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.
6 Tips on How to Enjoy Life Even When You Feel Overworked
We've all had those weeks where we're just counting down the days until Friday. And even when we do have a few moments to ourselves, we're often thinking about all the things we need to get done. Here are 6 tips for how to enjoy life when you are overwhelmed and overworked.
Tips to Help You Get More Fit After Anal Cancer
Here are simple tips to help you start getting fit after anal cancer treatments. Even if most days feel like no progress has been made, slow & steady exercise can help both your physical and mental self. Moderate exercise can go a long way in helping you to improve your quality of life post anal cancer.
One year Since my Last Day of Anal Cancer Treatments
One year ago I rang the bell at the Kaiser cancer treatment center. One year ago I finished my anal cancer treatments - radiation & oral chemotherapy. And now, one-year post anal cancer treatments —Moving forward, one of my goals in life is to encourage everyone to listen to their body, and go see a doctor, community health center, etc when they feel like something is off.
Bottoms Up! Post-Anal Cancer Life One Year Later
The post-cancer journey is a slow and arduous one. It's hard knowing that I may not return to my pre-cancer "normal" in some ways. But all you or I can do is approach every day in turn—and with diligence, focus, and people by your side, things become a little less tough than they otherwise would be. Sometimes, that's all you need.
Word of the Year: Embrace 2021
Whether you have kids at home or feel paralyzed by not being able to find a job, there are small things you can do to embrace your goals. This isn’t about jumping in headfirst and hustling (read: burning out). This year should be about taking slow, actionable steps to get you further than where you are right now - and embracing your word of the year like I am.
Tips I Learned During Anal Cancer Treatment
I will say that no matter how horrible the days were, they went by quickly, and there is a light at the end of this tunnel. My type of stage III anal cancer has a good chance of recovery—even if that recovery means that I still have to have surgery in the future.
Why Taking a Step Back from My Business Actually Strengthened My Career Aspirations
This is a good reminder that you don’t have to go through a pandemic or cancer treatments for you to take a step back from your business life and really look critically at what you want to do next.
So, Are We Setting Goals For 2021?
2020 turned out to be something that NOT any of us could have predicted. With massive job loss and stay at home orders due to the pandemic, 2020 goals changed. Even though my New Year Resolutions looked different, I still made time to goal plan and create small goals to get me to the next step in my career and for my health. Here are some action items for setting 2021 goals.
Next Steps Post Anal Cancer Treatments
As I move forward with anal cancer treatments, I wanted to answer are some questions I get the most
2020 Is a Literal Pain in My Ass — Finding Out I Have Cancer During a Pandemic Was Not Part of the Plan.
Out of all the places to get cancer, it’s definitely not the most flattering. Speaking up and normalizing things (like talking about anal cancer) can hopefully inspire people to be more proactive in going to see the doctor when they have symptoms so they can get treatment.
Small Business Superpower: Connections with Your Customers Matter
The brick & mortar hair and skin salon has continued to focus on the connections that they have with their customers, and that can be seen as soon as you walk into the salon through smiling faces and repeat customers. When the SIP order went into place for Sonoma County, they had to shut down their salon and turn to online delivery orders, as well as a new Facebook group
Social Distance Yourself From Social Media: How To Spring Clean Your Social Media Habits
If you feel like you need to social distance yourself from social media, you are not alone. I am trying not to check the news as much, or mindlessly scroll through Facebook or Instagram stories. Here are my top 4 tips for spring cleaning your social media during this COVID-19 pandemic.
Restaurant and Winery Marketing Gets Creative While We Shelter in Place
With the shelter-in-place order, wineries and restaurants all over California are having to rethink their traditional model of people coming to them. Creativity tends to flourish during times of crisis, so I wanted to give a few shoutouts to brands that I think are doing a great job of embracing the horrible reality that we're dealing with right now.
Work From Home Productivity Tips (How To Plan Your Day With Your Partner)
From years of working from home, as well as what we have been doing for the past week, here are some of our work from home productivity tips for planning ahead with your partner.
Instagram versus Reality...
What I don’t like about social media is the mental health issues it causes – the compulsion to be perfect and compare yourself to others. Especially when looking at influencers on Instagram.
My Weight Loss Journey to Losing 45 Pounds
Moving forward, I am learning to listen to my body. When I start shaking if I eat more than a few bites of dessert, when my head throbs after having more than two glasses of beer or wine in a day, and when I feel the urge to get up and move when binge watching Schitts Creek – I LISTEN!
Top Spring and Summer Finds on Amazon
Loving Amazon for Spring Cleaning Supplies, Easter Brunch Dresses, Surprise Eggs, Sunglasses, Boots, and Even House Cleaning.
The Month of May in My Household
National Mental Health Month is also National Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month, which is definitely fitting – well, at least for my family.
That One Time When My Toddler's School Closed Down Indefinitely...
I know I’m going to trust my gut as a parent much more now when it comes to his health, safety, and education.
Quick Update on Goals for 2019
2018 has truly been a pivotal year in my decade-long entrepreneurial career. I went from managing social media accounts for several brands to focusing on my own brand, writing for several publications, and working with a few marketing and PR agencies on projects. Now I look to Goals for 2019…