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Sebastian Coss

Welcome to my launch pad

Posts

  • March 09, 09:54 PM

    Personalize Your Meat

    Just got some photos of my stepdad using the brand I got him for Christmas -- it's even more amazing than I thought it would be. Bought it from Texas Irons, a site that specializes in some pretty wicked grilling gear. Might have to pick myself up one one of these days. Head over to Flickr to check out the high-res versions.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • March 06, 12:32 PM

    A Nor'easter is no friend to an Eroding Beach

    Nauset beach is eroding -- well technically it is shifting -- but the result of the change will be the eventul disappearance of my family's beach house which has bravely stood on that sliver of sand jutting into the Atlantic Ocean since the mid-60's. Sure it has been destroyed before, and each time it was rebuilt, but a house can't be rebuilt if there are only lapping waves where sand once was. Which brings us to these pictures, taken recently, when a Nor'easter slammed into Cape Cod, and as you can see, there isn't a whole lot of sand left. I hope & pray that it survives the winter. Would really like to have at least one more summer filled with weekends spent relaxing on the sun-bleached deck; breathing that salty air. 

    You can find some more pictures from previous posts here, here & here

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • March 04, 07:13 PM

    music | Toussaint the Liberator & Buru Style @churchboston

    My brother has been playing with this group for the last couple of years as the basest of Buru Style. They tend to swing through Boston every other month or so -- this Friday finds them at Church over by Fenway. Tickets can be bought here. Should be a great show; I highly recommend you go check them out.

    Curiosity peaked? Shoot over to their website, or if you prefer, their facebook. Enjoy!

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • March 04, 06:57 PM

    Welcome to my Blog

    Let me start by saying, "thanks for stopping by". With this blog my goal has always been to share what I experience, whether it be in the real or virtual worlds, and do so in a way that is at once amusing & informative.

    I currently live & work in Cambridge, MA. This is a relatively new arrangement, and I am thoroughly enjoying sampling all that Cambridge has to offer. That said, to give you an idea of how transient I tend to be: if I decide to re-sign my current lease in September this apartment will become the longest I have lived in since 2003. Not sure I am ready to break that record just yet.

    Technology is a passion of mine. So is urban design and all of its accompanying schools of thought: public transit, sustainable living, community fabric, etc. I studied marketing because I love advertising. That is probably why I spend so much time tweaking the look & feel of my assorted sites. I hope you like it.

    This Posterous is my main blog -- a place for meaningful thought & more involved posts. Some may call it a micro-blogging platform, but personally I can't be bothered to fight with the poor interfaces of wordpress, typepad, blogger, etc and their web 1.0 posting tools. Posterous just works, and for that I am loyal user. For day-to-day sharing I've got Tumblr. I love Tumblr for two reasons: 1. the community & 2. it's iPhone app. The latter makes sharing a breeze & the former makes it that much more worthwhile. Rounding out my primary sites is Twitter, which I joined in late 2008 and have been a heavy user ever since. You can also find me elsewhere on the web -- Facebook, LinkedIn, Yelp, Flickr -- all the usual suspects.

    As of late I have been attempting to tie all of this together. It's been a project filled with fits & starts, not to mention the shuttering of some older sites, but I think I am starting to reach a happy medium. Enter www.sebastiancoss.com. One site to rule them all -- well aggregate technically, but that doesn't sound as cool. So that is me, and this is my blog. Happy reading.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • March 01, 06:58 PM

    the Online Peer Influence Pyramid

    This graphic hails from the Forrester Blog for Interactive Marketing Professionals in a post by the recently hired Augie Ray. If you happen to have access I highly recommend you check out the full report here. 

    The pyramid struck me as one of the better representations of the social graph I have seen. I may only figure into the bottom most rung presently, but I certainly aspire to reach the higher echelons of Internet influence. This question of power wielded by certain individuals is nothing new -- movie stars, authors, etc have been at it for ages -- and yet there is something peculiar with how fast one can obtain stardom in the blogosphere or on twitter. Of relevance to marketers its the fact that these people achieving this recognition are not always what one might immediately imagine when picturing such a star -- Perez Hilton anyone? Indeed these celebrities are a whole new breed. Anyone who has been to a tweetup can attest to that awkward feeling of meeting a quasi twitter celebrity -- that person who commands an army of followers and loyal re-tweeters -- as more often than not they are just someone who looks just like you and is glued to their iPhones. Yet increasingly marketers, myself among them, need to cater to this wholly unique crowd. To ignore them would spell certain doom.

    Augie nicely captures this dynamic, and the differing outreach required, between the social broadcasters and the mass influencers. What made this graphic stand out to me, however, was the prominence that potential influencers was given. It is my belief that these are the people which ultimately drive a social campaign -- still enthusiastic, highly curious, sustainably networked, and eager to share. While their voice may not be able to bring a brand to it's knees as a mass influencers may (e.g. Kevin Smith vs. Southwest Airlines), their collective zeal is what will make an online engagement succeed. To quote the graphic, success in revving up the potential influencer machine depends on creating "share-worthy or customizable content". Make something fun, something worth talking about. Most recent example of this sort of thing that I spent a while pushing to my friends: designing Dunkin' Donut's next donut. And yes, this is a shameless plug to encourage you to cast your vote for my creation.

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  • February 27, 08:29 AM

    social media | Shamu Minefield

    Personifying anything -- a brand, a company, an animal -- via social media is always an inherent risk. Giving voice to something otherwise static allows consumers to feel more involved; more engaged on a personal level. This is generally a good thing, but when something goes wrong, as it did last week when Shamu* attacked & killed a trainer, the question of how to handle the animal's online persona becomes one fraught with challenges. 

    For the sake of discussion, consider this: should Shamu (by this I mean the persona embodied in the Twitter account) apologize to it's followers & the world at large in a first-person response? My immediate answer would be no. Consider, however, the fact that presently Shamu has 10,000+ followers on Twitter and 3,000+ tweets. That we are relatively unfazed that a 12,000 pound non-verbal killer whale maintained such an active presence demonstrates the readiness we have to collectively welcome a brand into our day-to-day. And make no mistake, Shamu is a marketing dynasty. But what happens when that brand messes up? It was fine for Domino's to come out and apologize for their awful pizza, because when you get down to brass tax Domino's as a persona is believably human -- its a corporation made up of people after all. Sham can't as believably release a statement apologizing for it's actions, because even the most devoted fan is likely to realize that keyboards aren't designed for Orcas -- it wouldn't be genuine. In fact, it could even appear to be making jest of the situation. Even if the circumstances were less grim, say perhaps the trainer had just been injured, it would still be impossible to address in this manner. Thus the silence that has now settled over the Shamu account -- SeaWorld can't use the tool, despite how useful it could be, for the reasons outlined above. Between a rock and a hard place.

    This is not the first attack by one of the Shamu whales, but the advent & prevalence of social media makes this one wholly different from all those that preceded it. Whether the Shamu twitter feed can resume its playful banter in its current iteration remains to be seen. Personally I believe that SeaWorld should post another update linking to a more dynamic forum where fans can interact with each other as well as SeaWorld staff (and perhaps a few therapists) to discuss the event. And they should probably avoid giving Shamu the benefit of first-person writing for a little while.

    It will be interesting to watch how they handle this. Easy to forget how young social media really is -- Facebook only just celebrated its 6th birthday. The playbook is still being written.

    *It is worth noting that Shamu does not refer to one orca in particular, so the question of "whom's voice" the twitter account represents is not entirely clear. 

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 24, 09:19 PM

    photography | Times they are a Changin'

    I have been gradually working my way through the amassed collection of photos I have spread across various hard drives in an effort to get this last important vestige of my life into the cloud. That statement might set off alarm bells amongst the more security minded, but after my MacBook's meltdown last year I decided that it was ludicrous to not at least put some photos up on Flickr -- and so my project started.

    It has been an interesting journey; lets just say my photos are all over the spectrum. I stumbled across these pictures just last night -- they were taken during a trip to Paris in August of 2007 -- and it got me to thinking how the world has changed. At the time, the Eiffel Tour was lit a startling blue in celebration of French President Sarkozy recently receiving the rotating EU Presidency. You can't see from these images, but on the opposite side of the tower -- facing the Trocadéro -- were the 12 stars of the EU flag in blazing yellow. It was a joyous time. Europe had spent the last year watching the US lurch from one crisis to the next, yet at that time was still mostly unscathed. The Euro had hit an all time high of $1.62 per Euro -- on my birthday nonetheless. And there the Eiffel Tower sparkled, a defiant blue against the black night sky. 

    Sarkozy's presidency didn't go far. In September / October the subprime crisis slammed into Europe. Miracles of miracles the dollar actually began to appreciate once again as the world fled to the relatively security presented by the Fed. Fast forward to today and all anyone can talk about is Greece -- always the big question mark in the Euro-zone -- now looking as though it may default unless Germany comes to its rescue. Spain and Portugal are fairing no better. Then there is Ireland, which rode a subprime wave known as the Celtic Tiger for the better part of two decades and is now dealing with the mother of all hangovers. 

    Personally I am optimistic. The Europeans of my generation that I lived & worked with for two years all expressed more confidence then not in the European experiment that had been thrust upon them. But I can't help but think to the change in spirit between that August evening when the Eiffel Tower shown such a radiant blue and present day.

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  • February 21, 09:08 AM

    meet & greet | Attending my first @sandbox_network dinner tonight

    Excited about my first Sandbox dinner tonight organized by @pforti. I learned about both the network and tonight's event from @daverad & @NiamhHuges -- who routinely attend the dinners in NYC -- and both encouraged @tanyavell & I to RSVP. To quote a bit of their copy, Sandbox:

    ...is an exclusive community that selects the most inspiring young achievers and innovators under 30 worldwide and connects them to each other. We offer them a trusted environment (online and offline) where they can build meaningful relationships, learn from each other and get access to resources that help them realize their next big idea. Our ultimate goal is to bring together amazing people and push already impressive initiatives to the next level.What do you want to achieve next?

    A recent event held in London was also featured by Wired. Needless to say, this is a group of people going places & I look forward to hearing about what everyone is working on, passionate about and aspiring to. The word cloud that I've created here is drawn from the profile's of @Sandbox_Network's followers. Note the prominence of 'social', 'marketing', 'design' and 'young' -- this is my kind of crowd.

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  • February 18, 09:43 PM

    social media | Great Session with @sreenet

      Just wrapped up a very interesting workshop held by Sree Sreenivasan on social media. Conversation ranged from general social media tips, how to weave it into your day-to-day, and pitfalls one must avoid. Session was aimed at journalists, which made for some interesting tangents that I would not immediately consider as a marketer -- consider: how do you at once connect with your best sources without outing them to the world? Fascinating discussion.

    Always practice Link love -- that is, retweet with comments, write meaninful recoemndations, and always include a URL for your reader's benefit. Looking forward a good journalist (and I believe this also applies to anybody working in media) will cultavate an online presence that serves as a good "pointer" to all things worthwhile on the increasingly cluttered Internet.

    Building on Link Love, try to cap your tweets at 120 characters. Why? Consider: "RT @sebcoss" is 10 characters. "Gotta Read RT @sebcoss" is 23 characters. If you jam your tweets with 140 characters then you are making it impossible for your followers to practice Link Love -- they will have to edit your tweet down in order to include their personal comments.

    Tools You Should be Using:

    Highly recommend you check out Spezify -- not only does it do an amazing job of aggregating all content (tweets, videos, pictures, you name it) related to a key phrase across the internet, but it also displays this wide range of media of an innovative way that is at once intuitive & interactive.

    Sree also presented us with a series of online tools with which to gauge, track, and optimize one's online brand & presence. Personally I found the Twitter tools particularly interesting. I already mentioned one of the services, Twiangulate, the other day on my Tumblr. Highlights from tonight for me included T4BP, a service that displays recent tweets by those you follow arranged by their twitter icon.
    Also interesting was Twittersheep, which produces a word cloud based on the bio's of your followers -- a direct look at your target market. Finally Chirpstats is one of many services that provides you with metrics on your twitter follower's comings & goings.

    All and all a very interesting night -- if you are interested you can watch the live video stream (now archived) via Twitcam or take a look at Sree's more complete list of social media tips.

    Thanks to @tanyavell for letting me know about this event.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 17, 04:31 PM

    social media | Excerpts from 'Does Social Sell' @AdweekDotCom

    Read a great piece this morning entailed simply "Does Social Sell" on Adweek.com. Plenty of great content, but to keep this post short I've limited myself to three excerpts:

    While digital channels and online interactions offer a plethora of data points, they don't come with a set playbook for assigning value. Marketers have grown comfortable with formulas like gross ratings points and frequency, time-tested formulas for building brands in traditional media. Yet with social media, what's a Facebook friend worth?

    Perhaps the question of a decade. Yesterday I read a great article on Wired that touched upon a similar vein -- its thesis being that higher quality content would ultimately win in a contest against sheer number of follows, friends, fans, etc. Value, in social media, comes more in the form of insurance against the unforeseen. If United had a stronger social standing would that YouTube video about breaking guitar's have blown up the way it did? Makes calculating an ROI near impossible, but ultimately I don't think that is the point. The goal should be in creating a community filled with loyal Net Promoters.

    At a time when many brands are stuck in experimentation mode in social media, Pepsi is placing a staggeringly large bet on it. Pepsi was absent from the Super Bowl for the first time in 23 years, redirecting money to an ambitious social marketing-centered program called Refresh Everything that will direct $20 million to charities. According to Pepsi execs, the program is appealing because it rested on four big trends: crowdsourcing, doing good, sharing and transparency.

    I applaud Pepsi for the move. Sure Coke will soon (and to a degree already has) move to match this effort, but for a moment at least it was a clear point of differentiation. Social media is about me, as the consumer, pulling content & controlling my own interactions. Pepsi is facilitating just this type of communication. 

    Yet Pepsi execs are at pains to point out that Refresh Everything is not a social-media campaign per se. Rather, it uses social media as glue to hold together a wider push that includes traditional elements like TV spots, says Bonin Bough, PepsiCo's director of social media.

    Yet overall perhaps this is the most important line in the piece -- social media is a "glue"; its a launch platform; its a base of operations. The Internet is where people go for information -- that any brand allows its online presence to be anything less than perfect is beyond me. Consider that before the rise of Facebook people did such things as exchange phone numbers or addresses, now a last name will do. The same is true of advertising -- people may see a billboard or catch an image while fast forwarding on their Tivo -- and they will go to the Internet to learn more. Broadcast is not going anywhere, in fact, I would argue, via the logic I just laid out, that it is likely to get stronger by building off the foundations of well executed social media campaigns. But that is all conjecture.

    So to bring it back to the first question -- "what's a Facebook friend worth" -- I would argue that like a single rating point, or an impression on a banner ad, its part of the overall media strategy. Calculating its value on an individual basis isn't the point; its worth only becomes apparent when taken as part of the larger context. Case in point: Facebook now directs more online users than Google...  

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  • February 16, 11:12 PM

    getting out on the water | Community Boating

    Snow is accumulating outside, but it's never to early to start thinking about Spring & with it, the opening of sailing season. Only joined Community Boating last year, and it would be a stretch to even call me an aspiring sailor at this stage, yet nevertheless I am excited to get back out on the water. 

    My childhood was spent mostly on lakes in canoes & kayaks or in the ocean with a motor boat, so sailing is pretty new to me. Always do love a challenge though, so last summer I bought myself a membership (with a bit of help from groupon) and got to it. Hope to get my solo rating before the summer, and maybe helmsmen within the year. Or maybe I will just continue to toodle around the Charles. Either way, sure to be fun.

    Image above is Community Sail's great new logo (just launched!). And should you be interested...

    2010 Pricing includes the Full Year Membership at $249 this year, $179 for the 60 Day Boating Pass, and $99 for the 30 Day Learn to Sail package. Seasonal locker prices have not changed (in fact they're still at their reduced rate of $75/locker), nor has retail pricing in the Front Office.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 16, 11:26 AM

    must watch video | 'Bruce' by @dkruta of @enkistudios

    via vimeo.com

    Great submission by my friend @dkruta to the Vimeo Story Beyond the Still Competition. The concept as explained by the Vimeo group page:

    Introducing the first user-generated HD Video Contest where photographers become filmmakers, and we all see beyond the still. To kick off the contest, Canon asked photographer, Vincent Laforet, to interpret what story lives beyond this still and to tell that story with the new Canon EOS 7D. His will be the first chapter of seven, each ending with a still photograph for the next aspiring filmmaker to interpret. Posing the question to everyone, what do you see beyond the still?

    First round of submissions has closed & voting will soon begin. Take a look through the other entrants and I think you will agree that 'Bruce' stands out from the pack. Want to see more? Head over to Enki Studios

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 15, 09:57 AM

    mouth watering food exploration | 53Lunches.com

    Kind of wishing I hadn't stumbled upon this site. I just finished breakfast -- I have no business craving a massive pastrami sandwich -- but I suppose a bit or irrationality never hurt anyone. I really dig the concept -- that of food exploration in & around one's place of work -- as its a task I have always tackled with gusto wherever I find myself. My motto has always been that the best adventures end with a tasty meal. Here is an excerpt from the preamble:

    I started the 53Lunches blog as a way to document my lunch choices in and around my new office building at 53 State Street in  Boston. So, the address inspired the title. After having worked in Boston’s Back Bay for my whole career (nearly 20 years) my company decided to move to the Financial District.  I was excited about being in a different part of the city and finding all the great food that it had to offer. This blog was my way of remembering and documenting each of the places that I visited. That’s it . 
    Then several people at my office got wind of the blog and wanted to publish this to everyone so that they too can find out about places to eat in the neighborhood. 

    I know that I will be giving this list a consult next time I am in the canyons of the Financial District. Glad to see that one of my favorites, Gourmet Dumpling House, made the cut though. Plenty more images to be found on the site, I just grabbed a couple that caught my eye. Take a gander: http://53lunches.com/ 

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  • February 14, 10:31 AM

    space shuttle endeavour | NASA Tweet by Tweet

    Amazing photo. 

    Perhaps even more amazing is that I grabbed this picture off Astronaut Soichi's twitter feed. Great to see that both nasa & its astronauts have taken to tweeting so full-heartedly. Twitter, like many tools of the digital media toolbox, is great at building a connection -- a bond -- with consumers. And as the story goes, with connection comes engagement, and with engagement comes renewal (of both interest & contracts). And with renewal comes money money money. Twitter alone won't bring nasa back to the pinnacle of popularity it enjoyed during the apollo years, but it is a step in the right direction towards reclaiming that crown. Budgets only grow when value is both recognizable & worthwhile -- over the previous decades nasa has allowed itself to become branded as that agency which launches space shuttles every couple of months. Their mission & their value is much greater than that, and if they can get out in front of the conversation -- to ignite public fascination with all things space once more -- well that...could be interesting indeed.

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  • February 13, 07:47 PM

    spotted! | Lights on the Promenade

    Download now or watch on posterous
    IMG_0378.MOV (2438 KB)

    Just stumbled upon this light installation over by South Station.
    Think they are trying to communicate with the aliens?

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 13, 03:23 PM

    cookies! | @BakingforGood Shipment

    Got a shipment of tasty treats yesterday from Baking for Good. @tanyavell had managed to win a $25 gift card through a twitter contest so it really just came down to deciding how to spread the mula about. Which is always the best way to shop.

    Baking for Good offers more than just delectable baked goods, however, their unique value proposition is that they give 15% of your purchase to the charity of your choice. Great mash-up of delicious baked goods & being a good citizen. To steal their tagline: "A little sugar goes a long way"

    Check them out: http://bakingforgood.com/

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 11, 09:21 PM

    local flavor | Valentines Day with @ChannelCafe

    Very excited for this alternative Valentines Day dinner -- being held on Saturday the 13th -- at one of my favorite local eateries, the Channel Cafe in Fort Point. If good food, amazing atmosphere and tasty beer appeal to you, then make sure you call asap to make a reservation.

    Did I mention that a course comes paired with a 'Gansett? Need I say more? Awesome. Check.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 09, 10:34 PM

    must see video | 'Upular'

    via youtube.com

    I am a huge fan of Pixar movies -- and Up is right up there with my all time favorites. So many quotable lines; memorable moments. Naturally this clip -- composed using chords, bass notes and vocal samples from the Disney Pixar film 'Up' -- is right up my ally. Hope you enjoy.

    Thanks to @pkrockstar for sending me this link. Now I just need to find a moment to watch Up again...

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 09, 05:36 PM

    buzz by Google

    Looking forward to playing around with this some more. Especially good
    for all those friends of mine that continue to refuse joining
    foursquare, Twitter, Gowalla, Latitude, etc. Web app is another slick
    execution along the lines of google's recently released google voice
    web app. Nicely done.

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

  • February 08, 07:23 PM

    my Donut | Dunkin's Next Donut Contest

    Amazing social contest by Dunkin Donuts to create their next donut . This evening, before dinner, I created the Chococonut. I offered the following description for the judges:

    This donut explodes upon contact with a cacophony of flavors. Upon first bite, you experience the lightness of the classic raised dough, the silky smooth Hersey's chocolate, both perfectly intermingling with sweet delicate crunch of the coconut flakes. Mmmm...Chococonut

    Voting is open to the public April 19th - May 3rd...make sure to think of the Chococonut then!

    Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Posts

  • March 10, 10:41 PM

    Watch the video; Check them out; Snag yourself a Holstee.

  • March 10, 06:20 PM

    Making hot drinks is just so much easier with this thing. Kettles are a bit pricey on this side of the Atlantic, but well worth it.

  • March 10, 08:28 AM

    Biking directions from Google Maps — takes terrain, existence of bike lanes, etc into consideration when planning the best route. Amazing! Probably more useful in San Francsico than Boston, since biking here is generally a life & death matter regardless of whether there are bike lanes, and the rest of the time we are buried under snow, but this is still a very cool addition. I am always a strong supporter of anything that gets more people out of their cars and onto bikes.

    [via Google Maps Mania: Google Maps Unveils Bike Directions]

  • March 10, 07:08 AM

    Another day, another article about Detroit’s decaying train station. My two cents: renovate the sucker. Don’t let another piece of amazing classic American architecture meet the wrecking ball, or worse, befall the same fate as Penn Station. Save it.

  • March 09, 12:53 PM

    Chill lunch spot.

  • March 08, 07:55 PM

    Palm has seriously taken over the majority of MBTA stations in downtown Boston. In Cambridge it’s mostly on bus shelters. Suppose they’ve got that pretty nasty earnings call to live down.

  • March 07, 02:54 PM

    Sailboats are out on the Charles. Esplanade is packed. Too bad it’s early March and we are liable to get another snow storm before Spring really comes. Good ‘ole Boston weather.

  • March 07, 01:08 PM

    Witty comment about video. Exclamation proclaiming my excitement for its pending release. End.

    A Trailer for Every Academy Award Winning Movie Ever - Funny Videos | Cracked.com

  • March 07, 09:21 AM
    “I’m so glad I found someone that could make the internet.”
    It is a pretty amazing thing those designers; especially the ones that can make Internet. (via clientsfromhell)
  • March 06, 09:15 PM

    Chat Roulette. Always an interesting time. Filled with classy people.

  • March 06, 05:02 PM

    I dig the Pru’s logo.

  • March 06, 11:50 AM

    mybossparties:

    sign-lover boss via anna2097@webshots

    The Internet strikes again — wouldn’t want to be confronted by something like this come Monday morning. Amazing photo.

  • March 05, 02:26 PM

    It’s pretty clear that the Phantom is an amazing camera, and that it makes everything look amazing. All those NFL network spots were stunning, now this!

    Watched this a couple of times in a row.

  • March 04, 08:17 PM

    Stuffed butternut squash. Delicious.

  • March 04, 04:02 PM

    Was about time for a change. And this statement from @holstee nicely captures my general life outlook. One of a collection; snag yours here: https://www.holstee.com/blog/holstee-iphone-backgrounds/

  • March 04, 09:44 AM

    I am gonna be here this time next week. So pumped for my Vancouver trip.

  • March 03, 10:14 PM

    Just started using flavors.me to get all my content under one roof — very impressed so far — check it out. Starting out, the demo video is well done, the start-up a breeze, and overall experience is superb (great UI). Only gripe? My Posterous is being difficult and refusing to display correctly. Seems fixable though.

  • March 03, 04:19 PM

    Print These & Affix to Cube, Desk, or Wherever you work

    Below is excerpt from The 6 Laws Of Customer Experience. Read the rest of it here

    Just like the three laws that govern all of physics, there are a set of fundamental truths

    about how customer experience operates. And here they are, the 6 laws of customer

    experience (CxP):

    1) Every interaction creates a personal reaction.

    2) People are instinctively self-centered.

    3) Customer familiarity breeds alignment.

    4) Unengaged employees don’t create engaged customers.

    5) Employees do what is measured, incented, and celebrated.

    6) You can’t fake it.

    Jack Welch has said:

    “Deal with the world as it is, not how you’d like it to be.”

  • March 02, 11:26 PM

    Went to Sushi School w/ @tanyavell in Brookline tonight at Sea to You Sushi — www.seatoyouboston.com. This is what we came home with…despite eating at least four or five rolls each right after we finished them. Amazing time. Very full now. Guy running the class was hilarious — endless stream of dad humor. Recommend you check it out.

  • March 02, 06:13 PM

    2001 — such an amazing film. #WatchIt

  • March 01, 10:52 PM

    In case you loved this advert for Chrome’s features as much as I did — check out the making of. What an amazing concept. For a company that for all intensive purposes did not advertise until recently, they’ve got a pretty stellar line-up under their belt already.

  • March 01, 10:26 PM

    Anyone had one of these yet? Doesn’t really sound all that appetizing to me. Could be fun though.

    Midtown Manhattan: K! Pizzacones Come to NYC | Slice Pizza Blog

  • February 28, 07:02 PM

    Introducing a German to Dippin’ Dots. Verdict: that’s cool man.

  • February 27, 08:20 PM

    Best. Thing. Ever. Anyone know if Meerkats and Warthogs often spend time together? Just glad to see Timon & Pumba are friends in real life too

  • February 27, 06:57 PM

    Wandered into my downstairs neighbors apartment just now and was confronted with SPACE LIFE setting up for their first live show. Should be an amusing evening. Tune up tracks were almost Crystal Castles esque.

  • February 27, 09:52 AM

    Great to see this: Snob on a Bus is a blog that tracks the day to day adventures of Jacquelyn Carr, who freely admits that before giving up her Jetta to “go green” she had never ridden public transit in her life. Despite some of the hassles, her experience has been overwhelmingly positive. Sometimes people just need to give it a try. Pretty cool that she got a write up in the LA Times

  • February 27, 07:31 AM

    I have to give credit to Emeril for about 99% of this recipe, but there are a few small modifications.

    Check out more photos on Flickr.

    3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
    2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley leaves
    1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary leaves
    1 teaspoon minced garlic
    …

    My friend Dave has been making some really good food recently — and taking great pictures to boot. Viewing this has made me really hungry, and I have no business lusting after lamb chops on a Saturday morning.

  • February 26, 03:40 PM

    Graphic is from a Forrester analyst’s blog — interesting to note what a prominent place social technologies have taken despite only being around for a relatively short period of time. Demonstrative of the power wielded by such interactions, even the seemingly off-hand twitter post.

    [via Forrester: The Forrester Blog For Application Development & Program Management Professionals Blog]

  • February 26, 01:43 PM

    This makes sense in some strange way — I would likely pay a bit extra to have my lunch hour with a pack of dogs. Could brighten up the day a bit after all. Still though, only in Japan.

    “Cat cafés are huge in Japan right now. As the name suggests, these are coffee shops where cat lovers go to sip overpriced lattes and hang out with an adorable smoosh pile of kitties. In the past five years, exactly 79 such cafés have popped up all over Japan”

    (via MEOW MEOW MEOW - I Like to Have Tea With Cats in Japan Because I’m Shy - Vice Magazine)

  • February 25, 08:07 PM

    Big thank you to @centralbtlwine for holding their first ever Beer Bar! Always great to sample some new tastes — beer, after all, is so much more than bud lite. Looking forward to an encore.

  • February 25, 03:52 PM

    Boston firm IDEO imagines a grim, energy-grubbing future.

    Does seem likely that at some point we may begin using our own activities to generate more of the energy we use in day-to-day life. Could this come to pass?

    Found via @GOOD

  • February 24, 09:44 AM

    Manatee’s always brighten my day. Even when its pouring outside. If you agree with this statement, then I recommend you check out Oceangrant’s photostream on Flickr

  • February 24, 09:15 AM

    I need to stop putting off finishing my taxes. TurboTax makes it so easy — like a video game almost — and I am so close to being done. Just need to finish dealing with my business expenses then hit send. But I suppose I could always wait another day…

  • February 23, 04:37 PM

    “The Department of Energy has provided almost $10 billion in loan guarantees for two nuclear and three solar power plants in just the past week.”

    Interesting to note the meshing of typically right-wing nuclear with typically left-wing solar. Very clever politics. Perhaps more important, great to see a commitment to future energy sources outside of coal. Love it or hate it, Nukes are really the only tech we’ve got that can pick up a sizable chunk of coal’s share.

  • February 22, 02:59 PM

    xiaochang:

    workisboring:

    creation of pandas

    If only low ink / toner / paper, etc warnings on printers produced something as wonderful as Pandas. That would be amazing.

  • February 22, 02:10 PM

    Pencil Art again — couldn’t post just one.

  • February 22, 02:07 PM

    Pretty nuts, when you consider that this entire thing is made out of pencils.

  • February 19, 10:07 PM

    Epic. Amazing. Not enough adjectives in the English language to describe this. Period.

  • February 19, 10:39 AM

    Great video by Enki Studios. Steady-cam second to none — although personally I am a bit more partial to their Pond Hockey video.

  • February 18, 03:55 PM

    Amazing story about foursquare getting hacked by @jbum

    Started with a desire to become Mayor of the North Pole and it grew from there. Screen grab was taken at his peak.

    Must admit that I am guilty of a few false check-in’s here & there (mainly to annoy certain people) but this is the first I have heard about anything to this scale. As the author suggests, this could become a serious problem as amount & worth of incentives increases.

  • February 18, 03:05 PM

    Very innovative graphical display of transit data. Did not realize that Seattle or Chicago had such large driving populations. And for DC — does that take into account all the Politicians getting driven to work? Overall, would like to see the orange shrink in the coming years…

    How Do Americans Get to Work? Transit Patterns in Major Cities » INFRASTRUCTURIST

  • February 18, 10:52 AM

    Get 1,000,000 young adults onto bikes for everyday transportation. | Pepsi Refresh Everything

    Just voted myself — get in there & cast yours!

    Goals

    • Promote independence and fitness.
    • Get 1,000,000 young adults onto bikes for daily transportation.
    • Empower people to build their own bikes up from a basic frame.

      •

  • February 17, 10:12 PM

    Just ran a search on myself using Twiangulate. Neat service. Have always wanted for Twitter to tell me what connections I had in common with people. Give it a whirl.

    The site bills itself as being able to determine:

    • Who your biggest followers are
    • Who 3 tweeps follow in common
    • Who follows the same 3 tweeps
    • Who a tweeter’s under-the-radar friends are
    • When three tweeps follow someone new
    • How a bunch of tweeps connect
  • February 17, 09:53 AM

    About time Microsoft leveraged the Outlook platform. Could be relatively exciting — Microsoft Outlook 2010 : Announcing the Outlook Social Connector

  • February 17, 08:26 AM

    A city slumbers & the trees groan under a heavy blanket of snow.

  • February 16, 05:27 PM

    Real question has to be: how will Windows 7 Mobile impact this decline. As for the graphic itself, I find myself wondering, where does Android fit into this picture? And perhaps most importantly to this iPhone user, what does Apple have up its sleeve for the summer update?

    Snagged from: Windows Mobile’s Incredible Death Spiral

  • February 16, 10:39 AM

    Map of where solar energy could be best harvested. Unfortunately I live in a greenish-blueish area. [via 3TIER]

  • February 15, 08:38 PM
    “We’re in the midst of a major shift in the digital economy, as things get more social and more mobile. A new power structure is being cemented, one that will likely put a few key players in the driver’s seat for the next several years.”

    It’s Time for MSN, MySpace, and Yahoo to Pick Fights

    Who will come out on top? Can a social upstart topple google’s seemingly unstoppable juggernaut? Can Microsoft build upon the success of Windows 7 & the pretty stunning screens it dropped today of the Windows 7 Series mobile phone to once again rise to dominance? Or will Apple slowly draw us all into its “its only so nice in here because the walls are so high” siloed ecosystem. Hard to say. Either way, as this article suggests, MSN, Yahoo and MySpace would be foolish to wait for the dust to settle. Way too much money on the line here.

  • February 15, 09:11 AM

    Love having the time to make a real breakfast rather than rushing off to work — Happy President’s Day everyone.

  • February 14, 03:49 PM

    An American twist on a Dutch favorite. I present the Stroopwafel as realized by Shady Maple Farms…the traditional caramel has been swapped out in place of New England maple syrup. Amazing.

    Still not quite as tasty as the fresh of the griddle ones I enjoyed in the Netherlands, but a seriously close second. Even if you have no idea what a Stroopwafel is, buy these right away. You won’t regret it.

Profile

Sebastian Coss

Research Specialist at Forrester Research
Internet | Greater Boston Area, US

Summary

Project Management & Strategy primarily with websites & Internet based applications. Prefer to be hands-on and in a position to interact with clients both internally and externally on a daily basis. Thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative setting that constantly pushes me to preform in new & innovative ways. Prefer to be at the vanguard of technological development & figuring out how to apply it to business. Comfortable with working in a foreign environment and dealing with the challenges of adapting a product to best meet a diverse group of customer's needs. I have recently returned from a two-year stint in Germany where I studied at the European School of Business in Reutlingen, Germany in conjuncture with my International Business program from Northeastern University in Boston, MA.
Specialties: Social Media, Team management, Project Timelines, Digital Strategy, Collaboration, Implementation, Training, Intermediate understanding of Internet fundamentals (HTML, CSS, etc), Marketing new concepts, Attention to Detail, Intermediate understanding of Informational Architecture & SEO, New Technology, EQ

Experience

  • Jul 2009 - Present

    Research Specialist / Forrester Research

    • Serve as liaison to potential & current clients to ensure positive customer experience • Match clients with most appropriate Analysts based on their request & organize a meeting (499 last Quarter) • Indentify research aligned to client’s request & compile a dossier with research abstracts • Revamped research dossier internal process to increase efficiency & compliance
  • Mar 2009 - Present

    Web Knowledge Architect & Strategy Consultant / Sebastian Coss Consultancy

    Continuation of employment with Philips Healthcare on a sub-contractor basis. Responsibilities mirror those of my previous position, with the inclusion of: • Ensure positive customer experience through Quality Assurance testing carried out on all improvements prior to implementation • Provide assistance to European based team with all user expansions in the United States • Draft & Launch assorted graphics to promote various portions of the PHID to the user community • Participate in on-going project to merge the PHID into the Philips Healthcare IT-enviroment
  • Feb 2008 - Mar 2009

    Web Knowledge Architect / Philips Healthcare

    • Ensured the timely and orderly launch of a knowledge sharing platform, the Philips Healthcare Intelligence Desktop [PHID], to over 1000 users in North America, Europe, Middle East and Asia • Served as single point of contact for the outside vendor to the various invested parties within Philips • Member of multi-nationality core decision-making PHID Project Team, which oversaw End-to-End development cycle • Designed and implemented informational knowledge architecture using system administration tools • Responsible for implementation & testing of customizations, upgrades and enhancements to PHID • Created new training modules and tools for initial instruction of users spread across the global organization • Collaborated with the PHID project team post-launch in a series of promotions to drive awareness and usage Retained after completion of internship for part-time employment while in classes.
  • Aug 2006 - Aug 2007

    Advertising Manager / The Northeastern News (Now the Huntington News)

    • Acquainted local businesses with advertising opportunities via cold calling & face-to-face meetings • Communicated with national ad agencies regarding insertions and pricing schedules • Responsible for weekly layout of ads in Quark Software Suite • Drafted and designed rate sheet for 2007-2008 fiscal year • Assisted in preparation for transition from a once-weekly to twice-weekly paper
  • Jan 2006 - Aug 2007

    Barista / Starbucks Coffee Company

    • Rapidly acquired the knowledge necessary to fulfill every possible customer combination • Handled cash and charge transactions while working in a fast paced environment • Demonstrated customer service skills by recommending and assisting customers with food selections
  • Jan 2007 - Jun 2007

    Junior Project Manager / Banta Internet Solutions (Now RR Donnelley)

    • Responsible for management of tasks relating to the maintenance of the HP Graphic Arts portal website • Managed contact between internal engineering staff and three HP account owners • Ensured that deliverables fulfilled all requirements of HP quality assurance guidelines • Prepared monthly billing statements that outlined tasks completed on an hourly scale
  • Aug 2006 - May 2007

    Resident Assistant / Northeastern University

    • Worked as part of a team dedicated to helping freshman residents integrate into Northeastern successfully • Responsible for planning, budgeting and implementing programs for 40 residents • Demonstrated flexibility to meet changing needs of students as both an advisor and the liaison to the administration
  • May 2006 - Aug 2006

    Telephone Sales Associate / Handel and Haydn Orchestral Society

    • Provided assistance to patrons of the Society who wished to renew their subscriptions • Established relationships with potential customers while facilitating the subscription process • Consistently produced positive subscription figures

Education

  • 2007 - 2009

    Hochschule Reutlingen

    Bachelor of Science in International Business (Diplom-Betriebswrit) in International Business
    Activities: American Club -- provide advice and assistance through once-weekly meetings between American and German students who will go on exchanges to the respective schools during their studies.
  • 2004 - 2009

    Northeastern University

    BSIB - Marketing in Marketing, German
    Activities: Co-Advertising Manager of The Northeastern News, Resident Assistant in Kennedy Hall, International Business Club

Additional information

Websites:
My Blog
Interests:
Technology, both old and new. The Internet, and the ways in which it is constantly changing how we live, interact and communicate with one another. Trains, Automobiles and the advances in both areas. Guilty of constantly refreshing the Autopia blog from Wired, Gizmodo and my Twitter while meant to be doing other things. Traveling, preferably in a non-traditional manner. Snowboarding. Sharing and Learning new ideas. More recently: Politics.
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