Covering a Red Carpet Event!

As a freelancer it's been a unique experience transitioning into a business owner. But when paired with great talent, and good friendship, despite fears of others, the partnership in which we've established ourselves is solid and fun.

Advantj Media, which launched earlier this year has been a lot of fun to be a part of and things just keep getting better. I don't typically plug myself or push myself into the forefront of anything that I do as I typically let the work, the words, and the experiences speak for themselves.

Today's post is a departure from that just for now, because I wanted to share something with everyone that I think some of you, or someone you know might be interested in.

Advantj Media along with 24 Hour Entertainment and iGOSA have been asked to partner with Neiman Marcus for the premiere of Valentino: The Last Emperor. This amazing red carpet event is going to highlight one of the fashion industries biggest designers and San Antonio and our local community is honored to have been able to be a part of this.

Utilizing the variety of online tools at our disposal, we will provide live on the scene coverage as it happens using Twitter, Forums, and Facebook to help spread the word on this amazing film whose proceeds are going to the American Heart Association. Tomorrow night will be a night that San Antonio's fashion world will not forget as we converge on the premiere of this amazing film.

To read more about Advantj's involvement as well as more information on the actual event itself and how YOU can be a part of it, click HERE for the announcement.

Thanks for the support San Antonio! And for those outside of San Antonio, if you know of anyone interested in fashion, a fashion designer, or has a deep love for Valentino's amazing fashion ingenuity, then please pass this information along so they can follow the updates.

The Grey Matter in the Room

That's what I was surrounded by recently at a speaking engagement I had last night. It was an honor to be invited to speak at the Alamo Inventors Group, an organization that I did not even know existed, let alone know what they did.

When I think of inventors I think of all the images of the crazy, crack-pot individual locked away in an attic, a basement, or a laboratory, and tinkering with things until something explodes. I've never really met an inventor in my life, at least not that I'm aware of, so I knew that the audience was going to be a unique mix of dreamers, idea makers, driven creators, and that's exactly what I got!

Bringing Awareness to the Tools

It was amazing to be standing in front of qualified programmers, engineers, software developers, technicians, industrial designers, all of them focused on one thing, their longing for understanding on the new ways they can establish a fan base and promote the word on their ideas and products. Many of them were seeking funding and needed new avenues to attract attention to what they were doing.

The world of online media has grown tremendously and because of the ease of accessibility, it's become a virtual gold rush as people, brands, corporate entities, and entrepreneurs all attempt to make sense of the space and find ways to make it work for them. Like any of the other marketing plans and advertising platforms, there are some general guidelines and rules in developing a consistent and interested community for what you are doing. That is what I shared with them last night.

I informed them that social media is a medium where the door swings both ways. As good as it can be for someone, it can also hurt brands and damage reputations. I shared with them the good and the bad, but the hopeful and optimistic ways that they can truly develop keen interest in what they are doing, find funding, and establish a possible customer base by targeting key markets that would be interested in what they have to offer.

I could see eyes widening, questions were being asked, many of these amazingly brilliant people were intrigued at the opportunities that lay before them. This motivation was generating ideas, and as inventors I wondered what innovative ways they would use their profiles and if they would go so far out of the box that they themselves would be leaders in trend setting.

Never Discount

I had an amazing time last night. While I spoke for an hour, I encouraged questions during my presentations, and in the back of my mind I was hoping that those that had previously discounted online networking and online tools as something frivolous and not for them would reconsider their approach. The idea for my presentation was to hopefully open those doors for conversation and questions.

These are people doing great things from the big to the small, creating something tangible that makes the world better. It's truly interesting to see how the online world has opened itself up so quickly that boundaries and borders that existed once and segmented our communities have been torn down and now allows the easy ebb and flow of communities to overlap and learn from one another.

A huge thanks to the Alamo Inventors Group for allowing me to be a part of their evening, and taking care of me. I hope to see more of them and encourage other groups, not just inventor groups, but any group out there to invite someone to speak to them about the opportunities available to them online. Make sure the individual is credible and has work online to shows they know what they are talking about, but after that due diligence is done, get them to speak in front of you and be ready to learn!