Awed, confused, surprised.

instacanvas

The social media attention span (and Wrapup)

On Facebook and Google+ I've noticed a trend of sharing and resharing as much as humanly can. Every funny pic, every deep quote, every single thing you stumble upon with must be shared. My timelines are flooded with random.

It's no wonder then that in time to time a friend or a family member asks me something I have blogged, Tweeted and updated on Facebook about. Something I assume they must already know, such many times I've mentioned it. Alas no.

More and more people get in with blogging, Tweeting, tumbling, pinning, sharing and flooding. It's a mess. It's wrecking everyone's attention span. It's too much noise with too little value.

Just a little time ago social media in marketing was the new thing. It was signal, not noise. It was communication, not shouting.

Then everyone got in there with their own agendas. Promoting themselves, their own ideas, their own products. And the same thing happened as in a crowded bar: Everyone started to raise their voice. Now it's shouting again. Noise, rather than signal. The loudest one gets the price.

The photo above is available on Instacanv.as as canvases, cards, iPhone cases and other print products. Check my other photos as well.

Last week on the tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: Find out who followed and unfollowed you - "Whatever your reasons are, there are lots of different third party (not built by the Twitter folks) services that can tell you who you have followed and who doesn't follow you."
The web is never ready - "Try and keep up and make you site flexible rather than trying to make it perfect at once."
A new Twitter novel - It all begins with a sunset - "Tonight I finally started a new fictional story on Twitter."
MINIMAL Instagram challenge - "Join us and add your minimalism to the pool!"

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Olen huomannut uuden tavan jakaa mahdollisimman paljon mitä tahansa nostavan päätään Facebookissa ja Google+:ssa. Joka hassu kuva, joka syvällinen sitaatti ja mikä tahansa mitä vastaan tulee on jaettava. Aikajanani tulvivat satunnaista. Ei ihme, että monesti kaverit tai perheenjäsenet kysyvät jostakin asiasta, josta olen blogannut ja viestinyt vähän joka puolella muutenkin. Jostain, mistä oletin heidän jo tietävän, sillä olenhan maininnut asian jo niin monesti. Mutta ei. Inhimillinen keskittymiskyky on äärirajoilla. Vain vähän aikaa sitten sosiaalinen media markkinoinnissa oli se uusi juttu. Se oli signaali, ei meteliä. Se oli viestintää, ei huutamista. Nyt kaikki ovat messissä omine agendoineen. Nostattamassa omaa rintaa, omia ajatuksia, omia tuotteita. Kävi kuten täydessä baarissa: Kaikki alkoivat nostaa ääntään. Nyt se on taas huutamista. Meteliä, ennemmin kuin signaalia. Äänekkäin voittaa.

2 replies | November 27, 2012 - 04:24 |

Of obsessions and the Weekly Wrapup

I guess everyone has obsessions. Sometimes they are worse, sometimes there's lots of them and sometimes they are small ones, nothing that bad. There are people who say they never get obsessed about anything. They are obsessed at least about one thing: Giving an impression of not being obsessed.

My obsessions tend to have to do with perfection. Doing things better. Being the best. It's really not a good thing: When I fail it wrecks me.

Obsessions can be truly dangerous. They create a tunnel vision. You need [insert the obsession] and you need it now, nothing else matters. It can be bad for the others, but it can also be destructive for yourself.

Often we need other people to shake us out of obsessions. If you can see you are being obsessed about something, take a breathe, step back and give what ever it is a look from distance. Is it worth it?

The photo above is available on Instacanv.as as canvases and other print products. Check it out!

Last week on tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: The number of followers doesn't equal authority - "The truth is the number of followers doesn't equal authority. It only shows part of the potential."
Why we really are so rude online - "There are people who know words hurt. So... Where are they when all this assholiness happens?"
Easy ways to find new blog post ideas - "No worries, I know a couple of easy ways to come up with new blog post ideas that will drive the traffic (back) to your blog!"
Capture a MOMENT for #weekwtass challenge at Instagram - "Hop in with your MOMENT or more. You have the whole week to do this!"

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Luulenpa, että kaikilla on pakkomielteitä ja riippuvuuksia. Joskus ne ovat pahempia, joskus niitä on paljon ja joskus ne ovat pieniä juttuja, ei mitään tosi pahaa. Tiedän henkilöitä, jotka väittävät, ettei heillä ole koskaan pakkomielteitä tai riippuvuuksia. Heillä on pakkomielle ainakin yhdestä asiasta: He haluavat antaa mielikuvan, ettei heillä ole pakkomielteitä. Minun pakkomielteilläni on useimmiten tekemistä täydellisyyden tavoittelun kanssa. Se ei todellakaan ole hyvä juttu: Kun epäonnistun, hajoan tyystin. Pakkomielteet voivat olla todella vaarallisia. Ne luovat putkinäköisyyttä. Pakkomielle ja riippuvuus voi olla paha muille, mutta myös tuhoisaa sinulle itsellesi. Usein tarvitsemme jonkun muun ravistamaan meidät pois pakkomielteistämme. Jos huomaat olevasi pakkomielteinen jonkin asian suhteen, vedä henkeä, astu taakse päin ja katso mitä se sitten onkin vähän matkan päästä. Onko se sen arvoista? Yllä myös viime viikon villitykset tasselflower blogissa.

0 replies | October 8, 2012 - 18:41 |

Of drawing and the Weekly Wrapup

Whole my life I've been encouraged to draw and paint and do crafts. It's something that my family does. Giving a non-selfmade birthday card to a family member is considered as almost an insult.

So I've always been drawing. Unfortunately I'm an impatient person, I have trouble of relaxing my shoulders and arms and my hands are shaky. That results to the fact that I don't draw as well as I'd like to. Well, there's the perfectionism there too.

But when I feel inspired and I'm drawing something I feel comfortable with I enjoy it. I take pride of what I manage to create, even though it wasn't art museum worthy.

I think everyone can draw. We just all draw differently. It's wired into us, since those silly early humans who draw their stories on the walls of caves.

The photo above is by me and it's available on Instacanv.as as canvases and other print products.

Last week on tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Instagram is censoring non-offensive and popular hashtags - "Since there are bigger problems, such as spam comments and spam accounts, maybe censoring non-offensive and popular tags isn't the way to go."
Twitter Tuesday: Are you flooding your followers? - "Tweet no more than 15 times a day (preferably less). This way you will get noticed by those who matter."
Looking at GLASS on the weekly Instagram challenge #weekwtass - "Windows, bottles, drinking glasses, mirrors and so much more. We are all surrounded by glass."

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Minua on aina kannustettu piirtämään ja maalaamaan ja tekemään käsitöitä. Se on meidän perheen juttu. Jos annat ostokortin synttärinä perheenjäsenelle, se koetaan meillä melkein loukkauksena. Olen siis aina piirtänyt. Ikävä kyllä olen malttamaton henkilö, minulla on vaikeuksia rentouttaa hartioitani ja käsivarsiani ja käteni tärisevät. Tästä syystä en piirrä ihan niin hyvin kuin toivoisin. No, onhan siinä sitä perfektionismiakin. Mutta kun inspaa ja piirrän jotain mikä tuntuu kivalta, se on vallan hauskaa puuhaa. Olen ylpeä tekeleistäni, vaikkei ne olisikaan ihan ihan taidemuseoluokkaa. Mielestäni kaikki osaavat piirtää, jokainen vaan vähän eri tavoin. Se on sisäänrakennettu juttu, siitä asti kun ihmiset aikojen alussa piirsivät tarinoitaan luolien seiniin. Yllä myös viime viikon villitykset tasselflower blogissa.

0 replies | October 1, 2012 - 20:29 |

Of autumn and the Weekly Wrapup

Autumn, syksy in Finnish, is here. Some days are bright, sunny and somewhat warm. Most days are rainy or humid, chilly and grey. Not much inspiration to go for a run.

What I really love about autumn is how colorful it can be. On a bright day the yellows, oranges, reds and browns are so pretty. The leaves of every color they've imagined against the clear blue sky.

The fallen leaves on the ground, especially the maple ones, turn me into a kid. I drag my feet through the piles of leaves, kick them around and make all sorts of mess. Up until someone points out there might be dog poop underneath the pretty leaves.

The scent of autumn is enjoyable too. Though there's a hint of rotten in it, it's at the same time very fresh and contains the promise of delicious harvest.

When the autumn days aren't so pretty and bright I try and remember all these things. Especially when the days are getting shorter and darker. Soon it will be dark the most of the time and the sun will only make short appearances. Winter is coming. Enjoy the colors and the scents before it!

The photo above is by me and it's available on Instacanv.as as canvases, prints and greeting cards.

Last week on tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: How "be ReTweetable to be ReTweeted" is useless advice? - "Being ReTweetable isn't as easy as following some rules."
Marketing basics: You are your brand - "Include the You into your business."
The power of a story - "The best way to catch the attention is to tell a story."
Bright white on Instagram this week for #weekwtass - "Think as bright white as possible. More contrast the better!"

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Syksy on täällä. Toiset päivät ovat kirkkaita, aurinkoisia ja jopa lämpimiäkin. Suurin osa päivistä on sateisia tai kosteita, viileitä ja harmaita. Ei paljon inspiroi lähteä lenkille. Syksyn värit ovat hienoja. Kirkkaina päivinä kaikki ne keltaiset, oranssit, punaiset ja ruskeat ovat kauneimmillaan. Lehdet kaikissa kuvittelmissaan väreissä kirkkaan sinistä taivasta vasten. Maahan pudonneet, erityisesti vaahteran lehdet muuttavat minut lapseksi. Tykkään myös syksyn tuoksusta. Vaikka siinä seassa onkin ripaus mädän hajua, se on samalla jotenkin raikas ja sisältää lupauksen herkullisesta sadosta. Sateisina päivinä koitan muistaa nämä asiat. Pian on pimeää suurimman osan aikaa, talvi on tulossa. Nauti näistä väreistä ja tuoksuista ennen sitä! Yllä myös viime viikon jutut tasselflower blogissa.

0 replies | September 24, 2012 - 18:10 |

Get more likes on Instagram

I don't have that many followers on Instagram. Not a popular kid around there, you know. So up until lately my photos have received quite a little buzz if any. Up until lately, when I started to do a couple of new things. The following tips are based on my own experiences.

Oh and if you are interested to see my photos, just follow tasselflower or check them out on Webbygram. See you around!

Use hashtags

Like on Twitter and then some, you can use hashtags on Instagram. Hashtags such as #food or #cameras. Use popular hashtags (see what other's use). Be sure your image actually fits the tag so you won't be seen as a spammer.

Bonus tip: If you post your images to Twitter, leave the hashtags out of the caption. Especially if you use a whole bunch of hashtags. You can add them to the next comment and they'll work as well.

Join challenges

Get on one or two of the challenges on Instagram. The challenges are organized by other users as well as Instagram itself. The photos you are "submitting" to a challenge are tagged with a certain hashtag. Those who take part on the challenge tend to browse the hashtag to see what others have been shooting.

Be active

Be active yourself. Comment and like other's photos. Follow users who take interesting photos. Especially comment, like and follow the less popular users. They are more likely to comment, like and follow back than the popular ones. Makes sense, doesn't it?

When someone comments your photo, remember to reply to the comment (in a nice way if possible). Use their username (begin it with @, for instance @tasselflower) on the reply, so they'll be notified of your reply. Also reply if someone mentions you on another persons photo.

Take photos of food and pets

Okay, must be honest: This is a cheap trick. However annoyed some people might be with all the food and pet photos online, they still work. People tend to like food and pets, so photos about them are more likable too. And why not. I like pet pics myself. And cool food photos are cool. I'm just a human and so are the rest of Instagram users.

Tune your photos

Instead of just taking a "raw" photo and slapping a filter on it, get some nifty app for tweaking the photo before upping it to Instagram. It's okay to add the filters though, but tuning the contrast, saturation, light, white balance and other details makes the photos pop. (Yes, I just wrote that. You know what I mean.) I use mostly Snapseed for this sort of tuning.

Take simple and attractive photos

Because most people will browse your photos as really small thumbnail sizes, simpler is better. Noisy and crowded photos are more likely to be ignored in the mass. The simple ones with lots of white space get more attention. And why not. The simple subjects look great in square format.

1 reply | July 11, 2012 - 01:18 |

Of relaxing and the Weekly Wrapup

I can get pretty wound up and being all relaxed is tough for me. That's most likely why it takes me such a long time to get in sleep. My mind is roaming around and I remember stuff I *should* do.

However being able to relax is essential for health. It gives the whole body, especially heart, a break. Trying to keep up with everything is nothing but sick.

I just heard about a person who's work is lots of meetings. Meetings after meetings. Previously, when she noticed she was going to be late from the next meeting, she used to get running. At some point she noticed that wasn't good for her and she changed her whole attitude: Instead of starting to run, she would now slow down her pace if she was going to be late anyways. Cause what's the point of running.

That's what I'm trying to do. Slow down, since there's no use to try and catch that imaginary bandwagon. I'll still be running. Just not after anything.

Last week on tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Farewell Juuso - "Farewell my sweet little boy. You were loved."
Twitter Tuesday: Url shortening - "Because of the 140 characters length restriction url shortening is often needed in order to fit the link in a Tweet."

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Olen aika kireä tyyppi ja relaaminen ei onnistu minulta mitenkään helposti. Kuitenkin rentoutuminen on tärkeää terveydelle. Se antaa koko kropalle ja erityisesti sydämelle tauon. Kaikessa mukana pysyminen on vain ja ainoastaan kipeää touhua. Kuulin juuri henkilöstä, jonka työhön kuuluu kokoustaminen. Kokouksia kokouksien perään. Ennen hänellä oli tapana pistää juoksuksi, kun hän huomasi olevansa myöhässä siitä seuraavasta miitistä. Jossakin vaiheessa hän muutti koko asennettaan: Juoksemisen sijaan hän alkoikin hidastaa, jos kerran oli myöhässä muutenkin. Sitä minäkin yritän. Hidastaa, koska ei ole mitään pointtia yrittää pysyä niillä kuvitteellisilla kärryillä. Aion kuitenkin vielä juosta. En vain juokse minkään perässä.

4 replies | June 25, 2012 - 14:31 |

Of rules and the Weekly Wrapup

I'm not against all the rules. Rules can be good, especially when they are based on good sense and morals. They keep us from doing dumb stuff and hurting others. Well, at least that's the idea.

But then there are stupid, ridiculous rules. Usually set for personal or business gain.

Take the new Twitter logo and the renewed Twitter Trademark and Content Display Policy. Silly, meaningless rules like this beg for someone to break them over and over again. Why? Because they are silly and meaningless.

Did you know that you shouldn't use your own logos/illustrations as Twitter buttons? Now you know.

Last week on tasselflower blog (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: Sharing links - "Try these and your sharing will have more effect and won't alienate all of your followers."
A couple of web design tips - "It works also as a sign of professionalism and tell that you are really invested in your site."
Marketing basics: Stop selling, start giving - "Selling needs to come naturally, in the way the customer feels they asked for it."
Two different types of Like (on Facebook) - "Do you know the difference in when you like something on a another website and in when you like it on Facebook?"
Do you have a blog? Tell me! - "But I'm sure there's more out there."

Don't want to miss anything anymore? Like on Facebook to join the party!

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Säännöt voivat olla ihan hyvästä. Varsinkin silloin kun ne perustuvat järkeen ja moraaliin. Ne estävät meitä tekemästä tyhmyyksiä ja satuttamasta muita. Ainakin se on ajatus. Mutta sitten on niitä tyhmiä ja järjettömiä sääntöjä. Usein henkilökohtaista hyötyä varten asetettuja. Uusi Twitter logo ja siihen liittyvä ohjeistus on hyvä esimerkki. Nuo säännöt kerjäävät tulla rikotuiksi. Koska ne ovat tyhmiä ja merkityksettömiä. Yllä myös viime viikon bloggaukset listattuna. Etkö halua missata enää mitään? Tykkää Facebookissa niin pysyt kärryillä!

0 replies | June 18, 2012 - 14:53 |

Of search and the Weekly Wrapup

Minna M. had noticed some strange Google searches leading to her blogs and was asking how have us, other bloggers been found. I checked my Google Analytics since the very beginning of this blog and found a couple of gems there.

All sorts of pervs had been searching for naked cleaning lady and hot bikini pic, though both can be found on this site. Sort of. Along those short patience has been a very popular way to end up here. The previous were amongst the top search phrases, alongside with several different versions of them.

The creepy category includes 10 worst stalkers ever (reference material, perhaps), i want to see my cleaning lady naked (do you really?) and isä porn (isä is dad in finnish).

The silly ones include searches such as how would you describe a tomato, laxative for swine, was pablo neruda fascinated by bugs as a child. So random, so definite.

Facebook chat and newsfeed settings, as well as being added on other people's Google+ circles without permission (yes, that's how it works) and the vanishing Twitter @mentions seemed to have worried bunch of searchers. Other techie stuff was also included, which is not that strange considering what I tend to blog about.

Things you may have missed (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: Tweetbot - "The main reason I bought Tweetbot is it's muting feature."
What's your favorite color? - "There are also other pretty colors and loads of color combinations that make me drool."
Stormtroopers captured - "-- the Empire's finest were caught by JD Hancock from doing all sorts of nutty?"

Don't want to miss anything anymore? Like on Facebook to join the party!

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Minna M. oli huomannut, että hänen blogeihin oli päädytty hassuilla Google hauilla ja kysyi, että miten meidät muut bloggaajat oli haettu ja löydetty. Yllä listattuna joitakin yleisimpiä, karmivimpia ja hassuimpia. Mukana myös viime viikon bloggaukset listattuna. Etkö halua missata enää mitään? Tykkää Facebookissa niin pysyt kärryillä!

2 replies | June 11, 2012 - 17:17 |

Of summer and the Weekly Wrapup

Somewhere in between it was June all of a sudden. In Finnish June is kesäkuu, which many people think comes from the Finnish word meaning summer, kesä. It actually is derived from a word for kesanto, a sort of ley farming where a field is left not planted for a year or longer.

However around here the summer is usually thought to start from the beginning of June. In the end of May or beginning the June the schools go out for summer and the kids and their teachers are set free. More or less.

During the short summer there's lots of light here in North. Norther you go, the less there's night time. Way up North the sun won't go down at all. It's a nice change to the long and dark winter. No matter if sleeping in all the light can be tricky business.

Did you miss these during the last week? (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: Should I follow everyone back? - "-- you won't in any way be able to keep up with even close to everything they Tweet."
Sorry, I don't think I'm the right person to do this - "Admitting you can't do something is pretty big step."
Marketing Basics: The reason - "As fine as your product or service is, it's not going to sell itself."
Stones in my pockets - "I filled my pockets with stones so that wind wouldn't catch me."
Squirrel (The best photo I've ever taken) - "Or I wasn't fast enough to capture their fast paced essence."

Don't want to miss anything anymore? Like on Facebook to join the party!

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Jossakin siinä välillä tuli kesäkuu. Toisin kuin usein luullaan, sana kesäkuu ei tule vuodenaikaa, vaan kesantoa tarkoittavasta sanasta. Joka tapauksessa kesäkuu koetaan yleensä kesän aluksi. Koulujen kesälomat alkavat ja lapset ja opettajat päästetään vapaaksi. Enemmän tai vähemmän. Lyhyen kesän aikana täällä pohjoisessa on paljon valoa. Pohjoisempaan menet, enemmän sitä riittää. Se on ihan mukavaa, pitkän ja pimeän talven jälkeen, vaikka nukkuminen valossa onkin taitolajinsa. Katso myös tuosta yläpuolelta mitä missasit viime viikon aikana. Etkö halua missata enää mitään? Tykkää Facebookissa niin pysyt kärryillä!

0 replies | June 4, 2012 - 15:53 |

Of running (and walking), with the Weekly Wrapup

If you want to start to exercise I truly recommend running and/or walking. It's easy to start, you won't need lots of expensive equipment and it's beneficial in many different ways. Just get a comfortable pair of running shoes or sneakers, throw on comfortable t-shirt or a top and sweatpants or shorts. And voilà you are ready to go.

I've never had a problem of overweight, but I've heard even just walking is a great way to get your weight down. And for a skinny person like me running gives some pretty nice muscles. Not just on legs.

I started walking and then running when my back and shoulders started to feel just broken from all the nerding around. When I remember to have a nice jog at least a couple of times a week, my back and shoulders get enough movement to relax.

So, do you walk or run? Or do you do some other great workout you'd like to recommend to me and everyone else? Let us know on the comment section below!

What you could have missed last week (eg. Weekly Wrapup)

Twitter Tuesday: The size (or at least length) matters - "Especially reading Tweets from a small screen (with a smartphone) would get messy."
There's no shame in not affording it - "As if it was something personal. It's not. It's just currency."
Hot Font #7: Six Caps - "It's great for posters as well as headers."

Don't want to miss anything anymore? Like tasselflower blog on Facebook to join the party (and get some extra goods)!

Suomeksi (In Finnish):

Jos haluat alkaa harrastaa liikuntaa, suosittelen juoksemista ja/tai kävelemistä. Se on helppo laji aloittaa, et tarvitse paljon kalliita välineitä ja se on myös hyödyllistä monella tavalla. Hommaat vain mukavat juoksukengät, heität niskaan mukavan t-paidan tai topin ja jalkaan verkkarit tai shortsit ja olet valmis matkaan. Juoksetko tai käveletkö? Tai harrastatko jotakin muuta loistavaa lajia, josta haluat kertoa minulle ja muillekin? Kerro kommenteissa tuossa alapuolella! Tsekkaa myös viime viikon bloggaukset listattuna tuosta yläpuolelta.

0 replies | May 28, 2012 - 17:16 |

Hello, my name is Mervi!

I’m a Digital Craftswoman, geek, cat person, dreamer, awesome, always right and quite boring. This is the tasselflower blog about web design, social media, life, marketing and business. Have some tea!

Mervi Emilia