Word & Mouth Blog
Where food, hospitality, branding, and human behavior all crash into each other. I write about restaurants, wine, placemaking, customer experience, and the small details that make people talk about a business long after they leave.
For even more snarky takes on marketing, pop culture, branding, and the internet, visit my Substack, Burnt Popcorn & Branding: Substack
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A mix of hospitality, branding, customer psychology, hospitality culture, and internet behavior from someone who’s worked behind the scenes in marketing long enough to know what feels authentic and what feels painfully forced.
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Yes. Especially if your marketing currently sounds like ChatGPT wrote it.
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No LinkedIn thought leadership energy here. Just strategy, storytelling, and occasional side-eye toward trends, Chat-GPT written branding advice, and “disruptive” ideas that all look the same.
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People in marketing, hospitality, branding, retail, wine, or anyone who secretly judges restaurants by their menu design before reading the food list.
Finding Normalcy in the Chaos: Using Social Media When Parenting Feels Overwhelming
Navigating the challenges of parenting a sick child, this piece explores how social media can provide connection, comfort, and a sense of normalcy—while also highlighting the balance needed to avoid comparison traps.
Social Media's Comeback: Debunking Myths and Seizing Opportunities - like Marketing & AI
Discover how AI and marketing are transforming the industry, from generative AI tools and social media strategies to content creation and audience engagement. Embrace the future and unlock new opportunities for success.
Facebook and Instagram Are Down - Here is What To Do
Tips for what to do when Facebook and Instagram are Down.
Building Trust Through Social Media as you Open Back up
Covid and shelter in place orders here in California have closed many small businesses in the food and wine industry. Now that things are opening back up, here are some actionable tips for sharing on social media.
Why I Bring My Child to Political Marches
This debate was brought up this past week as I shared images of my husband, 3-year-old son, my friends, and me at the 3rd Annual Women's March on January 19th, 2019 in downtown Santa Rosa. I shared the same images to both my Instagram account and Facebook page (and the latter received comments from friends, likes, hearts, and one angry face from a cousin with whom I’m not actually Facebook friends)... Instagram was a completely different experience.
The One Gift for Everyone On Your List
A letterboard is the best gift to get any blogger. So much fun to customize for any holiday or event.
Customer Service Needs to be a Part Of Your Marketing
The old ways of looking at customer service in marketing have little to do with each other. Once marketing brings in a new customer, they hand them off to support and begin focusing on the next lead. Social media marketing has changed the game and brough customer service and marketing together to create a holistic customer experience.
Tips for Social Media Marketing When You Are Not Inspired
These are just some of my tips for what you can do when you’re not feeling inspired to share on social media. Obviously some of them help with other areas of your business as well, like planning in general, being more aware of your energy, and having a backup plan. Sometimes things don’t always work how you want them to, but acknowledging that it’s just part of life makes it a little easier to deal with.
How To Create a Spring Flatlay Photo
have been slowly trying to perfect the flatlay image - a style of photography when you are shooting a subject on a flat surface from directly above. I am finally at a place where I can be proud of my images (I am hard on myself when it comes to photography), so I wanted to share some of what I have learned over the years.
Instagram Ain’t Nothin’ but a Number
Social Media Marketing numbers that matter should be engagement, not how many followers your brand has. It doesn’t matter if you have 1,000 or 50,000 on Instagram if 49,000 people are not engaged with your brand. Here are a few tips for businesses who want to connect with their audience.
Social Media Photography: how to shoot GREAT PHOTOS with a smartphone
Tips on How to Take Marketing Photos with your Smart Phone for Wine Industry Social Media Marketers for top photographers in Sonoma and Napa County.