Dirkmonster

Round, slow 40-something spotted in road race

In my first official 5K race in over a year...

I came in 2nd to last in my age group.

Click here if you want to see runner #120.  I am waiting by the phone for the Biggest Loser people to call.

Oh well, it was a beautiful day and a good cause.

Five tips to get cyber-street smart

A generation ago it took street smarts to avoid being victimized by scam artists.  Today "web sense" is a necessary trait to steer clear of online traps that can result in consequences that range from annoying to devastating. 

As legitimate businesses follow the web's latest channels to grow sales, so are unscrupulous characters looking to wreak havoc for various purposes.  There is actually a cyber war underway that threatens our national security.  So there are threats on a global scale.  But for personal computing, following a few simple guidelines will keep you safe from almost all the trouble.

The topic came to mind this week as I established a Skype account in order to talk with business associates north of the border.  Unlike millions of users who have discovered this almost too good to be true web application, I was new, and unfamiliar with what to expect.  And sure enough, before I got completely oriented, I was spammed through Skype with what I concluded was a potentially dangerous invitation.  The message was essentially a spoof of my virus protection application and claimed it had detected a vulnerability in my computer's registry.  It asked me to click on a link and download a patch to solve the problem.  The message was in the form of a warning that suggested that unless I took immediate action, I was at risk.  Of course, the exact opposite is likely the truth.  I'll never know what I would have gotten into if I had fallen for it and downloaded some malware on my computer.

And over the last few weeks, I've seen a number of my friends' Twitter and Facebook accounts get hacked and received messages that probably contained viruses.  Anyone seen this lately on Twitter:

haha. This you??? http://...

Tip 1: You may recognize the person that sent you this, but the link is a trap. Even if you recognize the sender, if you're not expecting the link in the message, better safe than sorry.  Confirm with the sender, if you know him, that the message is legitimate.  As a rule, I don't click on links or download files unless I know the person and am expecting the link or attachment.  Too bad, that leaves me out of the fun of all those forwarded pictures but if I'm really interested, I can send a separate email back to the person and confirm it was a legitimate message.

Tip 2: No brainer: Maintain a well established and respected virus, firewall and spyware protection program on ALL computers.  I use McAfee.  Many homes today have several computers on a home network.  If all the machines are not protected, the risk is that problems that will get in through the weakest point.

Tip 3: Speaking of home networks, make sure the security and encryption is enabled so that no one and no machine can gain access.  If your network is not locked down, you're at risk of everything from stolen computer files to being spied upon through that web cam attached to your laptop.

Tip 4: Use strong passwords and change them regularly.  This one is a pain for me, but a necessary pain.  Passwords should be at least 8 characters and contain a number and a special character.  Changing the passwords regularly may keep you a step ahead of those trying to compromise your various accounts across the web.

Tip 5: Be aware that threats are coming from additional sources now.  In addition to the threat of picking up spyware from a site you visit or contracting a virus through email, scammers are now all over social networks.  You can get victimized just as easily now through Twitter, Facebook, Instant Messages or even SMS messages to your mobile device.

Tip 6: Stay apprised of the latest.  The bad guys are always trying new and different ways to trip you up.  But there are good guys out there that are just as smart.  I stay up to date on the latest threats through RSS feeds from reputable sources such as Mashable or CNET.  Your virus protection software should maintain a comprehensive threat center.  For more information, the US government has the US-CERT.

Perhaps the most unfortunate casualty of a worldwide web full of traps and scams is our trust. Like most of our cities and towns, the web is not a place to leave the front door unlocked or pick up hitch hikers. But with cyber-street smarts, you'll trust less but need not be afraid.

ABC News to reportedly cut over 300

ABC News employees will soon be getting a letter in the mail asking them if they'd like to give up their jobs. It is part of a massive reorganization -- the size of which has not seen in news division president David Westin's 13 years at the helm.

via www.mediabistro.com

The President of ABC News tells TVNewser:

"You know, there are some forces of nature that are even stronger than Disney. These are the realities we face. We face competition from digital outlets. [We've seen] the growth of our digital business but it has not been as strong as the broadcast business."

8 Steps to Designing a Reactivation Campaign - ClickZ

One of our clients just launched a fairly large reactivation campaign. While there are many ways to run a reactivation campaign, the following steps will set you on a pretty good path should you decide to launch one.

via www.clickz.com

I've found clients are shocked to discover the percentage of what they consider their "current" customer list actually falls into the list of customers targeted for a reactivation campaign.

For example, it's not uncommon to have 80% of a b2c house email file fall in the category of "have not opened or clicked in the last 12 months". Therefore it's essential to determine what "inactive" actually means in your business - because it's different for a florist than it is for a online service provider.

Finally, despite the most strategic reactivation campaign there is a large chunk of your inactives that are not going to respond. Careful consideration should be given to selecting segments that get retired or touched much less frequently. Those segments are costing you money and skewing your performance metrics.

Turning the page on a career

After 10 years with the same organization, today is my last day at Acxiom Corporation.  I decided it was time to jump on an opportunity to join a search engine marketing agency - Page Zero Media.

I'm experiencing a number of feelings as I exit this job and enter another.  The overwhelming one is gratitude.  I'm grateful for the countless opportunities I've been given over the last decade.  Those opportunities have afforded me so much experience and maturity that I really needed.

In gratitude, I'd like to thank some people.  Rich Maradik and Jay Graves founded a company called Data Mark in the mid 1990's.  These two guys put it all on the line and grew that database marketing company into SmartDM.  In 2000, they decided to invest in online marketing technology and services.  They gave me the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of that effort.  For the next 5 years the company grew in fits and starts - and I didn't become a dot com millionaire.  However, I experienced personal growth that was much more valuable.  Working with Rich, Jay and my colleagues at SmartDM taught me how to believe in a vision even if you can't clearly see the path to get there.  The vision won't even become total reality - but that's not really the point either.  It's the relationships, experiences and challenges on the journey toward the vision that make it worthwhile at the end of the day.

In 2005, a much larger company called Acxiom took notice of SmartDM and snapped us up.  That was a big change with a lot of uncertainty.  The big picture was that we had a place in Acxiom to provide multichannel agency services and standardized marketing database technology.  I was pretty excited because Acxiom didn't really have the capability to do email marketing for its clients and that's exactly what my team did.  We had run email programs for big companies like Harrah's and American General Finance.  And then, a few months later, Acxiom bought a company called Digital Impact which did email marketing on a much bigger scale with a much bigger staff from offices in the Silicon Valley to New York City.  Quite soon, it dawned on me that I better cozy up to these folks.

Long story short, Scott Tansey and I laid the groundwork for building an Acxiom Digital team in Nashville, TN.  Competition for technically skilled talent was less than what it was in the Silicon Valley.  So we thought we could hire and retain a group of talented associates.  In an era where off shoring work was the thing to do to lower expenses, we said "off shore" it to Middle Tennessee or "Nash Dehli" as Jay called us.  Middle Tennessee might as well have been India to these Digital Kingpins.  The main cost savings came from the difference between what it cost to lease office space in the Silicon Valley and Manhattan vs. our somewhat dumpy mixed-use space at the end of a runway in Nashville, TN.  I am grateful to the bosses that signed off on this idea and have supported it ever since.

We started slowly at first, adding two Acxiom Digital associates to my small team that still did work for legacy SmartDM clients.  We moved a little work from the San Mateo, CA office to Nashville...and...it worked!  Clients were pleased, we learned how to work effectively with teams in other locations and the team thrived.  Before long, we were hiring like crazy in Nashville and had more than 30 associates here in a couple years time. As I leave today, I will argue that this is as good a team as any other Acxiom team in the world.  They are just incredibly talented and dedicated - and I give them the credit.  My role was to recruit good talent, put them in the right roles, make sure they had the tools they needed, advocate for them within the company and most importantly, get out of the way and let them do their jobs.  Building the team here in Nashville is the most gratifying thing I've been involved with in my career to date.  I want to thank the team here in Nashville for the honor of working with you.  It is bittersweet to leave this team but the sweet part is knowing they are headed for ever greater things.  Thanks to my bosses past and present - Tony Espiritu, Robbie Fang and Chris Marriott.

It strikes me how some of the most difficult challenges I've encountered laid the ground work for future opportunities.  In 2002, Jay suggested that I figure out this search engine marketing business so we could offer it to our clients.  I was skeptical at first - caught too deep in the day to day grind to see the next big opportunity.  But ultimately I dove in and discovered a fascinating means of acquiring new business using search engines - it revived the geek in me.  I came across a book that got me started.  About 8 years later, I'm going to work for the author of that book.

First it was web sites in the mid 1990's.  Then it was email marketing.  After that, search engine marketing.  Now I believe a number of digital channels are just about ready to break through in terms of proven commercial viability.  What an interesting and fast developing industry to be in!

Finally, I have not enjoyed any success at all over the years all on my own.  I've needed help every step of the way.  The biggest support has always come from my family - and so my biggest thank you goes to Lyn.  Ross and Jenna Claire both came along in the middle of all this - thanks to them for motivating me. 

I'm moving on to the next thing.