LA-Story

Peter Shankman Talks About How NOT to Use Social Media!

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Peter Shankman is a well-known person around the net-- if you are plugged into advertising, pr, social media or branding.

If you are a PR person, you probably know who Peter is. If you are a journalist who has used the Helpareporterout.com site, you definitely know who Peter Shankman is-- because that's his site along with his geekfactory.com business.

Grabbing 411 from his website: PR Week Magazine has described Peter as "redefining the art of networking," and Investor's Business Daily has called him "crazy, but effective." Peter Shankman is a spectacular example of what happens when you harness the power of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and make it work to your advantage. . (Peter calls it ADOS: Attention Deficit; Oh Shiny!)

Here's one of his work centers: at home social media center. Ummm Peter.. "oh shiny" doesn't begin to touch this!!

Entrepreneur, author, speaker, and ingenious worldwide connector, Peter is recognized nationally and globally for radically new ways of thinking about social media, PR, marketing, advertising, creativity, and just about everything else.. Peter is the founder and CEO of The Geek Factory, Inc., a boutique Marketing and PR Strategy firm located in New York City, with clients worldwide. His blog, which he launched in 2002, (www.shankman.com) both comments on and generates news and conversation.

There's a great deal about Shankman that I could tell you here-- but it would only duplicate what's in the podcast.

Here's a bit of the stuff from his site that tells you where and how he got started and how many fingers he has in so many pies (makes me wonder if he has 4 hands and not two-- besides his trusted assistant Meagan!)

Thank you so much to Peter Shankman for sparing a chunk of time for this podcast and for also getting me into the Newport Beach conference.

Check out that short but sweet video with notes on key points--which you can also find on my twitter feed. The post is Tuesday.. about the same time!

Stevie Wilson

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Film Producer Will Packer, Rainforest Films, Talks About the New Film: "Obsessed" With Beyonce & Idris Elba

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Will Packer might not be a household name -- yet but this man is a ball of fire when it comes to being an entrepreneur and film producer. Given his background, he's taken a different direction for his career and he's quite interesting to speak to.

Will Packer, Producer and Partner, Rainforest Films

Packer never stops giving about his work, the film Obsessed came about. Not only does he discuss the cast and the choice of Beyonce in a major role, Will is big on Ali Larter and Idris Elba as the man who creates the dynamic tension is this taut suspenseful film. Packer is definitely an interesting character -- with the company based out of Atlanta and Packer rolling between LA & Atlanta, he is focused on work and and raising his children. He's got a lot on his plate and Will Packer is definitely high energy.

Will Packer, Idris Elba and Beyonce on the set of Obsessed!

This movie is a "must see" and it just released. Make sure you make time to see it ASAP!! It's a great film and I think you will love the casting and the plot line.

Thank you to Will Packer for his dynamite interview!

For more 411 on this podcast/interview please see it live on http://www.la-story.com/podcast/film_producer_will_packer_rainforest_films_talks_a/index.php

Stevie Wilson

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OLX.com Brings New Vision to Online Classified Sites. Podcast with Fabrice Grinda, Co-Founder!

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Something I just came across on the web -- courtesy of some friends who turned me onto this site-- and while there are similar sites and precursors to this site, OLX.com is very different from its competitors!!

What is OLX.com? It's a unique classified ads/posting site that has any category of products, services, jobs, and meet-ups of Craigslist.org with some of the graphical interface that Ebay.com has and yet has managed to create an entirely unique presentation. Recently launching in the US is a new spin on this sort of business model that goes a bit farther and provides a more user-friendly approach as well as social-media enabled.

What OLX.com offers 100% free (forever) even in jobs and real estate Ability to include videos and pictures in listings A city, neighborhood and zip code database so the entire country is covered and not just pre-selected cities Ajax "WYSIWYG" rich-text editor for richer listings

Ability to comment on listings to create a stronger community Advanced search functions with sliders allowing searches at variable regional settings

A distance field allowing you to see postings near your zip code wherever possible Ability to post listings in any language in any country Ability to view the site in any country in any language Global reach-view OLX in your local language

Mobile version -- with reasonable access. Easily design rich colorful listings with pictures and videos Control your selling, buying, and community activity in My OLX Display your listings on your social networking profile (Facebook, Myspace)

Fabrice Grinda

Fabrice Grinda and his partner Alec Oxenford created something truly unique: online classifieds that out-"ebay" Ebay.com and outsmart Craigslist.org with their new to the US creation, OLX.com that is FREE-- and allows one to upload or view photos and videos of the various things you might be looking at in the classified ad website.

Want to learn MORE about this site and how it came about? Listen to this podcast with Fabrice Grinda.

Thank you to Fabrice Grinda for his time and his great interview.

If you need a job, if you want to sell something, if you want to meet up with other people, you should check out www.OLX.com and find out just how user-friendly and how web-friendly to allow you to upload videos and photos to illustrate postings. www.OLX.com

Stevie Wilson

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Jodi Wing Talks About the Art of Social War- Part 2!! Video Interview

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

This is part 2 of the video interview with Jodi Wing, the author of the really fun read-- and highly educational-- The Art of Social War

THE ART OF SOCIAL WAR (Harper Collins $13.95) is an intoxicatingly funny, "chick-lit'-like book with serious undertones that really gives you the insider scoop on what the social strata and lifestyle is like in the upper echelons of So. California lifestyle, While Jodi writes pretty specifically about LA, there are similar situations and events that occur in San Francisco, Newport Beach/OC and other areas of California, It's very much a state (both literally and figuratively) about who and what you know.

What I love about this book and about Jodi's long-term goals is that she has created a website that's truly a community where women can share their own war stories and also be supportive of and supported by Jodi and other women. Who better to help you out than other women who have gone through this situation? Also Jodi makes a strong point about reading the book, The Art of War by Sun Tze

Jodi Wing (one of the best photos I have ever seen!)

Purchase the book on Amazon.com and BarnesNoble.com.

Visit her website www.theartofsocialwar.com to share and learn more about the art of social war. This is more than just a book-- it's definitely a philosophy and a way of negotiating life both personal and business! Stevie Wilson

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Jodi Wing Talks About the Art of Social War

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

If you are a book addict, the Art of Social War won't be news to you nor the name Jodi Wing however if maybe you aren't up on the latest (and greatest) books, this is your chance to check out a book that is both fun, fashionable, flirty and also philosophical-- all at the same time.

THE ART OF SOCIAL WAR (Harper Collins $13.95) a hilarious, delectable and dishy novel about Hollywood high society,

New York career woman Stacey Knight marries James Makepeace just as she learns he's been offered the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to run a major Hollywood studio. There's one catch: they must relocate to Los Angeles. Will Stacey be lost in translation, or will her hard-earned New Yawk survival skills prove yet again, as Ol' Blue Eyes so often said, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere? The unwitting newlyweds land in a Technicolor high-stakes Social War, pursued by ruthless power brokers in the film demimonde. What's a girl to do when the promise of a glittering blockbuster future descends rapidly into film noir despair? At once seduced and repelled by the rigid caste system and predatory aspect of Hollywood life, Stacey navigates a sea of confusing social obstacles and extremely bad behavior. Empowered by 2,500-year-old military strategist Sun Tzu's The Art of War, Stacey takes control of the War Game and learns that they must adapt to survive and attack if they are to thrive.

Jodi Wing is a dynamic, fun, and interesting woman is is the epitome of the protagonist of the book. She's really smart, savvy and got a lot on the ball. Her self-deprecating sense of humor is so in tune with the LA lifestyle-- meaning she's a bit of an iconoclast but ever so much fun.

Bear with the little blips on this video. We were recording this at the Beverly Hills Hotel and we were supposed to hit the Polo Lounge but it was 1) packed and 2) noisey so we wound up in the lobby-- with people walking by and wondering what the heck we were doing. It was definitely a surreal moment since Jodi could see everyone and I could hear them-- and there were some really unusual people there and it was worth every moment to be there.

PS-- This is only part 1 of the Jodi Wing interview about the Art of Social War

Stay tuned for part 2 of this interview, a bit shorter, a different perspective and really getting more interesting.

Note that there will be more updates with Jodi Wing coming. We had a great time chatting!

Want the book? (Am I crazy? What a dumb question! Of course you do!!) Buy it at Amazon.com Visit her site www.theartofsocialwar.com to share "war stories" and chat more other fans of the book and Jodi Wing. it's a great place to learn, share and visit! Stevie Wilson

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Chris Abraham Returns!! Part 2 of a Conversation about the Value of Fluff & Red Carpet Events.

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 29 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Chris Abraham returns for part 2 of a conversation about the relative cost of celebrity-hood as compared to what it costs. Does celebrity justify the expenditure? The conversation turns from celebrity to actually talking about the context of cost versus perceived value as it applies to everyday life and your typical consumer. The question would be is what's a reasonable expenditure and what's unreasonable? Is 800 thread count sheets over the top? Would 400 thread count not work just as well? How about 250 thread count?

At what point do you buy things just "to buy" versus buying something as an investment as in a perfect pair of black , navy or grey pants or trousers that fit well and have them tailored to fit. The point being if you get years of wear (providing you stay in the same size range) from a specific piece of apparel (or accessory) and it becomes a staple that works with a number of tops/shirts and jackets allowing you to bring the cost of perhaps $200 for the initial purchase to the cost per wear-- which could be 50 cents or less if you hold a great pair of pants for about 4-5 years if you wear them once a week.

Chris Abraham

Part of what this conversation evolves as it continues to be about confidence and what you do, what you feel and what you wear. It's not about the confidence you derive from the clothing you wear, rather that the clothing should just be the icing on the cake of your confident self. The example of students on scholarship to Ivy League schools often don't feel quite up to par as those whose families have a history of attendance to Ivy League schools and how to learn that if you *earned* your place, and didn't just buy your way in-- grades being relatively equal.

Stevie Wilson

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Hayden Black Kicks Back Into Gear with a New Season of Goodnight Burbank

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 22 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Goodnight Burbank launched it's new season of insanely funny, character-driven comedy webisodes.

Hayden Black starring in Goodnight Burbank.com

Add into the mix a bit of Abigail's Teen Diary where Hayden Black plays Abigail. Twisted humor with a genuine valley girl voice and you have something seriously different!

Previously, Hayden Black had been featured here on LA-Story.com via podcast and now we got to finally meet The man Behind the Evil Global Corporation.

www.goodnightburbank.com www.abisteendiary.com

We "heart" Hayden Black and his quirky sense of humor as much as we adore his seriously great business savvy!!

Stevie Wilson

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A Serious Chat with Abraham Harrison’s Chris Abraham About the “Expat Expat” , State of the Blogosphere & Politics, Economy & More!

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 15 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

When Abraham Harrison's president, Chris Abraham find the time to chat, I always have time to listen. While he was living in Berlin, we were always trying to figure out ways of getting another podcast together despite the difference in time zones and distance--not always an easy thing. While we might IM at 3 AM his time and that's about 8 PM PST, it's not worthy of a post-- and it's not the same either

The schedule was to talk to Chris over the holidays and get a couple of podcasts on the books to be released over time. However things have changed for this US-German expatriate who loves to talk about how Berlin is poor but sexy (it's in one of his blogs, AdAge)

However it worked out that this expat is no longer an expat but now a resident once again of Washington D.C., and digging in deep into the advertising/marketing business of working on internet (and other) projects. Getting him on the phone meant making sure he was stationary and not buzzing around as he typically is and this is a longer podcast than usual. It's also much more serious-- as we talk about the blogosphere and how the big gun bloggers manage to be the big guns and still have lives while some of us work 7 days a week and work incredible hours getting the work done and still trying to have lives and enjoy some of it. However since we are on the eve of the inauguration, this post/podcast is particularly applicable as everyone seems to be wondering, asking and contemplating the same issues that Chris Abraham and I eventually talk about. So sit back and have a listen- or do yourself a favor-- download this to an mp3 via itunes or podcaster news (it will be up really soon I promise) and get this on your "must hear" list.

As you can tell, he's one of my favorite people to talk with and what you don't hear in the podcast is the back story that sets up the podcast about what's happening on both sides of the world and nation. While this was a serious podcast and much longer than I thought it would be, it's well worth the listen.

While Chris is waist-deep in social media and you can find him all over the web, check out his blog on ChrisAbraham.com , Because the Medium is the Message. If you hit his blogs (and there are several) make sure you leave a comment and bookmark/subscribe to his rss feed. He's got interesting -- and funny -- posts and perspectives on life. I promise you the next one is much lighter in tone-- but given this is just before the inauguration, it's the perfect time to discuss these topics. Stevie Wilson

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LA-Story Recessionista, Celebrity Style Slam Trademark/Copyright: KBP Inc. 2007-08

JenandBarb.com: How Becoming A Mom (or Parent) Changes Your Life!

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 08 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Jennifer Pate

and Barb Machen

met in a baby fitness group and bonded almost instantaneiously. What's fun and fab about this friendship is that between the two women, multiple children and their husbands, they found time to create

1) a website-- www.jenandbarb.com

2) a blog 3) a series of webisodes!! You can find them on youtube.com

here's one episode

All this while juggling the rigors of being full-time mom along with kids (both well and sick), husbands and the usual stuff that moms have to do -- of which the list is endless. In the course of talking to these two moms who are like flip sides of the same coin, I found that we had much in common as moms and how hard it is to juggle all that's going on. (heck you think I just sit here tapping on this computer eating bon-bons and having endless capuccinos? We all wish!)

As you can tell in this podcast which has about 10 seconds of editing (really!!), that it was an easy conversation with these two moms/women who hold their own while helping each other out.

The entire point of their site www.jenandbarb.com - A Mom's LIfe, is that women need to help each other out-- and moms particularly need to bond and be a mutual support group. Loved talking to them. Definitely find the video about the birthday parties-- you will find it interesting and informative. Look for these ladies to appear soon on this blog-- hopefully on video! Stevie Wilson

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LA-Story Recessionista, Celebrity Style Slam Trademark/Copyright: KBP Inc. 2007-08

Priscilla Ahn on Tour Promoting CD, Talks about Life on the Road, “A Good Day” and Lots more!

Stevie Wilson — Fri, 01 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Priscilla Ahn first came to my attention via Joshua Radin’s first CD release where she lent her voice to backup vocals and harmony with Radin (done in his apartment!).
Now she has a new CD that’s launched on Blue Note Records, entitled, A GOOD DAY

In case you are unfamiliar with her work or her incredible voice, here’s a bit of the release that is the best synopsis of her current work

For A Good Day, Ahn reunited with Waronker, and along with multi-instrumentalist Gus Seyffert—who co-wrote “Astronaut” with Ahn—the trio basically recorded the tunes live. “Gus would play bass or guitar, I would play my guitar and sing, Joey would play drums,” explains Ahn. “Once we laid that base down we would overdub quirky things. After a month of just us, we decided we should get some other people in there and add some new sounds.”
Among the guests making their own memorable contributions were keyboardists Greg Kurstin (the bird and the bee, Lily Allen), Keefus Ciancia (Fiona Apple, Cassandra Wilson, T Bone Burnett) and Zac Rae (Fiona Apple, Macy Gray), guitarist/film composer Mike Andrews (Me and You and Everyone We Know); musical saw player Ursula Knudsun; cellist/string arranger Oliver Kraus (Joshua Radin, Beth Orton, Liz Phair); and celebrated jazz keyboardist Larry Goldings. Veteran R&B session singers Jim Gilstrap and Orin Waters lend their voices to “Leave The Light On,” a gentle, folk-gospel sing-along. Ahn herself plays a wide range of instruments including guitar, ukulele, piano, harpsichord, harmonica, and autoharp, amongst others.

Waronker’s approach is elegantly economical. He keeps Ahn’s pristine voice front and center, surrounding her with subtle, beautiful sounds from a range of unusual instruments. A Good Day is grounded in folk, country and pop, yet it’s never constrained by the dictates of any genre. For example, Ahn ingeniously transforms Willie Nelson’s breakup ballad, “Opportunity To Cry” into an upbeat shuffle, while maintaining all its pathos. Though Ahn presents a dreamy, sunny facade in her lyrics, her songs display a serious emotional depth and an almost preternatural maturity. When Ahn impetuously hit the road a few years back, she may not have known exactly where she was going, but A Good Day proves she’s always been headed in the right direction

See more content/videos and 411 on http://www.la-story.com/podcast/priscilla_ahn_on_tour_promoting_cd_talks_about_lif/

Thank you to Priscilla Ahn for her time in talking about her CD, music and life as a musician.

Check out Priscilla on www.PriscillaAhn.com
Facebook
Her CD A GOOD DAY is available on Blue Note Records.

www.myspace.com/priscillaahn