Jayme Soulati, Author at soulati.com

Thoughts About Love In Business

08/28/2013 By Jayme Soulati

If your parents are stilted and unable to hug you with a genuine squeeze and vibration of love, then your journey to love, share love, open your heart to love, say “I love you” with meaning and be secure with that amazing emotion will be unsettled.

Happiness

All around us, there are studies on happiness. Have you read my series here each Friday that began Jan. 11, 2013, called The Happy Friday Series? It consists of your stories about happiness; there are no rules, just an interpretation, recollection, and often therapeutic sharing of life’s journey. Please read a few; here is the list from the first half of the year.

Please also consider writing for the series, as my goal is to get through year end without needing to fill a gap in guest writers.

Happiness research hit academia a few years ago; I still have the Harvard Business Review with happiness on the cover. Another Fortune company is going to find ways to make employees happier as it leads to greater productivity and morale.

Love on the other hand? It’s a sensitive emotion. Does it belong in the workplace? Should you use it to describe your services and products? Will anyone believe you if you do?

Kaarina Dillabough addressed respect as a topic for her post this week. She raises solid points about the lack of respect just about everywhere and mostly the lack of respect in the home. The children shooting adults out of boredom? No respect for life or happiness. I assume also there’s no love in the home or the foundation of the big three – happiness, love and respect.

That’s what the gangs are doing; encompassing and embracing errant children off the street and providing some semblance of security. At the same time the gangsta masters are delivering a foundation of structure and negative reinforcement; however, the flipside at home could be much worse.

Every Creature Thrives On Love

Every single living creature thrives on love. Perhaps it’s attention and love follows. Well, maybe snails don’t thrive on love; I’m not sure! Infants born with drug dependency react to cuddling and a warm embrace. When left alone, they suffer and cry uncontrollably. Heck, infants without chemical dependency thrive with warm and genuine hugs.

Think about someone ill or someone alone in a retirement center? What’s the best way to make them feel loved and secure and together? Hold their hand and squeeze. Feel the love from your heart travel to your hand and theirs. Watch it vibrate with healing energy to their heart and eyes.

Mark Schaefer wrote a post this week on a similar topic. He shared how his rigorous attention to analytics nearly drove his blog to disaster. His new approach is to be more relaxed with his writings and let his heart guide his content. What’s happened? His community found him back with more engagement than before.

So, I ask you…why are you doing what you’re doing today? If you’re unhappy with the results or you feel compelled to stay the course for the wrong reasons, then your heart is hurting. You do not love what you do in business. Love cannot pay the bills, I get it; however, love, passion and compassion are the very foundation of how you show up to others.

Is there a place for love in business?

Can you show it more so people can feel that you’re genuine?

Love comes in many sizes! Because we’re interacting more with perfect social strangers, we can show the love in a variety of simple ways:

Your gesture to someone on Twitter in the morning can be as simple as “Hey, how’s it going? I miss you @3HatsComm!”
You can honor love by thanking someone for a retweet or pingback.
You can pay attention by reading and sharing content.
Comments — always comments (and people have less ability to visit as often as we did). So, coming by to comment or take a survey shows care for your peers.

I’ve often spoken of genuine authority. What that means is subject to your interpretation. It’s not the purchase of Twitter followers; it’s not the grandiose presentation of your wins and successes at the expense of others; nor is it your false massaging of self to build up who you’re really not.

What if, as Betsy Cross always writes, you bared your soul on a scale beyond your comprehension? What if you were able to share one thing so painful right here on this blog and then you began to heal by revealing your inner pain?

The love and support you’d receive would be therapeutic, and you can be assured that I love you until you disrespect me back.

And, so, I ask again…is there a place for love in business?

Indeed.

Only if you truly love yourself first.

The Happy Friday Series: My Happy Place

08/23/2013 By Jayme Soulati

Soulati, Kings Island

When I was a little girl my father would gather us up on Friday nights to take us on a family car ride. When I’d ask where we were headed he tell me we were going to”jedbip” – a word of his own creation.

These rides were the highlight of the week, especially in the summer. The windows down, the cool breeze in my hair and WCAO out of Baltimore, MD with DJ Johnny Dark playing in the background.

I would sing along to every song. From the Spinners to Three Dog Night, I would just sing out my heart and my little brother, Robbie would cover his ears in horror.

Our trips to “jedbip” would take us to every inch of Maryland, the city lights of Dundalk and the smell of Fells Point. We’d pass the sailboats out on the Severn River near the Naval Academy.

Every trip ended the same, a trip to Tastee-Freeze for a chocolate/vanilla swirl soft serve ice cream cone. No trip was complete until you had your cone.

Family Memories

After all these years, I realized that we never did pass a town named “jedbip”.

However, now that I’m older, I have come to realize that “jedbip” was my happy place. It was those car rides with my family that I look back now fondly and remember as being some of the best times of my life.

There was so much freedom in those moments.

The memories my Dad created by gathering us in the car and taking off on those Friday nights. He didn’t have a destination in mind, no particular place to go; he just wanted his family to have a night together. To create memories for us to hold on to when the miles separated us when we were older.

To be able to go back in our minds to remember those rides to “jedbip” and smile about our happy place.

About The Author

Jennifer Olney is the Founder #bealeader™ and CEO of . #bealeader™ is a virtual leadership community and multi-author blog dedicated to changing the game and making a difference in the lives of leaders of today and tomorrow by providing education and knowledge base sharing resources by connection leaders from around the world. Jennifer brings over 20 years of marketing and business development management working with organization from Maryland to Silicon Valley in the startup internet and technology space. You can contact Jennifer on @GingerConsult, LinkedIN and GooglePlus.

Speaking And Presenting Are Brand Builders

08/22/2013 By Jayme Soulati

Jayme Soulati holds her new book prior to presenting at New South Digital Marketing Conference

Nothing new in this headline, right? I mean, everyone must be aware that speaking to audiences of your peers with a presentation that is #RockHot is good for the brand.

Joining a panel as a speaker or being a presenter on a local, regional or national scale do not happen overnight. In fact, it may never happen; some are confined to quarters listening to others in webinars, on podcasts, on YouTube or during Google+ Hang Outs.

That’s OK, too, for every speaker needs an audience.

So, please join me in these two locales and venues as I ply my speaker skills and delight you (I have solid expectations!) with creative insight:

IABC Kentucky & Louisville Digital Marketing Association

On September 10, 2013, I will take the dais at the2013 Integrated Marketing Summit hosted by IABC Louisville and the Louisville Digital Marketing Association.

The best news is about who else you can expect to hear:

Gini Dietrich, of the infamous Spin Sucks and Arment Dietrich and co-author of Marketing In The Round

Heather Whaling, president of Geben Communications and a PR maven extraordinaire who tweets @PRTini (I love that Twitter ID).

Jason Falls, himself a maven (can guys be mavens?) across the great divide of social and digital marketing is the master of ceremonies, the emcee, the guy who put us all together.
I’ve been cursing Jason a lot of late as I attempt to build my deck. He assigned me a topic that is sure to give you pause as it has given me paws.

Jason said, “Jayme, you’re going to speak on how social media integrates across all the marketing channels.” Say what??

And, so the heavy duty thinking began with a new title,

Savvier Social Media Across Blended Marketing.

Please do drive or fly to Louisville for this meeting. It’s not going to be the customary “everyone has to jump on the social media train;” it’s going to be about how marketers can better apply social media throughout integrated disciplines and break down the marketing silos.

Here’s the link with all the deets. With the demise of Social Slam in 2014, this conference is a good one to consider as a replacement. The location is central, the price is right, and ohmygoodness, you’re getting PR Rock Stars in the flesh!

Join Me At ConvergeSouth

Here’s what happens when you write a book, you get invited to present in front of some really cool audiences about the topics you love to write about. At ConvergeSouth October 11, 2013 in Greensboro, NC, I am keynoting the content marketing track.

By now, you know how much I love to generate original content that is #RockHot with more ideas you can shake a stick at. There is no lack of blog or landing page fodder in this house, and I want to share that passion and verve for content with you when I present:

Community Is King; Content Is Queen

Yes, I’m dethroning the “content is king” mantra. I’m getting tired of hearing it for the last 18 months. You know who really deserves the new title, right? It’s you; this community. Without a community or loyal followers, readers and lurkers no social media strategy can be successful.
Put that in your crown and ponder!

Join Jayme Soulati

IABC Kentucky & Louisville Digital Marketing Association, Sept. 10, 2013, Louisville
ConvergeSouth, October 11, 2013, Greensboro, NC

Fashion Brands And Fashionbi Big Data

08/20/2013 By Jayme Soulati

Credit: Fashionbi Newspaper screenshot via https://fashionbi.com

The world’s largest fashion brands are ubiquitous. Every developed country and most every woman within yearns for a stylish handbag by Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, Hermes, Dior, Prada, or Yves St. Laurent. Across worldwide time zones and language barriers, a high-end and classy handbag requires no translation.

A handbag from either of these brands is more important than just being chic. Women in Hong Kong short on cash are using their hand bags from four global fashion brands as collateral for loans. The girl short on money between pay checks turns over her handbag for authentication via Milan Station Holdings and gets 80% of its value from Yes Lady Finance Co. When she’s able to pay off the loan, she earns back her handbag. The Wall Street Journal had this story Aug. 14, 2013, “Cash Is In The Bag, If It’s Gucci.”

What does that mean for the brand? Each has an iconic statement women want; what that means is the need for a more targeted focus on engaging with the customer and having the customer engage positively about and with the brand, called a net promoter score.
How do brands track and listen on a global scale?

Fashionbi Is Big Data of Fashion

Recently, I had the pleasure of being introduced to Italian startup, Fashionbi. It’s the “complete digital marketing tool for the fashion industry,” with big data and analytics crossing borders and time zones for the world’s global fashion brands. Based logically in Milan, Fashionbi has offices worldwide and is growing exponentially.
Its ability to track social media analytics on Twitter and Facebook via Profiles across the world, including Weibo in Chinese, puts Fashionbi squarely at the forefront of its sector as a company to watch and work with.

Not only can Fashionbi share brand engagement by social media channel, it can also provide deep analytics of content quality and value. I got a look at its dashboard for member users only, and it blew me away. The graphs and charts typical to any users’ dashboard put Slideshare presentations to shame.
When I saw the analytics Fashionbi produces with sleight of hand, I immediately suggested it launch or purchase a digital marketing shop to execute on the big data being produced every minute of every day across every time zone. The wealth of information in Fashionbi’s dashboards requires expert assistance from marketers and public relations to interpret the data and put it into action for fashion brands.

Care to learn more?

Fashionbi on YouTube

Check out this YouTube video, two minutes of polished and well-done by the folks at Fashionbi. Even if you’re not that interested in a high-end handbag from Louis Vuitton, you have to admit, the analytics this company produces is enough to make you slap happy.