Carrot Creative Blog

We’re excited here at Carrot Creative. 2009 has some big things coming up for us. (Stay tuned for them, of course we’ll let you know!)

To help get us in gear, I’ve asked the entire team to disclose their resolutions for the upcoming year.

Without further adieu…

Robert Gaafar, CEO

• Participate more in the NYC tech community, online and offline
• Get rid of the 10 foot pile of papers on my desk
• Establish a buzzword-free office. If anyone mentions a buzzword, they have to drop down and do 10 pushups. I’m not kidding.

I’ve had some discussions lately about the changing landscape and the need for social media for brands as well as who is the “right person” for the job of managing the social media campaign. Is it the advertising agency? The PR agency? A whole new type of agency or specialist that has yet to emerge?

Andy Sernovitz, contributing writer for the Smart Blog on Social Media has a great take on this and who he think should be running the social media world: PR executives. As Andy says, “PR executives make the best social media executives. There is a similar mindset. Traditional media relations requires finding the right influencers, building trust, and sharing credible, relevant stories. Translating those actions to social media — replacing reporters with the bigger community — is exactly how to run a great social media program.”

Last night I had the privilege of being a panel member for the Social Media and Presidential Elections Conference at the Samsung Experience on Columbus Circle. I wanted to thank the organizers: NY:MIEG, E.Factor and CBSAC/NY for putting on a smart and engaging affair. I liked seeing how all the different panel members were using social media to influence and inform everyday people about important political issues.

Ellis Henican did a great job moderating the event, everything flowed smoothly and the packed audience was interested from start to finish. It was interesting to see how the folks at 23/6 are using humor to offer an alternative view on the political scene.

There are less than three weeks to go before the most influential Presidential election of our time, which is the perfect opportunity to reflect on how social media can be used to influence an election. I will be speaking at the Social Media and Presidential Elections Conference at the Samsung Experience at Columbus Circle on Thursday, October, 30th at 6:30PM with a panel of some of the greatest minds in the business.

These experts include:

Sarah Bernard, President of 23/6, a political satire site created at the Huffington Post and now part of IAC (Barry Diller) offering insight into current events, from politics to pop culture.

School is not out for summer. But, I can promise you there will be no pop quizzes on Wednesday, June 25, as I will be speaking at the Social Media Business School event in NYC. The event is located at the Chinatown Brasserie on 380 Lafayette St and will begin at 9 am (but get there early as I am sure registration will fill up fast). I will be speaking on the panel designated for Social Media Marketing, however the day will include panel discussions and presentations on Analytics, App Hosting Options, Media API’s, Brand Advertising, Performance Advertising and Social Media Business Modeling. Social Media Business School, hosted by SocialMedia Networks, is sure to bring about great networking opportunities and great insight into the Business of Social Media, and I encourage anyone out there in the field of Social Media, in the NYC area or simply interested in the ins-and-outs of the Social Media business world to attend this great event.

Carrot Creative is excited to announce the launch of the UBRSTAR website. As the primary developer of content, design and social network implementation, we are proud to partner with The New Haven Theater Company to offer live theater and stage stardom to the world. UBRSTAR utilizes a troupe of both live stage performers and online performers that can become part of the performance by submitting online videos of their character of choice (given the specific performance). The live performance, in which live stage actors must interact with their online counterparts, is broadcast live through Ustream.tv for the global audience to view and simultaneously comment and provide content at the leisure of their own chair. This summer’s show will be a contemporary version of a Shakespeare classic entitled “Run to the Capulets, Raise Up the Montagues: The Investigation of Romeo and Juliet.”