Senate to take up Postal Service bill next week

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-postal-bill-next-week-223742777.html

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Retail Business & Technology Expo, New Spring Leaves ...

Last week I attended the Retail Business and Technology Expo in London. It?s the second year of the show. Their strategy to drive traffic appears to be paying off ? registered attendees were reportedly up significantly.? Floor space was at a premium (vendors that typically buy whole pads at NRF in January had almost miniscule booths by comparison ? in a capacity venue).

There was one particular thing that caught my attention and inspired me to make the long haul from Denver to London for a two-day conference. It was the combination of ?business? and ?technology? in the conference?s title. In an age when technology increasingly lies at the heart of almost everything that retailers want to accomplish in engaging consumers, it was refreshing to see a conference focus on bringing the two together.

So what did I learn from this event? One, it pulls a lot of Americans, much like NRF?s big show manages to pull a lot of Europeans. I saw a lot of familiar faces at the event ? established US players alongside companies looking to break out into the European market by establishing a toe-hold at the London show.

But it also drove home to me that ?omni-channel? as a term is here to stay. It was whole-heartedly embraced by attendees and speakers alike, with a fairly common definition: the stuff that comes after you realize that just enabling simple, one-off process that help customers cross channels isn?t enough. And the retailers who spoke at the conference graciously shared their experiences as they struggle with building cross-channel processes.

In very general terms, European retailers seem to have more challenges than American retailers, in part because they have a more established version of a channel that is very immature in the US ? home delivery. Home delivery is not a universal capability, by any means, but it does serve as more of a consideration for omni-channel in European cities than it does in most US cities, outside of New York, and maybe Boston and Chicago. It doesn?t mean that European retailers have bigger challenges, or even significantly different challenges, when it comes to enabling cross-channel shopping behavior, but it does mean their challenges are maybe slightly more complex because they have more touchpoints for consumers.

However, one thing that also came across loud and clear was that customer centricity remains at the heart of cross-channel. All of these efforts that retailers are struggling to align to a cross-channel reality come at the insistence of shoppers, who persist in crashing across channels with no regard to retailers? constraints in supporting cross-channel behavior. So whether it is a grudging, after-the-fact acknowledgement of the customer as central to the business, or an enthusiastic embrace of same, retailers ranging from McDonald?s to Tommy Hilfiger demonstrated at the conference that customer centricity is key to unlocking omni-channel value ? when you place customer considerations seriously at the heart of your strategy, you can create truly innovative solutions to customer problems that you maybe didn?t even know existed. And that is a straight path to differentiation ? and long-term customer value.

So I hope the show continues its success, and grows into a real intersection point between technology and the business ? reflected not only in the discussions and presentations but also in the cross-section of attendees. A technologist who can speak business is valuable. But increasingly, a business owner who can speak technology is meeting a basic job requirement. Any help out there in the industry that provides an opportunity to consider both together ? business process as well as enabling technologies ? will only become more important as cross-channel capabilities grow.

Source: http://www.bluemaumau.org/retail_business_technology_expo_new_spring_leaves

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Karen Leland: 10 Pinterest Tips For Small Business Pinners

As a small business marketing consultant, it's my job to stay on top of the latest and greatest in the world of would-be life-altering Internet bells and whistles. Ironically, however, the last thing I wanted to do was learn yet another social media tool -- that promised to transform my online life.

But day after day, my husband, Jon, would flash his iPad in front of my face and tease me with all the new, cool photos he was pinning on Pinterest. Besides, I was scheduled to give a talk on social media for book promotion at an upcoming International Book Publishers Association conference in San Francisco. So I threw my hands up in surrender and let Pinterest have its way with me -- and I'm glad I did.

For those who are reading this and going, "Pina what?" here's the basic business brief:

? Launched March, 2010, Pinterest has grown 4000% in the last six months.
? It has 17 million users a month and is the 60th most visited site in the U.S.
? Pinterest drives more referral traffic than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn -- combined.

Beyond these star statistics, here are a few important things for your small business marketing mind to munch on:

Pinterest is a lifestyle brand that allows you to create a visual online pinboard, organized around topics of your choice, by category. For example: I'm a certified chocoholic, so I started a Pinterest board last week on dark chocolates I love -- featuring photos of said delicacy accompanied by a hopefully mouthwatering description.

Seventy percent of the site's visitors are women age 25-44, and they spend an average of 15 minutes looking around. If that does not make a small business mind sit up and take notice, nothing will.

So how can a small business owner, book author, entrepreneur or expert make the most of this new marketing tool? Here are ten ways you can use Pinterest to promote with pictures -- all in a non-hype, customer-friendly, low-key, value-added way:

#1. Turn your content into infographics and data charts. This is a user-friendly (and visual) way to showcase information useful to your audience, unique to your industry or business and on point with your expertise.

#2. Promote user-generated content with a guest pinner board. Allow visitors to add videos and photos that fit in with your niche. You may also want to consider running a contest for the most interesting, unique, useful, etc. pins on a topic. Offer a juicy prize and drive traffic with the competition.

#3. Don't just pin pictures, pin videos. Think segments from speaking engagements, news clips, interviews and YouTube videos that are highly relevant to your Pinterest boards.

#4. Use strong visual images with all your blog posts. The more captivating your images, the more likely they will be repinned. Adding an image to every blog post you put up gives you the opportunity to pin it and drive traffic back to your site.

#5. Pin your e-book / hard book covers. If you have a series of e-books, or traditional books you have authored, make a board featuring your work. Consider offering a free chapter or download of the entire e-book to add value.

#6. Put your presentation materials on Pinterest. Are you giving a speech, leading a webinar, conducting a class? If so, why not create a Pinterest board for that specific presentation that you can share with the attendees as supplemental material after the session is over -- or that they can direct others to who didn't have the opportunity to attend.

#7. Introduce the members of your team. Although Pinterest is primarily an online platform for showcasing your interests, hobbies and lifestyle finds, it can also serve as a way to let customers in on the inner workings of your company by featuring members of your staff. In addition, look for ways to pin photos of your company's behind-the-scenes scenarios such as conferences, speaking engagements, company events and actual production of your product as appropriate.

#8. Create customer boards. Much in the same way that introducing your customers to your staff creates a more intimate business relationship, highlighting your clients to the world has similar benefits. Use Pinterest to tell your clients' stories and highlight hot case studies. Just be sure to check first before making their mugs public.

#9. Create a coupon graphic. In order to give potential clients a promotional discount on Pinterest, create a coupon graphic that can be pinned to an appropriate board. Use the description section to further detail the goods and services being offered at a discounted rate.

#10. Create an FAQ for working with you. Think of this as the owner's manual for your business. How can clients work most effectively with you? What are the most frequently asked questions people have about your business, product or expertise? Perhaps a glossary of frequently used terms in your business would be useful. Once up, you can use this board as a place to send potential new clients for suggestions on how they might best take advantage of what you offer.

Don't forget to add a Pinterest icon to your website. This allows visitors to showcase and share things that they find on your website on their Pinterest boards, driving traffic to your Web page and promoting your products/services.

As for the technical aspects of signing up, creating boards, pinning images and repinning others, it's so intuitive, easy and fun that I often find myself wondering what I can pin next. In fact, I think I will go grab that new dark chocolate I bought the other day, try it out and -- if it passes muster -- pin it.

Please feel free to check out my favorite productivity tools, social media, books and chocolate on Pinterest. http://pinterest.com/karenleland/

Karen Leland is a best-selling author, marketing and branding consultant and president of Sterling Marketing Group where she helps businesses create killer content and negotiate the wired world of today's media landscape -- social and otherwise. For questions or comments, please contact her at kl@karenleland.com

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Follow Karen Leland on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Karenleland

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karen-leland/10-ways-to-use-pinterest-_b_1367288.html

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Olga Beanblossom's Mummified Corpse Has Been In Chapel Basement Since 2010

Olga Beanblossom was finally buried next to her husband in Girard Cemetery on Friday -- after her body spent more than a year in a chapel basement.

Source: http://caregiverschristianministry.org/news/archives/10167

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Mali mutineers declare all borders shut

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/mali-mutineers-declare-borders-shut-120427240.html

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Way to feed the Internet trolls, Alec Baldwin!

Mike Seger/Reuters

Alec Baldwin (R) and girlfriend Hilaria Thomas, February 4, 2012.

By Helen A.S. Popkin

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Mercurial blowhard and flagship brand of the Long Island acting fraternity Alec Baldwin recently rallied his followers in an all-out offensive against an alleged Twitter stalker harassing his girlfriend, Hilaria Thomas.

According to the Hollywood Reporter:

Baldwin gave out the Twitter handle of the user, @scarfacemadam, whom he said "has entered the twitter-verse ONLY to harass my girlfriend" in a way "that is borderline threatening." He asked users to "go to her address and read just a few of her posts, and give her your notice of her behavior."

The request worked -- the user, who had been encouraging Thomas to leave Baldwin, soon deleted her profile, after being inundated with harsh tweets.

Way to deploy a LGM-30G Minuteman-III intercontinental ballistic missile?to a Twitter fight, guy.

Live Poll

Did Alec Baldwin do the right thing?

Look. I ain't gonna lie. As far as I'm concerned, pretty much everything Alec Baldwin does ? acting or in real life ? is awesome ? with, of course, the exception of that leaked voice mail message to his daughter. But hey, that's was never any of my business, and anyhoo I guarantee he's a better parent than any I ever had.

That said, if Baldwin wants to play 4chan ? posting identifying information of an individual with the suggestion of harassment ??he should learn the iconic Web forum's Rules of the Internet, specifically rule 14: "Do not argue with a troll ? it means that they win."

If the troll harassing his GF really is as bad as he says, then it's way to fuel a psycho stalker, Alec Baldwin!

Conversely, if the troll is just your run-of-the-mill Internet jerk (with or without diagnosable mental issues), then Baldwin just sent thousands of people in that troll's direction.?While many of the Twitter attacks against @scarfacemadam?can't compare to the jillions of death threats tweeted by Justin Bieber fans should someone so much as insult a perfect hair on his well-manicured head, they aren't pretty. Certainly nothing one should throw the way of a person suffering any kind of mental or emotional disturbance. For example, these:

@Scarfacemadam?You are one crazy, psycho a**?b****. Seriously. Grow up. Leave?@alecbaldwin?& his gf alone.?#***clown

@Scarfacemadam?why don't you go f*** yourself and stop harassing people.. I'm sure?@alecbaldwin?has not affected you personally.#b****

?@Scarfacemadam?you're kinda a?b****?maybe u should log off twitter and find something better to do... harassing over the internet is DUMB

The irony of?all of the?above is kind of awesome if, say, one isn't outfitted with an empathy chip.

Granted, Baldwin is a dude given to short bursts of public rage that are often pretty on target. Society needs guys like this to shake things up.

Take for example, Baldwin's last Twitter twantrum after he was booted from an American Airlines flight in December because he wouldn't stop playing "Words with Friends" while the jet was still waiting on the tarmac.?Earlier this week, the New York Times reported that the FAA is considering its ban on digital reading devices during taxi, take-off and landing. ?

Note, however, that in the case of American Airlines,?Baldwin unleashed his furor against a corporation. Just like Kevin Smith's own righteous Twitter twantrum against Southwest Airlines when the director claimed he was booted from his flight for being too fat to fly. In both cases, the targets were giant organizations outfitted with the public relations departments more than capable of dealing with the fallout.

When a celebrity directs his?fanatic legion (which has various states of mental stability) against a single, not-famous person, that's feeding a troll at best, and at worst, straight-up bullying.

Dude seriously needs to?take a tip from Ice-T?who issued the Best (NSFW) Twitter Insult Ever after musician Ami Mann commented on his acting ability (or lack thereof) via the microblogging platform.

As Gawker noted at the time: "Do not get in a Twitter fight with a person whose followers consider themselves an organized army, as Ice-T's Final Level Twitter Gang does."

After a plethora of Twitter apologies from Mann, Ice T called off the angry mob: "OK. Homegirl apologized ?? Say no more. FLTG Cease fire! Once again there's Peace in Twitterland. Ice T. "

Take note Baldwin: This is how a benevolent Twit-tator rolls.

Helen A.S. Popkin goes blah blah blah about the Internet. Tell her to get a real job?on?Twitter?and/or?Facebook. Also,?Google+.

More on the annoying way we live now:

Source: http://digitallife.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/21/10795260-way-to-feed-the-internet-trolls-alec-baldwin

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