In the middle of it all, my company Mightybytes co-sponsored (with Chicago Filmmakers) the Chicagoland theatrical premier of the movie Gasland as part of the Andersonville Green Week festivities. If you haven’t seen this movie, you really should. It’s intense. It’s sad. And it will piss you off to no end. For me, it was all the impetus I needed to get off my butt and actually do something, so earlier this month I signed up for the Brita Climate Ride.

It’s 320 quad-busting miles of California hills in the name of environmental sustainability. If you have read this far then you should probably just get out your credit card and sponsor me since it’s for such a good (and relevant) cause. I have to raise $2,400.00 before they’ll let me get on my bike in Fortuna, CA and start the trek. Any help you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

The Climate Ride benefits the following great organizations:
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is working to create a nationwide network of trails from former rail lines, particularly in metropolitan areas. By promoting trail development as part of local, regional, and national Active Transportation planning, RTC is committed to enhancing the health of America’s environment, transportation, economy, and neighborhoods.
1Sky is solely dedicated toward shifting federal policy toward the prosperity of a sustainable clean energy economy. It is the largest collaborative climate and energy campaign in the United States.
Green America is a national organization that creates socially just and environmentally sustainable programs and resources that help mobilize consumers, investors, and businesses toward a greener economy. They actively combat corporate irresponsibility and work to build sustainable communities in the U.S. and abroad.
Every little bit helps, and I thank you in advance for considering a donation to this critical cause. If you cannot make a donation yourself but think you know someone who can, please consider sharing this blog post.
And if you haven’t seen Gasland yet, search it out. It’s the best movie I’ve seen this year. Here’s the trailer:

Check out the Sparxoo review of Return on Engagement.

From Twitter: great job on “Return on Engagement”. We were impressed with how comprehensive the book is. Some great, actionable advice.

Thanks much David! Really appreciate it.

Download the presentation (16 MB PDF) >>

And of course if you have any questions whatsoever on the content, please feel free to contact me.

Return on Engagement Cover

I sent Return on Engagement off to Focal Press last Thursday just before 5:00 p.m. Final word count was 99,265 words, final image count was around 250, and there were dozens of sidebars, hundreds of quick tips, and seven case studies, including an entire chapter on Kurani Interactive’s awesome Book of Odds project. Topics range from using mRSS feeds to creating web video and semantic metadata. And just about everything in between. I have received positive feedback from the publisher so far regarding how well-organized the content is, which feels great, considering it took nearly a year to write.

Find out more info at:

Return on Engagement page on Mightybytes >>

Return on Engagement page on Amazon >>

We should have a Facebook page launched with a week or so as well.

Phew!

SEO For Success at Community Media Workshop was a full-house with participants ranging from large companies to small non-profits and back again. Community Media Workshop did a great write-up of the three hour seminar on their site and included a video interview with one of the participants.

Here’s what one of the participants had to say: “Tim Frick was a very good speaker. He knew his material and communicated it well and kept the group interested. Good use of examples and group involvement.”

Read the CMW Notes >>

Download the Presentation (16MB PDF) >>

Return on Engagement

What do you think? Focal requires a sub-title as well, so we have tentatively agreed to:

The Web Designer’s Field Guide to Digital Marketing

I’m a bit hesitant to restrict the book to only web designers because I think anyone who creates web content could benefit from it, but then again maybe I’m a bit biased.

Got any ideas? Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?

Also, I’m on the hunt for good case study subjects! I’m particularly interested in people who have gotten some sort of tangible return on their social media or web content efforts. If you know anyone, please contact me. Thanks a gajillion.

Getting Real by 37 Signals >>

Web Design and Marketing Solutions by Kevin Potts >>

Web Design for ROI by Lance Loveday & Sandra Niehaus >>

WordPress 2.7 Complete by April Hodge Silver and Hasin Hader >>

Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide by Amy Shuen >>

Viral Loop by Adam L. Penenberg >>

Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith >>

The Smashing Book >>

Ratings from the 64 participants who attended this workshop:
“Tim had the highest ratings, across the board, when asked to rate Content, Presentation and Style.”

What the participants had to say about this workshop:
“Engaging powerpoint – easy to follow”
“We loved Tim’s knowledge of tools we can immediately use”
“Nice speaker presence!”
“It dealt with the subject in a very practical way that was understandable”
“Informative, engaging!”
“Tim did a great job!”
“Much better than ‘Cats’!”

(OK, just kidding on that last one.) If you would like a copy of the slide deck from this workshop, you can get it from the link below.

Download: Managing Your Online Presence: The Dynamic Content Approach (5 MB PDF File)

If you would like a copy of the slide deck from this workshop, you can get it from the link below.

Download: AEP Digital Publishing Workshop (2.4 MB)

WordCamp Chicago was a sold out show. Many kudos to organizers Lisa Sabin-Wilson and Brian Gardner for putting on such a great event. The closing session from WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg was worth the price of admission alone.

At right is a pic from Lisa Sabin-Wilson’s Flickr photostream of my presentation. Jacob Santos also recorded the session and posted it to Daily Motion.

If you want a copy of the slide deck from my presentation, you can check it out at the link below.

Download: WordPress vs CMS: What’s the Deal? (1 MB)