Jan 17, 2018 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
Hey. It happens.
So, the funny thing is, I teach people to find what their brand is and stick with it.
- What do people appreciate the most about you?
- What are your strengths?
- What are you most comfortable doing/teaching/sharing?
- What makes you happy?
And then I go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like … Oh, wait. Sorry. Sinatra in my head. [Note to self: Take the fedora off the shelf.] Ahem. What I was saying was, I sort of took my own advice … and tossed it aside. But like a well-tossed neon pink frisbee, it came right back at me. {Don’t, okay? I know you know I meant boomerang. But frisbee just sounded better. So just … keep reading. Thanks.}
Was it really just last summer I did a renovative rebrand? Why, yes. Yes, I think it was. Who can forget my Wizard of Oz poppies populating the background for my new parent website?
Frankly, My Dear . . . : MJR Website
And how easily the storefront came together, and then, voila! The blog redesign. I can’t really tell ya which is my favorite. I heart them all. Like, a lot.
Not-so-secret sidenote: This Girl, who was never terribly feminine, is enjoying the sights and smells of flowers, perfume, and all things girly. What the heck?! I mean, true story: Even my journals and Happy Planners are, well, pretty.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Happy Planners 2018
But somewhere in the midst of being real, selling books, and claiming my Southern Belle-ness, I realized there was something more. Something deep inside that tied everything together even though it seemed like a chaotic mess.
You all know what it is. At least, you know part of it. Hurricane. My word for the year. Hey, it adopted me, okay?
Frankly, My Dear . . . : That One Time I Rebranded Myself With Pizza Sauce
But that’s why it’s taken me two weeks to follow up with another post. Because I couldn’t put my finger on the first part. I mean, yah. Happy chaos seems to really be my thing. But what does that even mean?
So there I am at lunch with my local bestie, Beckie Lindsey, celebrating the contract for her first book, scarfing pizza, and talking media and marketing and branding and we throw some ideas around and BAM. She’s branded. Like, in a good way. Beckie Lindsey: God in real life … Also, coffee. Yup. That’s her!
Meanwhile, my other media sounding board, Aaron ~ you may know him from his Firsts in Fiction podcast, wink wink. You know. The one This Girl produces every other week ~ he left the lunch. So I text him and say, “Hey, Faux Bro. What’s my branding and recognition?” You know what they both say? Him and Becks? Branding and Recognition. Ooh, big help, guys. Big. Help. not.
And then it hit me like, well, like a hurricane. [Oh, c’mon. You knew I was gonna do that!] I’m reaching for that last mushroom on the plate and trying not to get my sleeves or bangles into the pizza sauce. It was almost an epic fail until my fancy flail saved the day (and the sleeve!). And without realizing that style is a part of my brand, I became the Bohemian Hurricane.
And all her people gasped in acknowledgment.
Yah, that’s right. Go ahead and chuckle. Nod. Do your “Mm-hmm, that’s her!” thing just like they did. ‘Cause This Girl is embracing her wilderness, her free spirit, her loud voice.
And This Girl is going places this year.
Because hurricanes rarely sit still.
Or have perfectly coiffed hair.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Bohemian Hurricane
How do you brand yourself?
TWEET THIS: That One Time I Rebranded Myself With #Pizza Sauce @RealMojo68 #socialmedia #franklymydearmojo
With wild hair and a crazy dance,
Happy branding.
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Dec 16, 2017
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Social Media Saturday
Oops. We did it again. We overshared. Coulda been a status update where delete would have been the better option. Coulda been a tweet from a, uh, unsavory source. Coulda been one or two or ten million things that we prob’ly obviously should not have put out there.
Can I just say, we’ve all been there, done that.
Trust me.
Depending on what you’ve done, you may have to do some damage repair. But for the most part, you can recover.
It’s important to take a deep breath and think this through before taking action. [Except for the delete option. Whatever it is, your immediate response should be to take it down, if at all possible.]
If your post is just embarrassing, sometimes it’s to your benefit to leave it up. Reason: Humanity, man! It shows your peeps you’re not perfect. I know, right?! For. Realz. We all kinda like it when we know we’re not alone in this oh-my-gosh-I-can’t-believe-I-did-that world. Also, seriously, if it’s just embarrassing, a good laugh may be had by all. It’s good to poke fun at yourself now and then. And allow others to do the same.
If your post is mean, delete it. If you’re using foul language, venting, or talking smack ’bout someone else, you don’t want that affecting your brand. Hey, we all have bad days, but c’mon. A little respect goes a long way, okay? And self-respect? Even more.
If your post puts you in a bad light, delete it. If you want to share your beach party drunk photos with your friends, do it in a private group. Don’t put them where it can tarnish your professional reputation.
If your post goes against moral and ethical standards, delete it. ‘Nuff said.
You may need to follow up with a statement or apology or comment to address those you’ve hurt, and those who follow you. Don’t make light of what happened. (Unless it was just embarrassing. Then you can laugh all you want.) Open a dialogue and listen to others as they share why what you did affected them. Now, yes. You may need to ignore the trolls who were just waiting for you to slip. But with sincerity, you can address your true community and take steps to move forward.
Don’t use your social media as an instrument of instigation. Be careful not only of what you post, but the comments you share on others’ posts. Sure, you may get a lot of attention, but you won’t always keep your reputation.
[ctt template=”5″ link=”hNgOY” via=”yes” ]Can you recover from sharing too much on #socialmedia?[/ctt]
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Dec 14, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
Whether you do it yourself, for yourself, for others, or have others do it for you, social media is a great tool to connect you with the world.
But we all know it can take up a bit of time. [I guess that’s why they call it “management”.]
Now, I’m not exactly an expert, but I’m also not-not one either. In my ventures with social media, there are a few things I’ve learned that make it easier.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Presents for Your Social Media Manager
Scheduling is prob’ly the first thing you need to manage. I recommend a scheduling app like Hootsuite. Hootsuite gives you a variety of options, from posting to all your sites at the same time, to scheduling them separately, to working with a team of contributors. With a range of prices from free to professional (read: not free), and somewhere in between, there are a lot of great reasons to give a year’s subscription to your favorite media ninja.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Hootsuite for Social Media Management
Another calendaring “app” I recommend is the old fashioned paper and pen system. You know my love for Happy Planners, yes? I have one exclusively for the use of tracking which posts are on which sites, who’s contributing to Frankly, My Dear . . . , and what’s coming up that I need to pay attention to (contests, celebration day, speaking engagements).
Frankly, My Dear . . . : My Blogging Planner
A camera comes in handy, not just for the writer, but for the social media manager as well. Let’s say y’all happen to be at a Christmas party together and one of you hates social media and so has hired the other to do it. Party A wants to take a picture of Party B in their Coolest Ugly Christmas Sweater at the Party C. Y’all best make sure your smart phone has the new awesome camera, or you have a digital at your side. You can also use an instant film camera, and take a smart phone photo of your print photo for a double shot of photographic greatness. If you do this, I recommend a middle-grade camera. Something you can have fun with and trust to give you decent pics. [Dear Santa, the Fujifilm Instax in Pomegranate Red is looking rather delicious. Just sayin’.]
Now, we all know media managers don’t live on internet alone. There’s this life-sustaining thing called coffee that makes the world a better place for everyone. An individual Keurig machine, a gift card to Starbucks, or a can of their favorite brand of beans goes a long way in keeping your manager functioning properly.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Merry Christmas with Cafe du Monde
And while you’re at it, throw in a gift card to their favorite eatery or two and you’ll sustain them for at least another round of “Why did you put that online?” – “Because you pay me to” dialogue.
Let’s see, what else. Ah. A plethora of research and photo sites. There’s plenty of free stuff available, but if your topic requires a bit more, subscriptions to photo sharing sites or in-depth informational platforms (think online news articles) are a boost.
But wait. There’s more. Plates. Because no matter how much you give your social media ninja to do, if they’re really good at it, they can heap it high and keep it spinning.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : What’s on Your Plate?
Books, magazines, or gift cards for such, anything that helps with research.
If you really want to spoil your social media person, think break time. A day-vay (one-day vacation), tickets to a movie, an evening out with friends. Let your ninja know they’re more than just your internet poster. Let them know you see them as a person, too.
But you know what you can give your social media manager that would mean the most? Your time. Sit with them, hash out your game plan, and work together. Knowing what you want from them, and that you trust them enough to accomplish your mutual goals, is the whipped cream on the pie. [Ooh. Foodie reference. And I didn’t even try!]
Happy Planner Page: Social Media MoJo
[ctt template=”5″ link=”0Ed22″ via=”yes” ]In my ventures with social media, there are a few things I’ve learned that make it easier.[/ctt]
With a huge cup of coffee and always-typing fingers,
Happy Media-ing!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Dec 9, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Social Media Saturday
So you noticed today’s post is late in the evening again. You may not even be reading this until Sunday.
No, I didn’t fall back into old procrastination habits or forget due to other events (although the last three days of consecutive Christmas parties has been a blast!). No, I did it on purpose.
I intentionally gave myself last night and today be social- wait for it- in the real world. I know! *gasp* I can hardly believe it myself.
Now I know some of you are thinking, “well, duh. You need that connection every now and then.” And others are thinking, “She must have a fever or something.”
Truth is, I needed to kick back with my peeps, raise my eyes from the keyboards and just hang out. And in the end, it was beneficial because the networking I did offline (is that even a real thing?) has opened up opportunities for future ventures, squared away plans for Blue Ridge, and allowed me to recharge the social batteries.
It’s okay to not do everything every day. It’s okay to relax and time for yourself in ways you don’t normally do.
Now I’m home with woolly socks, cat cuddles, some hot tea, and The West Wing. Hey, I didn’t say you had to stop all habits.
With a smile and a wave and an in-person hug,
Happy relaxing!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Dec 2, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Social Media Saturday
It’s never too soon to have an actual plan for your social media. [Says This Girl who has forgotten to write her blog posts til it’s almost bedtime.] So we’ll just call this part of our “Do I Say, Not As I Do” series, yah? #thankyouverymuch.
I recently shared ideas on daily planning. [Read: Planning is Key.] But what about those special projects like book launches or grand opening parties?
Here are a few ideas to keep you on track. [Note to self: Implement more, implement regularly. Just implement.]
- Keep a calendar available and make note of important dates:
- Make a list of what you’d like to accomplish. What is your goal for this project, and what steps can take you there? For instance, a successful book launch party includes Author Q&A, trivia with prizes, and perhaps a live reading from the new book. You should map out a time of the event, list the answers, and photograph your prizes ahead of time.
- Invite, invite, invite. Remember 3 is The Key? Here’s the same theory. Announce your shindig. Remind people. Toss out one more friendly “hey are you coming?” notice.
- Work backwards. That is, set the date and from there set up your To Do’s.
- Let’s say your Twitter Party is on July 4th. You can’t always buy red, white, and blue decor in February, so make sure you remember to look over the discount sales after Memorial Day.
- Hosting a live event? What will you serve? If you’re preparing the foods yourself, you’ll need time to buy the groceries, cook, and set things out. Make a grocery list and check it twice! You don’t want to run out of Bleu Cheese dressing for your ahh-mazing salads, right?
- Get a few eyes on the project.
- Ask a trusted friend or colleague to review your plan with you and help fill in some gaps.
- Google party plans and check for ideas to add.
If you have projects happening in the New Year, are you already planning for them? If so, how?
Share your project planning ideas in the comments!
TWEET THIS: Social Media Saturday: Plan Now to Start Later @RealMojo68 #socialmedia #planner
With an erasable pen and an open Happy Planner,
Happy scheduling!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
