A Custom Scoop of Goodness

Posted on June 6, 2011 Written by 3 Comments
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I’ve known the people at CustomScoop for a few years now. Jen and Chip (and the others who have been part of the Media Bullseye Roundtable, like Doug and Sarah…) They do good work, and have been among the few who have provided real thought leadership in emerging communications, without succumbing to hype.

Red Cross logoIt’s fair to say I would never have been on their radar if it hadn’t been for my work with the American Red Cross, and the integration of social media with disaster-related communications. That’s why I got a message from them about a week ago. After waves of killer tornadoes in Alabama in April and Missouri in May, Jen reached out to ask me about the logistics of helping out, in the way they best knew how.

20110606-083846.jpgCustomScoop is giving away 100 media monitoring packages for disaster-related non-profits.

Having been on disaster assignments, I can’t begin to tell you how helpful that can be.

In the heat of disaster, gathering up clips and analyzing them for reputation management issues can be pretty low on the priority list. And trying to go back and compile them in the waning days of an operation can be spotty at best, and impossible at worst.

The offer from CustomScoop is for disaster relief organizations, and comes with no strings. Additionally, it’s not tied to any particular geographic area. (Jen and I talked about this days before the tornado hit Massachusetts, very close to home for the CustomScoop crew.)

It just goes to show that no matter what you do, or what your skills, there are ways to support those who suddenly find themselves with every need imaginable.

Filed Under: Communication Tagged: , ,

Dr. Pepper cured my inbox

Posted on August 29, 2007 Written by 14 Comments
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There are so many online resources for productivity, I’ve had to cut back on my work time to keep up with it all.

However, that is not a long-term strategy for continued employment, so I had to wrangle a little control of the time I do have in the day. In keeping with the theme of the “TMI” post from yesterday, here’s my humble offering to the world of managing the information that is whizzing toward my head.

Dr. Pepper capI call it the “Dr. Pepper Method.”

I process my inbox three times a day – at 10, 2, and 4. By not processing until 10 a.m., I force myself to do something productive at the beginning of the day. Nothing jumpstarts a positive habit like getting something done early. That also gives me time to respond to the ‘urgent’ things before lunch – although I am moving to the notion that if it really were urgent, they would have called me instead. The 10 a.m. process run gives me a couple of things to do before and after lunch, and helps me adjust the agenda for the rest of the day.

At 2 p.m., I do another pass. It doesn’t take as long, and is long enough after lunch that I repeat the good habit of “doing something” before playing with e-mail. It’s a good reset, and a chance to check document revisions and followups from the morning session.

Finally, at 4 p.m., I get a chance to finalize a few small tasks, and use the afternoon e-mails as a guide to setting my morning priorities for the next day.

And, it’s easy to remember.

Filed Under: Communication, Personal Tagged: , , , , , , , ,