And so, a new recipe for my blog has been simmering and is now finally ready to be served (you love food analogies, remember?!).

As I continue to educate, inform, entertain and enlighten you about all things social media, I am going to frequently categorize my posts in a way that make it very clear how I feel about the subject du jour.  Here are some of the ingredients I’m toying with:

One Smart Cookie – highlighting individuals or companies that really “get it” in terms of their social media activities.  For example, I’ve written about the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, and my most 2009 most influential Tweeters list!  And then there’s my good friend Leslie Irish Evans, who has unlocked a key to attracting quality “likers” to her Facebook fan page (1500 in less than a month).

Half-Baked – these are ideas or promotions or people that had “sort of” a good idea, but managed to leave a key ingredient out of the recipe, or perhaps took the project out of the oven a few minutes too early.  Kind of like restaurants that aren’t using Twitter or promoting a “Groupon” special without adequate followup.  Or maybe choosing to Tweet during surgery?!?

Crumbs – unfortunately there are too many of these types of examples, using social media as a way to blast info to all of us but have no clue how to use the tools to create conversations, relationships and profitable visibility.  Or they appear randomly and infrequently on their social media sites and have left us to wonder if they are past their expiration date. It would be easy to cite many of these “crumb-y” people, but I’ll try to keep it to a minimum!

On the back burner, several more categories are stewing, such as:

• One Tough Cookie –  for those that have made a bold move or overcome some obstacle to create success in social media
• That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles – for those those attempts or campaigns that just go bad for whatever reason and there’s nothing you can do about it (but might deserve an “A” for effort!)
• Cookie Cutter –  for those that show an utter lack of originality or *gasp* have been shown to have copied another’s recipe!
• Fortune Cookie – for those with a creative, forward-thinking idea that will change the way things are done – even if it’s a bit in the future (having a house for sale “tweet” about itself to attract new owners)

So there you have it – the recipe for the One Smart Cookie blog!  And like any good friend that always seems to end up hovering in the kitchen (no matter how small the house is!), you are probably wondering how you can help.  So put on your apron, pick up your whisk and send me ideas and examples – it’s a big ponderosa out there and even as hard as I try, I can’t read about everything! 

I look forward to your contributions below – ready, set, bake!

NOTE: Divine inspiration for this concept must be credited to Warren and Betsy Talbot, Betsy Moore and Katy Woodworth – ALL very Smart Cookies!

Karen is One Smart Cookie

I’m excited to announce the new, improved identity of the former Incredible Chef persona that used to grace these pages – please welcome One Smart Cookie Marketing!

One Smart Cookie Marketing focuses on making other “smart cookies” look smart.  Utilizing the appropriate marketing and social media tools, we help thought leaders, experts, influencers, and gurus get their message out to their target audience and earn the visibility they deserve.

Definition from the Cambridge Dictionary – a smart cookie is someone who is clever and good at dealing with difficult situations 

Okay, so maybe the marketing situations you face aren’t that difficult, but they are to you!  So why not hand these duties off to someone who is good at dealing with them and is clever, to boot?  That’s me, One Smart Cookie.

I love the name for another reason – it gives a nod to my background both as a personal chef and as one who has spent the past year specializing in social media for restaurants and food & beverage companies. But I’ve discovered there are many more out there, outside the food community, that are looking for One Smart Cookie too.  And so the focus broadens – although there will always be a special place in my heart – and in my list of clients! – for the foodies.

So who do I want to help now?  I’m looking for entrepreneuers (real or wanna-be) with that great big idea, thought leaders that influence large communities, authors and speakers that are subject-matter experts, and those on a mission to impact their world in some way.

These leaders know there is power in marketing and social media - but they aren’t sure quite how to use it yet, even though they know how important it is.  They are educated, eager to learn, computer savvy, and are hungry to make their stamp on their world.  They don’t mind rolling up their sleeves and doing the work, because they know the importance of being authentic in their communications. And they are willing to pay the price to be guided in the areas they are unskilled.

One Smart Cookie -meaning me, Karen Rosenzweig! – brings more than 20 years of marketing, social media and public relations to the mix.  You bring the big idea, and we will help you craft creative messages, find the people that need to hear about you, and display your brilliance.  It’s an easy recipe and it will be a beautiful, fully-baked masterpiece when we are finished.

Stay tuned for more details – it’s going to be quite a ride!  I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions in the comments – please share!

31 flavors of blog posts in 31 days!

I thought I knew, but I think I better make sure before we go much farther – and definitely before I start my “31 blog posts in 31 days” project today! 

I hope I haven’t confused anyone, but my business is going through a bit of a metamorphosis these days, and I’m re-focusing this blog to ensure I’m on track and reaching those I most want to help (and work with!). So I’m following the wonderful example set by Darren Rowse of ProBlogger fame, and I’m committed to posting every day this month – and I’m confident I will have found my stride by April Fool’s Day.

Last July I launched this blog as I began the transition from working as a personal chef to helping restaurants and food companies navigate the crazy world of social media.  The blog began as “Life Is a Buffet” but has now been folded into my Incredible Chef web site here and serves as my home page.  And don’t look now, but I’m working on a company name change, to more accurately represent my services, so look for a sparkly new moniker soon! But I’m getting ahead of myself…

So what is this blog now?  I am here to help restaurants and hospitality companies with their communications and marketing efforts.  It is a many-splendored thing I offer - guidance with social media, email marketing, blogging, twitter, facebook, word of mouth networking, promotions and contests – all very fun and exciting things to drive more business to their companies and increase their visibility.

I believe I offer something unique to my clients – public relations agency experience, personal chef savoir faire, demonstrated social media expertise, and most importantly, an unabashed love of helping people in the culinary world talk about what they love to do.  Seriously – how many of my breed do you know??

So today I start the task of showing you exactly what I can do and why you should believe me.  And it’s going to be a fun ride!  So tell me, what do you want to know about this world I’ve described?  Please let me know below in the comments and I’ll be back every day this month, delivering information cooked-to-order, just for you…bon appetit!

The gold spatula - an undeniable sign of retirement for a chef

Who throws you a retirement party when you are self-employed?

Good question. Is it your former clients? Is it your colleagues or your competitors or your friends or your family? All of the above or none of the above?

I just want my gold spatula.

Yes, what I’m trying to say, is that after nearly six years as a personal chef (The Incredible Chef!), I have decided to “retire” that business.  It was a decision long overdue, because I essentially had stopped working as a personal chef awhile back anyways, when most of my clients stopped booking cooking dates, didn’t return my calls or pushed their appointments farther and farther out. I think my business knew it was done before I did.

However it took some time to come up with the retirement concept, since I am not “of that age”, despite what the hair color in my photo might say (very premature, I promise!)  Originally, I decided to put my personal chef business six feet under, send it swimming with the fishes, declare it dead as a doornail…you get the point. I even mentally planned a “funeral”, wrote a faux obituary, thought about details for a wake – but no, that was not the answer.

Who me, retire?

Retirement.  That’s what Brett Favre would do…(I apologize to my non-football friends, few of you as there may be)  Retirement sounded much more kind and gentle and acceptable – and like my man Favre, I could change my mind someday and come back.  Even more than once.  Doubtful but yet a possibility.  So retirement it was.

So where the hell is my gold spatula?

I drafted a short email message to distribute, letting everyone know the update – since I know they were all sitting on pins and needles.  Or not.  Funny thing about these kind of emails – people that you haven’t heard from in ages come out of the woodwork and say nice things about you!  Very nice…almost like listening to your own funeral – oops I mean your own retirement party.  Nevertheless, the comments were kind, sincere and made me feel quite appreciated.  And then it happened.

Within the first 24 hours of drafting my “retirement” email, I received not one, not two but FIVE phone calls asking me if I was available to cook that week.  WTF??  Is this some kind of cosmic joke, I wondered.  Where have all you people been and why did you wait so long to need me?  And it should be noted, NONE of these five people had gotten wind of the retirement announcement.  Weird. Odd. Funny. Sad. Lots of emotions.

I had to wonder – what was the message in this?  Were these calls a “bright shiny object” luring me back into cooking before it was too late? Or were these calls “a test” to see if I really meant it (retirement)?  It was a difficult couple of days analyzing the signs but I’m pretty sure I know the answer. 

To further illuminate, the reason I finally retired the personal chef business was to concentrate fully on my developing marketing/social media consulting business for restaurants and the hospitality industry.  I had been juggling cooking and consulting the past six months and neither emerged as the bread-winner (so to speak) and neither was thriving.  So I made the decision to fully give up one (personal chef) to let the other one bloom.  Didn’t that happen in Sophie’s Choice? But I digress…

I will add that I received another three calls that week (for a total of 8!), after the retirement email was distributed, asking me to cook again.  Unreal – but easily identified as more bright shiny objects.  I think.  I have fully focused the past week or two on the consulting business and felt both a renewed energy (from me) and renewed interest (from others), so I know I’ve made the right decision.

But I’m still waiting for my gold spatula…

However, after reading social media advisor Chris Brogan’s post Wiring Yourself for Success,  I’ve been inspired to play the game of choosing just three words to guide my actions, frame my thinking and measure my results for 2010. It’s a scary exercise for someone used to writing many words and describing things in greater detail – but here we go.

First, a clarification on Brogan’s process, which he began in 2006. The selection of three guiding words for the year is different from setting resolutions and goals since those two things have end points – meaning once you accomplish them, then what? You have to continually come up with more, better, etc. The use of three big-picture words as a compass point allows there to be constant growth, improvisation, interpretation, adjustment, etc. – similar to Keith Ferrazzi’s concept of performance goals vs. learning goals in his best-seller “Who’s Got Your Back?”

Here’s an example Ferrazzi gives:  You want to lose 10 pounds.  That’s a performance goal – you either hit the mark or you don’t.  Which means if you lose 9 pounds, you potentially could feel that you “failed” and fell short of your goal?  (this is why many people fail on diets!) The other side of the coin would be to set a learning goal of taking classes to cook healthier meals.  This has a long-term effect that will likely allow you to achieve your performance goal, but even if you don’t hit the 10 pound loss, you still have gained a valuable skill in your life with long-lasting health benefits. So, we want learning goals, yes?

Without further ado, my words for 2010 – Balance, Improvement, Perspective.

Balance – this is an concept I think about a lot, and continually strive to achieve. Am I playing more than working? Am I eating enough of the right kinds of food? Does my client load make sense and support my overall company goals? Do I spend too much time watching reality TV?

By choosing balance as a compass point for the year, I can measure virtually any idea/option/choice against its alternative.  The cool thing is, the definition of balance will be different on any given day (depending on the circumstances), which will allow me to live more “in the moment”, a concept previously not well-known to me! This will be a big change, for sure.

Improvement – isn’t this something we all hope for, in most areas of life? And therefore it makes a great barometer; instead of setting unreachable numerical goals, there can be satisfaction by at least being “better” than yesterday, or last time we tried. It seems many resolutions are blown the first time you do (or don’t do) something, so there’s no way to really satisfy the intention.  But if there was a continual raising of the bar over time, isn’t that a better measure?

Obviously, change doesn’t just happen.  It’s a process, slow but steady. In the book “Good to Great”, Jim Collins talks about successful businesses and how continual 1% improvement has such a significant cumulative effect.  For example, If you could improve a behavior or accomplishment by 1% per day (a small feat, right?), you’d be 50% better in about 7 weeks.  It’s hard to be motivated to go from selling 100 widgets a day to 150 per day, overnight. However, continual incremental improvement makes the goal possible, and worth working towards.

Perspective – whoa, this is a big one for me…and maybe for you too. As the saying goes, everyone just wants to know the WIIFM – What’s In It For Me! We all have our unique perspectives of life and what transpires, and it’s often so hard to put yourself in another shoes and wonder how it is for them. Or is that just me? Also, keeping perspective as an over-arching theme this year will help minimize the “woe is me” attitude or “life isn’t fair” feelings from creeping in. 

As author and marketing whiz Seth Godin noted in a recent blog  “The problem, of course, is that people don’t always think like you…If they only thought like you, of course, and knew what you know, then there wouldn’t be a problem.”  Isn’t that the truth?! I often find myself feeling overwhelmed by some minor detail or small thing that isn’t going the way “I” thought it should, or someone who doesn’t agree with me, so a little perspective should do wonders for my actions this year. I can’t wait to see what life looks like through someone else’s glasses!

So there you have it – 2010 is all about B.I.P.  Balance. Improvement. Perspective. I’d love to know what your three words are, if you’d care to share in the comments. This is going to be a fun ride – hang on!

In my last post, I wrote about shuffling down life’s buffet table to plant myself in front of the “let’s help food companies with Twitter” section.  All was good, things began to take shape, prospects appeared, personal chef clients stayed in hiding.

Then the FIRE HOSE let loose!  No kidding, in the next 24 hours I would be:

• bombarded with introductions to more than five different food companies that are interested in help with social media (my ultimate goal!)
• taking calls from several people about Twitter in general so they could tell me how they have it “handled” on their own (gee thanks)
• handed two potential personal chef/catering clients (read: bright shiny objects)
• overwhelmed with a multitude of my colleagues’ messages  and Tweets of support/congratulations (thank you)
• given great content and direction from a proven sales coaching pro
• soaking up great wisdom from a brilliant, strategic PR professional who gave me my next big idea (so unexpected and gracious of her!)

Whew – talk about drinking from a fire hose! My head has been spinning as I try to make sense of all the opportunity and sort through the priorities.  The problem, if there is one, that so much time is spent reacting that I don’t have time to be proactive and DO THE WORK!

Now I’m not suggesting that I “have it made” now, by any means.  I would even go as far to say this hasn’t resulted in one red cent – yet.  But the seeds are planted, possibilities are growing and the word is spreading.  Are there any more clichés I could use to express my excitement?!

This flurry of activity came after an afternoon walk on my Edmonds beach, where ideas typically “show up” and I get clarity on so many things I didn’t even know I needed answers for – all while supposedly picking up beach glass!

The new analogy I discovered on the beach was that my new business direction was akin to a repositioning cruise – say what? That’s when the cruise lines move their ships from one port to another (say, Alaska to the Caribbean) at the change of season and have the challenge of fewer passengers due to the one-way voyage, odd itineraries and lack of port visits.  However, the advantages for the passengers are much lower prices, more time at sea and a relaxed leisurely trip.

So I figured – food companies that hire me right now (at the beginning of my voyage) for their social media advising are going to get a great deal (financially and energetically) as I “reposition” my business. While I may not have a set course (who does in this new world?) and make all the customary tours, I am going to give them a terrific, value-packed ride through exciting territory while we cruise through this changing sea of social media!  To wit, companies will embark from one port (maybe where they aren’t very visible) and we will sail to a brand new exciting port (where they have new followers, engaged customers and everyone knows their name)!  I have no doubt these companies will get far more value that they ever expected – what do you think?!

So, what about that bright shiny object syndrome (BSOS)?  Well I wrote about BSOS in my other blog this week, on the Seattle Women & Business Examiner site.  The gist is that as I began to pull away from personal chef work towards social media, the “bright shiny objects” came flying in to distract me, and take my eyes off the direction I wanted to.  And maybe that’s how repositioning cruises started, come to think of it…but I digress.

This week’s BSO’s came in a relatively harmless-looking package, appearing to be financially rewarding and worthy of my time.  In fact, they were even posing as “helpers”, to pay the bills while I chased after this new business venture of mine – ha!  These were opportunities to do small catering gigs, which are really not my expertise, but they were flashing dollar signs at me.  I could do the events fairly easily, make a few bucks, and be done – much easier than the kind of energy I had to put in with ongoing personal chef clients.

But I quickly recalled the lessons learned last week from my “lifeline” friends – this is not the direction I’m going!  I had to remember that if I want to make room for the new business (social media), I can’t keep hanging out in the old ‘hood (cooking every day!). And while it pained me to pass up the catering opportunity, it was a relief to be rid of the stress, planning and energy I would expend – which would ultimately take time from my emerging passion to help food companies use social media in exciting new ways.

To sum it all up, what I’ve learned these past few days is that you have to reposition yourself away from the bright shiny objects when the fire hose cuts loose – no joke!

So tell me what you think about all these signs I keep getting and the direction my repositioning cruise is headed – I’m all ears!

For the last 5 years, two months and 8 days (give or take!), I’ve owned and operated The Incredible Chef, an amazing personal chef service.  And while I’ve enjoyed that part of the buffet table, I’d like to explore a little more of what’s out there in the food world, specifically in the world of rapidly expanding social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, et al).

I’m fascinated with the massive opportunities in the online world, and can’t wait to help food and food-related companies find ways to capitalize on these avenues, growing their client bases and increasing their visibility (and bottom line!). It’s a natural extension of the foodie world I’m already working with and utilizing the social media connections I’ve established so far.  In my opinion, the foodies have done a fabulous job of integrating these opportunities and they are truly seeing results for their companies…and I’m going to help them take it to the next level!

And don’t worry, I’m still cooking for my current personal chef clients, keeping my hands in the pie, so to speak!  But that is an area of the buffet line I’ll be scaling back a bit.

So, here I go, off to this fresh, almost-out-of-the-oven end of the buffet table, and I’m open for suggestions on what to “sample” first!  If you know of food businesses that wonder ”what in the world would I do on Twitter” or just want to find out more ways to reach their customers, please send them my way.

I’ve already blasted off to a good start, talking with several companies – chocolatiers, beer and wine companies, restaurants, etc – and the interest is definitely there!  And look for posts in the next few days of a couple recent foodie events I’ve attended with lots of great details.

The buffet is open – bon appetit!

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