Blackout

Black is the new black—in packaging, that is!

• Beer in black cans
• Shampoo in black bottles
• Gelato in black containers
• Mobile phones in black cases
• Makeup in black tubes
• Trash in black bags

“Some marketers say black’s popularity is a reaction to the continued lackluster economy, which has consumers gravitating to lower-priced items. Black subtly conveys premium.”

The only thing not black in the advertising industry: the employees.

Adobe Photoshop Touch

Adobe Photoshop Touch lets users quickly combine images, apply professional effects, and share the results with friends and family through social networking sites — all from the convenience of iPad or Android tablet, iPhone or Android phone, and iPod Touch. Key features include the ability to work on files up to 12 megapixels with higher resolution capabilities, core Photoshop tools one has become accustomed to and the ability to adjust layer order, control individual layer opacity, and move and manipulate layers independently.

$5.00

The Best Way to Eat a Thin Mint

We’re a “Thin Mints Belong in the Freezer” kind of family. They absolutely taste better when super, super chilled. But want to know how to make them taste even better?

Essentially, you make a cookie straw and drink the milk. When you were little did you ever drink Sprite with Twizzler straws? It’s the same concept!

You take the cookie and bit a little bit off opposite ends. There are tiny holes throughout the inner cookie, which creates this amazing straw. The milk ends up tasting like chocolate milk and the cookie turns into the perfect texture. The colder the cookie and the colder the milk, the better. Take that Oreo!

The iWallet?

Carrying fewer things in your pocket just got a little easier with this kickstarter project. The Wally is a slim American made wallet that attaches to your iphone (or case) with ease and without residue. It even has a red pull tab (which I love) that help quickly retrieve your contents. And although I wouldn’t replace my wallet just yet, I like the idea of using Wally when I go for a run or holding business cards.

$40.00

My Thoughts: #CoMoSnow 2013

If Mizzou considers itself one of the nation’s top-tier institutions, why didn’t the Chancellor do his part as the leader of the university yesterday?

By 9 a.m., snowfall and ice layered Columbia. Due to severe weather creating hazardous traveling conditions, Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency, yet Chancellor Deaton did not issue a closure.

The University of Missouri’s official Twitter account took a lowball approach and tweeted, “To reiterate, classes are in session. Please ignore 2 year old retweets.” The only reason people were retweeting those was because conditions were unsafe for students to travel and it was humorous the university thought it could win against mother nature. Moments later, their social team tweeted, “sidewalks and roads on campus are passable.” That’s wonderful, but what about the overwhelming majority of us who live off-campus? Were you planning on sending Campus Facilities into the City of Columbia and take care of the roads? Are the crews at Mizzou more equipped than the City of Columbia? And yet again, within the hour they stated: “snowfall amounts that…will be able to handle effectively.” Did you even look outside and see for yourselves? Were you planning to “handle effectively” the students who could have been injured on the way to class? Keep in mind that you did close University of Missouri Health Care outpatient clinics.

As they say, if you are not willing to contribute to the solution, don’t complain. Here is my solution: if Mizzou was SO adamant about remaining open (which I don’t understand what one-day of closure is going to affect, just ask my professors who habitually cancel class—it’s nothing new to us, the students) why didn’t the Chancellor, “of one of the great universities of the future,” do his part as a leader? There are an overwhelming number of resources, for instance, Mizzou Advantage!

The purpose of Mizzou Advantage is to “increase MU’s visibility, stature and impact in higher education and enhance instructional programs” and “the value of an MU degree.” Mizzou Advantage toots its horn featuring “a wide array of expertise and resources all located on the same campus, MU does things no other university can.” You’re right, Mizzou, you did do things no other university can, by placing the safety of your students at harm. Why didn’t you delve into “Media of the Future” and instruct professors to conduct classes online via Blackboard, email, social media networks, or an array of emerging platforms to strengthen our use in digital technologies? Perhaps you were relying on implementing “One Health/One Medicine” as the state’s major public research university connecting research and instruction in health care delivery, policy, business models, medical ethics and the culture of healthy living after students resulted in injury.

Today, brands become damaged because of their poor communications, which usually results and lies at the company’s head. Mizzou’s Twitter and Facebook accounts should never have ignored complaints. This was not a handful of students complaining, but professors, news broadcasts and even the Governor. Yesterday, Chancellor Deaton, the University of Missouri’s public relations and social media team failed during crisis communication. Good PR results in being sympathetic, taking responsibility for company’s errors and being transparent.

Strategic PR and social teams are prepared for crisis communication/emergency situations. I think it’s time Mizzou created one.