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octerminal · 3 years

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Avoiding the ME1 LI Romances

...And also what to do if you’ve already triggered them.

This is a post I’ve been wanting to remake forever, and with the remaster around the corner I thought now was a good time to finally get on it.

A few things first: I say “avoiding the ME1 LI romances”, but in reality this is mostly going to be about Kaidan and Ashley. While there are a few ways around Liara’s romance I’ve discovered, I have never been able to find a simple way to avoid triggering it. (I’ll get to that later.)

This post will be split into three sections: Kaidan, Ashley, and Liara. Kaidan and Ashley’s sections specifically will go over how to avoid triggering their romances entirely, and then the dialogue choices you need to take if you want to end the romance if it’s already been triggered. I have also included a few bonus things for the both of them, such as avoiding the flirting during the scenic view cutscene in the Citadel Wards. For Kaidan specifically, I have also included content about his mechanics in ME3.

Please note that most of these have been accomplished on console. I have gotten several PC users who do attest that, at the very least, Kaidan’s portion works for them. But on the off-chance that platform influences other parts of Kaidan’s, or Ashley and Liara’s, I thought it was worth mentioning. It should also be said that, obviously, these are all using the original games as a basis, though I am not expecting MELE to change any of this.

I will also be using both my Kaidan transcript and Ashley transcript as reference for their dialogue. I recommend following along there if you find Tumblr’s formatting confusing.

Final note before we begin: this post is not an open invitation to hate on any of these characters. ME1 is turning 14 this year and ME3 recently turned 9. Anything you have to say about these characters and their romance mechanics has already been beaten to death, brought back to life, and beaten to death again. No one wants to hear it, least of all me. Please keep your comments to yourself and be civil.

KAIDAN

“I WANT TO AVOID TRIGGERING IT ENTIRELY, WHAT DO I DO?”

Kaidan’s romance can be triggered after the first main mission has been completed. For many players, I imagine this is Therum, but it really doesn’t matter which mission it is.

Kaidan will prompt the conversation, as he will for every other post-main mission conversation so long as his romance remains active. This conversation will be about his time at Brain Camp. You can read the conversation in his transcript if you find it easier to follow along, though I have done my best to format this post as cleanly as possible.

KAIDAN: Commander, do you have a minute?

SHEPARD: (You can choose whatever dialogue option you want. It makes no difference yet.)

KAIDAN: Off the record, I think there’s something wrong here. This Saren is looking for records on some kind of galactic extinction, but we can’t get backup from the Council? Sorry, Commander. There’s writing on the wall here, but someone isn’t reading it.

SHEPARD: (Again, you may choose whatever dialogue option you want. It still makes no difference yet.)

>FIRST CHANCE TO AVOID THE ROMANCE<

KAIDAN: I hear ya. It - It just seems like a group that’s been around as long as the Council should see this coming. It’s funny. We finally get out here and the final frontier was already settled. And the residents don’t even seem impressed by the view...or the dangers.

SHEPARD (Renegade - Zip it, Lieutenant.): I’m sure your letters home are very poignant. Just keep this kind of sentimentality out of the CIC.

KAIDAN: Yes, ma’am. Sorry to have wasted your time. I’m right about the mission, though. I know it. (The conversation will end here and his romance will not trigger.)

>SECOND CHANCE TO AVOID THE ROMANCE<

SHEPARD (Paragon - Cute way to look at it./Neutral - An old-fashioned view.): Well, well. You’re a romantic. Did you sign on “for the dream,” Alenko? Secure man’s future in space?

KAIDAN: Heh, yeah, I read a lot of those books when I was a kid. Where the hero goes to space to prove himself worthy of a woman he loves. Or, you know. For justice. Maybe I was a romantic in the beginning. But I thought about it after Brain Camp - ah, sorry, “Biotic Acclimation and Temperance training.” I’m not looking for “the dream.” I just want to do some good. See what’s out here. Sorry if I got too informal. Protocol wasn’t a big focus back in BAaT.

SHEPARD (Renegade - Just be ready.): I trust you won’t have any questions when whatever’s coming hits the fan?

KAIDAN: None. I’m not questioning the mission. I’m just concerned. Sorry to have wasted your time, ma’am. It won’t happen again. (The conversation will end here and his romance will not trigger.)

The final chance to cut off Kaidan’s romance before it triggers happens after Shepard asks him about Brain Camp. This opens up a lot of investigation options and you may exhaust all of them. If you want to avoid hearing Kaidan imply that he thinks your Shepard is attractive, avoid the “Time to talk, then./Time to “get physical,” then.” investigation options. Once Kaidan is done speaking about Brain Camp, you will get one final chance to avoid his romance.

>THIRD CHANCE TO AVOID THE ROMANCE<

KAIDAN: Anyway. This was supposed to be a casual debrief, not a bull session about stuff that happened years ago.

SHEPARD (Renegade - You’re right.): I pretty much gave up waiting for the good part.

KAIDAN: Bad habit, ma’am. I do tend to run off at the mouth. I will work on it for my next review. Sorry to have wasted your time, ma’am. It won’t happen again. (The conversation ends and his romance does not trigger.)

You will notice all of these are renegade options. There is literally no way around this if you want to avoid triggering Kaidan’s romance. You don’t get any renegade points from them, and Kaidan does not treat you negatively in the ensuing post-main mission talks.

Here is an easy way to tell if Kaidan’s romance remains active. Conversations between him and Shepard will end like this:

SHEPARD: We’ll talk later, Kaidan.

KAIDAN: I’d like that.

“I’VE ALREADY TRIGGERED IT, HOW DO I GET OUT OF THIS?”

The good news is that getting out of the romance is fairly simple. The game gives you a lot of opportunities before it triggers the love triangle with Liara (assuming her romance has also been triggered, anyway).

If Kaidan’s romance was triggered, you will have an opportunity at the beginning of his second and third post-main mission talks. These are a bit more complex to transcribe, so I really recommend just reading them in my transcription if you need the exact dialogue options to understand.

But the gist: You can’t go wrong with choosing the renegade dialogue options. This is always the dialogue option that will end his romance. You are almost never going to end his romance with a paragon or neutral dialogue option. He will always prompt this conversation by wondering if he’s gotten his signals mixed up, if there’s someone else you’d rather spend time with, if he’s being too casual, etc. Once he does this, just shoot him down with a renegade dialogue option.

Again: you get no renegade points from this. He will not treat you negatively in the ensuing post-main mission talks.

Here is an example. This one occurs in his second post-main mission talk if Liara’s romance hasn’t been triggered:

KAIDAN: I’m just saying...try to leave yourself a way out. I’ve seen what cutting corners can do and I’d hate to have that happen to you, Shepard. Commander.

SHEPARD (Renegade - I don’t need approval.): I’m your commanding officer, Alenko. Are you questioning the way I handle things?

KAIDAN: No, Commander. Just concerned about the reception of the brass if things go sour. I apologize for bringing it up. I know we’re getting the job done.

SHEPARD: (You can choose whatever response you like; they all lead to the romance ending.)

If you have repeatedly not broken off the romance with Kaidan after a certain point and Liara’s romance is also active, it will trigger the love triangle scene. This is one of the last points you have to break off Kaidan’s romance, but it will lock you into Liara’s romance instead. If you are wanting a no-romance run, I recommend choosing one of the other options instead.

There is also a separate way to end the romance outside these three opportunities. In the third post-main mission talk, you must pick the dialogue option that triggers the argument that can “renegade” Kaidan’s opinion on the Council. You must not choose the charm or intimidate option here, and you must then pick the renegade dialogue options. The conversation should go like this:

KAIDAN: So yeah, I hated that turian. But he wasn’t “a turian” to me. He was Vyrnnus.

SHEPARD (Renegade - All turians are the same.): You can’t deny the turians are imperialists. And the asari, the salarians - they’re manipulators.

KAIDAN: Shepard, I outgrew the blame game years ago. If the Alliance is missing its chance, it’s because of men like Udina. Not the rest of the galaxy holding it back.

SHEPARD (Renegade - I’m not so sure.): When anyone out here listens to us, the Council starts up with their treaties and heel-dragging. We can only rely on ourselves.

KAIDAN: We’re not doing the galaxy any favors if we try to force our way into a seat at the grown-up table. They aren’t - malicious. They’re just slow to change. My story doesn’t get any better if Vyrnnus is a good guy.

SHEPARD (Renegade - Whose side are you on?): I don’t need you kissing the Council’s asses, too.

KAIDAN: Look, Shepard. You’re in command, and we’ll all follow your lead. But don’t ream me out for having an opinion. I thought we respected each other more than that.

SHEPARD (Renegade - I can’t respect this.): I can’t believe you’d side with aliens over your own kind. I think we’re done here.

KAIDAN: Yeah, I think we are. It’s--It’s too bad we...It’s just too bad, Commander.

This argument will end his romance. He will also not be renegaded. This is obviously a much more convoluted way to end his romance, but I’m throwing the option out there because it’s 1) hilarious, and 2) way more dramatic, if you want to roleplay ending the romance for whatever reason.

MISCELLANEOUS

Depending on the dialogue options you take for the scenic view on the Citadel, Kaidan will always flirt with you. This does not lock you into, or even trigger, his romance. It is entirely possible to not have him flirt with you at all in this scene, and still initiate the romance later. But if you do not want him to flirt with you, simply do this:

[image ID: ME1’s subtitles showing Ashley saying “Or maybe they just don’t like humans.” with the dialogue wheel below it giving the following dialogue choices, starting from the top: “What’s not to like?”, “Let’s move out.”, and “That’s enough, you two.” end ID]

When you get to this part of the scenic view cutscene, choose any dialogue option but the top “What’s not to like?” one.

Also, even if you’ve already avoided or shut down Kaidan’s romance, Liara will still ask if there’s something between the two of you if her romance is active. Tell her that there isn’t (because there isn’t). Her saying this does not re-trigger Kaidan’s romance.

Congratulations, you have now survived ME1’s romance mechanics. Enjoy experiencing unromanced Kaidan for the rest of the game.

ME3 BONUS: “OKAY, WHAT ABOUT HIM FLIRTING WITH ME IN THE HOSPITAL THOUGH?”

I have tested both of these personally multiple times and they have always worked for me, but again: see my warning about different platforms at the beginning of this post. If it doesn’t work for you, please let me know.

If you have not romanced Kaidan previously: don’t buy him the alcohol as a present. That’s it.

If you have romanced Kaidan previously: on Mars, tell him your relationship is over. It is a renegade dialogue option, but it is necessary to avoid the flirtation in the hospital. This route also means that you can buy him the alcohol and he will still not flirt with you.

Please note that going renegade on Mars does not lock you out of his romance. It merely prevents him from assuming you’re interested during your hospital visit.

ME3 BONUS: “OKAY, WHAT ABOUT HIS APOLLO’S PROPOSITION THOUGH?”

This only happens if you have not locked in your romance with your preferred love interest first. For Garrus, this is the bottle shooting date. For Tali and Traynor, it’s inviting her up to your cabin. For Liara and Miranda, it’s her Presidium date. So on and so forth.

This means there is no way around it if you romanced Jacob or Thane and do not want to pursue a different romance after them. If you do get this scene: again, just turn him down. It is never brought up again. He does not act like he’s in love with you going forth. You will get his unromanced date in the Citadel DLC, as well as his unromanced London goodbye.

ASHLEY

“I WANT TO AVOID TRIGGERING IT ENTIRELY, WHAT DO I DO?”

Ashley’s romance can be triggered after the first main mission has been completed. For many players, I imagine this is Therum, but it really doesn’t matter which mission it is.

Ashley will prompt the conversation, as she will for every other post-main mission conversation so long as her romance remains active. This conversation will be about her concerns about the aliens aboard the Normandy.

Note: Ashley has one less opportunity to avoid triggering her romance in the first post-main mission talk compared to Kaidan. You may also read the conversation in her transcript if you find it easier to follow along, though I have done my best to format this post as cleanly as possible.

ASHLEY: Commander. You have a minute to talk?

SHEPARD: (You can choose whatever dialogue option you want. It makes no difference yet.)

ASHLEY: I know things are different aboard the Normandy, but - I'm concerned about the aliens. Vakarian and Wrex. With all due respect, Commander, should they have full access to the ship?

SHEPARD: (Again, you can choose whatever dialogue option you want. It still makes no difference yet.)

>FIRST CHANCE TO AVOID THE ROMANCE<

ASHLEY: This is the most advanced ship in the Alliance Navy. I don't think we should give them free reign to poke around the vital systems. Engines. Sensors. Weapons.

SHEPARD (Side - You're out of line!): That's enough, Chief. You always second-guess your superiors?

ASHLEY: Sir! No, sir! I'm sorry. I was out of line. I'll get back to my duties, Commander. (The conversation will end and her romance will not trigger.)

If you do not pick the above option, Ashley will elaborate her stance further until you get to the dialogue wheel with the second (and final) chance to avoid her romance.

>SECOND CHANCE TO AVOID THE ROMANCE<

ASHLEY: My family's defended the Alliance since it was founded. My father, my grandfather, my great-grandmother - they all picked up a rifle and swore the Oath of Service. I guess we just tend to think of Earth's interests as our own.

SHEPARD (Renegade - Just shut up.): I expect you to keep your family politics to yourself, Chief. The mission will be difficult enough without you picking fights with aliens.

ASHLEY: Aye, aye, Commander. (The conversation will end and her romance will not trigger.)

Note: You can still pick the investigation dialogue options that discusses her service and family history. You just have to pick the renegade dialogue option outlined above afterward, instead of any other option.

Like with Kaidan, you do not get any renegade points for picking this option and Ashley does not treat you negatively in the ensuing post-main mission talks.

Here is an easy way to tell if Ashley’s romance remains active. Conversations between her and Shepard will end with the following:

SHEPARD: We'll talk later, Williams.

ASHLEY: Looking forward to it, sir.

“I’VE ALREADY TRIGGERED IT, HOW DO I GET OUT OF THIS?”

Admittedly, you have fewer easy opportunities to end Ashley’s romance than you do Kaidan’s, and most of the early game ones require Liara’s romance also being active. You are still offered multiple different opportunities out before the game ends, however.

If Ashley and Liara’s romances are both triggered, you will have an opportunity at the beginning of Ashley’s second and third post-main mission talks to end the romance. The gist is the same as Kaidan’s: You can’t go wrong with choosing the renegade dialogue options. This is always the dialogue option that will end her romance. You are almost never going to end her romance with a paragon or neutral dialogue option. She will always prompt this conversation by bringing up your relationship with Liara. Once she does this, just shoot her down.

Again: you get no renegade points from this. She will not treat you negatively in the ensuing post-main mission talks.

In both the second and third post-main mission talks, the conversation will go something like:

ASHLEY: Surprised to see you here, sir. Thought you’d be chatting up what’s-her-name. T’Soni.

SHEPARD: (Pick the neutral or renegade dialogue option here; they both lead to the same dialogue branch.)

ASHLEY: Scuttlebutt says you’ve got a bit of a thing for her. I could understand why. The crew’s off-limits, with the regs against fraternization. And at least she looks like a woman.

SHEPARD: (Pick the neutral or renegade dialogue option here. They both end the romance.)

One of the easier exceptions to this that doesn't require Liara’s romance being active is in the second post-main mission talk when Ashley gets Sarah’s vid-mail. It will go like this:

SARAH: - Oh, before I go. You said you’re serving with Commander Shepard now? We saw him on the news here. He’s cute! Later, sis.

ASHLEY: Tell me you didn’t hear that.

SHEPARD (Renegade - That’s unprofessional.): I don’t need to tell you it’s inappropriate to gossip about how “cute” your commanding officer is.

ASHLEY: No, sir. You don’t. Sorry about that. It won’t happen again. (Conversation and romance ends.)

Please note, however, that this will lock you out of the remainder of the conversation and you will not learn about Ashley’s family.

If you have repeatedly not broken off the romance with Ashley after a certain point and Liara’s romance is also active, it will trigger the love triangle scene. This is one of the last points you have to break off Ashley’s romance, but it will lock you into Liara’s romance instead. If you are wanting a no-romance run, I recommend choosing one of the other options instead.

There is also a separate way to end the romance outside these three opportunities. In the third post-main mission talk, you must pick the dialogue option that triggers the argument that can “paragon” Ashley’s opinion on the Council. You must not choose the charm or intimidate option here, and you must then pick the renegade dialogue options. The conversation should go something like this:

ASHLEY: But hey, once we save the galaxy, maybe the Alliance will get its act together. Start acting like an actual government.

SHEPARD (Paragon - The Alliance is all right.): The Alliance isn’t perfect, but it does well enough.

ASHLEY: Have to disagree with you there, skipper. Giving aliens the run of our most advanced ship? Kowtowing to the Council?

SHEPARD (Paragon - It’s not like that.): The Alliance should be able to stand on is own. We can’t. Yet. Why not learn from the races that have been standing for the last thousand years?

ASHLEY: How can you say that, given everything we’ve seen out here? They’re already acting like Saren is our problem. Already siccing us on the bear. The Council races will always think of themselves first. It’s - human nature. We can’t afford to trust them. Not if the survival of humanity is on the line.

SHEPARD (Renegade - I’ve heard enough.): Whatever feelings I might have for you, we have to work with the Council. I can’t let you second-guess our superiors.

ASHLEY: Shepard, I’m a soldier. You’re my commander. If you give me an order, I’ll follow it. I don’t expect you to treat me differently from anyone else under your command. And if you have been - quit it. I thought you knew me better than that.

SHEPARD (Renegade - Do I?): Seems like every time we run up against aliens, you whip out the “Earth first” card. I can’t have my authority undermined.

ASHLEY: I never intended to “undermine” you, Shepard. I believe in you. I wish you’d believe in anyone but yourself. With your permission, sir, I’ll return to my duties.

This argument will end her romance. She will also not be paragoned. This is obviously a much more convoluted way to end her romance, but I’m throwing the option out there because it’s 1) hilarious (that final line, oof), and 2) way more dramatic, if you want to roleplay ending the romance for whatever reason.

MISCELLANEOUS

Like with Kaidan, depending on the dialogue options you take for the scenic view on the Citadel, Ashley will always flirt with you. This does not lock you into, or even trigger, her romance. It is entirely possible to not have her flirt with you at all in this scene, and still initiate the romance later. But if you do not want her to flirt with you, simply do this:

When you get to this part of the scenic view cutscene, choose any dialogue option but the top “What’s not to like?” one.

Also like with Kaidan, even if you’ve already avoided or shut down Ashley’s romance, Liara will still ask if there’s something between the two of you if her romance is active. Tell her that there isn’t (because there isn’t). Her saying this does not re-trigger Ashley’s romance.

Congratulations, you have now survived ME1’s romance mechanics. Enjoy experiencing unromanced Ashley for the rest of the game.

LIARA

“I WANT TO AVOID TRIGGERING IT ENTIRELY, WHAT DO I DO?”

As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, I have found no easy way around Liara’s romance. If anyone else has, I genuinely mean it when I say I would absolutely be open to you telling me, because I would love to know.

The only way to avoid triggering Liara’s romance that I have found are the following:

Simply not talking to her for most of the game (not ideal)

Completing Therum only after you’ve done at least two main missions (also not ideal since it will require Noveria being completed without her)

Completing Therum only after all the other main missions have been completed (again not ideal, though every player should at least do this once if only for the unique content you get from it)

Okay, so what if you want to complete Therum first but still avoid Liara’s romance? I have found one way to accomplish this, but it requires you to be in a romance with Kaidan (or presumably Ashley, but I have only tested this with Kaidan).

After you recruit Liara, you may check up on her in the med-bay but do not initiate conversation after that. If she prompts you by saying, “I get the feeling you want to ask me something, Commander,” do not pick the yellowed dialogue option:

[image ID: ME1′s subtitles showing Liara saying, “I get the feeling you want to ask me something, Commander.” with the dialogue wheel showing the following options: “Investigate”, a yellowed option above “Investigate” labeled “I’d like to talk about you.”, and “Goodbye.” end ID.]

After you complete another main mission, you can check back in with Liara and speak to her normally. This conversation should be the one you’d normally get after Therum, where you learn about why she likes archaeology and how she finds Shepard fascinating.

After you complete another main mission, you must talk to Kaidan or Ashley first. To clarify: at this point you should be at the post-third main mission mark. For Kaidan, you will be getting the “Vyrnnus and Rahna” talk that you can read in his transcript; for Ashley, you will be getting the “Williams Curse” talk that you can read in her transcript.

After you speak with Kaidan or Ashley, you may speak with Liara as normal. This conversation should be picking up on where you left off last time. Liara will talk about how she’s looked into Shepard’s history and Shepard can press her for why she’s so interested in them. Liara should then say something like the following lines:

LIARA: I admit, your connection to the Protheans had something to do with my initial interest. But it has grown beyond that. My interest in you, however, is strictly professional. I want to make that clear. It is obvious you and Lt. Alenko already have some type of relationship. I would not want to come between you.

Her romance will not trigger for the rest of the game.

Please note: Again, I have only tested this with Kaidan. But it should, in theory, work the exact same for Ashley considering many of hers and Kaidan’s other romance mechanics are identical.

“THAT’S NICE, BUT HOW DO I END HER ROMANCE IF IT’S ALREADY TRIGGERED?”

You will follow the same steps as in Kaidan and Ashley’s portions. When she prompts you with whether or not there’s anything between the two of you, you must turn her down. You can never go wrong with the renegade dialogue options here. Again: you get no renegade points for it, and Liara treats you no differently going forth.

She will also usually bring up Kaidan or Ashley depending on what Shepard you are playing, and mention that it seems like there’s something between the two of you even when you do not have their romance active. If you aren’t romancing the VS, just tell her that she’s got it wrong, because...she does. It does not re-trigger either of their romances.

YES I AM ALMOST DONE TALKING

The game really does give you ample opportunities to avoid or end the romances (which is only fair considering how easy they are to trip), so hopefully I have outlined at least one you are comfortable taking.

There are other ways to end both Kaidan and Ashley’s romance that I did not mention (such as during the locker scene, or if you try to un-paragon/renegade) - the point of no return you mainly have to worry about is en route to Ilos. I imagine most players will have their romances sorted out by then, though, so I’m not sure it’s worth mentioning unless you’re wanting to do it purely for roleplay reasons. (In which case: you may read those in their respective transcripts if you’re curious.)

I cannot say I have tested every single romance cut-off, but I have tested most of the important ones players are most likely to take. I am assuming the romances are cut off based on the fact Shepard and the VS’ farewells will change depending on their romanced status (as I outlined in their respective sections), which I do feel is a safe bet. But if you try one of these and find that it did not end the romance: I’m sorry, and please do let me know (and also what platform you play on).

If you read all of this: thank you for your time, and I hope you find this guide useful!

#mass effect #kaidan alenko #ashley williams #liara t'soni #shenko #shepley #shiara #okay perhaps this post will show up in the tags eventually but it certainly is not for now #which makes this post utterly pointless but whatever hopefully it still gets spread around #edit: this post is showing up in the tags now thanks everyone who reblogged!

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arpwrites · 4 years

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[Arpwrites] Tarot Commissions

If you’re seeing this, maybe its the universe saying it’s time you got a reading 🌝From Three Cats in a Trenchcoat to @Cupid Watch Out Sweaty, I’m sure there’s a spread for your needs 🌷

Commissions are currently OPEN!

The Process

Read my legal notices here, particularly the sections pertaining to tarot and commissions. You officially agree to these terms upon payment for my services.

Contact me via the Tumblr messaging system. If you’d like to keep your blog anonymous, contact me from a new sideblog. Mains are preferred though because it helps me get a better sense of your energy.

I will confirm the booking based on the requested reading and my status. Your written confirmation that you have read and are fully aware of my legal notices is required as well.

Fill out the form I provide you. It’ll have questions that’ll help me connect to your energy. If that doesn’t work, we may have to try something else like chatting for a bit or maybe you can send me your instagram. We'll think of something.

Send in the payment on Ko-fi if I confirm I am able to connect to your energy and you are comfortable with the level of it.

You will get your reading within three days. I will privately post it to my blog and share the link with only you.

Feedback and/or reviews are much appreciated.

What Will the Reading Include?

Here’s a sample reading using Three Cats in a Trenchcoat. Basically:

Commission details like your username, reference number etc.

Screenshots of your confirmation that you have read my legal notices as well as receipt of payment

Any special questions you may have asked as part of the request.

An image of the spread. I will be using the Prisma Visions deck by @jamesreads. It is gorgeous and I highly recommend it.

As much detail as I am able to glean from the cards.

An overall accuracy rating and notes.

A conversation to debrief about whether the reading resonated with you, any clarifications you might need, next steps, your satisfaction, and whether I can help you with anything else.

Why Me?

I'm truthful to a fault, a lot of times to my own detriment. I won’t hesitate to tell you if I feel like I’m making up things or if the accuracy feels low. I wouldn’t claim to have a gift for tarot if I didn’t mean it. You can trust me with your personal questions, I won’t judge.

I will tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear. I won’t sugarcoat what my cards say but I also won’t leave you feeling hopeless or worse than before. Tarot is meant to raise people’s vibrations and do good, and that is exactly what I will help you with.

Here’s what other people have to say.

How Does Tarot Work?

Tarot cards are a system of ‘divination,’ i.e., inference, based on the yet unproven concept that everything in the universe has a vibrational signature and that these vibrations obey the universal law of like attracting like. ‘Everything’ extends beyond the physical dimension and includes thoughtforms and energetic complexes. Similar in principle to how horary astrology works, the idea is that the vibration of your question will attract right vibration of cards for that moment based on energies at the time. Free will exists and there are several possible perspectives and futures, so readings only hold true while factors are in stasis and depend on the ability of the reader to strengthen and tune into these energies.

Remember!

Tarot interpretation is personal, intuitive and nuanced. Don’t compare card draws from one reader to another because meanings of cards are subjectively assigned by the deck user. Do not research your tarot reader’s card draws on your own and infer your own meaning, it will likely lead you to wrong assumptions. Only do so if your tarot reader recommends it because what matters most is their meaning of the card.

Do not use tarot as your sole decision making tool – it is advice, not fact. Tarot is not well suited for precise, close-ended questions. It works best when the intent is for one’s highest good, and the questions are open-ended and introspective in nature.

It is best to enquire about events that will occur soon since tarot readings pick up on current energies. It will be a waste to enquire about far off events since there are a multitude of factors at play and the reading will most likely be void by the time it happens.

Please Note

I cannot do readings about subjects in which I have no knowledge. So for example, I can’t do questions on financial investments because I have no idea how that system works so I can’t overlay it onto my cards to read them.

I tend to ask for more detail about their situation while I read. This is because every card has thousands of meanings based on the context so I’ll need clarification to ensure I’m communicating the message correctly. Sometimes the extra detail doesn’t help. In that case, I’ll offer all possible interpretations and ask which one resonates best.

My deck spits out as many cards as it wants regardless of the actual spread. I don’t draw specific cards, I shuffle till cards fall out on their own. So, your reading will likely have more cards than advertised.

Offered Readings

These include but are not limited to the below mentioned spreads. Let me know if what you want isn’t on this list and I can make a custom reading for your needs in the same price range.

Three Cats in a Trenchcoat for $3. As the name gives away, a minimum of 3 cards are drawn for a short insight or to gain an overview or get direction regarding a multitude of topics. Note that the relationship spreads work for platonic, familial, romantic, destined, and karmic bonds.

General: Past | Present | Future

General: Current Situation | Obstacle | Advice

General: Situation | Action | Outcome

General: Beginning | Middle | End

General: Start | Growth | Decay

Self-discovery: Mind | Body | Spirit

Self-discovery: You | Current Path | Potential

Self-discovery: Life Purpose | What Qualities | Action

Self-discovery: Needs | Wants | Fears

Self-discovery: Past Self | Present Self | Future Self

Self-discovery: Lesson You Need | Why | Action

Past: What Worked | What Didn’t | Key Lessons

Healing: Cords to Cut | Heal your Heart | Nurture Yourself

Healing: Be Aware | Remember | Let Go

Future: Aspiration | Obstacle | Solution

Future: What Helps | What Hinders | Unrealized Potential

Relationship: Intentions | Trustworthy? | Advice

Relationship: Teach Me | Need from Me | Relationship

Relationship: You | The Other Person | Nature of Relationship

Relationship: Soulmate? | Need to Know | Will it Last?

Relationship: Your Wants | Their Wants | Where It’s Heading

Relationship: Strength | Weakness | Obstacle

Relationship: Pulls Together | Pushes Apart | Needs Attention

Relationship: Conflict | Areas of Agreement | Resolution

Relationship: Outer Conflict | Inner Conflict | Relationship

Relationship: Real Issue | Next Action | Ultimate Destination

Conflict: The Nature of a Problem | The Cause | The Solution

Conflict: False Issue | Real Issue | Your Role

Conflict: Why | What | Resolution

Decision-making: Strengths | Weaknesses | Advice

Decision-making: Opportunities | Challenges | Outcome

Decision-making: Yes Outcome | No Outcome | Maybe Outcome

Decision-making: Option 1 | Option 2 | Option 3

Decision-making: Solution 1 | Solution 2 | How to Choose

Decision-making: Best Case | Worst Case | Probable Outcome

Decision-making: Choice | Pros | Cons

Career: Hobby | Possible Career Development | First Step

Career: Opportunities | Distractions | Action

Career: Job Positives | Job Negatives | Change - to +

Career: Pros of Quitting | Cons | Advice

Career: New Career Suggestion | Advice | Outcome of Quitting

The Monster Inside for $6. A minimum of 6 cards are drawn to identify the darkest aspect of your self, the area of your life it most affects, your inner demon, how you understand/accept/heal from it, what actions you can take to overcome it and grow, and the possible outcome.

Love Me, Love Me Not for $9. A minimum of 6 cards are drawn to see how your crush feels about you, whether a relationship would work, how to attract them, how dating them would be, whether you should confess, and whether they’ll play a special role in your life.

Knock Knock. It’s the Universe, Asshole for $9. As many cards as required will be drawn to know what the universe thinks you need to know at this moment. What does it want to tell you? What advice does it have for you?

I’m BTS’s XXX for $9. This reading is strictly for fun and entertainment purposes! As many cards as required will be drawn to see what kind of relationship you’d have which your chosen member of BTS and how you’d meet if your paths were to cross.

Yoda on the Loose for $12. A minimum of 10 cards are drawn for general advice about yourself, your mind, body, spirit, friends and family, romance, hobbies, career, finances, and challenges.

It’s My Year, Bitches for $15. A minimum of 12 cards are drawn for your previous year in summary, what you’ve learned from the past year, what you aspire to in the next twelve months, what empowers you to reach it, what may stand in your way, relationships and emotions in the upcoming year, career and work and finances, health and well-being, spiritual energy and inner fulfillment, what you need to focus on for the year ahead, most important lesson in the upcoming year, and where you’re headed overall in the coming twelve months. Well suited for birthdays and New Year’s.

Know Thyself to Know the Universe for $21. A minimum of 15 cards are drawn to find out your best and worst qualities, what makes you attractive, your needs and wants, how you love and how you need to receive love, the type of partner that would best fit you, the key lesson you’re supposed to learn in this lifetime, and your purpose of existence.

@Cupid Watch Out Sweaty for $30. A minimum of 20 cards are drawn for an in-depth relationship spread about the true you in context of your role in the relationship, the true them, how they see you, how you see them, the past of the relationship if applicable, where it stands now, what lies in store for the future, what brings you together, what pulls you apart, your wants, their needs, challenges, how to love each other etc.

Let me know if you have any questions! I look forward to reading for you :^)

Sources: Several spreads are by Biddy Tarot, My Wandering Fool, Lunar Cafe, Self Tarot while others are my own. Do not steal my spreads, ask me for permission first.

Note: Do not use the copy from this post for personal or commercial purposes. Use it as a guideline to write your own with visible, explicit credit that has a working link back to this blog.

#arpwrites #aw commission

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politicallycorrectinnocentteen · 5 years

Text

The Art of Spanking

Title – The Art of Spanking – featuring a special tumblr user :p

Summary – Imogen is annoyed with Tom being so very timid on bed…and long story short everyone ends up at the door of a professional spanker.

Inspired from a prompt by Mars, “Who’s down for some murder? Any ILB grouping”

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“Since WHEN is there a professional Spanker in Pine Springs?” Tom cried in awkwardness, “AND WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL SPANKER ANYWAY?!”

Imogen just hushed Tom with her brows furrowed, an annoyed look sketching at her face.

“You need to learn Tom.” She glared at him,” I am tired of having to constantly nag you go cross your limits.” With a puff, she continued, “And that’s why we are here. Today you either learn how to spank hard and properly, or you go home with a broken hand.”

“B-But I- “

“YOU DIDN’T EVEN TOUCH THE BUTTOCKS LAST TIME!”

Tom gulped. Imogen’s mad. Really mad.

“Ok…that aside,” Tom tried to look away, his face red,” Why are THEY ALL here??” He accusingly pointed his finger at Parker, who coughed and looked at Vance as if he was the most interesting thing in the world (he actually was), his cheeks red after Imogen’s latest remark. To Vance’s other side was Danni, frowning and tapping her foot impatiently.

“Because she wants all of your lovey-dovey couple moments to be recorded,” said Vance as he started the recording of handycam and flashed Tom an amused grin.

“THIS IS NOT A LOVEY DOVEY COUPLE MOME- “

Tom abruptly stopped as he heard Imogen cough warningly. He gulped.

“I just asked Vance to come. Rest all tagged along.” Imogen shrugged. But Tom knew better. Tom knew that Imogen knew that if Parker and Danni come to know that Vance is coming then they both will come.

“Danni, seriously? I thought you had your shift at café”

“Girl code. Always be there for your sisters.” Danni smirked. Tom knew better. Its more of self-service than sister-service for her right now.

“And you Parker? You are the frickin Chief of Town-“

“Do you really want to be stuck alone with Imogen, and her constant support Danni without any support for yourself?”

No…Tom definitely did not want that. He looked at Imogen. The only way out seemed to convince her – but she seemed mad and last attempt did not go well at all. But he has to try one more time…

“If you want me to…learn,” Tom felt his face grow hot and sweat beads forming on his forehead, “I-I will learn…but why here.” He then points out to the huge canvas with a painting of Pink Peppercorn which was garlanded, the incense sticks burning around it filling the room with a weird odour.

“Does it look in any way like…like…” he just shakes his head and continues,” Who the heck worships a peppercorn?”

“Quiet child!” A stern voice came from inside, as a hooded lady in her fifties entered the room, carrying a bowl of boiling water.

“Back when there was famine all around, and humans could not eat food because it tasted so bland and tasteless…” she kept the bowl on the table and started stirring some white powder into it, “The Great Goddess Bhavf gave birth to bright pink peppercorns so that humans can cook, use pepper and hence survive on Earth.” She then turned to the Tom, “So, who is the disciple who seeks training here.”

Tom’s eye almost twitched on that, and he wouldn’t have waited for that lady to finish before running for the door. But Imogen’s face was stern. And Imogen made it very clear she’d skin him alive if he did not learn today.

Why are girls so frustrated due to bedroom life?

“Tis he, Lady Mars!” Imogen pointed at Tom.

Mars moved to Tom, and without warning grabbed his arm, pressing it hard.

“Hmmm….” She then moved her hands to his tummy and gave a hard pat.

“EXCUSE ME!” Tom shouted but was immediately hushed by Mars.

She then gave another hard pat to his back, then another to his thighs and finally to his chest.

“No abs, no biceps,” her gaze then fell below his tummy, “And no meat either.”

“WHAT THE – “

“Quiet son! We have no time to waste. You are in an extremely dire situation!” She then turned to the group, “So, who wishes to volunteer?”

“Me.” Imogen nodded, and was led to the wooden bed in front of them.

“Be on your all fours, hips raised upwards and back arched downwards. Yes, like that! It makes your butt seem bubblier Ho-Ho-Ho”

Parker and Tom faces flushed at that while Danni watched Imogen’s pose hawk-eyed, taking notes.

Mars then grabbed Tom and pulled him to Imogen’s buttocks.

“Now, we shall begin.” She said as she closed her eyes and folded her hands, deep in meditation.

…

“Can we just spank and get over with it- “

“QUIET CHILD!” Tom’s objections were immediately voiced down by her angry tone. “Do you think slapping the buttocks is that all spanking is?” She glared at him.

Well, it technically was…

“That’s why you have a lot to learn. Spanking…is a holy art known to many but mastered by few.”

She was back to her calm mode, and then looked at Imogen’s buttocks with her deep eyes.

“The first step is to sensualize this. Feel the passion in your partner’s buttocks with all your senses.”

“EXCUSE ME WHAT?!” Tom cried, and helplessly looked at Parker, Vance and Danni who merely looked away from him.

“First sense is sight.” Mars started. “Drink your partner’s buttocks with your eyes.”

Parker choked on his own saliva on hearing that. He definitely felt out of place there. How in the hundred worlds they all ended up there watching Tom be sensual with Imogen’s buttock? He tried to look away, and focussed his eyes on Vance, who seemed to be equally shaken up as well.

Poor Vance!

“You both!” Mars chided pointing towards Parker and Vance. “Your auras are killing everything! Why are you both so awkward about something so intimate and beautiful like spanking?” She asked.

“We-uh-We…actually--“

“Just imagine you doing this with your lover’s buttocks. You will be one with the auras then. And this will also save you multiple trips to me.”

As if we are EVER coming back here… Parker snarled in his mind. Just then he noticed that Danni has stepped back a few steps and is admiring Vance’s goods as all his attention is in recording the video.

He glared in her direction which was easily ignored. Ultimately giving into the temptation he also took a step back and-

“Good. Good.” Mar’s shout broke him from the trance, “I see you did not look away at all from your target.” She complimented Tom. “Remember, you can also remove the clothing, if any, in the bedroom.” She winked at him and Tom swore he’d be having multiple nightmares. Multiple.

“Now, the next sensation,” Mars successfully had everyone’s attention in the room, except Vance of course, “…is sound. Hear what your partner’s buttock wants!”

“Dafaq?” Tom blurted out loud. What is he to do? Shove an ear down Imogen’s butt-

“Spiritually! Hear it spiritually, of course.” Mars grinned evilly as her eyes suddenly lit up, “Though if you have any other related fetishes you can always satisfy them in the bedroom.” “She winked, “And let me take this opportunity to remind you that we have the best hotel deals around here. Ho ho ho ho ho!”

“Anyway,” Mars continued seeing no one paying attention to her promotion, “The next sensation is smell.”

As Vance recorded every second of Tom’s horrified expression after hearing that, Parker scooted closer to Vance and whispered, “What if she farts?” A muffled laughter attracted their attention and they noticed Danni, despite herself, laughing at Parker’s question as well.

“Parker…” Vance started,” You know that the handycam is recording everything. Imogen’s gonna be so so mad later when she watches this…”

“NO, YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING ME- “

Danni’s laughter grew and now she wasn’t even trying to hide it.

“Poor Parker,” she exclaimed as she hugged her stomach.

“Cease with all this kidding at once!” Mars scolded the group, “Why do you think dogs smell the butts of their partners? And let me tell you, they enjoy a lot better sex life than some men have to offer… “she then trailed off. Returning back from her thoughts with an eye roll, she continued, “Anyway, the next sensation is…taste.”

Parker and Danni’s breath hitched as their not-so-innocent eyes were glued at a common desired object.

“Don’t get to excited child,” Mars put her hand on the shaking Tom, “all this you can practice in the bedroom, and let me remind you that we have the- “

“Most exclusive, cheapest and best deals of hotels. Thanks for that!” Danni completed her so the “matter” can proceed.

“Ho! Ho! Ho! Ho! Ho!” Mars laughed, “Glad I helped.” She winked at Danni.

“The final sensation, Ahhh” she let out a wanting breath, “is touch.” She said. “Hit her a rock hits the ground after falling from a cliff.”

Tom, still trembling, barely manages to touch his hand on Imogen’s butt.

“SEE” Imogen started, “That is the source of all the problems! He, needs to release!”

“Yes child. Release.” Mars calmly said, “RELEASE THE WILD ANIMAL INSIDE YOU WHO WANTS TO MATE.” She screamed murder all of the sudden.

Any desire for mating was long extinguished from Tom’s head – all that remained was a vague awkward fear and desire to run. Before he could be back from his trance himself, Mars grabbed Tom’s hand, and-

THAP!

She forced Tom’s palm to hit Imogen’s butt with such speed that the entire room resounded with the echo of impact. Imogen immediately screamed, in a mix of pleasured pain which Tom swore made him hard in his pants. He gulped.

THAP!

This time Tom hit, a lot less impact that Mar’s practiced hand, but still enough to arouse Imogen.

“And that’d be $1000.” Mars smiled at Imogen, “A free room as well if you promise to tell your friends about how good it is here.” She smiled.

“Deal.” Imogen said, getting up and hitting her lips on Tom’s, like strong magnets stuck to each other, as she dragged him out of the door. The room was again filled with awkward silence, as Vance recorded till the last moment of them exiting the door. He was about to stop it, when-

“$1000 for just this?!” Parker started. “I just don’t understand! You guys saw Imogen? What fun is in getting spanked?!”

Spanking, Parker knew was very much fun as he himself imagined doing that to Vance more often than he ‘d ever admit to. But getting aroused by getting spanked was completely alien to him!

“There is a lot of fun…in getting spanked…” Danni coughed as she tried to answer.

Vance pretended to be a statue as he made a god-save-me look because internally he was so dead and so numb from the awkwardness that he stopped feeling anything fifty minutes ago.

“Care to explain?” Parker retorted.

“Do you really want to know?” Danni rolled her eyes.

“I do.” Parker said, firm and smug because he could see easy victory. There is no fun in getting spanked.

“Would you do anything for that?” Danni asked, challenging Parker.

“YES.” Parker muttered.

Suddenly, he is pulled by Mars and thrown off at the bed. She then pulled his butt up with an expert hand. Vance was about to ask that what in the actual hell was going on when-

“Your resolve moves me child.” Mars said, a dark and fiery look in her eyes. Parker looked at her with a confused look.

“You desire to know, and hence will know you shall!”

“Wha- “

THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP! THAP!

Danni’s eyes went wide in horror and Vance gulped, the handycam getting every moment of recording as Mars spanked Parker’s buttocks hard as if firing a Machine gun. When she is done, Parker is barely able to breath.

“Lets …get going.” Vance rushes to Parker’s side and picks him up from one arm. Danni supports him from other, a sympathetic look in her eye as they both drag Parker away from there.

“Don’t forget to come back kids! I can show you all how to have a good time! Ho! Ho! Ho! Ho!”

“Ok, is anyone down for some murder right now.” Parker gritted his teeth as Danni watched him with an amused look.

“DON’T FORGET TO RETURN KIDS! HO! HO! HO!”

Those three swore to never return.

---------x------------------x---------------x------------------x----------------------x-----------------

BONUS 1

“How are you feeling Parker?” Vance asked.

“It... feels burning. Its paining and I am pretty sure its all red with her handprints now…”

“A good lesson to keep your frickin mouth shut.” Danni spoke up.

Parker just ignored her and continued to groan in pain as he tried to walk – without getting any fabric of his jeans and underwear to touch his butt, because God forbid!

“Parker…how will you shit in morning now?” Danni suddenly asked, laughed at Parker’s expense.

“DANNI!” Vance chided.

“Vance, just think!” Danni says, and Vance finds himself giggling despite his resolve.

“Really guys?!” Parker huffed, “You know, you are an ass Danni Asturias!”

“Thankfully not your ass - because it got destroyed” She retorted and gave Vance a high five, they both laughing uncontrollably there while Parker just glared at her.

“Well, I think you are a strong independent man who can take care of himself.” Danni declared. “So why not you take your jeep and go take a rest home, while me and Vance stop by for some coffee?” She then giggled, “We’d invite you as well, but you can neither sit nor shit. “She broke into full laughter, and moved on grabbing Vance by the arm.

Parker gritted his teeth, and turned around rubbing his temples – only to find Mars looking at him from a distance with a rose struck between her teeth. She winked flirtatiously at him.

He shivered.

“VANCE! DANNI! DON’T LEAVE ME BEHIND PLEASE!!”

----------x-----------x-----------------x-------------------------------------x--------------------------

Tom and Imogen were in bedroom, with Imogen setting up the DVD player.

“Why do we not just start the act? “Tom asked.

“This thing is supposed to turn you on! I specially asked Vance to record us for this reason.” Imogen giggled. She opened the video file in the player, and because she wanted to skip the initial boring part, she immediately jumped to the middle of the video-

-to the part where Parker is getting spanked…

She has a dafaq look on her face when-

“Imogen…” Tom starts behind her. She gulped, this is looking bad!

“Tom! Wait- “

“I AM SO MUCH DONE NOW!” he kicks off his slippers and trudges out of the door angrily. Imogen’s shock slowly turns into anger towards Vance.

Vance will pay for it.

--------------x-----------------------x-----------------------x-----------------------x------------------

FAQ

Q1. Why Mars? Ans: It was her ask! :p Q2. Do you not fear for your life? What if Mars reads it? Ans: Dont worry! My trusted sources revealed that she is veryyy busy with RoDAW and hence very, very far behind in her reading list and hence I am safe and...I WILL LIVE TO WRITE ANOTHER DAY, DONT WORRY!

Tag List - @xxpoptartsxx2005 @thefanfictiongeek @ev-enx @marmolady @selectta @zeniamiii @watamidoing @pixieferry @save-me-the-last-dance @scrappysheep @strangerofbraidwood @choiceanon @bhavf @mkiss723 @pbmychoices @hotchocolatelovesyou @heatay74 @griselda1121 @walkerisbae @rayssa10-blog @sherjules @aurorasemery @crabs-are-vengeful-creatures @brightpinkpeppercorn @nighthunternik @flammingred @danniasturiass @strangelycami @fluffy-cat-whisper @politicallycorrectinnocentteen@drakethesunattuned

#it lives 2 #it lives series #it lives beneath #danni x mc #danni asturias #Parker Shaw #parker x mc #tom sato #tom x imogen #imogen wescott #Vance #fluff #comedy

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megrimlocke · 4 years

Text

How We Are All Going to Die Laughing

The other day, I was looking at a post made by one of my favorite internet comic artists. The guy used to be something I’d read in the army newspapers, next to the adds for cheap TVs at the post exchange, but these days it’s mostly a facebook feed I occasionally read. The artist and writer behind “PVT Murphy” (though these days Murphy’s a sergeant, I’m aging after all it seems) was annoyed at Facebook showing him a shopping page offering what amounted to white nationalist (US neonazi, if you prefer) paraphernalia.

Now, I pointed out that this was what the robot had concluded he wanted to see, and honestly none of us should be surprised by this. Military members lean right, and in the age of Trump this means that radicalization is around every corner- though for the record it always has been. In some insidious ways with a cancer of racists and bigots among our ranks, sure, I know because being gay I was targeted by a few myself, but also in more subtle ways.

I once watched a man scream at some Iraqis who were emptying a waste bin nearby, screaming that they didn’t get him, because he’d been the target of an IED attack two hours prior. Those men had no way in hell of having anything to do with it, but the guy that hit us got away free and the trash guys looked like someone he could defiantly vent his feelings of helplessness and victimhood upon in a vain effort to reclaim his power. I’m not condoning it, I’m just saying that sometimes the path to prejudice isn’t paved with propaganda and privilege.

I have every faith in the artist who draws PVT Murphy himself, but if you attract the attention of a lot of white supremacists, then probably the robot is going to conclude that you might want to look at some of the things that all the people who like your posts are looking at. Hence the shop page that offered a wall pinup of a templar knight preparing to smite the saracen to defend (white) Christendom with a few crass remarks about Islam written on it.

Now I explained, in truncated terms, how the robot made this call. The artist wasn’t excited about this explanation, and in fairness no one is excited about the black mirror showing them something ugly, it’s almost like an automated attack. But the machine was really just trying to be helpful. It wasn’t programmed to be sensitive to racial issues, and certainly the people who took out the add didn’t take that into their considerations. It identified a pattern and arranged the delivery of data that conformed with its instructions based upon the data input.

Now, some right wing dude decided to join in this discussion to point out that the robot didn’t know what it was talking about, included the terms “lib” and “snowflake” in his post, and suggested that if the robot had any idea who he was it wouldn’t keep showing him liberal content- after all he always used the laugh react on it. I pointed out this part as well, but I’d like to go into a deeper analysis for this discourse.

The right, and perhaps a lot of people using the reacts on facebook, has decided that you can use the laugh react to express a dismissive chuckle to the words of others. I think this has several sweeping, problematic implications.

First, the people using the internet are using it to each other, and are either unaware of the robots they share the internet with or ignorant regarding how they function. The robots do not interpret Laugh as a dismissive gesture. The data they gather from this is that you were paying attention to something and decided to put a reaction on it. The Laugh react is not a downvote on reddit, the robot, innocent little helperbot it was made to be, assumes you are amused by the thing you clicked on, and so endeavors to further tickle your funny bone. In short, it’s your good-natured wholesome friend who doesn’t understand the difference between you laughing with liberals and laughing at us. It thinks we’re all friends.

This leads to the second problem. If you are a conservative and you do not care to be bothered with leftist posts, then using the laugh react doesn’t help you at all. It further engages you with the content that annoys you. The stuff that caused you to try and put on your dismissive “ha ha tawdry communist drivel” mid-atlantic aristocrat voice is going to keep appearing. If you’re the sort given to conspiracy theories (and you are my bro, you still hate Hillary for the pizza thing), you might draw the conclusion that you are being targeted by leftist internet operatives, spamming your feed with leftist propaganda.

The truth is you’re spamming yourself with leftist content because your socially clueless helpful robot pal is gonna go out and find more things for you to laugh at. You’re not special or important enough for leftist internet operatives to target your facebook feed with propaganda attacks, and you have damned yourself to an experience on facebook in which you are bombarded with annoying or even blood-boiling content. All of this guidance, by the way, is equally applicable to left leaning users of the laugh react as a dismissive gesture.

What this does is contribute to people’s paranoia. It makes them believe that an enemy that doesn’t exist is trying to get into their heads. It fills their electronic lives with incendiary content that makes them angry and it encourages them further to continue to have generally unproductive electric arguments with people that they disagree with, leaving them exhausted by a brain full of cortisol.

Personally, I think the Left’s electric sin is more to do with our frankly superior witticisms (sorry Right, you invented and stuck to Nobama, you’re just not witty) and the craving so many of us seem to have for delivering that sick burn one-liner so cutting and succinct that it stops the conservative dead in his rhetorical tracks seems to consume online political discourse on the left almost as aggressively as call-out culture does when arguing among our own.

In the effort to sell us more things by pandering to our professed passions, the capitalist internet has created an electric rage engine that wraps you into one heated argument after another among people who are not listening to one another and who are learning to disengage from hard discussions. This last part is so dangerous to our democracy.

To be clear, I’m not lamenting the death of compromise specifically. There can be no compromise on the income gap, healthcre, free elections, or the rights of people who are darker in skin than I. But the electric rage engine makes it difficult to even have conversations about these things in the real world, and if you’re not talking to the people you disagree with face to face in the here and now, your chances of finding compromise are precisely zero percent, nevermind actually changing their views.

Have you noticed yourself having conversations with people that could just be copy pasted almost word for word off the tumblr where they “informed” themselves about this topic? I’ll bet that you have. Or else, more dangerously, you have begun to avoid having such conversations at all with people. Have you ever been in a discussion turned friendly debate with your friend and realized after a few moments that the debate isn’t suddenly so friendly? I’m willing to bet it’s been a while, so much so that you might even be shocked if it happens.

People like to go on about how fraught the holidays can be because of how politically charged family dinners can be, but I can’t remember such an experience within the past ten years. No throw down arguments, no discussions about the merits of one tax policy or another- we can’t even seem to discuss weighty matters with people who are blood kin anymore unless we already know they agree with our own views- and thanks to the electric rage engine, we can know, in precis, what their views are and what we think about them as a result long before we ever think about what to put in our covered dish. The opportunity for someone stepping into a landmine social or foreign policy issue at family and social gatherings has been eliminated, and with it the ability of the dinner table to serve as a place for families to reach consensus by resolving their arguments. We don’t talk politics with people who disagree with us in the real world anymore, we all just avoid it and spit our venom on the internet, achieving nothing but our mounting unhappiness and dislike for one another.

I have a young colleague at work, maybe 25, who demonstrated the ability to just promptly end a discussion last week. Now it was a nonsense discussion and in fairness the participants had gotten into trolling him for kicks, saying a blue shirt was green on purpose or some other nonsense, I don’t remember the particulars. But what I do remember vividly was the ease and efficiency with which he was able to simply end the discussion, how disengagement came so very naturally to him. I despise the phrase “agree to disagree” because it means that the argument hasn’t been resolved, but it is at least a sign that there was actual thought going on between participants. No such gesture here. My colleague put down the conversation and simply went back to his work with all the ease with which you might put down your phone when you decided you were done arguing with someone, and the ability to do this in realspace chilled me to the bone.

Moreover, there is a certain epistemological nihilism that has arisen among us, suggesting that no one can truly know anything because the sources of information, with whatever omissions or biases they may possess, are a matter of consumerist choice rather than objective fact. We can’t agree on what is real anymore because if you dislike someone’s account of events, you can simply get someone else to present a more palatable story and declare the other people liars.

If you don’t like what you read on NBC, you can simply tune to Fox to hear it told in a way that you choose to consume, often playing to your appetite for validation rather than your need for actionable information. We like feeling right, and the consumerist information economy has identified that as a means to get our attention long enough to upload some ads along with our news video of choice.

If the very identity of a person can be expressed by a computer algorithm and 4 or 5 hundred clicks across news articles, think pieces, and shopping pages, how easy will it be for the people who do understand how the machines work to begin influencing who we are?

In closing, I think every single one of us is developing a progressively more toxic relationship with the internet, particularly when it comes to political discourse, and I think that if we aren’t especially careful our ability to simply shut down and switch off, while healthy on the web, is going to begin invading our lives in the waking world in insidious ways that will hurt our ability to function as a cohesive society. I think that the marketing robots and the very act of making a profile and posting to it things that are important to you are dangerous influences on our sense of identity, and that by wrapping our sense of identity in the ideas and products that we consume in such a contrived, calculated fashion that we are restricting our ability to be flexible in our thinking, making us less able to get along with one another.

I’ve been on a soft departure from Facebook for a good while now, making it my loose rule to stick to messenger and instagram because I like indulging my vanity but for the most part I want to be interacting with people directly and not selling myself for likes when I use these things. Real attention from real people is much much better.

In 2020, I invite you to join me in kicking facebook or your own social media vice altogether and bringing our political lives and our debates back into the real world so that we can practice and re-acquire the skills of persuasion and discussion; not as a cynic call to begin trying to convert every conservative we can find, but for the sake of a political discourse that serves as less of a battleground with immovable ideological fortresses and more of a crucible in which the useless can be burned away and useful consensus and meaningful, mind changing-discussions can be had once again. We cannot afford to keep unsubscribing from one another if our democracy is to survive. (<- leftist witticism addiction in demonstration)

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eldritchsurveys · 6 years

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oo6.

1. Do you have any sort of “secret” goals or dreams, where you think about doing something a lot, but haven’t told anyone about it or actually made steps to achieve it? Maybe something you aren’t quite serious about, but still like to consider? >> I’m not sure. I don’t think so. Making goals isn’t a thing I’m really into. I don’t like to focus my life on one thing (moving to New Orleans is the only thing that I’m focused on, and that’s causing me enough grief because I can’t really do anything about furthering that process, it’s just a waiting game), because it has a tendency to tunnel my vision. I like to be open to as many opportunities as possible, and also... what kind of goals would a person like me have, anyway? 2. Does your town/area have a farmer’s market? Do you ever buy your vegetables there rather than grocery store? >> There are probably quite a few, but the one I know about is down the road from me. I haven’t been there when they start selling foodstuffs yet; I’m looking forward to finally buying produce from there, though. 3. Has anyone ever “ruined” anything for you (for example: your partner says, “oh, this song always reminds me of my ex” and you never want to listen to it again, or your friend is so obsessed with a movie that you start to resent the film)? >> Nah. That reminds me of Vlad, though, and how Sigma and Crystal fucking ran Repo! the Genetic Opera into the fucking ground around her to the point where Vlad refused to ever watch it or have anything to do with it. Like, damn, how obnoxious do you have to be to drive someone to that point. (Obviously if someone doesn’t find it obnoxious, then go ape-shit -- but if someone’s like “please stop singing these songs literally all the time” and you keep doing it? You’re the asshole in this situation.) 4. If you had a significant other and somehow got a chance to kiss your celebrity crush, would you still go for it? >> I don’t think my significant others would have anything against me kissing Idris Elba LMAOsdnfkglkj 5. If you still live with your parents, is it scary for you to imagine living away from them when you move out on your own? If you live on your own, how did you cope with moving away from your family for the first time? >> I didn’t really have time to acclimate to the change. I left my father’s house and drove myself straight back into the lion’s den that fucked me up the first time, because trauma does weird shit to people and in my case at that time, it made me... go back to it. And predictably, more fucked up shit happened, and I ended up back at my father’s house anyway, and then I turned 18 and got put into the hospital for suicidal ideation, and after that I was... on my own. Officially. And I had a drug-addict boyfriend, which took up all my time and energy, so I once again had no time or energy to process the fact that I was an adult out in this world that I was in no way prepared for. So, you know. I coped wonderfully!

6. Do you tend to be attracted to people that are more similar to you in interests and mannerisms or do you tend to be attracted to someone opposite/complementing to you? >> I really don’t, like... think about it. I’m just attracted to whom I’m attracted to. I trust there’s a reason for it, but I don’t make a big deal out of looking for the reason. 7. If you could choose your dream cast for a movie, name 3-4 actors you’d choose to be in it. >> Hmm. 8. Is there something that people complain about that just makes your roll your eyes because you think is not a big deal and you would gladly trade your own issues for it? >> Unfortunately, yeah, and every time I feel that way I have to talk myself out of it, because it’s uncharitable and short-sighted, not to mention dismissive of other people’s experiences and traumas. But, you know, being human, and all. It be’s like this sometimes. (It’s usually about people I don’t know, like, teenagers on tumblr complaining about... idk, their parents or something.) 9. Does it bother you when you find out that your friends have hung out without inviting you? >> This is definitely not a problem I have.

10. Have you discovered or learned anything that’s excited you, lately? If not, do you ever actually feel excitement when learning about something new? >> Sure. I mean, I don’t remember what exactly now, but that’s a familiar feeling. 11. What is a talent that a lot of other people desire or value but you really don’t care to have (e.g., singing, etc.)? >> Hmm... playing an instrument, I’d say. I like singing just fine. And I love to listen to other people play instruments, I don’t need to play one myself. 12. Do you remember the first time you consciously took a stand for your own rights (e.g., walking out of class while offended)? If you don’t remember the first time, can you explain one time when you’ve done this? >> Yeah, I really don’t remember the first time I might have done something like this. I don’t even remember any time I’ve done anything like this. I don’t think I like... take a conscious stand for things. I don’t know. 13. Is there something that you would claim as the best purchase you ever made? >> Probably not. I mean, I make decent purchases, but nothing that stands out. 14. Have you ever received an unwanted gift from someone trying to woo you? Did you accept it or reject it? >> I don’t think so. 15. Do you find that you compare yourself to others often? What sort of things do you find you compare most? >> Nah, I don’t do it all that often. Like, it happens sometimes, but it’s not a big problem I need to fix or anything. Sometimes I compare my relationship with Wednesday to other people’s relationship to [their personal incarnations of Wednesday], and that’s dumb but I know it comes from my anxieties regarding religious things in general. Christian leftovers, basically. Religious trauma is the issue I need to work on, not necessarily my knee-jerk comparing. 16. Do you ever do something in public and then worry that you might have embarrassed the people you were with? >> Sometimes, but that’s usually because substances were involved. It’s not a big problem now. 17. What was the last thing to make you really inspired to write or create art? If you don’t remember the last thing, do you ever find yourself struck by sudden inspiration? >> I do find myself struck with sudden inspiration on occasion, but I try not to depend upon that. Inspiration is fickle, and sometimes you just need to sit down and write whether it shows up or not. 18. Are you excited at all about the upcoming The Perks of Being a Wallflower movie? >> LOL 19. Would you say that you have a competitive streak when it comes to certain things? Which situations bring out the competitor in you? >> I’m really not competitive at all. In a battle of natural selection, I’d fucking lose so hard. 20. Have you ever boycotted a product or corporation? How come? >> Nah. 21. Are there any people whom you aspire to be like? Which traits do you find in those people that you wish to emulate? >> I mean, everyone I know has at least a couple of traits that I’d like to develop more in myself. Whether I do it or not is another story, lmao. 22. Are you a registered bone-marrow donor? If not, would you be interested in registering (bethematch.org) or is there something that turns you away from it? >> I’m not, but Sparrow is. The moment she said that it’s hella painful I was like “okay, donation is noble and wonderful but uh. I’m good” 23. If someone asks you to hang out, but for some reason you’re just feeling lazy/don’t want to go anywhere, do you ignore them, make up an excuse, or just tell them the honest truth? >> Listen, people who are going to be friends with me need to know that I’m gonna need days to just veg out at home and decompress and shit, or even to just be by myself for a little while, so I might as well be honest from the gate. I’ll try to make it up to them another day. 24. Do you think it should be illegal for gas stations to sell synthetic drugs (like K2 and Bath Salts) under the guise of them being “potpourri,” or do you think it’s not the gas stations’ fault for trying to make a penny, it’s the user’s fault for abusing the potpourri? >> I do think that should be illegal, because I’ve witnessed first-hand what K2 does to people. I even tried it myself, and oh my god, fuck that shit to hell. It’s... it’s disturbing. It’s so disturbing. I wish it’d go the fuck away. And while I’m all for personal accountability, I feel that’s an unnecessarily callous stance to take when it comes to substance use and abuse. There are a lot of factors that go into substance use and abuse -- mental health, socioeconomic position, the usage habits of one’s community, social alienation, desperation... like, the nuances are myriad. Saying something like “well they could just NOT use it” is an easy way to earn my distrust. 25. Have you heard of or even read the novel, “50 Shades of Grey”? If so, what’s your opinion about it? >> Heh. Yeah, I tried to read it. I didn’t get very far. I did see the movie, though! I used to feel a lot more strongly about it, but honestly, that was a waste of my fucking energy and I was just being ridiculous. It’s not that deep.

#surveys #survey #random survey

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ethicalcocreationteamhable-blog · 4 years

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Prepare for Your Future

Welcome to the Tumblr post of group C4 for Hable. In this post you can find the ethical problem we found and ethical evaluation. For this ethical problem we have a solution which is shown in the text, video and flyer below. Have fun reading and exploring our post!

During the formation of this product the problem that was taken into account is: Should Hable help people who are becoming blind in their process of acceptance, being the point where they decide to start using Hables products for blind people in public, and how are they going to do that ethically, focusing on mental wellbeing? The main values that were important to keep in mind were the mental wellbeing of the target group and the value of helping and respecting people. There were 3 options that we thought Hable could take, which were: setting up a platform for people that are becoming blind, have Hable introduce their target user to their products or make learning braille something that people should learn in school. After considering multiple ethical theories, we decided to go with the first option for action.

By creating a platform that can help the people that are becoming blind by offering multiple functions that they can explore themselves, but also letting them get in contact with professionals, Hable respects the fact that people have their own process and have to do it at their own pace. Due to the fact that you leave the choice of joining the platform to the client and not forcing the platform on them, it does not have a negative effect on their mental wellbeing. It eventually does have a positive effect on mental wellbeing, because the clients are guided through the process and are better prepared for the time that they become blind. This is how Hable can ethically interfere with the process of becoming blind and the acceptance of the people that goes with it, without hurting the mental wellbeing of the clients.

Hables Support Platform

Here is the link for Hables Support Platform: https://sites.google.com/view/hableplatform/training-and-help

Hables Support Platform is a combined effort of Hable, foundations and psychologists inside an online platform. It is a platform where people that are becoming blind due to elderly age or an eye disease can be directed to, to help them in their process of becoming blind. It focuses on people who have already lost 30% of their eyesight and are starting to realize that they should do something.

Features

The platform has 4 main features. The first one is a page where you can find information about the process of becoming blind and the steps that can be taken at a certain moment. Also, a blog will be available with stories from others about their experiences on which you can react with the chat function. This will also be available in podcasts to get the attention of the target group as well. With this chat function, you can also reach out to professionals, support groups or friends. The last feature is a training and help page where you can find products, games and training that can help you in your process. The products are focused on helping the target group with the steps that are mentioned in the timeline.

Accessibility

The platform will be fully audible, so that it will stay accessible for people who are further in the process or are already blind, but it also has a visual interface so that the platform has a nice and interesting appearance for people in the earlier stage of the process. This could make the first step of subscribing to the platform more appealing. People already using the Hable One can also easily navigate through the platform as well.

Video to explain Hables Support Platform

youtube

Advice on marketing

Our option for action is to make a platform with information, stories and interaction. Without visitors this platform is a waste of energy, time and money. Therefore, we advise Hable to take the following steps to increase their reach.

Optometrists Hable should collaborate with optometrists, like having flyers at their stores. Going to an optometrist is a first and relatively safe step taken by the target group (<70% eyesight and 40+). Having an optometrist informing you about a useful platform works better than having a company tell you. The influence of an optometrist is better and more personal.

Digital Hable should take the digital opportunities seriously. People who are a bit shy about their sight problem will not be attracted by physical events. Also, this is not possible due to Covid-19.

LinkedIn: Hable should create an active and interesting LinkedIn page. The target group is quite active on LinkedIn. Here they can promote their platform with videos and announcements for conferences/lectures and podcasts.

Podcasts: The stories that can be found on the platform should be in the form of a podcast. Podcasts are a popular media form. The target group is discovering podcasts as we speak. The podcasts would be personal stories mixed with Q&As with interesting scientists/psychologists. People would visit the platform through Spotify.

NGOs Next to optometrist Hable should closely work together with NGOs and communities for blind people. These organizations have a lot of experience with the target group and know a lot about the process of going blind. These organizations can help Hable with constructing the platform and with information, training and products for the platform.

Example flyer for marketing

#TUe

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bebizboss · 4 years

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20+ Things To Do After Publishing A New Blog Post In 2020

Have you ever wonder What to do after you publishing a new blog post on your site to drive more traffic, sharing and search results? Would you think after the hit the publish button it’s all over, People will click on your post title and okay with reading your full blog post? Then, sorry my friend, you are wrong. There are a lot of Things To Do After Publishing a New Blog Post. Then, let see What are the Things To Do After Publishing A New Blog Post In 2020.

20+ Things To Do After Publishing a New Blog Post There are a lot of quality blog posts go to waste easily because the blogger or writer didn’t understand What should they need to do after publishing their blog post and how content marketing works and use? They think their post automatically become search engine first page and easily drive traffic, sharing, and search result for them as soon as only hitting the publish button. For writing a quality blog post it requires putting so much effort and time into writing your blog post. So it is better to take another few extra minutes to make it ready to change the game. Those few minutes will help you to bring success for another year. Writing a blog post is not a simple thing. There is a lot of things even small or big, to successfully complete to get a successful blog post. Already we discuss,

Things that you need to complete before publishing a blog post.

Such as, How to write blog content that drives more traffic, shares and search results?Tips for writing a blog post that convertsHow to write a powerful blog post title?How To Write A Blog Introduction? It is necessary to make massive and powerful readers for your blog site after publishing your blog post. Also, you need to improve your blog post SEO too. Then Give it some time. It will help your blog post to build its own place among the millions of pages on the internet. This will help you to reach a large audience and increase traffic, sharing, SEO and many more. To be successful in your blogging journey, you need to be a Designer, Content creator, Editor, SEO specialist, Marketer and more! If you need to grow your blog engaging, sharing, traffic, search results, you need to do a few but most important things before clicking the publish button as well as after clicking the publish button on the blog post.

What Are The Things To Do After Publishing a New Blog Post?

This is a to-do list that after you publish a blog post on your blog. It will help you to make sure your content gets maximum traffic and exposure.

01.Reread the post (Second Proofread)

Yes. Already you have done one proofreading before published your blog post. However, it is better to do second proofreading after you hit the publish button because there can be some errors when you add your writing content, adding images and many more while publishing your post. So reread or second proofread will help you to find mistakes somewhere in the post after you published it. That will help to error-free our content and improve the credibility of your content.

02. Tell the search engines about your new post

Most of the search engines such as Google, Bing, will eventually enlist your latest blog post even if you do not do anything until their crawls indexing the next scheduled date. Search engines do not index your site as soon as you publish the new blog post. It takes a little time for it. That waiting period is not safe for your bog content especially t is a popular blog. Most of the content thieves, copy-paste your blog content and repost in their blog site as their content. If their copy paste blog posts are indexing by google or search engines before indexing your post content, your content becomes duplicate content and thieves copy paste content become original content. That will be harmful to your site ranking. So it is very important to let search engines index your posts as soon as those published. It will regularly index after a few days, but it is better to fast up that process. So as soon as you hit the publish button and second round of proofreading the very first thing to do is tell the search engines about your new post content on your blog site. How do you tell the search engines about this? It simply called “PING.” You can follow the below 02 methods to PING. 01. If you are using a static sitemap, you need to rebuild a sitemap after you publish the new post. For that, you need to include a link to the new post and re-submit your sitemap to the search engines. This is the best method to get the update automatically if your sitemap is not updated automatically. 02. You can PING your new content using some pinging service that free of cost on the internet such as Ping-O-Matic. You can use the easy and fastest method among the above two methods.

03.Link to old posts (interlinking)

You need to insert links to new content from relevant old posts. Interlinking helps you to encourage your readers to more explore your blog content, also, it helps for building site architecture that boosts your SEO. There are two methods to interlinking your content. 1. Link older blog posts on your blog site with your new blog post on appropriate keywords and places 2. Edit your old content and link it to the new content you just published. Your links should come from appropriate, quality articles and proper keywords only. This gives your readers more information about helpful titles and keeps them on your site for the long-term.

04. Add questions at the end to encourage discussion

People use the internet to search for answers to their questions. If they can find the right answers from your site, they will keep InTouch with your site. Also, they will share your content with others. You need to hearing people’s perspectives and answering questions that people asked and search. By starting to add an open-ended question at the end of each post, you can start to build a better conversation with your readers. By asking questions at the end of the post, it encourages people to comment and engage with your blog post. Ask a question is one of the “calls to action” to engaging with your blog content.

05. Make sure your post is SEO-tactic

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an absolute must and should not be ignored thing. By applying the right SEO methods, you can grow your search results, Traffic and blog income opportunities because SEO will help to drive search engines peeps to your blog site. As well as when writing the blog post, after publishing the blog post you need to keep improving your blog SEO. For that, it is better to do some SEO audits and keep improving your post SEO after publishing your blog post.

06. Pin your post images to Pinterest

Pinterest is one of the best social media platforms that help to bring more visits than other social media. So it is better to pin your post image into Pinterest. If you haven’t a Pinterest account yet for your blog start a Pinterest profile today because it is one of the leading social media. As soon as you have renamed and write ALT Tags of all your images in your blog post with relevant keywords, you need to pin the images directly from your blog site onto Pinterest. Then, you need to create a Pinterest board specifically for your blog, which only shares pins from other sources. Pin your blog post images onto that board first. Then, after a few days, pin them onto other relevant boards.

07.Post Twitter and Facebook

Facebook and Twitter are the most powerful and leading social media today. There are millions of audiences you can reach within one touch. However, you need to find the right audience for sharing your blog content. That will help you to increase the engagements and traffic for your blog content. It is highly recommended to add attractive images that help to explain your blog post. Also, do not forget to add #Hashtags for boosting your reach level. When posting your article on Facebook and Twitter, add a quick sentence that explain the main benefits and what about your post? On Facebook, you can share your post to specific communities that related to your niche market. However, on Twitter you cannot write sentences like Facebook, In Twitter, your writing description limited to characters. So try to write a short and sweet description that explains the benefits of your sharing post. In Twitter, it is important to use one or two #Hashtags, but do not overdo. A few of hashtags will help you to double your post engagements. In twitter, it is very important to study Twitter trending. It will help to understand what are the trending things and important hashtags.

08.Post in Reddit and Quora

Reddit and Quora are the biggest forums. It is an internet’s home for hipsters and geeks. You can get a thousand traffic from posting those forums. There are specific audiences for each possible niches in Reddit. Those audiences are addicted to those sites. So they always keep in touch with their threads. By posting those treads you can generate millions of traffic for your post. But to achieve that success, that posting content should be super quality and valuable to read. If your content is great, you can easily get referenced, and thousand of traffics for your site. Quora is also a forum with thousands of internet users who looking for an answer to their questions. As well as ask questions, you can provide answers for questions and publish posts on your quora blog page. In quora, you can add site links to your writing content. Also, most of the questions and answers on quora support for display on search engines high ranks. If you write quality content without spamming, you can get a thousand views from quora and search engines.

09. Share in other relevant Social Media Networks

As well as Facebook and Twitter, it is important to share your post on other social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Instagram, Medium, Tumblr, Snapchat and other social media sites that might beneficial to you. Build your audience in social media and provide value through your content that post in there without spamming. That will help to build a strong, fixed audience for your blog posts and drive thousands of traffic for your site.

10. Repost your post for social media in several more times

It is better to repost your blog posts on social media platforms several times, between a regular time period. It will help you to increase the post reach, people engaged and traffic both social media and blog site.

11. Send Post alerts to email subscribers

After you finish publishing your blog post, make sure to send a new post notification to your email subscribers. This is the best method to get some immediate traffic to the blog post as soon as you publish it. You need to share only a little information from the published post in the newsletter and include a link to your post that readers can access the pot easily and quickly from email. Use powerful and attractive words to call-to-action. You can send new post notifications and newsletters to your subscribers that help you to increase traffic and engagements, but do not Spam your readers’ inbox. If not, they will unsubscribe you without thinking twice.

12. Ask your team, friends, and others to share it

You can occasionally ask your key contacts such as Your team, friends, family members, and others to share your blog posts on their favor with their friends and audience. But never being irritating them to share your content. However, just make sure that sharing the audience is relevant to your niche and add value to the audience.

13.Advertise in social media campaigns and Ad Networks

Most bloggers only share their posts on social media. But smart bloggers create “evergreen” social media campaigns to bring traffic for the long-term. What is an evergreen campaign? An evergreen campaign is a series of social media updates that constantly recycle themselves. So instead of just sharing your post a few times and calling it a day, then your post gets promoted over and over again, on autopilot. For that, you can use a tool called, MeetEdger.

14.Respond to comments

If your posts receive any comments, make an effort to respond to them as soon as possible, especially if people have asked questions or any extra thoughtful. Make sure to answer questions to your best ability. Respond for blog comments is a great way to build a strong readership, conversations, more engagements, and friendships. Also, it will help you to know your audience well and easily connect with them and make your audience feel valued about you and your blog.

15.Comment on other blogs

This is another good thing to do after publishing your blog post. You can leave comments on other relevant blog sites. It is all about engaging with real people other people. So always provide a value for other people and your comment without scammy link building.

16.Comment on a Commenter’s blog

This is another highly recommended strategy for new bloggers to take a few extra time to reach out to the people who are commenting on your blog and other relevant blog sites.

17. Answer the burning questions on Reddit, Quora, and other forums

There are a lot of forums such as Reddit, Quora and etc. Those platforms allow internet users to discuss their different types of problems and others to provide answers for asking questions. Most people serf these kinds of sites to find answers to their problems. When answering questions, you can add your site links which helpful for solving the problem without scamming. After reading the answers and solve the problems, people will click on your site to know more details that help to solve their problem. By using those methods, you can generate a thousand traffic for your site.

18.Hunting for Backlinks

If you need to rank your post on google's first page, You have to work hard and show your post is worthy of their (Search engines) page one. This is one of the best Things To Do After Publishing a New Blog Post. For that, you need to build quality backlinks from high-quality sources in your niche. This indicates search engines that your post is also high- quality by association. If you are done a competition analysis related to your post title, you can identify all of the highest-ranking blog posts has lots of links from other blog sites. That is why they rank in higher. So you need to find other related blog owners who might want to link to you by doing google searches.

19. Check the analytics of your post to see how much engagement it received

As a hobby, it is better to check your Google Analytics account data in daily basics and compare it with past data. This will help you to see and check which posts received the most page views from which traffic sources. These statistics can tell about how much engagement received for your blog posts. By deep analyzing, you can identify which types of posts your audience loves and not really care for. Then you can use these data to more improvements for your existing data as well as future posts. It can be your game-changer. Use plugin such as Analitify to study the Google analytic data page-wise.

20.Update and refresh blog content in regularly

You need to update your blog content on a regular basis. You can add the latest updated content, Solutions, tips and tutorials, products, and many more. After finish the update, you need to add the last modify day of publishing your post. It will improve the credibility of your content and the trust of your reader to your blog content. It will help you to keep updating in search engines and improve your site SEO results. Bonus tips –

21.Schedule social sharing

Most of the people share their posts only once or twice after it is published. But it is most important to do more share after you published your blog post and you shouldn’t just stop sharing the blog posts after its first day. It can be difficult for you to keep in touch and share blog posts multiple times after published your post. For that, you can get a few plugins to help to schedule your blog post on regular basics.

Conclusion - Things To Do After Publishing a New Blog Post

All of the above tips require time and hard and smart work as well as a lot of patience. Then, it will help to maximize the value of each blog post that you published. The above list will help your blog post to build its own strong place on the internet and getting traffic from search engines such as Google and social media. It will help you to generate interest among the correct audience from the beginning. I hope the above 20+ things to do after publishing a new blog post will help you to make a specific place on the internet drive traffic and search results and be successful in your blogging journeys. And if you know more about things to do after publishing a new blog post or have any suggestions please share with us in the comments section below. Read the full article

#ThingsToDoAfterPublishingaNewBlogPost #Whattodoafterpublishedcontent?

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followmai · 5 years

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Branding

Core values

These core values go hand-in-hand.

Teamwork The best results come from collaboration. It may be expertise, it may be perspective. It is better to have more eyes looking at your work and more minds to think and work with you on a certain project/problem/etc.

Honesty The best way to build bonds: honesty. Tell people what you think and feel. If you’re honest, other people might be honest towards you as well.

Trust the process Things take time, no matter how big or small. I am convinced sometimes people have to go through a certain process to reach a point where they can make a decision with confidence. I have learned that process is important, iterations are important. It’s not about how fast you can finish something.

All of these values I can apply to my personal life as well. Sometimes it’s better to ask for help instead of trying to figure it out yourself. As for honesty, I wouldn’t want someone to hide the truth or lie to me. I will treat others like I want to be treated. Trust the process, I try to think of this everyday. I am still learning about who I am, who I want to be. I am learning everyday and that’s why I think this core value is so important. I need to have faith in the process, everything takes time. It’s going to be okay! Sometimes we need to go through a certain event in our lives to shape us who we are meant to be.

After campaign pitch: I have decided to take a step back from designing and just get my core values right.

Be nice to people First and foremost: be nice. You wouldn’t want to be treated differently. You have no idea what the other person has gone through that day. Be nice, other people will be too. Even if that’s not the case, being nice is the least you can do.

In addition to teamwork and trust the process Everyone has a different point of view, and every view is important and valuable. You can always learn something new from other people. One idea/comment/drawing etc. might spark another! Not everyone may have had the same opportunities and privilege as you. Give them time and space to develop, grow and flourish!

Thinking about it, these values are values that I needed to know about when I was younger.

LOGO

INSPIRATION

I started on this before the lecture on logo’s.

First attempt

Second attempt

The plural form of Mai is Mais. In Dutch maïs means corn! My whole life people have made jokes about my name (none offensive). But the one that stuck with me, was maïs. I feel like this name joke has unknowingly become part of me as I am no longer ashamed of my name. I thought if it would be nice to use it as a metaphor for my logo; to represent (personal) growth. We all start small, but over a period of time we keep growing and growing and if we add all those little moments of growth together (each moment is a piece of corn) we will end up with a corncob!

It all starts with an idea. I think that “idea” can be a piece of corn.

(It’s also playful!)

The execution did not go as planned...

Third attempt

For this one I wanted to try something that looks like it was handwritten. Every person has their own handwriting, which is unique. I think the handwritten element gives it a bit more of a personal feeling.

After a feedback moment:

Maybe animate it?

After my interview with O-Utrecht for an internship, I received the following feedback on my website:

“Your logo is nicely animated, but on your portfolio site it’s distracting. Anything moving attracts the human eye, your website is supposed to be about your work. It’s very distracting when something is constantly moving in the corner. Maybe it shouldn’t be every second that the word “designs” comes in, but maybe every 5 seconds or so. It clashes with the communication: your portfolio website is to show your work, the logo is distracting the user from your work.”

Thinking back to when I did all those case studies, only one company had an animated logomark. Now I’m not saying that I don’t want an animated logo, I just think that for now a different one is better. I have decided to make a similar logo without the animation in mind:

After creating this, I wasn’t sure which one was the best for me. I asked for feedback from friends and 4 were chosen.

Because of the different opinions, I started to wonder: lowercase or uppercase? Source

Source 2

WEBSITE

Before the start of this module I tried to make a layout for my website. I had the time and I will be needing a website in the future, so I just started.

I made these before the websites lecture.

I have received feedback on these “sketches”, I will add these for the campaign pitch.

During this module I tried to use tumblr as a portfolio site, but it didn’t work out the way I wanted it to. I then switched to Adobe Portfolio, which is free to use with the subscription I have. Adobe Portfolio was a bit easier to use, but it doesn’t allow me to move things freely. There are plenty of themes to choose from, but none of them give me the freedom that I want.

I have used Wordpress before and I have learned to code with HTML, but both were a nightmare so I’d rather not waste my time to figure it out again.

The plan is to use the Adobe Portfolio to show my work. In the meantime, I will try to come up with a layout for a website that I can build in Adobe Muse. I don’t have much webdesign experience, but this way I can still show it in a way that’s suitable for me.

I do think that using a mockup for the website design is a good idea, so I can show how the design looks on different devices. Maybe even show how to navigate on the website itself.

Usually I don’t sketch out anything web related, but I did make sketches that I didn’t add in the campaign pitch:

AFTER THE CAMPAIGN PITCH

I have decided to do more research about websites and collect inspiration and sketch.

Divided in 2, starting the first block in color and the second in white

I like the menu on the left, something I have not seen before (Geunbae Lee). At the bottom I will add my socials.

The start of something NEW:

To make gifs work in Adobe Muse (animated logo): place gif, select gif and set resize to none.

Artboards of my sketch, unfinished

LINKS:

https://www.mockplus.com/blog/post/design-inspiration-sites

https://www.behance.net/galleries/interaction

https://helpx.adobe.com/uk/muse/how-to/create-responsive-website.html

https://helpx.adobe.com/uk/muse/how-to/muse-build-place-illustrator-graphics.html

Every link that I have looked at for case studies and website inspiration:

https://www.ilovedust.com

https://o-utrecht.nl

https://www.dietwee.nl

https://www.bowlerandkimchi.com

https://www.geunbaelee.com/about

Other students/alumni from Communication and Multimedia design (CMD):

https://www.mitchversluis.nl

https://maureenrademakers.myportfolio.com

https://mynameischef.nl

https://www.vasenza.net/about

Old colleagues and alumni from multi mediadesigner

https://www.ricardoheikamp.com

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readandwrittenbyalison · 5 years

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Social Media Audit of UNHCR (Final)

Introduction

A group of University Students endeavoured to research and audit the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Canadian division��s online and social media presence.  Google, UNHCR’s website and its social media platforms were accessed and used to determine the effectiveness of the organization’s communication to its viewers.  Based on this research, a collaborative audit was performed to point out strengths and weaknesses.  The group also made recommendations to improve the organization’s social media communication methods, which were based on the group’s knowledge of methods to maximize social media presence.

Literature Review

UNHCR is a part of the United Nations (UN) which encompasses several humanitarian aid/relief organizations.  “The UN system, also known unofficially as the "UN family", is made up of the UN itself and many affiliated programmes, funds, and specialized agencies, all with their own membership, leadership, and budget.  The programmes and funds are financed through voluntary rather than assessed contributions. The Specialized Agencies are independent international organizations funded by both voluntary and assessed contributions”. 

Methodology

The group was assigned to choose an organization and audit its online and social media presence.  They selected the UNHCR’s Canadian division.  They searched for and accessed all available social media platforms that the organization currently uses for promotional material and communication.  The team observed strengths, weaknesses, ease of access/networking, and overall ratings/feedback from users of individual social media platforms.  The group then discussed ways that the organization could increase the benefits from each platform and why.

Results

UNHCR effectively makes use of Facebook and Twitter, however, they could benefit from the use of additional online resources and tools to capture multiple audiences.  Other social media platforms and networking/back-linking to affiliated organizations would increase web-traffic and consumption of their content – effectively reaching a larger audience.

Discussion

A Google search for “Refugee Assistance Canada” gives no obvious, eye-catching results that would guide searchers to UNHCR specifically. Unfortunately, in the absence of an easy “one-click” option, this may lead to a loss of potential viewers/readers.  This includes individuals that might be looking for information or organizations that provide refugee assistance but might not be aware of what UNHCR is specifically.

If the consumer is aware of UNHCR and accesses their main site, they are brought to an eye-catching main page that is easy to navigate with clear menu options directing the viewer to find useful information such as “what do we do”, “donate now”, and external links to Facebook and Twitter.

Facebook

UNHCR has an effective and eye-catching Facebook page that is updated daily.  Their posts include clear, profound messages with graphics that attract the viewer and entice further reading.  Their use of bullet-points, short quotations, and open-ended question allows for the reader to want to remain engaged.  Throughout Facebook, Twitter and their main web site, UNHCR Canada seems to focus on informing the reader while provoking an emotional reaction.  While the content of their posts seems to be less discussion-oriented and more informative, there are several clearly defined links and information available on ways for the audience to participate via donations, purchasing gifts, and sharing posts to external sources. 

The user reviews/ratings option on the UNHCR Canada Facebook appears to be used as more of a discussion board.  There are posts both praising and discrediting the organization and even politically condemning the UNHCR for its efforts outside of Canada. There are also active refugees posting requests for aid from the organization.  Many of these Facebook “review” posts are not responded to by the organization, therefore it is difficult to know whether these posts are being addressed by the UNHCR.  Since the review section isn’t being used for its intended purpose, it may be best to disable it in the page’s settings. Instead, they should designate a discussion board or dedicated email address for questions and concerns.

Twitter

UNHCR effectively captures its intended audience with image-oriented posts since too much text can result in viewers losing interest.  Furthermore, the inclusion of video posts can drive engagement with the added benefit of the original source being embedded in the video – meaning increased traffic back to UNHCR when these posts are re-tweeted.

While UNHCR’s Twitter biography briefly and effectively states its mission statement, it includes a link to “Follow us” on Facebook.  The UNHCR Canada Facebook page contains the exact same content as their Twitter account, which seems counterproductive and to be a waste of space in their Twitter bio.  More effective use of this space would be to link the reader to a more detailed page that more clearly explains what they do outside of their one-sentence mission statement.  Furthermore, diversifying content between the two social media pages would encourage the reader to follow both.

Other Social Media Tools

Useful social media platforms that could be utilized are LinkedIn, which provides a professional networking platform, as well as Tumblr and Instagram which cater more to the “browsing” viewer.  In addition, Hootsuite is a social media scheduling platform that allows organizations to schedule posts ahead of time and allows the same posts to go to multiple platforms at once. This is a great way to streamline content and have months’ worth of content created ahead of time.

Comparison

When comparing similar organizations’ social media presence, their posts are very similarly laid out to UNHCR.  One example is the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). UNICEF’s Instagram posts are visually eye-catching and profound which draws further attention to the fact that UNHCR seems to be missing out. With 500,000 uses of #humanitarian and over 200,000 uses of #refugee, Instagram is a missed opportunity for UNHCR.

Conclusion

UNHCR has effectively made use of Facebook and Twitter as well as effective content on its YouTube channel.  However, this organization could benefit from expanding into other social media platforms such as Tumblr, Instagram and LinkedIn to reach more viewers and potential donors.

Recommendations

Establish accounts and begin networking through other social media platforms such as those listed above.  Following along the general format for each platform would ensure maximum reach for respective audiences.  For example, Tumblr is a BLOG-style page where clear, concise and eye-catching posts will engage the general audience and entice them to continue reading.  Instagram is highly image-based and would benefit from including the profound visuals that the organization currently uses on its Twitter and Facebook pages.  Providing external links from Tumblr and Instagram posts would allow for networking to increase traffic through the organization’s multiple online profiles.  

A useful and comprehensive resource that demonstrates methods to establish and maintain an effective Instagram account for a non-profit organization can be found in Appendix 1 which is a video of Sue B. Zimmerman discussing strategies for successful campaigning on Instagram.  

Creating a LinkedIn profile will allow the organization to tap into professional networks with similar interests, job-seekers, potential volunteers and potential donors.  Often, LinkedIn is used on a more professional level, rather than just internet browsers.  It has created a go-to source for professionals seeking networking and affiliations in a less “adware” cluttered environment.

References

Bluehost (2012, Jan 31). What is SEO and How Does it Work? Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqg3F-8jBec&t=2s

Funds, Programmes, Specialized Agencies and Others. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/funds-programmes-specialized-agencies-and-others/

Hashtags.org (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.hashtags.org/

Hootsuite (n.d.). Social Media Scheduling Platform. Retrieved from https://hootsuite.com/

Instagram (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Canada website (n.d.). Retrieved from https://unhcr.ca. Date accessed: 25 March 2019.

UNHCR Canada Facebook Page (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/UNHCRCanada/. Date accessed: 25 March 2019.

UNHCR Twitter Account Page (n.d.) Retrieved from https://twitter.com/UNHCRCanada?lang=en. Date accessed: 25 March 2019.

UNHCR Canada (2016, Dec 22). Nobody Chooses to Become a Refugee - But You Can Choose to Help. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/user/UNHCRCanada

UNHCR and UNICEF urge action in Europe to end childhood statelessness (2019, Feb 14). Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unhcr-and-unicef-urge-action-europe-end-childhood-statelessness

Zimmerman, Sue B. (2016, Jan 27). Instagram Marketing for Non-Profit Organizations. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3_mJ6igLgw

#humanitarian #human rights #social media

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mikemortgage · 5 years

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Booming maritime trade provides opportunities for drug and car smugglers

MONTREAL — On a crisp day in early March, Tony Boemi looks out on the stacked shipping containers that stretch into the horizon of the 26 kilometre-long Port of Montreal.

“We’ve been going up tremendously,” the port authority vice-president says.

Traffic at Canada’s second-largest port rose nine per cent in 2018 to the equivalent of more than 1.6 million 20-foot containers for the fifth straight year of record volumes, prompting concerns the docks will be overloaded by 2022. Vancouver and Halifax, the largest and third-largest ports, respectively, also saw record container traffic last year.

“I’d be lying if I said we weren’t struggling with managing the sudden surge,” Boemi says.

Driving the boom is Canadian demand for clothing, appliances and other consumer products made in Asia, as well as a new free trade agreement with Europe.

However, the surge in traffic comes with a downside: The additional containers present an opportunity for criminals to capitalize on limited law enforcement resources and hide more contraband among the legitimate goods.

Bud Garrick, an investigator with Presidia Security Consulting and former deputy director-general of the RCMP’s criminal intelligence service, said imported drugs and exported stolen cars constitute the biggest smuggling problem, with authorities nabbing only a small fraction of the spoils.

“Marine ports are an attractive environment for individuals with ill means and mind to smuggle things into Canada,” he said. “The amount of cargo — shipping containers — that moves in and out of ports is phenomenal…It’s a magnitude problem.”

The criminal allure of ports is simple. Airports are under too much scrutiny, and air freight is costly. Overland smuggling does occur, but on a smaller scale.

“Trying to intercept smuggled cargo at a port is expensive and disruptive, and you’ll never have enough resources to catch most things through random screening,” Peter Hall, an associate professor of urban studies at Simon Fraser University, said in an email. “Mostly 1/8the CBSA3/8 focus on screening for terrorist and bio-hazards.”

A 2015 federal auditor general’s report found that the Canada Border Services Agency “did not fully have the necessary authorities, information, practices and controls to implement its enforcement priorities and prevent the export of goods that contravene Canada’s export laws.”

Just like legitimate trade, black market port activity works both ways. Incoming ships bring drugs such as cocaine and heroin, while outbound ships contain a growing number of stolen vehicles.

“The most prolific is actually in Alberta,” said Henry Tso, vice-president of investigative services at the Insurance Bureau of Canada. “A lot of the cars are being shipped from Alberta to various ports in Canada, mainly Vancouver.”

More than 25,000 vehicles were stolen in Alberta in 2018, part of a 50 per cent increase over the past five years that stems in part from overseas demand for high-end pickup trucks and SUVs.

The thefts, which recent cases have linked to criminal organizations in West Africa, northern Europe, the Middle East and China, rely on human as well as technological flaws.

“Certain docks, there are some you know are run by organized crime. Even in Quebec, like the Montreal ports, one terminal is clean, the other one is not clean,” said Tso.

“The major issue is corruption,” said Anthony Nicaso, who has authored more than two-dozen books on organized crime.

“There is no political will to fight organized crime,” he said, “probably because money does not stink, so who cares — money is money.”

Back at the Montreal port, Boemi estimates the CBSA thoroughly inspects about three per cent of containers that roll through the port. The CBSA declined to give statistics, but noted that screening devices such as gamma-ray detectors — which sense radioactive material — scan each container.

“The CBSA requires marine carriers to electronically transmit marine cargo data to the Agency 24 hours prior to the loading of cargo at a foreign port. This requirement allows the CBSA to effectively identify threats to Canada’s health, safety and security and take actions prior to cargo and conveyances leaving foreign ports,” the CBSA said in an email.

A Canadian Senate report from 2006 found that 15 per cent of stevedores and more than two-thirds of checkers who worked at the Montreal port had criminal records, along with more than half of the workers at an outside company contracted to pick up waste and maintain ships at the docks.

In an effort to boost security, the Port of Montreal now requires that truckers with Transport Canada security clearance have their fingerprints scanned upon entry.

The port and CBSA have signed on for a trial run of blockchain technology that aims to better secure and streamline freight shipping.

Jean-Pierre Fortin, president of the Customs and Immigration Union representing some 10,500 CBSA employees, is not satisfied.

“With stolen cars, with drugs, with guns, we need to increase our capacity to monitor this properly,” he said.

from Financial Post https://ift.tt/2TsmUEP via IFTTT Blogger Mortgage Tumblr Mortgage Evernote Mortgage Wordpress Mortgage href="https://www.diigo.com/user/gelsi11">Diigo Mortgage

#IFTTT #Financial Post

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makemoneyonlineprofit-blog · 5 years

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The marketer's guide to B2b growth hacking

https://120profit.com/?p=2650&utm_source=SocialAutoPoster&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Tumblr Though Growth Hacking is a new concept, it has been rocking the business world for some time now. The process combines the merits of experimentation and creativity to pave the path for a company’s growth. Growth hackers eschew big budget marketing techniques and opt for low-cost alternatives. In recent times, growth hacking techniques have proved its merit for growth and increased user base. Conventionally, growth hacking techniques have always been associated with small budget and tech start-ups. However, recently, it is being used by B2B business models. Though growth hacking and marketing are two separate things, they are now combined and definitely intertwined. Since growth hacking has become so prevalent, a look into a few growth hacking tricks must be explored. Best Tips for Growth Hacking: Staying Ahead In the Game: In order to be successful in growth hacking in recent times, it is important to stay ahead in the game. It is crucial to keep an eye on the current marketing trends, customer behavior, and purchase pattern. Be Specific about Your Choice: Every new channel and new trend seems very attractive to one. However, it is important to note that new marketing or sales tactics are not a growth hacking technique. However, if they strategically address the recent trends within the given industry or purchase demographic, they can be tried. But before going on to taking such a decision, consider the customer needs and requirements. Such experiments must be done early and often, but it must be data backed so that it does not become a waste of time. Use your Best Buyers as Your Research Indicator: Make trial and error in the approach of growth by using the best customers as your research laboratory. Try and understand the purchasing habits of your best buyers to understand why they buy your products. Understand the thinking that they put in to choose your company. Know more about it here. Once you come to know why your target customers choose you, it becomes easy to scale the success rate for smaller accounts. Additionally, knowledge about customer behavior will help you develop new products and services, thereby boosting the company growth. Step Out of Your Comfort Zone, Create New Opportunities: Though growth hacking is a new strategy, nothing can be attained by it if one chooses to play safe all the time. Thus if you truly want to reach a high level of growth, you must step out of your comfort zone and take risks. Explore new approaches, audience, channels and opportunities. Keep The Strategy Simple: A complicated growth hacking strategy can never work out. In fact, the most successful growth hacking strategies are often simple. Appoint a Specialist: Though there is no need to hire a growth hacker, if there are financial resources go for it! Choose a person who is capable of managing the operational segment of the entire process to make the growth hacking process successful. The primary responsibilities of the appointed person should be to ensure that the projects are moving in a pace, aligning the responsibilities of the different teams, understanding data, and finally reporting on the various metrics and results. And if you are keen to DIY, you can take help from top growth hacker tools. These tools are savios when it comes to growth hacking. Get The Project Aligned: Growth hacking follows a more comprehensive approach than traditional marketing. Thus it requires multiple departments, experts and resources. If growth hacking strategies are to be implemented by the organization, specialists such as product specialists, customer assistance, marketing executives, engineers, and business development experts must all work in collaboration. Work Quickly: Effective speed is crucial to make growth hacking successful. The idea is to work and build on a current trend before the competitors can get to it. This technique stands in stark difference with the previous traditional marketing strategies. Whereas traditional techniques were based on careful analysis, planning, and fully formulated strategies, growth hacking techniques are different. Growth hacking strategies gives no time. After an idea is discovered, it is fine tuned and launched. Embracing Failure: A company has to try multiple growth hacks before it can bang on the perfect growth hack. This means, that multiple failures can come in your path while trying out different growth hacking strategy. Once it becomes clear that the new experiment is not getting desired results, move on quickly to the next one. In current times nothing comes in the way of those who don’t experiment. So choose well and select the best. !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}; if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '2149971195214794'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); 120profit.com - https://120profit.com/?p=2650&utm_source=SocialAutoPoster&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Tumblr

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gus-the-icreamman · 5 years

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Exactly how To Win UK Haulier Through the Year In 2019

youtube

Within order to does come in order to attending a popular SEO meeting, you can be rest guaranteed that the benefits will end up being immense. Making use of FREE or paid SEO plus e-Marketing tools and services will be a great way to produce more exposure, ultimately increasing visitors to your site. It's incredibly important to not only develop a "kick-ass" website but to furthermore market and perform SEO upon the consistent basis. I suggest speaking to an expert e-Marketing and SEO Company to assist boost the awareness of your web site online. Knowledge associated with SEO techniques can assist a company to promote its online existence effectively. Since most users may look beyond the first ten outcomes of the search motor, one can think of defeating your competitors only if the company Blog9T Youtube website ranks full of the lookup results. So taking break in order to do an SEO training training course will simply be beneficial for your own business as it can assist you stay ahead of your own competitors. As you go along with the various options discussed beneath, you should try for you to recognize that SEO will appear in order to become a very nebulous technique to Internet marketing. A short history of SEO is complicated and you're going to have got a lot of questions. Having said that, I've divided the SEO coaching options into 2 types: Static and Interactive.

(1888PressRelease) Brick Marketing, the Boston-based, full-service SEO and search engine marketing techniques firm today announces they have got been ranked as the amount five SEO firm in the particular 2010 Promotion World Top 10 SEO Company Award initiative. Off page SEO will Blog9T be as equally significant as this is for the on-page SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION efforts. Know the significance associated with social media campaigns in your own SEO efforts. several. When carrying out SEO with regard to your site you must end up being targeting a specific segment associated with the market. 24 year-old Equipment Retain Manager Sia from Port McNicoll, has hobbies and interests for instance skate boarding, top seo trends in 2018 and aromatherapy. Found some fascinating places following 3 months at Uvs Nuur Basin. This technique is known as niche marketing. It will end up being essential for you to certainly know because this will create the likelihood of purchases a lot higher than if you attempted to target just SEO Blog9T anyone. A person want to focus on the folks that will probably buy through you. It just seems such as a lot of wasted power if you do not have got focus. This write-up uses work with a customer. After extensive customer research we all wrote a report about precisely why customers weren't returning. Without heading into too much detail, the particular customers are not satisfied along with their service or organisation. The particular client said they couldn't pay for to fix that problem yet wish to spend some money upon a blog and SEO marketing campaign to potentially pull in a lot more customers. Strange. Surely the option here would be use their particular budget to fix problems plus get repeat custom - probably the best custom you may get. Creates a Larger Pipeline. Enhancing your website to attract fresh opportunities will help your company make a large pipeline of possibilities. Consider how your firm draws in prospects currently? Do you deliver out mailings? Newsletters? There will be a lot of effort plus resources invested into traditional outbound marketing techniques (direct mail, e-mail and executive telemarketing). However, along with an optimized website you have got a sales tool functions in order to find new opportunities on the 24 hour basis. When a person blend SEO with current outbound marketing techniques your firm can create a large pipeline associated with opportunities. Rand Fishkin, The Sorcerer of Moz: He's founder plus former CEO of Moz plus co-founder of An active tumblr, Rand regularly writes on SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION, content, search, & social upon the web, from his several blogs. Known for his 'Whiteboard Friday' lectures, Rand is nowadays the most sort after believed leader in Digital Marketing area. SEO also needs a highly effective list associated with keywords. Locating correct keywords regarding your website content and The particular meta tag for certain dialects like Arabic often require brand-new "organic" research on selected key phrases. You cannot afford to simply depend on translated keywords: with regard to some languages your translation seller will need to create unique keywords related to your item or services.

• Cellular Communications - Most Americans have got grown accustomed to instant satisfaction and easy access to technologies. Mobile and tablet e-commerce will certainly reach $293B by 2018. Mobile phone and tablets are part associated with this wave of innovation. Cellular will be the cause of 72% of the particular U. S. digital ad invest by 2019. Marketers recognize that will mobile marketing is an untrained business tool. Moz Top Ten: Almost anything at all Moz does with marketing seems to be spot-on and their own email newsletter is no exemption. Instead of pushing their plan with tons of their personal posts, the Moz Top 10 pulls a lot of great posts through around the web and stocks them with its audience. Their particular posts cover covers the really best stories on inbound marketing and advertising, SEO, and social and this particular is one weekly newsletter individuals look forward to reading.

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tenaciouspoetrytimemachine-blog · 5 years

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What advantages and disadvantages does social media present to the modern writer?

I see social media as something that can be invaluable to many writers working today. The Internet is experiencing a period of unprecedented growth, during which it is becoming available to more and more people across the world, almost on a daily basis. Whether they utilise the Internet or not, writers need an audience to be successful, and the ever-growing one that can be found on social media can bring a multitude of advantages to them and their work. This essay will focus on discussing these alongside the disadvantages that are also present, since the Internet can be an unpredictable place for professional and casual users alike, and it should be treated with caution.

According to Tom Standage’s book Writing on the Wall: Social Media, The First 2,000 Years, we “collectively spend around three hundred billion minutes, or the equivalent of six hundred thousand years, on Facebook” every month. The fact that one platform alone – albeit one with the domineering presence and established profile of Facebook – can provide these astonishing figures is testament to the power and outreach of social media in general. If it did not provide a single adequate service, such numbers would simply be impossible to achieve, and users from all walks of life would simply refrain from relying so heavily on it. There is evidently massive potential for social media to boost professional prospects, and when these are viewed from a writer’s perspective, there is an equally large untapped readership to reach out to. In the UK and US alone, social networking sites of various shapes and sizes “are used by 98 per cent of all Internet users, and the figure is above 90% in many other countries.” To a writer, these are audiences that may previously have been completely inaccessible to them, and if they are connected with in the right way, the possibilities may be endless. Social media is, according to Jill Walker Rettberg, “a form of blogging”, and keeping a regularly updated profile can help writers to gather loyal and consistently interested followings. This can in turn allow them to connect and respond to those who engage with them, all while promoting work and – where necessary – pinpointing a specific demographic to target in a project. Commercially speaking, trends are important things for writers to identify prior to the writing process, and by gauging readers’ responses to their work as it is published, they can determine what does or does not resonate with consumers. If their early efforts on social media are rewarded with a large audience, writers can prove to potential industry connections, such as agents and publishers, that their output is worth both time and investment. Many well-known writers have indeed amassed such a following online, and are taking full advantage of this through extensive interaction with their fans.

Among these is Neil Gaiman, whose Tumblr page features a page entirely devoted to answering questions from his readers; he does this in a warm, honest, informal and conversational manner, which may help to increase his standing among his followers and make them feel as though they have established a relationship with him. Indeed, The Guardian notes that his chosen approach demonstrates that he “respects his readers as fellow creative souls”, meaning it has had the noticeably positive impact he would have wanted to achieve. Other writers attract followers in different, more inventive ways, demonstrating the versatility of some social media platforms. Novelist and lyricist Paulo Coelho, for instance, uses his Instagram account to juxtapose quotes that he deems to be of interest with miscellaneous images, relating to both his personal and professional lives. His relaxed attitude to the latter part of his life can allow his readers, no matter who or where they are, to feel connected on a deeper level, in much the same way that Gaiman’s might. Through the quotes that he selects, which are mostly motivational or inspirational in nature, he shows a desire to play an active part in improving or enriching their lives, and this can also be effective in bringing people closer to him and his work. Elsewhere, writers who have diversified into other artistic fields can use social media to draw interest towards their alternative output, just as Teju Cole has. He is described by Wikipedia as a “writer, photographer and art historian” – and in order to draw attention to all three mediums, he has utilised various social media platforms. Interestingly, those that rely on the written word the most have been largely neglected in favour of Instagram, an almost entirely visual medium, where Cole showcases his art. He freely admits on his website that his use of Twitter in particular has lapsed, and a glance at his page will confirm he has not been active there since July 2014.

I believe that by rejecting Twitter as a relevant platform, Cole is sacrificing one of the very best forms of social media for a writer wishing to connect with readers, whether they are established or not. The very nature of a tweet, which can be a maximum of 280 characters long, means that Twitter can be a very manageable website to use for anyone – they can discover a lot from very little actual information and an easily attached picture or video. As means of visual stimulation, these have the potential to be especially popular with audiences; Rettberg notes that such things can appeal to them as “a drive-by audience” much more than “a mass of text”. Direct messages, which allow for conversations that are unseen by other users, can also be located and exchanged simply. Many writers and literary professionals have seized the chance to utilise this simplicity as much as they can, and to great effect. They often gain success through offering tips on how best to get published, and by offering relevant advice to those who ask for it on a daily basis. Dan Blank’s bio claims that he helps writers “create meaningful connections with readers”, and to look at his profile reveals that he adopts a professional but warm and optimistic tone with his followers, for whom he tweets links and resources several times a day. He currently has 7,893 followers – it is likely that they have been enticed by the uncomplicated, unintimidating and accessible nature of his account. Mridu Khullar Relph tweets for similar reasons; her style juxtaposes the professional with the personal, making it highly relatable for her own followers, of which there are currently 6,262. Her tweets are often motivational in nature and this is reflected in some of the replies she gives; in response to one user who claimed that she continued to inspire them on a daily basis, she said that she was “so happy to hear it!” Warm engagements like these, when widely seen by the scale of audience the Internet affords, can prove to be very endearing, and they can lead to the writer being raised even higher in the estimations of the public.

Despite the clear advantages presented to writers by Twitter and social media use in general, there are also disadvantages to be found. Firstly, the amount of dedication required to effectively run an account can take away from the time actually used for writing – and a large following needs actual finished work to engage with. Emily Benet of Publishing Talk alludes to this by stating that to be successful in writing a novel, “you need to have powers of concentration”, and she goes on to explain that excessive focus on an online presence can lead to an equally large amount of time being wasted. A writer must therefore see time management as essential if social media use is to work well for them. In addition, users are susceptible to hurtful comments or feedback from others, and these can be emotionally damaging or demoralising, although Benet suggests that in a writer’s case, it is beneficial to develop “a tough skin” around them as this can allow them to accept criticism easier. A third disadvantage comes with the connections actually made online. Even if they are many and widespread, they still exist in the virtual world at the expense of the real one – as such, they make it appear that “a real social connection exists when it does not.” A writer’s positive experience with social media should not take away from the fact that personal connections with readers are just as valuable; this reiterates why they should not be overly distracted in using it.

Having looked at both the advantages and disadvantages of social media from a writer’s perspective, it is still clear to me that there are more of the former than the latter. In an increasingly digital age, where technology is prominent in much of what we do, writers would impose a significant hindrance on themselves if they were to ignore the benefits social media can bring to their work. It is apparent, however, that they should be vigilant and considerate whilst doing so, as the difficulties presented by other people and the platforms themselves can limit what a writer is able to achieve online and the subsequent impact this can have on their work. As long as their time and usage is monitored sensibly, though, there are plenty of opportunities for writers to succeed online, and they have a variety of popular platforms – all proven to be effective - at their disposal to assist them with this.

Bibliography

· Standage, Tom. Writing on the Wall: Social Media, The First 2,000 Years. Croydon: Bloomsbury, 2013.

· Walker Rettberg, Jill. Blogging, 2nd edition. Polity Press, 2014.

· Leonardi, Paul M, Huysman, Marleen, and Steinfeld, Charles. ‘Enterprise Social Media: Definition, History and Prospects for the Study of Social Technologies in Organizations’. Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, Volume 19, Issue 1 (2013), pages 1-19, accessed 18 November 2018. https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/19/1/1/4067484#94892604

· Kate Gwynne, ’10 authors who excel on the Internet’, The Guardian, 11 May 2015, accessed 18 November 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/11/10-authors-who-excel-on-the-internet

· Emily Benet, ‘Social media – the pros and cons for writers’, accessed 18 November 2018. http://www.publishingtalk.eu/marketing/pros-and-cons-for-writers/

· Wikipedia. ‘Teju Cole – from Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia’, accessed 18 November 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teju_Cole

· Dan Blank, Twitter bio. https://twitter.com/DanBlank

· Khullar Relph, Mridu. Twitter post, 17 November 2018, 7:40pm. https://twitter.com/mridukhullar/status/1063879648713560064

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claraoswald81 · 5 years

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