Simple Strategies

As I wrote earlier, I’m building a cool application using Twilio, the best solution for voice and text app development on the market.  But there’s a problem. I prefer developing in Ubuntu for reasons only a developer who loves hyper-rapid releases can understand.  Twilio provides a fantastic testing tool right on my dashboard page at www.twilio.com. This testing tool is a Flash object that calls my Twilio number, allowing me to experience what my users will experience. The problem is that the Settings object for Flash Player 64-bit is unclickable in Ubuntu 11.10. The little bugger wouldn’t let me Allow access to my microphone, which is pretty important for voice phone app. The good news:  I found a workaround.  I posted this workaround on Twilio’s forum. Rob, a Twilio Developer Evangelist, suggested I blog it, too.  Apparently, I’m not the only person having trouble with the 64-bit Flash Player.   The Workaround First, try to use

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They laughed harder when I said it would launch in a week. They’re not laughing now that it’s launched. They didn’t know that all the hard work was already done for me, before I opened my IDE.   The Application The application I wrote is in two parts. Part 1 is a simple IVR system.  People call a number and receive four options: Hear a recorded message about the organization’s upcoming events. Sign up for automated calls about upcoming events Leave a message Unsubscribe from the automated calls.   Part 2 is the outbound calling system.  It allows administrators to: Upload new audio messages Type new text-to-voice messages Launch the robocaller, which calls each confirmed phone number in the database and plays the recorded message or the text-to-speech message when the person answers That’s it. As simple as this application is, many large companies–over 2,000 employees with internal IT–cannot match it. Yet I, a part-time

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Jillian Michaels knows more about persuasion than most senior marketers. Modeling her approach to people can improve every aspect of your business–from employee engagement to customer loyalty. But do you have the humility to learn from her? Jillian Michaels’ took the hard road to fame and fitness: she overcame her own weight problem.  She also learned a lot in the process. A lot about herself. A lot about others struggling with their weight and fitness. A lot about the mechanics and science of health. And a heck of a lot about motivation and tenacity. She turned her accomplishments as a weight loser into a career as a fitness training expert. From there, she became hostess of the NBC’s The Biggest Loser with 15 million weekly viewers. She has product lines that cover the end cap of seemingly every aisle in Walmart. She has a net worth that makes most people blush. And she did it all

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