While Twitter’s 140 characters may not seem like much, according to a team of researchers at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, that’s more than enough space to let your potty mouth free. After a survey of more than fifty million tweets, the WSU team, made up of two PhD researchers and two PhD students, concluded that one of every thirteen tweets contains profanity. Twitter’s favorite swear word is the f-bomb, which accounted for almost 35% of foul language spotted in the sample group. According to Fast Company’s article about the study, this online rate of vulgarity doesn’t match how we speak in day-to-day life. Fast Company reports, “Other studies have found that 0.5 to 0.7% of words we say in the physical world are curses—on Twitter, the researchers found the rate to be 1.15%.” The researchers attribute this to the veil of distance and potential anonymity that the Internet provides, since in social media we don’t have to look one another in the eye before mouthing off. Reading about the survey left me with more questions. Is this anomaly specific only to Twitter or is Facebook lit up with expletives too? How would we survey visual mediums, such as Instagram or Vine, to determine the rate of cursing? Does an increase in profanity on Twitter somehow make the medium less valuable to people and brands alike? Future studies might answer some of these questions, while also taking into account newer networks in the ever-changing social landscape. But after reading Fast Company’s wrap-up, one question kept nagging at me: Is swearing in everyday life really so rare? Perhaps I’m the exception, but I swear less in online forums (like Twitter) than I do in my terrestrial life. Posting online allows a few precious extra seconds to self-edit—precious seconds I use to full advantage to not channel my inner vulgar vixen in my tweets. That’s not to say I never swear online (absolutely I do), but I would guess that one in every thirteen of my spoken sentences is more likely to contain foul language than the same ratio of my personal tweets. Maybe the people referenced in those other studies are lying about their language choices in the physical world. Or they’re nuns. To see the full gamut of curse words that made the survey see the study’s Wiki. —by Leah Charney Leah Charney is sassy yet classy and is most excited by the things she can't stop writing about, like food, music, and people. She directs operations for the WideFoc.us team, which is just a fancy way of saying she is chief cat herder.

As a freelance writer by trade, I learn new things every day in my role as a WideFoc.us community manager (CM). Although authenticity is always important for connecting with a social media audience, administering a branded account for a client is still quite different from the way many of us use Twitter for our personal online identities. Below is a list of five best practices for managing a branded presence on Twitter that every CM should know, even if you're just entering the profession. 1. Avoid beginning a tweet with a handle. It's quite common for Twitter users to start a tweet with a handle, but it can actually have a negative effect on visibility. Twitter, in its infinite wisdom, only allows those tweets to be seen by mutual followers. That's why you'll see some people start tweets with a period. We like our tweets to be elegant and readable, so we always start with a word. For example, "Hi, @active_follower, thank you for the RT!" is a little more personable than "@active_follower Thanks for the RT!" 2. If you quote a tweet, be sure to add something to it. The types of social media management software frequently used for managing branded accounts make it easier to quote a tweet instead of merely retweeting it. Some software only allows you to schedule retweets for the future if they are quoted tweets. Retweets can only occur in real-time, which is slightly less convenient than scheduling them ahead of time. Whenever possible I prefer to quote a tweet and add a comment, in order to drum up additional engagement from the retweet for both the original poster and me. 3. Avoid prepackaged greetings and auto-DMs for your client's new followers. Nothing turns off a branded account's followers like spam, perceived or otherwise. Few Twitter users want to receive a notification, only to discover a DM similar to the one below in their inboxes: "Hi @username, thanks for the follow! We hope you enjoy our information and updates. Check out our blog." ...It's spammy, inauthentic, and just plain tacky. 4. Include usernames/handles in your tweets whenever appropriate. Directly mentioning other Twitter users in posts helps build relationships and open new communication channels. It can also strengthen a social media community by alerting followers that they have at least one thing in common: your client! It's a great way for users to discover common goals or interests that otherwise may not come to their attention. 5. Shorten all URLs. This may seem obvious, but I constantly see tweets, including some from branded accounts, that include full-length URLs. In addition to looking cleaner, shortened URLs leave more room for content and make your posts more retweetable. They're also more easily trackable for reporting. You've probably realized that as a CM, it's your job to build authentic engagement in the client's social media community, maintain a strong, growing network, and avoid adopting a "market-y" tone. However, it's just as important to know these (sometimes unspoken) rules so that you can represent the brand as professionally as possible. Have fun! —by Erin Maes Erin Maes is a is a lifelong writer who is passionate about language, communications, storytelling, and how they differ across mediums and platforms. She joined the WideFoc.us team in 2013.

WideFoc.us CEO Eric Elkins is presenting at the following seminars: April 8th (Monday) 1-3 pm in Vail, Colorado The Colorado Association of REALTORS will welcome Eric Elkins to explain how REALTORS can benefit from Social Media. April 11th (Thursday) 11-12:30 pm in Denver, Colorado Join us at JCC Denver’s Blogger Brunch for blog authors and those interested in starting a blog. Learn about upcoming events while social media expert Eric Elkins teaches techniques to promote your blog. more information: http://www.facebook.com/events/140691589435521/ April 28th (Saturday) 3:15-4:45 pm in Las Vegas, Nevada The Summit is a gathering of leaders and influencers working together to promote change in the story of our generation — sustainability. Eric Elkins will be speaking at the “Building a Social Movement” session, addressing how to craft the environmental JNF message. more information: http://www.jnf.org/thesummit/agenda.html WideFoc.us conducts training sessions and speaking engagements nationwide, on a variety of subjects. Past sessions include “Social Media Basics: Content and Conversation,” “Practical Social Media,” “Creating a Sustainable Social Media Program” and “Corporate & Organizational Social Media Policy.”

This month's Mile High Social Media Club program is called "Corporate & Organizational Social Media Policy," and WideFoc.us is honored to be sponsoring the event. We believe a concise yet flexible policy, combined with solid training in best practices (andhow not to be stupid), are two keys to helping employees and stakeholders make the most of their enthusiasm about their brands. To register, click here.

They say when it rains, it pours. No idea who “They” is or why this They person speaks in idioms, but if you live in Denver and have looked as this weekend’s calendar, all we can say is “Wow.” As in, wow, there’s a lot of really, really cool stuff going on. If true-life stories are your thing, check out “Lived/Re-Lived” on Friday at the Jones Theater. Three storytellers take the stage to spill intimate life stories while aerial dancers and puppets provide re-enactment as they’re told. Lived/Re-Lived: Tickets $15 Friday, March 21: 8 p.m. doors; 8:30 p.m. show For real-life stories but with a musical component, “Dreaming Sin Fronteras” starts a three-show run on Friday night at North High School’s auditorium. Featuring music from Shawn King (of the Grammy-nominated Devotchka) and Raul Pacheco (of the Grammy-winning Ozomatli), the world premier of this multicultural live production is centered on the testimony of DREAMers discussing immigration and what it means to be an American. Dreaming Sin Fronteras: Tickets $18 Friday, March 21: 7:30 p.m.Saturday, March 22: 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. If brews are more your speed, and day-drinking is your kind of thing (the WideFoc.us team approves), celebrate Colorado Craft Beer Week at Collaboration Festival on Saturday at the Curtis Hotel. Brewers will tap 35 beers special to the event, each one representing a collaboration between two or more Colorado craft brewers. Collaboration Festival: Tickets $50-$80 Saturday, March 22: 3-7 p.m. The final item on our weekend party time list is the Lucky 7 Gala, an event for a very special cause, Sunday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Cash McCandless is a knock-knock joke-loving seven-year-old who happens to also have a brain tumor. His mom also happens to be Shelly McCandless, long-time GM of the Avenue Grill. And Sunday happens to be a fundraiser for Cash’s cancer treatments. If you can’t make the event but still want to help contribute cash to Cash (sorry!) you can donate via the event’s website. As true fans of Denver’s food and beverage industry, WideFoc.us already made a donation to the cause. Lucky 7 Gala: Tickets $77 Sunday, March 23: 5-9 p.m. See you around this weekend! —by Leah Charney Leah Charney is sassy yet classy and is most excited by the things she can't stop writing about, like food, music, and people. She directs operations for the WideFoc.us team, which is just a fancy way of saying she is chief cat herder.

Wednesday, June 23, 2013 TiE Rockies Webinar, 12pm – 1pm Click here to register. Thursday, July 22, 2013 Plan Your Meetings presents the PYM LIVE 2010 Denver, 3pm – 6pm Click here for more information. September 9, 10, 12, 2013 Modern Media Man Summit, Atlanta Eric will speak about blogging and online identities WideFoc.us conducts training sessions and speaking engagements nationwide, on a variety of subjects. Past sessions include “Social Media Basics: Content and Conversation,” “Practical Social Media,” “Creating a Sustainable Social Media Program” and “Corporate & Organizational Social Media Policy.”

This weekend, April 12-13, get an inside view of some of the most interesting spaces in the Queen City of the Plains. Doors OPEN Denver celebrates ten years of inviting the metro-area community to drink in Denver’s unique architectural landscape and check out many buildings that are rarely (if ever) open to the public. This free event invites urban adventurers to visit a dozen neighborhoods across Denver and see cultural institutions (such as the Black American West Museum), municipal buildings (like the McNichols Building), and historical spots, including the Governor’s Residence and the Zang Mansion. Of the 61 spaces, 45 of the locations will host guided tours. Additional biking and walking tours are scheduled throughout the weekend. While the event is presented by the Denver Architectural Foundation, it is not intended specifically for architects (though they are, of course, welcome). Attendees are encouraged to seek out new areas or spaces they are unfamiliar with. Below are some ideas to get any would-be adventurers started on the path of exploration. For those keen to take a trip to the north neighborhoods of Five Points, LoDo, and RiNo, don’t miss: historic landmark Fire Station #3, the “Pride of the Points;” a factory-turned-art-gallery; the Women’s Bean Project (housed in the old Fire House 10 building); or the 1891 Paris Hotel building—which has since been turned to lofts. The neighborhoods on the east side of town (Hilltop, Montclair, and Park Hill) showcase a Spanish-style library, complete with tile roof; a Depression-era elementary school; and a building that began as a sanitorium in 1888, was remodeled in 1909, and now serves as an event space and offices for Denver Parks and Recreation. Several mansions feature heavily in the central part of town, including the Zang Mansion (once home to the founder of the Oxford Hotel) and the 8,700 square-foot Tears McFarlane House. Other centrally-located gems include the Denver Water Three Stone Buildings, which have never before been included on the Doors OPEN Denver circuit (and are never open to the public). Southsiders are showing off, among others, the Sherman School building (now home to the Art Students League of Denver), two Episcopal churches, and one of the newest buildings on display: the Denver Animal Shelter. Some of the treasures to the west are the Firehaus, the Historic Elitch Theater, and the Troy Chavez Memorial Peace Garden, an outdoor community healing space. You can find a full list of the participating sites on the Doors OPEN Denver website, so choose your own adventure. —by Leah Charney Leah Charney is sassy yet classy and is most excited by the things she can't stop writing about, like food, music, and people. She directs operations for the WideFoc.us team, which is just a fancy way of saying she is chief cat herder.

This year, gardening has taken root (excuse the pun) as a new hobby in my small household. Starting seedlings, building raised beds, and dreaming about sun-soaked afternoons filled with the smell of fresh earth and Rocky Mountain air now find some space in my day. I squish damp potting soil to fill pots and give small seeds a home. I prune the miniature shoots of basil and mint, in awe of the tempting scent created from the snapping of such tiny leaves. And the silent, meditative moments where I stare in amazement at our little farm springing up under a shop light are truly peaceful times during crazy, hectic days. This combination of doing, dreaming, and building has left me with no other choice than to resign a small part of my day solely to romanticizing the idea of being a gardener and cooking with food that I am responsible for growing. Looking into the coming weeks and seeing high 60s and 70s on the horizon has given me a unique kind of excitement: The kind that only warmer days and nights with fewer forecasts for snow can bring. As the chance of frost lessens, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we don’t see another early May storm. I am far more impatient than I’ll admit to here, but I’ll just say that I’m beyond looking forward to spending some quality time transplanting my seedlings into a newly defrosted backyard full of fresh soil and promise. And to think, all of the daydreaming, planning, and excitement started with a cookbook. Tucked away in a quiet corner of an independent bookstore was Fresh from the Farm: A Year of Recipes and Stories, by farmer and food blogger Susie Middleton. While the recipe headings struck me as involved and ambitious, I fell madly and deeply in love with the photos accompanying them. You could see the author’s love for growing and cooking food in every photo. I’m Italian, and these images stirred something in me about food that I hadn’t felt before. I had only held the book for a few short minutes but I was in deep. And so, the kitchen-garden fantasy took hold. I love to cook. More than that, I love the process of cooking. Reading through a recipe and imagining how good it will taste. Selecting only the best vegetables, herbs, spices, and meat at the supermarket. The weight of your trusty chef’s knife in your palm and the ingredients on the cutting board, ready to be transformed into something new. The satisfaction you feel when the first bite is on your fork and your work has paid off with something aromatic and beautiful. Experiencing this same process with food I am able to grow and create leaves me nothing short of elated. While I have only completed three of the recipes so far, I read the cookbook front to back and hope the small farm of seedlings started in the spare bedroom will outfit me enough to complete all of the others. Growing my own food—and having a book ready and waiting to tell me how to assemble it in the most delicious ways possible—seems like an ideal way to spend my spring, summer, and early fall. I’m anticipating many amateur food photography sessions and test-kitchen style dinners in the coming months... —by Rachel Mincarelli Rachel Mincarelli is a recent addition to the WideFoc.us team and is a first-time resident of Denver. She enjoys writing because it connects her to communities and their stories while simultaneously allowing her to express her own interests.

We’ve been so busy with client work we’ve neglected this blog a little. We have a growing client roster and are actively hiring new Community Managers. This month, we welcome Caroline, who will work with an inspiring client, Advanced Brain Technologies (ABT). Have you heard about ABT? As pioneers in the fields of neuroscience and learning, they are on a mission to keep people rested, productive, learning and happy using multiple methods based on proven studies and research. Providers and users (and our office staff ) swear by their methods!