Real You: Dot me, roll-over minutes got me and how an airline actually surprised me!

Posted on | August 8, 2008 |

By Kaira Sturdivant Rouda

Yep, this column is all about me. Not me, ME. Well, let me explain. I’m on my way to Austin to speak just after Brad Womack, of Bachelor fame, at the Balance Expo for Women. If you happen to be in on Austin this Saturday, join me and the 7,000 other women at the event! But back to ME…

First, did you know there is a new extension on the web? Made possible when the country of Montenegro, shortly after it gained its independence in 2006, submitted its application for a Top-Level Domain. The application was approved in 2007, and all of a sudden, the initials for the country looked like it could also be a VERY popular web address. Bingo. (Too bad Maine didn’t think of that.)

On-the-ball IT folks have been snapping up the .ME exchanges, and mine—thanks, Brent—grabbed me Kaira.me. I am so excited. Kaira.com, taken. Kaira.net? Taken. But I can now be me, well, more precisely, I can be me@kaira.me. For your business, have you grabbed the .me? How about for your kids? I had a huge life lesson when a cyberstalker grabbed my name.com, my kids’ names.com and the like. It took two years in federal court to get them back. So go ahead and grab your ME. I would. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Unless we’re talking roll-over minutes. That brings me to the milky minutes spot from AT&T. I know, usually I might find the spot sexist, with the woman standing in the kitchen and the dad and two boys eating. But, because the roles are all so stereotyped—and the fact it’s been updated since the Cingular version so that the dad is actually participating—I really like it. You know the spot: Dad spills his milk on the left-over minutes and mom, from the kitchen, says her sister would be happy with those minutes. Even though she’s lactose intolerant. Cracks me up everytime, and I especially love the personification of intangibles in a creative way. Remember, creativity is intelligence having fun.

Speaking of making me smile, Northwest Airline’s kiosk spit out one piece of paper with boarding passes for both of my flights printed right there next to the next generation of barcodes. My 17 year old explained the new barcode to me while I marvelled at the green effort. Kudos to Northwest.

And finally, have you been to Glacier National Park ever or lately? You just forget what a national treasure we have there until you visit. But hurry. When park rangers first documented the glaciers there, they found more than 200. Today, there are about 15 and shrinking rapidly. By 2020, they expect them to all be melted away. On just one morning hike, we saw elk, long-horn sheep and a hoary marmet! (I hadn’t ever heard of a hoary marmet, but now he’s one of my favorites.) See photo.

We were there for a Rocky Shoes and Boots board meeting—my husband’s on the board, and it’s fun for me to step out of my usual comfort zone of my own bath and air conditioning, and marketing to women—to get rustic and spend time with gentlemen who market to men. It’s a good perspective to keep in mind, because just as they market very well to men, women are exposed to their brands daily, everywhere. But they keep their target at heart.

And that’s all from ME until next Friday.

Kaira Sturdivant Rouda is the creator of Real Living, the first women-focused real estate brand. She has more than 20 years of experience marketing to women and is the author of Real You Incorporated: 8 Essentials for Women Entrepreneurs. To learn more, visit www.RealYouIncorporated.com and join the community.

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