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Tag Archive: los angeles

1. The Night We Made It Count with the NIKE+ FuelBand

   March 19, 2012 10:02 am Leave a Comment

   

   A couple of weeks ago I was invited to what has gone down in my books as one of the most original and entertaining events I´ve been to. Pretty much tops them all. Nike invited a select group of Los Angeles media and bloggers to be part of the launch of the much-anticipated NIKE+ FuelBand.

   This being my first Nike event, I had no idea what a treat I was in for. Days before the event, I received a box full of Nike gear to wear to the event. Other than that, all I knew was the date, time, location and hashtag: #makeitcount. I´ve got to admit I was a tad bit nervous that I wouldn´t know anyone and felt awkward arriving to the Montalban Theatre in trendy Hollywood with workout gear!

   I had nothing to worry about. Everyone was dressed in their Nike gear and I ran into some reporters and a couple of bloggers I knew, including Carmen of Latino Fit Club and Caryn of Rockin Mama who was there covering for Sassy Mama in LA.

   We were taken into the theater and were officially introduced to the Nike+ FuelBand, which basically is a cool-looking wristband you wear to monitor the amount of  ”fuel” you expend in a day. Fuel=Movement and it can be any type of movement, that’s the beauty of the FuelBand: “It tracks and measures everyday movement to motivate and inspire people to be more active.” That activity can be yoga, running, basketball, walking, carrying a baby, Zumba (my favorite!), whatever!

   After learning about the FuelBand and getting one for ourselves, we were separated into groups and shuffled into two vans which were to take us to an undisclosed location. We were excited when the vans drove through the Paramount Studios gates and we saw a full on studio crew waiting for us. They had set up a whole circuit of movie-based activities for us to put our FuelBands to the test! There were stunts led by A-list stunt actors; dance moves led by famous choreographers; fight scenes in dark alleys and so much more. We were definitely sweating, laughing and reaching our fuel goals in no time.

   See that collage above? The picture on the top right corner of a girl flying in the air? Yeah, that’s me!

   And just to prove how much of a blast I had, I will dare share with you a video of our final Thriller choreography where you’ll see me dancing like there’s no care in the world. That’s how much fun we had!

   I’m now intensely motivated every day to get up from the seat in front of my computer to get some to my daily Fuel goals and to continue to increase them. The days I go to Zumba my Fuel goes off the chart and I love seeing that! Since the FuelBand syncs with the Nike+ website through a built-in USB, or wirelessly through Bluetooth to a free iPhone app, it records my activity and tracks my progress every day. The app interface also provides much-needed encouragement and motivation as my goals are achieved.

   

   The Nike+ FuelBand has been insanely popular and difficult to keep in stock. If you want to find out more about it or see if it’s available to purchase, visit the NIKE+ website.

2. L.A. Latina Bloggers Discovering Más Luncheon

   November 10, 2010 6:08 pm 16 Comments

   

   Photo by Ray at rx2lab.com

   The LA Latina Bloggers Discovering Mas Luncheon was held on Saturday, November 6, 2010 at Callender’s Grill in Los Angeles.

   40 Los Angeles area Latina Bloggers came together to meet face to face, share insights and have lots of fun.

   We received a warm welcome by Blogs By Latinas founder Monique Fausto. The speakers, Jennifer Vides and Waly Sabria, provided two training sessions. Jennifer Vides shared information on how Latina bloggers can “Market Yourself and Brand Yourself.” Waly Sabria provided tips on how to optimize your social media brand with creative and compelling content. Both speakers shared an overwhelming amount of valuable information to improve Latina blogs and make them marketable to brands.

   Each Latina blogger received a goodie-bag with products from sponsors: Que Rica Vida (General Mills), P&G Beauty and Grooming, Chinese Laundry, Payless Shoe Source, Macy’s, K’NEX, Kurvee, Haute CurVture, Wet N’ Wild, Cafe Media, American International Industries, Bali, Carolina Pad and The Other Side of the Tortilla. Looking forward to the next LA Latina Bloggers event!

    

   Here are some takeaways from the sessions:

   Jennifer Vides – “How to Market and Brand Yourself as a Blogger”

   • Be consistent when your working with brands. When you think of who you are as a person–who are you? What are you passionate about? What is your brand? The way you gain a good reputation is to strive to be what you desire to be

   • How are brands built? Brand Strength. Brand Stature.

   • Differentiation: Are you the same as everyone? Do you have your own signature?

   • Relevance: Does your community represent who you are? Do you have an expertise? Do you inspire someone?

   • Esteem: Do you have a cause you support? Are you supportive of other people’s efforts?

   • Knowledge: Have you expanded your reach? Are you interacting with your network? Are you helping each other out?

   • Support: RT each others content. Don’t just limit yourself to Twitter and Facebook. There are a zillion social networks. Participate on multiple social networks. If you broadcast too much, people will unfollow you.

   • Working with Brands: Be clear about what your brand is. Work with brands that make sense for you. Don’t sell out. Be consistent about how you “do business”. Be professional. Add value.

   Wally Sabria–”Optimizing Your Social Media Presence with Creative Design and Compelling Content”

   • Define a unique point of voice. Give your voice a unique tone that people can connect with.

   • There are several sites to create blogs and obtain templates : Wordpress, Blogger, Tumblr, Squarespace, Template Monster, Theme Forest, WooThemes.

   • If you don’t have a logo, you should get one. Brands want credibility. A logo says you’re serious. You have a high level game. Not a home grown field

   • Find ways to integrate visual content on your blog. Add “Find us on Facebook” widget, Add “Like our Page” widget and link your blog to flickr photos.

   • Create Compeling content. Stories that are active, living, breathing things. The tools are the catalyst.

   • Transmedia: A story can live on different mediums. People can tweet on the how the sequel can come out. Stories that spark dialogue, interaction, engagement.

   • Dialogue: Not in a soapbox. No matter who is in the room, what do you have in common with the people in the room? It’s a gateway into a mutual relationship.

   • Interaction: Who tweets about you? Who RTs your tweets. Who do you RT?

   • Engagement: Magic that happens after dialogue and interaction. You walk away with a new follower or a new recipe. It speaks, “I’m here, we have a voice and we have an interaction”. People need to Find it, Read it, Watch it, Share it. It becomes valuable when it is shared.

   • Secret Sauce: Content is social currency. Social Currency is the amount of “points” you earn when someone sees what you are sharing. It makes people want to share it. It means people value your content. Social currency provides the audience when they share it. Influences. Anything you post/share represents your value. To make your own social currency use hashtags, have tools, Don’t take yourself too seriously. Have Fun!

   If you’ve been part of a blogging event lately that we should all know about, please contact us and share the information.

   Eva Smith is a Team Lead – Principle Engineer for a major Telecommunications company.  Her blog, Tech.Food.Life, highlights products, news & events about Technology, Food & Lifestyle.  She promotes events that support the advancement of Women, Education & New Media.  She is a Latino2 Ambassador and volunteers with Department of Education & AVID programs.