I Quit for LIJIT...

Leaving Lijit

It's time to close this chapter and start a new one. I'm leaving Lijit to move on, learn new things and challenge myself. The past three and a half years have been amazing and I wanted to break it down for you.

By the numbers...

                  6: number of people at the company when I was hired

                17: number of conferences that I've attended on behalf of Lijit

              329: number of blog posts that I've written between this blog and the company blog

              500: percent increase in the number of employees since I've been here

            2400: percent increase in the number of active widgets since I started

    Lost count: the number of awesome people I've been fortunate to meet through this job

The lessons I walk away with are varied. From learning about the intricacies of search to figuring out how to navigate through the world of social media, I've basically taught myself, through trial and error, how to be a successful evangelist/marketer/publisher recruiter. And for giving me the room to make mistakes and develop my voice, I will be eternally grateful to everyone at Lijit.

Don't even get me started about how much I've learned about blogging. Oy vey. Spending my time deeply entrenched in the world of blogs has opened my eyes to the many writers and photographers out there who make up this entertaining space. I don't want to say that I've seen it all...but it wouldn't be far from the truth. From mommies to daddies, movies to music, dogs to cats, biking to running, the funny to the ridiculous, the amazing to the unbelievable, the local celebrity to the internet famous, those with hair to those without, Lijit has provided many opportunities for my blogging education.

And let's not forget all the food blogs that I've salivated over during my course of employment. 

There are many thank-yous, but the first one definitely goes to Todd. In addition to being a cool guy to work for, he really took a chance on hiring me. But I made him laugh and was able to convince him that I knew what an 'evangelist' was supposed to do...and that I was the perfect person to do it. Fortunately, he believed in me and never looked back.

Also, big props go out to Stan, Leslie and Derek, who put up with many dumb questions from me as we were first starting out. I'm a virtual tech success story from when I joined Lijit (shut up I can write a few lines of code) and I have those three to thank for it.

Finally, I need to thank you, the readers and Lijit supporters who have joined me on this journey. Thanks especially to those first few publishers that I reached out to long ago who installed Lijit even after I sent them four-paragraph-long emails.

I can't wait to see what else Lijit accomplishes and I look forward to celebrating their future successes, knowing I had a small part to play in helping to grow the company.

If you want to keep up with Lijit, you should subscribe to the Lijit company blog.

If you want to keep up with me personally, you should subscribe to my "other" blog, Tall Tara, where, among other things, I write about my butt, my physical adventures and my skewed view of humanity.

If that doesn't seem appealing, you can follow me on Twitter. But don't worry...I'm not going to be far.

I have to sign off with one of the most impressive pieces of Lijit advertising (that I never got to use) created by one of my favorite Lijit users ever and a huge source of feedback for us back in the early days, Kato Katonian...

Glimmers of hope

I often find myself doubting the relevancy of television news. Does anyone (besides my parents) still get their information from that outdated medium? All of the breaking news I hear about comes to me via Twitter. It's where I learned about the Hudson crash landing, Michael Jackson's death, and of course, all of Apple's product announcements.

Everyone knows that newspapers are in dire need of revamping in order to keep up with social media trends but I wonder also about the television news. In this time of on-demand, real-time news updates, how does a television station keep their viewers informed?

There are two promising things I've seen that seem to point towards a future of old media and new media working together in tandem. The first comes out of Denver and is the amazing story of Misty Montano. I had heard her name around town and knew she worked for a local television station, but had no idea she was such a trailblazer.

At the most recent Chicks Who Click conference held in downtown Denver, Misty gave a presentation entitled Going Rogue. Her preso was not referring to Sarah Palin (fortunately) but was referring to the fact that Misty jumped on Twitter and started engaging with CBS viewers BEFORE she had actually gotten the permission of her boss to do so. Talk about ballsy.

What she's accomplished (besides proving the value of social media to everyone in her department) is that she's been able to talk to the people who watch her newscast. She gets tips from viewers, shares teasers from upcoming stories and can alert folks to local breaking news that she's picking up on the police scanner. And when she needs help putting together a story, she has thousands of folks following her on Twitter that are willing and ready to help.

Misty's blog can be found here and she's Misty Montano on Twitter.

Another interesting social media story comes out of San Francisco. There's a consumer reporter there, Michael Finney, who is blogging. Not because his station is making him, but because it helps his viewers get even more information about the stories he's covering. In addition to his blog, Michael is on Twitter and even goes the extra mile to help his readers understand RSS and provide them with special deals that they might not otherwise know about.

Not to mention, he recently signed up for and installed Lijit on his blog. Which just goes to show that not only in Michael proving himself even more valuable to his station through increased engagement with viewers, he's also on the cutting edge of blog technology. ;)

Hopefully, Misty and Michael won't remain in the minority of news folks incorporating social media into the way they do business. It would be a shame to see television news go the way of the dodo.

Playing the straight man...

has never been a strong suit of mine. As you will see in this video I did with Kutenda (a marketing company located just up the road from Lijit) about how blogging can help your small business. It was very difficult to keep a straight face and I was talking like Donna Kutenda for the rest of the day.

Talk about brilliant marketing concepts! I was honored to be a part of the video, had lots of fun making it and recommend my friends at Kutenda for anyone needing some help with online marketing.

When the ball breaks...**

One of the many things that I love about working for a startup like Lijit is that when an interesting opportunity presents itself, we're quick to take advantage. This is not often the case when dealing with a corporation. Old-school corporations shy away from quick movement or employees having fun. Fortunately, we embrace both concepts here...on an almost daily basis.

Just such an opportunity occurred a few weeks ago when one of our trusty green "exercise" balls up and popped. No one is quite sure just how it happened, but I'm sure it was due to some incredible mental activity taking place on said ball.

Most normal folks might just throw the old busted ball away, but not us. Not after we worked so hard to bring these balls into existence. (The following video may cause emotional discomfort but it's really short. Just don't miss out on the faces I'm making during the hard labor of pumping up balls for the new office. And yes, that is our CEO laughing at us in the background.)

Pump it up from Tara Anderson on Vimeo.

No, in lieu of mourning the beloved green ball, we simply had different employees try the ball on for size. Turns out Daniel looks really good with a ball on his head.

And, if that weren't enough, we also somehow convinced Grace, our smallest employee, to actually crawl into the lifeless green shell...and be the ball. She did a nice job.

Although she said it was hot in there, I'm pretty sure she's considering changing the name of her blog to Small Hands, Big Green Balls, which, if not taken, is a great name. Of course, the new name might change the focus of her blog and attract the wrong kind of readers...but she already has a banner image all set to go.

Just another afternoon around the Lijit office.

And this, my dear readers, is why I continue to work here--for the laughs, for the people and for the learning experiences.

(You can thank me later for this hard-hitting bit of behind-the-scenes investigative reporting.)

**Hopefully, the cradle does not fall.

Ignite Boulder 6: Ladies Take Over

I'm about to get all gushy. Ignite Boulder does it to me every time. I don't know if it's because I've been to every one that Andrew Hyde has organized here in Boulder or because I've spoken at 50% of them, but this is my absolute favorite event that happens locally. While Ignite may have started as a small tech event, it is no longer that. This event sold out the Boulder Theater last week and with it, proved that there is such thing as a sense of humor to be found in Boulder.

The first few Ignites were sorely lacking in female presenters. At the first one, it was just me and Julie Penner. Fortunately, the tides have changed and at this most recent event, there were more female presenters than men. Simply put, the ladies rocked it.

One of my favorite food bloggers, Jen from Use Real Butter, started off the night (after Ef's humorous musical introduction) with a presentation about food porn.

In case you don't know, I'm a big fan of the food porn and if given more free time, would probably post more of it.

Vanessa Schneider told us all the grizzly details behind getting a DUI. While I sympathized with her dilemma, I also couldn't help but laugh because this chick is funny. DUIs are not a laughing matter, but Vanessa, however, is.

Other funny ladies that I did not get pictures of include Sara Levi, with her brilliant idea for alternative energy, Heather Clisby with her presentaion on screwed-up logic, and Christina Sagray's thesis on the modern teen chick flick. (Christina gets extra points for including a John Hughes memorial slide in her presentation.)

The gentleman of the evening did not disappoint either. Ryan Wanger gave another outstanding presentation about the princess being in another castle...

and provided us with the event's obligatory Mario reference. The always-entertaining George G. Smith Jr. offered up tips to become a master debater, including volume control, remaining topical and how to avoid being Kanye a sore loser. And in his Ignite debut, my buddy from back in the stand-up days, Dave Burdick did a wonderful job of proving that he really did learn a lot from Ghostbusters.

If you haven't attended an Ignite yet, I strongly suggest you do. Ignite 6 proved to be yet another in (hopefully) a long line of fantastically entertaining and educational evenings. A big thank you to all of the speakers, the volunteers and most especially to Andrew Hyde, for continuing to share his community-building talents with all of us in Boulder.

Chicks Who Click--West Coast Edition

I'm excited that Lijit is going to be a sponsor for this weekend's Chicks Who Click conference, taking place in San Jose. This will be the third one I've attended and probably the one I'm most excited for. After hearing much talk about this "valley" where startups succeed without even trying, I'm looking forward to checking it out for myself. 

Judging by the list of speakers, it's obvious that the big female guns will be represented. (And I'm not just referring to our biceps, okay?) I'm speaking on a panel about women in tech startups, along with my friend Emily from Foodzie and there are a few other companies participating that you may have heard of as well. The name YouTube ring a bell? No? What about Facebook? Yep, they'll be there too.

And don't get me started trying to describe the awesomesauce that is Aubrey Sabala, who I briefly met at BlogHer in 07 or the amazingness of Adriana Gascoigne, the founder of Girls in Tech and someone I've been wanting to meet for ages.

Gah. I'm going to be such a fangirl this weekend.

Let's not forget that I also get to see an Ignite buddy, former Boulderite and fellow bacon lover Rick Bakas, who is making sure that the wine flows like water all weekend long. I'm thanking you in advance Rick.

And, I'm proud to announce that after almost three years of blogging, I *finally* wrote a guest post. (I know, I know...I'm a bad blogger.) It's over on the Chicks Who Click blog and is all about the very topic of the panel I'll be on: Women in Tech Startups. Check it out and let me know what you think.

If you're in the area, you should join us. If this Chicks Who Click conference is anything like the other two, it's going to be a wonderful day of learning, laughing and networking.

[One last thing...I have to do a long run on Sunday morning and would appreciate any recommendations for good running trails in the area. My hotel is in downtown Palo Alto and I figure there must be somewhere to run around there, right? Famous last words.]

BlogHer 09: Bringing it back to Chicago

There are lots of post-conference reviews and summaries coming to light as BlogHer attendees write about their experiences. Some are on blogs, some are in the traditional media. I was unsure how I should go about talking about the conference, because as a marketer and a blogger, I have a few different angles I can take on the subject. Since I'm mostly caught up on sleep, I thought that I would share a different sort of top ten list with you--the questions I have after returning home from BlogHer. There are a few that I can actually answer and a few that don't need it...

Question #1: Do I talk about all the awesome bloggers I met?

    Because really, I could go on and on and on and on with regards to the caliber of women (and the few men) that I met while at BlogHer. There's not enough room to link to them all.

Question #2: Do I mention the incredible sessions that provided much food for thought?

    Whether it was listening to how some of my favorite bloggers tend to their craft or hearing about how big companies are dealing with social media, there were learning opportunities around every corner of that Sheraton.

Question #3: Do I dissect what it felt like to be a non-mommyblogger wandering around an expo floor full of major sponsors looking to reach the mommybloggers?

    At another time, perhaps.

Question #4: Do I discuss the issue of swag and how crazy it has all become?

    No need to since many other talented writers have already done a better job than I ever could.

Question #5: Do I bring up how amazing it is to hear bloggers read their best work aloud with tears streaming down my face and my heart swollen with pride?

    The Community Keynote is the best part of BlogHer in my opinion and reminds me why we all started doing this in the first place.

Question #6: Do I share the numerous conversations I had about Lijit, listening to feedback and explaining how we strive to provide value to bloggers?

    Let's just say that Lijit stickers became one of the most coveted accessories of the weekend.

Question #7: Do I approach the topic of how much I've learned since first attending BlogHer in 07?

    You can see it firsthand here and here.

Question #8: Do I broach the subject of just how many parties and events took place outside of the official BlogHer conference lineup?

    Lots and lots. If you wanted to attend BlogHer without ever really attending BlogHer, it was quite possible. (And you probably walked away with better swag than I.)

Question #9: Do I even begin to wax poetic about how grateful I am to work for a company that gets it?

    No. It's been a while since I've written poetry but if you must, check out the rhyming ode I wrote to the Lijit stats. This will remind you why I don't write poetry often.

Question #10: Do I simply thank Elisa, Jory and Lisa for allowing me to be there for a small part of the magic?

    Yes. See you ladies next year in New York City.

{Photos courtesy of Veesees and Southern Fairytale...because I still haven't uploaded my pictures yet}

Showing a gnome around Boulder

I often find myself doing odd things because of my job. Slap a sticker on a drunk Guy Kawasaki? Check. Put your head through a whiteboard made to look like a widget? Check. Take a gnome around Boulder and give him a tour of local startups? Ummmm...okay.

When my friend Lindsay asked if I would help out, I didn't hesitate. It was fun hanging out with the little guy for two days and I learned a few things by taking the Yim gnome (that's his name, btw) around town.

Basically, when you work for a startup, you ALWAYS have time for a photo op. Especially one involving an inanimate object and a Twitter mention.

This was Day 1 with Yim...

Powered by Whrrl

And in case you can't get enough, even more startup fun with Yim on Day 2...

Powered by Whrrl

Not only did I have fun getting to see the offices of all my favorite Boulder tech startups, but I really enjoyed playing around with Whrrl. It's a fun application and very easy to use. If you like telling stories with your pictures and having an easy way of sharing that story with your friends, be sure to give Whrrl a whirl.

Word on the street is that Yim will be attending BlogHer as well, so this may not be the last you see of him here.

Indie movies taking a tip from indie music

When your industry is out of the mainstream, why would you market in a mainstream way?

On today's sign-up report, I saw that a blog all about the making, and promoting, of an independent film was on there. The movie is called Not Forgotten and the blog is called Not Forgotten Movie. (Aptly named, I know.)

As a film major, I love independent films but know how hard it is for them to pick up widespread distribution. If they're lucky, they'll be shown in small theaters somewhere in L.A. or New York. If I'm lucky, I'll have the chance to catch the film on Netflix. However, with the advent of social media, indie films can increase their chances of hitting it big by connecting with audiences before the film even arrives in theaters.

When a film is made by a major studio, millions of dollars can go into promoting it. But with small films like Not Forgotten, the only chance they have at being shown nationwide is if the audiences express an interest for it. With free tools like blogs, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube, the producers of the movie can help spread the word at a much lower cost and prove that there is demand for the film to be shown.

In the case of Not Forgotten, in addition to a blog, they have a twitter account with almost 3600 followers. The producers promote the movie, interact with other film lovers on twitter, and give fans a glimpse at what it takes to actually get an independently-made movie into the theater. You can also watch videos of the movie's L.A. premiere and interviews with the stars on their YouTube channel. If all that weren't enough, Not Forgotten also has a Flickr account featuring still shots from the movie and promo pics of the stars.

Indie music has been doing this kind of online promotion successfully for years with a little service called MySpace. As much as I hate the obnoxious design of MySpace, I can see how the social network is useful for independent bands. You can get your music into the hands of people who want to hear it, build a fanbase and easily communicate tour dates. It's almost mandatory these days for an indie band to have their MySpace URL all over show flyers and concert announcements.

I expect to see more indie films doing what Not Forgotten has done with social media. Not only because the price of the marketing is in line with their budget, but because it gives me hope that some of these awesome movies might actually make it to Denver one day.

Names can be deceiving

Part of my daily morning routine is to check out the blogs who signed up with Lijit the day before. I love starting my day like this because you never know what kind of randomness you'll end up seeing. Sometimes it's a blog that impresses me with design or a blog in another language that leaves me confused. Like Gump was known to say about life, I say about our sign-up report..."you never know what you're going to get."

When I saw a URL with the words ear sucker in it this morning, I was intrigued to say the least. I'm not new to the slightly sexual sites, since we have quite a few that are using Lijit.* However, with this one, I had no idea what was going to greet me when I clicked on the link. Was my computer going to crash? Was I going to blush?

To my surprise (or is it disappointment?), Ear Sucker is a music blog. They feature information about upcoming tours, gossip about musicians, and must-see videos. I liked the content I saw on their blog, but honestly, they had me at their URL. With a name like that, you'd better not disappoint.

*Other Lijit publishers that have helped to increase my tolerance: Booted Up, Towleroad, and Christian Sings the Blues. Remember...you've been warned.