14 Social Media Campaigns that Won't Cost Your Company A Dime in Advertising. Yes, Free.

14 of the Best Free Social Media Campaigns to Help you gain followers!

When Helene and I hosted last month's Total Social, I quickly learned how many of you manage all of the social media for your company. When I was Marketing Director for my former employer in Knoxville, a chain of salons across three states, I had an absolute ball coming up with the in-store and social media campaigns. That company franchised out to a large chain a few months ago, so today, I thought I would bring you some of those campaigns that were especially effective, so you can use them for your company! 

1. BINGO

Hands down the biggest and fastest way I was able to increase our "likes" was when I had the idea to play BINGO. The first two weeks was simply distribution of the bingo cards. Our clients could pick up their bingo boards IN-STORE. The bingo boards were free, the catch being you had to like us on Facebook to play. 

Anything you can do to utilize the clients you already have is the best because it is effective and free. 

Then after boards were distributed, I would call out a few bingo terms each day over the Facebook airwaves. For example, I would make a FB status, and call out the squares: Mystic Spray Tan, Bronze and Fusion UT Campus. If you had one of those squares, you got to cross it off your board. 

The first person to fill up the whole board won 6 months of free tanning. But to be honest, it could have been a t-shirt and people would have still played. SO EFFECTIVE! (spoiler alert: people go bonkers for t-shirts) 

Click here to see more of that promotion on Facebook!

2. Guess the Number 

I ran a “guess the number of bottles of lotion on the shelf” contest. I posted a picture of the lotion shelves at one of our salons, and our fans guessed the correct number to win a gift card. This promotion didn’t gain new followers, but it was still effective. Remember, the more people begin to interact with your status, the more people who will actually get to SEE your status!

Click here to see that campaign in action!

3. All You Gotta Do is Ask

This one was really effective, and painfully easy. All I did was ask them to click like, in exchange I awarded one lucky person a gift card. Remember, the more interactions, the more visibility on your client's news feeds! 

Click here to see that campaign in action! 

4. Elf (or whatever inanimate object you so choose) On the Shelf

When I first ran this campaign, I was downright giddy thinking how good of an idea I had just come up with. But it was actually a gigantic bust. Surprisingly. I think the issue was that the elf was at a store in Kentucky, and most of our fans were in Tennessee. I still would try this one again. 

Click here to see that campaign in action! 

5. Pick A Team, Any Team! 

I think one important thing to remember is to have fun. Just because you sell tanning, for instance, doesn't mean every status has to blah blah snore snore tanning facts over and over again. Have some fun with your clients. I asked them to tell me which college, NFL, NBA, MLB, etc... team they were rooting for, then switched it up based on the time of year. Everyone wants to brag on their teams, this one was a piece of cake! 

Click here to see that campaign in action! 

6. Holiday Promotions for Facebook Fans Only

I would post Facebook only (as opposed to in-store) flash sales. For example, my status would offer 15% off any lotion or 50% off a spray tan. I would then have my sales associates remind their in-store clients to like us on Facebook, and we could honor the posted special for them! 

The person would get their smart phone out, and immediately go like us on Facebook to get the offer. You do the math, we had 18 locations, saw around 250 clients per day, per location. I'm sure you can see how quickly those likes rack up by doing this strategy! 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

7. What am I tanning with?

I would ask our clients to guess what lotion I used that day. I only did the spray tan, but that is neither here nor there. I still picked a random lotion, then waited for the correct guess to roll in. 

This would be a fun one to adapt for a restaurant. Example: The first person to guess what entree I had for lunch today off insert your restaurant's name here menu, wins a voucher for that entree, free! 

Plus, this one gets your clients searching your website, looking up your menu and researching your company to make an educated guess! 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

8. Trivia Tuesday

Each Tuesday I would ask a trivia question about the history of our company, a question that required just blind guessing or even a question that could be easily answered by searching our website. 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

9. Take em' elsewhere  

Announce a contest on Facebook, that you have to actually enter via Instagram.  

This works great to grow your Instagram account! Gaining a fan on one platform is good, gaining a fan on 5 platforms is better! 

Oh, and always use hashtags. They are powerful. 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

10. Aces Wild

Every salon had a deck of cards behind the counter. IF THE CLIENT LIKED US ON FACEBOOK, they then were allowed to pick a card. Each card in the deck had a specific prize value. 

For example, drawing a Jack from the deck got them 10% off lotion, a King got them a free upgrade, a 2 got a lotion sample… etc etc… then if they drew an ace, they could pick ANY of the prizes available.

Only catch is they had to like us on FB….. sneaky, sneaky, huh?

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

11. Pale legs contest

They had to upload a picture of either their pale legs or a friend's, and the person with the most likes on their photo, won. 

The intention was for them to tell their friends to vote for their picture on our wall. Their friends would then like our page and, voila! We got new followers! 

The photo topic could obviously be changed to fit any business! 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

12. Fusion olympics

This campaign took place during the Summer Olympics, but could be adapted for any major sports tournament!  

In-store, the client drew a nation out of a hat. They then had to... you guessed it... like us on Facebook. If the nation they picked won a medal that day, we announced the prize they won on FB, and gave them a redemption code.

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

13. Trends by city  

We all want the hottest new beauty product that all of our friends have. So do a little sales research. Find out what the hotest selling products are by location, and make a graphic with the info you find! You're pushing a product, but it won't feel like that to the client. Two birds, one stone! 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

14. Share Share Share  

When in doubt, have them share your status for prizes. Just one single share, from one single client, makes your fan page visible to hundreds more than you had access to before. Simple and very effective. 

Click here to see an example of that campaign in action! 

Feel free to leave a comment with even more effective social media campaign ideas to add to the list!  --- Oh, and see you tomorrow for this month's #FavTotalSocial!!!

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The theme for July, which will take place this Thursday, July 17th is favorites with the hashtag #FavTotalSocial.  So Helene and I will see you on Thursday, ready to play favorites! For more #TotalSocial details, go here!

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Tips for Getting and Nailing an Interview: Choosing Your LinkedIn Profile Picture

You guys might think I'm crazy, but I started writing a general "LinkedIn Tips" post, then realized I could build an entire blog post addressing the Do's and Don'ts of choosing a profile picture! So I guess this series just keeps growing. For Part Three (of four, five, six... ?) I bring you, "The Do's and Don'ts of choosing a LinkedIn picture!" 80% are doing it wrong. And yes, I just made that number up.    Part One of this series can be found HERE Part Two of this series can be found HERE 
Do's and Don'ts: Choose the Right Picture This drives my mom bonkers, and I see her point. Profile pictures where you immediately think, "oh my gosh, what are they thinking by making that their image?", should not be used. Here are my do's and don'ts of choosing an image for your profile picture. Because, it matters. 
  Don't use a car selfie:  Maybe we can get rid of these across all social media?! Please? 

  Don't use a cropped out group photo: I see this one quite often. These can cause serious pixelation and just doesn't look professional. Plus, it is distracting when you can see even a sliver of someone else's face in your photo. 

   Don't be an egg I say "egg" because of twitter. I just call anyone without a picture, an egg.

  Don't be goofy  Yes, you're adorbs. But they can learn that about you later. For now, let them view you as a lean, mean, working hard, serious machine! 

  Don't include friends in your photo You're the star of this LinkedIn show, don't share the spotlight. 

  Don't include your boyfriend No, this is not my boyfriend. This is the naked cowboy in NYC. While this picture is freaking awesome, I'm aware, it doesn't belong anywhere near LinkedIn. Or your grandmother. 

  Which leads me to my next don't...   Don't use anything sexy or even remotely revealing If you would be embarrassed / feel awkward blowing it up, framing it and presenting it to your grandmother as a Christmas gift, don't use that picture.  

  For those of you who were anxiously awaiting a sexy example "don't" picture of me, I'm sorry to have disappointed all none of you. Stewie will have to do for now. 

Don't be invisible  Ok but, we still have no idea what you look like. You might as well be an egg.

  Don't show us your nose boogers  Can we just go ahead and say no selfies at all? This is your career for pete's sake, put in the effort and have someone take your photo. 

  Transitions for the win.... Don't pose with the pups or with the kiddos Yes, I know you love them. I love them. We all love them. Except for hiring managers. They don't love them. 

  Don't use old photos  Limited Too clothes are so last season. 

  Don't use wedding photos  Yes, you looked gorgeous. More gorgeous than any other day, ever. In the history of ever. But unless you're bragging about your MRS degree, professional is the name of the game.  

  Yes, I know this was the Kentucky Derby, but it looks a little bridal, right?  Also, no booze. But pretty much everyone knows that....

:::Now for the Do's:::

Do use professional photos if you have them. Do grab your iPhone, a friend and business attire, and go take your picture in a professional setting if you don't have any suitable images already. Again, this is your career here. Put in some effort.  Do use Groupon / LivingSocial. I often see headshot photography as the deal of the day.  Like this one! Do smile big and pretty

So what are your Do's and Don'ts of LinkedIn profile photos?  Do you agree or disagree with my choices?  Oh, and of course, come LinkIn with me! 
Oh, and I'll just leave this here. Because, America.  Thanks for the opportunity, Korked Bats. I look forward to hearing back from you in a timely manner. 

   

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Resume and Interview Tips {part 2}

So here I am today with the second post in a three-post series: Tips for Getting and Nailing an Interview! I talked all about crafting a cover letter that will stand out to a hiring manager in the last post. I can't believe how requested this post was, so I'm excited to bring it to you all today! 

As I mentioned in the last post, I'm not an expert, and there are plenty of people who may disagree with me, and that is ok! In fact, if you disagree with anything I'm about to discuss, feel free to let us all know by leaving a comment. The more informed we all are, with many different perspectives, the more successful we will be.

But what I do know is what has worked for me in the past. I also know what a hiring manager is looking for, because I was one for a few years! Now lets talk about resumes and interviews!

First: Let's talk RESUMES! 

This will be quick since I personally think most people are pretty informed on resume building. I really want to focus the majority of this post on interview tips.

Tip 1: Build a resume that looks the part 

I do graphic design and advertising, so when I was looking for work, my resume looked like a graphic designer's resume; bright, bold colors and visually eye catching. I can get away with a fun, upbeat resume. If you are applying with a law firm, you can't. You would need to be clean and sleek and elegantly simple with your resume. Your resume should not only showcase a list of your talents, but should reflect your desired position.

Tip 2: Have two different resumes. 

Not every job I applied for when I was job searching was for graphic design. So I had a simple, plain resume to use for more straight-laced positions I was applying.

Tip 3: Always (always always always always) keep it one page

Always.

Next: Interview Tips

Tip 1: Have a Proper Handshake

I have certain things I look for in a candidate and if I don't find those things, I will tune out the rest of the interview. The biggest and most important, that sets the tone of the whole interview, is the handshake...

Handshakes 101: If you don't shake my hand correctly, we are done. This goes to men and women. Just because I am a woman, doesn't mean guys should curtsy instead of shake my hand properly. I promise, it won't break into a billion pieces.

I don't want to see the following: using the tips of your fingers to squeeze the tips of my fingers, don't offer me a "pound-it!", don't shake with the LEFT hand, don't just place your hand in mine and not squeeze.

I assure you I am not the only one who thinks this way. Give a proper, full handshake with a hearty squeeze. If you don't, you WILL NOT get the job, I can guarantee that. GUARANTEE!

Tip 2: Tell a Story

When presented with a question, you should always try and answer that question with a story. For example, say the interviewer asked, "How would you deal with an angry or irate customer?" Respond with an actual time you had an angry customer, and you made the situation right for them. 

What I like to do is take every question the interviewer asks, and place the phrase, "Tell me a time when..." right before the question, so I consciously remember to tell that story. 

Tip 3: Ask the interviewer questions (they will love it.)

Come prepared with some questions for your interviewer. For example, at the end of the interview, the interviewer always will ask you if you have any questions. 

"Um, I don't think so!" Well, that's all well and good, but what if instead you had a few questions prepared regarding the available position or the company culture. 

Maybe ask, "What is the top priority for the person in this position?" Or, "What qualities does it take for a person to be successful in this company?"

Make sure your questions are intelligent and thoughtful. DO NOT ASK about how soon you can take off for vacation time, for example.  

Tip 4: Know the company you are interviewing with

You've got to do your research. Maybe this was wrong of me, but I would sometimes simply ask, "Tell me what you know about our company?" The answers I received from this question really told me who took the time to research our company, and who didn't. 

Don't just research the company, research the whole industry. Find out who their competitors are, find out what their competitors are doing well, and what their competitors are falling short on. The more you know about the company for which you are interviewing, the better you can answer the interviewer's questions, and the better you can ask informed questions at the end of the interview. 

For part 3, feel free to LinkIn with me, because I'll be back to talk all about LinkedIn tips!
And feel free to ask me any questions you have, if there are enough, maybe I can even do a part 4 for you guys!

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The Importance of Being Thorough + #9to5TotalSocial

Before I get into the big announcement du jour, (that's the announcement of the day-- ahhh that sounds good I'll have that) I wanted to discuss the importance of being a good note taker.

We have been trained to take thorough notes since we learned cursive in second grade. That brings me to a side point, does anyone use cursive, ever? Rurruto?

Ok, well try buzz. 

I'm full of the movie references today, huh? Ok so we are told to take very thorough notes since second grade, right? Then in high school and college the more detailed your notes are, the better you will do on the tests right? I used to take such detailed notes that I left class looking like the butler in Scary Movie (movie ref 3). 

But nowadays, I take notes just so I won't forget my own thoughts. Horribly depressing, really. Yesterday I did day two of couch to 5k and as I headed downstairs, realized I forgot to put the fitbit I got from Staples on. So I went back up four flights of stairs with both dogs, fed the dogs, gave them both water, messed with my Spotify playlist, then grabbed the dogs and headed back outside. I then realized I forgot the fitbit again, so I headed back up 4 flights of stairs.... 27 going on 90. 

When I have a blog post idea, if I'm near a computer I'll usually make a draft post in blogger, or if I'm not near a computer I'll email myself with the subject line "new post" so I can easily find it again. A couple of days ago I was searching my inbox when I came across this email I sent myself...

If you are having a hard time reading that, it says, 

"How to inevitably destroy your blog in one easy step." 

WTF is the step, Sarah!!?!?!?! You idiot!!!!!!!!!! You blew it!!

(movie ref 4)

So I have been racking my brain trying to remember this "easy step" that will destroy your blog, for about 48 hours straight now, and I have no idea what the step was. So the lesson today, my friends, is to take thorough notes. Who knows, this could have been a game changer for Saturday Sessions. This could have made my Pinterest Famous dreams come true. But alas, we will never know what the ONE STEP is that will DESTROY YOUR BLOG. Dumb, loser.

---

On another, much more positive and descriptive note (pun intended), guess what next week is?!

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It is time for the second installment of #totalsocial!


Helene and I are announcing the next Total Social linkup! Here are June's details:

Date: Wednesday, June 18th
Topic: "My 9 to 5"!

We want to know what do you do for work, or during the day, what's your role? We are always astonished how people can blog and work or have kids etc. So, we want the details- What's your 9 to 5? Or feel free to get creative, maybe discuss what your dream 9-5 would be! 

Tell us using the hashtag: #9to5TotalSocial
Via blog, insta, facebook, pinterest and twitter!

For more details on exactly what #totalsocial is go here
Or for my first total social post (#firststotalsocial) go here


And remember, CAREFULLY WRITE THIS DOWN SO YOU DON'T FORGET! 

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Tips For Getting and Nailing an Interview: Writing a Cover Letter

There are some do's and don'ts of excelling in an interview. Over the years I have gotten most of the jobs I have interviewed for, well except for that one in college I was severely hungover for, clearly didn't get that one. I also used to conduct interviews on a weekly basis for my job back in Tennessee, so I know what that person interviewing you is looking for! So here I am today with the first post in a three-post series: Tips for getting and nailing an interview. 

Be sure to Customize Your Cover Letter For The Position! 

1. If you are applying via Linked In, you can see who posted the position. USE that person's name and title. This is not the place to be lazy. Sunday morning after Fireball is the place to be lazy, not job searching. If you are using Monster or Indeed, go to the company's website and see if you can find the name of a hiring manager in the human resource department. Address it to someone so you avoid the dreaded 'To whom it may concern...'

2. Spoiler- every single cover letter I sent out when applying for jobs before I moved to Dallas had this same paragraph. They all were my perfect hybird blah blah blah positions. But I changed the name of the position each time and tailored that last sentence based on if it was a social media position, graphic design, marketing etc.

3. Get your brag on. Make the most out of the experience that you do have. I was able to turn one job into two. I worked for Fusion as an Area Sales Manager then moved to Marketing Director. It was the same company, but easily two different positions on a resume. Use these two paragraphs for numbers, accomplishments, duties, awards.... anything bragging about yourself!

4. Don't be a robot! You are a person right? You have a life outside of work right? Companies want to hire well rounded individuals. Tell a bit about yourself and what you like to do in your spare time. Obviously, don't talk about getting drunk and hooking up in clubs. Talk about playing in sports leagues, talk about blogging, talk about sorority offices you held in college, talk about reading, writing and arithmetic.

5. Close and thank them for your time. Most importantly, be honest. I wasn't living in Dallas at the time. I wanted them to know that I would need to relocate and need time before I could move.I was applying for social media and graphic design positions. I had work on the internet I was proud of so I directed them to that work!

What tips for crafting your cover letter would you add?

For the second post in this series go here!

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Dream Jobs

This morning I was so rudely awoken by an alarm clock that was not supposed to be going off. I mean, it was Saturday after all. Why was my alarm going off? Rude ticket, alarm clock, sir. Then about 5 seconds later, I remembered it was Tuesday and slowly began to regain control of my basic motor functions. 

I know what left me so confused when I woke up this morning. I had a dream last night that totally sparked an onset of questions in my mind. One of those dreams where you continue to think about what it meant for hours on into your day.

I dreamt that I was just chatting with a friend as two tall modelesque girls walked by. I was talking quite passionately about Zoey Deschanel and the show The New Girl.  

Now, the funny thing about dreams is that you are usually left with a good enough chunk of memory to retell the dream, but not enough to have an explanation for the dream. I've seen a handful of episodes of The New Girl, and while yes I did enjoy it and crushed hard on Nick from the show, I'm really not a very passionate fan, or at least not as passionate as I was in the dream. 

Anyway, so these girls walk by and stop dead in their tracks to listen to me gush about The New Girl; what I would change about the show, what I love about the show, facts about the characters... yada yada yada. 

As it turns out, they are the producers of the show (in my dream of course, I have no idea who the producers are in real life) and they are so impressed with my knowledge and passion they offer me the EXECUTIVE PRODUCER position for The New Girl, right there on the spot. I would get to meet my girl Zoey, fall in love with Nick from the show... I was being offered my dream job of all dream jobs (pun intended I guess). 

Now, Executive Producer for The New Girl in real life is not my dream job. But in my dream, it was my dream (job). 

 The girls then told me that the position would pay $20,000. 

At this point, my dream is channeling awake life as I'm employed with my same real life company and I make much more than $20,000. I tell the girls to take their job and shove it. I am worth much more and that is a ridiculous salary that I will not accept. It would be difficult to even live off $20,000, especially in LA where I'm sure the show is filmed. I got a bit diva on them, the same way I did with the scalper man this weekend. 

I had just turned down my dream's dream job. Because of money. 

So I've been thinking all morning about this dream of mine. Literally and figuratively. What if you were presented with a dream job, one that wouldn't feel like work at all. Your life would feel like a party every single day because it was THAT FUN to go to work each morning. But there is a catch: you could make way more money doing something else, something that doesn't feel like a party every single day. 

What do you do?

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You're Just a Number

I have been in several situations lately which really made me realize, wow I'm just a number. 

Let me explain. I know this is not concise (not one of my strengths in life) but I have a good point, I promise. 

Situation One: All Dogs Unleashed... July 2013 (Boarding Kennel) 

Backstory: I normally take the pups to Barney's Ranch when I have to board them for my work trips. They cost are a few extra bucks, but they always answer my phone call by saying, "Sarah is the General coming to see us?!"  (Ah yes, the customer service power of caller i.d. knows no bounds.)

But this past July when I was in Tampa for a 14 day photo shoot and the work trip was much longer, I thought I'd save a couple bucks a night and try a larger kennel that normally specializes in obedience school, but has a a slight discount for simply boarding your dog. Two dogs, 14 nights,  if you have ever boarded a pet before, you will know I was spending a small fortune. 

The Story: I drop the pups off before my flight and the lady says to me, "Feel free to call and check in on your dogs at any time!" As much as I love my babies, I've never been the overly worried dog mother, so I didn't call in until day 8. I just assumed no news was good news. 

So I called, left a message with the lady at the front desk, and was told that someone would call me back about Vee and Gee. 

A few hours later, a guy calls me and starts by saying, "Hi Ms. Webb, well I got the message you called to check about your dogs. They are learning to sit and they have even learned several new commands already." 

---- whoa whoa whoa wait. I interrupt immediately, honestly somewhat panicked that they had accidentally enrolled my dogs in obedience school. As I mentally envisioned my final bill at checkout, I said, "WHAT? No no, they were just there to be boarded, not obedience school. I didn't authorize that!!" 

Without skipping a beat, he responds by saying, "OH! Ok, well they're doing great. Getting along with the other dogs at daycare. Sleeping fine. Eating fine........"

Um.

This man didn't know my dog from the stray cat in the corner. He just had a generic BS spiel provided to every puppy parent that calls in, and since 99% of the people calling are putting their dog through obedience school, I was the first person to catch that my pups are just a number. 

The worst part? When I picked the dogs up, they were starved and looked sickly. General had lost 10 pounds in 14 days. On a relatively small dog, 10 pounds made it clear they hadn't eaten anything. Here is a picture of them on the drive home.....

Why couldn't he have been honest? I maybe could have given some tricks I use to get them to eat?! Or even if he didn't have any idea who my dogs were, why didn't he just tell me he would watch them for a few hours and then report back. I would have been great with that. 

Situation 2: Van Hyundai Dealership in Carrollton, Tx

Backstory: Remember on Tuesday how I said something was wrong with my car? Well, I was able to get it started and to the dealership, but I left it overnight for them to diagnose out why it wouldn't start in the first place. 

Story: 

8:15am: I called Tuesday morning to get an ETA on when I could pick my car up. I was the only person who had dropped the car off the night before so I assumed I was first on the list, or at least close to first. The man tells me that my car is being worked on right now and they are trying to diagnose the problem. 

I then ask, "Well, I'm curious, were you able to get it started or did you have to push it in to the shop?"

He says, "Uhhhmmm no we had to wheel it in, it wouldn't start. They're looking at it now trying to diagnose what is wrong. We will call you when we know something."

Ah, good I thought. At least I'm not crazy and something really is wrong with the car. 

11:44am:  rolls around and I get a voicemail, "Ms. Webb, we just wanted to let you know that your car is next in line to be brought back and looked at by our mechanics." 

Next in line? Wait, I thought they had to push it back? I thought you couldn't get it started and were already trying to diagnose the problem. Huh?

5:09pm: My rep calls and I answer. 

"Ms. Webb, we were unable to recreate the no-start problem you were having. Everything checks out fine, but we recommend that you keep it here overnight and we see if it acts up in the morning. Oh and you should replace all of your filters."

Me: "I thought you had to push the car back because it wouldn't start?"

Man: "No, sorry ma'am. I got you confused with another car as I explained in my 11:44am voicemail." 

What other car? There were no other overnight drop offs? Liar. You just didn't give a shit enough to really give me an update on my car and you were trying to get me off the phone.

Me: "Will these filters that need to be replaced cause the car not to start?"

Man: "No ma'am. We just recommend that you replac-----"

Me: "NO FILTERS. Just tell me when can I pick my car up."

Had he been honest, and told me that my car hadn't been looked at yet, I would have been fine with that. I expected to wait. But instead he lied and told me my car wouldn't start and was in the shop, all eventually leading to a really ticked off Sarah with a blog post up her sleeve....

From here on out, I will be going to the place that costs a couple dollars more a night, or going to the place that will take longer because they spend more time with each client. I will spend more and wait longer, and give my money to those businesses that deserve my hard earned money. 

Have you been in a situation like mine before where you caught someone treating you like just a number? 

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The End of an Era

As I've mentioned before, when I moved to Dallas back in September 2012 my job in Knoxville allowed me to stay on board as a part time marketing consultant.

You may be shocked to hear that I did Marketing and Graphic Design for Fusion, a chain of tanning salons of all places. I guess you've caught on by now that, yes, I am quite pale. My skin really won't tan, so the spray tan was my jam. If you've never tried spray tanning before, I suggest you read my post here, it will change the way you think about the spray booth. 

Anyways, back to my point. Fusion just completed the transition of franchising all of their salons into Palm Beach Tan, so needless to say, they will no longer need their own marketing. So today, I just wanted to write a letter to thank the company that, essentially, taught me everything I know today. 

Dear Fusion,

I remember the day you called me to set up an interview, just one month after my December 2008 graduation from The University of Tennessee. I got so excited because I thought you were the bank calling about an open teller position. When I arrived at the address you provided, I realized that I had misheard on the phone and this was in fact a tanning salon. Self conscious about my pale, nearly lavender colored skin, I reluctantly went to the interview. I mean, I was already there, might as well just interview.

You hired me as a sales associate for one of the slowest stores in the company, so I was forced to keep my job at Bonefish grill, essentially working from 7am in the morning to 10pm each night. My very first month with you, I made $1200 in commission, and I realized, well dang, maybe this job isn't so bad. 

Within a month I was promoted to assistant manager and assigned a new store. It was then that I started forming some of the best friendships I'll ever have.

About a month later, you decided to ship me off to Lexington, Kentucky to manage one of 4 new stores. You then eventually took a chance on me, making me the area manager of a state that didn't care much for my Vol lovin' self. 

While in Lexington, I sure made some great friends and was having tons of success with the business,  but my heart still lived in Knoxville, and I begged to return. Two years later, my wish was granted and I returned to KnoxVegas. 

Then something amazing happened. You took a chance on a girl with a PR degree and made her your Marketing Director and Graphic Designer. I had no idea what I was doing, but boy did I have ideas and passion. I was given a shiny new mac filled with the Adobe creative suite and no clue how to use any of it. Here is one the first advertisement I ever made for you guys... woof... that is so bad.

But you patiently waited for me while I learned through trial and error how to code an e-mail blast, how to design a website, how to build our social media following, how to run promotions and sales and how to write radio scripts. You waited for me to figure it all out, and I hope I made the wait worth it!

And although we decided to make it work and stay together part time, I know you cried and I cried when I left for a new opportunity in Dallas. We've been through out-of-state moves, weddings, bachelorette parties, trips all over the country, birthday parties, tanning conventions where we met the ever interesting J-Woww and that ski trip which I vow I will never do again, ever. Although you may have a different name now, I'll still appreciate the life-long friendships you've given me, the chance you took promoting me to marketing and the difference you've made in my career, more than you can imagine. 

Love Always and Wishing You The Best of Luck as Palm Beach Tan,

Sarah

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Handshakes and a Halloween Drinking Game

There are some do's and don'ts of excelling in an interview. When I lived in Tennessee, I conducted interviews on a weekly basis for the company I worked for. I have certain, simple things I look for and if I don't find, I will tune out the rest of the interview. The biggest, and most important that sets the tone of the whole interview is the handshake...

Handshake: If you don't shake my hand correctly, we're done. This goes for men and women. Just because I am a woman, doesn't mean guys should curtsy instead of shake my hand properly. I promise, my hand won't break into a billion pieces when you shake it. 

Don't do any of the following: 

Use the tips of your fingers to squeeze the tips of my fingers

 Don't offer me a "pound-it!"

 Don't shake with the LEFT hand

Don't just place your hand in mine and just let it sit there

Don't offer your hand to me like you're the queen

I assure you I am not the only one who thinks this way. Give a proper, full handshake with a hearty squeeze. If you don't, you WILL NOT get the job, I can guarantee that.

END RANT

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Shortest rant I've ever had on this old blog, huh? Well I wanted to keep this thing short and sweet today so you can meet the gorgeous, Setarra! I usually beg suggest that my sleepover pals make a drinking game for their feature post! And boy do we ever have a drinking game on our hands today. I can't believe this was made by a Redskins fan (jk lollllzzz lylas)!! Seeing as I'll be traveling for work on Halloween, I'll for sure be playing this in my hotel room. Take it away, girlfriend!

Hello Everyone! Setarra here from Quaintrelle. Life has been pretty darn interesting since I recently moved down to Northern Virginia from NYC. I moved in with my boyfriend after loving via long distance, we got engaged annnnd after 3 months of unemployment since moving to VA, I finally got a job! This Friday marks my first paycheck in what feels like forever so you know I’ll celebrating over many dranks this weekend :)

When Sarah suggested coming up with a drinking game for VTIM, I immediately thought about Halloween … And while I have no plans whatsoever to wear a costume this year (I tend to get dressed up every other year), you better believe I will be stalking following everyone else’s shenanigans for Halloween via my favorite form of social media, Instagram! With that said, pull out your drink of preference and get ready to play “The Hallow-Insta-Drinking Game.” (say that 3 times fast)

A Jack-O-Lantern They Made

Some Kind of Pumpkin Infused Beer

Their Halloween Decorated Fingernails

Referee

Police Officer

Nerd

Witch

French Maid

When someone posts a picture of themselves in a costume that barely covers their assets and you think“Thank goodness I’m not walking around in the cold in THAT.”

When you see the cutest baby dressed up in the cutest costume and involuntarily feel your ovaries get excited…

Someone posts a REALLY scary picture of a Clown and you scroll through to get away as quickly as possible before that image ingrains itself in your mind and gives you nightmares.

Someone posts a picture of what they wore last year (or the year/s before) kudos to Halloween happening on a Thursday this year … #tbt

When someone posts their Halloween pictures on Instagam NEXT WEEK courtesy of another lovely hashtag … #latergram

When You ‘Like’ A Picture Of Someone’s Costume Even If You Kind Of Really Don’t Like It.

Thank goodness Instagram doesn’t have an ‘unlike’ button...

And that’s that my friends! Don’t forget to swing by my blog, Quaintrelle, and have a Happy Hallow Holiday!

xo, Setarra

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