Dear Baby Boomer,This is a message of love from a millennial.  I hope it doesn't hurt your feelings.  I simply want to suggest that maybe, just maybe, it's time to retire.  Call it quits.  Head out to pasture.  Perhaps it's time to throw in the towel.  Take a long walk down an empty beach.  Ride off into the sunset.I'm not referring to all boomers.  Not by ANY stretch of the imagination.  I'm simply talking to those of you who have decided that this new world sucks and instead of trying to grow in it and navigate through it, you're fighting it.A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about why you should hire millennials.  I had a pleasant (and not so pleasant) mix of comments from all generations.  A ton of boomers weighed in.  Some of them talked about how they bring value, class and guidance ... 06/10/2015

Facebook rolls out a potentially powerful new tool for select businesses.  Are you in?I guess one of the cool things about spending gobs of money on advertising on Facebook Dark Posts is that you get the hookup from time to time.Today, that hookup comes in the form of free Facebook Bluetooth Beacons for some of our clients.We've known it was coming for a while, but it's finally official. So how will it work, exactly?When people walk into a business, the beacon will beam a signal to their Facebook app on their phone during their visit.  It will give them information about the business.  It encourages shoppers to like your page, check in, see their friends' recommendations and post directly to the business Facebook page.Facebook says that the beacons don't collect any info from people or ... 06/08/2015

It was time for an office lunch.  This time we took a short trip to Oriental Cafe in Vernon CT.  I recommend their cocuout shrimp and scallops - simply to die for - best I have had anywhere.  06/05/2015

In the digital age, is the Board of Directors blocking your business from growing as quickly as it could be? I’ve read countless articles by consultants about how the creation of a Board of Directors will be the best thing to ever happen to your business. They bring diverse backgrounds.  They bring expertise.  They bring leadership.  They bring talent.  Blah.  Blah.  Blah. Time for a little contrarian perspective.  In the digital age, a board can also be your biggest business blockade. I recently had the pleasure of submitting a proposal to a “Board of Directors”.  None of them had actual business experience in the real world.  They were a bunch of academics who got their rocks off trying to dissect everything that went against “theory” in the proposal. Why would we bother putting a pr... 06/04/2015

 In an age of "be your own boss"...a look at the value of becoming a freelancer.About eight years ago, a few colleagues and I were at the bar having a drink after our newscast.  At the time, I was producing for an NBC owned and operated television station.We started chatting with the guy next to us.  He told us he was a freelancer.One of my buddies commented that because the guy was a freelancer, we should pick up the tab…assuming that “freelancer” meant “broke”.Couldn’t have been further from the truth.As a matter of fact, not only did the guy make six figures a year, but he did it on HIS schedule and didn’t have to report into an office every day.Was he onto something?The StatsBeing a freelancer and independent contractor is on the rise in the United States. This type of work currentl... 06/03/2015

Is microblogging on Facebook the key to cutting through all of the noise?It seems as if everything is getting smaller this days.Don't believe me?  Look at a carton of ice cream.  Bet you still thought you were getting a half gallon, didn't ya?The whole concept of shortening things up created a multi-billion dollar player - Twitter.So in an age where we seem to have more and more content out there for us to consume, is the answer in microblogs?According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the average attention span of a human being has dropped from 12 seconds in 2000 to eight seconds in 2013.  That, my friends, is shorter than the attention span of a goldfish.If I still have your attention, let's go back to the concept of the microblogs.The goal of blogs - or any conten... 06/02/2015

Many people tend to think that the boss is the only one who can do the firing.I'm sure you've all had that moment where you WISH you could turn the tables and fire your boss.But what if I told you that you can?Let's this about this for a second.  The act of letting someone go in business is nothing more than the action you take when you realize that the subject in question is no longer of enough use to you to warrant the continued business relationship.Once you embrace that mentality, you can start watering the seed of entrepreneurism that's been tucked away in your brain.  Follow these simple steps and you can soon fire your boss.1.  Sack away a year of savings.  I know all of the "experts" say six months.  But if you're planning on leaving to do your own thing, you're going to be in f... 05/22/2015

 Even though I worked in journalism for nearly a decade, I didn't understand the power of a publicist.If anything, I hated them.When studying journalism in college, we were taught that journalists are good and public relations people are bad.  Many professors created this imaginary battle in which the media is completely unbiased and has massive amounts of time to conduct extensive research on every story...while public relations teams are manipulative and controlling and change the course of history.But during my time in television, I grew to respect the good public relations agencies.  They understood my needs as a journalist.  They knew the importance of b-roll, tight interviews and extreme deadlines.It wasn't until I hired a publicist for our marketing agency that I realized the inc... 05/21/2015

Growing up, we were always taught how much trouble drugs can get you in.The message was reinforced by everyone from my parents to our D.A.R.E. program.After getting a big slap from Facebook last week, I wonder if perhaps I should have listened to them.But this isn't a story of drug use.  It's the story about a rapidly evolving industry and the implications of law and social media policy.This is the story of how medical marijuana got us in trouble with Facebook.The BackstoryOur agency is doing a lot of work in the world of medical marijuana and CBD's - both here in the state of Connecticut and nationally.  There are now 23 states (plus D.C.) where medical marijuana is legal in some way, shape or form.  There are conversations happening at the state and the federal level about expanding t... 05/20/2015

Man, there are a LOT of people hating on Millennials these days.I didn't even realize just how bad it was until the article I published last week - With the Rise of the Millennial Comes The Fall of the Suit.I'm not sure if it's anger, jealousy or perhaps ignorance.  But there seems to be a lot of venom towards an audience that's shifting and redefining the work force.Let's put down the pitchforks and torches for a minute.  Here are a few things you might not have known about Millennials. According to Mobile Enterprise, 73% of Millennials say they should be able to modify and customize their work computer - and 63% say they will go around IT to get what they need. According to Cisco, 87% of Millennials say they would choose to work for a company heavily invested in video over one that is... 05/19/2015

This evening I had a great time at Eric Boucher's 2015 Spring ActiveRain MeetUp In Manchester, CT.  This was Eric's first time hosting an ActiveRain MeetUp and he handled it like he had done several ActiveRain Meetup's before.Tonight's ActiveRain MeetUp was at CW's Chops "n" Catch in Manchester, CT.  The food was very good but the company was even better.  However, there was one thing different about this ActiveRain MeetUp than any other MeetUp I have been to in the past, this was an All Boys ActiveRain.  Some of the boys Conrad Allen, and Praful Thakkar drove several miles and across state lines to be there.Below are a couple of pictures, of tonight's 2015 Spring ActiveRain MeetUp In Manchester, CT.  I would have taken more pictures but I was having to good of a time talking to everyon... 05/12/2015

Last week I told you all about our experience filming Superhero Day at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center.Today, we're proud to announce that acclaimed artist Rachel Platten has partnered with us to help spread the word about these incredible little heroes.Not long ago, Platten released a song called "The Fight Song".  It's inspired people all across the globe - including the little kids who were heard singing the song last week.  And so it became a fitting backdrop for a music video of sorts capturing all of the emotions on this special day.The moments you're about to see may be difficult to watch.  But today isn't about the pain.  Today is about the hope.  It's about inspiration.  And it's about touching lives...and inspiring others to support the Connecticut Children's Medical... 05/08/2015

Dress for success.  It was something that was always stressed to me growing up.  My parents.  My teachers.  My bosses. I was a rule breaker at a young age.  In Catholic school, my feet were so big that we had trouble finding affordable dress shoes that fit.  So my parents bought me black sneakers. With them came a detention for breaching the dress code.  My first detention…and it wasn’t even my fault.  Go figure.  To my mother’s credit, she went all momma bear on the school and I don’t believe I ever actually served that detention.  Unlike the detention I got for bringing my mother’s bra into school for show and tell in second grade.  Sister Gertrude did NOT like that.I digress.At my first job, I was written up for growing facial hair.  For the love of God, going through puberty I was s... 05/04/2015

I once knew a guy who rarely needed to go to the store.Toilet paper.  Pens.  Bottles of water.  You name it.  If it was to be found in his office, it was also soon to be found in his house.He was one of countless employees out there stealing from his company.Last year, The Global Retail Barometer revealed that American retail staff actually steal more from their employers than crooks in the stores.  While shoplifters account for 37 percent of revenue lost...employees account for 43 percent.According to the report, the majority of it is from sleight-of-hand at the register - canceling transactions that shouldn't be canceled, issuing refunds that shouldn't be issued, etc.It's this type of theft that gets all of the media coverage, and rightfully so.  But did we ever stop to think about ho... 04/13/2015

A couple of weeks ago, I gave a presentation to a huge group of people ranging in age from 40 to 75 about how millennials have fueled the massive expansion of technology and how we use it.  I asked this group (the topic was politics) why candidates spend so much money on traditional advertising? There was silence in the room after I asked how many people in the room actually watch “live” television.Here we are in an age where we can watch what we want to watch WHEN we want to watch it. We’ve shunned live television, instead embracing DVR’s and streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu.Yet what are the hottest apps in the market right now?Two new toys that allow us the opportunity to capture live streaming.Go figure.Periscope and Meerkat have captured attention over the past couple of ... 04/12/2015

Well, it’s official.  Facebook is taking aim at Google.  And if a patent that they just applied for goes through, it was drastically reshape the entire concept of digital advertising.Buckle up.  It’s time to go down a wormhole.Our agency has been creating Facebook Dark Posts for more than two years now.  Finally, other agencies are starting to hear about them and experiment with them.  It’s about time.Another powerful tool that Facebook offers is remarketing.  People visit your website…hit Facebook… and POW – there’s an ad for your brand trailing them.But this patent indicates that Facebook is looking to take on Google directly, integrating the big data it possesses in a way that serves up ads OUTSIDE of Facebook.Huh?Let’s break this down simply.You’re searching around for a new camera.... 04/09/2015

I'll never forget the first time I asked my boss for a raise.  My palms were sweating.  I was trembling a little.  I had been working hard, damnit, and I deserved a big fat raise. I sat down with my manager and listed all of the ways I had gone above and beyond.  I talked about what I brought to the table for the company.  I went on and on.Finally – he cut me off.“What exactly is it that you REALLY want to talk about today, Kyle?”Well THAT messed up my plan.“Well, I think I deserve a raise,” I said.“How much of a raise do you think you deserve?”“At least $.25 per hour,” I said.“And how exactly is that going to help the company make more money?” he countered.Checkmate.  The question I wasn’t prepared for.In the end, he explained that they just couldn’t afford it at that point.  It was, a... 04/08/2015

In the world of advertising, YouTube pre-roll is hot, hot, hot.But in the world of basically everyone who hits play, pre-roll ads are something that typically bring out the most creative swears known to man.Today, Google Partners like The Silent Partner Marketing received an email from the big boys at the search engine monster.  Guess what?  They're going ad-free.But, as we'd expect, ad-free doesn't mean it IS free.Here's the email:  Dear YouTube Partner, Your fans want choices. Not only do they want to watch what they want, whenever they want, anywhere, and on any device they choose, they want YouTube features built specifically with their needs in mind. Over the past several months, we’ve taken bold new steps to bring these experiences to life. Since inviting hundreds of thousands of ... 04/08/2015

A few years ago, we were almost burned by a client. The guy ended up being slapped with a whole bunch of federal grand jury indictments, and a lot of my colleagues and other business owners DID suffer.That’s when I put the “morals and ethics” paragraph into our contracts. It basically says that if we feel that you are operating unethically, or if you feel we are, the contract can be terminated immediately.We never used the clause. Although we should have.About a year ago, I called up my lawyer and asked her if we could change it. I wanted to shift it from being a “morals and ethics” clause to, pardon the language, the “@sshole” clause.I figured it would be an easier win in court if we ever needed to call upon it.Judge: “Why did you decide to terminate the contract?”Me: “Well, your honor... 04/06/2015

You’ve taken the giant step of creating video content to connect with your audience. But now what? Until now, YouTube was the answer. But now the video giant is getting knocked around by Facebook and all of a sudden is on the defensive. Last October, I wrote about how Facebook was starting to deliver a beating to YouTube. In August of 2014, Facebook passed YouTube for the number of video views on desktop – delivering nearly a billion more views. There were two caveats. 1) YouTube was still holding the title for mobile plays. 2) Facebook counted video views based on their autoplay feature, something that YouTube didn’t have. Bottom line? The numbers are starting to move in favor of Facebook…but given the lack of necessary engagement to move the dial, would it make a difference? Apparent... 04/04/2015