Summer Huggins

“I’d like the link to this press release to be bigger font and in a different color. And when people hover over it, I’d like it to blink and maybe even have some audio that actually says ‘click here’ out loud.”

Yep. That was a real request that I received from a client several years ago. I wish I could remember the topic or event that the press release was covering, but truth be told: It was just a regular press release, and I posted a new one for this client every day.

Once I picked my jaw up from my desk — did she really just ask that? — I was able to tell them that I couldn’t do that with this particular link, and I explained why. I pointed to specifics in our style guide and even talked a bit about accessibility. I asked about the urgency of this press release and who exactly she was trying to reach so that I could come up with an agreeable alternative for the request.

According to a talk I heard from Colleen Jones this week at Confab, I’m proud to say that I successfully nudged this client.

As part of her presentation on content making a difference and what she called Content Science 101 — which included some awesome Star Wars references — she explained how to nudge:

N: Need. When nudging a client, clarify their specific need. With this request for a large, blinking, audible link, what did my client really need? What were they asking for?

U: Understand. Dig deeper into the reason behind the request, resisting the urge to just ask “why?”

D-G: Direct to Governance. Put simply, governance is the set rules around which a website is published. It includes accessibility, specifics in the style guide, tone, voice, etc. Where does a request fit within all of the pre-defined parameters?

E: Encourage. The nudge wraps up when an alternative solution is explored and agreed up.

With the example of the large, blinking, audible link, I was able to make the client happy by referring to the site’s style guide and our desire and need for consistency of tone, voice and message across the site. An alert on the home page of the site made her happy. And I nudged her into it.

I just uploaded photos from our February trip to Colorado to Flickr. It’s May 5th.

In years previous, vacation photos were uploaded the day after we got home. I wanted the world (well, my mother and a few Internet friends) to see who we had seen, where we had been and what we had eaten. I painstakingly took the time to tag my photos well, and thoughtfully constructed my descriptions and titles. I’m not doing that with Flickr these days, and I believe it’s Instagram’s fault.

By the time we got home from Denver, many friends and my mom had already seen some of the highlights — thanks to Instagram. I’d take my phone out of my pocket, take a picture and add a fun filter, and with a single press of a button, my picture was out there for the whole world to see. No waiting until I got to my computer. No downloading and then uploading. No lugging the “big” camera in and out of my bag.

I’ve always loved the interactive, social element of Flickr, but Instagram has that too.

I’m torn now. Does Flickr become storage only? If everyone has already seen a piece of Denver (or New York or wherever) on Instagram, do I need to bother showing them any more on Flickr? What’s a girl to do?!

Aside from being a cool use of video and illustration, this is a powerful and easy message for living healthier.

A couple of weeks ago, a Twitter friend of mine and writer for the Austin American-Statesman, Omar Gallaga, asked a question: “Do you behave differently online than you do offline?” I do not.

If you read Omar’s story and/or watch the video that accompanies it, you’ll see that some do handle themselves differently. Some have more confidence, some feel more freedom to debate and argue issues, some flirt more online than in person.

I have always tried to be as much me as possible both online and off. I interact with clients, friends, coworkers and family all regularly online, and I think someone in that group would quickly call me on it if I wasn’t being authentic.

I have though, since getting online for the first time back in the mid-late 1990s, always conducted myself using one filter: my mother. As I told Omar, whether online or offline: “As long as my mother wouldn’t mind, I’m going to do it.”

Do you behave differently online?

I’m sitting at my desk in my office, keeping one on eye two computers and one eye on the street out front. I’m waiting patiently for my first bushel delivery from Farmhouse Delivery. This week’s delivery is full of sweet corn, pears, sweet potatoes and fresh herbs, all from local farms.

I just learned about Farmhouse Delivery last week, but I’ve been following one of their competitors on Twitter and getting their e-newsletter for over a year now. I would read the contents of the competitor’s delivery basket each week and tell myself “I should sign up and do that.” But I kept hesitating for some reason I never really explored.

So what made me dive head-first into a purchase with Farmhouse Delivery? Same to-my-door service as the competitor. Locally grown produce just like the competitor. Pretty much the same price. I opened both websites side by side and I knew in an instant what it was. The photos. Farmhouse’s photos made me jump and hit the “join” button.

The photos scattered throughout their website — some of vegetables I can’t even identify — made my mouth water. The photos are clean and uncluttered. They look professionally done, not just snapshots thrown up to fill space. I just couldn’t resist having what those photos are selling.

Photos do so much! Good photos can make customers out of casual readers and can make super-fans out of regular customers. They can illustrate, tell a story, evoke emotion, encourage action and rev up the senses. Photos shouldn’t be overlooked or ignored to then later be considered as an afterthought in the design and content planning process.

One year of visiting a competitor’s website and not doing a thing. Two minutes of my time on Farmhouse Delivery’s site and I’m staring out the window like a kid waiting on Santa. I’d say photos are a very important piece of the content puzzle…

Last week at Content Marketing World, things were kicked off with a presentation about fascination by Sally Hogshead. She didn’t just get on stage and talk about being fascinating — she’s has done years of research into why consumers are fascinated by certain triggers and what different companies do to fascinate and attract customers. There are seven fascination triggers:

1. Power (take command)
2. Passion (attract with emotion)
3. Mystique (arouse curiosity)
4. Prestige (increase respect)
5. Alarm (create urgency)
6. Rebellion (change the game)
7. Trust (build loyalty)

Volvo uses trust. Godiva uses lust. Fedex uses alarm. (“When it absolutely, positively has to get there overnight.”) Triggers help companies sell products off shelves, persuade shareholders to invest, and convince key employees to stay.

Sally has done so much research into the topic, that she has even devised a test so that everyone who has clients or customers — or even just wants their husband to help with the dishes — can determine which triggers they work best with and which ones they could be utilizing. So, I decided to visit fscoretest.com and see what I had going for me. I expected that Trust would be my primary trigger, the thing that draws friends and strangers and clients to me. I’m reliable and stable after all. I was wrong. (Though Trust was my secondary trigger.)

It’s Power. I’m wielding Power. That was a bit of a surprise.

What wasn’t a surprise for me is that my dormant trigger — the one that I’m not using at all but could — is Rebellion. Give me a deadline; I’m going to meet it. Ask me to RSVP; I promise I will. I put on my seatbelt before I even pull out of the garage. When my results were presented to me, the question was asked: “Should you dial up your Rebellion trigger?” Doing so might help me “tweak boring traditions, shake up dusty routines, and become a more pioneering force for your message.”

It’s all very interesting to me. How can I use these triggers to help in my work at Creek Content? Can I use my Power? Will people continue to Trust me? Should I Rebel and buy a pair of leather pants?

I have a new celebrity crush: Kevin Smith.

Before Content Marketing World, I knew of him, but I can’t say that I knew much about him. Sure, I knew that he made movies and that he had a little conversation on Twitter once about an experience with a certain airline. But today I learned that he is a passionate storyteller, he curses just a bit and he loves every minute of what he does.

During the closing keynote of CMWorld, Smith spoke without taking a breath for about an hour under hot spotlights, looking into a dark room. I could have listened to him for three hours more. He said so much in his time with us.

He told us that Ben Affleck likes to ad lib during filming. He told us about words that Harvey Weinstein said to him years and years ago that still stick with and guide him today. And he told us to surround ourselves with “why not?” people.

Yep, “why not?” people. Those are the people who encourage us, who listen to our ideas and no matter how off-the-wall and wacky those ideas might be, they say “why not?” and stick by our side and offer support as we go for it. So what if you fail or fall short when you try it! So what if it doesn’t work at all! At least you can say you tried, learn a lesson and move on.

His words were so encouraging and inspiring. And he urged us to be encouraging and inspiring to others, to be “why not?” people for those around us. His words — the clean ones at least — have me thinking and dreaming about doing bigger in my own life. Not only in my personal life, but my work life as well. Can I do more with my photography? Why not? Can I think bigger for clients and offer great ideas to them, even if they don’t implement those ideas? Why not? Can I lose another 20 pounds? Why not?

There were so many take-aways in his Q&A with us, I can’t wait to watch it again when the session videos are published to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

Plus, he’s so cute in person!

I wish I could remember who said that this morning at Content Marketing World. I suppose if I were to dig through tweets, I could probably find it. But I’m lazy, my brain is mush and I’m heading to the gym to work up a good sweat before being a bum and ordering room service. But today’s message was clear: It’s not enough for a company to have a blog or tweet. Real people want interaction with other real people.

Day two — our first full day of sessions, networking and eating — went as well as I had hoped and expected. I attended sessions focused on small businesses and storytelling, content marketing to your own internal audiences and even heard a pretty good Grover impersonation. I’ve got pages of notes that I hope I can turn into great blog posts not only for me here but for Creekmore as well. And I think what I’m learning is going to be beneficial for clients too. Maybe by the time I get off of the treadmill, it will all have itself worked into a nice editorial calendar and the posts will just write themselves!

Until then, a few pictures.

It’s been a long day — starting with getting up at 4:45 a.m. to catch two flights to Cleveland for Content Marketing World. But it’s been a good day! My flights were smooth and uneventful. My hotel is nice. I’ve already met three other people from Austin, and the opening reception for Content Marketing World at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was great! Somehow I missed Lady Gaga’s meat dress, but seeing some of Janis Joplin’s lyrics in her own handwriting was pretty cool.

The next couple of days are going to be filled with stories about telling stories. And I’ve already got several blog posts brewing. For now, here are a few pictures from day one.

I’ve spent time the last couple of weeks with two amazing dogs at Austin Pets Alive! Gracie and Olive.

Gracie can be a bit mouthy, but she’s eager to learn and making great progress. She can destroy a stuffie toy in less than 10 seconds, and she doesn’t know that dogs aren’t supposed to climb trees.

Olive is a petite pittie princess. She walks well on her leash, loves cheesy duck crackers and is happy to chase birds out of the yard.

Sometimes I get attached to the dogs that I meet and get to volunteer with. There are awesome animals waiting to be adopted, and I wish I could take them all. Since I can’t take one of these two, I think you should.

This is George Oscar Bleuth. This handsome 3-year-old was rescued by Austin Pets Alive! three months ago, quite literally off of the euthanasia table. His spine was fractured after being hit by a car, but with some TLC and physical therapy, he is now doing well and continues to progress. He gets around great with his walker and is surprisingly very fast! See him in action:

That was the question that I exclaimed when I first saw Prince and Kuma last night at Austin Pets Alive! I walk dogs there every Tuesday evening, and those two just didn’t look like dogs to me from far away.

They are, of course, cute dogs — long-hair chihuahua mixes. And they’re available for adoption.

If you’re not ready to adopt, we always need volunteer walkers. There is no better feeling in the world than ending the day by loving on a dog, making sure they’ve done business and had a treat or two, and then tucking them in for the night. Last night I walked one pup who has probably only been on a leash three times in her life. She was scared and so unsure of what to do. I spent about 20 minutes with her just getting used to the leash on her collar and walking as slowly as she wanted to go. At the end of that 20 minutes, I was getting kisses on the ear. Volunteers make a difference, and these two faces, and my much-loved ear, were the perfect reminder.

Oh, goodness. At least once a week — while photographing adoptable dogs for Austin Pets Alive! — I fall in the love with a new face.

This week, it was Babs. I mean really, look at her!

She’s a 3-month-old lab/hound mix with the most beautiful coloring and playful disposition. I hope she’ll find a wonderful home soon.

Monday, the Stitch Lab on S. 1st — the place where Mom and I shop for fun fabric and take classes where we make tote bags, cute skirts and much more — hosted volunteers from Austin Pets Alive! for a little project. We made 40 “Adopt Me!” vests for the dogs to wear around town. I can’t wait to see dogs like Mason and Lilly sporting one. They’ll be catching everyone’s eye!

A few weeks ago, I met a sweet ol’ pittie named T.J. who was looking for a forever home. He was being fostered by a sweetheart named Cathy and her husband, as well as their three dogs. I took some pictures of him for his online profiles in the hopes that someone would see them, fall in the love with T.J. and adopt him. After losing our own T.J. just a few months ago, this T.J. had a special place in my heart before I even met him.

This T.J. was a gentle giant. There is no telling what went on in his life before Cathy came along. From the looks of his scissor-cut ears, it wasn’t pretty. But he still walked with a soft step and looked at Cathy and his four-legged housemates with a great and playful love.

I found out this morning that T.J. passed away earlier this week. Cathy was his forever home, and I’m so glad that he had her to show him what true puppy love is. And I’m thrilled to have been able to give her some photographs that will always show his sweet face, healthy spirit and goofy tongue sticking out.

Today, in T.J.’s memory, I encourage you to take a picture of someone you love. It doesn’t have to be technically perfect. Just capture a moment, a memory or a tongue sticking out. I hope that looking at it makes you smile.

Meet Harley.

We weren’t exactly in the market for a new dog. Two in the house was plenty. We definitely miss T.J., but I had gotten accustomed to two dogs in the house instead of three. Then we met her.

We don’t know much about her history, but we do know she’s very young to have gone through so much. We think she may have been dropped off or found as a stray out in Bastrop County. To make room at the Bastrop shelter and keep them safe from euthanasia, Austin Pets Alive! took Harley and several others in. She’s also a parvo survivor, thriving now, happy and healthy.

She loves her big brothers, Bugsy and Thunder. She’s doing great on the house-training thing. She can sit. If you’ll throw, she’ll fetch. She plays hard and sleeps hard.

Part of me thinks we’re crazy for adding a third dog to the family, but the rest of me already can’t imagine the house without her.

I can’t believe I haven’t posted a photo of Annie yet. Annie is my current little sister with the Big Brother/Sister program at Austin Pets Alive!

She’s a shy beauty. Better on leash than any other dog at APA! right now (but maybe I’m biased). She’s very curious, always keeping her eyes and nose open to what’s around her. And she’s good with other dogs, at least those a bit smaller than her. I visited with her a few days ago, and she was sharing a pool and a pen with two scrappy little male dogs.

Annie is also good at reading your signals when you’re walking with her. If you stop, she’ll stop. If you sit, she’ll sit by your feet.

She’s going to make a great companion for someone.

I put this little video together for the Austin Pets Alive! dog-walking program. I’m there every Tuesday night with my walking shoes on and treats in-hand. If you’re interested, please join us!