FayzLandscape

     FayzLandscape E-commerce Website (FEW) encompasses the services and 

products related to fayzLandscapes.com online store. FayzLandscape is an online/offline 

company that entails the three business elements of a revenue model, market strategy, 

and organizational development.  It intends to consult, customize, and provide one-on-

one landscaping projects to B2C, P2P and B2B and residential enterprise.  The paper 

gives a broad overview of the company’s intended business model and plan explaining its 

offering and website content. 

     

     FEW's goal is to develop and enhance 

the aesthetic beauty of a customer’s physical facility both online and offline with 

essential landscaping equipment, supplies, and advice on landscape and garden services.  

The website contains the products and services offered by the company including links to 

blogs, podcasts, and social media sites (SMSs).  A ‘contact us’ link where prospective 

clients may voice concerns and read reviews will be displayed on the home page. 

     

     Design packages will be customized to meet every need.  FEW intend to tap into a 

consumer market to allow customers to create personalized backdrops, backgrounds and 

blueprints in making their own designs.  The site would be customized to meet the 

customer’s demand.  The customer would choose the desired presentation, features, and 

distribution options then add their final selection to the shopping cart.  

Synopsis of Wing 3: Engage

How to make people connect with your goal

This chapter gives an inspiring synopsis on keeping on task.  It began with the following quote by Tony Dorsett: “To succeed you need to find something to hold on to,

Something to motivate you, 

Something to inspire you.”

The authors explored (p.76) in Wing 2: Grab Attention, many customers have fan pages on Facebook or talk to their followers on Twitter.  This was conveyed through idea pages and tweets.  Non-profit organizations, businesses, and even the military have taken advantage of using this media in engaging its customers.  For instance, Proctor and Gamble’s Pampers brand, Dell Outlet, TVGuide.com all took advantage of using social media as a marketing tool.  A highly engaged campaign entailed transparency, interactivity, immediacy, facilitation, commitment, cocreation, collaboration, experience, and trust.  In order to engage necessitates four design principles.   

First, tell a story then emphasize as Zappo’s CEO did in April 2007 to boost sales.  He started tweeting and by April 2010 he had over 1.7 million followers therefore increasing sales.  This is synonymous to word-of-mouth.  The third design principle must be authentic and above all match the media.  This means that each social media user have their favorite site whether Facebook or Twitter.  In summary, always align communication, content, and context.  With all these principles in place the next wing, wing 4, take action will empower others enabling them and cultivating a movement while keeping the words of Bill Gates in mind:

“As we look ahead to the next century,

Leaders will be those who empower others.”

Aaker, J., & Smith, A. (2011). The dragonfly effect. Stanford Social Innovation Review, 9(1), 30-35.

   

                                               

Aaker, J., & Smith, A. (2011). The dragonfly effect. Stanford Social Innovation Review, 9(1), 30-35.

'Big Up' Jamaica

Jamaica land we love!

Today, I remember all the stories of the past,

Life as a child growing up 

In the cool hills overlooking Montego Valley.

reflecting, dreaming, envisioning...

The joys of the past

Hopes for the future

Will everywhere be as peaceful 

As it is here?  In this very spot?

Calm as the waters of the beautiful Caribbean Sea.

This is my land.

Jamaica land we love.

Happy Independence Day!

Walmart

Have you ever seen a Walmart parking lot so empty? 

                Not in my town.

      Walmart is a popular leader in the application of network technology to the supply chain management.  It is known in eCommerce circles as the most effective B2B supply chain in the world that has live up to its planned offering the lowest prices everyday.  The development and implementation of its private industrial network via its electronic data interchange based supply chain managements system (Laudon & Traver, 2012).  This data exchange has open the doors to a few challenges especially its workers.  They use mass self-communications networks (MSCNs), such as Facebook, in mobilizing low-wage service workers.  The workers use social networking sites to voice their grievances instead of "on site" at the physical workplace.  This action fined more support and proved more effective.  This increased media interest.  Therefore suggesting that Internet-based mass self-communication networks (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) can indeed complement traditional advertising techniques (Wood, 2015).

Arlene.

References:

 Laudon, K. & Traver, C. G. (2012). E-Commerce 2012 (8th ed.). Prentice Hall.

Wood, A. J. (2015). Networks of injustice and worker mobilisation at Walmart. Industrial Relations Journal.  Article first published online: 14 July 2015. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezproxylocal.library.nova.edu/enhanced/doi/10.1111/irj.12103/ on August 5,2015.

Starbucks

     Starbucks Corporation is an American coffee company that started in Seattle, Washington in 1971.  It established its first coffeehouse in 1984.  Today is operating over 20,000 stores in over 60 countries.  The current stock price SBUX (NASDAQ) is at $57.51 as of July 29, 2015 at 4:05 p.m.  The company is the premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world. Through our unwavering commitment to excellence and our guiding principles, we bring the unique Starbucks Experience to life for every customer through every cup.  Along with coffee, Starbucks also offers cookies, cakes, chocolate and recently snacks, coffee makers among other souvenirs and paraphernalia.

     Starbucks has a strong social presence as one of its marketing platforms are Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, Instagram and MySpace among others.  Starbucks marketing strategies emphasize the perfect cup of coffee, innovation, smart partnerships, brand marketing, customer satisfaction (Twitter), creating a Starbucks community on the numerous social media sites that employees and customers are encouraged to participate in.  The company has a developing international business with diverse drinks with new ones originating periodically.  It seems to be the best loved drink on social media due to its influencers.  

     The public can share their ideas on one their platform called ‘My Starbucks Idea’.  It allows the participant to share ideas, vote on existing ones, discussion, and make an examination of new and innovating ideas.  Hence, share, vote, discuss, and see (fig.1).  

        

                                   Fig.1(a)                                  Fig. 1(b)

     All its physical locations offer free Wi-Fi which has attracted retirees, college students and many young business entrepreneurs that enjoys the relaxed atmosphere.  Its social media engagements also offer a quick response to complaints along with opportunities for new connections.  Many Starbucks customers are willing to download its app, place orders and pay via their mobile devices. As such, the coffee giant’s app lands near the top for mobile payment usage. In a December 2014 study by 451 Research, Starbucks was the second most popular app US mobile phone owners used to pay for goods in physical stores in the past month, cited by 6%. This trailed only PayPal (14%) and was ahead of Google Wallet (4%), Amazon Wallet (3%) and competitor Dunkin’ Donuts (3%), among others (Fig.2).

Starbucks has cited some key points for its return on investment with its Facebook and Twitter trends, mobile payment transactions along with its store transactions and loyalty card programs.   

 

Fig.2

Here is a snapshot of their newest drink from my Twitter account (Fig.3).

 

Virtual communities

“A virtual community is a group of people who may or may not meet one another face to face, and who exchange words and ideas through the mediation of computer bulletin boards and networks. Like any other community, it is also a collection of people who adhere to a certain (loose) social contract, and who share certain (eclectic) interests.

—Howard Rheingold, “Virtual Communities,” 1987” & ‘Net Smart’, 2012.

    One of the virtual communities that I am a part of ‘Content Marketing and Social Media’ that is a part of Google+ (Https//plus.google.com).  There were 92,857 members on this site on July 27,2015 at 11:15 p.m.  I realize from my numerous visits that the membership increases constantly.  The discussions are enlightening, informative, and interactive at times.  The discussions can be invigorating yet opinionated at times centered around Facebook, Twitter, YouTube even Snapshot and Instagram. My infrequent visits are twice per week or when an assignment is due to gain insight about SMS.  Here is a link to an artless I read on the discussion http://www.businessinsider.com/emarketer-instagram-mobile-ad-revenue-forecast-2015-7.

     Another community on Google+ ( https://plus.google.com/)

     The discussions in this community are slow but has 438,977 members.  My reason for joining this group is to share knowledge on famous quotations and reflections but was disappointed.  The discussion was not very collaborative.  I was puzzled by the high volume of membership posted. With google plus there are so many discussions taking place that at times there is a continuous switch.  However, I have gained some experience in socializing in these online environments.  They lead me in setting up memberships on Pinterest and Instagram .

     

  

Privacy tracking

What's up with Snowden?

I recently read a blog in the 'Wall Street Journal' on how to use Edward Snowden's three tips for digital privacy. NSA's whistleblower and former contractor, Snowden, used encryption to pinpoint loop holes or breeches in their data security.  He advised users to encrypt their hard drive by adding password protection directly to it.   Next, plug- ins are useful in preventing organizations or companies from online tracking.  Finally he suggested using Tor, a network that promised anonymity and privacy online using its own browser.  Ganapati, the author of the article, pointed out that an encrypted chat service and encrypted mail also lowers your online profile as well.  

This goes to show that Snowden is outttt

Of the NSA

But he is definitely not

Downnnn....

Reference:

Ganapati, P. (2014).  How to use Edward Snowden's three tips for digital privacy.   Wall Street Journal. Online version. March 10,2014.  Retrieved from:  http://blogs.wsj.com/personal-technology/2014/03/10/privacy-snowden/?mod=ST1 on July18,2015.  

First Audio, Then Video, Next Go Live!

"A picture is worth a thousand words."  

                             -Napoleon Bonaparte.

This quote comes to mind upon reflection of the contents of chapters 9, 10, and 14 of "The Social Media Bible".  It's an informative, and interesting book that explain the "ins-and-out" of Social Media.  Chapter nine explained audio creation via podcast.   PodBean.com or iTunes were highlighted as websites that assist with making a podcast.  The steps involved were introduction, recording, shaving off, editing then publishing while adding special effects.  

On the other hand, chapter ten admonish users to share old or vintage VHS audios by digitizing them or creating a podcast.  Therefore, making them available for others to see; that is, sharing with friends, family, employees, and prospective clients.  They can be added web pages, blog pages, photographs, audio podcasts, and YouTube videos.

Finally, Chapter 14 encourages users to "Go Live from Anywhere" stated Lon Safko (2012).  Web radio, net radio, livecasting, webcasting, web conferencing, or webinars, broadcasting information online is all about creating "live" content that uses the internet to distribute or stream that content (p. 318).  Internet Radio, Justin.tv, BlogTalkRadio, and Ustream.tv are just a few examples of this type of social media.  The author admonishes users to explore livecastling by first getting a webcam, then try a webinar or your own radio show and finally try a web conference.

                              Just Do It!!!

Instagram…A Review

     The researchers Weilenmann, Hillman, and Jungselius (2013) investigated how ins tag ram was used to communicate visitors’ experiences while visiting a museum of natural history.  Visitors used their smartphones to take pictures of various pictures of various exhibits that they commented on and shared with friends and acquaintances on Instagram.  The researchers exploited certain features that only smartphones provided instead of the usual camera.

     This paper focused on the photo sharing aspect that Instagram provided  through its smartphone application.  This included its dedicated mobile application that allowed users to adjust and manipulate pictures before uploading them online.  The researchers analyzed the process of creating and sharing Instagram emphasizing the formulation of captions, hashtags, and photographic choice and the audience.  

     Surprisingly, museums allowed smartphone usage.  The exploited the opportunity of using them as personal guides.  It opened the doors of social media usage as a guide to the “Arts” as the central role in learning in informal environments. The goal of the museum and galleries was to use social media to facility  new types of participation with visitors.

     The researchers found out that social media provided enrichment to a museum’s authenticity by enabling it to maintain a dialog with its audience in real-time (pp. 1845).  Smartphones possessed a GPS locator that allowed users to check- in and share their locations with friends. This lent authenticity to the Instagram message.

   However the visitors were concerned about balancing the subject choice, aesthetics, and captioning when producing  content or hashtag.  Instagram with data sets were easily located but the others used hashtags or mentioned the name of the museum within the content so that followers could identify the context of the message.

    This was an excellent article that conveyed how social media was used in an intellectually controlled environment.  It showed the enrichment experience that the online viewers received by the visitors’ use of social media in their engagement with the various exhibits.  But there are still some concern by exhibition developers that are apprehensive about control issues with outside technology use in museums.

Reference:

Weilenmann, A., Hillman, T., & Jungselius, B. (2013, April). Instagram at the museum: communicating the museum experience through social photo sharing. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1843-1852). ACM.

Crowdsourcing

    Crowdsourcing!  Collaboration!   Strategizing!  All the concepts mean sharing, cooperating, and getting ideas.  Crowdsourcing is the process of connecting with large groups of people via the internet sharing their knowledge, expertise, time or resources (crowdsourcing.org).  It is using more than one persons or group assistance with a problem or insight  about a particular topic. It is using a crowd as a source.  Brainstorming!

     'Crowdsourcing.com' states that crowdsourcing is a way of solving problems and producing things by connecting online with people that you otherwise would not know.  How would you do this?  By accessing a large online labour force, asking the crowd for solution, finding out the existence of the knowledge, getting the ideas together and acquiring feedback.  Here are a few ways that crowdsourcing works:

                   ~crowdengineering

                        ~cloud labour

                               ~crowdfunding

                                      ~ open innovations

                                               ~crowd creativity......     

Oh Canada!

I remember the days when I lived in Langdon, Alberta, and our closest neighbor would be but a blimp on the horizon. 

 Great open spaces.. 

 Fresh, dry air to breathe. 

 The ostrich farm.

A tiny church in the small town two miles from our property which made the distance necessary when we continue driving for five more miles and there is Calgary.  

Those were the good old days.  

Happy Canada Day!

Podcast

      Collette Cassinelli (2007) defined podcast as a collection of individual audio episodes typically recorded and edited on a computer and then uploaded to a web server. The video stated the procedure in integrating podcasting in your classroom.  Collette instructed how to listen to a podcast on your browser.  A group of students were an example of the fun ways to listen to materials in their classroom.  In the video they were seen calloraborating with each other.  It refererred to today's students as being digital natives which is an appropriate description of the electronic society today.

Http://studio.odeo.com  

Http://prosoma tic.com. These two sites were listed as ones that you may use in creating a website.

Cassinelli, C (2007).  Integrating podcasting in your classroom.  Retrieved from:

        www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExkMeQfuLGc

How to Do Something Seismic-and Create a Movement

Aaker & Smith (2010) told some powerful, gratifying and emotional true events that leaves the reader 'on-the-edge of the seat'.  They taught various lesson to be learnt.  One of such from Team Sameer and Team Vinayon on how to do something seismic and create a movement by Robert Chatwani on page 17 of their book.   It is very informative and encouraging especially for the beginner of Social Media.  Take a look!  Grab a read the next time you visit your local library.

Twitter chief in 'The Switch'

The Switch, Washington Post technology newspaper on June 11 discussed that Twitter chief executive Dick Costello will step down on July 1.  Is it due to constant criticisms?  Or a lack of increase in earnings since 2013?  Chris Sacca penned that the service was currently too hard to use, scary and alienating for new users.  Does this mean that the interim chief executive will transform the media service so that it's stock potential will increase, overnight?  Will Dorsey be capable of leading the company into its next phase of growth?  We will sure be tweeting about it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2015/06/11/twittter-chief-executive-dick-costolo-to-step-down-july-1/

Cyber bullying?

    My favorite pastime is watching television.  This week one of my favorite drama, Royal Pains, depict cyberbullying.  Divya was the victim.  She stopped to help a young man in distress on the side of the street, leaving her baby in the car.   When she returned two police officers charged her with parental neglect.  Of course, someone video taped the incident and uploaded it on a Social Media Website wherein others commented.  Complication?  Is this negative SMS or cyberbullying?

Did U...Blog?

      Blogging, from the writer’s perspective, is synonymous to journaling.  Whether personal as a diarist or public as a journalist.  There are times that our thoughts get overloaded and the need to record them gets compelling.  A post it, notepad, scrapbook and more recently taking the form of technology instead of paper the computer is used. Going ‘green’ goes hand in hand with recycling.  Therefore instead of paper notes; that is, not killing the trees, technological devices are used to record our words.

     

      Making an electronic record of our thoughts as it happens can be live blogging.   Twitter microblogging is a popular media for live blogging.  Sharing and collaborating news as it happens is a regular practice on Social Media Sites. There are different types of blogs or means of conveying blogs.  The visual depicts a few such as Qlogs, Vlogs, Splog, audioblog, musicblog, artblog, among others.

    

SMS: Twitter

    Twitter can be used to build PLEs (personal learning environments).  Users can follow anyone they want as the environment is asymmetrical making it perfect for data gathering.  It is simple in creating a platform for social innovations making it useful in forming ad hoc groups with similar interests. #hashtag is used for similar interest groups making it effective, efficient and quite elaborate.  

     For the Writer's bloc, this is a great tool to gather your thoughts.  Just tweet the topic and wait for the 'canary to sing'.   This is what makes twitter so attractive.  It's short; 140 word count, a great way to start the words flowing.  A notepad!  A post it!  Why do users gravitate to twitter?  Rheingold (2012) stated that users like the sites' openness, immediacy, variety, reciprocity, asymmetry, channel to multiple publics, making connections, forming a community, search ability, and above all its a platform for mass collaboration.

Reference:

Rheingold, H., & Weeks, A. (2012). Net smart: How to thrive online. Mit Press.

Chicago

  

   

SMSs: A Review

I recently read this article by

Boyd, Danah, m. & Ellison, Nicole (2007). Social network sites: definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13, 1, article 11. http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol13/issue1/boyd.ellison.html.

Doi: 10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00393.x

     This article looked at the participation and practice of users of a few social network sites (SNSs); that is, Facebook, MySpace, Cyworld and Bebo.  It explained their attractiveness, limitations and attempt to define the broad term social network site.  The definition emphasizes networking in relation to computer mediated communication.

   The paper went on to describe the rise and fall of Friendster another SNS and how MySpace took advantage of the market by offering the consumers what Friendster was protecting.  MySpace capitalized on Friendster’s alienated users. Shark!  This practice is so common in SNSs.  The market gets competitive therefore losing certain privacy controls just to get ahead in the marketplace.

   SNSs grew rapidly and widely encouraging a functional attractive platform to its many users.  They offer video-sharing, network visualizations, messaging, a number of friendship and business links that make their main feature so attractive to users that they forget about the privacy controls.   These networks are widely used in educational settings due to its synchronicity.  What is the cuter of these sites?  How do they secure user information?  What are their ethical standards?

  These are a few questions that came to mind while reading.  It encourages the reader to research SNS a bit further as this is becoming a practice with the every online user today.  It is a good, informative paper.

Confluence versus e-mail

 I recently read an article by Jacob Morgan from the Chess Media Group.  Retrieved from:
http://blogs.atlassian.com/2012/07/the-e-mail-culture-why-do-people-use-e-mail-to-begin-with/
    Jacob questioned e-mail as a collaborative tool, ease of information gathering, security, it's productivity and alignment to projects which met with negative responses.  However, it is a "glorified instant messaging tool" for customers interactions or business to customers (B2C) interactions.
   On the other hand, Confluence is indeed quicker, more secure and encourage easier collaboration.  This feature is attractive to developing companies who needs this faster means of collaboration with its personnel.   Especially if the employees are scattered all over the globe.  It will make eCommerce more efficient and effective therefore increasing production.  Confluence has a more collaborative platform.

Feedback on Attention to attention

A familiar quote
     "Tell me and I forget,
            Teach me and I remember,
       Involve me and I learn.
                           -Benjamin Franklin.

This quotation comes to mind after viewing Howard Reingold's video podcast, "Attention to attention in the age of Screens" (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sotfgHKk1dM).   This podcast emphasizes the concept that screens are attention magnets and undergoes a variety of attention tests.  It questions the level of distraction with respect to the brain hence mindfulness which leads to metacognition.  It suggests a few tools individuals uses to managing the mind and gaining or retaining information.  For example, dashboard to priorities.   It also raises the question of multitasking.  Which leads the writer to perform further research  about the concept.  )

Reingold ends with the obvious.  
"Notice what you are paying attention to.
Attention is the foundation of thoughts
                          and communication."