Sometimes Your Online and Offline Lives Sync

Everyday we try to get our work done but end up taking the 21st century smoking break: web surfing.

For me, I call it research, as I am usually trying to find new ideas to integrate marketing into my low (read non-existent) budget. So, you can usually find my Twitter feed running faster than the Roadrunner or an article from Mashable on my screen with the hope of spark an idea.

Well, today I came across a "must read" headline from Mashable: "HOW TO: Sync Your Online and Offline Marketing Campaigns". The well written post by Dana Zemack provides a short "how to" for integrating online marketing plans with an "offline" event. Offline, is a real event where people interact face to face, yes, these still do exist.

After reading through the first few points I come across a video which I watch without any hesitation. As I do with most videos, I have the video on one screen while working on another project on a second screen, listening for something interesting.

Today, I got more than something interesting. 30 seconds into the video I was no longer at my desk but in my freshmen door room at Elon (Sloan 201). Why? Sounds of that door room came flooding back through my speakers. The spokesperson in the video was a person I knew in college. The voice belonged to Lexy A. the (then) girlfriend of my freshmen roommate. I couldn't mistake that voice who would spend time hanging out.

It is not everyday that you are on a major site and you personally know someone that is a part of a video package.

The piece, by the way, is excellent and an interesting look at the marriage of online and offline marketing.

Sometimes, you are lucky enough to have your online and offline life sync.

"Let's Move!" U-S-EH?

This is not a knock on Canada, Mike Green, the Washington Capitals or the Chicago Blackhawks. First Lady Michelle Obama has been the champion of a program called "Let's Move!" an initiative to get America's children active for at least an hour a day. The campaign has teamed up with celebrities and athletes alike to get out the message that kids need to be active and that does not mean repeating Up Up, Down Down, A, B, A, B on a Nintendo control pad. This is not a knock on what the First Lady is doing nor the campaign.

However, I saw this tweet from @NHL today and I thought, What's wrong with this picture?

The problem isn't that the NHL is partnering or that this is taking place during the Blackhawks visit with the Stanley Cup to the White House. The problem? The featured players are from CANADA! Wouldn't it make more sense to have John Carlson (Natick, MA) and Patrick Kane (Buffalo, NY) be the highlighted athletes for national effort for the United States? Both are young and popular in their markets and throughout the U.S.

I think the initiative is great and even I need to remember to get out once a day and be active. But come on, knock-knock, White House press/community relations department, doesn't someone realize that they should highlight US stars for a US campaign?