Girls In Tech

September 2, 2010
7:00 pm	to	10:00 pm

PLEASE NOTE: THE DATE HAS CHANGED FOR THIS EVENT – SEPTEMBER 2ND

Talk about “girls in tech” — a new live chat on Twitter hosted and moderated by seven savvy women seems to epitomize the phrase!

Launched just two months ago in June 2010, #luxurychat is a live chat on Twitter discussing the intersection of social media and luxury. The list of all the co-founders of #luxurychat can be found in the image below. The live chat takes place on the third Wednesday of every month. Being a PR and social media consultant for luxury brands, I have been increasingly approached about the void in live Twitter chats addressing the topic of how luxury brands can effectively use, and have effectively used, social media to market their brands.  Having corresponded on Twitter regularly with six other tech and marketing savvy women in similar industries, we banded together and formed #luxurychat.

The response has been overwhelming.

In just it’s very second incarnation, we featured travel industry expert, and social media pioneer Mr. Simon F. Cooper, President of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. We already have plans to feature more high-profile industry experts in the coming months…and believe we have touched just the tip of the iceberg of the scope and reach of #luxurychat.

We hope you join us live for our next #luxurychat on Wednesday, August 18!

Christine Kirk can be reached via e-mail at christine@socialmuse.com or on Twitter @LuxuryPRGal.

I admit that this is a pretty self-indulgent blog post, but so many people ask me about my work experience and the launch of my new company, that I thought I’d dedicate a post to it.

I’m Christine Kirk, but many simply know me by my Twitter handle, @LuxuryPRGal. I definitely respond to both names so feel free to call me whichever you prefer. I started my career in PR at various in-house positions including a law firm, and renewable energy company. I eventually merged into agency life at a tech/consumer lifestyle shop in LA, where in the early 2000s, I was introduced to social media as we know it, with the start of Friendster and developing my blogger relations skills. I was hooked right away, and was then brought on-board at a luxury hospitality agency to introduce many of their high-profile clients to social media. In December 2009, I finally took the leap and launched my own company, Social Muse Communications, a social media marketing consultancy firm for luxury travel, restaurant, tech and lifestyle brands in Los Angeles.

PR agencies across the board have gone through hell and back in the past 2 years — due to the economic climate, and the rapid changes in traditional media as we know it – and at the same time. Let me be clear here — traditional media is not dying. It is changing, and in my opinion, for the better. Print and boradcast media outlets are interacting with their readers and viewers in ways they never had the opportunity to before — and it’s making the news much more relevent..and even accountable. For various reasons (including finances, fear, ignorance, etc.) many PR agencies have not quickly adapted to the changes taking place all around us. Some have done a great job, while others are still playing catch-up. Personally, I never want to “catch-up” to anything, and would prefer to be at the forefront of one of the most exciting revolutions in recent history. There are many PR people who have embraced this “new PR” and who are inspirations of mine including, @NicoleJordan, @BrianSolis, @skydiver (Peter Shankman).

Social Muse Communications is employing a whole new type of public relations and Return on Influence (the new ROI) – there is no one way for a brand to reach their target audience. Simply securing a placement in a glossy magazine, or a news segment on television, is not going to cut it anymore. To go from a good, to an excellent communications strategy, a brand must get in front of consumers through many different levels of media – print, broadcast, online, blogs, and social networking sites. This new world of PR gives PR practitioners the opportunity to communicate not only with media, but also with a brand’s customers directly — and that “high-touch” level of communications is what is most effective to enhancing a brand’s bottom-line. Through real relationship building, both online and offline, people (consumers) are more receptive to hearing and acting on PR messages when it comes from a PR person who has taken the time to get to know them. I personally have over 7,500 followers on Twitter and cannot believe the amazing wealth of knowledge, expertise, inspiration, new business leads, media contacts, bloggers contacts, humor, and friends I have made.

Social media is not, and should never be the only tool in a PR pro’s toolbox, but it just might be my favorite.

Christine Kirk is founder and principal at Social Muse Communications, a social media marketing consultancy firm for luxury travel, restaurant, tech and lifestyle brands in Los Angeles. She also holds the position of PR Manager for the Los Angeles chapter of Girls in Tech. She can be reached via e-mail at christine@socialmuse.com or on Twitter @luxuryprgal.

Attensity360’s IdolStats.com monitored millions of conversations to choose Casey James as this week’s American Idol cast off and if the current social media buzz is correct, we may have a winner in the underdog this season as Lee currently has a HUGE percentage of the American Idol conversation happening now.

Idolstats uses the Attensity360 social media monitoring and analytics product to track the power of social media conversations to predict which contestant will be voted off each week. Millions of tweets, comments and social media conversations about American Idol are analyzed in order to gauge American sentiment toward contestants.

In addition to predicting a cast off each week, the team at IdolStats has also been reading the tea leaves on how heart-throb status , fan-dialing and the judges opinions contribute to who will actually come out on top.

Fans can view the real-time data at IdolStats.com throughout the week to find out America’s uncensored opinion and tweet their own predictions based on updates and new data. Fans can visit the Idol Stats blog, http://blog.idolstats.com and follow the Twitter hashtag #IdolStats to keep updated on IdolStats.com and the community.

Success in selecting the American Idol cast off comes on the heels of Attensity Group’s acquisition of Biz360 enabling them to now offer the industry’s most powerful and easy-to-use analysis, delivery and response capabilities, enabling businesses to effectively listen, analyze, relate, and act on information, both inside and outside of the firewall.

On April 22, the Los Angeles chapter of Girls in Tech hosted an incredibly successful PR & Marketing 3.0 panel. The turnout was above and beyond what we expected and we were thrilled to be able to engage so many great minds on such a relevant topic.

The amazing panelists (if I do say so myself) were: Rynda Laurel @rynda (AF83, Bearstech & Hackable:Devices), Heather Meeker @heathermeeker (Whrrl), Babette Pepaj @bakespace (Bakespace, TechMUNCH & The Daily Bits), Amanda Coolong @acoolong (Tech Zulu, ThisWeekin.com & Beta PR) and me, Christine Kirk @luxuryprgal (Social Muse Communications). Unfortunately, the equally wonderful Nicole Jordan (Mobile Roadie) and Andrea Scott (Pom Wonderful) had last minute commitments that kept them from being on the panel as originally scheduled.

One thing for sure is that we were a group of opinionated, passionate, and incredibly intelligent ladies who had a lot to say. Online communications and the digital world is something we are all deeply involved with in our daily personal and work lives, and it couldn’t have been a livelier conversation.

If you couldn’t make it to the event last week, we hope you come out to the next one (we know it’s tough economic times, but price of entry is ten bucks, and you get to schmooze with gorgeous, smart women – what more can you ask for?)

At a high-level, some of the “golden nuggets” (if you will) provided by the panelists were:

• Press releases are NOT dead. They have undergone an evolution with the advent of the social media press release and are still relevant for SEO purposes. They are also a vehicle to disseminate your brand’s messaging the way you want, and in a controlled environment.
• Twitter and Facebook aren’t about the number of followers and friends that you have. Social media is about building brand awareness and making a direct connection with your customers and consumers and having a two-way dialogue with them.
• Twitter Lists are your friend! Use them to create organized groups on different topics, industries, etc. Start with www.wefollow.com for help.
• Social media is but one arrow in the quiver, don’t get caught with tunnel vision on this one channel of communication, and remember to use the many other avenues available to get your brand out there.
• Use geolocation services (FourSquare, Gowalla, Whrrl, etc.) as personal brand builders and “legitimize your work through your lifestyle.” If you represent hospitality brands for example, checking in to restaurants, hotels and spas builds confidence that you practice what you preach.
• How can you avoid Internet stalkers when using geolocation services? Check in when you check out. Only check in when you’re LEAVING a venue, not when you arrive.
• Twitter is great way to create relationships with media you want to pitch stories to. Use Twitter to really learn who a journalist is, what they cover, and how they liked to be pitched. Ask them questions, send them interesting articles and acknowledge them when they post a story they wrote. Build a legitimate relationship and they’ll be more willing to open your e-mail the next time you send one…
• Only small niches of people are actively on Twitter, so your message may not go far. Identify key influencers in other places online and off who can take your message beyond social media.
• Geolocation is here to stay, so you better start learning FourSquare, Gowalla, and Whrrl to stay on top of your game.

Christine Kirk is founder and principal at Social Muse Communications, a social media marketing consultancy firm for luxury travel, restaurant, tech and lifestyle brands in Los Angeles. She also holds the position of PR Manager for the Los Angeles chapter of Girls in Tech. She can be reached via e-mail at christine@socialmuse.com or on Twitter @luxuryprgal.

We at Girls in Tech are fascinated by the idea of crowdsourcing and its effect on achieving social good.

It’s why we’re happy to spread the word about the 2^nd Twestival event, a global philanthropy event which will occur in hundreds of cities around the world. This year, Twestival turns its focus to raising awareness – and real money – for global education.

Consider these facts:

• At least 72 million children around the world are not enrolled in school
• Girls account for 55 per cent of the world’s out-of-school population.
• In 26 countries, approximately 20% of young adults have fewer than two years of schooling.

New York City – by far, one of the most active cities on Twitter – is once again participating in the global cause with a music-filled event on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at Good Units, a swanky new venue in the Hudson Hotel. (Yes, tickets are still available!)

What’s amazing is that every last dime raised at every Twestival event taking place around the world will go directly to Concern Worldwide, a non-governmental, international, humanitarian organization dedicated to reducing suffering and eliminating poverty around the world.

If you’re not able to make it to tomorrow’s event in NYC, you can still participate. Check out Mashable’s list of 5 Ways You Can Get Involved With Twestival. If you’re an iPhone user, check out the app they’ve built to help you stay in-the-know about this year’s efforts. Very cool.

… And stay tuned for a number of Girls in Tech education + tech initiatives and mini-conferences making their debut this Spring 2010.

March 25, 2010
7:00 pm	to	10:30 pm

Girls in Tech LA is very proud to announce our involvement in LA’s very own Twestival on the 25th. Started in 2009, Twestival is a fantastic event that brings together local social media communities in over a hundred cities to raise money for a very worthy cause.  

This year’s LA version of the popular festival is happening at the legendary Roxy Theatre, and proceeds are going to Concern Worldwide — which brings incredible educational programs to the world’s poorest and most marginalized children. Tickets are only $20, and well worth it, because the event is shaping up to be pretty great.

Our very own GIT LA member Shira Lazar is co-hosting, and entertainment includes Youtube’s official video mixing DJ-Mike Relm,  the TweetMuseum of one-of-a-kind celebrity Twitter art, the Polite in Public Digital Photo booth and 16 year-old DJ prodigy and music blogger Jake Simon. Plus, there’s going to be a surprise performance by a top alternative band that’s currently on tour. Not even we know who it is, but we do know we’re excited to find out.

You can find more info here.  And don’t forget to stop by the GIT LA area and say hi!

About two weeks ago, I had reached the end of the road with my cable company – Time Warner Cable. For the past four months, my service had been spotty at best, non-existent at worst. And believe me, I wasn’t just upset that American Idol wasn’t being DVR’d…my Internet service, which is also provided by TWC, was experiencing the same spotty service. And being that I run a business out of my home, spotty Internet service is 100% unacceptable.

I had called TWC customer service many times over the months – demanding a pro-rated fee for the service I wasn’t receiving, asking for help, a solution – and the feedback I would always get was, “restart your cable box.” I began restarting my cable box at least once a day – and it never solved the problem I was having. My picture was still pixilated and frozen – my Internet service down.

Over the phone, TWC customer service told me there must be an issue with the signal getting into my house…and, basically, “oh well.”

Oh well? OH WELL??

I did not take this lightly. If I pay for something, in a timely and consistent manner, then I expect to get functional service in a timely and consistent manner. I would have dropped TWC altogether except that they have a monopoly on cable service providers in my area. I was stuck (no thanks to you Fios and Uverse-why haven’t you rescued me yet?).

Until, that is, I decided to take to Twitter and vent my frustrations there. At the very least, I could make myself feel better by telling my 6,300 Twitter followers how frustrated I was.

So, in my frustrated rampage I created the hashtag, #dietimewarnercable and began pummeling out Tweets about my “dislike” for TWC. Harsh? Yes. Did it feel GOOD? Oh yes…

In my rampage, I did a search for Time Warner Cable and could not find any Twitter handles associated with the cable giant. I believe I even wrote a snarky Tweet about corporations who don’t have a social media presence, and how people like me can help contribute to a negative online image.

About 20-30 minutes went by of me Tweeting, my followers responding, asking questions about what had set me off, etc. And then it happened. TWC reached out to me via DM. I quickly learned that Time Warner Cable actually has several active Twitter accounts including their PR person, tech support, a social media expert, among others…all of whom personally reached out to me:

@TWCablePhil @twcablebrienh @twcablehelp @alextwc

They apologized, asked what my service issues were, and how they could help. I don’t say this often, but I was wrong.

I. Was. Wrong.

Not only does Time Warner Cable have a social media and Twitter presence, but they monitor it late at night, and actually responded – in a timely, caring way to my disgruntled Tweets. They scheduled a service call for technician to come to my home and solve my service issues. The technician showed up a day later, fixed the problems, and sure enough, everything has been working perfectly since his visit.

What could not be accomplished on the phone with customer service was quickly and effectively taken care of via social media. To me, this is a wonderful example of how an age-old practice – customer service call centers – can take major notes from a new-age practice, social media.

What the call center could not solve, social media did. And that is precisely why it’s here to STAY.

Christine Kirk is founder and principal at Social Muse Communications, a PR and social media marketing consultancy firm for food/beverage, travel, luxury, technology, and lifestyle brands in Los Angeles. She also holds the position of PR Manager for the Los Angeles chapter of Girls in Tech. She can be reached via e-mail at christine@socialmuse.com or on Twitter @luxuryprgal.

One of the most succinct descriptions of Twitter I’ve ever come across was from a mommy blogger who famously opined in April 2009:

“Twitter makes famous people normal and normal people famous.”

As I sat in the audience at this year’s 2nd Annual Shorty Awards at TheTimesCenter in the New York Times Tower (thanks Morris + King!), it dawned on me that her observation couldn’t have been more appropriate.

Twitterers both ‘normal’ and ‘famous’ sat side-by-side that night to celebrate the most innovative uses of the 140-character real-time update. And for an awards ceremony in only its second year of existence, I was quite impressed.

Guests ranged from Newark’s Twitter-savvy Mayor Corey Booker (who won the Government category) to the Birmingham, Alabama food lover @Foodimentary who has built up an army of over 120,000 followers to his quirky Twitter handle. Guests were even treated to a special appearance by Grover, who cheerily accepted the Best Brand award on behalf of @SesameStreet (along with @WholeFoods).

One of the weirdest highlights of the night, of course, was when Annie Scott, who Tweets on behalf of a fictional llama that tells her followers what to do (@DoWhatITellYou), got “Kanye’d” during her acceptance speech by a bearded and belligerent East Side Dave of Sirius XM’s Special Delivery show. Click here to watch the mayhem in all its glory. (Though trust me, this video doesn’t do the actual stage fiasco any justice.)

One of the most moving moments of the night, however—and perhaps the moment when everyone in the room realized the magnitude of the evening—was when Haitian-born Carel Pedre accepted his special Humanitarian Shorty for providing his 9,300 Twitter followers with up-to-the-minute information about the devastation caused by January’s catastrophic earthquake in Haiti.

Despite the few interruptions, host Rick Sanchez from CNN did a fantastic job at keeping the show rolling. And with an entire audience with a built-in 140-character attention span, it was perfectly fitting that every acceptance speech was limited to the size of a succinct Tweet.

The awards ceremony concluded with a special acceptance speech by the Latvian-born Sarasota, Florida native who was awarded with the TwitPic of the Year. Yes, it was Janis Krums who uploaded the now famous iPhone photo of U.S. Airways flight 1549, minutes after its emergency landing in the Hudson River.

So for all 12 of you out there who still think Twitter should be viewed by some as a silly microblogging tool “intended to be a way for self-absorbed egotists to share their most banal and idiotic thoughts with the world,” maybe you should give it another try.

For a rundown of the top 10 moments from The Shorty Awards, click here.
For a complete list of Shorty Award winners and finalists, click here.

9am EST yesterday morning began the launch of Loic Le Meur’s SeesmicLook, a radically innovative and intuitive app that curates Twitter content and introduces it to the mainstream population – aka those who don’t have a Twitter account, don’t know what Twitter is, or don’t really find the appeal in microblogging.

If you’re unfamiliar with @loic and his marvels, Seesmic has created a number of platforms that help people share information regardless of where they are: via desktop, web-based, mobile, and recently e-mail, SMS and chat. These platforms have been downloaded 3.5 million times since the company’s launch in 2007. And because one of Seesmic’s largest goals is to create a streamlined experience for Twitter users, devoted tweeters are, well, their main users.  Read the rest of this entry »