Red Is A Flavor

Yesterday, we all headed to the Pie Festival in Celebration to partake in Celebration’s Great American Pie Festival and the all-you-can-eat, pie buffet.  If you have never been, I suggest you do next year.  I’m personally partial to Rocky Mountain Pie’s Apple Crumb.

Admission to the festival is free, but the buffet is $10 for adults and $5 for kids, but it is well worth it.  It includes all the pie, ice cream, coffee, and milk you could ever want.

Yesterday, someone in my building spotted my Twitter Badge (my follow me cards in my badge holder), and asked me about it.  This person's interest was a result of the Ashton/Oprah/CNN media storm.

I spent a few minutes trying my best to explain what it "is" and how I use it.  I tried my best to illustrate it is not just about bowel movements and breakfast activities.  I explained the "conversation", the "observe before diving in" mantra, and the benefits of the 144 character limit.   But afterward, I could tell it didn't click.

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After walking back into my office, I immediately wrote "need twitter elevator pitch" in my moleskine.  It was to be one of my goals of the week; to write my thirty second sales pitch.   This was not the first nor will it be the last time I'll be asked about Twitter.

For the last couple of days I've been looking at that entry, wondering how I should go about this.  What is the best way to sell the concept of Twitter to a "lay user".  I recalled most of the blogs I've read and videos I've watched about twitter, but none explained the "benefit" to those not already connected in some fashion to other Social Media.

Thinking back to all of those past "what is twitter conversations" I've had, the most successful ones were those when I showed the power of Twitter, sort of like a magic trick.

The Photo out of Thin Air Trick

First, ask the person about something they are really into.  Try to steer them into something relevant to the day, like a conference, sports game, or TV show.

Then, bring up the Twitter Search or a client with search capabilities, and search their topic.  Try to find a TwitPic tweet posted in the past few minutes and you will really blow them away, especially if the topic is an event that is going on right at that moment.

Example:
This happened to me last night, while at a baseball game.  One of the parents was saying how he was missing the Fleetwood Mac concert that his wife and daughter were going to.  I quickly searched "fleetwood OR amway" (they were playing at the Amway arena), and found quite a few people tweeting from all over the concert crowd.  I was able to show him images of the band taking the stage, as it was happening.   When his wife called and told him the same thing, he surprised her by saying he already knew, thanks to Twitter.

The All-Knowing Wizard Trick

Next time you hear something like "I wonder what's going on over there", answer their question with Twitter.  It is very likely someone is tweeting it.

Example:
While driving past a local high school late at night last weekend, I noticed all sorts of tents setup on the football field with the stadium lights on.  One quick search on Twitter of the school name, showed someone tweeting about the fundraising event being held there.  So I immediately knew what was going on.  Try that with your local paper, news, or even Google.

Bottom Line – Relate Twitter to "Their" Lives

It is hard to quantify Twitter's benefits without showing how is applies to someone personally and how they can benefit from it.   Twitter functions like millions of eyewitness news reporters, reporting on topics they care about.  This immediately peaks their interest and shows the power of the community, of which they can be part of it.

So, what is my Twitter Elevator Pitch?  "It's Instant Magic…Just watch this…"

[Image: pokpok313 via Flickr]

I thought I’d take a stab at the method of trick photography levitation featured this week on the Digital Photography School (DPS) blog.

It was late at night and I was trying to meet my photo-a-day deadline by midnight.  So there was little planning.  The image to the right was my first attempt at it, and it came out pretty clean.

With the camera sitting in the same spot on pool table, I decided to use the same concept to create a illusion using billiard balls.

How I did It

I'm not a junk food person by any stretch of the imagination.  I rarely eat fast food and I have given up soft drinks over a year ago.  But a couple of years ago, I found these…and all I have to say is…damn you Snyder's of Hanover! 

This stuff is like crack.  The whole family is hooked. 

As I write this, there are two bags in the house that the boys received for Easter.  Trevor's is wisely hidden, and Brandon's is in the pantry.  I made the mistake of eating a couple pieces from Brandon's, now I have the craving so bad, I'm sitting here writing a freaking blog post about the product.

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We all love hot wings, and have tried many "buffalo" or "hot wing" products, but this one actually captures the taste of the wings.   These are one of those foods, that you actually "plan" to eat, setting your "workspace" up prior to opening the bag.

If you have not tried them yet, do so.  But please follow these guidelines when using this product.

• When having other people try them, only hand them pieces.  Do not let them hold the bag, as you will likely not get it back.  Regardless of age or ability, they WILL run.
• If you do not live alone, buy at least two bags at a time in order to get any.
• While not normally condoned, hiding of this product in your home is recommended.
• Just like real hot wings, beer is perfect with them.
• Do not curse the fine folks at Snyder's too much for the bag size.  It would not matter if the bag was 14 bushels, it still wouldn't be big enough.
• Handle as you would Gasoline.  When driving home from the store, place the product in the trunk or as far out of reach as possible. 
• Do not look for sales on them.  It doesn't matter, once you are hooked.
• If you have the opportunity, make the pilgrimage to Hanover (it is on our vacation list)
• Embrace the orange.  Orange is good.  Just wash your hands when the bag is empty.

So if you are ever looking for a gift for me and the family Amazon sells them by the 12 pack.

Oh, and sorry Brandon…

Occasionally, I like to search for phrases on Twitter search, here are some of my favorite ones and some sample tweets.

"Lost my Virginity" 

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"Diarrhea"

"I'm Pregnant"

"I ran into a…"

I could do this all night.  Can you think of any good ones?  Post them in the comments.