Emily Schuman is by far my favorite blogger in the history of blogging. I read her blog daily like it's my job. Every time I see a Twitter post that she has uploaded a new post, I am filled with joy and immediately make my way to a computer to check it. Okay, I know you get the picture: I love her blog Cupcakes and Cashmere.
And, I'm not the only one anxiously awaiting her next fabulous post. Emily Schuman is considered one of the most successful and most popular fashion bloggers right now. But the big question is why? There are thousands and thousands of fashion blogs out there in the world right now, and she didn't start off any different than an unknown person who began a blog, so why is she so popular?
The answer is: Content. Content. Content. Mixed with a good dose of presentation.
Cupcakes and Cashmere is exactly what it's title leads you believe it is: fabulous fashion and food. Emily keeps a strong focus on those two passions while offering such new, creative, and unique insights into the culinary and fashion world. All of her ideas are her own, so readers feel more connected to her blog because they are learning from her creativity and inspiration rather than her recitation of other people's creativity and inspiration.
Emily's blog offers us some comfort in regularity with common postings being a series of photos of an outfit she put together with a detailed but simple description of her inspiration and the exact pieces she is wearing. She also regularly posts about her experiences making a new dish complete with a series of before-during-and-after photos. Other posts include a list of 5 things inspiring her at the moment, a peek into some new design concepts she is applying to her home, or beauty/household how-to's and do-it-yourself's.
The reason that her blog is so successful is not only because the content is completely original and trend-setting, but also because she keeps all her posts short and concise with just enough detail to give us all the information we need. Every post comes with a series of fantastic photos that greatly enhance her description. Because Emily is such a talented photographer, her photos are an art within themselves and here a picture is really worth a thousand words. Not one word or pixel on her blog is a waste of space, but everything is specifically included to please readers.
Because the content is interesting and the blog is beautiful to look at, readers appreciate and anticipate each and every post. Emily also does a great job making her blog very personal by sharing pieces of her life as they relate to her posts. Readers feel very connected to her and almost have an online relationship with Cupcakes and Cashmere.
http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/
Monday, October 10, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
Week 5: Input/Output
This week we learned about megapixels in digital cameras. For my business, I would definitely like to purchase a digital camera, so that I could take photos of new inventory to upload to Facebook. I would coordinate with the boutique, so that whenever a new shipment of inventory came in I would come in to take photos of the new merchandise. For a fashion boutique, for example, I would prefer the store to have a couple of people volunteer to model the new clothing for me to take many photos. I would then have a new Facebook album for every month of new inventory and would upload the photos to the specific month. Uploading the photos to the Facebook album allows customers to interact because they can comment or like the photos with feedback and inquire about pricing. Based off of their comments, the boutique could get a feel for which type of merchandise is more popular, assuming customers do interact.
I could also upload one or two photos to Twitter, and in my Tweets suggest that users check out the Facebook albums if they want to see more pictures of the new inventory. Because I want to get a good quality photo, but I do not need anything professional because it is only being upload to Facebook and not being printed out, I would go with a standard camera with anything between 3 and 5 Megapixels. However, I would probably prefer something closer to five.
This week we also learned about QR (Quick Respnose) codes which is a type of bar code that allows people with smartphones to take a picture of the bar code and automatically be directed to a webpage with more information. I would use a QR code generator to generate QR codes that would direct customers to the Facebook and Twitter pages. I would suggest that the boutique keep the QR codes by the cash register and they encourage customers to take one or use one right in the store. By encouraging customers to use them right in the store, they are in the moment and are more likely to them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter rather than just hoping that customers remember to look them up online once they get home.
I could also upload one or two photos to Twitter, and in my Tweets suggest that users check out the Facebook albums if they want to see more pictures of the new inventory. Because I want to get a good quality photo, but I do not need anything professional because it is only being upload to Facebook and not being printed out, I would go with a standard camera with anything between 3 and 5 Megapixels. However, I would probably prefer something closer to five.
This week we also learned about QR (Quick Respnose) codes which is a type of bar code that allows people with smartphones to take a picture of the bar code and automatically be directed to a webpage with more information. I would use a QR code generator to generate QR codes that would direct customers to the Facebook and Twitter pages. I would suggest that the boutique keep the QR codes by the cash register and they encourage customers to take one or use one right in the store. By encouraging customers to use them right in the store, they are in the moment and are more likely to them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter rather than just hoping that customers remember to look them up online once they get home.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Week 4: Hardware
Because the most integral part of my business uses social networking sites, access to a computer and the Internet is the most crucial element to my ability to conduct my business. In class, we learned about hardware and how to choose which computer will give you the best results for your computing needs. Because I will be spending so much time working on the computer, the choice I make for the computer that I want to use for work is very important.
My main uses will be the Internet for social media and email, Microsoft Office Word and Excel, basic photo editing and storing, and a calendar. I am a huge virtual multitasker so I want a computer that can function quickly while running multiple applications. I want a computer that's user friendly and visually pleasing. I definitely would like a laptop, so that I can take my computer with me when I meet with clients.
Apple's Macbook Pro is a quad core so I will have a powerful CPU. It has 8MG of L3 cache which will allow my computer to go fast because it has a lot of memory with very high cache, two things which determine how fast the computer will carry out processes. Also it runs at 2.2 GHz which will also means the computer will go at a fairly good speed. 2.2 GHz is not very high, but it's also not low. However, 2.2GHz should be good enough for my usage. The Macbook Pro is very user friendly because it is currently running Lion. I am experienced with Apple computers, so I am comfortable using this operating system. I can access the Internet as long as I have an open Internet connection on my Macbook Pro. Also, all Mac's come with a software called iLife that include an application called iPhoto which I can use to store and edit photos that I will upload to Facebook. It also has a 750GB hard drive with 5400 rpm which gives me enough storage and good running speed. It comes with a DVD drive and a 15 inch screen which will allow me to have a comfortable screen size and ability to watch/burn videos if I decide to also incorporate videos into my social networking usage.
My main uses will be the Internet for social media and email, Microsoft Office Word and Excel, basic photo editing and storing, and a calendar. I am a huge virtual multitasker so I want a computer that can function quickly while running multiple applications. I want a computer that's user friendly and visually pleasing. I definitely would like a laptop, so that I can take my computer with me when I meet with clients.
Apple's Macbook Pro is a quad core so I will have a powerful CPU. It has 8MG of L3 cache which will allow my computer to go fast because it has a lot of memory with very high cache, two things which determine how fast the computer will carry out processes. Also it runs at 2.2 GHz which will also means the computer will go at a fairly good speed. 2.2 GHz is not very high, but it's also not low. However, 2.2GHz should be good enough for my usage. The Macbook Pro is very user friendly because it is currently running Lion. I am experienced with Apple computers, so I am comfortable using this operating system. I can access the Internet as long as I have an open Internet connection on my Macbook Pro. Also, all Mac's come with a software called iLife that include an application called iPhoto which I can use to store and edit photos that I will upload to Facebook. It also has a 750GB hard drive with 5400 rpm which gives me enough storage and good running speed. It comes with a DVD drive and a 15 inch screen which will allow me to have a comfortable screen size and ability to watch/burn videos if I decide to also incorporate videos into my social networking usage.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Week 3: Internet Privacy
This week in class we discussed the importance of monitoring the information you release over the Internet because we are quickly losing more and more of our privacy the more that we post in the online world. I will relate this to my business in two ways: my personal privacy and the privacy of the profiles for boutiques that I create.
It will be imperative for me as an entrepreneur to have a squeaky clean record because I am developing new relationships in the business world. When I approach a potential new client, they may decide to look me up on Google as a sort of background check, and I must make sure that they won't find anything compromising on me. Therefore, I will keep my Facebook privacy settings tight and private, and may actually make a specific Facebook profile for myself for business clients that decide to add me. I will make sure that information on my both pages are appropriate and treat everything I post as something I wouldn't be ashamed to see "on the front cover of the New York Times" as my IST professor said so eloquently. I will use the tightest security settings on my profile for friends and family so that those who are not my friends could not even search for the profile on Facebook. My work profile will be searchable, but will still have tight security settings.
The profiles for the boutiques that I create should have loose privacy settings because I want the Facebook/Twitter profile to come up online when others search the boutique. I would also encourage the boutique to remind customers that they are on Facebook/Twitter and encourage their customers to like the boutique on Facebook and follow them on Twitter both verbally and on business cards. I suppose the most important thing is to ensure that inappropriate content does not get accidentally posted on the boutique's Facebook/Twitter profile. Any inappropriate content may offend the clarinet and damage the business's reputation.
Clearly, losing our privacy on the Internet can be used to one's advantage or can force us to have to be more cautious, but if we are educated on the ways to monitor our information we can separate our work and personal lives. Using profile privacy settings will help make my business more successful by keeping my personal life private and making boutiques public for the patrons to subscribe to.
It will be imperative for me as an entrepreneur to have a squeaky clean record because I am developing new relationships in the business world. When I approach a potential new client, they may decide to look me up on Google as a sort of background check, and I must make sure that they won't find anything compromising on me. Therefore, I will keep my Facebook privacy settings tight and private, and may actually make a specific Facebook profile for myself for business clients that decide to add me. I will make sure that information on my both pages are appropriate and treat everything I post as something I wouldn't be ashamed to see "on the front cover of the New York Times" as my IST professor said so eloquently. I will use the tightest security settings on my profile for friends and family so that those who are not my friends could not even search for the profile on Facebook. My work profile will be searchable, but will still have tight security settings.
The profiles for the boutiques that I create should have loose privacy settings because I want the Facebook/Twitter profile to come up online when others search the boutique. I would also encourage the boutique to remind customers that they are on Facebook/Twitter and encourage their customers to like the boutique on Facebook and follow them on Twitter both verbally and on business cards. I suppose the most important thing is to ensure that inappropriate content does not get accidentally posted on the boutique's Facebook/Twitter profile. Any inappropriate content may offend the clarinet and damage the business's reputation.
Clearly, losing our privacy on the Internet can be used to one's advantage or can force us to have to be more cautious, but if we are educated on the ways to monitor our information we can separate our work and personal lives. Using profile privacy settings will help make my business more successful by keeping my personal life private and making boutiques public for the patrons to subscribe to.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Hello all. This is my first blog post so here it goes. I am an 18 year old from California making a blog about my entrepreneurial idea for my Freshman Information Studies class. I'd like to start a marketing firm that uses social media websites (Twitter and Facebook) to promote boutiques that hire my services.
The main service my firm provides relates perfectly to the topic of the past week's lecture on Social Media. First I would make my client a Facebook profile. Then, I would take advantage of Facebook's capability to post photo albums by creating monthly albums that would showcase the boutique's new inventory for the month. This would work well because it would show up in their friend's newsfeeds and be very eye catching. I would also use status updates on Facebook and Twitter to remind followers and friends of sales and promotions. By giving a personality to the boutique customers would feel more in touch with the boutique. These social media sites would create and open forum between customers and the store so that customers could ask questions and provide feedback.
I choose social media as a marketing device rather than email because so many people spend way more time on Facebook than on email and it is a much more personal forum.
The main service my firm provides relates perfectly to the topic of the past week's lecture on Social Media. First I would make my client a Facebook profile. Then, I would take advantage of Facebook's capability to post photo albums by creating monthly albums that would showcase the boutique's new inventory for the month. This would work well because it would show up in their friend's newsfeeds and be very eye catching. I would also use status updates on Facebook and Twitter to remind followers and friends of sales and promotions. By giving a personality to the boutique customers would feel more in touch with the boutique. These social media sites would create and open forum between customers and the store so that customers could ask questions and provide feedback.
I choose social media as a marketing device rather than email because so many people spend way more time on Facebook than on email and it is a much more personal forum.
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