Looking Back On My Year

As the second semester of my sophomore year comes to a close, I am starting to think back and remember all of the good times I had and memories I made. Moving to Ohio from Alabama is not easy and no one said it was. Transitioning from a big city in the South to a small town in Ohio was a huge change. I didn't know what to expect at first, but after spending a whole year here I can say that it exceeded my expectations.

Of course like any other college student, there were times this year where I wanted to sit in my room and scream at how stressed I was or how tired I was from staying up all hours of night. If i could give one word of advice from my past year here at Ohio Northern, it would be to just get out of your comfort zone.

A lot of people say they don't want to leave their hometowns or they want to atleast be close to home, and that is how I thought at first. I am very close to my family so it was hard to leave them, but I knew change would be good for me. I had never really been out of the South much, so deciding to move up north was risky especially because I wasn't used to snow. I learned pretty quickly that I don't like snow. However, without stepping out of my comfort zone I would never had met the people I did and build the strong friendships I have now. I would never have had the opportunity to play tennis for such a great team and travel to so many places.

I'm not saying you should move colleges and live in a different state across the country, but from experience I would advise everyone to try and step out of their comfort zone. Try something new or go to a new place. You never know how it can change your mindset on the world or even your life. It changed mine and I can't wait to see what my future in Ohio has in store!

Find Out What Your Employees Trust

As I move on to Chapter 9 of "Measure What Matters", I begin to learn more about businesses and how they are measured. This book gives a lot of helpful hints on measuring, understanding customers and even understanding your own employees.

What do your employees really trust?

Of course, we like employees to learn everything from official sources, but that isn't always going to be the case. So, you  need to use your research to find out the influence of individual sources of information. Talk to them when you are getting coffee or on break for some sources. Use either a formal survey or a focus group to find out what channels employees trust.

One study done revealed that engineers in a telecommunications company only trusted information they received electronically and inherently distrusted information delivered in big corporate meetings.

In the end, your employees will have similar and different opinions. These are just a couple of suggestions that Paine claims work for getting information out of your employees and seeing what they trust.

Three Important Things In Public Relations

I decided to change it up a little this week and talk about public relations. Normally I like to write about social media, but I feel like people need to learn more about PR. I recently came across an article from Chron that gave me a better understanding and some tips I want to share.

What is Public Relations?
Having a career in public relations means your work is always in the spotlight. The key is sharing information with the public to raise awareness and to create a positive image for your client. Success requires three skill sets.

1. Communications Prowess 

• To be successful in public relations you need great communication skills. You must be able to act professional which means field questions with ease. Written communication is equally important. Your messages should be clear.

2. Exceptional Attention to Detail 

• Word choice is critical in public relations. The wrong word can cause a positive statement to spin the wrong way. Little things like remembering the names of people you interact with can take you a long way. 

3. Proficiency in All Media 

• While paper may be more comprehensive, electronic media open new doors to creativity. Blogs, tweets and posts should be an important part of your public relations campaign.

As you can see, public relations is so much more than just talking to a client. I learned a lot from this article because I never really knew a lot about public relations, and I hope you learned a few things from these tips as well. 

Netflix Movies You Should Be Watching

As I mentioned in my bio, I love Netflix! Netflix is a website where you can search hundreds of movies and TV Shows and watch as many as you want for about eight dollars a month. It is a great deal and a great site! If you are new to Netflix or never know what to watch, then this is the post for you! I am going to share with you a few movies from different genres that I think are most definitely worth the watch!

1. "Can't Buy Me Love" 

• If you are looking for a romantic comedy with a cute twist to it, then this is a great one especially because it has Patrick Dempsey as a fourteen year old! This film is about a nerdy high school kid who loans the popular girl in school money for an outfit, so she asks how she can repay him. He asks her to be his fake girlfriend for an entire month. At first she's embarrassed, but soon realizes he may be more than just a some nerd.

2. "The Den"

• If you want to scare yourself and are into horror films, then watch this one! This is about a young woman who is studying the habits of webcam users for a project, but then witnesses a murder online and becomes the killer's next target. 

3. "The Waterboy"

• This movie is also a comedy if you are in the mood to be cheered up or looking for a laugh. This movie features actor Adam Sandler who is the water boy for a successful college football team. After the coach witnesses the water boy beating up a player who teased him, the coach adds him to the roster as a linebacker. 

These are just a few of many great shows worth watching on Netflix, but I just wanted to share with you a few of my favorites each from different genres! I would love to know if anyone has seen these movies or what your suggestions for good movies are. 

Steps to Conducting a Social Media Content Analysis

As we move into Chapter five and six of "Measure What Matters", author Katie Delahaye Paine begins to talk about conducting a social media content analysis. It can sound very confusing, but luckily she gives a brief introduction and an easy to follow eight step process on how to conduct it.
Here's what she says:

1. Find the content.
2. Determine the type of conversation taking place.
3. Determine the visibility of your brand. 
4. Determine who, if anyone, was quoted in the item.
5. Determine sentiment and/or presence or absence of recommendations. 
6. Determine what, if any, messages were communicated. 
7. Determine positioning on key issues or battles.
8. Quantifying the authority of the writer or poster. 

Each of these steps come with a lot of description and information on how it applies to conducting a social media content analysis. According to Paine, ideally you would use a good statistical analysis package such as SPSS or SAS to determine correlations between conversations and web traffic or other outcomes. By keeping up with these steps and looking at trends over time, conducting a content analysis will come easily and you can read more about these tips and other great advice on measurements and social media through the book, "Measure What Matters". 

Custom Geofilters

Snapchat is one of the most popular forms of social media today, and is constantly improving. Geofilters are part of this improvement, and what Snapchat is known for having. What is a Geofilter you may ask. Geofilters are special overlays that communicate the "where and when" of a Snap in a fun way, whether you're sending it to a friend or adding it to "Your Story". 

I really enjoy this feature especially when I'm in a cool place like the Bahamas or Alaska. It lets my followers know what I'm doing and where I'm doing it. Geofilters can also be customized! This is good for weddings, birthday parties, or any special occasion. It is almost like having your own hashtag on other social media sites. Maybe some of you are now interested in how to create your own Geofilter. Well, let me tell you how!

1. Go to the On-Demand Geofilters page.
2. Click on the Create Now button.
3. You will be asked to log into your SnapChat account.
4. You will be asked to download templates and read the submission guidelines 
5. Use these templates to create your On-Demand GeoFilter
6. Add your texts or logos and create it in whatever way you like
7. Upload it to Snapchat after saving the file to see what it would look like
8. When it is finished, choose next to choose the time and dates you want your filter on
9. Draw a geofence around the areas you want your filter to reach
10. Your filter will then go into review, and you will receive an email confirmation

However, these filters are not free, but definitely affordable! Snapchat offers these filters for about $15-$20 a day depending on how complex your filter is, and how stretched out the location is. I think this is well worth the money for an event like a wedding or party, and adds a little fun and personalization into it! Would you get a custom Geofilter?

Easter In Oxford

As many of you know, I am not from around here, I am from Alabama. This means I am not able to go home much and haven't even once this semester. Easter was this past weekend and because I couldn't go home, I decided to join my friend and her family in Oxford, Ohio for Easter break.

Oxford, Ohio is a small town located about half an hour outside of Cincinnati. Oxford is home to the college Miami of Ohio which takes up most of the town's population. I had a great trip and this was definitely a great experience for me. I don't get to see a lot of Ohio, and I like when I get to go to places like Oxford that I've never been before. It is a cute town and one that I would definitely visit again!

Easter weekend means getting to be with family and most importantly, lots of food. However, I think we ate a little too much this break and I'm sure a lot of you can agree with that! Oxford has a lot of local restaurants and chains like Chick-Fil-A and Skyline, but the place we ate the most at was at the Cincinnati mall. We went to The Cheesecake Factory which is a heart attack waiting to happen. It starts off with bread then leads to your main course which is already at least a thousand calories, and to top it off you can get a slice of cheesecake for no less than a thousand calories. Good times!

Altogether, I had a great trip with my friend and her family, and it was so much better than just hanging in Ada all weekend. I would love to know how many of you Ohioans have experienced Oxford as well.

Measuring Relationships

I recently entered Chapter four of "Measure What Matters" in my social media class. According to author Katie Delahaye Paine, "the fundamental goal of public relations is to build and then enhance ongoing or long-term relationships with an organization's key constituencies." This section of the chapter begins to talk about measuring relationships.

Paine provides the credit for these steps to authors Linda Hon from The University of Florida and James Grunig of  The University of Maryland who worked together to write "Guidelines For Measuring Relationships in Public Relations".

Hon and Grunig identify six distinct and individually measurable relationship components:

1. Control Mutuality: The degree to which parties agree on who has the rightful power to influence one another. Stable relationships require one to have some control over the other
2. Trust: One party's level of confidence and willingness to open oneself to the other party.
3. Satisfaction: Each party feels favorably toward the other because positive expectations are enforced.
4. Commitment: Each party believes the relationship is worth spending energy to maintain and promote.
5. Exchange Relationship: One party gives benefits to the other because the other has provided benefits in the past or is expected to do so in the future.
6. Communal Relationship: Both parties provide benefits to the other because they are concerned for the welfare of the other. 

According to Hon, Grunig, and Paine, these are the six key components to measuring a relationship that everyone should follow. It helps ensure each party that they are communicating in the right way and building stable relationships. What do you think about Grunig and Hon's theory?

iPhone 8 Rumors

As an avid Apple lover, I was curious as to what the next iPhone would be like. I currently have an iPhone 6s, so my upgrade would be for the next phone to come out, the iPhone 8. Everyone knows that each time Apple releases a new phone, it has bigger and better features than the previous phone. I was searching through some articles and came across one by "MacRumors" giving information and hints on what the next iPhone will consist of. Here is what I found.

The iPhone 8 will include:

• Touch ID and camera built directly into the screen instead of a Home button.
• Consist of a 5.8-inch display with an area dedicated to virtual buttons replacing the Home button
• Thinner device that consumes less power with a better display and higher contrast ratio
• Re-adopting a glass body instead of aluminum
• Water resistant
• Features like wireless charging and facial and gesture recognition

These are just a few of many rumors about the new iPhone 8 which is said to be released in Fall of 2017. Personally, I am so excited for the new phone and can't wait to see what Apple has in store! What do you think of the new iPhone? Would you get it now that you know what it might include?

ONU Special Olympics

This past weekend, I had the privilege of working with the Ohio Northern University annual special olympics. The special olympics is a program that Ohio Northern puts on every year held by the SAAC where they raise money for the special needs program in the area.

This event lasted a couple hours where the participants were able to try different sports and learn new techniques and drills. They then challenged themselves in these events. This consisted of events like softball, running, soccer, etc. I worked the soccer station where my tennis team and I cheered on the participants as they scored goals and learned some new drills.

At the end of the event, there was a raffle for all the participants. Each Ohio Northern athletic team made a basket full of good prizes with a different theme. For example, the tennis team made a beach themed bag which included beach toys, sun tan lotion, sunglasses, and more. The director of the event then drew names out of a hat, and each participant chose the basket of their choice.

Being able to see how happy this made everybody was a moment I will cherish forever. I am so happy I was able to work this event, and it makes me feel good to give back and raise money for a great cause. I was able to meet some great kids and their parents while hearing some of their stories.  I will definitely be working with this event next year and look forward to it!

How To Leverage Your Measurement Results

This week in my social media class, we transitioned into chapter three of "Measure What Matters" by Katie Delahaye Paine. Chapter three talks about many measurement ideas including "How to Leverage Your Measurement Results To Get What You Want".

According to Paine, "You will never be as powerful or persuasive as when you present your results to your bosses, plan your presentation according to what actions you might want them to take."

In order to do this you must:

• Ask for money. Clients will want additional budgetary dollars immediately after presenting results just on the strength of their measurement programs. 

• Get commitment. Show them a chart to indicate the potential disaster if they don't go. 

• Manage timing. Present your results in graphs and charts that show changes over time. 

• Buy influence. Use your results to win over other departments over your point of view and approve programs. 

• Get outside help. You may want to ask your bosses for additional help to achieve the results you desire. 

• Just say no. You can say no by showing the manager a chart demonstrating, for example, that a press tour communicates your key messages more effectively. 

These are just a few of many tips Pain provides people with. I am looking forward to learning more about measurement in social media and marketing as I continue reading "Measure What Matters".

Learning To Enjoy Time

Am I the only one who thinks the semester has passed by so fast? I don't even know where the time has gone. It feels like I still just got back from Christmas Break.

When I was in middle school and even high school, I would always complain about the days going by too slow and feeling like it will never be Summer. It is a whole different case here in college. I feel like my college career is flying by, and I don't know how I feel about it. I am currently a second semester sophomore, and I can't believe it is about to be my junior year.  I do not feel that old. I think the reason my time seems to be going so quickly is because I keep myself busy. I have the same routine day after day. I go to my classes, get lunch in between, go to practice, go to dinner, and then do homework and fall asleep. I never have time to just sit around therefore I think that is the reason it feels like time is getting away from me.

However, this week especially I have learned to appreciate time. I am trying to enjoy every day and make the best of it. A good friend of mine from high school passed away this week from a car wreck, and it reminded me how life can be taken in just a second. Instead of worrying so much and hoping time will go faster, I am going to try and slow down and enjoy each day.

I know this was a different kind of post than usual, but my mind has been everywhere this week. I would love to know if anybody else feels like this semester has flown by. And to all of the seniors, it's almost your graduation time! I was always told college goes by quickly and I never truly believed it until now.

Facebook Live

Facebook is one of the biggest social media platforms which is improving everyday. One of the features of Facebook I find useful is the live streaming option called Facebook Live. Facebook Live is common amongst other social media platforms including Instagram, but Facebook is where I have found myself watching these live videos the most.

For example, one time my sister was in a championship volleyball game that I sadly had to miss. My cousin decided to Facebook Live stream the entire game for me. It was as if I was actually there because I saw exactly what was happening as it was happening.

As you are streaming, it will tell you who is watching your Facebook Live video and show comments people are making throughout the video that you can reply to. Hearts and emoji faces will appear in your video flying through the air which signifies each like or reaction you are getting on your live stream.

Facebook Live is an easy to use feature and very interesting! I have found it useful many times even including the live election poll and even a live countdown to Christmas. Have you ever used Facebook Live? I would love to hear your thoughts on it!

Want To Be A Polar Bear?

When I was an incoming freshman, I loved watching videos on the schools I was looking at and seeing what life was like on campus and in the town. I got inspiration for my promotional video from thinking back to this time in my life, and realizing that prospective students might listen more to a current student than some random voice telling you what Ohio Northern University has to offer. I felt like by giving my personal prospective and informing people about the daily college life here at ONU it would help get a better glimpse into the campus lifestyle. I created a promotional video using Videolicious which consisted of me going around campus and Ada showing the places I feel like prospective students and parents would benefit most from. I decided to share popular places that students like to go to including food options, the gym, and even an academic building. By giving some specific information about each of these places during my video, I hope it gives people a closer look into what Ohio Northern University is made of.

What Really Matters To Your Business?

This week in my social media class, we transitioned over to a new book entitled, "Measure What Matters" by Katie Delahaye Payne. This includes online tools for understanding customers, social media, engagement, and key relationships.

Chapter one begins by talking about measurement. Social media is so much more than meets the eye. It is less about media and more about the community in which you do business.

What really matters to your business?

Only a handful of businesses actually measure what matters. Most organizations would say that "their customers" are what matter the most to them. They are partially right, but it's not the number of customers and employees that matters, it's the relationship that your organization has with them that matters. Good relationships lead to good profits. What really matters, is your relationships and aggregated outcome of those relationships: your reputation.

This is just a glimpse into Chapter One and what the book, "Measure What Matters" has to offer. I am looking forward to reading further into the book and learning more about not only social media, but the power of measurement behind it.

Wish App

As a college student, I am always looking to save money and not go broke every week. I am sure my fellow classmates can agree. Being a college kid is not cheap, especially when it comes to wanting those cute new shoes or a new outfit along with just trying to get through the week.

That's where the Wish app comes in. Wish is basically a bargaining website. Wish takes prices of items from basically every category, and cuts down the price by a lot. I have had a great experience when using the Wish app, and suggest it to everyone! For example, I saw a cute shirt I liked at a store, and found it for only five dollars on Wish! It arrives within one to two weeks and I have found no problems with my packages yet.

Here's how it works.

Wish is pretty self explanatory. It is just like online shopping on any website. First, you go up to the search bar and search for a category or a  specific item, then you search through those items to find the one you're looking for.

Just like any other shopping site, Wish provides customers with reviews from real people and a poll on how the item fit them. It shows a poll taken by customers who also bought that item telling whether they thought it fit tight, just right, or too big. That way you can get a better idea of the size you need. I think this has really come in handy because we all know that some shirts look better online than in person.

Altogether, this app has been great for me. I was hesitant at first because of how cheap everything was it almost didn't seem real, but it was! You should download the Wish app today and start shopping. You will be amazed at the prices you find for great products. Let me know what you think!

Ohio Northern Women's Tennis vs. Wittenberg

Some of you probably know this already, but if you are new to my blog, I am on the Ohio Northern tennis team. Tennis season recently started for us, and this past Sunday was our first home match. Unfortunately, it was too cold to play outside, so the team traveled to Lima, Ohio to Westwood Tennis Center. These are considered our "home courts" when we need to play inside due to weather purposes. Ohio Northern challenged Wittenberg that night at 6pm and ended with a victory! I actually played in the match myself, so not only was I live tweeting during the event, I contributed to it as well. Check out my Storify to get a recap of the whole match from beginning to end!

Every Major Has Its Struggles

There is something that has been bothering me for a while now and has come up in conversation quite often with people I associate with. I am a communications major with a minor in graphic design and I get told day after day how easy my major is. I get weird looks when I tell people I have a lot of homework and projects, or when I tell them I am stressed about something due.

I get the same answer so often. "How can you be complaining? Your major is so easy".

Things like this make me mad. A lot of my friends are Biology or Pharmacy majors, and I know it is difficult, but it bothers me when people think anything that's not Pharmacy or Biology is easy.

In my opinion, every major has its own struggles. For example, I am terrible at science. It is not my strength and I give a lot of credit to my Biology and Pharmacy friends who have to take a million classes for it. I would definitely struggle through that and they handle it very well. However, a lot of people don't realize how much hard work and time is put into art projects and graphic assignments on the computer. I think every major is unique, and each has a different form of hard work. If college was as simple as "drawing and coloring" everybody would do it. It's not as easy as it seems.

Of course, some majors are more difficult and require more studying than others, but that does not mean that every other major is a walk in the park. Every college student has their own struggles and dealing with those late nights and several cups of coffee just to cram for a test or finish a project. I know there are several different majors in my social media principles class, so I am interested in knowing if anyone else deals with the same things. I would love to hear your thoughts!

What Pinterest Is All About

This week in my social media class, we are moving on to Chapter 6 of "Social Media Marketing Workbook 2016". We begin to look at one of the most popular social media platforms, Pinterest. Pinterest allows people to create "boards" related to different topics they are interested in or things/events they need ideas for. Pinterest is about shopping. Consumers use it as an "idea board" for their college dorm room, wedding, or their next family reunion. Pinterest is incredibly strong in the female demographic. Pinterest makes it easy to "pin" ideas to your "board," and each pin can be instantly clickable to a blog or shop to make it easier to find.

The best way to understand Pinterest is to grasp the concept of an "idea board."
What is an idea board you may ask? For example, if someone is planning out her ideal wedding, first she signs up for Pinterest and creates a profile. Unlike other social media platforms, not a lot of information is displayed in a Pinterest profile, pretty much just a profile picture and a very brief description.

Next, she should download and install the Pinterest button. Once installed, she can now search Pinterest and begin "pinning" things to her "board" that she sets up. For her wedding, she may make a board labeled "wedding ideas" and begin searching for wedding dresses, rings, decorations, etc.

As you can see, Pinterest is easy to set up and anyone can do it. I have found a lot of success with my Pinterest, and it has enabled me to find different ideas for events I am participating in. It is a little taste of your personal brand and easy access to remembering ideas for future events. What does your Pinterest board consist of?

Thoughts While Returning From Spring Break

Coming back to school after Spring Break is never fun. You reminisce on your past week at wherever you were spending your break, and remember all of the good times you had during it. For me, this is completely accurate. I had one of the best Spring Breaks of my life and I'm sad it had to go so soon.

As I returned to campus this past Friday, reality hit me. I am now back on Ada time. Here are some thoughts I had now that I am back on campus and off break.

"When am I going to unpack?"
Personally, this is one of the hardest things about coming back from vacation. I hate unpacking with a passion. I already had a lot of things I needed to put away in the first place, so I was dreading doing this already. I basically set my suitcases in a corner of my room for about a day and a half until I could mentally prepare myself to do this. I also came back with more stuff than I brought, so finding places for that was another thing I needed to think about.

"What tests do I have this week?"
Of course nobody really wants to think about school when they are on break. So, when you get back from break, that's when you really start to remember your priorities, this being school. Luckily, I had the whole weekend here to study and get my stuff in order before returning back to school.

"I miss the warm weather."
This was definitely the first thing I thought of when I got off the plane in Cincinnati. I was in Hilton Head the whole week with high temperatures, so coming back to mid 20s was not a fun time. Going from wearing shorts and a t-shirt last week to layers this week is sad. Seeing the snow today made me miss it even more and gets me excited to be back down south for the Summer.

Even though I do miss my Hilton Head trip, I am happy to be back to a routine. It just gets me more excited for the trip I have planned next year, and the warm weather I will get this Summer. I can get through this! Did you have warm weather for your break? I would love to hear about it!

What is Uber?

I usually post about social media around this time of the week, but I thought I would change directions a little bit. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I am on Spring Break right now in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. This is a fairly known city yet is unfamiliar to me. I also do not have a car here because my team and I flew by plane. An app we have found that comes in handy for being in a place you don't know how to get around in is Uber. 

Uber is an app that anyone can set up on your phone. It is simple. All you do is download the app, create an account, plug in your credit card information and plug in your location along with the location you are looking to go to. The app will notify a designated Uber driver near you to pick you up from the location you plugged in. It usually takes only a few minutes for them to arrive. For example, if you have a large group like me, you can pay a little extra for an XL car. The standard size seats up to four people. Uber has a downside. It is usually only available in big cities and can get pretty expensive. The later it is at night, the higher the price gets. 

In the long run, I would suggest this to everyone! I have found it to be successful and safe. It tells you who your driver is and shows a picture of their car and their face. This is all through the Uber company, and the driver will have an Uber sticker on their windshield to indicate it is them. I have found this app useful when I visited Chicago, New York City, and Tampa. These are all big cities that I was unfamiliar with and it is an easy way to get from one place to another without the hassle of a subway or bus. I would love to hear about your experiences with Uber.

How Twitter is Unique

Do you have a Twitter? Have you contemplated getting one but wasn't sure what made it worth your time? Twitter is a social media site like your basic Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. However, it is unique.

A similarity that Twitter shares with other social media sites is being able to "like" posts and "follow" other users. This is how you can communicate with others and get attention to your own page. Twitter  allows you to "retweet" posts you like which will show up on your own page. Posts on Twitter can be found more easily by using hashtags. By clicking on the hashtag, it takes you directly to the post related or other posts related to the hashtag. 

In fact, Twitter becomes more visual and Instagram becomes more textual. These two social media sites are on a collision course.

Twitter is the most open of all the social media. Anyone can set up an account in minutes for free and immediately start tweeting. There isn't as much privacy on Twitter like there is Facebook or Instagram. Anyone can listen in to your page and can easily find and read your tweets. They can even contact you without pre-approval. This has its flaws, though. It means that anyone can see what you are doing, so you need to be more cautious of what you post. Twitter is noisy. There will be many things happening at once and a lot of interesting stuff, so being able to focus on your own page and your possible customers and any marketing opportunities is important. 

According to "Social Media Workbook 2016", Twitter is a great opportunity for everyone and easy to set up. By having a Twitter, you are able to look for more marketing tools and create your own profile to promote your personal brand as a professional. How do you feel about Twitter?

How To Survive Spring Break with a Big Group

Being in a big group no matter where you go means lots of opinions! My tennis team is currently on Spring Break in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, and there are ten girls here. This means lots of opinions and compromising. Here are a few tips I have learned throughout this week to be able to survive being in a big group in one house for Spring Break.

1. Make a Grocery List

Since we are here for a whole week and there are so many of us, we can't eat out every night, so we went to the grocery store on the first day to get food to keep at the house throughout the week. Not everyone likes the same things here, and we have a couple girls that are gluten free, so we can't get whatever we want. We had to make out a serious grocery list where each girl wrote down a few things she would want and then we went by that. This keeps everyone happy, and each girl will get a few things that they specifically asked for. 

2. Pack Light 

After being here for a few days, I came to realize that I packed way too much. Because I am living in a tight room in the house with four girls, I don't have as much space for my stuff to go. I could've gone without a few shirts and shorts that I had packed to save space in my suitcase and room.

3. Compromise

This goes along with the grocery list. Compromising with a big group like this is key. Everyone knows when you get a group of girls together, there more than likely will be drama. Fortunately, we haven't had much this trip, but making sure you compromise with each other and not have one person be the leader of everything is important in order to have a fun and enjoyable trip!

I hope these helped you get a better idea of what I am doing this week and what to do if you are ever in the same situation as me! Have a great rest of your break! What are you doing this week?

How I Spent My Sunday

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I play for the Ohio Northern tennis team. We have both a fall and spring season, but spring is the one that really matters. Spring season is our conference season. This past Sunday, we played our first match of the season. My tennis team traveled to Hamilton, Ohio to play Miami University of Ohio. Miami is an NCAA division I college. Ohio Northern is division III if you didn't know. Competing at the division I level is the highest level of competition there is. Our coach decided we should play a school much better than us to give us good competition and experience to make us better. Miami of Ohio has won its conference title the last 17 out of 18 years. So needless to say, they are incredible.

If you don't know tennis, there are six singles courts that play and three doubles courts. I played the first spot in singles and doubles. I knew I was going to have to play the best on their team, which made me nervous already. The girl I played is Russian, super strong and a little over six feet tall. I was already intimidated just looking at her.

The match ended up being better than I thought. I lost, but I played a lot better than I expected. I could hang in there with her, and she didn't blow me off the court like I thought she would. She was an amazing player and clearly better than me, but I was proud of myself for how I played and giving her some competition I don't think she was expecting.

On a more serious note, the Miami of Ohio tennis team sadly had one of their players pass away over Christmas break. In her honor, we decided to wear red and white (their colors) ribbons.

In the end, our team ended up losing, but it was a great experience. Facing a division I team was something I needed to make me better. It is always good to play somebody better, worse and the same level as you. I am happy we got to make the trip over there and play Miami of Ohio. I learned so much about myself and my game.

Why You Should Have a LinkedIn

In my social media principles class, we are entering the third chapter of "Social Media Marketing Workbook 2016". This chapter begins the topic of LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a form of social media with a bigger purpose than just posting pictures and liking posts. LinkedIn is a professional social media platform. Unlike how Facebook is all about friends, family and fun, LinkedIn is all about business networking.

LinkedIn consists of:

• connection requests between people
• introductions by one business contact to another
• updates on one's profile, sharing news, events, and insights
• learning sessions occurring on LinkedIn groups that discuss industry trends and technologies
• company Pages and LinkedIn

The "virtual world" of LinkedIn mirrors the "real world" of an industry conference or trade show. 

Having your own LinkedIn profile is key if you are looking to get your name out there to businesses. Your profile consists of online resumes listing skills, education and interests. Profiles allow one individual to connect with another. It is similar to Facebook by being able to send friend requests, and once accepted and connected, you and the other individual can direct message and check each other's profiles. 

Another feature that LinkedIn has is being able to join groups. Groups are very important! LinkedIn has "break out" groups by topic that bring like-minded people together in a professional way. Companies also have their own LinkedIn pages. Individuals can follow companies, and by doing so, give permission to the company to converse. 

After reading this chapter, I realize how important it is to have a LinkedIn and suggest creating one to everyone. It is a good way to get your name and resume out there. There are many features on it that can help create the perfect profile for you while remaining professional. I will definitely be making myself a LinkedIn profile. What about you?

Celebrity Social Media Is Fake

Have you ever looked at a celebrity's Instagram page and wondered how they get so many likes? They can post a picture eating a bagel and get thousands of likes. But, there is so much more to these simple Instagram pictures than meets the eye. I found an article from "E! News" giving the dirty secrets behind these celebrities and their social media platforms. Here's what I found.

1. Celebrity social media managers get paid six figures to craft those witty posts.

You may think Taylor Swift is the one sending out a good tweet, but in reality, it's someone that works for her. These are the types of people who keep celebrities in line, however it can backfire as well. If one tweet or picture is viewed the wrong way with hate, it makes the celebrity look bad. Jo Piazza, author of "Celebrity Inc." states that social media managers are "essentially the public face for the celebrities. It's immediate, fast-paced, and has to be perfect." 

(Notice the photoshop curve on the right side of the picture to make them look skinnier.)

2. Behind each photo is a hidden team of professionals. 

The one perfect picture of a celebrity on a beach strutting her bikini and looking perfect in every way is completely staged. A week's worth of photos are often crammed into one day. They have a rack of wardrobe, hair and makeup people, and any other touch ups needed ready to go. Celebrities will pay between $10,000 to even $100,000 just to make sure their pictures are perfect.

3. It's not the number of followers, but the number of engaged followers. 

Having millions of followers isn't enough for these celebrities. The demand now is for engaged followers. The ratio of likes to comments is what matters now. It shows they not only have many followers, but followers who participate on their page. Having a loyal engagement helps the popularity and brand of the celebrity. 

4. Beyond extra cash, celebrities need to feed Instagram to stay relevant. 

Celebrities realize that potential movie/music video gigs will go straight to their social media pages to consider them for the next big role. With big money at stake, they also want to find someone who will encourage fans and attract a lot of popularity. 

When is the best time to post? According to "E! News", the best time to post on social media is noon on the East Coast. That hits the 9 a.m. West Coast and early evening in Europe. There are also time limits set on the next post to let that post sink in.

Celebrities and their social media ties down to simply fame and money. After reading this article, it's now clear how much time, money, and help it takes to make one Instagram picture or one tweet perfect. I think this is insane and sad what the world of social media has come to. What are some of your thoughts on this? 

Why Social Media Marketing is Valuable

In my social media principles class, we recently moved on to a new book entitled, Social Media Marketing Workbook 2016 by Jason McDonald. This book is to inform about social media marketing, and give helpful hints and steps to succeed in this. It also includes step-by-step worksheets, and access to the companion with hundreds of free tools. In the introduction of Social Media Marketing Workbook 2016, McDonald highlights four key reasons that make social media marketing valuable. 

1. Social media is big. 

• Facebook- over one million users worldwide and climbing
• LinkedIn- over 350 million members 
• YouTube- 300 hours of video are uploaded every minute 
• Yelp or Google+ - nearly everyone goes here to check out reviews on local businesses

2. Your customers are on social media.

• Facebook- all ages from teenagers to grandmas, business executives to flight attendants 
• LinkedIn- most professionals are members
• Instagram- many members posting pictures 

"By participating in social media, you can reach your customers where they hang out." 

3. Social media is free.

• Access to their friends and family
• Information on brands the users love
• A lot of free ways to build a personal brand 
• "Get shares" or "Go viral". 

"Free does not mean easy or no hard work involved."

4. Social media can reach not only existing but also new customers.

• Stay in touch with existing customers
• Be discovered by new customers

Social media is a huge help with the marketing world. It is easy access to current and potential customers. By simply sharing a post or checking their news feed, customers can discover new industries. I am excited to read more about social media marketing, and will be sharing more tips!

Meet Bo

If you have read through my 'About me' bio at the top of my blog, you should know I am crazy about my dog! He is my favorite topic and I show people pictures of him daily whether they want to see or not. I am sure my fellow dog lovers out there can relate. I figured it was time I introduce him to my blog!

This is my dog, Bo (the black one) and his brother Bentley. We found them on Christmas day of 2014. We were driving to my brother's girlfriend's house to visit with her family when we came across them and their mother helpless near a ditch. The mother ran away from us and we tried to stop her, but she was nowhere to be found. We picked up these two precious puppies and went around to any houses nearby asking if they knew who these puppies belonged to. All of them had mentioned they saw the mother around, but knew she was a stray. However, no one even knew she had puppies. Bo and Bentley were only five weeks old at the time of this picture.

My family was coincidently looking for a new dog at the time. However, my dad was not wanting another dog in the house. Once we brought them both home, we knew he would be the first to get attached and we were right. My brother's girlfriend ended up taking Bentley, and we kept Bo. From that day forward, he has been our little miracle and a true part of the family. 

He is now a big two-year-old and as spoiled as ever! When I think of home, all I can think of is how much I miss my family, especially my dog. I always think what a miracle it was that we happened to be driving by that street on Christmas, and they were placed into our lives. I cannot imagine life without him now! I would love to hear from my fellow dog lovers and any stories you have!

Snapchat Hack

Snapchat is one of the most popular social media platforms of our time. Snapchat consists of many different features and is continuously improving. Have you ever wondered how to change what your friend emojis look like? I can tell you how. 

You may be wondering what is a "friend emoji". An emoji is typically a symbol instead of a word as an illustration in text messages or on social media. Friend emojis appear next to a person's name on your Snapchat list. Friend emojis have different meanings, which can be explained in the picture below. 

These are the default emojis that come with your app. However, you are able to change them! I have known this little hack but I get asked daily how I did it. I figured if you didn't know this trick, it could help you change up your Snapchat!

1. Tap 'Settings' in the top right hand corner of your Profile screen.

2. Tap 'Manage' under the 'Additional Services' section.

3. Tap 'Friend Emojis'.

4. Tap the Friend Emoji you would like to change, then choose an emoji. 

Above is an example of what potential new friend emojis can look like!

I hope this helps you discover a new feature on Snapchat, or helps you figure out how to do it if you already heard about it! Friend emojis have made the app more entertaining, and even add a more personal feel. I usually switch it up according to the time of year. For example, mine are all Valentine's themed right now because it is that season. Who else knew about this feature and loves it as much as I do? I would love to hear your thoughts!

My Daily Routine

I thought I would change it up a bit this week! Usually my blog posts consist of "how to do something" or "steps to become something", but I figured it was time for something different and to kind of show a more personal side of me!

I want you to take a walk in my shoes as I explain what a basic day in my life here at Ohio Northern is like. 

I attempt to get up every morning around 8:00 a.m. I don't have class until either 9:00 a.m or 10:00 a.m everyday, so I guess that would be considered sleeping in for some people! I usually hit the snooze button about one or 200 times until I eventually realize I have to be productive.
I then slowly get out of bed, turn on my music, and start to get ready for class. This usually consists of me showering, blow drying my hair, and then doing my favorite thing, my makeup. I am a freak when it comes to makeup. It is what I spend the most time and unfortunately money on. It takes me around 15-20 minutes to do my makeup because I usually don't like it and then re-do it a few times! I then search for a socially acceptable outfit, get my stuff together, and head to class when it's time.

I'm not going to give you a play by play on what happens during class because you and I both know that you don't want me to talk about that!

After all my classes for the day which end around 3:00 p.m, I do any homework I have, binge watch some Netflix, and then eventually meet up with my friends for dinner.
As I had mentioned in a previous post, I play on the tennis team and we are currently in season, so I do have practice. Normal teams practice around three or four every day, but we practice at around 9 or 10 every night. We need to play indoors at this point in the season, so we drive all the way to Lima and play at a sports complex there. By this point I'm ready to hit the shower and hop in bed, but I am loading up in the car to go to practice instead. We usually get done with practice around 11:00 p.m or 11:30 p.m. So if you couldn't already guess, I'm always exhausted!

So, that is basically a typical day in my life during this point in time. Of course my daily routine does change when I'm off season and don't have as many things going on, but when I keep myself busy I feel better!

I would love to know if you do any of the same things! Only 11 days until my first match, and for all of us, only 87 days until it's officially Summer Break! We can do this!

I Have a YouTube Famous Friend!

After completing, "The Art of Social Media", I was debating on what I wanted to cover for this week's blog post about the book. I decided I would talk about something that has always been fascinating to me, however it is over shadowed because of all of the new social media that is most popular today.

I would like to talk more about YouTube.

YouTube is my absolute favorite form of social media. Even though it doesn't seem like a real form of social media, it is! A friend of mine is on Youtube with over a million followers and after hearing what he says about YouTube and reading it also in, "The Art of Social Media", I am able to get a better look into it and am excited to share with you what I have learned from reading this! 

Complete Your Profile in the "About" Section 
When you start a YouTube channel, of course you want people to view your channel and get to as many subscribers as possible. In order to achieve this, your potential subscribers need to learn more about you and your channel. That's when you would head over to the "about" section on your profile and fill that out with information you think people would enjoy reading about you! Also, don't forget to add your other social media accounts and links to them in your bio!

Create a Channel Trailer
A channel trailer is essential for your YouTube channel because it acts as a standard "welcome" when people visit your channel's homepage. This is also great for attracting more viewers to your channel.

Create an Intro and Outro
An intro and outro is a short clip with a jingle and your picture or logo. I have noticed this in any successful YouTuber's videos including my friend's channel. It is catchy and looks professional.

Organize Your Content
Channel sections allow you to customize, organize, and promote your YouTube channel.
Go to channel home tab > click on "add a section" to do this.

Respond to Comments
This seems to be a hard job for the people who are successful on Youtube. I know that my YouTube famous friend, Cole, has trouble with this. Having over a million followers means you won't be able to respond to everyone. However, responding to as many as you can gives good feedback to your viewers and shows you care. It is how popular YouTuber's build their followings.

By following these steps, you could build a great YouTube channel yourself! I hope these tips helped and I would love to hear your thoughts and any YouTube experiences you have had!

Also, follow my friend, Cole LaBrant on YouTube!
Cole&Sav

Hacking and Catfishing: What Are They and How Do You Prevent Them?

For a number of years now, hacking has been a problem within our technology world. Now that technology is getting even bigger and growing into things like social media, hacking is easier and more common. Hackers have been able to figure out ways to steal your information and even watch you from your webcam. Thankfully, there are ways that these can we prevented and you can keep your information safe online.

Catfishing is also a major problem that has escalated in the last few years. This is where a person will create a fake profile in order to lure somebody into what they want. This can either be romantically or for money purposes. Teenagers have fallen the most victim to it now because they are so vulnerable.

Personally, I have dealt with being hacked in the past, and now that I have these tips, I know how to keep my information safe and know that there are ways to prevent it from happening again. Allison Ditch and I were curious on this subject and wanted to share our findings on this matter. This podcast we created will discuss all of the basics of hacking and catfishing while providing real life examples, and give you steps on how you can keep yourself safe so that this hopefully won't happen to you.

Feel free to listen in to learn more!

Steps to Become a Basic College Kid

Think back to when you were in high school and you had so many expectations about college. You probably thought life would be easy, you never had to go to class and still get an "A", and you could be lazy and not have mom yell at you for it.

Wrong. These are not completely true and I learned that pretty quickly! However, there are some steps you can take in order to achieve your high school self's idea of college.

Step 1: Download Netflix.

This is the first step you should always take to be a basic college student! Netflix is a life saver and will get you through the long days. Some shows I recommend are Gossip Girl, Stranger Things, and Grey's Anatomy. There are a lot more things Netflix offers like documentaries, movies, T.V shows, etc. If you get this app, you are one step closer to a good college kid!

Step 2: Buy Ramen Noodles and Easy Mac.

Here are two examples of basic college foods. Because we are college kids, clearly we don't have money to throw around, so getting something cheap like this that is quick to make and convenient is a great thing to have!

Step 3: Buy Comfortable Clothes.

Unlike high school, you can basically wear whatever you want. Take advantage of this! It is a lot harder to get out of bed when you don't have mom forcing you to, so looking your best every day more than likely won't be the case. Buy yourself lots of comfortable clothes like T-Shirts, leggings, and sweatpants to make it to class in time and comfortable the whole day! 

Step 4: Stay Up Studying.

Every college kid knows that studying is important and necessary, but a lot of time procrastinating happens too. Every college kid can admit they have stayed up atleast one night all night studying for a test the next day. This will happen. You will have to cram in studying and projects a few times, but in college, your sleeping pattern will be way off!

I have done all of these! Does that make me too basic? Being in college is fun, but not always easy. But I have found some of these things as not only stereotypical, but true. Let me know what you think!

How To Succeed in Social Media

Have you ever gotten on your social media and noticed that someone you know has a million followers and you can't figure out why? Or have you seen somebody beg you to share their post constantly?

This is not how you approach social media.

Here are a few tips and tricks I've learned according to The Art of Social Media on how to avoid being that person!

1. Don't Be an Orifice. 
"If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." This is one thing that bothers me the most. If you don't agree with what somebody has to say on their own social media, don't harass them by constantly disagreeing with what they have to say. This just starts unnecessary tension. In order to avoid this, you can either unfollow the person you don't agree with, or just move on down your newsfeed and don't bother fighting with them.

2. Don't Tell People What to Share.
This is almost one of the most clueless things you can do on your social media. This follows under the same category of just unfollowing the person. If you don't like what they share, or if they keep asking you to share their post, just unfollow them. It is not against the rules to do this, and they will take less offense to an unfollow than an argument. Let them do what they please on their own social media, and unfollow them. "The Internet does not revolve around you."

3. Don't Buy Followers or Likes!
As I mentioned earlier, I'm sure there's times when you see someone you know with a million followers and wonder how that happened. This is called ghost followers. The same goes for paying to get likes. This defeats the point you are trying to get across. It may seem like people care about whatever you have to post, but in reality, it's just fake people who aren't even looking at what you are trying to really put out there. The only exception to this being okay is by paying to promote Facebook posts or Pages.

These are just a few of the advice that, The Art of Social Media, provides to show its readers how to avoid looking clueless on social media.

I'm sure we have all seen this happen, and maybe even some people are victims of it. But thanks to The Art of Social Media, we now know how to avoid these awkward situations!

I Joined Twitter!

Recently, I have decided that I would finally join the bandwagon and get a Twitter. Being in social media class has opened me to the idea to get one because I feel like I should get involved with as much social media as I can to understand it better. I never had a Twitter before, because I figured it was just one more thing that I had to worry about, and one more thing that consisted of constant arguments and fighting.

So, with that being said I am happy to announce that I finally joined the Twitter family!

I have discovered a lot of things since I recently joined Twitter.

1. It's more confusing than I thought.
I know this seems kind of crazy and that Twitter should be self explanatory, but I got on and had no idea where to even start. Anytime you get a new social media app, you have to start from rock bottom. I had no followers and didn't follow anyone. It takes months even years to get a lot of people to follow you, and reach the ideal "follower count". I am currently at 32 followers, and I follow 72 and I am okay with that for it only being day two. I am hoping to figure this thing out soon, and maybe get a few more followers along the way!

2. Hashtags "aren't cool".
Clearly, Twitter is known for its hashtags. When I first downloaded my app and went to add my first tweet, I started to put some hashtags. According to my friends, hashtags "aren't cool anymore". Of course I reminded myself of what The Art of Social Media had to say about that. You can get so much more out of Twitter and getting your tweets seen by using the hashtags. I am still yet to use them, but I know they will be more beneficial!

3. It's addicting.
I never would have guessed I would actually be into Twitter. I figured anything that I saw on it, I would just see on Facebook or Instagram. However, I was proven wrong. It is not as much hate, and people are more personable. I am still fairly new, so I'm sure there will be hate I will eventually see. I also find myself constantly looking at articles and five minutes turns into five hours on it!

I'm happy with the decision to get Twitter, and I would love to hear any stories you guys have about it!

How To Master the #Hashtag

It is not always easy to use Twitter and come up with something clever and interesting to say to get people's attention. There is a way to achieve a great Twitter post and The Art of Social Media provides some great tips and tricks!

1. Pick Short, Good Hashtags

You can never get enough hashtags, but they are so important to include in every tweet! Try and keep it short and generic. Choose a hashtag that is trendy and constantly being seen by people. Using short over unique will get you farther.

2. Integrate the Hashtag Into Everything 

If you are trying to promote something, use the hashtag immediately! Once you get it out there, the more likely people will begin to click on it and see your tweets. You can also use it on things other than Twitter, like your email signature or your website. It is just something that shows that it is your hashtag.

3. Ask Everyone To Use It

Get the word out about your hashtag! Ask everyone to use it if they are promoting you or whatever you are trying to get out there. When I think of this, I think of people using unique wedding hashtags. Anytime they post about their wedding or their friends take pictures at their wedding, the hashtag is always used. This sends you directly to all of the pictures that were taken at this wedding, and I find it very personal and fun!

These are just a few of many great ideas that The Art of Social Media has shown to work for social media. I personally do not use Twitter, but I do sometimes use hashtags on Instagram, so by following these few simple steps, I may be able to enhance my own social media!

App Obsession

Happy Tuesday everyone! I know it's not always the best day of the week, but hey, it's one day closer to the weekend!

Recently, I have been in love with a social media app called The Hunt.

This app is literally the best thing ever for a girl! Guys can definitely use it as well, but when I think of it, I think of it as something that would attract a more female audience.

Have you ever seen an outfit or shoes on a celebrity and wondered where they got it from?
Well, this app tells you exactly that. All you would have to do is post a picture of this outfit you saw, and multiple people will instantly tell you exactly where to get it! It can even send you directly to the link to buy it from. It's crazy because I have always wanted/needed something like this.

Another cool thing you can do on the app is get opinions and style advice from people. Say you are going to a party and you aren't sure if the outfit you want to wear looks good, you can post a picture and you can get immediate opinions and suggestions from fashion experts. This may not sound like interesting, but trust me, it comes in handy more than you would think! I highly suggest you take a look at it.

Overall, I think this app has been very useful and helpful to me personally, and I think a lot of girls my age especially can relate to needing something like this! I hope you can check it out and I would love to know what you think about it and if you found it as useful as I did!

One Semester Down

Last semester went by so quickly, and I am sure that some of my fellow polar bears can agree with that! As I have mentioned before, I am a transfer sophomore, so no it was not my first semester of college, but it was my first semester at Ohio Northern University! I didn't know exactly how my transition was going to go considering I am coming all the way from Alabama, but I would like to share with you a few things that happened to me last semester that lead me to have a great, fast first semester here in Ada.

1.  Good Friends

Having a good group of friends is so important in college. If you come in as a freshman, it is easy to meet a lot of people at first because everyone is excited and it is all new to each of them. However, coming in as a transfer (feeling like a freshman sometimes) is not as simple. I have been through this before and have experience with being away from home unlike a lot of the freshmen I met. However, I do play tennis here, and that gave me an automatic in to a group. A majority of my team are freshmen, and so I tend to hang out with them a lot and even though I'm older, I am experiencing this school just as new and the same as them. It is so important, in my opinion, to find people who truly make you happy and make you a better person. These are the friendships that will last a lifetime.

2.  Staying Busy

As I mentioned before, I am on the tennis team. This keeps me occupied a lot of the time, next to school of course. I tried to rush for a sorority, but realized I was already so busy, that I really wouldn't have enough time to commit to all three things. It is so easy to get caught up in the lazy lifestyle of college by just watching movies and eating snacks alone in your room. I have seen many people do this, and it is because they have nothing to do. I feel like because I got so involved, I was able to be happy and stay busy therefore the semester flew by!

3.  Positive Attitude

Okay, I know I sound so cliche right now and that I am trying to sound like my whole life is together, but from personal experience I know how important it is to stay positive. At the previous college I attended, I was so unhappy with being at the school in general. I just knew it wasn't the place I should or wanted to be. That's where I fell under the trap of feeling lonely and negative about everything. I got my fresh start that I wanted here in Ohio, and I knew as hard as it seems, I needed to maintain a positive attitude whether it be about school, tennis, or the cold weather that I wasn't used to! 

By following just these few things, I got to have a great first semester, and it was over in a blink of an eye! If anybody feels the same way, I would love for you to share your thoughts!

Here is a picture of the ONU tennis team!