tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61330308813850630232024-03-18T23:52:22.338-04:00MULBERRY SUMMERSSalonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-71725238294527621832021-11-07T08:54:00.002-05:002021-11-08T19:28:58.726-05:00Top 3 Personalization Strategies for an E-Comm App<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<font size="4" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Over a cup of coffee this weekend, a friend asked me for my pick of top 3 personalization strategies for an e-commerce app. And as I sat there thinking about the ways internet giants like Grubhub, Alibaba, PostMates, Amazon and others have revolutionized <b>experiential marketing</b> in apps, I also realized, something else. It gets a little challenging to keep up with the ever evolving e-comm marketplace as the content pieces around tech advances tend to be jargon heavy and hard to follow. </span></span><br />
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My attempt with this piece is to make it easy to read, not jargon heavy (so even my mum gets it!<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;">)</span> I hope you have fun reading (as I did, writing) about a tech topic but in a not-so-tech-way. </span></font></div>
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<b><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4">What is Personalization? And why
do YOU need it?</font></span></i></b></h3>
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<font size="4" style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>“</i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;"><i>A lobby boy is completely invisible, yet
always in sight. A lobby boy anticipates the client's needs before the needs
are needed. A lobby boy is, above all, discreet to a fault.” </i>Master Gustave to Zero, in The Grand Budapest Hotel. </span><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;"><b>THIS, right here,
is personalization. </b></span></i></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;">Let’s put this
in the context of a bustling app market place where apps are crying out for
attention. P</span>ersonalization helps your app stand out to an online
customer. It is, as simple as, or as complicated as, that. It is the first touch point that helps a digital marketer build a
relationship and then go on to understand buying behaviors, purchase patterns
and the finer points in the browsing life-cycle. Now, I come from marketing so for
me, <b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Der Kunde ist König</span></b>. And always will be! Before the advent of personalization, apps were static with their design
& content. A universal, albeit, non-bespoke experience to everyone.</font></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><b>Today’s consumer is more demanding, more engaged, needs instant gratification, and all this with a very short attention span.</b> To counter that, e-com apps
today have up-ed their ante and provide the customer what they want before they
even know they want it, a la<i> "a lobby boy anticipates the client's needs before the needs are needed"</i><o:p></o:p></font></span></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4">ENTER: Personalization strategies</font></span></b></h3>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">A personalized experience is not
limited to just your e-comm site/app. Email & Social media have greatly
helped in building a unique, continuous relationship with every consumer, much
like how <i>Facebook gives the user a little
dopamine hit every once in a while, for a social validation feedback loop -
Sean Parker, major role in creation of Facebook.<o:p></o:p></i></font></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">I’m sure you’ve read and re-read top
personalization strategies in a million ways to Sunday. Let’s try
something a little different today. Let’s make it interesting, fun and still learn on the way. <o:p></o:p></font></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAHLCxOI2PEptZ1GEmeUGnMjeapRfHmJrzumTw0G1KHyjjCXy3vbr7ZREWlYKYwMtEsPFHXsb9H6wK9bfFfJvdq4ZK7Z9YqLvY97EMgNIox7nc6E1Kx4uV8sJPgoE19kHL6bqblaTPIG3m/s1600/2.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><font size="4"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></font></a></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">The protagonists of my story are Nancy- a
runner from NY and Tamara- a runner from Texas. It’s December and they’re both
prepping for the Boston Marathon. They are young, single, fit, and looking to
qualify for the Marathon. #StayStrong. In the infographic above you see that both, Nancy and Tamara, have a pretty similar work/life cycle. We will through the rest of the piece see how personalization strategies target and interact with Nancy and Tamara differently creating bespoke user experiences in their browsing life-cycle. <o:p></o:p></font></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4">#1. Geo
targeting</font></span></span></b></h3>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Nancy, in the frigid NY winter, and Tamara,
enjoying the Texas sun, are both browsing the <b>Nike</b> Apparel App looking for running tights. This is where <i>geo
targeting</i> comes into play and provides a <b>unique
user experience</b> to Nancy and to Tamara. Nike’s display for Nancy includes
their winter compression tights + Dri-fit head gear + gloves and this same app
shows Tamara their regular compression tights + a light running vest – keeping
in mind the difference in temperatures of NYC & Texas in December. By doing
this Nike has created a bespoke experience with Nancy and with Tamara based on
location and weather.Thus, creating a relevant and
personalized experience, driving interaction and engagement. Nike has managed
to achieve this engagement for apparel and seamlessly transcend boundaries into
its <b>Nike + Run Club</b> app where it
lets Nancy & Tamara choose their workout program. Since they’re both
prepping for the Marathon, they can choose their workout and the workout then, </span><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:rect
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<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>According to a
recent report from Accenture, <b>75% of online consumers</b> are
more likely to buy from a retailer that recognizes them by name, recommends
options based on past purchases, OR knows their purchase history<o:p></o:p></i></p>
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<i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><sup><span style='font-size:13.0pt;
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-xGPlGDcPc_w3_KNp6x_8Otnq8IgrB_z4g_RcWKSyTwBTzBldhm0Z4kbwtrLkDaDZyFVdZmdRUE2LJ7iriJ0hWHM6ROuu2rii2HzQLJN5RP5NzjJgNImPGkTVy0A8Kdy5oV-OTUeUfS8/s1600/1.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><img border="0" data-original-height="98" data-original-width="610" height="102" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-xGPlGDcPc_w3_KNp6x_8Otnq8IgrB_z4g_RcWKSyTwBTzBldhm0Z4kbwtrLkDaDZyFVdZmdRUE2LJ7iriJ0hWHM6ROuu2rii2HzQLJN5RP5NzjJgNImPGkTVy0A8Kdy5oV-OTUeUfS8/s640/1.PNG" width="640" /></font></span></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br /></font></span></span></div>
</div>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">#2. Personalized
product offers according to purchase history and</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> buying behavior</span></b></font></span></h3>
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<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Adam Brotman, who
transformed Starbucks from a <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>coffee
retailer to a tech innovator</b> has now moved to fashion retailer J.Crew.
It will be interesting to see the transformation to J.Crew’s online user
experience, with Adam driving the change. <o:p></o:p></i></p>
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<i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><sup><span style='font-size:13.0pt;
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<b>Starbucks</b>, a company, that has really changed the way it interacts
with its customers through its redesigned app and off-site personalization
(email campaigns). Starbucks uses the information that it already has on hand
for its customers and sends them personalized product offers through in app
push offers or through email campaigns with coupons/discounts. Starbucks knows
that Nancy goes on morning runs and likes to have a ‘tall, flat white’ before
her run as a wake me up. When they introduce a “blonde roast” that they think
Nancy would enjoy; they send her an in-app offer or in-store when she comes in for
her usual flat white. There! BOOM! Got Nancy’s attention and loyalty.<span> </span>Tamara, being the southern girl, she is,
loves her desserts but since she’s training for the Marathon, allows herself an
indulgence only once a week on Saturdays - a great way to personalize her
experience would be to send her an offer on the “new healthy apple raisin
muffin” closer to Saturday, either in-app or using an email campaign “Saturdays
are for treats” including a coupon for the dessert. There! BOOM! Tamara is
going to head to Starbucks on Saturday to enjoy the muffin and Starbucks just
won themselves customer loyalty, again. <span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></font></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br /></font></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">#3. Leveraging
Social Proof to Influence </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Buying Decisions</span></b></font></span></h3>
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<b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br /></font></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Now that Nancy & Tamara have made it
through the qualifiers. Phew! It’s been a long ride! On a rest day from
Marathon training, they are looking to book their air travel and
accommodation. <b>Kayak, MakeMyTrip &
AirBnB</b>, all understand and utilize customer psychology very well, leveraging
social proof to influence buying decisions. Messages like, <i>“148 people from NY looking at this house right now”</i> or “<i>hot sector – 50 people have bought this
sector in the past 48 hours”</i> work on just that. It is in our nature to be
attracted to something high in demand and these apps, by utilizing messaging tactics,
have reinforced a very a strong pull strategy. This creates a sense of urgency
in the user. So, Nancy while browsing AirBnB for accommodation looks at the
message above and wants to quickly book that house since <i>“148 people from NY”</i> are already looking at it and <i>she really, really likes the house, its
close to the start off point, and she doesn’t want to miss the deal.</i> Or
maybe Tamara looking at air travel sees that <i>“50 person have bought the TX-BOS route”</i> and feels the urge to buy
lest the price increases since the sector is popular right now. In both
instances, a buying decision has been hastened due to a pull messaging created
by the app developers. <o:p></o:p></font></span></span></div>
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<font size="4" style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">And….one more! Because, Amazon </span></b></span><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;">😊</span></b></span><br />
</font><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white;"><font size="4"><span style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></font></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><font size="4">Ease
of payment</font></span></span></b></h3>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br /></font></span></span></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Nancy & Tamara love Amazon. As do I.
As do you. ‘Cause let’s be real, who doesn’t? <b>State-of-the-art personalization is what
Amazon is about</b>. Right from account details, to recommendations to location
specific targeting, to payment ease – Amazon has it all. Trust amazon to go one
step further and use its online customer data and go the opposite way and open
a brick and mortar store where users can come in, pick up what they want, and
walk out. All the while Amazon’s camera and sensors carry out a facial recognition
and charge your online wallet. Think of how easy it’s going to be for Nancy (sorry,
Tamara, you’ll have to wait. AmazonGo is not in Texas yet!) <span> </span>when she’s out on her run and is obviously
without a wallet but needs to get some milk – she can just hop in to GO, pick up some milk, and be on her way. The few existing bugs will be ironed out in no time and
this, ladies and gentlemen, will change the course of how we look at a brick
store forever. <o:p></o:p></font></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><o:p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br /></font></span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">While I've listed just the top 3 personalization strategies for e-comm apps, the app universe is wide and deep and becoming more complex every day. What's not going anywhere is personlization, in fact its only going to become more in-depth and apps and their developers will soon find a way to make that ever widening universe much, much smaller. </font></span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-69531167637957823352021-07-18T16:33:00.000-04:002021-11-08T19:30:21.649-05:00SEO: 3 Strategies to Rank on Top<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></div><div><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">There are close to <font color="#0c61ac"> <a href="https://www.internetlivestats.com/" target="_blank">7 </a></font><span class="s2" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://www.internetlivestats.com/" target="_blank">million searches</a></font></span></span><span class="s3" style="font-kerning: none;"><font color="#3367d6"> </font></span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">on Google everyday.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p4" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s2" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/the-changing-face-b2b-marketing/" target="_blank"><font color="#0c61ac">8</font><font color="#3367d6">9% of B2B buyers</font></a> </span>turn to Google for purchase decisions. </font></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">Think about that for a moment.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">Those are some huge numbers. Ranking high on search is the difference between a business that’s doing well and one that</span><span class="s6" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">’</span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">s flailing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">It’s become crucial to stand out on google</span><span class="s6" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">’</span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">s crowded marketplace. How will your customer find you? What keywords will connect you to your customer? These questions keeping you up at night? Don't worry, I've got you covered! Let's break it down together. </span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">To understand how that elusive first page ranking works, we have to understand how Search works.</font></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjZcqTRaHEwCp0pKl6DY7owo7RMfQfZSXGc2ALOqFdMHT_OWzqD4N__uajb_4N87kyTWbi-lQO7vkFSsy7j1fVwnvD1lbiDARztox3Jt0A-HhlNON0tmGiFjbWtxt07MGHPioWdTVL9Mmk/s371/Screen+Shot+2020-07-06+at+5.30.41+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><font face="arial" size="4"><img border="0" data-original-height="358" data-original-width="371" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjZcqTRaHEwCp0pKl6DY7owo7RMfQfZSXGc2ALOqFdMHT_OWzqD4N__uajb_4N87kyTWbi-lQO7vkFSsy7j1fVwnvD1lbiDARztox3Jt0A-HhlNON0tmGiFjbWtxt07MGHPioWdTVL9Mmk/s320/Screen+Shot+2020-07-06+at+5.30.41+PM.png" width="320" /></font></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></div><p></p><h1 style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font color="#e67c73" face="arial" size="4">The Search in Search Engine Optimization</font></b></span></h1><div><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></b></span></div><p class="p6" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">In its most simplistic definition, SEO is a strategy to ensure that when a user searches the web for a product or service category that you exist in, they find YOU.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></p><p class="p6" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>A well executed SEO strategy can give your business a much needed boost to rank higher, generate more leads and occupy prime Google real-estate i.e. </span><i>the first page of Google search.</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>Even though SEO is all the rage right now, most businesses don’t actually invest a lot of time into it or do it properly. Each owned media channel must have well-thought through, SEO optimized, content pieces. </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><h1 style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font color="#e67c73" face="arial" size="4">TOP 3 SEO Strategies</font></b></span></h1><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>SEO when done well, helps YOU stand out from the crowd and get noticed.</span>These simple, yet effective, SEO strategies will help you outrank your competition. </font></span></p><p class="p9" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 19px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></font></p><h4 style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b><font face="arial" size="4">Keyword Research</font></b></h4><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">Keyword research is one of the most important tactics for efficient SEO. It involves doing research on popular words that people use when they are searching for information. Google’s AutoFill feature is your friend. Use it. It is the easiest and quite frankly, the most ideal starting point to gain an understanding into the most used search terms around the product or service you have to offer.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>Once you know your audience, you know how they think and speak, you can start listing down the most used search terms they might use. Short and long keywords, both, will help you get noticed. There are a number of free and paid tools available to help you arrive at the best possible selection of keywords - my favs being </span><font color="#3367d6"><span class="s4" style="font-kerning: none;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://ads.google.com/home/tools/keyword-planner/" target="_blank">Google’s AdWords Keyword Planner</a> </font></span>, <span class="s4" style="font-kerning: none;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://soovle.com/" target="_blank">Soovle</a></font></span>, </font><span class="s4" style="font-kerning: none;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://moz.com/mozpro/lander/keyword-research?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Brand%20|%20NA&utm_adgroup=Brand%20-%20Keyword%20Explorer&utm_term=%2Bmoz%20%2Bkeyword%20%2Bexplorer&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsrHQ56Gg6gIVCYizCh3DaQ8KEAAYASAAEgImGPD_BwE" target="_blank">Moz Keyword Explorer</a>. </font></span></font></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>Armed with the right keywords, sprinkle them throughout your title, body, meta tags, descriptions and even image tags so your content matches search queries better. Keyword research, just like fleshing out a detailed buyer/audience persona, is a crucial step - spend time on this to get your SEO effort work for you!</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font><span class="s1" style="font-family: arial; font-kerning: none; font-size: medium;"></span></font></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8EA8dvlySrkgiZkxeeD1DBC9TdnsZM9M0R0LFsfGmcFOonpBtC-0ozQj8gUq63zE6fek-Gj5zV-ISdjThrIKL-wJ3LiucVkn7e3lVV4x6SoUt9J8BOXv1e8yEGhU5D5fuIBlhVu0us9FU/s1920/content-marketing-idea-lightbulb-ss-1920.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><font face="arial" size="4"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8EA8dvlySrkgiZkxeeD1DBC9TdnsZM9M0R0LFsfGmcFOonpBtC-0ozQj8gUq63zE6fek-Gj5zV-ISdjThrIKL-wJ3LiucVkn7e3lVV4x6SoUt9J8BOXv1e8yEGhU5D5fuIBlhVu0us9FU/w500-h281/content-marketing-idea-lightbulb-ss-1920.jpg" width="500" /></font></a></div><span class="Apple-converted-space"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span><p></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><h3 style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font face="arial" size="4">High Quality Content</font></b></span></h3><div><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></b></span></div><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">I cannot stress enough how important quality content is to your SEO effort. In fact it’s so important, it needs a separate post of its own. Quality Content is something of value to your audience. Don’t write or post JUST to be regular or have an online presence. That is the opposite of what you should be doing, especially, in this overcrowded marketplace.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>Work on building solid content pieces that speak directly to your audience - answer questions they have, provide solutions to their problems, fulfill their needs - and in turn build relationships with them. You know you’ve hit the jackpot when your audience starts engaging with your content - comments, likes, shares! That should be the goal of every content piece that goes through your content desk. Earned media IS what we are all looking for, at the end of the day. And the more your audiences search for an answer that you provide, to a question they’ve asked, the more Google takes notice, which translates to higher search rankings.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>At a previous work position where I was handling the Content Desk - my one sole prerequisite</span><span> for content was whether it was SEO optimized, relevant, and fresh. There is too much clutter so if you aren’t adding value, it really is much better to stay silent.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><font face="arial" size="4">Quick simple ways to add value:</font></span></p><ul class="ul1"><li class="li12" style="-webkit-text-stroke: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s7" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">Ongoing Keyword Research</span></font></li><li class="li12" style="-webkit-text-stroke: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s7" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">Regular updates to the website through SEO optimized blogs</span></font></li><li class="li12" style="-webkit-text-stroke: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s7" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">External Links and Inbound Links: which brings me to the third strategy for effective SEO.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></font></li></ul><p class="p7" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><h3 style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font face="arial" size="4">External Links and Inbound Links</font></b></span></h3><div><span class="s8" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-decoration-line: underline;"><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></div><div><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s8" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-decoration-line: underline;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://moz.com/learn/seo/external-link" target="_blank">External Links</a></font></span><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"> and <span class="s8" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#3367d6"><a href="https://moz.com/learn/seo/backlinks" target="_blank">Inbound Links</a> </font></span>are very important because of two reasons. From the audience stand point, what this means is that you are willing to send your audience to another website to continue their learning journey so they better understand the topic being discussed. </span></font></div><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span><font face="arial" size="4"><br /></font></span></p><p class="p12" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span>When I started out, I never wanted to do this, in the fear that I was sending our company’s audience away with external links but what actually happened is our audience started trusting us even more because we were willing to send them elsewhere to continue learning. Secondly, backlinks to your website work as a signal to search engines that others vouch for your content.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> So, use them. Build partnerships and mutual links. </span></font></p><p class="p7" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><font face="arial" size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></font></p><h2 style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><font color="#e67c73" face="arial" size="4">In Summary</font></b></span></h2><div><font face="arial" size="4">If you truly want to stand out and rank higher than your competition, you have to follow Google’s lead. Google states that high quality content, links, and keyword research, are the three most important things that you can do for SEO. So take the time to work on these three to rank higher and stay there! If you need help, please <a href="mailto:salonee2704@gmail.com?subject=SEO%20Strategies%20Blog%20Post"><span class="s8" style="font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><font color="#3367d6">don’t hesitate to contact me</font></span></a>. We can work together and ensure that your website and content helps you be top of mind and top of search.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></div></div>Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.383184315.342992163821151 -114.5394343 71.963459836178842 -44.226934299999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-9488262212950084012021-06-17T16:36:00.000-04:002021-11-08T19:29:41.755-05:00Made the List - TOP 50 Toronto Blogs (woot! woot!) <br /><div><font face="helvetica">Great news, my lovely friends! </font></div><div><font face="helvetica"><br /></font></div><div><font face="helvetica">I just received news that my blog, yes, this one, that you're reading, has made the '<a href="https://blog.feedspot.com/toronto_blogs/" target="_blank">TOP 50 Toronto Blogs</a> List on Feedspot. </font></div><div><font face="helvetica"><br /></font></div><div><font face="helvetica">I'm ecstatic! Which also means I need to start posting more frequently, haha! </font></div><div><font face="helvetica"><br /></font></div><div><font face="helvetica">Thanks for the love, <a href="https://www.feedspot.com/" target="_blank">Feedspot</a></font></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjulg8IHD450bKp1j1EDK3QPdyFVQ_j23xs0tHPmKKzeRnla6m5SDt2_qsudQ90eTd-_eLzQQIKma4X3mE0uu8aoruHeUy2oUi-lha5CVEDR1-mFjwvNPtePmkzqQdhDRoXoVvOx_dIo8KR/s496/Screen+Shot+2020-07-06+at+4.46.39+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="496" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjulg8IHD450bKp1j1EDK3QPdyFVQ_j23xs0tHPmKKzeRnla6m5SDt2_qsudQ90eTd-_eLzQQIKma4X3mE0uu8aoruHeUy2oUi-lha5CVEDR1-mFjwvNPtePmkzqQdhDRoXoVvOx_dIo8KR/s320/Screen+Shot+2020-07-06+at+4.46.39+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.383184315.342992163821151 -114.5394343 71.963459836178842 -44.226934299999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-67601751773519222132021-06-11T13:39:00.000-04:002021-06-12T18:09:09.234-04:00P&G Pampers, Japan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I am in love. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">P&G has done it again with their Pampers ad campaign in Asia, Japan specifically, with the focus being on new moms. The agency behind this wonderful, heart touching commercial/documentary is Beacon Leo Burnett. Great work, guys! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Ad: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu3iM1azTj4" target="_blank">Pampers Japan, Mom's 1st Birthday</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Another one that stole my heart is the " Friends are Waiting" commercial. The commercial is part of Budweiser's anti- drinking & driving campaign, and it's so true. There are a million reasons that one shouldn't drink and drive (who doesn't know that, already!!) but many, many people may have never thought of their dog as one of them. The commercial WILL change your mind on that. An absolute tearjerker. I don't drink. So, there's no question of drinking and driving, but if I did, this commercial would stick with me, forever. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Ad: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eubWYPhcEEo" target="_blank">Budweiser " Friends are Waiting" Commercial </a></span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-8695589078918371132021-06-10T13:34:00.000-04:002021-06-12T18:09:44.756-04:00My Saucony Love <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“It's a good day when we get to run. It's a great day when we inspire someone else to run.” Saucony's brand manifesto ends with these words. It's no news to anyone who knows me even a little, about my crazy love for this brand. And NOT just for the shoes it makes! I think it's got more to do with the company. And what it stands for.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As a marketer, I feel it's almost intrinsically important for companies in today's marketplace to inspire the customer. To build genuine, authentic, brands with a sense of purpose. To strive to develop an emotional connect with the customer. To build a community with a common goal or interest. Saucony has very successfully, over the years, done just that. The people, the team, and collectively the brand, believe that their purpose is to do much more than just sell shoes. Chris Lindner, Head of Sales & Marketing, in an interview said," It’s less about how we’re here to sell shoes and shirts and a lot more about what we believe, which is the idea of “Empowering the human spirit through running.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saucony's 'Find Your Strong' project has helped build that emotional connect the company was striving for. A place where runners share experiences & tips and help each other along the way. Coming back to engaging audiences, from a marketing perspective, it is imperative for a company to invest in and build, if it doesn't already have, a strong online presence. Saucony, to reach out to it's core users, developed a 'Find Your Strong' online portal providing the user an outlet where they could create their own inspiration board around what strong meant to them. A place where they could share their stories and in turn read experiences of other like people and thus the Saucony community was born. They have an active Instagram account where regular contests are held where runners post pics of their run and the ever famous hashtag #mysauconylove. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It's a great brand story for today's over crowded marketplace about a company that has very successfully moved away from being 'just another company selling shoes' but has crafted it's brand into so much more – a community of people actively engaged in something they are so passionate about. The company has converted regular users of their product – into brand champions. Case in point: 'A' and I were in Italy last year and we bumped into a lady also wearing the same Saucony's I was; we ended up having a 10 minute conversation of how great the shoes were and how our feet were thanking us on the beautiful but #ohsotoughtowalk cobbled streets of Rome! This is just one of those many, many, stories that must happen every single day with Saucony loyalists. Don't you think that's the biggest return of investment for Saucony? Their product being the reason for a connect being formed between two complete strangers in a country foreign to them. I think so. A complete, huge win for marketing. That's what we marketing folks strive for, while drawing out our marketing strategies and plans. The most sought after result, has always been word-of-mouth marketing - users talking about your brand like it's a part of them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The 'Find Your Strong' project has helped Saucony achieve just that. A rich and diverse community with just one common goal of what strong means to them. The camaraderie, the care, the motivation, is a force to be reckoned with and it makes me happy that companies such as Saucony still exist and strive to make things, even if just, a little better.</span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-33634914501789406752021-02-08T13:32:00.002-05:002021-02-08T13:35:49.732-05:00Mattress to Door: Company Review<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>Note: This post warrants a foreword. This is NOT a sponsored post. I enjoy writing about companies and brands that are doing great work and Mattress to Door happens to be one of them. It's a relatively unknown brand but I want a lot more people, especially people in Ontario, to know about a company that works with you to ensure the best possible sleep by selecting the perfect mattress without breaking the bank, ALL OF THIS, from the convenience of your home. Having used their mattress for over two months, I got in touch with the company to know more about their history and philosophy as I wanted to share this amazing local Canadian brand with YOU. So, go on, read my experience and try them out because who doesn't like to sleep like a baby :) </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">--x--</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br />2020 was a tough year. For individuals, families, businesses...everyone. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">We moved to Toronto in Feb 2020, thankfully had the chance to set up home before COVID and the many, many lockdowns began. But ten months into the lockdown and waking up with a tight back every single day, I knew I had to change our mattress. And so, the hunt for a firm, yet, comfortable mattress started. I previously had a bad experience from a big-name store ( won't name names) so I started looking at alternatives - small businesses, and such. I leaned heavily on social media to narrow down my search. Can you imagine my surprise when I found Mattress to Door on FB Marketplace? Yes, you read that right, FB Marketplace. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz2w-XV62o2Q8v6yVApyHnM9l6d7mrb9bclC2KsGJEQqEo1XheZiYSTzqCFlyYCS3uE9IwqTHCacXwtQqWut0m-H6Gre4oT_BZACfzGkS0fzoVOeC7gor4276PJltYp-Y7MlSaLZmIQ4cj/s239/Screen+Shot+2021-02-08+at+12.27.05+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="108" data-original-width="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz2w-XV62o2Q8v6yVApyHnM9l6d7mrb9bclC2KsGJEQqEo1XheZiYSTzqCFlyYCS3uE9IwqTHCacXwtQqWut0m-H6Gre4oT_BZACfzGkS0fzoVOeC7gor4276PJltYp-Y7MlSaLZmIQ4cj/s0/Screen+Shot+2021-02-08+at+12.27.05+PM.png" /></span></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I, like you, was wary and proceeded with caution. I sent them a message and waited for a reply. Much to my surprise, my messenger beeped in less than 5 mins. After a quick request for information about the kind of mattress I was looking for, the company representative sent me 5 mattress options -- each with a description and gave me suggestions on the one that would be a good fit for A and me. At this point I was already quite impressed with the super fast and responsive communication. I am one of those people who checks online reviews before every purchase. And when I typed in Mattress to Door to check for reviews - they had all 5-star Google Reviews! Instantly happy I decided to try them out! At that point anything would be better than the mattress I was currently sleeping on! And now having used the mattress for over 2 months, I can safely say, they deserve every one of the 5 stars they've got from happy customers. In fact, since I usually write about companies, brands and restaurants doing great things in their space - <i>Salonee's Gold Stars (SGS) </i>is going to become a regular feature on the blog. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">And, <a href="https://mattresstodoor.ca/" target="_blank">Mattress to Door</a> gets ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ from me. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Gold Star 1: <b><i>Affordability</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The sales rep didn't push the most expensive mattress. In fact, he suggested two mid-range mattresses that would be perfect for what I was looking for in a mattress.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Gold Star 2: <b><i>Free Delivery and Returns</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">After a quick phone consult on type of mattress needed and sending me specifications of 5 different mattresses, the sales rep went on to say that he would then ship both mattresses to my home, so I could select the one I wanted and return the other one. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Gold Star 3: <i><b>Sales and Delivery Associates</b></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The nicest delivery reps, it's so important for delivery associates to make the delivery process pleasant, especially during COVID. I'm happy to say that they handled the whole process very well keeping all COVID regulations in check.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Gold Star 4: <b><i>Local Canadian Business</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Quite possibly the most important factor for me. It's a small local Canadian business that opened doors in January 2020, literally from a garage and has now grown to have three showrooms.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Gold Star 5: <b><i>Made in Canada</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The company believes in giving back and represents Canadian brand to boost the local business and the economy. They only represent products made in Canada, supporting local business and offer the most affordable price in the market. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">--x--</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Mattress to Door is a Southern Ontario based company that opened its doors in January 2020. They started as a small outfit working out of a garage, their first sale being a 5 inch foam mattress. They have recently expanded their product line to include Sealy, Beautyrest and Serta too - the only caveat being - it HAS to be made in Canada. They have continued to grow exponentially and now have 3 stores in Ontario - Etobicoke, Mississauga, and Hamilton. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFpSiAyt-TN0gwZNmIy70qjYoCBVtq9eS51swWtxOIKKtApmQ1FonssXBJ-Xv-EsUHTIiiE2drSsHTcX4x36VFn-an061_JEPQ1X5Z7Tmazm7gWLM2mDzhqCXX0QSvPz0Kcb9in_NJxyX0/s828/a3a57afb-f50c-4cd7-acab-ff8efa4252e9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="828" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFpSiAyt-TN0gwZNmIy70qjYoCBVtq9eS51swWtxOIKKtApmQ1FonssXBJ-Xv-EsUHTIiiE2drSsHTcX4x36VFn-an061_JEPQ1X5Z7Tmazm7gWLM2mDzhqCXX0QSvPz0Kcb9in_NJxyX0/w400-h269/a3a57afb-f50c-4cd7-acab-ff8efa4252e9.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The team has <b><i>one motto - a satisfied and happy customer.</i></b> </span><span style="font-family: arial;">They work for you, with you. </span><span style="font-family: arial;">The personalized, attentive service and brilliant product recommendations, without the lofty price tag, make for a very happy and successful buying experience. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Go on, try them out and thank me later! :D</span></p><p><br /></p>Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-88602986327238543122020-06-09T19:06:00.000-04:002021-01-15T10:57:33.470-05:00COVID-19 & Lockdown: Make 2020 Count...4 Things I'm Doing (and Loving!)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As the clock struck 12 on Dec 31, 2019, and we entered a new decade, I made a promise to myself, that this would be the year.... the year I would work on myself. Be better. Mentally. Physically. Personally. Professionally. <i>And to actually *try* to keep my promise to myself (I'm one of those who almost never keeps their new year resolutions)</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />Jittery with excitement, 'A' and I moved to Toronto in Feb, when most of you were enjoying a cozy Valentine's Dinner, we were on the flight to our new home. A valentine's to remember for sure! We were welcomed with crisp winds and lots of snow and that first month, 'A' and I got in a whole lot of walks coz that's how we like to explore a new city. Come March 16, the stay-at-home directive was announced and with it my walks in this lovely city came to a halt. What also ended that day, was my job hunt. Everyone I got in touch with for an open position came back with, "hiring is on hold, right now". With the COVID situation developing at break neck pace, prospects of landing a job got bleaker. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />While unpacking, new home, remember? I came across my little new year note to myself. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />So that's what I did. I'm one of those extreme "look at the bright side" people - so in Covid too, I found a bright side. I told myself, '<i>had you started work right away you wouldn't get the chance to work on the new year promise to yourself.</i> <i>So, this is your chance. Buckle down and deliver what you promised to yourself'. </i>Which brings me to this. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />4 things I do every day since March 16, 2020:</font></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />....okay, except maybe for the exercise bit! Everything else is a daily occurrence. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />Be better. Mentally. Physically. Personally. Professionally. I work very well with structure and routine, so for this to work, I broke it down and made myself a plan. This is my plan broken down:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />1. <b>Work towards Tranquility</b>: This takes up the least amount of time but is such a peaceful activity and makes me centered and ready to take on the day. Truth be told, I used to do this in the past too, sporadically, because, well, life or laziness, takes over. But just taking 30min out first thing in the morning during this time, makes all the difference. Try it, you won't regret this.</font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />2. <b>Wellness</b>: I'm going to be truthful here or 'A' will call me out in the comments section! I haven't been the best at keeping a daily schedule for this but I'm getting there. I still do ensure that I complete an online exercise video at least 4 times a week. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />3. <b>Personal Growth</b>: I am super happy with this one as it ties into my professional development too. With the extra time-at-home Covid has gifted us with, starting March 16, I went on a <i>literal</i> rampage to better myself. Learn, learn and learn some more. And since I was looking for a job, I saw this as an opportunity to improve my skillset and make my resume more attractive to prospective employers. So, starting with a Social Media Certification from HubSpot to now learning Google Ads (Udemy) to refresher courses in Content Marketing Strategy (Coursera), Marketing Analytics (Coursera), and Excel (Udemy) my calendar is full. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />Over the past two months I have realized I really enjoy learning continuously and so, in addition to all of the above, if General Assembly has free workshops, you'll find me there. If Mailchimp has webinars, you'll find me there, and if there's an Intro to finance somewhere on the net, yup, you’ll find me there too. There aren't enough hours in the day!! But it is so refreshing to learn about so many varied topics. And since ‘A’ and I, love food, we make sure to carve out time to try out new recipes in our InstantPot. If you have any, please send them our way and we promise to share a photo :)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />4. <b>Get Involved/Volunteer</b>: Continuing on from above, I just LOVE what I've been able to achieve in the close-to-two months we've been home. Agreed that a full time job search has stalled, but it has opened up time for me to get involved and help out. <span class="Apple-converted-space">T</span></span></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">hese are hard, unprecedented times and it's our responsibility to band together (from a distance!) as a community and help in any way we can. In keeping with this, I am so glad I got the opportunity to help with content marketing at <b>t</b></span><b style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">wo amazing non-profits</b><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">, one of which I spoke about in a previous </span><a href="https://mulberrysummers.blogspot.com/2020/04/virtual-writing-workshops-for-youth-how.html" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">blog</a><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> and the second one is so special, it deserves its very own post because I am so proud to be associated with it. </span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></font></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">……Umm, so now my calendar is REALLY overbooked, and I LOVE every minute of it. </font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">What I’m trying to say through this piece is that everyone is different and so everyone handles things differently too. Use this as a time to find what makes you happy and understand the kind of person you want to be. Tough times don’t last, tough people do.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">In Summary</font></span></span></div>
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<font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />For me personally, this time has taught me that it is super important to ground oneself and focus on what really matters. And to me, that's two things. </span></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“</span><b style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/124060164710912277/" target="_blank">Ancora Imparo</a></b><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">”. If you know me, you know my love affair with Rome; so naturally, these words by Michelangelo, were sure to become my life mantra. </span></font></div>
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<font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Second, and more importantly, deep down, with everything stripped away, what really, REALLY matters is: </span></span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Be a Good Person. </b></span></span></font></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><b>Be Kind. Be Grateful. Be Humble. </b>Everything else works itself out.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><br />Stay safe! Stay well! Stay Happy! And as my beautiful mother says, "This too shall pass". </font></span></span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-64347975468535119092020-05-05T16:32:00.002-04:002020-07-06T17:26:53.225-04:002020: The Year of Digital Marketing and 4 Reasons Your Team needs to Upskill<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Digital Marketing changes the way your business interacts with its online audience. And the fact is, it is evolving at an exceedingly fast pace. To stay ahead of the competition it becomes imperative to upskill your marketing team. A team that is informed of industry trends will give your business the boost it needs to achieve that elusive next level.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Upskilling your team should ideally be an ongoing process, to ensure your team is always clued in and uses the best digital techniques to get better business results. There are multiple reasons why you should budget out resources for an ongoing upskill program as part of your company culture.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Top 4 Reasons to Upskill your Marketing Team</font></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Right from employee morale to being ahead of competition, upskilling your team will have you reaping benefits for a long time. If you want your business output to skyrocket this year, spend time developing and upskilling your marketing team and get them future ready. Our digital marketing specialists have identified the top four reasons to upskill.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">1. An Engaged and Motivated Team</font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">When a company invests in upskilling programs, it shows to the employee that the company cares for their personal development. A workforce that sees a clear progression path will be more engaged and determined to perform better. An engaged employee works harder, works smarter, and is more efficient.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">A high engagement score also means increased retention, which certainly helps, as cost of acquiring new talent far exceeds the cost of retaining it.</font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">2. Challenge the Status Quo</font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">This is an important outcome of upskilling. If your marketing team works with an external agency that handles your digital efforts, powering them with knowledge on digital tools and techniques will help them challenge agency recommendations and strategy.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">An informed team will push the agency to hire contractors or freelancers for areas lacking in expertise and will also be able to budget activities better since they will have a better understanding of the digital marketing model.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">The team - agency brainstorming sessions will work two ways. One, the internal team will feel empowered by giving suggestions that integrate into the overall digital strategy. Secondly, the agency will work extra hard for a client that is aware and apprised of current trends. The outcome will be a robust digital strategy that gives you an edge over competition and ensures your marketing dollars are put to the best possible use.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">3. Continuous Learning</font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Learning should be a continuous activity at any workplace. Develop a plan to ensure that the team allocates X hours every week for team learning. Make it an activity the team looks forward to, together. This will lead to a spike in your employee engagement score as well. Push them to test, measure and document through online exercises and training modules. Intra company learning contests help in healthy competition between teams and will also help in identifying top performers for future leadership positions.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Let’s be real. The biggest factor for management to consider is <a href="https://www.marketingevolution.com/marketing-essentials/marketing-roi"><span class="s2" style="color: blue; font-kerning: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">return on investment</span></a>. Upskilling your team, keeps them informed of new industry trends. The team can use latest advances in digital marketing to create an innovative approach to reach your audience, gain a happier and more engaged customer base, thus, converting to a higher ROI.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Upskilling is an investment that has a multitude of advantages. A boost in morale and productivity are the most immediate rewards of an upskill program. Enhanced productivity helps the business internally and externally. Internally because an engaged employee is less likely to leave and externally because increase productivity at work will directly impact business output.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">To be a disruptive player in the marketing landscape, you need a team that is informed, aware and proactive in their digital efforts and upskilling your team will get you there.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-37621709325331532862020-04-17T13:00:00.004-04:002020-07-06T17:11:59.126-04:00 Virtual Writing Workshops for Youth! How FUN!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<font size="4"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">These are trying times, hope you’re all safe and healthy. I cannot fathom how we've come to this. Social distancing, working from home, and minimal interaction with anyone is the new normal. 2020 started on such a positive note! With promises of growth, health and happiness. But it hasn't turned out like that at all. Praying for an end to this current situation and while looking for ways to help, I came across</span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.ripplefoundation.ca/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Ripple Foundation</a>. <span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Those of you who know me know that I have always supported causes for empowerment of women and children, and welfare of doggies.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> When I came across </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Ripple Foundation and what they stand for, it seemed like the perfect fit.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></font></div>
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<font size="4"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Ripple Foundation creates community programs for youth that improve reading and writing skills while promoting the power of creativity.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> I just love that idea! It's such a powerful way to keep the youth interested and engaged all the while providing them access to a medium they can use to effectively share their thoughts and feelings. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><font size="4">Journaling is now widely accepted as a great way to keep your mind at ease and cope with your feelings. And with organizations such as Ripple Foundation, working towards making reading and writing fun, group activities for the youth, I am certain that children will enjoy the learning process. </font></span></span></div>
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<font size="4"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Last week, I chatted with Ivy & Tracey from Ripple, to get to know more about the work they do. One of the initiatives I really liked, which has sadly come to a temporary halt </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">due to COVID-19, are</span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> the </span><b style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">“<a href="https://www.ripplefoundation.ca/write-it-workshops/" target="_blank">Write It Workshops</a>”</b><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">these workshops focus on improving the writing skills of children through fun, interactive activities in which participants are encouraged to find their voice and gain confidence in their choices as a writer. But as social distancing is the new norm - we learn to live with it and more importantly ADAPT. So, the good folks at Ripple have created downloadable activity worksheets for young authors to encourage and continue their writing journey at home. And in 9 days from now they will hold their FIRST EVER virtual writing workshop via Facebook Live. </span></font></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">WHO ARE THE WORKSHOPS FOR?</font></span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">The Write It Workshops are intended for youth in grades 4-8. Each workshop is 60 minutes in length. Developed by an Ontario Certified Teacher with over 20 years of experience in education, the program is approved by the <a href="https://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/" target="_blank">Toronto Public Library</a> System. </font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Download the <a href="https://www.ripplefoundation.ca/write-it-workshops/write-it-workshops-activity-sheets/" target="_blank">Activity Sheets </a>here. </font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">My Top 3 Reasons why you should download the activity sheets: </font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">These days are hard, aren't they? Especially with spring/summer around the corner and the directive to stay at home. Don't we all want to go out, go to work, go to the gym or whatever it is we did before the world changed on us! But the truth is, we can't. For our own safety and for the well being of others. So, if you're a teacher or a parent or anyone who knows children who fit the age group for the workshops - download the activity sheets for them. Help them stay busy, stay focussed and learn something new. </font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">1. Learn New Skills or Perfect them</font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">Parents are having a hard time juggling all the different roles and home schooling the kids too. These work sheets will keep kids busy and challenge them to think in different ways and who knows - they might discover a writing talent they never knew they had!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">2. Budding Writers</font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">The workshops focus on different aspects of building a storyline. Right from Brainstorming Ideas, to culling out characters & character development to building an interesting plot that ties the different characters together. Budding writers will benefit from tips and tricks they learn through these workshops. </font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">3. Virtual Writing Workshop</font></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4">This is the BEST one! Ripple Foundation is going to host VIRTUAL writing workshops via Facebook Live where all our young writers can ask questions about the work sheets, discuss plot lines, and learn new skills from experts in the field. </font></span></div>
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<li class="li1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Saturday, April 25 – 4 pm: Brainstorm Bonanza</font></span></li>
<li class="li1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Saturday, May 2 – 4 pm: Mixed Bag Mayhem</font></span></li>
<li class="li1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="4"><span class="s1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"></span>Saturday, May 9 – 4 pm: Plot line Play-By-Play</font></span></li>
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<font size="4"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It’ll be a fun, interactive activity while also learning a new skill!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> Download, get working, and see you all on April 25, for our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Ripplefdn/" target="_blank">Facebook Live</a> Workshop.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">I'll leave you with a quote I love by C.S Lewis, "Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.." It's one of the hardest times we have all collectively faced. Let's come together as a community and do this for the kids! Every little step counts. Let's come out of it knowing that we played a small part in shaping our leaders of tomorrow. I know, we at Ripple, are doing our best! </span></span></font></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-55886797745442676352018-09-05T01:17:00.001-04:002020-07-06T17:06:27.182-04:00OMG! Mercedes Vs Jaguar. Best. Ad. Ever<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Couple of years ago, Mercedes had an advertisement featuring a chicken bobbing its head up and down to a Diana Ross number, used to illustrate the marque's Body Magic Control (suspension) system. This ad created a lot of social media buzz, and why not?! It was fun, with an upbeat 80's number, and a chicken being used to demonstrate something Mercedes had to offer! Who decides to step in? Jaguar North America. Hah. With a parody of their own, Jaguar Vs Chicken. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">The video starts with a dead on replica of the set used by the Benz commercial, right down to a very similar looking chicken. So, for the first few seconds, you are left wondering why Jaguar would bring publicity and eyes (prospective buyers) to its competition's commercial demonstrating their superior suspension system. But then, suddenly, BAM! The chicken goes off screen in a cloud of feathers, and the camera pans to the right and the viewer sees a jaguar (the animal) merrily relishing his last bite while a super comes on saying that Jaguar (the company) would rather have catlike reflexes than a suspension that works like a chicken's head. So </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">cool.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">With just this one advertisement (or shall I say parody!), Jaguar being a much smaller player in the luxury car segment, differentiated itself by being a little cheeky, a little fun, in the otherwise stiff and often pretentious high-end car segment. And what have all of us learned in branding and positioning - a product is successful if it owns a space in the mind of the consumer. For me, Mercedes is luxury (but boring); Volvo is safe; and after this ad, Jaguar is cool&young. </span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-68925800401987579022017-09-13T08:59:00.001-04:002020-07-06T17:05:25.593-04:00#RuleYourself <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Under Armour (UA) recently launched its first ever marketing branding campaign. Just one word to describe it – Superb.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">UA is a company I’ve only very recently, started following, owing to A and my new fitness kick. We’ve loved their apparel and that storefront in Chicago is just gorg!! But I’d never really seen an all-out UA marketing campaign. I know they sponsor huge sporting events and I see their logo every time I sign into an online fitness journal, but this, a full blown marketing campaign - Amazing. The tagline: 'Rule Yourself' #mindblown<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The 60 second "Anthem" spot, created by ad agency Droga5, using the soundtrack from the Philip Glass Knee series of Operas, showcase the self-discipline of NBA MVP Stephen Curry, two-time Golf Champion Jordan Spieth, and American Ballet Theater Principal Dancer Misty Copeland, in training mode. They are then multiplied, becoming an "army" of clones, repeating countless reps. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Adam Peake, Executive VP Global Marketing, on the campaign, " The concept of the 'Rule Yourself' campaign is simple - you are the sum of all of your training. It's the only way to get better, and it's the common thread that unites all our star athletes around the globe."</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">A series of shorter films will debut this Fall and I can hardly wait. If this was great, can you imagine how it's going to be with a million Tom Brady's on screen :p. <strike>Yep, you guessed it! Tom Brady is going to be on the next one.</strike> Correction - Tom Brady is on the next one. It's out! It's here. A million Tom Brady's <3. Woot! Woot!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The campaign is such a beautiful fit to the brand, that is, Under Armour. Great job, guys! I am in love with the concept 'you are the sum of all your training'. The shoes, the gear, the extra fluff is all ancillary to YOU. Your training. Your focus. Your practice. Your art. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Love it. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">For those of you who missed it, here you go. ENJOY and thank me later :)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikmd-vtRCqo" style="background-color: white;" target="_blank">Under Armour | Rule Yourself</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Aaaaand with this, I, for the umpteenth time, promise myself, a fitter me. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Let's do this. # RuleYourself</span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-67799978201696297182017-06-12T11:03:00.000-04:002020-05-04T19:27:27.963-04:00Heineken does it again! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Publicis Brazil, you guys need to take a bow! What a super new Heineken Ad, 'The Cliche'. With one super twist at the end, you managed to tackle prevalent gender stereotypes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I for one, like watching soccer with A. I'm not a serious 'bring-out-the-crazies' fan but a casual fan, for sure. And I like the time spent together. I am partial to a team (that I won't name on here) and a few players, so yes, if it's any of the above, you will definitely find me right next to A, with game-food and drinks in tow. Sooo, when I started watching the ad, I was a little disappointed in Heineken and the obvious gender bias at play (in keeping with most of their messaging, which is usually directed towards male soccer fans driving home the point that Heineken is your personal beer buddy during game-day). But Publicis, totally changed that with the super twist at the end, with "Have you ever considered she might like football as much as you do?"- the creative, the execution - is just perfect! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Watch for yourself! And in the meanwhile, Heineken, why don't you drink one on all of us: the girls in minority, the girls who like to watch soccer - the crazies and the casuals, and mostly to break (or at least try to!) the god awful stereotype that girls only want to shop or go on spa days! C'mon!!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Advertisement: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrmKl_HV4-A" target="_blank">The Cliche - Heineken </a></span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-3947768927131930742017-02-20T09:51:00.000-05:002020-04-17T15:18:11.193-04:00Our love affair with Philly<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">'A' went to graduate school in Philadelphia. And thus began our love affair with this gorgeous, cool, fun, eclectic city. We make it a point to go back once a year for a long weekend and go to our favorite spots. This time we did all of that and tried some new fun spots. Philly really is a food lover's city. From the food trucks to the posh restaurants to the hole-in-the-walls to the sweet and the savory. It's all there. Packed into a city full of flavors and awesomeness!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGCIbZv2IHtCx2gF73IDHKUAFD78NkCiOQxirV9yF2TLkS4O7uaxmKoBmY2fZ1-tEE54er3QG_E9mMU0OSuGMmMUorchIn6bjBoMzn1q_2gasM3u7GKNEywQKrNL197GSEjmskHGPhTthk/s1600/Philly.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGCIbZv2IHtCx2gF73IDHKUAFD78NkCiOQxirV9yF2TLkS4O7uaxmKoBmY2fZ1-tEE54er3QG_E9mMU0OSuGMmMUorchIn6bjBoMzn1q_2gasM3u7GKNEywQKrNL197GSEjmskHGPhTthk/s200/Philly.JPG" width="150" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Philly. Penn. Food. Fun. Beer. Food. Memories. Home. Food. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZqn6oJtU6WXun5JUiPxM1I5aYWTHRa5FKWMT8qB9CdFBWnUfbBwruwkSJRU-CgTqWmB_UT1JPhBWIOpg_jwJD3e6ZpUyLnHTdqoAnb-pKeCY6ggqb2Nn-NzcYZ6AcfEgfYKdKrfNTTGn/s1600/Federal+Donuts2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZqn6oJtU6WXun5JUiPxM1I5aYWTHRa5FKWMT8qB9CdFBWnUfbBwruwkSJRU-CgTqWmB_UT1JPhBWIOpg_jwJD3e6ZpUyLnHTdqoAnb-pKeCY6ggqb2Nn-NzcYZ6AcfEgfYKdKrfNTTGn/s1600/Federal+Donuts2.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Federal Donuts - Must Try! The funnest, yummiest flavors</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UBYhKhLP_F2akIXhPeKHK0sUXyAPRNB6rX4av08CsRXgVbzZ_Oa5LdwrTqsSU1scjOqVUZydR5o9QR14HNuK89sedbgVBOfi8hawx42CbA6OD0zvA7XQfUfYLuUq-YwdR7EDKDDD3WaV/s1600/Federal+Donuts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UBYhKhLP_F2akIXhPeKHK0sUXyAPRNB6rX4av08CsRXgVbzZ_Oa5LdwrTqsSU1scjOqVUZydR5o9QR14HNuK89sedbgVBOfi8hawx42CbA6OD0zvA7XQfUfYLuUq-YwdR7EDKDDD3WaV/s1600/Federal+Donuts.jpg" width="209" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Top: Strawberry Lavender, Bottom: Vanilla Spice. Hot & Fresh. The lavender one was just beautiful!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitNhV2wzEkUkXACpbytjxtjGejIYVxnwRAfSz-3UWjTg1j2uaxsAvP6je7vP0j-exuTE1lPakEaBHJQ2w0rJhHgxlBLaiWgJ3cu7czwCO1mf_B6gNFi42F_1nqa2QUdp_mEUKJCV0TO3k4/s1600/IndieBlue2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitNhV2wzEkUkXACpbytjxtjGejIYVxnwRAfSz-3UWjTg1j2uaxsAvP6je7vP0j-exuTE1lPakEaBHJQ2w0rJhHgxlBLaiWgJ3cu7czwCO1mf_B6gNFi42F_1nqa2QUdp_mEUKJCV0TO3k4/s1600/IndieBlue2.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">IndieBlue Indian Restaurant. Starter, Chicken Drums of Heaven. Super!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAWEyf9PilIXhKsSY6KTrfxCDO4tlSMm0xoeR8puVq3kLYgbgWkaUc6bXQWUN-Ao1AMZBOvs8VJ_840VOG_CTVAm93Qp-UByXbBoQRMtYGfvWawLFpdyLIiqh-4YR1sLig8ecveMCKg12t/s1600/IndieBlue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAWEyf9PilIXhKsSY6KTrfxCDO4tlSMm0xoeR8puVq3kLYgbgWkaUc6bXQWUN-Ao1AMZBOvs8VJ_840VOG_CTVAm93Qp-UByXbBoQRMtYGfvWawLFpdyLIiqh-4YR1sLig8ecveMCKg12t/s1600/IndieBlue.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">IndieBlue, The Non-Veg Thali. Everything was SO good!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKEFxdxis8CE1JQFkZEISVull2vVe03cxNg8w-Jy2hpVQK9mHoKaJzuGQpf9uu7Kepp_vPL4e0Ysub51Xwk9nP_YiACPN56v8Gc6VQdC0pOzoiGOjMrNI9Zig4XWv-5LxY_B08CrOaw72/s1600/La+Colombe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKEFxdxis8CE1JQFkZEISVull2vVe03cxNg8w-Jy2hpVQK9mHoKaJzuGQpf9uu7Kepp_vPL4e0Ysub51Xwk9nP_YiACPN56v8Gc6VQdC0pOzoiGOjMrNI9Zig4XWv-5LxY_B08CrOaw72/s1600/La+Colombe.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La Colombe Coffee. Would go back JUST for the pretty cups. This place has a more a SF vibe, so not Philly. AND come on, you're a coffee shop - you should know what a cortadito is. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdlJ6ACZkgj7rZLKR6A5PBG8nv8o9Qef0liRv4VRkCHSV11OHod2QgpV-fcMTaE9DamHtB33yEYHDwlKkwV0tVIuSMYslrL0gkXflVhvXIn4fvcqEzlVR0iqoKlSsEWeNY7jALRykER2y8/s1600/Mac's%2BPub.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdlJ6ACZkgj7rZLKR6A5PBG8nv8o9Qef0liRv4VRkCHSV11OHod2QgpV-fcMTaE9DamHtB33yEYHDwlKkwV0tVIuSMYslrL0gkXflVhvXIn4fvcqEzlVR0iqoKlSsEWeNY7jALRykER2y8/s1600/Mac's%2BPub.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mac's Pub. How can you not go there?! #IASIPbackinJanWoo</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP3xMyOMwhQQgUWqKNjqRo_47lPj38yKhhuH3mB6I5KHsuWXFCTlJB6cnXag-RoiHHKML682NbAmcTob_Fu5nSRjsvZFYY9YsNbqrinD2T603KH8IhYPCFNxd-XMZ2dXCyXAwxz6QUgyT9/s1600/Smile+Cafe1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP3xMyOMwhQQgUWqKNjqRo_47lPj38yKhhuH3mB6I5KHsuWXFCTlJB6cnXag-RoiHHKML682NbAmcTob_Fu5nSRjsvZFYY9YsNbqrinD2T603KH8IhYPCFNxd-XMZ2dXCyXAwxz6QUgyT9/s1600/Smile+Cafe1.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Smile Cafe, Pad See Ew</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjooErR3pGjddLEulG_k-eOZrADaU-pifnT7po0s8INEtcPFzEpM5PypZy_-K6ET36pLL8ePk07UQlR33NwLM9gJH54cSCJAaBnscs4vXmCHy_aSEbtQGYK4l4rSwEX1m_lip5dsqHuFvyA/s1600/Smile+Cafe+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjooErR3pGjddLEulG_k-eOZrADaU-pifnT7po0s8INEtcPFzEpM5PypZy_-K6ET36pLL8ePk07UQlR33NwLM9gJH54cSCJAaBnscs4vXmCHy_aSEbtQGYK4l4rSwEX1m_lip5dsqHuFvyA/s1600/Smile+Cafe+2.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Smile Cafe, Pad Thai</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMX_0RX7hjgujHZqfkQPYIRsB43cQZBgGWB2v9egaMBA7n4Ighx2_s1xXRgMVhgcUfmtBDkZAyKxw2g3-AwqXfZR8v_9uNi3RWvV_6xcJo1smO0gbwBHvvxbCmL_RbZQe1vvUddc16YJqQ/s1600/Sonny's%2BCheesesteaks.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMX_0RX7hjgujHZqfkQPYIRsB43cQZBgGWB2v9egaMBA7n4Ighx2_s1xXRgMVhgcUfmtBDkZAyKxw2g3-AwqXfZR8v_9uNi3RWvV_6xcJo1smO0gbwBHvvxbCmL_RbZQe1vvUddc16YJqQ/s1600/Sonny's%2BCheesesteaks.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Did you really think our trip to Philly would be complete, without a cheesesteak? Hah! <br />The.Best.Cheesesteak.Ever. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sonny's Cheesesteaks. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Reading Market Terminal deserves it's own post, so that's going to be up next :).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If you do visit Philly, make sure you make time for all these. They are, really, just that good.</span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-60128504808098380192017-02-10T01:41:00.000-05:002018-12-10T22:14:02.828-05:00LOVE each day, don't just LIVE it<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I had the opportunity to attend one of Deepa Malik’s
sessions. Before this day I had only read and heard about the spirit of this
lovely, brave, strong woman. But that day, I was quite literally, blown away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deepa Malik, for the uninitiated, is a Paraplegic Athlete and also the Silver Medalist at the Rio Paralympic Games. Her sessions are on her personal journey and
how she tackles every day being her. And believe me, when I say this, You will leave a changed person. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When you hear her speak about her life, you forget that the
lady in front of you is wheel chair bound and paralyzed chest down. She needs someone
to help her in the most basic of life’s functions. That she has constantly
battled and fought with what life has thrown at her is NOT what you see, all
you see is a woman full of courage, strength and the determination to move
mountains. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Mid way through her session, I, like most people in the
audience were holding back tears, but no, not Deepa. She was nothing but
thankful for the life she has, and for the opportunities that have come her
way. It just got me thinking about how small our perspective is, that when faced with a little hurdle, we think, “why me”. Deepa made me realize that
day, you have to LOVE each day and not just LIVE it and never ever let
anything get you down. We all have the strength within ourselves to carry on, and rise like the phoenix, just like Deepa did and continues to do everyday. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know this is very different from what I usually write on
here. Why, this sudden change and why now? Because I feel we as women should
rally for each other. Instead of pulling each other down, we should be the
strength for each other. I’ll end with
this lovely quote: </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Let’s be that tribe. Let’s be that cohort. </i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Let’s be that
force responsible for change. <o:p></o:p></i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Let’s do whatever it takes to be #OutstandingWomen together. </i></b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-18580305654890177532016-08-08T11:03:00.000-04:002020-04-17T15:37:33.841-04:00Truffle Fries and other stuff ..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Yard House, Cincinnati</h4>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In keeping with our decision to try new things (read: food places) we went to the Yard House, this past Friday. 'A' has been here already and thought it would be a great place to try together. I was appointed driver for the evening since they have a major beer selection or so I was told :). So off we went on my rickety ole wheels towards Downtown Cincinnati, more specifically an area called The Banks (<i>The Banks is the name given to the mixed-use project being developed on the land between Paul Brown Stadium and Great American Ball Park, along the Ohio River - courtesy, Wikipedia</i>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As per most downtown places, now even in Cincinnati; we were informed of a 30 minute wait time. So after a quick look around, we got comfy on the wait benches trying to peak into all the food plates that passed by. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As a foodie, I'm certain I share this with a lot of others around - anytime I go to a new place, I study (and I mean, literally study) the entire menu and read reviews before hand. I know exactly what I want to eat and drink! Ha! Yep, that's me! If I don't do this, I WILL order everything on the menu and be a glut. But, we don't want that, do we?!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After a good 30 mins, we were ushered to our booth. We placed our order for starters and entrees and the evening had thus begun :). Yard House is a lively, modern space with a huge island for a bar, right in the middle of said space. Steel pipes travel the length of the ceiling that carry the beer to the bar. You can either seat yourself at the bar, or wait for a table, booth or the outdoor patio seating to become available. The beer selection is truly endless and 'A' got to try quite a few ;p. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">No driving = Beer Drinking = 'A' is a happy camper!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Food:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We ordered the Lobster, Crab, and Artichoke Dip as our starter. For our entrees, I ordered the Lamb Burger and 'A' ordered the Pepper crusted Gorgonzola Burger. The burgers come with a side of fries and we opted for the Truffle Fries (the reviews all recommended them). I also ordered a mini chocolate souffle with ice cream as my dessert (I couldn't help myself!). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The dip was OK, not lacking in flavor but it was just a huge portion, to the point that once it got cold, it wasn't enjoyable anymore. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was really an appetizer to be shared between 4+ people. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The dip came with pita and nacho chips. It was a little low on the salt and tasted much better with just a little sprinkling. I wouldn't order it again though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lamb Burger: The meat was gorgeous. Every juicy bite with feta and a caramelized jalapeno relish was just divine. Served on a potato bun - didn't love or hate it. So nothing to write about there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pepper Crusted Gorgonzola Burger: 'A's burger was huuuge. But sadly, fell apart on the first bite. I feel it would serve them better to replace the bun with a more robust bread to hold up the mammoth patty and the marsala sauteed mushrooms. That aside, 'A' enjoyed the patty and all the flavors. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Truffle Fries: Oh My God! One word - Amazing. If you're ever at Yard House, be sure to try them. They are very thinly sliced and coated with a Parmesan, garlic and parsley mix. Love at first fry ;)!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Even though I'd rate our food experience a 7 on 10. I'd go back just for the truffle fries. Oh! and the views. Yard House is just the place to catch up with friends, be noisy, and watch games. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Amazing beer selection for beer lovers and a huge menu with a little bit of everything for all palates.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Being right in the middle of Paul Brown Stadium and the Great American Ball Park sure helps too. Lots of parking garages and an overall nice, hip slice of downtown, right here, at The Banks. </span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-74147736567552175992016-05-20T02:51:00.000-04:002020-04-17T15:32:08.548-04:00To new adventures <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next step in our India adventure has begun. All set up at Gurgaon with A’s work being just three buildings away. Isn’t that the coolest, living in Gurgaon, and not having to drive to work. I'm so jelly! :x</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gurgaon is such a paradoxical creature. Behind all the glitzy, shiny construction and restaurants, hides the real Gurgaon, much akin to Delhi’s belly. But we won’t talk about that, not in this post at least. This post is all sunshine (NOT the Delhi kind!) and roses. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m pretty impressed with the Gurgaon I’m talking about, <i>today</i>. Being a Bombay girl, heart & soul, liking and praising, anything about the NCR almost feels like a betrayal. haha! But the hub, cyber city, rapid metro, and the convenience that comes with living right here, in the so-to-say business district (?), is unparalled.The restaurants, are so fun! With the kitchen not operational all of last week, the hub was our place of choice. Meaning lots of meals were had, and relished. Individual posts about those too, but that’s later! In particular, Not just parathas, Farzi cafe, and the oh-so-yum King’s ki Pan ice cream in this bloody hot, sweltering continuous heat wave that is the northern part of this country, was absolute bliss. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cheers to this new adventure, may it bring with it, a whole lot of fun, memories, many highs, short lows (to get those highs, we need those lows, necessary evil!!) and many many restaurant visits. Raising my glass of Moscato, from my running-very-low last bottle (so please, Gurgaon peeps, help a girl out, where can I get my hands on a beautifully sweet Moscato here?!) :)</span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-15684570478104843612016-04-17T15:16:00.000-04:002020-04-17T15:21:26.185-04:00EDC2016....need I say more <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So this past weekend was something else! Just truly something else.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A, thanks to the company he works at, won passes for the EDC, now EDC for the uninitiated is the Electric Daisy Carnival, that usually takes place in Vegas, but it was their first time in India. And OMG, was it fab!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The venue for the fest was the Buddh International Circuit at Noida.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The three stage set ups: Neon Garden, Circuit Grounds and the craaaazy awesome, Kinetic Field.</span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-4174685215668656772016-04-12T05:28:00.000-04:002020-04-17T15:34:12.423-04:00ISB, the year that was. <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As the Co2017 is readying itself for #LifeAtISB, it's only apt to write about the year that was, the year at ISB, Mohali Campus. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">One year ago, as we were getting ready to drive past those gates, with a mix of excitement and the unknown. There were a whole lotta little questions. Is it going to be good? Did we do the right thing leaving Cincinnati? Is it really all it's hyped to be? After a year here, I feel foolish. Foolish that we even had those questions. The answer is a big, resounding YES. It wasn't just good, it was far better. Home will always be, but now we have a family as close knit as the ISB community, wherever in the world we might be. And lastly, it's not hyped up at all - it <b>IS</b> just that great. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #454545;">When 'A' had told me he wanted to study again and at ISB, I was a little apprehensive, but boy-oh-boy, it's one of the best decisions we made. 'A' went to school here. I lived my time on campus, as staff (External Relations, ISB) and as spouse. We met an awesome bunch of people, students and some people from the staff (you know who you are :p) that soon became friends for life. It's truly been one of the best years.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As the PGP Co2016, walked to their graduation on April 10, 2016, the feeling of being proud of and proud for, each and every one of the 253 friends passing out is something I've never experienced. They're Rockstars. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Every. Single. One. Of. Them. And when a day after graduation, everyone packed their bags and left - it was like a piece of you was leaving with them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Class of 2017, it's your duty to be even bigger stars than your predecessors were, cause they were one helluva batch. And WELCOME. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Welcome to quite possibly the best year of your lives</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Welcome to a year of friends that will become family</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Welcome to parties that will last till sunrise </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Welcome to something much, much more than just academics......</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Welcome to how life should be. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Live large. Enjoy every single minute. It's going to go by anyway, enjoy it while it lasts, for you will be very sad this time next year, as all of us are, right now. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ISB, you were, and will, always be home. Thank you for the wonderful year, the wonderful friends, and the wonderful learning. </span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-73064906979770839372016-01-05T02:26:00.000-05:002021-01-15T10:58:08.990-05:00To new adventures..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our spell in India has been so fun. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We've been here two years, and we've moved two cities already!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2015: Mohali, A was at the ISB. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2016: Gurgaon. Initially, we disliked it so much, but boy, does that city grow on you. I am NOT talking about the pollution and the aggression, though. Both of those things, could be a whole lot better or non existent (hah, but who are we kidding, it's not gonna happen!)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2017: New city. New adventure. Bangalore. Waiting to move in to our apartment, waiting to explore a new city, waiting to make some new memories. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let's see where 2018 takes us. Hopefully, back home :) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What's new in your life? Any new cities/adventures/trips planned? </span></span></div>
Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-40886073997509210182015-09-01T13:03:00.000-04:002018-12-10T02:10:26.409-05:00Cincy Brew Ha-Ha<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Eighth Annual Cincy Brew Ha-Ha (Aug 21-Aug 23) was an absolute cracker of a show! We LOVED it. From </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">the amazing comedy sets </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">- to the yummy Eli BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches - to the rainy, rainy, last day and of-course the beers ('A' will happily attest to this one!). What an absolute riot! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Cincy Brew Ha-Ha, is a Beer & Comedy festival (apparently America's largest Beer & Comedy Festival!! I didn't know that!). </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The festival had over 120 beers on tap and 50 comedians spanning three days. Four stages were set up and each comic performed a 10/20 minute set. We attended all three days. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We particularly enjoyed Wayne Memmot, Andy Woodhull, Dan Cummins, and my FAVORITE, Brian Million. I was amazed at the crispness of their one-liners, their crowd interaction, and how quickly they changed/tweaked their jokes gauging their audience's pulse. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This stand up comedy thing is pretty tough, phew!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I also completely forgot that I needed to click pictures for the blog so I don't have the best ones here :(. These are just a few that I did manage to click. I apologize, I promise not to forget next time. If you're in Cincinnati, plan a visit to the <a href="http://gobananascomedy.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #a64d79;">Go Bananas Comedy Club</span></a>, you are sure to have the best time ever!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: left;"> The Uber Hilarious, </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: left;">Brian Million</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: left;"> The Super Funny, Andy Woodhull</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: left;"> Main Stage, Sawyer Point, Cincy Brew Ha-Ha</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify;">Will crouch under tables, in the rain - for Beer & Comedy!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">'A' summed up the festival in 8 simple words," It's Beer & Comedy - what's not to love!"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Today, was a day of many things. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">First and most importantly, Father's Day - to my dear father, who is quite possibly, the sweetest, most darling person I know. Happy Father's Day!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">International Day of Yoga - was celebrated all over with community yoga classes and such. Yoga to me is the coming together of love, peace, and health. All of these together usually lead to everything being just perfect. Hope all of you found time for a little yoga today. If not, there's still time :)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">World Music Day - The students at the ISB Music Club organized a Musical Evening for the students, staff, and faculty at the Mohali campus of the Indian School of Business. I am amazed at the sheer talent of these students. So. So. So. Good! It's great to be a part of such an amazing community. Great job, guys! Here's to many more such evenings, music day or not, and especially during the beautiful (or so I've heard!) Mohali winters :).. Till then, if music be the food of love....play on!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Apparently today is the longest day of the year, it sure seems like it! I have just finished watching DDLJ for the umpteenth time and it's still only 11.15. Phew! You know it's a long day cos that sure is a long (albeit loved) movie! This time made for a very fun watch since I leave for a summer vacay to Europe with my family in five days - and yes, DDLJ sets are on the itinerary as well. Yes, yes, there is a major movie buff in me. Can. Hardly. Wait. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Love and Luck, Always! </span></span></div>
Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-6549518943714262602015-05-20T09:17:00.003-04:002015-05-20T09:29:10.861-04:00The talk that got me thinking (and writing, phew!!) again ...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's been less than two months since we moved to the motherland. 'A' is at B-school, at the Indian School of Business (ISB). It's pretty impressive, I must say. The campus, the faculty, the facilities.... everything runs like clock work. Which is not how I remember India, from seven years ago, when I left to study further. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So I finally decided to come back to the blog because - first, it's been three months since I posted anything and second, I really need to be more frequent, for me and for you (for the few of you who've actually subscribed to it :p). </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thank you for bearing with me. We are all settled into our new home for a year and I can now finally get back to paying more attention to the blog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On May 18, we attended an information session with Raymond Schiavone, President and CEO of Quark Software, Inc. He spoke about his journey from GE to now, a CEO of a leading player in the Enterprise Digital Publishing and Client Communications solutions. It was quite inspiring to hear how his team in India is responsible for the paradigm shift in global strategy for the company. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I've been noticing this too, in the few weeks that we've been here. It's amazing to see the progress of a relatively young, developing country, in just seven years (coz that's the comparison I make). The work ethic, the drive to 'get things done' and be almost receptive to change is superb to note. This is not how I remember India. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What really resonated with me during his talk was - and yes, he was talking only about the Information Technology space but this can and should apply to any sphere of Industry - about how India needs to change the world view from being just a "service center" to an "information hub". Which really, to me, means there has to be a change from the "do as directed" to the "bring ideas to the table" approach. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Someone wise once said, "your only competition is You or You from yesterday..." so for me when I look at India from the past to the India today, I see a monumental change - in the thinking, the attitude, and the ethic that now embodies Corporate India. Please not for a moment think that there aren't issues to be looked at. Yes, there are, as are with any developing country but India is progressing and huge changes that will tilt the beam just a little bit, are around the corner, and this makes me very excited!</span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-91702552731038313922015-02-22T13:41:00.000-05:002018-12-10T02:11:04.174-05:00The Great Disconnect - Body Shop, L’Oreal, & Nestle<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Today, as I was reading the usual morning mix of papers and online news content, I came across the Nestle Boycott and was instantly reminded of my love for a particular brand in that mix, 'The Body Shop' and how that love affair ended abruptly on March 17<sup>th</sup> of 2006. I needed to write about Anita Roddick's sell out to L'Oreal and the fact that Nestle owns 28.8% (up from 26%) of L'Oreal and so in turn, The Body Shop.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">Long before ethical products were fashionable, The Body Shop, established itself as a pioneer of natural beauty products, fair trade ingredient sourcing, and campaigns against animal testing.</span> The Body Shop was founded by Anita Roddick in England in 1976. It was touted to be the first natural beauty products company in the UK. <span style="color: black;">Under a franchise model, it has since expanded to more than 2,500 locations in over 60 countries worldwide. With an emphasis on ethical business, The Body Shop operates under a set of five core values:</span><a href="http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/community-trade.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><u>Support Community Trade</u></span></a><span style="color: black;">, </span><a href="http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/defend-human-right.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><u>Defend Human Rights</u></span></a><span style="color: black;">, </span><a href="http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/against-animal-testing.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><u>Against Animal Testing</u></span></a><span style="color: black;">, </span><a href="http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/self-esteem.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><u>Activate Self-Esteem</u></span></a><span style="color: black;">, and </span><a href="http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/protect-planet.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><u>Protect Our Planet</u></span></a><span style="color: black;">.</span><span style="color: black;"> </span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I used to LOVE Body Shop as a brand. For me, Anita Roddick was a pioneer for women entrepreneurs. Body Shop used to be my 'go-to' favorite brand for my Advertising/ Branding classes, I used to love talking about Roddick to anyone who would lend me a ear. Yes, I was THAT passionate about the brand. I loved the brand's focus on natural products and ethical policies. Ms. Roddick used to push for natural beauty and women being comfortable in their own skin and not conforming to the stick thin, make-up clad women we get to see in magazines. She stood firm on no animal testing and hence the brand strongly believed in ethical practices.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Andddd having an array of yummy smelling creams and lotions didn't hurt their case either :). It was a brand that appealed to me on so many different levels. Natural beauty, against animal testing, women causes, positive body image, and ethical policies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ALL that changed in 2006. When Body Shop signed off on a deal to be bought over by the French label, L’Oreal. A company that has in the past, and continues to, test on animals. L'Oreal has year after year, featured on PETA's list of 'companies that test on animals'. Apart from the animal testing issue that causes the disconnect in this merger; L’Oreal, in my eyes, promotes an unnatural body image for women, so opposite from Anita Roddick's bra burning campaigns for women in the late 70's, primarily fought for the cause that women should believe in their natural beauty and not cover themselves up with make-up to conform to a set beauty standard. </span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It surprised me that Anita Roddick went ahead with the decision to sell to a company so diametrically opposite to everything she and the brand, Body Shop, stood for. This brings me to another major point of disconnect - L’Oreal, is part owned by Nestle which is said to be the 'least responsible company' in the world. <span style="color: black;">Nestle is responsible for more violations of World Health Assembly marketing requirements than any other company. Nestle and it's products have been boycotted because it contributes to the unnecessary death and suffering of infants around the world by aggressively marketing baby foods in breach of international marketing standards.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Advertising makes everything look so appealing that we forget the real issues in regards to a company and it's policies. For those of us who don't know or have forgotten about the Nestle Boycott, below is the history of the Nestle boycott taken from the Wikipedia page. It was quite a refresher course for me.</span></div>
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<i><u><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nestle Boycott (Material below sourced from Wikipedia's Nestle Boycott page)</span></u></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>The </i><i><b>Nestlé boycott </b></i><i>is a </i><i><span style="background: #ffffff;">boycott l</span></i><i>aunched on July 7, 1977, in the United States against the Swiss-based </i><i><span style="background: #ffffff;">Nestlé </span></i><i>corporation. It spread in the United States, and expanded into Europe in the early 1980s. It was prompted by concern about Nestle's "aggressive marketing" of </i><i><span style="background: #ffffff;">breast milk </span></i><i>substitutes (infant formula</i><i>), particularly in less economically developed countries, which campaigners claim contributes to the unnecessary suffering and deaths of babies, largely among the poor.</i><i> </i> </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nestlé's marketing strategy was first written about in New Internationalist magazine in 1973 and in a booklet called The Baby Killer, published by the British NGO War On Want in 1974. Nestlé attempted to sue the publisher of a German-language translation (Third World Action Group) for libel. After a two-year trial, the court found in favour of Nestlé because they could not be held responsible for the infant deaths 'in terms of criminal law'.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>As of 2013, the Nestlé boycott is coordinated by the International Nestlé Boycott Committee, the secretariat for which is the UK group Baby Milk Action. Company practices are monitored by the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN), which consists of more than 200 groups in over 100 countries.</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Although I love products that aren't tested on animals and companies that believe in ethical trade policies, I am by no means an activist. This blog is about my personal disconnect with a brand and a brand champion I loved and admired so much. Having said that, I try my level best to never use any Nestle products. </span></div>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-10635052502264881772014-11-21T17:46:00.000-05:002015-05-20T09:59:23.213-04:00Bombay Wraps, Chicago<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One word sums up the food at Bombay Wraps, YUM!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">'A' and I were in Chicago a few weekends ago, and oh my it was cold. The Chicago kind - cold, dreary and very, very windy! So, what makes you feel better on a cold, dreary day? It's a hot, sumptuous savory wrap for us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Enter Yelp and Bombay Wraps tops the results. Really close to our hotel, very highly rated and an awesome, small menu - we knew we HAD to go indulge.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgahP65wgGcICcmBhCxzGqW94PcGZ-kltpKuZbJ17TU3k7B2xnbmPNnihY29ZCp9uIKZatN6MoDxk0oa56CyLIh_UcAIWPEkSs6BDIMbqPJErcYWpl7xiibZ5qF-132gVxVHn84l4oBqHTP/s1600/IMG_6161.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgahP65wgGcICcmBhCxzGqW94PcGZ-kltpKuZbJ17TU3k7B2xnbmPNnihY29ZCp9uIKZatN6MoDxk0oa56CyLIh_UcAIWPEkSs6BDIMbqPJErcYWpl7xiibZ5qF-132gVxVHn84l4oBqHTP/s1600/IMG_6161.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We visited the Streeterville location for our fix of the wrap we know and love. We shared three wraps between the two of us - the Reshmi Chicken Wrap, the Samosa Wrap and the Lamb Wrap. The lamb wrap was quite possibly the best lamb we've ever had. There are three chutney's/sauces and the wraps are made as per your preference of mild, medium & hot. Fresh and beautifully seasoned, everything came together in one perfect bite. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I also had the coconut-pineapple smoothie which was amazing! Just the right hint of pineapple-y citrus with the beautiful coconut flakes was just what my much-too-traveled tummy needed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We met Ali, the owner, and had a lovely little chat with him about Bombay :). He brought out the masala chai for me to sample (it's now a regular on the menu). Perfect blend of cardamom, sugar, and spices. SO good! The place is spotless and it's also got a little Indian grocery store window going what with it's variety of Indian pickles, chips et al. Very cute. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5rwKpsf731leSkBL2daCLczAkexjXWlSRV8qzfZGkY9cfbC51Uc5oBfc_XsJXizqQ7MwBI-DQdC_BmS2-UmxGUbGQ8eYbQk2BhmsxiCt8LHDVbE-ENaAfm02FgDn8Nvstp18zaGFV0vKF/s1600/IMG_6162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5rwKpsf731leSkBL2daCLczAkexjXWlSRV8qzfZGkY9cfbC51Uc5oBfc_XsJXizqQ7MwBI-DQdC_BmS2-UmxGUbGQ8eYbQk2BhmsxiCt8LHDVbE-ENaAfm02FgDn8Nvstp18zaGFV0vKF/s1600/IMG_6162.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bombay Wraps, is the brain child of Falguni ( Ali's wife). She opened their first location in the Loop, five years ago. <i>The mission was to share with Chicago a simple, convenient, fresh and affordable yet equally delicious take on the Indian food they (and us too!) grew up eating at street stalls in Bombay</i>. Ali joined her last year and together, they're doing us, foodies, a huge favor, serving up the yum, hot, savory, delicious wraps that we've grown up on and that everyone who tries them will fall in love with.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Go get your wrap fix at any one of their two locations or their food truck! It really is amazing. And don't forget to try the lamb wrap - you can thank me later! ;p</span><br />
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6133030881385063023.post-59990673514191975462014-09-13T11:32:00.001-04:002014-09-14T15:24:01.863-04:00Senate, OTR, Cincinnati<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Senate has a cookbook? Of course, it does!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cincinnati is experiencing some strange weather this year. It's like we're going straight from Spring to Fall, we left Summer behind somewhere! So yesterday on this unusually chilly and grey evening we decided we needed comfort food, to soothe our not-so-happy-summer-is-over mood. </span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We headed to Senate. Home to one of America's best hot dogs. Located between the city's two biggest employment centers, Downtown Cincinnati and the uptown medical & university district, is a gentrified little area, Over-The-Rhine (OTR), complete with beautiful architecture, gorgeous murals, and artist lofts. Senate keeps some great company, with the likes of Bakersfield OTR, <span style="color: magenta;"><a href="http://www.mulberrysummers.com/2014/08/trying-new-things.html" target="_blank">The Eagle</a>,</span> Taste of Belgium, Tavola and some other cool restaurants and pubs all along the street.</span><br />
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</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The interior reminded me of a Chicago style pub with a narrow, long, bar running the entire length of the place ending at their open kitchen with exposed brick. Very chic! It is cramped, by Queen City standards, but the owners are from Chicago and they've very successfully been able to replicate a 'very Chicago scene' in their little space serving "Gourmet Street Food". </span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The gastro pub has a selection of 10 killer dogs ranging from wasabi-everything 'Hello Kitty' to the very Hollywood 'Lindsay Lohan'. Those are the ones we had. And of course, the to-die-for Duck Fat Fries.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Impeccable food, modern space, amazing selection of beer, and some very cool servers. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Duck Fat Fries</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Hello Kitty Hot Dog - 'A' really enjoyed the extra crunch that the wasabi peas brought to the dog</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lindsay Lohan - I loved it! Arugula with a balsamic glaze and soft goat cheese.Yum!</span></td></tr>
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Salonee Khannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09486577517400378018noreply@blogger.com3