Headstand Media

A group of Nightstand attenders gathered on December 17, 2009 to participate in “Nightstand Gives Back.” After informal networking and consumption of food and beverages, we started focusing on our agenda for the evening… that of a coordinated and collaborative group focus on helping Hemmant Jha, founder of a non-profit organization called Wheelwell, to develop an intelligent strategy for their much needed initial web presence.

Randal Birkey and members of Headstand Media facilitated the group discussion in three main topic areas:

• Content, Site Architecture, Brand and SEO Strategy
• Visual Brand, User Interface and Experience Design
• Technology, Platform, Hosting and Site Implementation Strategy

Based upon background information provided by Wheelwell, and the discussion and whiteboarding process we learned the following things about Wheelwell and its web strategy needs:

Target Audiences

• Wheelchair users
• Designers
• Medical Community
• University Research
• Insurance Companies
• Potential Donors/Investors
  • Foundations/Associations
  • Micro-loans/micro-finance

Brand-Design

• People – tell a good human story
• Emotion – what is the “hook”?
• Broader demographics
• There is a compelling story about the wheelchair, its history and lack of innovation!
• Compare this with other product innovation
• non-preachy style
• Brand Qualities:
  • “Healing”
  • “Restore Normalcy”

Wheelwell Story Components

• Emphasis on telling the most compelling story
• Is Wheelwell a Product or a Service – or both?
• Wheelwell is about foundational industry change
• Story Strategy
  • Tailor stories to reach specific audiences
  • Tie in with the Search strategy
  • Engage in Social Media – where people are
  • Email Subscribe – stay up to date
  • Sponsor a design contest!

Search

• Wheelchair product appeal – attibutes like:
  • comfort
  • durability
  • etc.
• Research
• Keywords
  • wheelchair
  • new…
  • mobility
  • paratransit
  • design…
  • specific technical terms related to wheelchairs
• Categorize content around these highly searched terms and phrases
  • Encourage: commenting, discussion, collaboration and sharing

Next Steps

A number of Nightstand attenders have volunteered to assist Headstand Media in proposing, designing and building a new website based upon this information and the recommended WordPress strategy we discussed. A proposal document was prepared by Headstand Media and delivered to Wheelwell for review on December 31, 2009.

Headstand Media and Nightstand look forward to further dialog and the prospect of working with Wheelwell in 2010.

As promised, Headstand Media has reviewed the suggested candidates to be the focus of our “Nightstand Gives Back” event on December 17, 2009. We have selected a non-profit organization called Wheelwell.org.

Wheelwell is a non-profit organization, established to advance design ideas, propose technological solutions and facilitate the creation of products to help people with physical disabilities participate more fully, more effortlessly and with more pleasure in everyday activities. Through our efforts, we would like to see wheelchairs and similar devices become products that truly enable and heal.

Hemmant Jha, founder of Wheelwell will be with us at “Nightstand Gives Back” to provide additional background and to answer questions during the evening.

We encourage you to read more about the event and consider joining us in donating your time and talents to help this worthy cause.

RSVP to Nightand 14

Visit our “Nightstand Gives Back” event posting and RSVP there! All Nightstand RSVP responders will receive an email with additional information on Wheelwell with which to prepare for the December 17th evening event.

You’ve no doubt heard of Extreme Home Makeover, Pimp My Ride, Overhaulin’ and other cable/TV shows that find a need and then fulfill that need through generous volunteers and charitable gifts. In the spirit of gift-giving and the Christmas holiday season we will attempt to “give back” in a unique way at Nightstand 14.

Here’s how you can participate…

Step 1: Nominate A Website

We are seeking nominations of deserving organizations (for profit or non-profit) that need and would benefit from the combined advice, expertise and recommendations of our Nightstand attenders related to their web strategy and presence. How? It’s easy… just contact your candidate and tell them about this opportunity. If they are interested and available, you can nominate them using the form below through December 11th.

A major consideration in our decision process will be whether or not you and your nominee can be present at Nightstand 14, and if they can provide adequate background and organizational information for us to make available to the Nightstand community before the event. Headstand Media will review the nominees in this light and select a deserving candidate. We will gather the background information and make it available several days before the event. (See Nomination Winner!)

Step 2: Attend Nightstand 14

On Thursday, December 17 at 6 PM we’ll begin the informal networking with food and beverages provided. At 6:30 PM we’ll facilitate small task groups around the following areas of interest and/or expertise:

• Content, Site Architecture, Brand and SEO Strategy
• Visual Brand, User Interface and Experience Design
• Technology, Platform, Hosting and Site Implementation Strategy

We’ll invite our guests to join us in these task group discussions. At 7:15 we will hear 15-minute presentations from each task group on their recommendations. At 8 PM we will open it up to general group discussion and formalize a strategic recommendation. Headstand Media will post our summary recommendation online after the event.

Step 3: Consider Extending Your Gift…

Based upon the specific details and outcome of the event, Headstand Media is planning to donate some leadership, time and expertise to implementing the recommended web plan for the nominee. We invite our Nightstand community to consider joining us in that endeavor in any way they can. We will define and clarify those options as the details of the recommended plan unfold.

Invite Others and RSVP!

We’d love to see as many of our past guests again, and we encourage you to pass on this invitation to others in the industry who would benefit from and could contribute to this kind of event. In order to provide enough food and beverages, we need to know how many are attending. Please RSVP by leaving a comment below with your name and organization.

Thursday, December 17, 2009
Headstand Media – training room in Suite 850 (Dillon Kane Group)
333 W. Wacker Dr. • Suite 850 • Chicago, Illinois (Map)

• 6:00PM – Informal networking with food and beverages provided!
• 6:30 PM – Task Groups
• 7:15 PM – Task Group Reports
• 8:00 PM – General Discussion
• 8:30 PM – Wrap-up
• RSVP by leaving a comment below!

We’d love to have you join us!

RSVP Attenders

Randal Birkey – Headstand Media
Matt Ritsman – Headstand Media
Taylor Birkey – Headstand Media
Kyle Williams – Headstand Media
Kent Thompson – Action Web Apps
Shane Montgomery – VIP Property Chicago
Chris Vezeau – Neotechnics
Parag Humbad – crushme.com
Hemmant Jha – Wheelwell
Patrick Richards – Richards Patent Law
Kayo Takasugi – Visual Voice
Alex Garcia – Chicago Tribune
Steve Tanner – Kidology and BevReview.com
Becky Williams – Critical Mass

Nominees Received to Date

• eighth blackbird
• wheelwell.org – Winner announced on December 11, 2009
• Support1000

16 people gathered at Headstand Media on Thursday, November 19, 2009 for a great time of networking, learning and sharing around a common interest in web 2.0 technology and applications. The training room here at Headstand Media was warm and lively as Nightstand 13 attenders ate Thai food from Star of Siam, and shared with one another about work, life and the web.

Presentation

Presenter Steve Tanner shared with the gathered group from his experience as creator of BevReview.com, a popular beverage review website. Steve shared an entertaining and unique story about his recent “altercations” with one corporate giant over a review he wrote of a Monster energy drink. Steve’s presentation covered the unfolding of this adventure and how social media played a unique role in accelerating his cause.

Summary

After receiving a baseless email from Continental Enterprises regarding his negative review and coming up short in attempts to contact the firm to get to the bottom of the problem, Steve decided to take his problem online and appeal to his readership via his personal blog, BevReview.com website, and Twitter. Steve also talked about how another “David vs. Goliath” controversy involving Monster and a Vermont microbrewery coincided with his own troubles. Namely through viral video on YouTube, the underdog brewer made headlines in popular news outlets all across the country, which ultimately led to the corporation’s “backing down.”

Interestingly enough, it seems that in both cases, social media may be responsible for a changing standard in corporate America regarding how quickly companies must respond to consumer complaints and issues. While precedents show that it takes most large corporations a rather long time to gather the data/authorization needed to respond, consumers who use social media are finding quick support online when they take their frustrations to the web.

Other questions raised dealt with how visible companies should handle using corporate social media accounts and if/how to get involved when consumers with negative stories hit the wire. In all, Steve’s presentation was an excellent conversation instigator!

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What happens when corporately-crafted public relations initiatives go bad and social media lets you know about it? We’ll take a look at one such situation from October that targeted the folks behind Monster Energy drink. What happened, how did the company respond, and did the mobilization of fans via the ‘net have an effect on the outcome?

We’ll host a conversation facilitated by Steve Tanner, Editor of beverage review website, BevReview.com. A negative product review, overly litigious law firm, microbrewery in Vermont, and a horror film actor placed Steve in the middle of a battle with the folks at Monster Energy. He’ll explain how “going viral” with his situation created a positive result in the end… but he won’t be providing any Monster Energy drinks for the discussion, so bring your own!

About Steve Tanner

For the past 6 years, Steve has served as the Director of Web Operations for Kidology.org, a non-profit, community-driven resource for those who work in children’s ministry. Prior to that, he worked professionally in the fields of online community media, marketing, and project management. On the side, he’s an avid blogger and beverage enthusiast.

Invite Others!

We’d love to see many of our past guests again, and we encourage you to pass on this invitation to others in the industry who would benefit from this presentation topic and networking event. RSVP by leaving a comment with your name and company or organization below.

We’d love to have you join us!
Headstand Media: Randy, Benjamin, Kyle, Matt and Taylor

RSVP Attenders

Randal Birkey – Headstand Media
Benjamin Nelson – Headstand Media
Taylor Birkey – Headstand Media
Steve Tanner – BevReview.com
Patrick Richards – Richards Patent Law
Conor McCarthy – The Talking Mirror
Erik Vorhes – VSA Partners
Joe O’Connor – O’Connor Design Works
Melissa Meulenberg – Hard Rock Hotel Chicago
Chris Arndt – Moody Bible Institute
Nikhil M – Illinois Tech
Laolu A – Illinois Tech
Steve Miller
Jacob Saunders – RightPoint Consulting
Joe Dascenzo – Firebone
Kent Thompson – Action Web Apps

20,000 visitors in only 14 hours! – Nightstand 12: A Viral Marketing Story

At Nightstand 12, Headstand Media will present a case study covering a viral marketing campaign we developed for fun and a learning experience. The site received a degree of success, generating over 20,000 unique visitors in the first 14 hours after launch.

The idea was based on the multitude of swine flu maps that were receiving online attention. We thought it would be interesting to create a map that animates, showing how the confirmed H1N1 cases grew over time.  At Nightstand 12 we will present our project www.swine-flu-map-animation.com and the tools and process used to obtain the traffic numbers we did.

We’ll walk you through the step-by-step and hour-by-hour strategies we used (i.e. the initial plan, SEO strategy, social networking, etc.) to achieve the success we did. As always, at the end of every Nightstand presentation, there will be a time to ask questions and brainstorm about how these principles can relate to you and your business or web project.

Invite Others!

We’d love to see you at this event, and we encourage you to pass on this invitation to others in the industry who would benefit from this presentation topic and networking event. RSVP by leaving a comment with your name and company or organization below.

We hope that you can join us!

Headstand Media: Randy, Benjamin, Kyle and Matt

May 28, 2009
6 PM – 7PM: Food & drinks, informal networking
7 PM – 8:30 PM: Introductions, presentation, discussion

Kyle Williams presenting at Nightstand 12

Attendees

Randal Birkey
Benjamin Nelson
Kyle Williams
Matt Ritsman
Kent Thompson – Action Web Apps
Erik Vorhes – Textivism
Steve Wilson – McDonald’s
Mark Filippi – The Blacksmith Project
Duncan Mathieson – The Blacksmith Project
Steve Tanner – Kidology
Patrick Flanagan – ShopLocal
Nicko Sahlas & Guest – ChefTalk

In a follow-up to our January Nightstand 10 event, Headstand Media would like to let all our friends and clients know that Steve Wilson’s Global Web Communications team at McDonald’s just launched a new McDonald’s corporate website at http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com.

Steve mentioned the soon-to-launch project in his Nightstand presentation on January 22nd, and now you can view it live online since it launched on March 23, 2009.

A number of Nightstand attendees participated in this project. Pay particular attention to the new “web 2.0″ look and feel, the home page “main tout” and the Interactive Timeline features. The interactive elements were developed as Flash files designed to import external image and text assets through editable XML and image libraries. Also note two new sections targeted at some influential “web 2.0″ audiences: Students and the Media Center.

Also, we encourage you to subscribe to the About McDonald’s RSS feed which will alert you to any new stories that are posted to the site.

McDonald's Corporate Website - Before

About McDonald's Home Page - After

Nightstand 10 Description

34 people from a variety of organizations gathered at Headstand Media on January 22, 2009 for a great time of networking, learning and sharing around a common interest in web 2.0 technology and applications. Our training room was filled to near capacity as Nightstand 10 attenders ate Thai food from Star of Siam, and shared with one another about work, life and the web.

Presentation

Our special guest and featured presenter Steve Wilson shared with the gathered group from his experience and perspective as Senior Director of Global Web Communications, at McDonald’s Corporation, located in Oak Brook, Illinois. During his presentation, Steve covered the history of McDonald’s step-by-step entry and experimentation with web 2.o applications, what they learned along the way, and examples of the various forms and uses it takes at the company today. As you might expect, web 2.0 presented challenges requiring cultural change within such a large, global corporation.

Blogging

The earliest foray for McD into web 2.0 was an internal blog on the company Intranet. There was never a very big employee participation as it was a big change to their culture. In the next iteration, McDonald’s dropped all reference to the tool as a blog, and called it “Mindshare” focusing on positive discussion and sharing aspects. Today, this is a growing and expanding tool on the company Intranet.

Open for Discussion

External Blog

The first public McD web 2.0 application was “Open for Discussion” a company blog primarily run by Vice President, Bob Langert, around their corporate and social responsibility initiatives. This site was launched several years ago without any public announcement and has grown substantially in the years since. It is a very active blog read by thousands of people worldwide.

Crew Blog

Another newer initiative was the creation of a social networking site for McDonald’s crew members worldwide, called “Station M.”

Station M

This site allows crew members to share photos, stories and other information to build teamwork and engage in constructive conversations about the workplace. The site connects crew members worldwide and can be accessed in English, French and Spanish.

View photos from Nightstand 10

Nightstand 10

Headstand Media is pleased to bring you Nightstand 11, an after hours educational and networking event to be held on Thursday evening, March 26, 2009 at the Headstand Media training room facility at 333 W. Wacker Dr., Suite 850, Chicago, Illinois. Informal networking begins at 6 PM, with food and beverages provided. Introductions begin at 7 PM followed by our featured presentation and informal discussion until about 8:30 PM.

Web 2.0 and the Chicago Tribune

Bill Adee Editor/Digital Media Chicago Tribune

In January we brought you an inside look at McDonald’s. In March our Nightstand 11 presenter will be Bill Adee, Editor/Digital Media at the Chicago Tribune. Bill will talk about the changing face of newspaper publishing, the Trib’s work in social media, the Chicago Breaking News Center and a new project he is involved in which is still under wraps.

Before his current role, Bill was a sports editor with the Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times. You can follow Bill on Twitter as Bill80. He’s also on Facebook… maybe he’ll be your friend too?

Invite Others!

We’d love to see many of our past guests again, and we encourage you to pass on this invitation to others in the industry who would benefit from this presentation topic and networking event. RSVP by leaving a comment with your name and company or organization below.

We’d love to have you join us!

Headstand Media: Randy, Benjamin, Kyle and Matt

RSVP Attenders

Randal Birkey
Benjamin Nelson
Kyle Williams
Matt Ritsman
Bill Adee – Chicago Tribune
Ben Mills – Ben Mills Design
Steve Tanner – Kidology
Lauren Dillon – Sunshine Gospel
Matt Maldre – Tribune Media Services
Taylor Birkey – Writer
Conor McCarthy – The Talking Mirror
Jeffrey Brennan – Erikson Institute
Kent Thompson – Action Web Apps
Toni Shears – Erikson Institute
John May – Oracle
Marc Kafka – Oracle
Erik Vorhes – Textivism
Mary Massey – Weber Shandwick
Alex Parker – Chi-Town Daily News
Craig Newman – Chicago Sun-Times
Molly Horan – DePaul University
Amy Guth – Pilcrow Lit Fest, So New Publishing
Leah Jones – Natiiv Arts & Media
Rick Cox – ChicagoCondosOnline.com
Allie Osmar – Edelman
Karen Riley – Edelman
Eric White – Chicago Sun-Times
Meg Howard – Edelman

At the outset of 2009, Headstand Media is pleased to bring you Nightstand 10, an after hours educational and networking event to be held on Thursday evening, January 22, 2009 at the Headstand Media training room facility at 333 W. Wacker Dr., Suite 850, Chicago, Illinois. Informal networking begins at 6 PM, with food and drink provided. Introductions begin at 7 PM followed by our featured presentation and informal discussion until about 8:30 PM.

What Does Corporate America Think of Web 2.0?

Our Nightstand presenter will be Steve Wilson, Senior Director of Global Web Communications for McDonald’s Corporation. Steve has been heading up McDonald’s corporate web communication efforts for over 5 years.

Larger public corporations like McDonald’s face unique legal, security and culture challenges when it comes to implementing open web 2.0 communications and technologies. Web 2.0 features that work more easily for individuals and small businesses can present major hurdles for larger organizations.

Steve Wilson - Senior Director - Global Web Communication - McDonald's Corporation

Steve will share from his own experience at McDonald’s as well as from his extensive interactions with his counterparts in other large corporations, to bring us a unique inside perspective on the challenges and opportunities faced in embracing and implementing Web 2.0 strategies and technologies.

Before coming to McDonald’s, Steve worked for Microsoft on the original MSN implementation team, and at Oracle during it’s early years. Steve also has experience in operating several venture capital funded web start-ups, as well as in running and maintaining a small business e-commerce website.

Invite Others!

We’d love to see many of our past guests again, and encourage you to pass on this invitation to others in the industry who would benefit from this presentation topic and networking event. We only ask that you RSVP with your name and company/organization by using the “Leave a Reply” commenting capability of this blog post below. Due to space limitations, we will be limiting the number of attenders at 30.

- Headstand Media: Randy, Benjamin and Kyle

Nightstand 10 RSVP’s

1. Randal Birkey – Headstand Media
2. Benjamin Nelson – Headstand Media
3. Kyle Williams – Headstand Media
4. Steve Wilson – McDonald’s Corporation
5. Steve Tanner – Kidology
6. Lauren Dillon – Sunshine Gospel Ministries
7. Dwight Nelson – HBN Design
8. Conor McCarthy – TheTalkingMirror.com
9. Erik Vorhes – Textivism
10. Brian Barthold
11. Nick Bakker
12. Jerry Agar
13. John Tillman – Illinois Policy Institute
14. Justin Verberg – STA Group
15. Jim Whitmer – Whitmer Photography
16. Derek Taylor – Taylor Design Studios
17. Katie Scarpelli – Scholle Packaging
18. Ryan Balock – Scholle Packaging
19. Kent Thompson – Action Web Apps
20. Becky Williams – Critical Mass
21. Alex Garcia – Chicago Tribune
22. Mike Bullington – McDonald’s Corporation
23. Eric Wagnon – Wagnon Media
24. Heidi Levin – Inkling Markets
25. Brian Hand – LifeSnapz
26. Mark Anderson
27. Zack Jordan – Pixelwelders
28. Kylie Hansen – HBN Design
29. Joshua Ginter – Seeworthy Media
30. Bob Armour – LifeSnapz
31. Jeff Hunt – Blue Capital Group
32. Melissa Meulenberg – Hard Rock Hotel Chicago
33. Joe Dascenzo – CHANGEffect
34. Trevor Good