So what are we up to back in the motherland? A few things really…

While our traveling cohorts organize and gather the documentation materials, a team of us are ready and on-hand to help get that content to you (and our friends in the media) as quickly as possible. Working within a system that includes a 6 hour time difference isn’t always easy, but multiple process meetings prior to the trip has made for smooth sailing (knock on wood).

Most of my job entails getting the content out to you, our online audience. From updating the website with videos, images, and information to managing our Facebook and @imamuseum Twitter account, my work is 90% online and 10% meetings about the online material. I sincerely love this job and it’s because of this job that I feel like I am in Venice along with everyone else.

Closely following all of the @la_biennale and @USPavillion11-related tweets, I am inundated with updates, sightings, and picturesque views. I could open my Hootsuite account now and virtually connect with the city of romance and its temporary visitors. Tweets from everyone in Venice and the subsequent correspondence with those from all over the world have really been fascinating.

Another part of my job (web management) means that I’m one of the luckier ones who gets to see the new IMA content the second its published to our website. I don’t think this really hit me until I was able to publish photos and videos of the US Gymnasts performing on Body in Flight (Delta) and Body in Flight (American).

Slideshow: Allora & Calzadilla, Body in Flight (Delta) and Body in Flight (American), 2011. Photos by Andrew Bordwin.

Tethered to my computer, I’ll be anxiously waiting all week for our Publishing and Media team to send over their latest creations. If you aren’t following @imamuseum or @USPavilion11 – now is the time to stay up to date on the latest. Also, be sure to “like” us on Facebook (a behind the scenes photo album coming soon) and browse our Venice Biennale microsite. There is a page for each of the six commissioned artworks, which includes videos and photos (stay tuned for some installation shots and full performance videos).

It’s because of all of these things (and the workings of a lot of people) that I can actually feel the energy radiating from the US Pavilion, 4,500 miles away. Reading tweets from the US gymnasts (@USATeamGloria), I sense their anticipation before opening performances and share in their pride for this wonderful opportunity with which we are all involved.  Watching rehearsal videos I can see the hard work and collaboration needed to pull it all together, while the final installation shots show me why it’s all worth it.

As I write this, I did just finish a nice glass of cabernet so while I may not be riding a vaporetto to work or rubbing elbows with international elites, my focus and heart (along with many others still in the building) is 100% Venetian this week.

Who’s up for some gelato?

What’s really convenient about HootSuite is that you can pull most of your social sites into one interface, so you spend less time logging in and out of the different sites. From the dashboard, you can create a tab for each of the accounts you want to include, with choices of: Twitter, Facebook, Facebook page, LinkedIn, MySpace, Pingfm, WordPress, and Foursquare. As you can see in the screen-shot below, my chosen tabs for the trial were my Twitter and Facebook accounts.

One nice thing about HootSuite is that you can post a message to multiple accounts. If I wanted to say the same thing on Facebook as I do on Twitter, I can check both boxes and the tweet/status change will post simultaneously. I haven’t used this feature because our audiences are different and therefore we generally have different things to say, but I’m sure some would find it useful.

You can also schedule posts ahead of time. So, if I want to wish my friends a Merry Christmas this coming Saturday, but will be stuck at Grandma’s sans internet, I could schedule the status to auto-update. A more practical use of this might be if you need to release information at a specific time, but know you’ll be held up in a meeting, etc.

The program also does some basic tracking. For Facebook, the stats are pulled from Insights and from Twitter (as long as you use their ow.ly URLs), you can see general click stats, referral and regional stats, and Twitter ‘influencers’ that have mentioned your handle.

To give my two cents on the program, I thought I would break it down into perks and pitfalls for both Twitter and Facebook management.

Perks for Facebook

• One nice thing about the program is that it will show you in your page feed when someone has tagged you, which doesn’t show up from my Facebook interface. I can then go to that person’s page and comment on their post or status.
• When you post a URL, HootSuite does allow you to edit the title, description, and thumbnail image just like Facebook, which is very handy.

Pitfalls for Facebook

• There seems to be a bit of a time delay with the ‘like’ feature. It’s not as instant as it is within the Facebook interface.
• The Facebook Insights on HootSuite are very close to the Insights within Facebook, but do not include quite as much information. Basic stats are there, like daily post feedback, daily page activity, total likes, and demographics of visitors, but to really break down the information (like visits by city), I still had to log in to Facebook.

Perks for Twitter

• The delineated tabs make navigation between each social account easy and well organized. Within each tab, you can also separate the information into streams. With Twitter you can add separate feeds for Home, Mentions, Direct Messages, Sent Tweets, and a variety of others.
• The tracking for Twitter is pretty nice. For anyone who uses bit.ly, the stats are very similar. You can see click stats for a set time period, referral and regional stats, Twitter ‘influencers’ that have mentioned you and how many times they have mentioned you.
• HootSuite also gives stats on individual tweets or what they call messages. Within this section you can search past tweets, which makes it really nice if you need to go back and look at stats for something in the past (as shown in screen-shot to the right).

Pitfalls for Twitter

• While the tracking is pretty nice there are a few flaws. Under most popular messages, you can see who else shared the link within your tweets, however it seemed some users were left off of the list. It does not appear to be all-encompassing.

If you manage more than just Twitter and Facebook accounts then this product is probably even more useful. And for $5.99 a month, the price is really not bad. There are several other features that I have yet to explore including Firefox add-ons and an iPhone app, so I’m sure there are more perks (and possible pitfalls) to add to the list. Overall, I found the tool particularly useful for Twitter and ‘not bad’ to use for Facebook. Has anyone found a different tool that you absolutely love?

Jumo was conceptually introduced in March of 2010 when Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes announced a soft-launch of the non-profit platform that matches users’ philanthropic interests to various causes. Nearly 9 months later, what was just a landing page is now a beta-launched version that is definitely worth checking out. So what exactly is it?

Jumo set out to address three key challenges in the non-profit sector:

• There are millions of people working to improve the lives of others, many of whom lack the resources to have greatest impact.
• There are millions more who want to help, but don’t know how.
• Despite huge advancements in connection technologies, it’s hard to find meaningful opportunities to get involved.

Their goal is to make it easier to find organizations and issues you care about, follow the latest news and support these causes with your time, money, and skills. Functionally speaking, Jumo allows you to ‘follow’ an issue or project (organization) that you’re interested in, providing you with a news-feed of information on those that you follow. The news is aggregated from a variety of sources including local newspapers, industry-related blogs and sites, the project’s own blog or web site, etc. You’ll also see a Twitter feed with mentions of those you follow and a list of related projects and issues. Charitable donations can also be taken from the site so as users become savvier to its capabilities I’m sure will see what fund-raising possibilities there are.

Some of you may be thinking that the purpose of the site sounds similar to others like change.org or idealist.org. There has been some debate as to whether Jumo is able to bring something new to the table. My immediate reaction is that while they all connect individuals to organizations, there is more interactivity and networking possibilities on Jumo.

One thing I really like about the layout of the site is the instant similarities to Facebook. New interfaces can sometimes take a while to get used to and there are several familiar features that ease the navigation. From your homepage, you’ll see a list of your friends that are also on Jumo and you can browse the projects and issues that they follow. Jumo also uses the 3 column layout with your Facebook photo on the left above your list of friends, top news in the middle, and then suggested follows on the right.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy challenged their Twitter followers to assess whether Jumo will succeed. According to one response, Jumo will succeed because there’s a need, it is easy to use, it offers unprecedented access for nonprofits, and it offers networking capability. Another claims, Jumo will fail (though admits this statement is a bit of a journalistic hyperbole) because at the end of the day Facebook will still consume so much personal time that while Jumo may gain a bit of muscle power and a great deal of good, it will not become the next Facebook.

I think this is a pretty valid statement and I’m not sure that even Jumo’s founders believe it has that sort of power, nor was it their intention to create a site to challenge Facebook. But, I do think that the site has potential and it serves as a great way for us as a Museum to connect to our constituents while also allowing our constituents to connect with one another. If you’re interested in checking out the site, or following us, you can do so from the IMA’s Jumo project page.

(photo via Joe Shoemaker)

Last week, I represented the IMA (@IMAMuseum) at the Indianapolis Social Media Breakfast (@indysmb) on the topic of Using Social Media in Travel, Tourism and Attraction Industries. Serving on the panel with me were representatives from IndyHub (@IndyHub), The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis (@TCMIndy), The State Fair Grounds (@IndyStateFair), and the ICVA (@VisitIndy). Sitting in the audience were some of the most engaged social networkers in the city. It was a great opportunity to discuss the IMA’s social media strategy and to hear how other organizations are utilizing social networks for marketing and audience development strategies. (In case you don’t know, the “@” behind the organization refers to its Twitter account).

To sum up, here’s what I discussed:

1. Social Media = Social Networks (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) + Social Content (Video, blogs, etc.) If an organization creates great social content then social networking is a heckuvalot easier! Producing good, engaging content should be your top priority.
2. The staff person/s that manage/s Facebook and Twitter is your online visitor services staff. Whether they speak from their own voice or on behalf of your organization, Social Media staff are evangelists of the organization. They have to be authentically passionate about what they communicate and be willing to live the mission of the organization. The best Social Networking is done 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week.
3. When it comes to online strategy, the best plan is to not plan. While it’s essential that overall communication objectives and key messages are understood, the best social media presences are those that have the ability to be flexible, responsive and experimental.

See the full discussion:

Indianapolis Social Media Breakfast | May 13th 2010 from Twelve Stars Media Productions on Vimeo.

Want More?

If you are local and want to learn more about the IMA and our social media strategy, you’re in luck! This Thursday, May 20 at 5:30 we will be hosting Bloggers Anonymous, a meetup group of individuals who are interested in art, technology, online communications and networking. Come, grab a drink in Nourish Café, get some freebies, and meet some really great people while you’re at it!

This photo was snapped just this morning down in 100 Acres by Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, Lisa Freiman and promptly tweeted by CEO Max Anderson:

Steel workers gather for a photo opp. on top of Free Basket by Los Carpinteros

Take for instance how social media has reshaped the world of journalism. “Citizen journalism” is the concept of members of the public “playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information.” Examples of this can be seen through blogs, twitter, and camera phone images.

As a museum, we can employ this same idea. Staff, artists and visitors can capture events as they happen with their iPhone or a Flip Video. The following images were captured on artist duo Type A’s cell phones and then uploaded to Facebook:

The top ring of "Team Building (Align)" casts a shadow

Astronomer Brian Murphy of Butler U. and Andrew of Type A work out some calculations to place the second ring for "Team Building (Align)"

So, budding art journalists, here are some tips from caffienatedtraveller.com to get you started:

• Acknowledge the artwork and museum in the photo credits. It is time for bloggers to step up and put on a professional face.
• Post great images and not the family snap shots on your blog. Why discredit a good art exhibit.
• Flash photography? Don’t go there unless you have explicit permission from the museum. Not even when you think you’re alone.
• Leave the fanatical blogger psyche at the entry door. Spend some zen time in the moment, with the art and the space and then shoot.

In the meantime, I’ll be looking for your tweets, status updates and image uploads. And let’s continue to blur the lines together, shall we?

The first site is “Dribbble – What are you working on?”. I think of this website as a visual version of Twitter. It allows designers to showcase the latest version of what they are working on in “120,000 pixels or less”.

I’m so glad this site exists! The best thing about it is you can only become a contributing member if you are invited, or “drafted” as they say, by someone who is already a member, also known as a “player”. The branding is a play off of basketball and I think it works. The fact that the basketball is pink is perfect. It should help keep the jocks from getting confused.

Anyways, this site is an amazing community because it is curated by it’s members. Players can start design contests (example here), share work, get and give feedback, and all of the other things you’d expect to find on a social site. Good luck getting drafted!

BetweenCreation is a social network that seeks to promote emerging art worldwide. This is another great social networking site for artists and designers. Anybody can sign up!

Unlike Dribbble, this website will let you upload larger images. I like the “related artwork” sidebar feature which provides a pleasant way to browse through the artwork on the site. Also, you can post and share art events easily.

Something that could easily be over looked about the IMA’s web presence is the amount of social media the museum is creating on a weekly basis.

So in the process of the redesign, the IMA Stream was invented.  What is the IMA Stream? You might ask.  Well the idea behind the stream was to create a single consolidated “stream” of all the content that is being produced by the museum.  The stream contains up to the minute updates from Flickr, Twitter, the IMA Blog, press releases, YouTube, Del.icio.us, and Artbabble.  This allows visitors to quickly browse thru the latest internet offerings from the museum in one convenient spot.

The system was made possible utilizing a common internet standard known as RSS.  In a nutshell, RSS is a standard for sharing and syndicating content across the internet. Leveraging the power of RSS feeds we are able to programmatically aggregate all of our content from multiple sites into a single feed which is what you see when you visit the IMA website.

Director Chris Paine, via NUVO.net

@mitchmaxsom: Happy or sad, well-told stories that better help us understand another perspective or circumstance are beautiful and necessary

@joanofdarkknits: I watch them, but I hate them [at the same time]. I still have images burned into my brain from one on animal cruelty and one on child cruelty.

@raypawulich: They can be powerful, but if I’m going to invest my time in sitting still and watching something, I choose to be entertained.

Sure, they can really open your eyes. But sometimes, they just tell you to keep on keepin’ on. For example, I’ve been on an save-the-planet documentary kick lately, but I’ve always been pretty passionate about the environment. I don’t eat meat, I recycle, ride my bike a lot, I’ve worked for an environmentally-conscious local newspaper, and now an environmentally-conscious museum. All good things, but I have to admit, just like anyone I get lazy (I forgot my reusable grocery bag at home. Again. Oh well.) and stray from the path. Sometimes I just needed a jolt of reality to reaffirm my tree-hugging beliefs. That’s not a bad thing, right? Do what you gotta do to stay motivated.

Here are the last few documentaries I’ve seen that have done just that.

Watching those movies reminded me why I chose my way of life in the first place. They didn’t change my opinions, just made me aware again. Given my interest in all things ‘green,’ it’s probably no surprise to you that I really dig the Planet Indy speaker series here at the IMA. Tonight, you can see Who Killed the Electric Car? by director Chris Paine… here’s the trailer:

The aforementioned local paper, a.k.a. NUVO, recently interviewed Paine:

NUVO: Why did you think electric cars would make a good documentary?

Chris Paine: The mainstream media didn’t cover the story of why these 5,000 cars were all re-possessed and destroyed. We were shocked. And we thought, well, why is that? Then later, in the midst of a production at a television station in Michigan, someone there said, “You know, one of the reasons the story wasn’t covered was that so many of the TV stations got burned by covering the Firestone rollover stories earlier in the ‘90s.” Everyone had their advertising budgets pulled by the car companies. Car advertising is so critical to so many media outlets it usually pays to not do highly critical stories of the auto industry. So it created this vacuum for us.

Here’s a little info on the event: In the four years since filmmaker Chris Paine released the documentary Who Killed the Electric Car?, electric vehicles have been revived. In that film, Paine documented the corporate leaders, government officials and consumers who embraced SUVs over electric cars, exploring the larger story of our car culture in the process.

See Who Killed the Electric Car? at 5:30 pm, then at 7:30 pm hear Paine discuss the latest progress on electric vehicles, the relationship between good design and sustainability, and new ways of thinking about mobility. After the program, see an electric car up close and get information about companies making electric vehicles in Indiana. How did we get that electric car in the building? Glad you asked…

So will you leave the Toby feeling depressed and hopeless? Maybe. Maybe you’ll feel outraged. Or maybe, like me,  it will just get you back on track. When NUVO asked Paine what people interested in seeing more electric cars should do, he gave a really simple, but brilliant answer:

They can keep motivated, keep asking questions and keep taking risks.

Have you seen a film or documentary that has changed your opinion on social issues? Has a film ever inspired you to make changes?

The Pharmacy prescribes the following links to combat Monday online anemia.

blackandwtf.tumblr.com

Blog: Black and WTF

Black and WTF is a photoblog of strange black & white photos that kind of look like the yearbook of a carnival side show. Everyday a new wonderfully weird vintage photo is posted without context. So use your imagination to figure out what exactly is going on, or submit your own black and white photo to the mix.

ArtBabble Video: Remains- Beth Lipman

Beth Lipman works primarily in glass, inspired by Dutch still-life painting of the seventeenth century. Her installation Still Life with Metal Pitcher, a table covered in clear glass objects, addresses the laid table tradition of this still-life genre. The Remains exhibition took place at the Milwaukee Art Museum.

IMA Work of Art:

hat by Bes-Ben (Designer)

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Chipstone_org: Happy Monday! Today we launch on ArtBabble! Be sure to check us out at www.artbabble.org

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