Frebby Awards

The Daily Meal named past Frebby winner, Nicole Hamaker, of...

alisamanjarrez — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:00:39 -0700

The Daily Meal named past Frebby winner, Nicole Hamaker, of Pinch My Salt one of the 25 Top Food Blogs of 2012.

From The Daily Meal:

The world of food writing has been shaped and influenced dramatically by food bloggers. All it takes is a great idea, knowledge about a specific topic, and a publishing platform to join in the community. Right?

Though that may be true, there is a reason why some food blogs are so successful while so many others remain relevant for only a small handful of the author’s friends and family members. So what makes a great food blog? We think a fantastic food blog needs engaging content about specific subject matter, stellar photos, and a hefty dose of in-the-know opinion. Blogs that made this list demonstrate all these things with great finesse.

To put together a list of the top 25 food blogs, we waded through similar “Best Of” lists that other sources, including Saveur and Babble, published in 2012 — the compiled data included more than 180 food blogs. Then, we averaged the number of each blog’s unique visitors throughout the past year using Compete.com’s monthly statistics. We also looked at updated stats for those blogs that made our past two annual lists and added them to the mix.

Read more: http://www.thedailymeal.com/25-top-food-blogs-2012#ixzz27bTsh6oV

Congratulations, Nicole!

Third Annual Frebbys Announcement!

bitterasianguy — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 10:54:32 -0700

Ordinarily, we’d be getting ready for the Frebby Awards this month. However, we’ve decided to make an important change to the nomination process and timing. Check it out:

Video: Dead in 60 Years

alisamanjarrez — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 11:28:04 -0700

We met up with Roger Gonzales, one of six (or so) members of the year-old podcast, Dead in 60 Years. The podcast is one of many Di60 projects, including the Who Eats Brunch video series, this year’s swede, and their newest gift to the local community: The #GuerrillaDriveIn. Roger reveals a calmer side of the NSFW group, giving us a little background on the members by discussing their most popular episodes (this one and this one), and talking about what’s next for the group. Follow Roger or @Deadin60 to keep up with their new shenanigans and weekly podcast episodes.

Starting Up: Rob Walling

alisamanjarrez — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 13:17:50 -0700

by Conlan Spangler

Rob Walling has always loved technology. When he was 8 years old, he began coding on an Apple IIe. In his teens, he discovered video games and later, in the midst of the dot-com bubble, he moved on to web programming.

After graduating from UC Davis, he worked as a software engineer and a consultant. But he wanted more independence.

“I was unhappy building software for other people, whether as a salaried employee or a consultant,” he says. “I wanted ownership in the code I was writing, and [I wanted] the ability to leverage my ideas well into the future, rather than simply collecting a check for the hours I’d worked the previous week.”

Rob decided to pursue his own ventures. Now, in addition to running several successful web companies, Rob shares his skills with other software entrepreneurs through his online startup school, The Micropreneur Academy, as well as a blog, podcast, book, and annual conference. He and his wife have lived in Fresno since 2009.

These days, most of his time is spent on HitTail, an SEO keyword tool that uses real-time website data.

“I still write code,” Rob says, “but I find help for larger tasks, since I can’t keep up with all of the changes that need to be made across my portfolio.”

Each day he deals with escalated support requests and analyzes reports of the previous day’s sales and traffic. He also creates content for his blog and podcast, and plans for the future of his products.

“I try to spend 20 to 30 minutes each day thinking about how I can improve my businesses,” he says.

Continued improvements help drive continued growth. The web makes it easier to update and improve existing products quickly, which is one of the benefits of launching a new business online. Compared to offline businesses, web products are “much cheaper to get to market if you have technical skills,” Rob says. “There are also some early marketing approaches you can pull off on the web that are inconceivable in a traditional brick-and-mortar business.”

While some obstacles may be less daunting online, there’s no guarantee a web product will succeed. Before pursuing a new business, Rob advises, it’s important to identify the customers: “Talk to your market before you build anything,” he says. “Make sure people actually need what you are planning to build.”

Rob was able to find a market for his products, and he was able to find the independence he craved.

Although the journey of a solo entrepreneur presents many challenges, Rob thinks it’s worth the hard work. The thrill of independence has stayed with him since his first day as true entrepreneur: “I had been working towards freedom for several years,” he says. “Finally waking up and having nowhere to be—and no boss or client who would be calling—[that] was a monumental day for me. One I’ll never forget.”

You can find more information about Rob on his blog, Software by Rob.

This is the first of a new bi-weekly series, featuring various...

alisamanjarrez — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 13:17:08 -0700

This is the first of a new bi-weekly series, featuring various local bloggers, podcasters, artists and business owners using the web. In this interview, Frebbys coordinator Alisa Manjarrez chats with Matt Ploy, aka @Custom_Drywall, via Skype to discuss his use of Twitter and his “local-only” protocol.

Need drywall services? Send Matt an email (their website is currently under construction, no pun intended!).

“Valley” News: Matthew Panzarino

alisamanjarrez — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 10:16:00 -0700

by Conlan Spangler

The San Joaquin Valley is home, but the center of the technology world is about 150 miles west-northwest in Silicon Valley (although this is less true every day as the web continues to make the world smaller and location inconsequential). Matthew Panzarino covers the news of the other valley from right here in Fresno. He’s a news and Apple editor for The Next Web, one of the top online publications with more than 5 million monthly visitors.

Matthew was born and raised in Fresno, where he attended Edison High School.

“In 2009,” he says, “I was working in retail and decided that I wanted to write for a living instead.”

So he started a blog devoted to news and tips about the iPhone and other Apple-centric topics. He started waking up early to write for a few hours before going to work. After work he’d come home, eat dinner with his wife, and—after she went to bed—write for a couple more hours.

Two years later, his blog was attracting a few hundred thousand unique visitors each month. That’s when he noticed that The Next Web was looking for writers. He applied for the job and, in early 2011, he joined the team as a full-time contributor.

Now, Matthew describes his morning routine like this: “I get up around 6 or, if I’m feeling lazy, 7 a.m. I make breakfast for myself and the wife, if she’s up. This includes a pot of drip coffee made in the fussiest way possible, with freshly ground beans that I buy from Cafe Corazon.”

By the time he sits down at the desk in his home office around 7:30, he has already scanned his Twitter and email for urgent items.

“Since TNW operates on a 24-hour news cycle, [in the morning] I’m usually chatting with the UK staff and accepting any handoffs from them,” he says. “From then on, I’m basically fielding stories that come in over the various newswire services, via our tips line, on Twitter, and from direct tips. Anything that falls into my areas of expertise or the Apple beat, I’ll read and parse, seeing if it’s something that our readers would be served by us analyzing or adding context to.”

He usually writes between six and ten posts every day, including everything from short news updates to 15,000-word reviews of operating systems. He also works on a variety of editorial pieces.

For a technology journalist, working in Fresno offers benefits and drawbacks. The biggest benefit, Matthew says, is the relative lack of distractions.

“Since there are few meet-ups, gatherings, hackathons, mixers, or general schmoozing sessions held here, I’m free to focus on producing work,” he says. “Uninterrupted time to think and write is an insanely precious commodity in a city like San Francisco, and I have it in spades here.”

The downside, he says, is that it’s hard to do face-to-face interviews, which often yield better journalistic results.

“That’s why I try to make it out to [San Francisco] or to Palo Alto at least once a month,” he says. “There are tech conferences or events held by one of the larger companies like Facebook, Twitter, Google, or Apple just about every month, so those are a good excuse.”

Although his career is just getting started, Matthew points out a few high points so far: interviewing Andy Hertzfield (who was on the original Macintosh team), discussing user interfaces in films with Jayse Hansen (who worked on The Avengers and Iron Man films), and hearing from former Pixar executive Oren Jacob about how Toy Story 2 was accidentally deleted from the company’s servers while it was in production.

But, for Matthew, the simpler things are just as important.

“Every once in a while I get a sincere email from a reader thanking me for representing a topic well,” he says. “Those are nice.”

You can find Matthew’s writing at The Next Web and on Twitter @mpanzarino.

Working Where You Are: Nick Gundry

alisamanjarrez — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 09:38:00 -0700

by Conlan Spangler

One of the benefits of a connected world is, when it comes to work, your geographic location matters less and less. For Nick Gundry, marketing technologist at Sailthru, Fresno provides a welcoming community—both online and off—while he works for a New York-based company.

Nick grew up near London and studied Art History at Leeds Metropolitan University. As his education progressed, he says, “I ended up looking at very few paintings and spent more time studying the psychology of how people view art, advertising, and film. I loved exploring how much thought and experimentation goes into presenting an image or message to the viewer.”

He met his wife while at university and, after getting married, the pair moved several times between Portland, Fresno, Sacramento, and London. Eventually, they settled in Fresno again in 2002. Nick worked as a web developer before joining the staff at Fresno Pacific University as associate director of interactive media.

Last year, he accepted a position at Sailthru. Sailthru uses a variety of technologies—email, web, mobile apps, and more—to help companies connect and communicate with customers on an individual level. As a marketing technologist, Nick has a range of duties.

“I prototype new product ideas or sketch out features I think might be useful or profitable,” he explains. His team, he says, is “out on the edges looking for new opportunities for product features or partnerships.”

Although Sailthru is based in New York City, Nick remains in Fresno and works remotely. The transition from a physical office to a virtual one was daunting at first, but Nick soon adapted to the change. He now uses the Hashtag as his primary workspace.

“It has really helped that the membership [at the Hashtag] has been growing,” he says. “It’s much more like a place I want to be when working, rather than ‘the place I go to work’. It’s a great space.”

He makes regular trips to the office in New York where he is able to connect with his coworkers. The rest of the time he relies on email, phone, instant messaging, Skype, and IRC chat to work remotely.

Nick has adjusted to his new online workflow, and over the years he has adjusted to Fresno, too.

“I’ll be honest,” he says. “I hated Fresno when I got here. It was difficult coming from a major city. It took me about four or five years before I got settled. What changed it for me was the people—in fact, it was through social media. I got over my shyness and started connecting with people and things changed. There’s some really smart, good people in this city, and if it wasn’t for them—all of them—I’d still be miserable. People are important. If you don’t have people you can truly call friends around you, it doesn’t matter where you live.”

Frebbys Revisited: Google Fiber for Fresno

alisamanjarrez — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 09:56:57 -0700

In 2010, Fresno had an incredible opportunity to be the community selected by Google as the recipient of ultra high speed Internet access. Mayor Ashley Swearengin enlisted the help of a team of city representatives and marketing professionals (listed below) to petition our community to ACT. Due to the enormous web presence and participation garnered for this cause, the effort was recognized and applauded by our Frebby judges with the Frebby award for Action. Below is the update from Suzanne Bertz-Rosa.

Google Fiber Team:

Ashley Swearengin, City of Fresno
Suzanne Bertz-Rosa, Bertz-Rosa | Strategy & Creative
Cary Catalano, Catalano Fenske & Associates
Andrew Toschi, Bertz-Rosa | Strategy & Creative
Bryan Harley, Dumb Drum
Nicole Zieba, City of Fresno
Gary Watahira, City of Fresno
Susan Rogers, City of Fresno

Frebby Winner 2010
Category: Action
Project: Google Fiber for Fresno

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

From the Google Fiber for Fresno Facebook page:

It’s been quite a journey, but today Google announced that Kansas City, KS, will be their first Google Fiber for Communities test city. But buck up! It was AMAZING how we came together as a city!!! Let’s continue to work together in supporting other causes! Good work, Fresno!

The Google Fiber for Fresno Facebook page is still going. It is primarily being used for posting community events.

From Bloomberg Business:

Google has already strung more than 100 miles of fiber-optic cable along utility poles in Kansas City, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo., and expects to connect its first homes in the next few months, says Google Fiber spokeswoman Jenna Wandres. Its test network of about 850 homes in a faculty neighborhood near Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., already provides blistering download speeds of 922 megabits per second and upload speeds of 883 Mbps. At those speeds, Web surfers—or pirates—can download a DVD in under a minute or a high-definition Blu-ray in five.

What else have you been working on?

Bertz-Rosa | Strategy & Creative: We continue to work across all media focusing on community projects that make a positive difference. We’ve moved our offices downtown and increased our staff. Recently, we launched the Learn2Earn initiative that focuses on raising the education attainment levels in the Fresno area.

Bertz-Rosa | Strategy & Creative is also working with The Office of Community and Economic Development at Fresno State on the Broadband Project. Currently, the focus is on infrastructure mapping, increasing digital literacy, and accelerating deployment Telehealth technology.

Fresno State’s Project Manager Christine Nutting explains, “With the increasing digital divide so prominent in the Valley, this grant comes at the right time to change the lives of residents in the San Joaquin Valley that otherwise would be left behind in gaining the necessary skills to apply for and get a job, access government services, and obtain basic digital literacy skills.”

Bryan Harley has moved on to CMAC. CMAC (Community Media Access Collaborative) is a membership-based, non-profit corporation created to help local organizations, independent producers, non-profits, schools, public agencies and others better connect with our community through the use of media – primarily television and the web.

Bryan worked with video producer Andrew Toschi on the video portion of the Google Fiber project.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

Yosemite Mariposa County Tourism Bureau recently won an award for their social media.

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

Nope.

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

Can opener, weapon, door stop.

Marketing in a Web World: Bradley Fitzhenry

bitterasianguy — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 09:30:03 -0700

by Conlan Spangler

We’ve all experienced how the connectedness of the web has changed the way businesses and brands interact with consumers. Bradley Fitzhenry, brand manager at MJR Creative Group, has seen the evolution of this change firsthand.

Bradley graduated from Fresno State with a degree in Communications (and an Art History minor), but soon after he developed an interest in marketing.

“It’s how my brain works,” he says. “Even without formal marketing training, I instinctively approach projects of all kinds by evaluating their strengths, weaknesses, and potential resonance with an audience.”

He taught himself the ropes of marketing and gained on-the-job experience. Now, more than 20 years later, Bradley recognizes how the web has changed the role of marketing, and how consumer behavior has changed along with it.

“This is one of the areas where I am doing a great deal of client education at MJR: helping companies adjust to the new reality of offering and leveraging a two-way conversation between companies and their customers,” he says.

But online marketing isn’t just limited to conventional businesses. In 1998, Bradley founded sonicfoundation.net, an online forum that soon became a hub for house music lovers in the Central Valley. As a house music DJ, he has traveled to clubs across the country, and produced many of his own events.

The web has leveled the playing for event promotions. It’s now easier and cheaper to spread awareness about an event to a wide audience. However, by creating a lower barrier to entry, the web has also lowered the overall quality of events, according to Bradley. “In many ways, [the web] has made it harder for good entertainment to stand out,” he says.

“This of course means that good marketing of events is more important than ever,” Bradley says. “It also puts a premium on the importance of knowing and finding your target audience. There’s a lot of noise out there, so encouraging your supporters to act as brand ambassadors on your behalf is essential.”

Although Bradley has slowed down his DJ work in recent years, he continues to spin tunes locally – most often at events produced by The Soulflower Group. You can also keep up with Bradley’s marketing insights on the MJR blog.

Frebbys Revisited: Hundred10 Design

bitterasianguy — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:22:43 -0700

Last year, Hundred10 won a Frebby for their inspiring interpretation of the already inspiring images and photography services of Ryan C. Jones (Ryan won in 2010 for his overall usage of the web in the same category). For the new website, Hundred10 designers covered the home page with black and white images that turned to color once you scrolled over them (that’s the non-techy description). Basically, it was cool. However, as you will see in Layne Lev’s responses below, the web is a place where you have room to experiment. The site has already undergone a few tweaks in the past year for better usability. Read more from Layne below.

(Note: these responses were provided before the 59DaysofCode competition he mentions)

Frebby Winner 2011
Category: Inspiration
Project: Ryan C. Jones Portfolio

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

Funny you should ask, it’s about to undergo a complete redesign. While I think we achieved our initial goal of creating a Flash-like portfolio site using HTML and JavaScript, the user interface proved to be a little too ‘outside the box’ for some users. In the end, I think utility needs to win out over design.

What else have you been working on?

We’re doing more and more mobile apps these days. We’re finishing up a big project called MinderPlus, a web service and iPad app aimed at school districts. Also trying to finish up our own pet project called Draft Night, which is an iPhone app for managing live fantasy football drafts.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

We’ve been so heads-down lately that I haven’t really been paying attention to what’s going on around us but I’d say there’s a good chance you’ll see a lot of Frebby-worthy projects at 59 Days of Code. I’ve seen little bits and pieces of some cool projects.

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

I thought Frebby was its nickname.

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

1. Bookends (only works if you have two, like us *cough*)
2. Bacon drying rack
3. World’s most annoying toothpick

Frebbys Revisited: Irma L. Olguin, Jr.

bitterasianguy — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 10:38:00 -0700

If you haven’t met “Irms” yet, you’re probably not around The Hashtag or Twitter into the wee hours of the morning (it’s nice to know you’re not the only person up working at that time!). After winning one of the first Frebby Awards in 2010, this young woman has been going nonstop with new ventures, projects, and even cool ways of giving back. She continues to be the epitome of the kind of person who doesn’t just have good ideas; she acts on her idea and makes them happen. She connected a group of people doing amazing things through her creation of 59 Days of Code, an application-writing competition that is now in it’s third year.

Though our Frebbys team would love to take credit for foreshadowing so many incredible new projects and people coming into the local spotlight over the past few years, we’re starting to realize that these winners have simply always been winners, with or without the Frebbys. Now we’re just glad to be a part of it.

-Alisa

Frebby Winner 2010
Category: Connection
Project: 59DaysofCode

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

59DaysOfCode is about to have its 3rd showcase (this Saturday, at the Holiday Inn in downtown Fresno). It’s the largest yet with 33 projects competing. 59DaysOfCode started with an idea and has grown to become the largest tech event in our area. In addition to the projects that compete, we’re also the go-to place for headhunting and networking in the industry. Technologists and entrepreneurs come to check out the competitors and connect! Pretty neat how that happened!

What else have you been working on?

I started a new company called Edit with two partners, and we should be launching our product by the end of this year. Stay tuned for more on that. Some friends and I are also launching Hashtag Academy, a place for local pros to teach small groups real-world and interesting stuff. Our first course is an Intro to Web Programming series, but we’ve got things in the works to do with Photography Staging That Isn’t Awkward, Editing Video for the Web and Talking to the Media. We’re looking for people who want to teach in addition to people who want to learn. As a project of The Hashtag, our goal is to maintain the collaborative element. Our pilot course starts July 21st.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

I hate to call out specific names, but I would watch out for Ventata.com and CityRemi. Both 59DaysOfCode projects (no, I’m not a judge, so this won’t help them), and useful and local!

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

HeavyD

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

- I use mine as a stopper when I don’t want my dog to push the door open.

- The top is very sharp, I’ve used it to open a box in a pinch.

- Sometimes I like to see what I can stuff into the hole in the middle. Just for funnsies.

Proof that coders can make videos, too!

bitterasianguy — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 14:48:00 -0700

Today, we acknowledge the coders. They’re the super smart guys and gals behind the scenes of your favorite websites, games, and apps. They’re the ones who never sleep, fix bugs day in and day out, have zillions of ideas, and work on them all (*cough* emerge labs *cough*).

Right now, there are several local coders working on projects for 59 Days of Code, a competition to create new projects in 59 days or finish ones that are already in progress by the end of the time period. Their chance to showcase for all to see is June 23, but their first task was to create videos to show that they’ve actually been working on their projects. Take a look at just a few of the competitors.

59 Days of Code Intro Videos

Matthew Higley is developing a website designed called YardSaleDigger to improve the yardsale experience beyond that of just driving around town and randomly visiting after seeing a sign on the sidewalk. In this video, he gives us an in-depth look into the not-so-glamorous life of a web developer.

Ian Kinsey is the lead developer for Ensemble Online, an MMORTS (massively multiplayer online real-time strategy game) set in a open-world sandbox where you and your friends can build towns, harvest resources, and fight for control of the world.

Eric Santos explains and walks us through an online marketplace application called SoShowWise, designed to connect people to experts for advice on a wide array of subjects like item appraisal and automotive repair.

Frebbys Revisited: My Indie Nation

bitterasianguy — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0700

In 2010, Nik Ashjian and Nicole Giordano Ashjian started My Indie Nation, a blog bringing together up-and-coming bands, local musicians, and their fans. They were nominated for the Connection category because of the powerful, tangible way the site was spreading the love of music. Since then, they’ve grown tremendously. Watch Nicole discuss the beginnings of the project and then read the latest below.

Frebby Winner 2011
Category: Connection
Project: My Indie Nation

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

The site got a makeover and is sporting a new look. We’ve added a handful of regular contributors to the team and we are all making millions of dollars in advertising revenue from big oil companies, music labels and pasta manufacturers.

What else have you been working on?

We have been working on a record. A handful of songs that will make our grandmothers proud.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

We like Weird Fresno and This is Conlan

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

No nickname yet. Still trying to fully understand the Frebby’s personality before we put a label on it.

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

Alternative uses include frying pan and Christmas tree topper.

Frebbys Revisited: KFSN / ABC30

bitterasianguy — Wed, 30 May 2012 15:30:00 -0700

Frebby Winner 2011
Category: Communication
Project: ABC30.com

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

ABC30 has some exciting app projects in the works right now. We can’t release details at this time, but stay tuned…

What else have you been working on?

It’s an election year, so we have been ramping up our efforts to cover both the June primary and the November election. Leading up to Super Tuesday, we launched our “Vote 2012 Election Coverage” page. This page brings together the best of our local ABC30 coverage and ABC News national coverage. The latest primary results are found at the top of the page along with the “Political Ticker” that scours the social web for mentions of presidential candidates and displays them in a stock ticker format. As always, we will have real-time election results on ABC30.com, and on our iPhone, Android and iPad apps.

We have also recently launched our Neighborhood News page. This page utilizes a Google Map to display news content based on the location you choose. If you don’t like navigating a map to get your news, you can always pull up the “List View” option. This page allows news-seekers to find out the latest near where they live, work or play.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

I’ve become addicted to Instagram lately. It might be good to take a look at some of the local amateur photographers who doing a great job documenting life and art in Fresno. A good place to start is @jdubdidit — who has some great pictures of downtown Fresno and museum district. @ROXYB61769 and @EARNESTRACKET are a couple more good follows.

The Comcast-sponsored Gotta Love Fresno is an interesting project. They are doing a good job covering local entertainment and creating fun Fresno-centric videos. On a side note, the CMS that website is built on is called Platformic. The Director of Professional Services for Platformic is Eric Broadwater — who lives right here in Fresno, but works all over the country.

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

LOL — The “What is That?!” One of our News Producer’s calls it “a major award” (think A Christmas Story)

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

Well obviously it’s a formidable weapon used to fight crime.
It’s a sharp looking hood ornament for my 1985 Astro Van.
It’s the perfect size for an upper body workout for web producers… but you have to win two years in a row to do it correctly.

Frebbys Revisited: Dumb Drum

bitterasianguy — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:06:00 -0700

Bryan and Roque won a Frebby last year for the Action category. They utilized the web to not only get people to contribute videos or attend the Swede Fest event, they used it to create a movement. Though it began in 2008, the event got a ton of attention last year and it continues to grow. Make sure to check out Swede Fest for yourself at Sierra Vista Cinema tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. Admission is FREE!

Frebby Winner 2011
Category: Action
Project: Swede Fest

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?
Swede Fest continues to grow strong with the ninth installment coming up tomorrow ~~on May 24th, 2012~~. This time, the festival will be held at a real movie theater, giving all participants the opportunity to watch their creations on the big screen. This has always been a goal of ours and it’s great to have finally achieved it. Late last year, NPR’s Morning Edition ran a story on Swede Fest which in turn gave us national & international media attention. As a result, Swede Fest has garnered worldwide interest from cities everywhere wanting to start their own festivals, from the Philippines to England. Domestically, Swede Fest Tampa Bay is continuing to grow and there are many more cities who are getting ready to launch their first Swede Fest this year.

What else have you been working on?
Recently, we’ve been working with Comcast on the GottaLoveFresno.com project producing See Saw Seen, a weekly highlight show. Besides that, we’ve recently been selected to become You Tube partners and we continue to produce content for our channel on the site, racking up over 3,000 subscribers and over 3 million views. Our videos have been featured on The Hollywood Reporter, G4’s Attack Of The Show, Roger Ebert’s blog, MTV, Aintitcoolnews, Slash Film and more.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?
The team of people putting together the Pub Crawls in town are doing an excellent job of using the internet to get people out to experience the city as well as express themselves creatively, be it using Star Wars or the current infatuation with zombies. Mad props to them!

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?
1) Mjolnir
2) Swede prop. If you look closely, our Frebby had a cameo in our Avengers swede and the SHIELD Helicarrier tower.

Perfect Pitch: Meet Travis Huff

angelrodriquez — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:27:00 -0700

I would venture to say that the very first thing you notice when you first meet Travis Huff is his pitch (well, besides his intimidating physical stature, of course). Pitch? Am I referring to his vocal tone? His ability to convey vision through the types of energetic presentations one might expect to see on ABC’s “Shark Tank” or (to be more “on the nose”) AMC’s “The Pitch”? Yes. Both.

It is no surprise that, considering my own interests in marketing and web innovation, I was first introduced to Travis through his work as an online marketer and CEO of local online-advertising firm, “Real-Time Outsource.” Nowadays, it seems like everyone and their mother (and their mother’s-cousin’s-godson’s-professor’s-nephew’s-college roommate) is involved in online marketing in one way or another. Few, however, actually know what they’re talking about or know what they’re doing.

The very first thing that stuck out to me about Travis was the fact that he has close to 8,000 “likes” on his company’s Facebook page. Even universally recognized brands have a difficult time building such a sizeable online fan-base. Doing it as an individual entrepreneur? A bit more difficult. Surveying the videos on his website, the very first thing that came to mind was: The Sham-Wow guy. A little cheesy, but the message is honest.

When I learned of Travis’ talents as a producer and performer, I quickly realized that his entrepreneurial pursuits most definitely find root in the same spirit and drive that had recent audiences captivated at one of Fresno’s biggest entertainment events of the year, Spring Fling. Travis took center stage as founding member of 2Tallin’—a group mixing “old school roots with futuristic new school vibes.” In music, it’s about vocals and meter. In business, it’s about establishing voice and measuring metrics. I think you can see the similarities.

Recognizing his creativity, I asked Travis to talk a bit about himself, his business, and his vision of Fresno businesses utilizing the web in new and creative ways:

What are your ties to the Central Valley? Have you always been a native?

I’m born and raised in Fresno and I’m proud of it!!!

What moved you to start “Real-Time Outsource?” How did you recognize the market potential and what has been your biggest local impact?

Starting a business that would help to educate and in most cases we would help manage a variety of social media pages….I love marketing and I felt that since Facebook, businesses would have to use social networks.

My biggest local impact is the ability to empower other businesses I give back my time to do seminars for both business owners (via Clovis Chamber) as well as speaking at the college, and high school levels to motivate them to find success in their lives. Also financial sponsorship towards non-profits like www.fresnoadfed.org

What’s your take on local businesses that are active in online marketing? Are there some that are doing it “right,” in your opinion? Any that stand out (for good or poor performance)? Anything remarkable?

There are a lot of businesses doing it so right….and most that don’t spend enough time and effort to make it a success.

Local Leaders - Children’s Hospital, Fresno Chaffee Zoo, The Standard, Hooters of Fresno

What would you consider the biggest determining factor in any marketing campaign that is the “make or break” factor?

Spending at least 30 mins to 1 hour per day working on your social networking.

What stands out about Fresno in terms of the market potential for companies, like yours?

Fresno is a great place for any service business, we can compete against every city in the world $ for $, and our campaigns will win! Our cost of living, employeement, etc. always helps.

Your FB fan page has definitely garnered a large fan base. What do you attribute that success to?

Posting my quotes on life, spreading my joy of giving back to my community, and my music - 2TALLIN’

What’s your take on award ceremonies (like The Frebbys) that recognize local talent doing new and innovative things on the web?

I love anyone that is taking a risk to build a brand, every day you put effort into it, and I believe it will all payoff. Fresno is moving the world in more ways that just agriculture…in time the world will see.

Lastly, your videos: ever considered a career as a pitch-man? I’m sure you could fill the role of a Billy Mays.

I would love to be a pitchman if the right opportunity presents itself … I’m the perfect man for the job…full of energy!

— On that last point, I couldn’t agree more.

Follow Travis on Twitter, craft your own forte, and be sure to keep it here as we continue to spotlight Fresno’s finest keyboard cowboys, marketing mavens, cross-platform creatives, and impactors of all things “internet.”

-Angel

Frebbys Revisited: Mrs. Priss

alisamanjarrez — Wed, 16 May 2012 07:55:00 -0700

Two years after the inaugural Frebby Awards, it can still be challenge to explain that the Frebbys are about what you do with the web and how you use it. You shop, you look for inspiration, you surf for entertainment, maybe you do something because a website inspires you to act, you connect with others, and you learn things. Those doing Frebby-worthy projects are those setting a standard for others on the web.

In 2010, a local blogger nominated another blogger, Morgan Gables, author of Mrs. Priss, specifically for the DIY section of her blog. The pictures and instructions were extremely clear, and the crafts were very Anthropologie-esque (the rest of her blog is tells of the hilarious wins and woes of young motherhood). Morgan’s blog was up against web and design industry pros who nominated high-dollar projects, but when the judges’ scores came in, Morgan took the lead for the Information/Education category. Here’s her response the night of the awards, and her answers to our “What’s the latest” questions:

Frebby Winner 2010
Category: Information / Education
Project: MrsPriss.com - DIY

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?
Are you ready for my incredibly exciting and not at all anticlimactic answer? I have been doing absolutely nothing. Womp wommmmmp! I know. I’m currently taking a break from the good old blog to catch up on life and spend more time with my family, but when I get my second wind, I’ll have some more fun DIY projects to share.

What else have you been working on?
Diaper changing by day, Vampire Diaries watching by night.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?
The Full Moxie. Those ladies are hilarious and are always coming out with fresh, interesting content. That site’s going to be big, you watch.

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?
1) Free weight
2) Fancy door stop
3) Murder weapon, obv.

Frebbys Revisited: Floyd Sanchez

bitterasianguy — Wed, 09 May 2012 10:54:00 -0700

The first year of the Frebby Awards, we were blown away by all of the local talent both in the web design industry and within the web community as a whole. Someone on Twitter watched this project unfold from afar and nominated Floyd Sanchez of Anti Laboratories, who worked with Creative Fresno to launch a successful FUSE Fest 2010 Kickstarter campaign (one of the first in Fresno), a new website, tv commercial, t-shirts, and other marketing materials. This is an excellent example of an outsider nominating a project simply due to the local impact of the project. Our judges from around the area and beyond deemed this project—among 150 other entries—Frebby Favorite. Floyd’s Frebby update is straight and to the point, so if you’re looking for more information, you can follow @antilabs on Twitter for ongoing company news.

Frebby Winner 2010
Category: Frebby Favorite
Project: FUSE Fest 2010

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project?

The festival is an annual. Someone else did the branding for it this year and last year.

What else have you been working on?

A lot of stuff for P*DE*Q and other clients.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now?

Ignition Labs.

Does your Frebby have a nickname?

No.

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby?

Letter opener holder.

Frebbys Revisited: Mike Oz

bitterasianguy — Wed, 02 May 2012 08:08:00 -0700

We’ve caught up with the 2010 and 2011 Frebby winners to ask about the status of their projects and what they’ve been up to since their big Frebby wins. First up is last year’s winner Mike Oz from The Fresno Beehive:

Frebby Winner 2011
Category: Information
Project: FresnoBeehive.com

What’s the latest news or progress with your Frebby-winning project? Me and the Beehive keep chugging along, documenting the usual going-ons in our community, and the fun stuff that pops up — be they porn controversies at Fresno State or bike polo tournaments. We’re totally in event mode right now. Beehive Birthday 7 was a couple weeks ago and was a lot of fun. Next we have our Great Fresno Tweetup #4 with the Fresno Grizzlies. It’s happening May 3rd and I’m busy devising fun ideas for that.

What else have you been working on? This year I made myself a list of goals. One of them was to create a video series, so I’m slowly trying to my 7Qs series running. I’m not a video expert, so I’m getting better at filming/editing with each episode. I’m also doing a radio show on New Rock 104.1 now. It’s called Ozmosis and airs at 9 p.m. Sundays. I play local music, bands coming to town and general indie rock songs that I like and that aren’t generally on the radio. Just like I’m doing on the Beehive, I’m encouraging Fresnans to widen their horizons.

Who’s doing Frebby-worthy things on the web right now? I think all the GottaLoveFresno.com content creators are putting out some fun projects. I get a kick out of their shows, and I like the local web expanding in that direction. More original content is always great, and it’s nice that someone (finally) put a little money behind the people in town who have proven to produce it well.

Does your Frebby have a nickname?
It didn’t. Until this question. Now I’ve dubbed it Frederick Frebby. Sounds distinguished, right

What are three alternate uses for a Frebby? CD rack. Water bottle holder. Beanie rack.

Spotlight on Meza Films

bitterasianguy — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:00:00 -0700

Enrique Meza as had a major hand in the local video scene in Fresno: after founding No Network, an online local video collective, in August 2010, he gave rise to Meza Films, which currently produces video content, collaborating with organizations like TasteFresno and Gotta Love Fresno, as well as popular local blogs like My Indie Nation and Fashionably Bombed. Recently, Meza Films has tapped into the marriage scene, just in time for the 2012 wedding season.

You can check out some of Enrique’s videos after the jump!

— Oliver