Karen Taylor Writes

Welcome To The Official Home Of Karen Taylor

BlogathonATX 2013 Recap — A Fun and Delicious Day-Long Blogging Camp for Adults

by // 2 Comments

BlogathonATX Sign
A must-attend annual event for me and 100 other local bloggers.

Austin Bloggers Mingle, Learn New Tricks, and Enjoy Lots of Delectable Austin Eats!

As soon as I received the email announcing that registration for BlogathonATX 2013, I sign up for one of the 100 or so coveted seats.

I’ve been to the last three, and now it is a must-attend annual event for me.

Haven’t heard of BlogathonATX? it’s like a day-long blogging camp for adults held on a Saturday in October.

Here’s the official description from the website:

“Since making its debut onto Austin’s social media scene, #BlogathonATX® has taken the city by storm. It all started with a tweet in the summer of 2010, and has grown into the hottest ticket in town for both established and aspiring bloggers alike.”

Here are more deets from the Eventbrite registration page:

“#BlogathonATX is an annual day-long event facilitating blogging, collaboration, tech support, and roundtable discussions led by Austin’s brightest blogging experts and social media enthusiasts. All levels welcome! Experienced Blogger? Come join your blogging colleagues and share information on the latest trends. New Blogger? We have a staff dedicated to helping you with technical questions as you ease your way into the blogging waters. Blog curious? Come see what all the fuss is about. While many people come to BlogathonATX to write, just as many come for all the other activities and great socializing.”

The event was founded by and continues to be headed by Ilene Haddad, who goes by the moniker IleenieWeenie. She describes herself as “a graphic designer and clumsy resident of Earth.” She is also BlogathonATX hostess extraordinaire.

Why I Love — and Will Never Miss — a BlogathonATX

The reason I love the event can be summarized in three words—learning, socializing, eating! This event combines the best of all three (essentials for any serious blogger).

The learning ops are stellar—everything from successful bloggers sharing their secrets to techies explaining SEO.

The socializing is sublime—hey, we’re all bloggers!

The food is delicious and plentiful (and, believe it or not, included in the event’s low price of $40—thanks to several generous donations)—from breakfast tacos and hot coffee in the morning to an afternoon sushi break, the edible delights keep rolling out—and keep our energy running high.

Setting Up and Settling in for a Day of Fun — and a Little Blogging

When you arrive around 9:00 a.m., the first thing you do is find your place.

Tech Ranch Austin LogoThe Tech Ranch Austin on Old Jollyville Road hosts the event in its wonderful meeting space. However, the layout changed significantly from last year.

Previously, the main room was a big square classroom with tables and chairs. Our food table was in a separate room, and there were a couple of other small rooms for tech talks and blogging in silence.

Now the meeting area is one big long narrow room with a variety of seating options, from a few skinny tables and chairs, to soft chairs and couches, to chairs around long tables.

I scored one of the last seats at the skinny tables near the windows and the main speaker area.

However, getting in and out of my spot required a carefully orchestrated zigzag traverse down the skinny aisles.

Those of us sitting in that area quickly got the hang of maneuvering between chairs and helping each other make the journey. (Note to self: Get there earlier next year to snag a seat on the outside of the skinny tables.)

With your seat secured, and your laptop plugged in and turned on, you are free to roam about—most importantly to the food table.

The day’s food delights begin with hot coffee provided by Kohana (yum!), tea, breakfast tacos, various pastries, and fresh fruit.

Bloggers munch their breakfast while chitchatting or checking email—or actually blogging!

However, before you know it, it’s time for the first learning session.

Awesome Blogger Learning Ops — From Techie to Business

This year’s first session set the tone for an information-packed day.

Bloggers and Authors on Writing was a panel discussion with several local writers including:

Evin Cooper, a self-described “foul-mouthed” mommy blogger writing.

Owen Egerton, an Austin writer and performer.

Helen Ginger, a local author.

Crystal Edwards, a professional copywriter and editor.

Becka Oliver, Executive Director of the Writers’ League of Texas.

At 11:00 a.m., we could attend an SEO 101 class with Elmer Boutin from Rockfish Digital at the large tables at the other end of the room.

From 1:00 to 2:00, two attorneys, Alicia Calzada and David Wells, discussed Intellectual Properties.

Final BlogathonATX Session
Final BlogathonATX learning session in the comfy casual seating section.

At 2:00, Happiness Engineer at WordPress.com, Jackie Dana, discussed WordPress 101.

At 4:00, Eric Weiss presented Intermediate SEO.

At 5:00, the last session of the day was a casual panel discussion—the Business Blogging Roundtable, with several bloggers discussing the topic and taking comments and questions from the rest of us.

Socializing Ops Around Every Corner

Like any writing job, blogging is a solitary pursuit. That’s one reason why it’s important for bloggers to get out and socialize now and then—for fun and our sanity.

BlogathonATX offers a wonderful opportunity to mingle with our peers. After all, who’s going to understand the unique challenges and special needs of a blogger better than other bloggers.

In fact, I met someone in the hall and struck up a conversation about writing for Austin companies over the past couple of decades. We were so engaged that we missed the learning session on Intellectual Property.

However, I was able to catch the two (very helpful) lawyers, and ask them my most burning legal question.

Greenling Lunch Bags
Lunch is now being served!

The Food Keeps Rolling Out — Quantity and Quality!

Just in case you need another reason to understand how exceptional BlogathonATX is, here’s the day’s menu of food that magically appeared on our never-empty food table all day long:

After our breakfast, the coffee, pastries, and fruit kept flowing until lunch at noon.

Plus, Austin’s Skinny Limits served us fresh raw juice.

The main course for lunch was sandwiches and vegetarian or gluten-free lunch bags from Austin’s Greenling, with salads and Beanito’s chips.

BlogathonATX Lunch
My lunch. Hey, a girl’s gotta eat!

Austin’s The Dojo, Japanese Sake Bar served us plates of teriyaki chicken, edamame, and green tea crème brulee. (Super yum!)

Austin’s Sarah’s Kale Chips brought us servings of her products.

And Konaha brought us iced coffee—which flowed freely the rest of the day!

Ruby’s Rockets served frozen fruit and veggie pops.

Austin chocolatier, Delysia, provided samples of its dark chocolate in three delectable favors.

And because everyone needs an afternoon pick me up, Roll On Sushi delivered a large platter of sushi to us.

Suffice to say, that any trip to our food table was a trip to bountiful!

I almost forgot to mention that at this year’s event massage therapists from The Austin Body Worker visited us in the afternoon and provided 15-minute chair massages for tips.

Any knots I had in my neck were gone after Denisa Davis performed her magic.

I’ll bet by now you understand why I can’t wait for BlogathonATX 2014.

Need a copywriter to help write your blog posts—or any other marketing content? Let me know, because I’m available for new projects.

You. You. You. — Is it Really the Most Powerful Word in Marketing?

by // Leave a Comment

A Non-Existent Study Has Bolstered this Claim for Years — Meanwhile Leonardo da Vinci Leveraged the Power of You Over 500 Years Ago

For years, “experts” have claimed that you is the most powerful word in the English language — or, at the very least, one of the top five to 12.

But recently that standing was debunked when it was revealed that the “Yale research” many of these claims are based on never happened.

You campaign
Is “you” the most powerful word in marketing? Or is it a victim of false advertising?

Still, that doesn’t negate the power of the word you in marketing.

Consider these two sentences:

Business owners benefit when they use persuasive words in their content.

You benefit when you use persuasive words in your content.

Which sentence is stronger?

Most people would pick the second version, because you sounds more personal and direct — which is always good.

What Would da Vinci Do?

I’ve known the power of the word you for decades, thanks to an article I read in the 1980s by Bryan Mattimore in a publication that no longer exists.

I’ve kept a copy of the article all these years in my marketing research folder. It’s that good.

Now I can share it with you.

In 1482, Leonardo da Vinci was in a fix. Times were tough at court, and he needed to drum up additional business (patrons).

But how? It’s not easy telling the world you’re talented — much less a genius.

DaVinci decided to write to his Excellency Ludovic Sforza to promote his considerable talents.

Interesting enough, the style and substance of his letter exemplified three important (and timeless) rules of advertising creative services.

Rule 1 — Present Your Talents in Light of a Current Market Need.

Did DaVinci say that he was a great artist? Or that he was the best “mirror writer” in all of Italy?

No, he identified a pressing need, and offered to fill it: Namely, to design and build “instruments of war” for his Excellency.

Rule 2 — Be Specific About Your Creative Point of Difference.

DaVinci’s letter noted that he had studied the work of other masters and inventors of instruments of war — and found that their work “did not differ in any respect from those in common practice.”

He went on to outline how his unique, and easy-to-transport “unassailable armored cars, and catapults of wonderful efficacy” were superior to anything yet invented.

Rule 3 — Use More “You’s” than “I, Me, My, or We’s” in Your Copy.

This is the acid test for Rule 1.

Make sure you’re focusing not on yourself — but on the needs of your potential clients.

DaVinci’s opening paragraph, for instance, had four “you” and “your Excellency’s” and only three “I, me, my, or we’s.”

It doesn’t take a fake research study — or a true genius — to know that, when it comes to powerful words, you will always be a contender.

If you need content that gets your prospects’ and customers’ attention, then you need to hire me! I write market content that gets noticed, makes an impact, and puts your words to work.

How Big Will Austin’s Technology Sector Grow? — Tech Leader Says, “It’s Unlimited”

by // Leave a Comment

Austin’s Technology History Stretches Back to the 1950s — Boomed in the 1990s — And Still Has Room to Grow

Austin Texas Downtown Skyline
Austin’s skyline has grown and changed in the past 20 years — driven largely by the high-tech boom.

I wish I’d had a time capsule back in 1993 to capture the day I attended a trade show at the Austin Convention Center.

If I could replicate my experience, it would illustrate just how far Austin’s technology business sector has grown in the past 20 years.

The event was held to support Austin businesses. One of the Chamber of Commerce booths promoted Austin’s high-tech sector. There wasn’t much there. Just some photos and articles, mostly about IC² Institute, the Sematech semi-conductor consortium, and Dell.

I was new in town and seeing this meager display, I suspected I’d have better luck focusing my freelance writing career on the local healthcare industry.

I had gained writing experience in both healthcare and high-tech while living in Atlanta in the 1980s, where my first freelance client was Peachtree Software.

I leveraged by healthcare expertise to write for organizations like Seton.

Then everything changed.

Technology began booming — dramatically so.

By 1996, I course corrected my career — aiming full force on technology.

Work was plentiful — with both small start-ups and large mega-companies. It was exciting to be on the inside of so much growth.

It didn’t take long for the business landscape to change — dramatically.

Austin’s Technology Sector History

Although the Austin technology industry has come a long way since the early 1990s, many say it’s only going to get bigger — including Jack McDonnell, former CEO of Perficient.

In February, I attended a meeting at the Metropolitan Breakfast Club where McDonnell presented an overview of Austin’s technology growth trajectory, its influences, and its future.

He started with a bit of history.

Since the 1950s, the Austin Chamber of Commerce has fostered technology growth as a way to expand the city’s narrow economic base (formerly government and education).

The technology sector picked up steam in 1967 when IBM moved to Austin, followed by Texas Instruments in 1969, and Motorola in 1974.

Two major research consortiums of high-technology companies followed during the 1980s — Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation and Sematech.

By the early 1990s, the Austin Metropolitan Statistical Area was home to almost 400 high-technology companies.

It’s even bigger now. Today technology comprises 13 percent of the jobs in Austin and 27 percent of the payroll. “It’s a key driver of our prosperity,” notes McDonnell.

Austin’s Tech Scene Has “Room to Grow”

One thing that helped the surge of tech growth was the number of companies that spun off from these early adopters.

McDonnell pointed out that 40 start-ups spun off from one company alone, Tivoli, which opened in 1989, including Waveset, Iconixx Software, and Motive.

McDonnell sees no slow down in Austin’s technology growth.

“Austin has the ability to become the country’s third largest tech region, after Silicon Valley and New York City,” he said.

Austin has everything going for it to expand, said McDonnell — including entrepreneurial spirit, a world-class university, hardware and software prowess, a young and educated workforce, a strong ecosystem of supporting talent, and a diverse community.

“I can’t think of a better city than Austin in which to build a company.”

In partnership with other business leaders, McDonnell said they’ve created a four-point growth plan. “We have plenty of room to grow, but first we have to do some work.”

That work includes the following:
1. Looking for new companies to woo here.
2. Helping current companies expand with office space and mentorships.
3. Marketing Austin as the place companies need to be.
4. Growing the business sector’s relationship with UT.

Why is it important for Austin’s tech sector to grow? Especially since some people think Austin has grown too much and is losing what made it great.

“As Austin’s mayor, Lee Leffingwell said, ‘the growth is coming whether we want it or not.’

“It’s much smarter to come together as a community and prepare for and manage the growth to lessen the growing pains, including our traffic, transportation, healthcare, education, and affordability,” noted McDonnell.

“Today everyone has the opportunity to participate in Austin’s future.”