@JoelECarlson: Hello everyone, and welcome to today’s Twitterview of @MarketingProfs (Ann Handley). Prepare for major Tweeting!
Ann: Hi Joel — I’m here. Thanks for having me.
Q – #1 How is it in Boston today Ann? It’s very gray and in upper 30’s in Minneapolis today. :( So where did you grow up?
Ann: Boston is gorgeous today – sunny and 60s. Sorry. : ) Re your Q: I grew up about 5 miles from where I now live.
My home boys are @dough and @ronploof; who knew our little town was a hotbed of social?
Q – #2 Also, where did you go to school, and what was your 1st job out of school
Ann: I went to @simmonscollege; my first job was as a news reporter for a B2B paper. Later I worked for the Boston Globe.
Q – #3 I see. So when, how and why did you make the jump over to @MarketingProfs Ann?
Ann: I co-founded @ClickZ in 2007, sold it, & eventually got bored hanging by the pool. So I looked up MP CEO @allenweiss.
MProfs was a fledgling site then; I offered to work for free until he could afford otherwise. #OfferHeCouldNottRefuse
Q – #4 How do you hang by a pool during a Boston winter Ann? :) j/k Seems like it has worked out for you and Allen, yes?
Ann: Probably a good question for @allenweiss! Ha. I keed… it’s been an evolution, because the site was grown incredibly
Q – #5 So Ann, how did you grow this clear PASSION that you have for content?
Ann: My love of Content grows out of my journalism roots; growing an audience by giving them what they want is what I do.
And increasingly, that’s what any company doing business online is charged with: Creating great content people WANT.
Q – #6 What are a few keys you would say that would help businesses get their content to match their target audience well?
Ann: There are 11 tenets in #ContentRules, but the most fundamental is Solve or Share, Don’t Shill.
In other words: Share a resource, solve a problem for your customer; don’t just talk about you you you.
Q – #7 Good points! Lets learn more about you Ann. FAVORITE(s): Restaurant, store, comfort food, recent book, city 2 visit?
Ann: I love the questions you ask BTW… “favorite food” is way more fun to talk about than “best content tip”! ; )
So – Fave restaurant: @eatatblueroom; Fave retailer: Hmm… Comfort food: Is red wine a food?
Recent book: Bossypants, by @TinaFey; Fave city: After Boston? London.
@JoelECarlson: @MarketingProfs Your store/retailer doesn’t have to be bricks-mortar, it could be online.
Ann: A few faves: @anthropologie @amazon @luckybrand & the @MarketingProfs store!
Q – #8 Self plugging I see. :) If you could eat a meal with any 1 person (dead/alive), who would you choose and why?
Ann: The writer David Sedaris, because I’m a ridiculous fan girl, and he’s a great storyteller. Or E.B. White. Same reasons.
Q – #9 Last question, have you been to Mpls before, and can you give #jectv followers a “taste” of what to expect at @confab2011?
Ann: I was in Mpls a dog’s age ago, when I was going some research for the BBC. I’m looking forward to getting back!
@confab2011 is going to be amazing, because it’ll be like the Woodstock of Content: People. Passion. Love.
@JoelECarlson: Great! Thank you very much for spending some of your time and thoughts with #jectv today @MarketingProfs! Have a safe trip next week! :)
Ann: thanks for the opp, Joel! Have a great rest of your day and hope to see you in MPLS!