Changes are afoot in the Josh and Corley house. Dust is getting kicked up out of long-covered corners. Books are being pulled from shelves all willy-nilly. We’re laundry-doing, vacuuming, craigslisting fiends these days.

Do you want to know why?

BECAUSE WE’RE MOVING TO CHARLOTTE!

And SOON.

We love Asheville a LOT, but the winds of change are blowing and they’re pointing us toward the Queen City. So we’re handing in our keys and saying goodbye to our little grey house on Dorchester Avenue. We’ll miss our city terribly and we hope to visit often, but for now…

Goodbye hippies, goodbye hills, goodbye mountain moonshine stills.
Goodbye, land of local brews. Goodbye, Asheville. See you soon!

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Spotted on Lexington Ave. in downtown Asheville. Also not allowed in this antiques shop: candy, puppies, fun.

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To celebrate Springtime springing up all over, I made you another mix tape! Spring is just the greatest, isn’t it? Romance, bicycles, lip gloss, bubblegum…all the best things come out in spring. I made this playlist with a springtime day in mind - waking up full of hope, sun shining, birds chirping. Moving through the day, flirting and canoodling at night, and watching the sun set with your springtime someone. Then, you wake up and do it all again.

I hope you like my Springtime Songs playlist! Click the image below to start listening.

Track Listing:

1. Everyday - Buddy Holly
2. We Believe In You - Bess Rogers
3. As I Lay Me Down - Sophie B. Hawkins
4. In the Sun - She & Him
5. Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard - Paul Simon
6. Pull Shapes - The Pipettes
7. King of the Road - Teddy Thompson
8. Dream Lover - Bobby Darin
9. Not About To Lose - Ron Sexsmith
10. Here You Come Again - Dolly Parton
11. Sunset Soon Forgotten - Iron and Wine

Original Article

First of all, full disclosure: I have loved Newsies for years and years. As a junior in high school, I campaigned for our school musical, choir concert, and even our marching band’s halftime show to be Newsies-themed. I wept over sweet little Crutchie, and I crushed on a dancing Newsie named Specs, and I got goosebumps every time I listened to the a capella reprise of “Seize the Day.” (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Click here to listen to the soundtrack and hear for yourself.)

All of this is to say that I would have been excited about the new Newsies musical even if I hadn’t been completely sucked in by their impressive marketing efforts.

However, judging by the buzz crackling across the Internet, I know that the PR team behind Newsies is revolutionizing the way Broadway shows are promoted in the world of Social Media. And the number one lesson I’ve learned from the Newsies team? Get your team excited, and then get them to share their excitement.

With sneak peeks backstage, cast blogs, and goosebump-inducing previews, we’ve seen the actors and production team getting pumped about opening their show – and that honest, unbridled giddy feeling we see from the cast is contagious. There is nothing artificial or forced about the pride and excitement we’re seeing from the Newsies team. I don’t feel skeptical, I don’t doubt their enthusiasm – in short, I don’t feel that I’m being pitched or sold to. Instead, I feel like I’m in on something thrilling! I celebrate with them when I read about standing ovations at intermission, and I share their victories with my own social network.

So what can businesses learn from this musical’s marketing team?

First of all, when your team is happy, they can be your greatest marketing asset. Get them excited and give them access to social media – if you have a truly great product and truly happy team members, your audience will be happy to hear (or read) what they have to say about you. Internal ambassadors are hugely important.

But let me be clear – this can’t be artificial enthusiasm. Consumers are smart, and they can smell fake from a mile away. Trust your team, give them something to celebrate, and allow them to share with their friends.

Secondly, be sure you’re still talking TO people. The Newsies twitter stream is a great mix of original tweets and links, RTs spreading the word about how fantastic their show is, and @ replies to the people talking to them. Retweeting your compliments adds truth to your promotion, but be sure that’s not all you’re doing.

The heartbeat of good social media is still conversation. Don’t get so caught up in tooting your own horn that you forget to talk to people. @Newsies is constantly thanking people for coming to the show, getting excited with their followers about their upcoming performances, and retweeting reviews and audience feedback.

Bottom line, if your product or service is worth getting excited about, then the people working for you will be excited. Use that excitement to your advantage. Give them a voice, and then share that voice as truthfully and authentically as you can.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to put Newsies tickets at the top of my birthday list (hint hint!).

Original Article