Sandy Wilson, Public Relations, Media Relations, Communications in Jacksonville, Florida

I just used Aviary to edit an image for a client newsletter.  What's Aviary?

"Aviary is on a mission to make creation accessible to artists of all genres, from graphic design to audio editing. We're a privately held company currently headquartered in Long Island, NY, with team members around the world. " (Aviary online)

Aviary is soooo easy to use and it's a FREE online service!

While I have Photoshop, sometimes I find it clunky to use.  I  tried Aviary just now to optimize an image and it could not have been easier, folks. 

If you'd like to see the referenced image/newsletter, go to Environmental Services, Inc.'s website and sign up for their emal newsletter : )

Yesterday,  I discovered a couple of great online resources - Evernote and Fill Any PDF Form.  Both services are free and easy to use. 

Evernote is an online, visual bookmark service. You can also email quick notes to Evernote and access these notes from virtually (excuse the pun) anywhere.  

Fill Any PDF Form  is THE free service I've needed.  I anticipate that FAPF will save a lot of time and eliminate the need for a fax service along with the time involved in printing a document, filling it out manually and then faxing the document back.  With Fill Any PDF Form, you just pull up the document, fill it out onscreen, save it and email it back.  There is a signature function as well.  Did I mention that it's free?

If only I could find a free service to clean my garage on a Sunday afternoon. <smile. sigh. head out to the garage.>

Over the weekend, I discovered My Punchbowl, which is an online invitation and party-planning resources.  They also offer great quality e-cards. 

Check it out and save some paper! I signed on for the Premium level.

One of the best things about having my own business is having the luxury to choose where I spend my time.

Since April 2009, I've had a lot of fun partnering with the Jacksonville Public Library in providing several art exhibitions with themes that highlight our beautiful St. Johns River. The Library is a downtown gem and Alisha has been fabulous!

Our next exhibition is the River Response 2 art exhibition at the JPL Main Branch on 303 N. Laura Street, Jacksonville, FL, 32202.

Stop by during the opening on February 3 during the Downtown ArtWalk from 5-8. This exhibiton features some of the most talented artists in our region:
Joanelle Mulrain, Allison Watson, Meredith Fordham, Mary St. Germain, Sydney McKenna, Jo Sinclair, Tim Hamilton, Brian Edmond

See you there!

I've noticed a trend on Twitter lately where folks post an article link that supposedly drives readers to an article but the link actually drives readers through a Facebook page that only displays the article "teaser"and where the reader finally accesses a link to the article in question.

I'm tired just writing that. What in the world are you thinking? Are you actually trying to use Facebook as an aggregator?

If you want to drive folks to your Facebook page, then DRIVE FOLKS TO YOUR FACEBOOK PAGE and let folks know that you're driving them there.  Most folks use FB to drive folks to their content pages not the other way around. Which social media genius sold you this bill of goods?

It's extremely annoying to land on a basically useless page to finally access an article that may have been interesting. It's a virtual bait and switch and is not good for your business because regular old folks like me eventually quit clicking on your links.  More important, folks like me quit trusting you.

I'm not a ranter, but consider this a rant.

I remember when the New York Times tried to charge for access to online content several years ago.

Well, that failed.  Like most, I wouldn't pay for online content back then, but the times are a changin'.

For a while now, the news industry has been trying to figure out how to survive.  As actual newsPAPERS disappear and the reality that businesses won't pay big bucks for online ads, it makes sense that media outlets should charge for quality content generated by paid professional journalists.

I'll (re)consider paying for online content that offers true value - fair, objective relevent articles written by smart journalists who present information that benefits the general public and has links to additional resources.

The New York Times is (once again) setting a precedent for the news industry and it will be interesting to see how they determine what online content will be paid and what will be free. In a world where everyone is an expert at some/thing and search engine rankings determine what's read, quality content with a solid SEO infrastructure becomes the key that opens the $ door.

So, the questions of the "Times" are:
~ Where do you go for your online news? Which media outlets do you trust?
~ Which media outlets provide content that is so valuable that you wouldn't mind paying a subscription fee?
~ Which media outlets understand that it might be smarter to charge small subscription rates to gain larger audiences rather than lose them upfront?

I stumbled on this very cool Elon University website:  Imagining the Internet: A History and Forecast this past weekend.

"The Imagining the Internet Center's mission is to explore and provide insights into emerging network innovations, global development, dynamics, diffusion and governance. Its research holds a mirror to humanity's use of communications technologies, informs policy development, exposes potential futures and provides a historic record. It works to illuminate issues in order to serve the greater good, making its work public, free and open."

I especially enjoyed reading the 2008 Survey.  Air-typing, ever evolving mobile platforms, and virtual integrity and forgiveness?  (Read the survey.) We still have a lot of work to do to produce the 2008 Survey's anticipated results by 2020.

Communications professionals have been circling around virtual conversations for over a decade and three elements remain constant:  To communicate successfully online requires independent thinking, thoughtful action and the ability to write well.

On Twitter, I observe a ton of folks who seem to automatically Re-tweet posts and suspect they don't investigate the linked content contained therein.  Readers often click through those links to a sales/marketing landing page with an introduction to the article and another link that directs the reader to the actual article or web page.

I'm still forming my opinion of "content aggregators" and will Re-tweet posts from a variety of news sites because they offer free valuable resources for readers. That said, several "content aggregator" sites seem to be managed by folks whose main focus is to filter  readers through a website designed to sell something/anything and I do have an issue with *that* as my time - like yours, no doubt - is precious.  I often wonder how others feel about being manipulated in this way?

I guess this leads us back to Elon University's prediction of  virtual  integrity and forgiveness : )

We're back from our travels and happy to report good green planning all along our ho-ho-holiday way.

We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning in beautiful Callaway Gardens and loved their natural decorations @ the Lodge and Spa.  Located on top of Pine Mountain, Georgia, Callaway Gardens is committed to eco-friendly living, environmental education and renewable energy year-round!

As we passed through nearby Atlanta on our way to Nashville, we learned that Atlanta  has also established forward thinking green initiatives.  In 2003, the city of Atlanta passed an ordinance requiring all city funded development to be LEED certified. That's thoughtful planning for the future. 

As we headed into good old country musical Nashville, we noticed a spectacularly clean downtown area and we were so pleased to discover a concerted city-wide effort to establish Nashville as a leader in green initiatives and livability.

We're back in Jacksonville now.  We're taking down the Christmas decor, and gearing up for Tree Hill Nature Center's Bring One For the Chipper event on January 9, 2010.  Bring your UNDECORATED  Christmas tree to Tree Hill on January 9 and take aromatic mulch home. Great way for the family to recycle.  (NOTE: Tree Hill is a client and the event is FREE.) 

I avoid paper.  Usually, at this time of year, I send an html greeting to my friends. 

Yesterday, however, I stumbled on these cool eco-friendly holiday cards soooo, last night, for the first time in years, I pulled out my snail mail address book and began some furious addressing.

o<|| : o} > Santa is real darn happy.

We switched to LED lights for our holiday tree last year.

Real or fake tree? We go real to support the local economy.

This year, we're recycling our year-round grapevine wreath and are using solar powered spotlights.  We also bought live plants from a local garden center that we'll replant after the holidays.  We're "wrapping" gifts with reusable shopping bags from PUBLIX.

We're going green gradually - eco baby steps are better than none, right?

More ways your family can go green/er this season:
Holiday Decorations for Green Geeks

Earth 911 Holiday Gift Guide

Wrap Art - how cool is this?