give up, notice the Borax and washing soda on the top shelf at the end of the aisle, and the Felds- Napta bars behind a display. Clearly, these aren’t the grocery store’s money making items!
by Nicole Ouellette | Apr 19, 2010 | Marketing Monday
A bit of a break from my normal format, I decided to do a critique of a web advertisement I saw.
The other week, I was looking at Too Cute Tuesday directions on the Instructables website when I came across this ad:
Is that a teenage girl, lying on a bed? I thought I would click through to the website, thinking maybe this wasn’t being marketed to teenage girls.
It doesn’t take a marketing person to see exactly who this site is meant to attract. In cases like these, I hate being wrong.
I know that Zoe Kravitz, the model, is 21 years old and can do whatever she likes but come on. That look. On a bed. Looking like she’s wrapped in sheets )€” until you look close and see that it might be a dress. (This is confirmed in a larger format photograph but still,why did I even have to wonder if she was naked?)
I looked for other people talking about this ad. All I found was a handful of bloggers who sounded like they were quoting a press release about being excited about the new line and enjoying the vanilla and fruity notes of the fragrance. I was starting to feel a bit crazy. Am I getting old and being a stick in the mud about this?
I posed the ad to Facebook, just to see reaction of my friends. Here are a few that reflect the overall sentiment:
My friend Jen, who has a teenage daughter: OMG!!! That is crazy…way to sexualize a 15 year old! Gross
My friend Norah, who is raising a teenage son and daughter: Very tricky raising a daughter with this sort of thing in their face all the time. A bit rough on the sons too.
And my friend Bob, who is a therapist: I’m afraid we’ve become desensitized–being bombarded with this inappropriate stuff all the time. I’m with you…
But this isn’t just about Vera Wang Princess perfume. This is a symptom of a larger problem.
by Nicole Ouellette | Apr 16, 2010 | This Week In Business
It’s been an interesting week here at Breaking Even Communications and in my life in general.
I’ve had a hard time sleeping, which is uncharacteristic of me. Most of what’s on my mind was thoughts of my grandfather. It was confirmed yesterday that he has liver cancer. He is one of my favorite people in the world, and one of my role models as far as being a good person.
I used to think that there would be times in my life that would be easier and times that would be harder. The older I get though, the more I realize that most times in life will be sort of mixed, and there is importance and even satisfaction in just moving forward. So onward for Pepere, and myself…
Here’s what’s been going on businesswise this week:
Matt and my workshop went really well…and we’re already planning another.
Besides running out of time and not having a good system to answer people’s questions, things went smoothly last Saturday. We have been asked about follow-up workshops, not only by people who came but by people who heard about it.
We decided to use our common website to post information about upcoming workshops and how-tos about the topics we didn’t get to. If you want to check it out: http://www.downeastlearning.com. We’re planning one in May about making websites search engine friendly. Stay tuned!
I gave a talk about blogging at my local library.
Last night, I gave a talk with a fellow local blogger at the Jessup Memorial Library. Four people showed up, which was a lower turnout than I was hoping.
by Nicole Ouellette | Apr 14, 2010 | Too Cute Tuesday
Too Cute Tuesday is a weekly event involving a craft, a cocktail, and friends. To join the fun, visit our Facebook page or see all the TCT posts in one location here.
I was at a party a couple months ago when my friend Joe told me he could make a camping stove out of two cans and a utility knife. I of course made him do it on the spot. What a perfect craft for Too Cute Tuesday and a great way to recycle a couple of cans! (Remember, we are trying to make all our crafts earth friendly since Earth Day is this month.)
Since I apparently don’t drink anything out of cans, I had to buy some beverage, in my case generic store brand diet coke, so I could craft. Rum, cola, knives, and fire? We have a fun and potentially dangerous night on our hands.
Materials
2 cans
Utility knife
Scissors
Nail or thumbtack and hammer
Liquid fuel and lighter
Safety stuff: Fire extinguisher, Place to burn safely, trained firefighter (optional)
Cocktail of the Night: Rum and Coke (might as well use the Coke, right?)
For those of you wanting really exact directions, Instructables has a very specific tutorial. As you know, here at TCT, we like to make it simpler if we can (which means sometimes it doesn’t work… but then sometimes, it does!)
1. Pour cocktail right away, since you need two empty cans to attempt.
2. Poke holes around the bottom of one can, and a few in the middle. This is where the fuel will get poured in and where it’ll burn off.
3. Cut the holey can so only the bottom and about 1 inch of the body of the can remain. Cut the bottom off the other can the same way. You’re going to fit the two pieces together eventually.
