Rocket Pop Media http://rocketpopmedia.com A boutique creative agency and production house in Richmond, VA Tue, 08 May 2012 20:30:44 +0000 en hourly 1 Leaping into Inner Steppe http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/05/08/leaping-into-inner-steppe/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/05/08/leaping-into-inner-steppe/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 20:30:14 +0000 Don Jonathan Webb http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2384 Screen Shot 2012-05-08 at 3.58.32 PM

Inner Steppe is a short stop-motion animation piece by German designer and animator Alex Schulz.  Drawing upon the literature and themes of writer Hermann Hesse and intellectual Carl Jung, this five minute short is a surreal journey that takes viewers deep into the inner mind of its main character.Inner Steppe character The animation is a bit choppy, and doesn't quite measure up to the ethereal oddness of work from filmmakers like The Brothers Quay or Tim Burton.  What makes this piece so endearing is the character design.  Intricately designed and formed, these characters have some major depth!  In my opinion, the set design is also a strong point in Inner Steppe.  It really pushes the sense of isolation.  Shultz's use of an orange-brown palette throughout the film is breathtaking, and the lighting is well placed; soft, yet striking.  While I wasn't completely sold on the camera movement and thought them a bit jerky, it does add a sort of bizarro feel to the odd, loathsome nature of the piece. The story is a bit difficult to follow, but it is a surrealist piece.  It conveys the inner feelings, fears, and desires of the main protagonist.  I love this sort of filmmaking. If you were looking for a great way to spend five minutes of your time today, enjoy. ]]> Screen Shot 2012-05-08 at 3.58.32 PM

Inner Steppe is a short stop-motion animation piece by German designer and animator Alex Schulz.  Drawing upon the literature and themes of writer Hermann Hesse and intellectual Carl Jung, this five minute short is a surreal journey that takes viewers deep into the inner mind of its main character.Inner Steppe character The animation is a bit choppy, and doesn't quite measure up to the ethereal oddness of work from filmmakers like The Brothers Quay or Tim Burton.  What makes this piece so endearing is the character design.  Intricately designed and formed, these characters have some major depth!  In my opinion, the set design is also a strong point in Inner Steppe.  It really pushes the sense of isolation.  Shultz's use of an orange-brown palette throughout the film is breathtaking, and the lighting is well placed; soft, yet striking.  While I wasn't completely sold on the camera movement and thought them a bit jerky, it does add a sort of bizarro feel to the odd, loathsome nature of the piece. The story is a bit difficult to follow, but it is a surrealist piece.  It conveys the inner feelings, fears, and desires of the main protagonist.  I love this sort of filmmaking. If you were looking for a great way to spend five minutes of your time today, enjoy. ]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/05/08/leaping-into-inner-steppe/feed/ 0 The Rite of Writing Right http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/19/the-rite-of-writing-right/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/19/the-rite-of-writing-right/#comments Fri, 20 Apr 2012 01:31:26 +0000 Chris Crews http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2351 Screen Shot 2012-04-19 at 8.48.52 PM

It was a recent headline that sent me wondering:
“Power outages restored after quick moving storms.”
I have no doubt that the citizens who were jolted into “Dancing With the Toddlers in Tiaras” were overjoyed to be thrust back into darkness.  Who needs cable when one can loll peacefully in silence?  The headline seemed to insinuate that power was out, inadvertently restored, and was then returned to “outness”.  A scan over some of my favorite (and widely respected!) daily papers found more of the same:
“People who believe themselves possessed sometimes blame themselves for allowing themselves to have become spiritually unhealthy through succumbing to vice.”
Whoever “they” are, they’re pretty fairly represented by the nouns in this sentence.
Superman getting schooled about words“Till then, small changes can make a big difference.”
And a plow shall lead them to prosperity.
“Ex-Russian banker victim in shooting”
First the victim of an ex-Russian banker, then an ex-Russian, then just a mass shooting?  Who knows? I’m pretty sure that William Safire sits bolt upright in his grave every morning when the daily rag hits the pavement.  “What is it going to be today?” Part of the problem may be in the rush to content.  The perusal of your publication used to be dictated by a human being.  It was called an “editor”.  They checked spelling, syntax, punctuation, examined the sentences and phrases for flow and cadence, and determined where it would fall in the reader’s cycle.  The editor was the crusty veteran chomping on the cigar proclaiming, “We’re gonna lead with it!”People actually writing The editor today is a combination of computer software to determine what’s trending, what words are recognizable, and what phrases are similar.  I doubt that content is thoroughly vetted before being rushed onto the web.  I blame part of this on Twitter. Twitter is remarkable due in large part to the immediacy.  Things hit the social network far faster than they hit newspapers, magazines, and even cable news.  A notable death or new sex tape is “so this morning” far before it makes it into print.  And it does so in limited characters. I was a supervisor in a previous life.  I hired a lovely young lady to work part time while she finished school.  She seemed a bright girl, and was finishing her Master’s at a reputable local university.  She soon, however, developed an issue with punctuality.  I am not insinuating a few moments, like a stuck-in-traffic late.  I’m talking half-hour to an hour late.  Her first offense brought the excuse, “I had a test”.  I gave her the “angry bald man” look and admonished her.  The second offense was rewarded with “I wanted to see my advisor”.  I warned her that I was going to be forced to document her tardiness.  On her third offense I wrote her up.  The document offered her the opportunity to pen a rebuttal.  Her response will forever be seared into my brain:
“Why he mad at me idk. Late b/c I had to finish papar.”
…While on her way to a Master’s Degree. Spelling is only part of the equation.  Take this example: “Arocdnicg to rsceearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer are in the rghit pcale.” Made sense, didn’t it?  It wasn’t until the invention of the printing press that we considered standardizing words, and even then there were variations.  That’s why you can go to Europe and see a “colour” film in a “theatre”.  There are several variations to the spelling of Shakespeare, each apparently coming from the actual author.  While we frequently lob a riposte in tongues other than English, the language itself can be a maze of confusion.
“The damage to the course was severe, though only the largest boughs fell in the rough.”
It would perhaps be easier if we regressed to Chauvet, and everything was phonetic.
“Munga.”Munga and Friend How do you spell that? “Muh-Uh-Un-Gah.  Like it sounds, you caveman.”
I often fear that we are losing the gift of language.  We don’t think about the power of a word, much less about what we commit to paper (virtual or otherwise).  Language has devolved from “We were born before the wind, also younger than the sun. Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the mystic” to “Get you love drunk off my hump, my hump, my hump, my hump my hump my hump.” I write for a living, and fancy myself loquacious.  Words for me are pieces of music, and turns of phrase dance in my head like earworms for weeks before I finally commit my fingers to a keyboard.  I stand accused of a mouth that often travels with much greater dispatch than the alacrity of my grey matter.  I am never certain whether to roam the twisted path of Tolstoy or slide an Occam’s razor of simple prose.  “There was an old man.  He caught a very big fish.”  Perhaps Hemingway was right. Either way, I mourn the passing of proper diction, of adequate punctuation, and of reading things that were actually well written.  In a time of 140 characters and social readers, I offer a dirge to printed matter.  I hereby submit a condemnation of the “delete” key for a hymn to WhiteOut.  Consider this a requiem to the wordsmith.  George Orwell, while a few decades too late, predicted the coming of Big Brother.  He was also remarkably prescient when he said,
“A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language.”
Say goodnight, George.]]> Screen Shot 2012-04-19 at 8.48.52 PM

It was a recent headline that sent me wondering:
“Power outages restored after quick moving storms.”
I have no doubt that the citizens who were jolted into “Dancing With the Toddlers in Tiaras” were overjoyed to be thrust back into darkness.  Who needs cable when one can loll peacefully in silence?  The headline seemed to insinuate that power was out, inadvertently restored, and was then returned to “outness”.  A scan over some of my favorite (and widely respected!) daily papers found more of the same:
“People who believe themselves possessed sometimes blame themselves for allowing themselves to have become spiritually unhealthy through succumbing to vice.”
Whoever “they” are, they’re pretty fairly represented by the nouns in this sentence.
Superman getting schooled about words“Till then, small changes can make a big difference.”
And a plow shall lead them to prosperity.
“Ex-Russian banker victim in shooting”
First the victim of an ex-Russian banker, then an ex-Russian, then just a mass shooting?  Who knows? I’m pretty sure that William Safire sits bolt upright in his grave every morning when the daily rag hits the pavement.  “What is it going to be today?” Part of the problem may be in the rush to content.  The perusal of your publication used to be dictated by a human being.  It was called an “editor”.  They checked spelling, syntax, punctuation, examined the sentences and phrases for flow and cadence, and determined where it would fall in the reader’s cycle.  The editor was the crusty veteran chomping on the cigar proclaiming, “We’re gonna lead with it!”People actually writing The editor today is a combination of computer software to determine what’s trending, what words are recognizable, and what phrases are similar.  I doubt that content is thoroughly vetted before being rushed onto the web.  I blame part of this on Twitter. Twitter is remarkable due in large part to the immediacy.  Things hit the social network far faster than they hit newspapers, magazines, and even cable news.  A notable death or new sex tape is “so this morning” far before it makes it into print.  And it does so in limited characters. I was a supervisor in a previous life.  I hired a lovely young lady to work part time while she finished school.  She seemed a bright girl, and was finishing her Master’s at a reputable local university.  She soon, however, developed an issue with punctuality.  I am not insinuating a few moments, like a stuck-in-traffic late.  I’m talking half-hour to an hour late.  Her first offense brought the excuse, “I had a test”.  I gave her the “angry bald man” look and admonished her.  The second offense was rewarded with “I wanted to see my advisor”.  I warned her that I was going to be forced to document her tardiness.  On her third offense I wrote her up.  The document offered her the opportunity to pen a rebuttal.  Her response will forever be seared into my brain:
“Why he mad at me idk. Late b/c I had to finish papar.”
…While on her way to a Master’s Degree. Spelling is only part of the equation.  Take this example: “Arocdnicg to rsceearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer are in the rghit pcale.” Made sense, didn’t it?  It wasn’t until the invention of the printing press that we considered standardizing words, and even then there were variations.  That’s why you can go to Europe and see a “colour” film in a “theatre”.  There are several variations to the spelling of Shakespeare, each apparently coming from the actual author.  While we frequently lob a riposte in tongues other than English, the language itself can be a maze of confusion.
“The damage to the course was severe, though only the largest boughs fell in the rough.”
It would perhaps be easier if we regressed to Chauvet, and everything was phonetic.
“Munga.”Munga and Friend How do you spell that? “Muh-Uh-Un-Gah.  Like it sounds, you caveman.”
I often fear that we are losing the gift of language.  We don’t think about the power of a word, much less about what we commit to paper (virtual or otherwise).  Language has devolved from “We were born before the wind, also younger than the sun. Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the mystic” to “Get you love drunk off my hump, my hump, my hump, my hump my hump my hump.” I write for a living, and fancy myself loquacious.  Words for me are pieces of music, and turns of phrase dance in my head like earworms for weeks before I finally commit my fingers to a keyboard.  I stand accused of a mouth that often travels with much greater dispatch than the alacrity of my grey matter.  I am never certain whether to roam the twisted path of Tolstoy or slide an Occam’s razor of simple prose.  “There was an old man.  He caught a very big fish.”  Perhaps Hemingway was right. Either way, I mourn the passing of proper diction, of adequate punctuation, and of reading things that were actually well written.  In a time of 140 characters and social readers, I offer a dirge to printed matter.  I hereby submit a condemnation of the “delete” key for a hymn to WhiteOut.  Consider this a requiem to the wordsmith.  George Orwell, while a few decades too late, predicted the coming of Big Brother.  He was also remarkably prescient when he said,
“A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language.”
Say goodnight, George.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/19/the-rite-of-writing-right/feed/ 0 Dearest Readers-This Is Not A Blog Post. http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/16/dearest-readers-this-is-not-a-blog-post/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/16/dearest-readers-this-is-not-a-blog-post/#comments Mon, 16 Apr 2012 22:13:43 +0000 Don Jonathan Webb http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2334 Screen Shot 2012-04-16 at 5.11.27 PM

While in college at VCU I took a course on Iranian Cinema.  I had never seen a film made or produced in Iran, but by the end of the semester, I was able to discuss major subjects, themes, and directors from that secretive country.  Names like Abbas Kiarostami, Mohsen Makhbalbaff, and Jafar Panahi may not be familiar to Western audiences, but to film enthusiasts and especially Persian viewers, they are immensely talented auteurs---filmmakers who challenge social norms and make films that push both cinematic and cultural boundaries. Jafar Panahi iOffsides one of the greats of Iranian Cinema.  Movies like The White Balloon, Offside, and The Circle have cemented his identity as the premiere director of his generation, established him as an outspoken critic because of a realistic focus on humanitarian issues, and have won him numerous awards.  His recent works have told the story of the problems facing modern-day Iran, and it is one of those works that landed him in a political purgatory.The White Balloon Panahi began work on a film in 2008, but due to his support of the Opposition Party in national elections, he was sentenced to six years in prison, was banned from talking to foreign press for twenty years, and banned from making movies for twenty years. Supporters of Panahi secretly shot interviews on an iPhone for a documentary on his artistic and political struggle.  It was smuggled out of Iran in a cake, and This Is Not A Film became a last-minute submission at Cannes, the premier awards event for film.  Panahi is currently under house arrest, but still manages, somehow, to share his art with the world. This Is Not A Film is opening in select theaters this year, and features a simple premise:  an artist, bored, filming his life, his artistic desires and dreams, ideas, phone conversations; anything to keep his creativity from coming unraveled.  This (un)film covers a wide range of issues, showing the difficulty and hypocrisy Panahi faces as he tries to live in a country and culture that he dearly loves, but desperately wants to change. I was truly inspired by this.  His story shows that as artists and as creatives, if we want to make film (or any type of art) that really makes a difference, we have to fight for it.  We have to create the life that we want to live, and live the life that we’ve struggled to create.  Boldness, tenacity, and honesty in art are culturally reflective devices.  Jafar Panahi is a shining example of honest filmmaking that defies both the literal and cinematic boundaries of his life, and of his work.   To see the website and a list of theaters showing This Is Not A Film, click here.  ]]> Screen Shot 2012-04-16 at 5.11.27 PM

While in college at VCU I took a course on Iranian Cinema.  I had never seen a film made or produced in Iran, but by the end of the semester, I was able to discuss major subjects, themes, and directors from that secretive country.  Names like Abbas Kiarostami, Mohsen Makhbalbaff, and Jafar Panahi may not be familiar to Western audiences, but to film enthusiasts and especially Persian viewers, they are immensely talented auteurs---filmmakers who challenge social norms and make films that push both cinematic and cultural boundaries. Jafar Panahi iOffsides one of the greats of Iranian Cinema.  Movies like The White Balloon, Offside, and The Circle have cemented his identity as the premiere director of his generation, established him as an outspoken critic because of a realistic focus on humanitarian issues, and have won him numerous awards.  His recent works have told the story of the problems facing modern-day Iran, and it is one of those works that landed him in a political purgatory.The White Balloon Panahi began work on a film in 2008, but due to his support of the Opposition Party in national elections, he was sentenced to six years in prison, was banned from talking to foreign press for twenty years, and banned from making movies for twenty years. Supporters of Panahi secretly shot interviews on an iPhone for a documentary on his artistic and political struggle.  It was smuggled out of Iran in a cake, and This Is Not A Film became a last-minute submission at Cannes, the premier awards event for film.  Panahi is currently under house arrest, but still manages, somehow, to share his art with the world. This Is Not A Film is opening in select theaters this year, and features a simple premise:  an artist, bored, filming his life, his artistic desires and dreams, ideas, phone conversations; anything to keep his creativity from coming unraveled.  This (un)film covers a wide range of issues, showing the difficulty and hypocrisy Panahi faces as he tries to live in a country and culture that he dearly loves, but desperately wants to change. I was truly inspired by this.  His story shows that as artists and as creatives, if we want to make film (or any type of art) that really makes a difference, we have to fight for it.  We have to create the life that we want to live, and live the life that we’ve struggled to create.  Boldness, tenacity, and honesty in art are culturally reflective devices.  Jafar Panahi is a shining example of honest filmmaking that defies both the literal and cinematic boundaries of his life, and of his work.   To see the website and a list of theaters showing This Is Not A Film, click here.  ]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/16/dearest-readers-this-is-not-a-blog-post/feed/ 0 A Pirate’s Life for Me? http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/13/a-pirates-life-for-me/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/13/a-pirates-life-for-me/#comments Fri, 13 Apr 2012 21:26:02 +0000 David East http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2309 lolimewire

LifeHacker asked a very intriguing question today of its readers: What Would it Take For You to Stop Pirating? There's no getting around the fact that its a steep slope for content providers. For those willing to torrent, the crowdsourced nature of the content means the selection is virtually endless. It's a steep slope to compete with content that is readily available, often of high quality, and virtually free to the end user. It's stealing. Everyone who torrents (copyrighted content) knows that. I did it too during my college days. I've stopped since, frankly for 2 main reasons: my ISP has warned me multiple times, and I now have a job and can more easily afford to pay for Netflix and physical copies. Were there instances in which I streamed/downloaded things I subsequently paid for and would very likely have never done so had I not pirated? Yes, absolutely - especially now that I am out of college and working. (As a total GUESS, though, I would say this happens much less overall with music than software and video) That is something content providers should be VERY cognizant of, because I do think there is a lot of potential in that direction. However, let us – if I might speak for a moment directly to my digital brethren who have dabbled in piracy - as the great vindictive Internets not get too high and mighty. There are a heck of a lot of people who pirate and never buy a thing - and even those of us who do aren't buying EVERYTHING we pirate (and just because we didn't LOVE whatever it was we downloaded doesn't mean the creators don't deserve to be paid for us having consumed it). We're thieves. It's there, its free, its easy, and we take it. It's not fair - not to any content creator or content distributor. But it IS a reality. The current society is not willing to accept a solution involving restrictions on a user's Internet activity, and no method has yet been found to stop piracy without doing so. And on the other side, SOPA certainly wasn't fair (which is why it got stomped out). And maybe what happened to MegaUpload wasn't fair either. But make no mistake - it made a giant, instant impact on online piracy. It didn't stop it by any stretch, most obviously because it didn't have any impact on torrents. But it did hurt it. So maybe neither side is playing fair. The powers that be are not going to stop online piracy without compromising far more. Nor is PirateBay, TorrentFreak, or MegaUpload going to stop law enforcement from shutting down major operations. What, then, to do? Find the middle ground. Offer a service that comes as close as is possible to the conveniences of piracy (availability, quality, price). The closer you can come, the more pirates you'll reclaim and the more new consumers you'll generate. Netflix, Hulu, and Spotify are the biggest bastions of this new effort - neither is perfect, but their popularity proves their potential. Let us embrace those who make such efforts, because they might be our only hope.]]> lolimewire

LifeHacker asked a very intriguing question today of its readers: What Would it Take For You to Stop Pirating? There's no getting around the fact that its a steep slope for content providers. For those willing to torrent, the crowdsourced nature of the content means the selection is virtually endless. It's a steep slope to compete with content that is readily available, often of high quality, and virtually free to the end user. It's stealing. Everyone who torrents (copyrighted content) knows that. I did it too during my college days. I've stopped since, frankly for 2 main reasons: my ISP has warned me multiple times, and I now have a job and can more easily afford to pay for Netflix and physical copies. Were there instances in which I streamed/downloaded things I subsequently paid for and would very likely have never done so had I not pirated? Yes, absolutely - especially now that I am out of college and working. (As a total GUESS, though, I would say this happens much less overall with music than software and video) That is something content providers should be VERY cognizant of, because I do think there is a lot of potential in that direction. However, let us – if I might speak for a moment directly to my digital brethren who have dabbled in piracy - as the great vindictive Internets not get too high and mighty. There are a heck of a lot of people who pirate and never buy a thing - and even those of us who do aren't buying EVERYTHING we pirate (and just because we didn't LOVE whatever it was we downloaded doesn't mean the creators don't deserve to be paid for us having consumed it). We're thieves. It's there, its free, its easy, and we take it. It's not fair - not to any content creator or content distributor. But it IS a reality. The current society is not willing to accept a solution involving restrictions on a user's Internet activity, and no method has yet been found to stop piracy without doing so. And on the other side, SOPA certainly wasn't fair (which is why it got stomped out). And maybe what happened to MegaUpload wasn't fair either. But make no mistake - it made a giant, instant impact on online piracy. It didn't stop it by any stretch, most obviously because it didn't have any impact on torrents. But it did hurt it. So maybe neither side is playing fair. The powers that be are not going to stop online piracy without compromising far more. Nor is PirateBay, TorrentFreak, or MegaUpload going to stop law enforcement from shutting down major operations. What, then, to do? Find the middle ground. Offer a service that comes as close as is possible to the conveniences of piracy (availability, quality, price). The closer you can come, the more pirates you'll reclaim and the more new consumers you'll generate. Netflix, Hulu, and Spotify are the biggest bastions of this new effort - neither is perfect, but their popularity proves their potential. Let us embrace those who make such efforts, because they might be our only hope.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/13/a-pirates-life-for-me/feed/ 0 Connor’s Heroes is a Good Reason to Give Back http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/03/connors-heroes-is-a-good-reason-to-give-back/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/03/connors-heroes-is-a-good-reason-to-give-back/#comments Tue, 03 Apr 2012 20:33:21 +0000 Scott Dickens http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2276 Screen Shot 2012-04-03 at 4.38.08 PM

Connor the HeroWe meet some pretty awesome people through Rocket Pop Media. Some are drawn in by our connection to small business, and some are through our commitment to things Richmond.  We meet many as clients, and some are simply friends. We’re super-stoked to be playing a part in an event coming up to support Connor’s Heroes.  The folks at Connor’s Heroes are personal friends, and we’ve reached out to them whenever we’ve been able to help both professionally and personally.  As parents, Cara and I were immediately struck by the incredible stories of the “Heroes” that the group supports.  We’re returning again this year to be on the Host Committee for The Annual Heroes Art Ball.Connor's Heroes Host Committee Connor’s Heroes is a non-profit that provides assistance to kids and their families.  The children are being treated for cancer at some of the medical facilities around Richmond.  The Heroes do really cool things like Heroes Bags and Backpacks.  It’s kind of a care package for those just arriving at a hospital, full of games, toys, basic necessities, and gift certificates for area restaurants and businesses.  They also decorate some of the treatment rooms to kind of brighten up an otherwise depressing place. Another cool program is Superheroes and Sidekicks.  If a child has cancer, it has a profound impact on parents, and especially on siblings.  Brothers and sisters may feel neglected, and parents lose track of the day-to-day responsibilities of the family.  This program pairs teens and adults with children to offer support, compassion, or just someone to hang out with.  Who’s going to take Sally to band?  Whose turn is it to pick up Johnny from practice?  Anyone care to take in a ball game?  It helps. Heroes Art Ball 2012 Invitation The namesake of the whole shebang is, of course, Connor.  He’s the first of the Heroes.  He was diagnosed with a form of cancer at 22 months.  He went through almost 3 years of treatment, and never lost his enthusiasm for life and for being a child. The Heroes Art Ball is featuring some young artists (who are also living with cancer) who have been matched up with some more seasoned artists.  The Art Ball is a black-tie event where we’ll all get to meet the Hero-Artists (they’re going to be introduced like rock stars), and participate in a silent auction of their works.  Dr. John McCarty, Director of the VCU Massey Cancer Center’s Bone Marrow Transplant Unit is serving as this year’s Honorary Chair, and we’ll get to listen to some tunes by The Venture Rays (We’ve known most of these guys for years.  The Richmond music community is pretty tight-knit.). Sometimes it’s not about Return on Investment or Search Engine Optimization.  Too often in society we get wrapped around the axle and forget that there are important things going on out there.  Kids with cancer are sick, but they’re still kids.  They still need to have fun.  And sometimes it’s good to give back.]]> Screen Shot 2012-04-03 at 4.38.08 PM

Connor the HeroWe meet some pretty awesome people through Rocket Pop Media. Some are drawn in by our connection to small business, and some are through our commitment to things Richmond.  We meet many as clients, and some are simply friends. We’re super-stoked to be playing a part in an event coming up to support Connor’s Heroes.  The folks at Connor’s Heroes are personal friends, and we’ve reached out to them whenever we’ve been able to help both professionally and personally.  As parents, Cara and I were immediately struck by the incredible stories of the “Heroes” that the group supports.  We’re returning again this year to be on the Host Committee for The Annual Heroes Art Ball.Connor's Heroes Host Committee Connor’s Heroes is a non-profit that provides assistance to kids and their families.  The children are being treated for cancer at some of the medical facilities around Richmond.  The Heroes do really cool things like Heroes Bags and Backpacks.  It’s kind of a care package for those just arriving at a hospital, full of games, toys, basic necessities, and gift certificates for area restaurants and businesses.  They also decorate some of the treatment rooms to kind of brighten up an otherwise depressing place. Another cool program is Superheroes and Sidekicks.  If a child has cancer, it has a profound impact on parents, and especially on siblings.  Brothers and sisters may feel neglected, and parents lose track of the day-to-day responsibilities of the family.  This program pairs teens and adults with children to offer support, compassion, or just someone to hang out with.  Who’s going to take Sally to band?  Whose turn is it to pick up Johnny from practice?  Anyone care to take in a ball game?  It helps. Heroes Art Ball 2012 Invitation The namesake of the whole shebang is, of course, Connor.  He’s the first of the Heroes.  He was diagnosed with a form of cancer at 22 months.  He went through almost 3 years of treatment, and never lost his enthusiasm for life and for being a child. The Heroes Art Ball is featuring some young artists (who are also living with cancer) who have been matched up with some more seasoned artists.  The Art Ball is a black-tie event where we’ll all get to meet the Hero-Artists (they’re going to be introduced like rock stars), and participate in a silent auction of their works.  Dr. John McCarty, Director of the VCU Massey Cancer Center’s Bone Marrow Transplant Unit is serving as this year’s Honorary Chair, and we’ll get to listen to some tunes by The Venture Rays (We’ve known most of these guys for years.  The Richmond music community is pretty tight-knit.). Sometimes it’s not about Return on Investment or Search Engine Optimization.  Too often in society we get wrapped around the axle and forget that there are important things going on out there.  Kids with cancer are sick, but they’re still kids.  They still need to have fun.  And sometimes it’s good to give back.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/04/03/connors-heroes-is-a-good-reason-to-give-back/feed/ 0 Congrats Cara! http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/28/congrats-cara/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/28/congrats-cara/#comments Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:37:53 +0000 Anna Waddelove http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2261 Blue Ribbon

We are proud of Cara Dickens for many reasons.  Maybe it’s because she and Scott make our workday that much better (Sorry if you don’t work here, but it’s true.).  It could also be her contagious laughter or the energy she brings to a room.  Literally!  You should see the way she enters the office sometimes!  We like all those things about her, but on Thursday, March 22, we were especially proud of her. That night marked the annual National Association of Women Business Owner’s (NAWBO) Enterprising Women of Excellence Awards Dinner.  Wow, that’s as hard to type as it is to read.  Cara is on the Board of Directors for this great organization and the annual dinner was a celebration of entrepreneurial success.   To say that Cara ‘helped’ to plan it would be an understatement.  Working in tandem with many other members, Cara and her NAWBO teammates managed to put together an evening which boasted a wonderful speech from Meg Hirshberg, columnist for Inc. Magazine, author of the newly released book For Better or For Work: A Survival Guide for Entrepreneurs and Their Families and co-owner of  Stonyfield Farms Organic Yogurt.  The event brought together a huge network of both men and women from around the Richmond area, and had a pair of Manolo Blahnik’s up for silent auction.  Several awards were given for new members, outstanding work, and there was a new "Student Entrepreneur" category. We dare you to find an event that rivaled this one! We were brimming with pride when Cara was announced the 2012 “NAWBO Member of the Year”.  It was hard not to jump on the table with excitement as she took the stage, but we managed to maintain some self-control. Cara's involvement with the National Association of Women Business Owners brings pride to the entire Rocket Pop team, but in the bigger picture we were all overwhelmed and inspired by an email received the following day:
I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for inviting my daughter to the event last night.  She truly enjoyed the experience.  While she enjoyed the dinner, she could not stop talking on the way home last night about the women that were both nominated and that won awards last night.  It really opened her eyes to a world she had not started thinking of at her age.  Of course the category of young ladies that were still in school completely impressed her.  She gets to experience so much in scouting and loves the outdoors and all things environmental, so when they read the accomplishments of the young lady that won in the student category she could barely sit still, she was so excited.  When the ceremony was over and though she was tired, she wanted to talk to this young lady.  So, we did.  My daughter wanted to tell her how exciting what she did for city children was.  The young lady was super nice and was supportive of my daughter’s excitement and told her of some avenues she could check out.  She also told us she wished she had been a scout, that she would have enjoyed it.   This was an experience that we will remember for years. Sincerely, Glenna S. (Mother of a Girl Scout)
It is the 100th year Anniversary of the Girl Scouts.  NAWBO  joined forces with the Girl Scouts and several Richmond entrepreneurial scouts attended the event Thursday.  NAWBO believes the Girl Scouts are perfect representatives of the entrepreneurial spirit.  Richmond NAWBO is very excited about its new mentoring partnership with the Girl Scouts whereby members will assist girls with their cookie sale business plans, and in earning their badges for "Business Owner," "My Portfolio," and "Making Choices."  So Thursday evening was a night which marked what both Cara and NAWBO hope to be the beginning of a wonderful relationship. One of the greatest signs of a good boss is their intention and ability to teach and mentor their employees.  Cara has now set the mark even higher.  Through her work with NAWBO she has managed to extend her reach and influence beyond her ten employees, and out to a group of hard-working young girls, all with very promising futures.
]]> Blue Ribbon

We are proud of Cara Dickens for many reasons.  Maybe it’s because she and Scott make our workday that much better (Sorry if you don’t work here, but it’s true.).  It could also be her contagious laughter or the energy she brings to a room.  Literally!  You should see the way she enters the office sometimes!  We like all those things about her, but on Thursday, March 22, we were especially proud of her. That night marked the annual National Association of Women Business Owner’s (NAWBO) Enterprising Women of Excellence Awards Dinner.  Wow, that’s as hard to type as it is to read.  Cara is on the Board of Directors for this great organization and the annual dinner was a celebration of entrepreneurial success.   To say that Cara ‘helped’ to plan it would be an understatement.  Working in tandem with many other members, Cara and her NAWBO teammates managed to put together an evening which boasted a wonderful speech from Meg Hirshberg, columnist for Inc. Magazine, author of the newly released book For Better or For Work: A Survival Guide for Entrepreneurs and Their Families and co-owner of  Stonyfield Farms Organic Yogurt.  The event brought together a huge network of both men and women from around the Richmond area, and had a pair of Manolo Blahnik’s up for silent auction.  Several awards were given for new members, outstanding work, and there was a new "Student Entrepreneur" category. We dare you to find an event that rivaled this one! We were brimming with pride when Cara was announced the 2012 “NAWBO Member of the Year”.  It was hard not to jump on the table with excitement as she took the stage, but we managed to maintain some self-control. Cara's involvement with the National Association of Women Business Owners brings pride to the entire Rocket Pop team, but in the bigger picture we were all overwhelmed and inspired by an email received the following day:
I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for inviting my daughter to the event last night.  She truly enjoyed the experience.  While she enjoyed the dinner, she could not stop talking on the way home last night about the women that were both nominated and that won awards last night.  It really opened her eyes to a world she had not started thinking of at her age.  Of course the category of young ladies that were still in school completely impressed her.  She gets to experience so much in scouting and loves the outdoors and all things environmental, so when they read the accomplishments of the young lady that won in the student category she could barely sit still, she was so excited.  When the ceremony was over and though she was tired, she wanted to talk to this young lady.  So, we did.  My daughter wanted to tell her how exciting what she did for city children was.  The young lady was super nice and was supportive of my daughter’s excitement and told her of some avenues she could check out.  She also told us she wished she had been a scout, that she would have enjoyed it.   This was an experience that we will remember for years. Sincerely, Glenna S. (Mother of a Girl Scout)
It is the 100th year Anniversary of the Girl Scouts.  NAWBO  joined forces with the Girl Scouts and several Richmond entrepreneurial scouts attended the event Thursday.  NAWBO believes the Girl Scouts are perfect representatives of the entrepreneurial spirit.  Richmond NAWBO is very excited about its new mentoring partnership with the Girl Scouts whereby members will assist girls with their cookie sale business plans, and in earning their badges for "Business Owner," "My Portfolio," and "Making Choices."  So Thursday evening was a night which marked what both Cara and NAWBO hope to be the beginning of a wonderful relationship. One of the greatest signs of a good boss is their intention and ability to teach and mentor their employees.  Cara has now set the mark even higher.  Through her work with NAWBO she has managed to extend her reach and influence beyond her ten employees, and out to a group of hard-working young girls, all with very promising futures.
]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/28/congrats-cara/feed/ 0 Niche Tweeting http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/12/niche-tweeting-twitter/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/12/niche-tweeting-twitter/#comments Mon, 12 Mar 2012 19:03:17 +0000 David East http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2240 Image from Pixar's For the Birds

I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you've given Twitter a whirl. Perhaps you're a hardcore Tweetaholic, smartphone app never far from reach. Or maybe you're just a casual Tweeter. But let me ask you this - why are you tweeting? Stupid question, I know. You tweet to socialize! To communicate with others! And yes, that's quite right. But let's dig down a little deeper. What, specifically, are you getting up to while you're on Twitter? I imagine a many of you take what we might call the "standard" route - you're tweeting with friends while following a wide variety of accounts that reflect your interests - be it news, sports, celebrities, your profession, or any other of a thousand interests. You have one account and use it to do everything you want to do on Twitter. But might I suggest that I see a trend developing, in which people will dedicate a specific account to one purpose or one niche. And when I say "I see a trend" I mean this is what I do (but I see lots of other people do it too!). Let me introduce you to the fabulous world of Niche Tweeting. We tend to think of Twitter on the same lines as Facebook, and that leads to the idea of a profile that represents one's identity. I am David East, and this is my Facebook profile. This is as it was intended by design, and reflects Facebook's foundation as essentially a digital yearbook. On Twitter, identity is a less transparent thing. Twitter is the spawn of web forums. Twitter, like web forums, asks you for a handle and an avatar. This simple distinction, that small gap between the account and the person behind the account, encourages niches in a way that Facebook doesn't. Meet @ZephyrHTTR. This is one of my Twitter accounts. Take a cursory glance at my feed and one thing will become readily apparent - I am a Washington Redskins fan. This is my Redskins Twitter account; (virtually) everything I do on it relates to the Redskins/NFL/football. It's where I come to talk rumors, complain, find news, cheer/comment during games, hate on the Dallas Cowboys, and commiserate with other Redskins fans. There are distinct advantages to secluding all my Redskins activity to one Twitter account. My account name  (HTTR stands for Hail To The Redskins) and pictures let me distinguish my account as Redskins-specific, and it is easier for others to identify my account as such. Perhaps most importantly, every account ZephyrHTTR follows is related to Redskins or football. When I look at my feed on this account, all I see is Redskins and football tweets. This makes it so much easier to keep up with everything versus having to try and pick out the Redskins news among the hundreds of non-football accounts I follow on my other Twitter accounts. Twitter has become so big, so varied, and so fast that I find this makes keeping up with topics I care about much easier. Furthermore, it lets me connect with a niche community (in this case the Redskins Nation) in a way that I think would be more difficult if I were trying to keep up with everyone on one profile. Yet some use Twitter's List functionality to achieve the same thing on one account. It's all a matter of personal preference - do you think of your Twitter account to be a Facebook-like profile that reflects all your interests, or an account dedicated to a particular niche? The best thing about Twitter is truly that it gives you such freedom to define yourself.]]> Image from Pixar's For the Birds

I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you've given Twitter a whirl. Perhaps you're a hardcore Tweetaholic, smartphone app never far from reach. Or maybe you're just a casual Tweeter. But let me ask you this - why are you tweeting? Stupid question, I know. You tweet to socialize! To communicate with others! And yes, that's quite right. But let's dig down a little deeper. What, specifically, are you getting up to while you're on Twitter? I imagine a many of you take what we might call the "standard" route - you're tweeting with friends while following a wide variety of accounts that reflect your interests - be it news, sports, celebrities, your profession, or any other of a thousand interests. You have one account and use it to do everything you want to do on Twitter. But might I suggest that I see a trend developing, in which people will dedicate a specific account to one purpose or one niche. And when I say "I see a trend" I mean this is what I do (but I see lots of other people do it too!). Let me introduce you to the fabulous world of Niche Tweeting. We tend to think of Twitter on the same lines as Facebook, and that leads to the idea of a profile that represents one's identity. I am David East, and this is my Facebook profile. This is as it was intended by design, and reflects Facebook's foundation as essentially a digital yearbook. On Twitter, identity is a less transparent thing. Twitter is the spawn of web forums. Twitter, like web forums, asks you for a handle and an avatar. This simple distinction, that small gap between the account and the person behind the account, encourages niches in a way that Facebook doesn't. Meet @ZephyrHTTR. This is one of my Twitter accounts. Take a cursory glance at my feed and one thing will become readily apparent - I am a Washington Redskins fan. This is my Redskins Twitter account; (virtually) everything I do on it relates to the Redskins/NFL/football. It's where I come to talk rumors, complain, find news, cheer/comment during games, hate on the Dallas Cowboys, and commiserate with other Redskins fans. There are distinct advantages to secluding all my Redskins activity to one Twitter account. My account name  (HTTR stands for Hail To The Redskins) and pictures let me distinguish my account as Redskins-specific, and it is easier for others to identify my account as such. Perhaps most importantly, every account ZephyrHTTR follows is related to Redskins or football. When I look at my feed on this account, all I see is Redskins and football tweets. This makes it so much easier to keep up with everything versus having to try and pick out the Redskins news among the hundreds of non-football accounts I follow on my other Twitter accounts. Twitter has become so big, so varied, and so fast that I find this makes keeping up with topics I care about much easier. Furthermore, it lets me connect with a niche community (in this case the Redskins Nation) in a way that I think would be more difficult if I were trying to keep up with everyone on one profile. Yet some use Twitter's List functionality to achieve the same thing on one account. It's all a matter of personal preference - do you think of your Twitter account to be a Facebook-like profile that reflects all your interests, or an account dedicated to a particular niche? The best thing about Twitter is truly that it gives you such freedom to define yourself.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/03/12/niche-tweeting-twitter/feed/ 0 “Maybe a little fat” and Other Social Media Failure Stories http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/29/maybe-a-little-fat-and-other-social-media-failure-stories/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/29/maybe-a-little-fat-and-other-social-media-failure-stories/#comments Wed, 29 Feb 2012 20:07:44 +0000 Chris Crews http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2187 Trainwreck2

“Well, maybe a little bit fat.”
As soon as the words escape your lips you realize that you’ve made a mistake.  You perhaps try to justify it, thinking, “Well, she asked my opinion.”  You shamefully congratulate yourself for being honest. Whatever the justification, it was undoubtedly a bad thing to say, and you wish that you could take it back.  The only problem is the fact that you said it aloud, and she heard it.  And now you can’t ever take it back. You might be able to once again sit on the couch with some begging and apologizing.  You might get to watch your favorite show again before the television becomes obsolete if you cook dinner, buy flowers, and start putting your dirty clothes in the hamper.  It is going to be a long, long, long time before you are once again regarded as a fashion expert. Now, imagine that you’ve made this faux pas with a few thousand, or even million significant others.  Welcome to the Social Media Doghouse. The most recent organization to be chained to the proverbial porch was the Susan G. Komen Foundation.  The SGK Foundation has been a huge advocate for breast cancer awareness and research, and they created the ubiquitous pink ribbon.  They help to sponsor tons of events around the world and have had such a voice that NFL players wore pink, and on Mother’s Day Major League Baseball players wore pink gear and used pink bats. They ran into Social Media Failure when they announced that they would no longer be partnering or helping to fund Planned Parenthood.  This started a national argument of truly biblical proportions.  Fans of Planned Parenthood flooded the SGK Facebook page with angry cries of foul, and fans of the decision applauded the ‘courage’ of SGK to pull funding for a political pariah.  Social badges began to appear, and were linked, shared, and liked.  The badges featured the SGK pink, and carried slogans and phrases that decried the action of the group.  One such badge was shared over 30,000 times within the first day, and at one Komen Backlashpoint the SGK Facebook page was registering over 20 negative posts per minute.  A video was put up on YouTube that featured Komen head Nancy Brinker.  It quickly got over 100,000 views, and most of the comments were negative and many said that the “explanation” seemed disingenuous.  The comment section of the video was locked after the first several hours. So what happened? Komen announced their funding plans on a Tuesday, they reversed their decision that Friday, and within a week, their Senior Vice President of Public Policy had resigned over the flap. But the story is still playing out as rattled supporters on both sides wait for the words to die. PayPal snarkPayPal got its moment of doghouse when it cut off funding for regretsy.  That site is part ecommerce, part blog, and offers quirky handmade crafts and snarky commentary.  They started a charity fund for some Secret Santa gifts for needy kids, and PayPal cut off their money because they used the wrong button.  Instead of a “shopping cart” or “buy now” they used a “donate”.  The intrepid tweaks at PayPal took a look at regretsy and decided that they were a business, not a charity, and therefore had no right to use the “donate” button.  The email exchange between the two groups became quite animated, and was shared on regretsy’s blog.  One explanation from PayPal said, “…what you’re doing is not a worthy cause, it’s charity.  You can use the donate button to raise money for a sick cat, but not poor people.” After a flurry of “PayPal Ruins Christmas” posts, they reversed their decision and apologized for any misunderstanding.  But the blogs and hurt feelings are still out there. Netflix, in its infinite wisdom, decided that people just don’t like DVDs anymore, and as such wouldn’t mind paying more for them.  They decided to make it a separate business and call it Qwikster.  They issued a quiet press release outlining the changes and new fees for the popular service, and then repaired to the local watering hole for some TGIF camaraderie. When they got to work on Monday, the Social Media team fired up their browsers and said, “Let’s see what people think about our great idea!” The first comment said something along the lines of, “You suck.  Why should I pay more for less service than I’m currently receiving?”  Netflix murmured, “Well, that’s not good." Click.  Delete. Next comment:  “You’re crazy.  Cancel my subscription.”  Click.  Delete. And so it went for the rest of the day.  AND THEN the hordes of angry consumers went The Real Qwiksterback to the Netflix Facebook and twitter and reposted, “Hey JA#@*SS!  Why did you take down my post?”  AND THEN Netflix found out that the twitter handle for Qwikster was taken by a gamer who likes to get baked and used a stoned Elmo with a fattie as his avatar. “Excuse us, sir.  We’re Netflix and we kind of need that twitter account.” “Uh…heh heh.  Um, nope,” said Qwikster. There are a number of lessons to be learned from these (and a myriad of other!) social media versions of the foot-in-mouth syndrome.
  • Be polite.  Anything that you say can and will be used against you.  Negative posts should be responded to with careful thought and consideration.  It is ok to have a sense of humor, but don’t share anything that you wouldn’t share with your grandmother.  Just ask Gilbert Gottfried.
  • Practice your due diligence.  In the Netflix debacle and the Komen fiasco, the organization had no idea what the consumer actually wanted.  Netflix was also irresponsible for not checking domains and available handles before launching an entirely new brand.
  • Own it.  Much of the flack over the Komen video and the PayPal exchange dealt with the lack of accountability.  Viewers were expecting some sort of apology.  When a Chrysler employee tweeted disparaging remarks about Detroit drivers on the company account, they claimed that the account had been hacked.  Didn’t work for Weiner, and it won’t work for Chrysler.  When the American Red Cross found that a representative of the non-profit had accidentally posted about finding some icy Dogfish Head (gratuitous brand shout-out) beers and “getting slizzard”, the Red Cross owned it, and with humor:  “We’ve deleted the rogue tweet but rest assured the Red Cross is sober and we’ve confiscated the keys.”
  • It’s always five o’clock somewhere.  When a Papa John’s in New York identified a customer as “lady chinky eyes”, the Asian-American pizza recipient took a picture of her receipt and posted it to twitter.  That was at 12:30.  By 3 p.m. it had been retweeted over 20,000 times.  Many organizations put up a post and lock up the office.  Social media has a 24-hour cycle, and as such needs 24-hour feeding and stroking.
  • You can’t un-say it.  The video from Komen is available through many news outlets, and typing “social media failure” into your search will bring you results, stories, and screen shots that go back six and seven years.  Facebook has only been around for about eight.
  • When in doubt, tell them that they’re beautiful, and you love them.
Facebook Fail                ]]> Trainwreck2

“Well, maybe a little bit fat.”
As soon as the words escape your lips you realize that you’ve made a mistake.  You perhaps try to justify it, thinking, “Well, she asked my opinion.”  You shamefully congratulate yourself for being honest. Whatever the justification, it was undoubtedly a bad thing to say, and you wish that you could take it back.  The only problem is the fact that you said it aloud, and she heard it.  And now you can’t ever take it back. You might be able to once again sit on the couch with some begging and apologizing.  You might get to watch your favorite show again before the television becomes obsolete if you cook dinner, buy flowers, and start putting your dirty clothes in the hamper.  It is going to be a long, long, long time before you are once again regarded as a fashion expert. Now, imagine that you’ve made this faux pas with a few thousand, or even million significant others.  Welcome to the Social Media Doghouse. The most recent organization to be chained to the proverbial porch was the Susan G. Komen Foundation.  The SGK Foundation has been a huge advocate for breast cancer awareness and research, and they created the ubiquitous pink ribbon.  They help to sponsor tons of events around the world and have had such a voice that NFL players wore pink, and on Mother’s Day Major League Baseball players wore pink gear and used pink bats. They ran into Social Media Failure when they announced that they would no longer be partnering or helping to fund Planned Parenthood.  This started a national argument of truly biblical proportions.  Fans of Planned Parenthood flooded the SGK Facebook page with angry cries of foul, and fans of the decision applauded the ‘courage’ of SGK to pull funding for a political pariah.  Social badges began to appear, and were linked, shared, and liked.  The badges featured the SGK pink, and carried slogans and phrases that decried the action of the group.  One such badge was shared over 30,000 times within the first day, and at one Komen Backlashpoint the SGK Facebook page was registering over 20 negative posts per minute.  A video was put up on YouTube that featured Komen head Nancy Brinker.  It quickly got over 100,000 views, and most of the comments were negative and many said that the “explanation” seemed disingenuous.  The comment section of the video was locked after the first several hours. So what happened? Komen announced their funding plans on a Tuesday, they reversed their decision that Friday, and within a week, their Senior Vice President of Public Policy had resigned over the flap. But the story is still playing out as rattled supporters on both sides wait for the words to die. PayPal snarkPayPal got its moment of doghouse when it cut off funding for regretsy.  That site is part ecommerce, part blog, and offers quirky handmade crafts and snarky commentary.  They started a charity fund for some Secret Santa gifts for needy kids, and PayPal cut off their money because they used the wrong button.  Instead of a “shopping cart” or “buy now” they used a “donate”.  The intrepid tweaks at PayPal took a look at regretsy and decided that they were a business, not a charity, and therefore had no right to use the “donate” button.  The email exchange between the two groups became quite animated, and was shared on regretsy’s blog.  One explanation from PayPal said, “…what you’re doing is not a worthy cause, it’s charity.  You can use the donate button to raise money for a sick cat, but not poor people.” After a flurry of “PayPal Ruins Christmas” posts, they reversed their decision and apologized for any misunderstanding.  But the blogs and hurt feelings are still out there. Netflix, in its infinite wisdom, decided that people just don’t like DVDs anymore, and as such wouldn’t mind paying more for them.  They decided to make it a separate business and call it Qwikster.  They issued a quiet press release outlining the changes and new fees for the popular service, and then repaired to the local watering hole for some TGIF camaraderie. When they got to work on Monday, the Social Media team fired up their browsers and said, “Let’s see what people think about our great idea!” The first comment said something along the lines of, “You suck.  Why should I pay more for less service than I’m currently receiving?”  Netflix murmured, “Well, that’s not good." Click.  Delete. Next comment:  “You’re crazy.  Cancel my subscription.”  Click.  Delete. And so it went for the rest of the day.  AND THEN the hordes of angry consumers went The Real Qwiksterback to the Netflix Facebook and twitter and reposted, “Hey JA#@*SS!  Why did you take down my post?”  AND THEN Netflix found out that the twitter handle for Qwikster was taken by a gamer who likes to get baked and used a stoned Elmo with a fattie as his avatar. “Excuse us, sir.  We’re Netflix and we kind of need that twitter account.” “Uh…heh heh.  Um, nope,” said Qwikster. There are a number of lessons to be learned from these (and a myriad of other!) social media versions of the foot-in-mouth syndrome.
  • Be polite.  Anything that you say can and will be used against you.  Negative posts should be responded to with careful thought and consideration.  It is ok to have a sense of humor, but don’t share anything that you wouldn’t share with your grandmother.  Just ask Gilbert Gottfried.
  • Practice your due diligence.  In the Netflix debacle and the Komen fiasco, the organization had no idea what the consumer actually wanted.  Netflix was also irresponsible for not checking domains and available handles before launching an entirely new brand.
  • Own it.  Much of the flack over the Komen video and the PayPal exchange dealt with the lack of accountability.  Viewers were expecting some sort of apology.  When a Chrysler employee tweeted disparaging remarks about Detroit drivers on the company account, they claimed that the account had been hacked.  Didn’t work for Weiner, and it won’t work for Chrysler.  When the American Red Cross found that a representative of the non-profit had accidentally posted about finding some icy Dogfish Head (gratuitous brand shout-out) beers and “getting slizzard”, the Red Cross owned it, and with humor:  “We’ve deleted the rogue tweet but rest assured the Red Cross is sober and we’ve confiscated the keys.”
  • It’s always five o’clock somewhere.  When a Papa John’s in New York identified a customer as “lady chinky eyes”, the Asian-American pizza recipient took a picture of her receipt and posted it to twitter.  That was at 12:30.  By 3 p.m. it had been retweeted over 20,000 times.  Many organizations put up a post and lock up the office.  Social media has a 24-hour cycle, and as such needs 24-hour feeding and stroking.
  • You can’t un-say it.  The video from Komen is available through many news outlets, and typing “social media failure” into your search will bring you results, stories, and screen shots that go back six and seven years.  Facebook has only been around for about eight.
  • When in doubt, tell them that they’re beautiful, and you love them.
Facebook Fail                ]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/29/maybe-a-little-fat-and-other-social-media-failure-stories/feed/ 0 Some Nice Press in Work It Richmond http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/16/some-nice-press-in-work-it-richmond/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/16/some-nice-press-in-work-it-richmond/#comments Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:47:48 +0000 Chris Crews http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2211 Screen Shot 2012-02-16 at 1.38.41 PM

There was a very nice article in Work It, Richmond this week on our little shop.  It featured an interview with Scott and Cara, and we thought that they did a great job of summing up our philosophy here at Rocket Pop Media. The article really captured the energy of our team, and our commitment to our clients.  We don't spend a lot of time with conference calls and focus groups.  We go out and visit clients, we talk to their customers, and folks come by to visit us.  Some of our visitors are looking for a restaurant, dry-cleaners, or computer repair (the previous incarnation of our building), but that's another story. Check out the article.  It's nice.  And thanks to Matt Deegan and Work It Richmond for sharing it.  In the meantime, the music is playing, the interweb is humming, we're clearing the table for a client who is stopping by in a few, and we're pretty sure someone just went the wrong way down Main Street.  It's 10:38, so Jessica wins today's office pool.]]> Screen Shot 2012-02-16 at 1.38.41 PM

There was a very nice article in Work It, Richmond this week on our little shop.  It featured an interview with Scott and Cara, and we thought that they did a great job of summing up our philosophy here at Rocket Pop Media. The article really captured the energy of our team, and our commitment to our clients.  We don't spend a lot of time with conference calls and focus groups.  We go out and visit clients, we talk to their customers, and folks come by to visit us.  Some of our visitors are looking for a restaurant, dry-cleaners, or computer repair (the previous incarnation of our building), but that's another story. Check out the article.  It's nice.  And thanks to Matt Deegan and Work It Richmond for sharing it.  In the meantime, the music is playing, the interweb is humming, we're clearing the table for a client who is stopping by in a few, and we're pretty sure someone just went the wrong way down Main Street.  It's 10:38, so Jessica wins today's office pool.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/16/some-nice-press-in-work-it-richmond/feed/ 0 My Response to Responsive Web Design http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/15/my-response-to-responsive-web-design/ http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/15/my-response-to-responsive-web-design/#comments Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:25:30 +0000 Alyssa Chang http://rocketpopmedia.com/?p=2149 Resize Me

Picture this: you're sitting in a coffee shop, sipping a latte, and waiting for a couple friends who are running late to meet you. Instead of staring awkwardly at other customers, you pull out your fancy schmancy smartphone and start browsing the web. Your first stop is Facebook. As you scroll down your newsfeed, you see an interesting link that a friend has posted. Curious to see what "The World's Funniest Joke" is, you click on the link. The page loads and much to your chagrin, the page has been shrunk down to fit within your phone's screen size, so you're forced to pinch and zoom until you can see the joke. However, as you zoom in, sections of the site fall off the screen, so in order to read the entire joke, you must swipe back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, until you've lost your place and given up on trying to read this joke. Your friends arrive so you angrily put your phone away, feeling a little empty inside from not knowing "The World's Funniest Joke." Your day could have been exponentially better knowing "The World's Funniest Joke." But instead, you're left with a giant callous on your finger from excessive swiping, and a tiny resentment towards your friends for being late. This all could have been avoided had that page been built on a responsive framework. [caption id="attachment_2172" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The page is shrunken down on mobile devices when it is not designed with a responsive framework"][/caption] What's a responsive framework? Well, for starters, if you're reading this on a computer, go ahead and resize your browser1. Now if you can, view this page on a netbook. Now do it on a tablet. Then your smartphone. How much pinching and zooming did you have to do to read the content? Your answer should be minimal or none. Our site was designed to be viewable on all different screen resolutions, whether you're viewing on the go, or exploring on your computer. The layout of the site responds and changes according to your screen resolution. [caption id="attachment_2173" align="alignright" width="300" caption="On a responsive framework, there is no pinching and zooming required"][/caption] The world of mobile browsing has come a long way since the days of brick-sized cellphones. Where it was once a convenient thing to have, it is now a way of life. Ethan Marcotte of A List Apart quotes:
Mobile browsing is expected to outpace desktop-based access within three to five years.
Of course, mobile-browsing won't ever replace desktop browsing, and you'll always have a better experience browsing on a desktop computer. But who knows, in the near future, the better user experience may just come from browsing on your mobile phone! Here are a couple of my favorite responsive web sites. Go on, don't be afraid to play around with the size of your browser window or even view it on your phone! http://css-tricks.com http://www.fork-cms.com http://stephencaver.com http://colly.com http://interim.it http://clearairchallenge.com http://easy-readers.net/books/adaptive-web-design 1For a quick explanation of browsers, please refer to my first post in which I 'splain the interweb.]]> Resize Me

Picture this: you're sitting in a coffee shop, sipping a latte, and waiting for a couple friends who are running late to meet you. Instead of staring awkwardly at other customers, you pull out your fancy schmancy smartphone and start browsing the web. Your first stop is Facebook. As you scroll down your newsfeed, you see an interesting link that a friend has posted. Curious to see what "The World's Funniest Joke" is, you click on the link. The page loads and much to your chagrin, the page has been shrunk down to fit within your phone's screen size, so you're forced to pinch and zoom until you can see the joke. However, as you zoom in, sections of the site fall off the screen, so in order to read the entire joke, you must swipe back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, until you've lost your place and given up on trying to read this joke. Your friends arrive so you angrily put your phone away, feeling a little empty inside from not knowing "The World's Funniest Joke." Your day could have been exponentially better knowing "The World's Funniest Joke." But instead, you're left with a giant callous on your finger from excessive swiping, and a tiny resentment towards your friends for being late. This all could have been avoided had that page been built on a responsive framework. [caption id="attachment_2172" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The page is shrunken down on mobile devices when it is not designed with a responsive framework"][/caption] What's a responsive framework? Well, for starters, if you're reading this on a computer, go ahead and resize your browser1. Now if you can, view this page on a netbook. Now do it on a tablet. Then your smartphone. How much pinching and zooming did you have to do to read the content? Your answer should be minimal or none. Our site was designed to be viewable on all different screen resolutions, whether you're viewing on the go, or exploring on your computer. The layout of the site responds and changes according to your screen resolution. [caption id="attachment_2173" align="alignright" width="300" caption="On a responsive framework, there is no pinching and zooming required"][/caption] The world of mobile browsing has come a long way since the days of brick-sized cellphones. Where it was once a convenient thing to have, it is now a way of life. Ethan Marcotte of A List Apart quotes:
Mobile browsing is expected to outpace desktop-based access within three to five years.
Of course, mobile-browsing won't ever replace desktop browsing, and you'll always have a better experience browsing on a desktop computer. But who knows, in the near future, the better user experience may just come from browsing on your mobile phone! Here are a couple of my favorite responsive web sites. Go on, don't be afraid to play around with the size of your browser window or even view it on your phone! http://css-tricks.com http://www.fork-cms.com http://stephencaver.com http://colly.com http://interim.it http://clearairchallenge.com http://easy-readers.net/books/adaptive-web-design 1For a quick explanation of browsers, please refer to my first post in which I 'splain the interweb.]]> http://rocketpopmedia.com/discover/2012/02/15/my-response-to-responsive-web-design/feed/ 0