Nick from Search Engine Optimization Journal says it short, sweet, and right on, Is Organic SEO Really Your Best Option?

For years SEO practitioners have been proclaiming the virtues of organic SEO. It’s free. It’s easy. It’s not PPC. Etc. By the same token, PPC experts have been signing the praises of PPC – it’s fast, it’s dynamic, it’s targeted traffic, and it’s not organic SEO. Does it really matter?

Personally, I think that your Internet marketing efforts should all work together. It’s not a matter of SEO vs. PPC. It’s more a matter of whether or not you are targeting your traffic through the tools that are available to you, and organic SEO is one tool at your disposal. And it’s a valuable tool.

Organic SEO is about targeting the keywords that are important to your business and achieving business results for your targeting efforts. There’s more to it than simply picking keywords out of a vacuum and throwing them against the wall. The idea is to target the keywords that searchers looking for a service or product like yours would use to find it. If you can identify the keywords that the market thrives on then you can drive traffic to your website. You can do this through organic SEO and PPC as well as through other avenues.

The only thing I might add is the power of digital PR, blogger outreach, and online engagement to help out your war of search placement; otherwise, this is the best I have read in quite a while.

This is not a game of panaceas, it is a game of content-creation, site architecture, organic SEO strategies, PPC, and all the rest, over time.  SEO is about consistance, predictability, and is much more of a war than it is a battle.

Mind you, try not too lose to many battles along the way.

Jonathan Trenn popped this insightful article about Yelp over on Marketing Conversation, The contorversy about Yelp (and be sure to check out David Gelles’ article on a similar topic over at the Financial Times, Yelp rejects claims of extortion):

Ah, controversy.

Now, it’s with Yelp, the mega online review site.  On Wednesday, the East Bay Express, an alternative newspaper that covers Alameda and Contra Costa counties in California, published a very provocative article , “Yelp and the business of extortion 2.0″ on the sales operations and tactics of Yelp.  The paper made some very pointed accusations, some of them seemingly legitimate while others sounding too nebulous.  They state that Yelp is both maniupulating the placements of restaurants reviews as sales tools and then using scare tactics to then solicit advertising sales from these same restaurants.

The accusations are alarming but, because I think the article was poorly presented, it’s left me thinking that Yelp perhaps had a major sales problem in one office as opposed to a company wide sleaze factor policy.

Yelp’s initial response, written on the company blog by CEO Jeremy Stoppleman is inept and insufficient.  He’s likely satisfied that his blog posts are enough…and it may appear to be just that for the time being…but controversies such as this, be they true or just speculation, have a way of undermining a company’s integrity in a hurry.  Especially a site that 1)  is about user generated online reviews, and 2) has trust as a hallmark of its standing.

Oddly, the Yelp blog doesn’t allow comments.  That’s not a good idea…especially for a site that’s about online reviews and citizen participation.

Here’s the gist of the article.  Writer Kathleen Richards talked to “dozens” of business owners over the “past several months” and found that six of them said that Yelp sales reps promised to remove or move bad reviews if the business chose to advertise.  And these businesses would often get sales calls from Yelp reps soon after they mysteriously started getting a rash of negative reviews.  The theory here is that Yelp employees would start to or enlist others to write negative reviews on a company, those reviews would then appear at the top of a company’s page, and the company would get a phone call from a rep looking for an advertising by so those reviews can “go away”…usually to the tune of $300 a month.

For those that declined, positive reviews seemed to begin to disappear.  For those that did manage to buy, negative ones began disappearing.

This is pretty damning stuff.  If true, it shows a coordinted effort between people in sales those on the back end tech team.  It made some establishments feel as if Yelp was acting as if it was the “mafia” in that Yelp was threatening establishments to pay (advertise) in order to not be damaged.  That’s called “protection money” in organized crime.

But as I red between the lines I ended up scratching my head.   Over several months, after talking to “dozens” of businesses, Richards found six restaurants that felt that either they were being offered a quid-pro-qo for advertising to reduce or eliminate bad reviews; or some felt that this extended to manipulative threats of the placement of poor reviews and the elimination of postive reviews.

“Dozens.  “What does that mean?  36?  60?  84?  How did Richards find these restaurants?  Did she talk to one and then ask the owner/manager if he or she knew of any others that had similar stories?  Both questions are important.   The first because it leads to how widespread the problem actually is in the Bay Area and the second, because if there is a lack or randomness to all this, then the sample restaurants are self selected by the reporter.

The article relies on the how some of the restaurant owners “feel”.  These feelings may be completely legitimate.  But it is hard to counter a “feelings”e of another is the one with the feelings remain anonymous.  I fully believe in using anonymous sources, but there should be greater evidence used.  That is, if one is trying to prove that this is a consistent sales tactic used by the company as a whole.

And speaking of as a whole.  This article seems to be focusing soley on the East Bay restaurant seen.  True, it is an East Bay pub, but the article is written as if it is a widespread problem and the issue here is “the business of extortion”.  It fully damns the Yelp based on a small sample of local business’ feelings.

Stoppleman has since written a few more blog posts, but he could use a change of attitude.  There’s been enough discussion on the net about this article denigrating Yelp.  Hundreds of tweets on Twitter, negative mentions on Technorati, and articles in substantial online pubs.

The reason why I say that Stoppleman could use a change of attitude is because he’s treating all of this as an illegitimate attack.  The accusations, regardless of their veracity, at least sound reasonable.  And his defensiveness doesn’t really address the issue.

He does have on post that does work, at bit, in my opinion.  “Nine Myths About Yelp” is designed to negate what he feels are falsehoods.  The most important one he lists is #3 (it should be #1, but he doesn’t seem to realize it).  It is stated here:

Myth #3: Yelp salespeople manipulate reviews for prospective advertisers (for example, offers to remove a negative review if a new client signs up, or a threat to remove positive reviews if the business owner does not choose to advertise with Yelp)

Reality: We have every reason to trust the smart, hard-working and ethical salespeople who work at Yelp.  Beyond this, to avoid even an appearance of impropriety, we’ve taken several steps to ensure no member of our team is tempted to game the system.  Specifically:
1. Yelp salespeople do not have access to the system that deletes reviews; only a few members of Yelp engineering and user support team have this access, and they literally work on different floors within the office.
2. Every Yelp salesperson signs an agreement that s/he will not write reviews of any business while employed by Yelp.  We trust our teammates in sales to live up to this commitment.  We also have several monitoring systems in place to ensure nobody (accidentally or otherwise) crosses this line.
3. Through our vigilance, we once did find a salesperson who encouraged a friend to write a positive review for a prospective client (that the friend had actually patronized). The salesperson’s role at Yelp ended that day.
4. When a new advertiser signs up with Yelp, the relationship is handed off to an Account Manager.  The Account Manager then takes the client through a 30 minute phone training session — and confirms that reviews have nothing to do with advertising.
5. After the training call, the Account Manager sends a follow up survey that asks each client how much s/he agrees with the following statement: “I understand that Reviews are completely separate from the Yelp Ad Program, and that there is an automated filter that may suppress some of my reviews whether or not I am a client.”  Any client who does not click “Completely Agree” in this case gets yet another follow-up call for clarification.

Myth #4: Yelp removes positive reviews from businesses its staff does not like, or from businesses that do not pay for advertising

Reality: A review you may have seen on Yelp previously is no longer there; this happens.  The review in question may have “disappeared” for one of three reasons:
1. The review may have been suppressed by Yelp’s automated Review Filter, which is always out there looking for suspicious reviewing activity (like those anonymous rants and raves you see on other sites).
2. The writer may have removed her own review; she has the right to do that at any time
3. Another user believed the review violated Yelp’s Review Guidelines and sent it to our customer service team for review. The customer service team agreed, then manually removed the review.

Both our customer service team and the Review Filter work exactly the same way for advertisers as they do for non-advertisers.

This is how he should have addressed the issue at the very beginning.  Blown opportunity and his company has suffered and will continue to suffer as a result.  And he has to go beyond stating that the sales people and the tech people with access to placement of reviews work on different floors.

My guess is what happened is that a few sales reps in that particular office would scour the reviews on Yelp, and when they found some recent newly written negative ones, they then picked up the phone and made a sales call, offering the package that places a selected postive review on top – one that is visibly marked as being sponsored.  Some pitches probably went far beyond this…saying that they could make the negative one “disappear”.  Sales people will say sleazy things.  Stoppleman should understand this and not discount this.  He should then conduct some sort of internal audit that would show the public that he is trying to address the problem and root it out if it exists.  Retrain.  Resolve.

Now is it possible that some sales types had relationships with the tech people.  Absolutely.  Different floors – HA!  So the problem may have been more than a poorly written article.  Yelp needs to look into that because, as Yelp knows, online reputations matter.

And to Jeremy Stoppleman…you should allow people to comment on your blog posts.

In December, we at Abraham Harrison helped the Fresh Air Fund reach out to bloggers and folks online in order to remind the online Fresh Air Fund friends and family that they both need donations during this time of year as well as needing families to host children for the summer. Since the holidays, over ninety bloggers have responded to Fresh Air Fund’s call to action with the placement of banners, with tweets, and with blog posts. We are much obliged to you, Fresh Air Fund bloggers! (via Marketing Conversation)

1. Young Manhattanite via Young Manhattanite.
2. Dicky’s Doodles &Scribbles via a Banner.
3. Mexico Surfin’, Traveling via a Banner.
4. Sonofthebeaches via a Banner.
5. More Of Dicky’s Doodles and Scribbles via a Banner.
6. Willy Wipeout via a Banner.
7. Dicky’s Gallery via a Banner.
8. Mexico Surfin’, Traveling via a Banner.
9. East Village Idiot via a Banner.
10. Assertagirl via The Fresh Air Fund: Donate Today To Change A Child’S Life Forever..
11. Olean NY, Bradford PA Entertainment Connection via Give The Gift Of A Fun Summer.
12. Picking Daisies via a Banner.
13. Rethinking Life via Rethinking The Natural World.
14. Sugar and Spice & a Little Rice via a Banner.
15. Self-Absorbed Boomer via Fresh Air Fund Needs Your Help This Holiday Season..
16. Make it Happen via Help The Fresh Air Fund.
17. Serf City via Give To The Fresh Air Fund.
18. Art of the Possible Online via The Fresh Air Fund Helping Inner City Children.
19. Yoga and Judaism Center via Fresh Air Fund.
20. Blah Blah Babycakes via This Holiday Season Give The Gift Of Fresh Air..
21. The Hosanna Road via Fresh Air.
22. The Stephford Diaries via Randomness Because I Can.
23. Lost in the Ozone via Happy Holidays From The Fresh Air Fund.
24. Stories of a Traveling Diva via Share Your Blessings For The Fresh Air Fund.
25. Grace come By Hearing via a Banner.
26. LeeOdden via a Tweet.
27. Ocean Hopping: NY To London via Fresh Air For Christmas.
28. Parenting Cares via Making This Holiday Count.
29. She Lives via Fresh Air.
30. I Say Hella via Support And Awesome Cause.
31. Bloody Brilliant via a Banner.
32. Tom Glover’s Hamilton Scrapbook via The Fresh Air Fund
33. Around the World in beautiful Shoes via a Banner.
34. Circle Of Life via a Banner.
35. Fat Doctor via Give The Gift Of Fresh Air.
36. Gotham Unleashed via Don’t Forget The Fresh Air Fund!.
37. Blue Ridge Dreaming via a Banner.
38. Mountain Mama via a Banner.
39. Best View in Brooklyn via Need An End Of The Year Tax Deduction? Consider The Fresh Air Fund.
40. Left of Centre via a Banner.
41. Samotalis via Happy Holidays From The Fresh Air Fund.
42. Word Journey via You Can Give A Child A Break This Summer.
43. Blogging for Business via The Fresh Air Fund Needs Help.
44. Speaking Thru Me via a Banner.
45. Myrtus via Open Your Heart.
46. Queens Crap via a Banner.
47. Camy’s Loft via a Banner.
48. Just A Flip Flop Mom via a Banner.
49. The Online Degree Dorm Room via Try A Little Fresh Air This Holiday Season.
50. Jewels of My Heart via The Fresh Air Fund.
51. Citizen Hunter via The Gift Of Fresh Air – And A Family.
52. The Common Room via Truly Give The Gift Of Space To A Needy Child.
53. mytopicalescape.com via a Tweet.
54. Political Junkie via The Fresh Air Fund. .
55. Outskirts:Life and Times in Charlottesville via C-Ville Needs Fresh Air.
56. Zoeysworld via Fresh Air Fund Thoughts.
57. Newbie NYC via NYC Charities – Tis The Season.
58. Lessons From a Recovering Doormat via The Gift Of Charity.
59. via Editors Advise On The Pursuit Of Happiness… The Couture Pack Or Not….
60. The New Dad Blog via a Banner.
61. South Bronx Math Teacher via a Banner.
62. Christ, My Righteousness via Supporting Fresh Air Children Fund Psa.
63. Friends of Dave via The Fresh Air Fund.
64. Base Magazine via The Fresh Air Fund Needs You!.
65. Christian Spirituality w/ Edges via The Fresh Air Fund: Changing Children’s Lives.
66. Inside the frame via a Banner.
67. Sherman’s News and Editorials via The Fresh Air Fund.
68. Tri Valley Technology News via Giving To Children In Need For The Holidays.
69. Enux.org: Regional News via Giving To Inner-City Children For The Holidays.
70. The Tutorial Blog via Giving For The Holiday Season.
71. Pregnant Pause via a Banner.
72. Healing Quotes.Daily Inspiration via a Link.
73. Healing Quotes.Daily Inspiration via a Link.
74. Green Daily via Share Your Christmas Blessings.
75. Paravanes: Christian Meditations via Fresh Air; It’s A Good Thing.
76. The Diva Network via a Banner.
77. Baby Fruit via a Banner.
78. Cheap Textbooks for college English literature writing via a Banner.
79. Happy at HFC via Fresh Air Fund.
80. ClearlyEnlight’s Travel Blog via a Link – Under “Websites”.
81. Granby 01033 via Support The Fresh Air Fund.
82. Third Mom via a Banner.
83. Baby Ethiopia via a Banner.
84. Baby Ethiopia via a Tweet.
85. The Buddha Diaries via Fresh Air.
86. Third Mom via The Fresh Air Fund.
87. The Evil Beet via Amazing Opportunity To Help Out: The Fresh Air Fund!.
88. New York Portraits via Sparkly Lights In Rockefellar Center.
89. Londonderry NH net via Thinking Of Summer, A Child In NYC Is!.
90. Good As You via a Banner.

A couple weeks ago, over Veteran’s Day, we at Abraham Harrison did an outreach for Survivor Corps called Returning Troops in support of Operation Survivor. We received over 170 earned banner placements and blog posts (I posted 162 of them yesterday). We were in a rush before the outreach (you know how it is) so I ended up dusting off my copy of Photoshop and creating 14 banners in support of the campaign. What do you think? How did I do? I had fun.

Veteran’s Day this year is especially poignant since it has been 5 years since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began. Thank you to everyone who helped Survivor Corps get the message out about Operation Survivor and all the amazing work that Survivor Corps does for vets, for returning troops, and for their families. Here’s a list of all of your fine work:

• Please Help Me Support Our Troops on Veteran’s Day via Chris Abraham.
• banner via On the Upside.
• Veterans and PTSD via Where There’s a Will There’s a Way.
• Support Our Troops NOW via MamaBugs…Homeschooling Where the Air Force Sends Us!.
• Peace be still. It?s Armistice Day. via Short Woman.
• Do Not Abandon Our Vets via understanding the effects of unresolved abandonment issues.
• Helping the Walking Wounded on November 11 via Serge the concierge.
• Support ‘Survivor Corps’ this Veterans Day via Americanthinker.
• Veterans Day via Bodhi Baby.
• Veterans Day via The Adventures of Super Mommy & Spitup Boy.
• Operation Survivor via Britannica.
• Veteran’s Day via Danny Fisher.
• Donate to help our Troops via Make it Happen.
• Remembrance Day via Around the World in beautiful Shoes.
• Operation Survivor via Big Blueberry Eyes.
• In Their Boots via Holly’s Fight for Justice.
• In Their Boots via Holly’s Fight to Stop Violence.
• Veterans Day via Chip’s Quips.
• Help Our Troops This Veterans Day via Locust Fork Blog.
• Banner via Socialism.
• In Banner Rotation via Redline.
• Veteran’s Day via Weapons of Mass Discussion.
• Help Our Troops This Veteran’s Day via Culture11.
• side bar banner via Mommy Bytes.
• Veteran’s deserve not just a word but also a hand: Operation Survivor via Rich Kirkpatrick.
• Survivor Corps: Help a veteran break the cycle of violence via Hormone-Colored Days.
• Veterans Day via On the Fringe.
• The bridge the sacrifice more via The Common Ills.
• Someone alerted me to the good work that Survivor Corps via Big Bark.
• Survivor Corps Supports Returning Troops and Their Families via GoMekong.com.
• Support ‘Survivor Corps’ this Veterans Day – American Thinker via Survivor.
• Helping Veterans (a day late) via Just Enjoy Him: Ramblings of a Mid-Life Mom.
• Survivor Corps: Operation Survivor via Political Reps.
• Survivor Corps Website via Untreatable Online.
• Survivor Corps Operation Survivor: A Worthwhile Cause to Consider via Mount Virtus.
• Veterans Day via State of Ohio Blogger Alliance.
• A Day To Honor Those Who Have Served Their Country via Political Vindication.
• Courage via Last One Speaks.
• banner via A Disgruntled Republican.
• An Appeal via Don Surber’s blog.
• Mojo Mom says thank you to military families via Mojo Mom.
• Survivor Corps via Miss Cellania Blog.
• For a Good Cause via The Local Crank.
• Operation Survivor-Survivor Corps and TroopTube via Where the Hell Am I?.
• In Honor of Veterans’ Day via James Kotecki.
• banner” via Into the Woods Living Deliberately.
• Survivor Corps Supports Returning Vets and Their Families! via Zimbio.
• Please Help the Veterans via Yaw and Mog.
• posted banner and review of I will not be broken” via Writing in FaithWriting in Faith: Previews and Reviews.
• banner’ via Pardon Me For Asking.
• Veterans Deserve Your Help via New Zeal.
• I Will Not Be Broken via For the Heck of It.
• Per a Request via Budget Nomad – US Ex – Pat on the Move.
• banner’ via Blog Mommas.
• banner via Myrtus.
• banner via Married to the Army.
• Survivor Corps. Rise Above. Give Back via All 4 My Gals.
• Re: Vast Write Wing – November 2008 via Be Logical.
• Survivor Corps. Help for Surviving Troops via Mommy Does it All.
• Survivor Corps Supports Returning Troops and their Families! via Right Michigan.
• Indigenist News Items for: 11-14-2008 via Inteligentaindigena Novajoservo.
• banner via Gary Presley.
• banner via Seven Wheelchairs.
• Operation Survivor via The Political Junkie.
• Need a little Inspiration? via My Life As A Military Spouse.
• Banner via Preemptive Karma.
• Operation Survivor – excerpt from website via Arthriticyoungthing.
• banner via Rightwingchamp.
• Survivor Corp-Returning Troops via What’s Delmer Look Like?.
• posted banner via Screw Politically Correct B.S..
• palin survivor corps heroes and more via Sex and Politics and Creeds and Attitudes.
• banner via Bearing Drift.
• banner via Kentucky Progress.
• Supporting Returning Troops via Donklephant.
• banner via Gapers Block.
• Katrina vanden Heuvel is an idiot via Ruth’s Report.
• Supporting Our Troops via Book Errising.
• Survivor Corps – Electronic Media News Releases via Soldiers Angels Network.
• A Belated Veterans (Day) Post via The Moderate Voice.
• posted link on blogroll via Political Grind.
• They don’t go away when Veterans Day ends via Around the Island.
• Survivor Corps offers peer support to injured vets via Media Dis&Dat.
• Survivor Corps via A Leg Up.
• Supporting Our Troops: Operation Survivor via The Daily Gotham.
• Survivor Corps: Founds Operation Survivor Project to Assist U.S. Military Combat Veterans in Transitioning to Civilian Life via A DC Observer.
• banner via Iraq The Model.
• Survivor Corps Supports Returning Troops and their Families! via Young Philly Politics.
• banner via The Inside Dope.
• Survivors of War via Ponderings on a Faith Journey.
• Survivor Corps via Charming Just Charming.
• Survivor Corps via Knee Deep in the Hooah.
• Tis the season to help our troops via Manatee’s Military Moms.
• A Belated Veterans (Day) Post via Funny Blog.
• Support ‘Survivor Corps’ this Veterans Day via American Thinker.
• Supporting Returning Troops via Northloop Neighborhood.
• As Per Request via Budget Nomad – US Ex – Pat on the Move.
• Some Odds and Ends of the Election via The Liberal Life of a Navy Wife .
• Returning Troops…A Noble Cause via Dodgeblogium.
• Survivor Corps Website via Untreatable Online.
• Standing up for Max Cleland on Veteran’s Day via Informed Comment.
• Standing up for Max Cleland on Veteran’s Day via Big Bark.
• Read Terrance D.C. via Oh Boy it Never Ends.
• Katrina Vanden Heuvel is an Idiot via Ruth’s Report.
• Iraq snapshot (The Common Ills) via Like Maria Said Paz.
• Tuesday November 11. 2008. via This French Life.
• Survivor Corps Program-Help! via Swimming Against the Red Tide.
• Survivor Corps via Kung Fu Monkey.
• banner via Leucadia Blog.
• banner via Bearing Drift.

You have done an amazing thing for the vets and also for the mission of Survivor Corps domestically and around the world. Thank you for your posts and for your banner placement. Never hesitate to contact me personally or my team at Abraham Harrison. Also, always please feel free to contact the entire Survivor Corps team.

I just discovered another very interesting article written by Jennifer Mattern over at RedFly Marketing, Online PR vs. Internet Marketing — here’s an excerpt:

Internet Marketing Tactics:

• Paid advertising (banner ads, text link ads, etc.)
• Link exchanges, free Web directory submissions, blog comments (link-building activities)
• Affiliates
• Sales letters (and other sales copy)
• Article marketing (to drive affiliate sales, traffic, or backlinks)
• Search engine marketing (paid search placements)
• Blogs
• Social bookmarking sites
• Social networks
• Podcasts / Internet radio shows
• Sales, coupons, or other discounts
• E-books
• Reports / white papers
• Direct mail campaigns via email (for promotional purposes)

Online PR Tactics:

• Press releases / news releases
• Op-eds / letters to the editor (for online publications)
• Online newsrooms and media kits
• SEO (to build awareness through organic search engine placements)
• Interviews
• Blogs
• Articles (used to build exposure and expert status more than directly pushing sales or traffic)
• Podcasts / Internet radio shows (if not purely or mostly promotional)
• Reports / white papers
• Email newsletters
• Social networks

Richard C. Levin, the President of Yale, just popped its alumni an email announcing the expansion of Yale College — growing the hallowed university by two residential colleges:

I am pleased to announce that the Yale Corporation has authorized increasing the enrollment of Yale College through the creation of two new residential colleges. This expansion will allow us to make an even greater contribution to society by preparing a larger number of talented and promising students of all backgrounds for leadership and service.

This is an excellent time for Yale to expand. Harvard and Yale had to reject most of all the applicants who applied to matriculate this Fall — many of whom were exceptional and some of whom were the sons and daughters of Harvard and Yale graduates — legacy applicants. The questions remains: will the increase of placement supply affect the brand integrity of this exclusive — and arguably finest — undergraduate education? What do you think?

You may not have heard but we’re entering what is called the “echo boom:”

The Echo Boom generation is an expansive term for children born between roughly 1988 and 1992 (though sources disagree on the exact years). In 1989 the number of live births exceeded four million for the first time since 1964, and the Echo Boom peaked in 1990 (33 years after the peak of the Baby Boom) with 4.16 million live births, the greatest number since 1962 in the United States.^[1] Children of this generation are called Echo Boomers, a reference to the fact that the generation falls between about 30 and 36 years after the Baby Boomer generation, and thus many Echo Boomers are the children of Baby Boomers.

While the lure of a larger incoming class of elite and monied incoming Freshmen into their undergraduate programs may be too attractive to resist, there is always the possibility that the quality and exclusiveness of Yale — its brand reputation — could well be eroded by this expansion. Also, since one of Yale College’s appeal is the tradition behind each of its residential college, I wonder how incoming Freshmen will take to becoming part of starting a new tradition?

There is a serious deficit of elite university inventory. We are going through a renaissance of academia and a national passion to be truly rewarded with a spot at a top-five undergraduate education where a second tier college won’t do. Many universities are desperately trying to expand not just their capacity but also their services, their resources. And, why not generate more income and also expand the ranks of a very devoted, generally well-healed alumni who will generally do whatever they can to give back on the investment that Yale made in them — and that devotion is palpable.

So, what to do, what to do?

What’s more, many of the children of baby boomer Yalies can’t get their children into Yale. So, many of these expansion are being made to be able to accept more legacy student as well as the growing tide of superboys and supergirls who have their hearts set on the Harvards, Yales, Princetons, Berkeleys, Stanfords, and the lesser Ivies.

Anyway, for you amusement, here’s the letter that President Richard C. Levin sent its alumni (also viewable via the web):

Dear Yale Alumni and Parents:

I am pleased to announce that the Yale Corporation has authorized increasing the enrollment of Yale College through the creation of two new residential colleges. This expansion will allow us to make an even greater contribution to society by preparing a larger number of talented and promising students of all backgrounds for leadership and service.

We will achieve this goal while ensuring that the quality of the Yale College educational and social experience will be as extraordinary as ever.

As I stated in February, when we shared the report of the Study Group to Consider New Residential Colleges, the last significant increase in the size of the Yale College student body came with the admission of women in 1969. By 1978, undergraduate enrollment first reached 5,200, and it has remained between 5,150 and 5,350 ever since. When women were first allowed to apply to Yale College, the number of applications soared immediately from 6,781 to 10,039, and the number fluctuated between 9,000 and 13,000 until 2001, when it began a steady rise to its current level of 22,500, spurred by dramatic improvements in financial aid, wider awareness of Yale’s accessibility, the extension of full need-based aid to international students, and a growing appreciation of the quality of a Yale College education. Along with the rise in applications has come an equally dramatic increase in the percentage of those admitted who accept Yale’s offer, from 53 percent when I became president, to over 70 percent in recent years.

The principal result of these changes in the admissions picture is that Yale College has become significantly more selective. From 1969 to 2000, the percentage of applicants admitted to Yale College ranged from 18 to 27 percent. It was above 20 percent as recently as 1999. Today, Yale College admits fewer than 10 percent of its applicants. Admissions officers agree that in each of the past several years we have denied admission to hundreds of applicants who would have been admitted ten years ago.

The mission of Yale College is to seek exceptionally promising students of all backgrounds from across the nation and around the world and to educate them, through mental discipline and social experience, to develop their intellectual, moral, civic and creative capacities. The aim of this education is the cultivation of citizens with a rich awareness of our heritage to lead and serve in every sphere of human activity. For three centuries, we have made this aspiration a reality, to the great benefit of the nation and, increasingly, the world. Today, we have a long queue of highly qualified applicants who collectively would allow Yale to make an even greater contribution to society if more could be educated here. In addition, since the late-1970s, when the undergraduate population ceased to grow, Yale is larger in virtually every dimension: faculty, staff, library and museum resources, and physical presence. We are well poised, therefore, to expand.

Our 12 existing residential colleges are admired because they create intimate communities and a superb environment for learning. The new colleges will emulate Yale’s proven model with a master, dean, fellows, and students forming a close-knit family, supported by the highest caliber public and private spaces for living and study. With an anticipated opening in 2013, these colleges will allow us not only to increase the undergraduate student body by about 15 percent, but also to alleviate crowding throughout the residential college system. We expect to reduce the population of the existing colleges by approximately 140 students and largely eliminate the need for annex housing.

Our goal is that students in every residential college, old and new, will have an even more robust and enlivening experience as a result of this expansion. Thus, we are adding facilities in the vicinity of the new colleges that support academics and student life, including classroom space, a student café, exercise facilities, a theater, and more. We are also expanding the faculty to sustain our favorable ratio of students to teachers, particularly in highly subscribed majors, and we are growing our system of academic advising. New resources will augment curricular development, student research, study abroad, and the whole range of extracurricular activities so important to a Yale education.

The new colleges will be built in a triangle just north of the Grove Street Cemetery bounded by Prospect, Canal, and Sachem Streets, creating a new sense of the geography of our campus by enlarging the footprint of Yale College. I believe that the presence of undergraduate residences north of Grove Street will alter the perception that Science Hill is “too far away” from the “center” of campus. In fact, the site proposed for the new colleges is only three blocks north of Elm Street, which divides the Old Campus and the Cross Campus. As the Study Group Report indicates, the new colleges have the potential of making the whole campus seem smaller, more effectively linking Science Hill with the historic “center” through the proper treatment of Prospect Street, the creation of appropriate “stepping stones” along the way, and the development of facilities for student activities at, near, and beyond the site of the new colleges.

To support the expansion of Yale College, the Corporation has authorized an increase in the goal of the Yale Tomorrow fundraising campaign from $3 billion to $3.5 billion. I am delighted to announce that, thanks to generous commitments from a handful of leadership donors, we have already secured $140 million in gifts and pledges for this purpose.

Almost 80 years ago, Edward H. Harkness, B.A. 1897, gave the funds to create Yale’s residential college system. He saw the residential colleges as a way to sustain the collegiate spirit in a school that was fast becoming a university. Since then, Yale College has grown in ways that Harkness never predicted. The student body has doubled, women have been enrolled, and young people have been welcomed from more than 100 nations. Remarkably, the members of this vast and vibrant enterprise still consider themselves part of a family. This is Harkness’s great legacy, and one that we will preserve in a new era of expansion. I am grateful for the outstanding work of the Study Group for providing us with wise counsel on how to achieve this objective.

Sincerely yours,

Richard C. Levin

So, what do you think?

Chris Abraham is a Founding Partner and the President of Abraham Harrison, LLC, an international consulting group with specialties in online word-of-mouth/conversation marketing and online business & technology strategy advising. Abraham Harrison, LLC is based out of Washington, DC and Berlin and serves clients across the globe with associates spanning ten time zones. Via LinkedIn

Chris Abraham’s Specialties:

online business intelligence, corporate and pr blogging, online brand intelligence, online brand promotion and protection, online buzz and relationship marketing, online education, online messaging, online social networks, online technology strategy, rss syndication strategy, search engine optimization strategy, virtual community building

Chris Abraham’s Experience

• President and COO

  Abraham Harrison LLC

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry)

  January 2007 — Present (1 year 6 months)

  Abraham Harrison, LLC, is an international consulting group with specialties in online word-of-mouth/conversation marketing and online business & technology strategy advising. Abraham Harrison, LLC is based out of Washington, DC and Berlin and serves clients across the globe with associates spanning ten time zones.

• Blogging Instructor

  The Writer’s Center

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Professional Training & Coaching industry)

  February 2006 — June 2007 (1 year 5 months)

  •Instructional courses on blogging, from introduction to advanced techniques
  •Marketing, promotional, and SEO strategies for writers and business people
  •www.appliedblogging.org developed to support blogging students

• Sales Representative

  Visible Technologies

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Information Technology and Services industry)

  January 2007 — June 2007 (6 months)

  Sales representative for Visible Technologies’ TruView and TruCast software solutions. TruView is the most effective service for individuals and companies to manage their reputations via what appears in the top search engines. TruView is the first corporate solution that helps organizations manage and protect their brand in the Blogosphere and other “consumer-generated media” communities.

• Associate

  crayon LLC

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry)

  January 2007 — June 2007 (6 months)

  crayon will help marketers, advertisers and public relations professionals better understand the tremendous changes, challenges and opportunities in today’s dynamic and complex world of fragmented attention, increasing consumer control and hardening attitudes towards marketing communication.

• Consultant

  Comteg

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Management Consulting industry)

  December 2006 — May 2007 (6 months)

  COMTEG.COM is a consultancy focused on Online Advertising, Media Measurement and Publishing. Our consulting services are Strategy Formulation, Market Entry and Industry Political Initiatives. We operate globally with offices in Europe, The Middle East & Asia.

• Blogger

  Self-employed

  (Self-Employed; Myself Only; Publishing industry)

  January 1999 — March 2007 (8 years 3 months)

  Blogging strategist with a focus on PR blogs, corporate blogs, publicity blogs, grassroots blogs, SEO blogs, brand blogs, and media blogs. Current personal blog is Chris Abraham – Because the Medium is the Message (http://www.chrisabraham.com). Experienced blogging trainer and guest-blogger.

• Senior RSS Consultant

  Hinchcliffe & Company

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry)

  January 2007 — February 2007 (2 months)

  Senior RSS Consultant at T. Rowe Price on behalf of Hinchcliffe & Company. Research, design, develop, and deploy T. Rowe Price’s client and prospect RSS syndication strategy.

• Consultant

  Abraham PR

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry)

  October 2006 — January 2007 (4 months)

  Chris Abraham is a web strategist, focusing on search engine optimization (SEO), search engine markeing (SEM), online buzz marketing, online advocacy, blogger relations (BR), blogger outreach, and word-of-mouth marketing. Chris consults clients on new media public relations solutions, delivering strategy documents that include an analysis and audit of the current web strategy, recommendations, and next steps. Consulting, training, and client services are available and tailored to client needs, according to the next steps and client need.

• Consultant

  BoldMouth

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry)

  August 2006 — September 2006 (2 months)

  •Blog strategy and planning for high-traffic, high-profile blog relaunch
  •Customized Moveable Type installation on CentOS dedicated server
  •Transition from TypePad to newest Movable Type 3.31 install
  •Monetization of blog, including BlogAds and Google AdSense placement
  •Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of blog

• Senior Account Supervisor

  Edelman

  (Privately Held; 1001-5000 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

  May 2006 — August 2006 (4 months)

  •Direct client contact for Wal-Mart’s innovative blog outreach campaign, including prospecting and messaging
  •Spearheaded Working Families for Wal-Mart blog, newsletter, and activation list
  •Developed online word of mouth outreach for Taylor Hicks webcast from Wal-Mart shareholder’s meeting
  •Co-produced “Exposing the Paid Critics” website for Working Families for Wal-Mart
  •Co-produced successful online advocacy proposals to GE, Nissan, Shell, the American Petroleum Institute, and Wal-Mart Realty
  •Designed and developed opt-in membership Email and messaging campaigns

• Technology Strategist

  New Media Strategies, Inc.

  (Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

  September 2003 — May 2006 (2 years 9 months)

  •Developed online word-of-mouth marketing strategy and tactics used on Usenet, message boards, social networks, and blogs
  •Developed online advocacy and outreach campaigns for clients’ products, services, and message
  •Produced internal and client protective and promotional SEO campaigns and search strategy to highlight positive online conversation and supress negative conversation on popular search engines
  •Developed in-house expertise on blogging, new media, podcasting, technology, citizen journalism, and CGM, including training, teaching, and the development of blogging and online marketing strategy
  •Developed, deployed, and launched client and internal corporate blogs, marketing blogs, vertical industry blogs, PR blogs, promotional blogs, public affairs blogs, social networks, and podcasts
  •Managed online advertising campaigns using Yahoo and Google contextual ads

• Guest Lecturer

  Columbia University

  (Educational Institution; 201-500 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

  October 2005 — October 2005 (1 month)

  Lectured on the topic of blogging and viral marketing strategies for the Executive Masters in Public Affairs Program, for Advanced Management concentrators, at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University.

• Photographer

  Corbis

  (Privately Held; 201-500 employees; Photography industry)

  August 1990 — 2004 (14 years)

  Contracted stock photographer.

• Director of Sales

  eResources, LLC

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Computer Networking industry)

  September 2002 — September 2003 (1 year 1 month)

  •Managed sales force and new business for the ITonDemand™ and the eResources Content Management System products

• Senior Web Developer

  National Legal Aid & Defender Association

  (Non-Profit; 11-50 employees; Alternative Dispute Resolution industry)

  February 2002 — September 2002 (8 months)

  •Developed Web applications and content management system (CMS) developer using Zope, Python, and MySQL

• Managing Director

  beehive North America

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Internet industry)

  July 2000 — February 2002 (1 year 8 months)

  •President, co-owner, and co-founder of beehive North America, the North American office of Berlin-based beehive elektronische medien GmbH
  •Sold and marketed software Zope application development training and services
  •Clients included College of Exploration, The Nature Conservancy, and Space Telescope Science, and Pfizer Global Research and Development (PGRD)

• Online Community Builder and Linux System Administrator

  Caucus Systems, Inc.

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Internet industry)

  July 1999 — June 2000 (1 year)

  Linux/Unix system administrator and online community and event facilitator for Internet company focused on developing enterprise-level virtual online events and conferences.

• Senior Information Engineer

  US Department of Treasury Chief Information Office (CIO)

  (Government Agency; 51-200 employees; Executive Office industry)

  July 1997 — July 1999 (2 years 1 month)

  Senior application and web developer for the Office of the CIO for the Department of the Treasury. HTML, scripting, programming, graphic design, management, development, and deployment of the CIO intranet and public website.

• Online Creative Writing Instructor

  Online Creative Writing Course, EFA/Kalamazoo, MI, Public Schools

  (Government Agency; 51-200 employees; Primary/Secondary Education industry)

  August 1996 — May 1997 (10 months)

  Co-teacher of the first fully accredited virtual online highschool creative writing course. Education for the Arts (EFA) was an magnet program for highschool kids in Kalamazoo, MI. The program supplied laptops and dial-up access to the students. Course did include face-to-face four times a year as well as several field trips to conferences.

• Software Engineer

  Proxicom

  (Public Company; 51-200 employees; Internet industry)

  May 1996 — August 1996 (4 months)

  Web developer for the seminal web application and development company formerly called Proxima, now Proxicom. Amongst other projects, worked on Owens Corner and Garfield official websites.

• Technical Customer Support

  Picture Network International

  (Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Publishing industry)

  June 1993 — December 1995 (2 years 7 months)

  Industry’s first online stock photo agency with dedicated dial-up ISP-based client called “Seymour.” PNI was an online stock photography service with more than 30 stock houses supplying images. It had more than 250,000 images in its library.

• Vice President

  Pacific Rim Productions, Ltd.

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Photography industry)

  October 1994 — November 1995 (1 year 2 months)

  Vice President of multimedia production company. Primary role as producer, photographer and script writer. Clients included General Motors and Hawaii Visitors Bureau.

• Photographer

  Abraham & Dunn

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Photography industry)

  May 1983 — July 1988 (5 years 3 months)

  Family-owned photography company. Have been shooting corporate and travel photograhy since I was 13-years-old.

Chris Abraham’s Education

• George Washington University

  BA, American Literature, August 1988 — May 1993

  Activities and Societies:

  Phi Kappa Psi, Crew Team

• University of East Anglia

  American Studies September 1990 — June 1991

  Activities and Societies:

  Crew Team

Additional Information

Chris Abraham’s Websites:

• My Blog
• My RSS feed
• My Company

Chris Abraham’s Interests:

RSS, blogging, Blogosphere, emergent systems, emerging technology, futurism, buzz marketing, blog, blogs, content management, rowing, sculling, biking, running, blogging, nlp, writing, reading, lecturing, driving, new technology, emergent systems, emergent technology, new media, Internet, viral markeing, memetics, systems theory, emergence, politics, popular culture, culture, trends, programming, news

Chris Abraham’s Groups:

Renaissance Weekend, Viral and Buzz Marketing Association, VBMA, Howard Rheingold Associate, HHWinc, Haft, Harrison & Wolfson, Inc., Urban Institute Communications Advisory Board, DC Zope Python User Group, zpug, da Vinci Group

Chris Abraham’s Honors:

Most Likely to be Famous, Saint Louis School, Honolulu, HI, 1988

My friend Shmuel Tennenhaus is a great guy and does some excellent things online, SchoolFinder being one of them. And SchoolFinder is a great idea because everything has become so competitive for students and for parents, both! People are choosing K-12 placement as rigorously and as aggressively as they had been choosing Universities. Well, I checked out the profile for my 7-12 experience, Saint Louis School, and then wrote my very own testimonial and recommendation for my Alma Mater, even though I am not (yet) a parent.

I attended St. Louis from 1982-1988, 7th-12th grade. St. Louis is an all-boys Catholic school and in that school I enjoyed access to many fine teachers as well as a level of tradition, respect, pride, service, and discipline that has served me well through the rest of my life.

I feel fondness for Saint Louis and consider the Crusaders, the sports teams Mascot, a real touchstone for my youth. I think that all-boys schooling was good for me and I appreciate it. There are lots of things going on and quite a few sister schools around so there are girls.

There is such pride surrounding the school and the demographic isn’t exclusively “wealthy” or “professional” and there are a wide swath of students, parents, and families, as well as kids from abroad .

Saint Louis shares its campus with Chaminade University and students are encouraged to take classes in the school, allowing students to not only accrue A-level placements but also collect college credit well before ever attending college.

School sports, especially football, is world class and the Crusaders football team has dominated Hawaiian sports for years and years.

When I graduated, I was accepted into schools such as Cornell and George Washington and when I arrived at University, I didn’t feel ill-prepared at all.

All in all, I had a very rich, memorable, and exceptional experience in the 6-years I attended Saint Louis School. I can easily recommend it.

I just posted my latest-and-greatest resume onto Craig’s List: San Francisco, Washington, DC, Seattle, and New York City

Social Media, New Media, Web2.0 Strategy, and New Marketing Expert

Interested in remote projects and contracts. Also interested in Washington-area on-site consulting and contract opportunities

MISSION
My passion is to use my experience and expertise in online community outreach and advocacy to promote and protect client online brands using my years of blogging, SEO, PR, marketing, and CGM professional experience.

PROFILE
I am an expert in online outreach, advocacy and marketing with over 10 years of online experience. My experience focuses on web strategy, including SEO strategy, technology strategy, and online marketing strategy. My skills include:

- Blogger: online outreach, advocacy, conversation, and messaging, blogger relations
- Technologist: expertise in community technologies, blogs, wikis, message boards
- Salesman: entrepreneurial nature with a very strong business network and web of personal relationships
- Marketer: Over three years of online buzz marketing, online buzz marketing, and online word-of-mouth marketing
- Producer: experience in designing and developing hardware and software solutions
- Strategist: design, develop, and implement web strategies and marketing plans to reach online consumers
- Promoter: online brand promotion, virals, organic SEO (search engine optimization), and paid advertising (SEM)
- Protector: online brand protection, defensive SEO, online crisis response, and online brand management
- Teacher: Blogging instructor, guest lecturer, and online teacher since 1996

CLIENTS

- Technology Strategy reports commissioned for Deutsche Telekom
- Web Strategy document commissioned by Diversion Media for Travelistic launch
- Web Strategy document commissioned by Friendster
- Word of Mouth campaign commissioned by HostNuke for EggDisk file storage service
- Online buzz marketing proposal commissioned by Red Bricks Media for their client’s use
- Client contact for Wal-Mart’s innovative blog outreach campaign, including prospecting and messaging (Edelman)
- Co-produced successful online advocacy proposals to GE, Nissan, Shell, the American Petroleum Institute (API), and Wal-Mart Realty (Edelman)
- Developed, deployed, and launched client and internal corporate blogs, marketing blogs, vertical industry blogs, PR blogs, promotional blogs, public affairs blogs, social networks, and podcasts, including Club TomTom, New Media Sense, Extreme Mortman, and others. (NMS)
- Client service work included Sci-Fi Channel (Mad Mad House, Tripping the Rift, Battlestar Galactica), Buena Vista (Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy), TomTom, Paramount Pictures, Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Disney, Reebok, EA (UXO, Sim-City Online), RCA (American Idol CD), and NBC (Revelations), etc. (NMS)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Founding Partner, Abraham Harrison LLC — 10/2006-Present
- On-site training, briefing, and client pitching as online buzz marketing and SEO expert
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) expert, focusing on both brand promotion and protection in search
- Online Buzz Marketing, Online Word-of-Mouth Marketing, and Online Viral Marketing expert
- Consulting and guiding PR and Marketing firms in their creation of Online Marketing practices
- Technology Strategy reports commissioned by COMTEG for Deutsche Telekom and T-Online
- Work and expertise partnership collaboration between crayon LLC and Abraham Harrison LLC
- Online buzz marketing proposal commissioned by Red Bricks Media for their client use
- Designed and developed opt-in membership Email and messaging campaigns
- Developed online word-of-mouth marketing strategy and tactics used on Usenet, message boards, social networks, and blogs
- Developed online advocacy and outreach campaigns for clients’ products, services, and message
- Produced internal and client protective and promotional SEO campaigns and search strategy to highlight positive online conversation and suppress negative conversation on popular search engines
- Developed in-house expertise on blogging, new media, podcasting, technology, citizen journalism, and CGM, including training, teaching, and the development of blogging and online marketing strategy
- Managed online advertising campaigns using Yahoo and Google contextual ads
- Fully-monetized network of blogs and affiliate web sites
- Affiliate keyword marketing and contextual advertising
- Search engine optimization (SEO) and online promotion
- Administration of multiple WordPress, Moveable Type, and Drupal blogs on dedicated server
- Blog strategy and planning for high-traffic, high-profile blog relaunch
- Customized Moveable Type installation on CentOS dedicated server
- Transition from TypePad to newest Movable Type 3.34 install
- Monetization of blogs, including BlogAds and Google AdSense placement
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of blogs
- Manage Google Apps Premier hosting of Email for Abraham Harrison LLC
- Manage CentOS dedicated server hosting Drupal, WordPress, and Movable Type installations

Sales Representative, Visible Technologies — 1/2007-Present
- Sell and promote TruCast and TruView SEO and online advocacy ASP solutions online and in Washington, DC

Associate, crayon LLC — 3/2007-Present
- Work and expertise partnership collaboration between crayon LLC and Abraham Harrison LLC
- Audited all crayon LLC sites and blogs for SEO, UI, architecture, branding, and marketing strategy

Senior RSS Consultant, Hinchcliffe & Company — 1/2007-Present
- On-site syndication strategist for T. Rowe Price Information Technology (TRPIT)
- Research and development towards deploying a public, consumer-focused RSS product
- Solution included a customized ATOM 1.0 feed supplying daily mutual fund pricing
- Solution included a Google Gadget and a Live.com Microsoft Gadget alternative
- Solution included subscription strategies for Bloglines, Google Personalized Home Page, etc.

Director of Social Media, COMTEG.COM — 12/2006-Present
- Web2.0 strategy analyst for major European telecom company
- Produced case studies on Web2.0, Revver, digg, Google Reader, Google, YouTube, Helio, VOX, Dodgeball, Second Life
- Produced case studies on prediction markets: Inkling Markets, PROTRADE, Blogshares, Washington Stock Exchange (WSX), The simExchange, newsfutures, RealityMarkets, Consensus Point (Foresight Server, Foresight on Demand), NewsFuture (Prediction Trader)
- Produced case studies on online personal and public calendars: Google Calendar, Yahoo! Calendar, AOL Calendar, Apple iCal, Microsoft Live, Upcoming, Eventful,
- Produced case studies on blog and feed search engines: Ask.com, Technorati, Google Blogsearch
- Produced case studies on social networking sites: VOX, YouTube, digg
- Produced detailed studies and corporate recommendations on Web2.0 (web 2.0), RSS, widgetization (widgets, Google Gadgets, desktop gadgets), long tail strategy
- Produced case studies on online address books and online contacts and networks: Plaxo
- Direct engagement and recommendations for web2.0 strategy

Consultant, Travelistic.com, Diversion Media — 8/2006-10/2006
- Web strategy document commissioned by Nicolas Butterworth
- Word-of-Mouth and buzz marketing strategy document and hiring recommendations
- Search engine optimization (SEO) strategy document

Independent Web Strategies Consultant — 8/2006-Present
- On-site training, briefing, and client pitching as online buzz marketing and SEO expert
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) expert, focusing on both brand promotion and protection in search
- Online Buzz Marketing, Online Word-of-Mouth Marketing, and Online Viral Marketing expert
- Consulting and guiding PR and Marketing firms in their creation of Online Marketing practices
- Web Strategy document commissioned by Nicholas Butterworth and Diversion Media for Travelistic.com launch
- Web Strategy document commissioned by Friendster
- Word of Mouth campaign commissioned by HostNuke for EggDisk file storage service
- Online buzz marketing proposal commissioned by Red Bricks Media for their client use

Senior Account Supervisor, Online Advocacy, Edelman — 5/2006-8/2006
- Client contact for Wal-Mart’s innovative blog outreach campaign, including prospecting and messaging
- Spearheaded Working Families for Wal-Mart blog, newsletter, and activation list
- Developed online word of mouth outreach for Taylor Hicks webcast from Wal-Mart shareholder’s meeting
- Co-produced Exposing the Paid Critics blog for Working Families for Wal-Mart
- Co-produced successful online advocacy proposals to GE, Nissan, Shell, the American Petroleum Institute (API), and Wal-Mart Realty
- Designed and developed opt-in membership Email and messaging campaigns

Technology Strategist, New Media Strategies, Inc. — 9/2003-5/2006
- Developed online word-of-mouth marketing strategy and tactics used on Usenet, message boards, social networks, and blogs
- Developed online advocacy and outreach campaigns for clients’ products, services, and message
- Produced internal and client protective and promotional SEO campaigns and search strategy to highlight positive online conversation and suppress negative conversation on popular search engines
- Developed in-house expertise on blogging, new media, podcasting, technology, citizen journalism, and CGM, including training, teaching, and the development of blogging and online marketing strategy
- Developed, deployed, and launched client and internal corporate blogs, marketing blogs, vertical industry blogs, PR blogs, promotional blogs, public affairs blogs, social networks, and podcasts, including Club TomTom, New Media Sense, Extreme Mortman, and others.
- Managed online advertising campaigns using Yahoo and Google contextual ads
- Client service work included Sci-Fi Channel (Mad Mad House, Tripping the Rift, Battlestar Galactica), Buena Vista (Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy), TomTom, Paramount Pictures, Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Disney, Reebok, EA (UXO, Sim-City Online), RCA (American Idol CD), and NBC (Revelations), etc . . .

Consultant, Blog Production and Strategy, BoldMouth — 8/2006-Present
- Blog strategy and planning for high-traffic, high-profile blog relaunch
- Customized Moveable Type installation on CentOS dedicated server
- Transition from TypePad to newest Movable Type 3.31 install
- Monetization of blog, including BlogAds and Google AdSense placement
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of blog

Director of Sales, eResources, LLC — 9/2002-9/2003
- Managed sales force and new business for the ITonDemand and the eResources Content Management System products

Senior Web Developer, National Legal Aid & Defender Association — 2/2002 – 9/2002
- Developed Web applications and content management system (CMS) developer using Zope, Python, and MySQL

Managing Director, beehive North America — 7/2000-2/2002
- President, co-owner, and co-founder of beehive North America, the North American office of Berlin-based beehive elektronische medien GmbH
- Sold and marketed software Zope application development training and services
- Clients included College of Exploration, The Nature Conservancy, and Space Telescope Science, and Pfizer Global Research and Development (PGRD)

Online Community Builder, Caucus Systems, Inc. — 7/1999-6/2000
- Online community, online conference, and online event facilitator and host
- Linux/Unix system administrator (LAMP SA)

Senior Information Engineer, FCBS — 12/1997-7/1999
- On-site consultant for US Department of Treasury Chief Information Office (CIO)
- Core duties included HTML, scripting (Perl, SSI), programming, graphic design, management, development, and deployment of the CIO Intranet and public website

Teacher, Education for the Arts (EFA), KRESA — 8/1996-6/1998
- High school teacher of the first fully accredited virtual online high school creative writing course for Kalamazoo, MI, Public Schools arts magnet program

Software Engineer, Proxicom, Inc. (Proxima in 1996) — 1/1996-8/1996
- Internet web application developer for the seminal web application company

Technical and Customer Support, Picture Network International (PNI) — 7/1993-8/1995
- Help desk for Industry’s second dial-up online stock photo agency
- Start-up funded and supported by SRA and Tribune Media Company

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Guest Lecturer on History Blogging, History in the Digital Age, American University — 1/31/2007

Guest Speaker, “What is RSS? And How can it change my life?,” AOL University, AOL — 2/8/2007

Blogging Instructor, The Writer’s Center — 2/2006-Present

Blogger, Because the Medium is the Message — 1999-Present

Stock Photographer, Pacific Stock — 1990-Present

Stock Photographer, Corbis — 1990-2004

Guest Lecturer on Public Affairs Blogging, SIPA, Columbia University — 10/15/1005

Emergent Technologies Advisor, Communications Advisory Board, Urban Institute.

Participant Member, Moderator and Speaker, Renaissance Weekends, Renaissance Institute

Partner of Counsel, Haft, Harrison & Wolfson, Inc.

Associate, Howard Rheingold Associates

Founder and Organizer, DC Zope Python User Group (ZPUG)

EDUCATION AND TRAINING
The George Washington University, Washington, DC
- BA, American Literature, Minor Creative Writing, 1993

University of Hawaii, Manoa Campus, Honolulu, HI
- Intensive course work, French, 1992

University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
- Junior year abroad, English and American Studies (EAS), 1990-1991