Reba's Rambles
 
This week I opened up a new book.  I felt the spine break open, smelled the freshness of pages not yet read and curled up with a blanket and pillows to read.  I love turning the pages, marking where I left off, and seeing the progress as I go through the book.  When I was finished reading for the night and put my book down, I wondered… how would all this change if I had purchased the E-book?

The pro’s of an E-book

    - Pages will not bend                             - Environmentally friendly
    - Accessibility                                        - Cross references to web pages
    - Multiple books on one device             - Easier note taking

The pro’s of a Paper book

    -Easily obtainable                                 -Easily portable
    -No eye strain                                       -Pretty cheap                                    
The con’s of an E-book
    -If you spill it could be the end of the device-eye strain
     -Lighting issues, although the kindle now advertises it is no longer an 
      issue for reading

    -Initial start up costs if you buy a reading device like the kindle

The Con’s of a Paper book

    -Bulky and heavy                                          -Only carry a few at a time
    -If you make a note it is there to stay          -Need light to read it

Clearly there are pro’s and con’s to both paper back and E-books. I personally still enjoy a good book; I love the smell, feel and ability to turn a page.  I see the convenience of having all the books on one device and realize that the general population will start to move towards this earth friendly device. Until I personally use one, I am not sad that I get to curl up with a paper book. 
 
A problem

I am a fan of Target.  I have been a fan of Target for years. Their clothes always seem to be quality with an affordable price, fairly trend setting, and I can usually find what I am looking for based on their organizational system.  Not only can I shop for clothing, I can shop for my electronics, toiletries, and much more. However, I feel the quality of Target as a store is very regional. 

In Duluth, MN the Target is pristine in nature.  You (people reading this) smirk and say, “Oh, Reba you are so silly, how can a department store be pristine?!” Well go to the Duluth Target and see how organized it is.  How the clothes have room on the racks, clothes do not fall off when you walk by, shelves are stocked, and the staff is welcoming and helpful!

Now drive 7.5 hours south to Milwaukee.  The scene is very different. I visited two Targets in the hope of finding what I was looking for and nothing. I found dirty aisles, messy and empty shelves, and a staff that really could have cared less.


Social Networking

So, why blog about this issue on a blog that was created to talk about emerging media?  I am so happy you asked! Businesses around the world are jumping on the social networking bandwagon.  One at a time they are trying to reach out to customers, both happy and not, to try and get a glimpse as to what is being said about them.  After thinking about what I should do with my problem, I decided to contact Target and tell them about this issue. 

I, however, must be very narrow-minded in thinking that I could easily contact Target and get an answer to my problem.  I looked for them on Twitter, and they have one (
http://twitter.com/Target ), but would they really get it and would I ever get a response? I looked on Facebook, and they have one of those too (http://www.facebook.com/#!/target?ref=ts ), but there is no true way to contact them unless you write on their public wall.  Would I really want to put my little complaint open for all to criticize? So I then went to their main web-page. Alas! I found their contact information.  I click on their link, and instantly am lost with whom I should contact with my store complaint.  After searching for fifteen minutes I finally found where I needed to submit my issue. See the mess of options here
àhttp://www.target.com/gp/help/help-home.html/ref=nav_footer_contact/186-1191562-9713053?ie=UTF8&node=1039412

My Solution

So I submitted my issue.  I took a stand to try and better their stores, hurray! To my surprise I did receive an email from Target within 24 hours.  I applaud their efforts.  However, I wonder how many consumers are as vigilant as I in the need to file my issue?  If I were not curious as to how I finally can contact these people I would have given up when I saw their mess of a “contact us” page.  I have looked at other companies sites and have found that they are easier to navigate in order to contact them. Perhaps I wasn’t a lucky soul with the immediate search; maybe it is easier for some.  I have thought about this and broken it down to this: If you have an issue and are not computer/internet literate contact them in person when you are there; if you are computer/internet literate…good luck, may your search be half as difficult as mine

In conclusion, I find it interesting that in a day of convenience and speed some of the simplest tasks (such as communication) have become the most difficult.

Until next time my readers!

 
 
Technology…Love it? Hate it? Gotta have it? Personally I love technology.  I am horrible at multitasking and wish I was better at it.  If you grabbed my old phone you would laugh. I am the person that has the ducted tape phone that I only text and call with and nothing else.  However, this weekend took a spin in an all new direction! I have moved a tiny baby-step in the technology savvy era.  I have an IPhone! (the 2G, don’t get carried away with that IPhone 4 business here!)

IPhone + Reba = Learning Curve

This phone was a gift from a friend who purchased the new IPhone 4 and wanted to give her old one to a person who really needed it.  She laughed at me when I told her I was taking an emerging media class yet was stuck with a phone that was probably last noticed with the girls from SATC, before the movie.  Everyone keeps telling me it is so easy to use, it is the same as the ‘touch’ but it is a phone.  I consider myself fairly good with technology but this phone is a whole new deal!

My loves of the phone: seemingly user friendly, internet access, calculator, notes, calendar, music

My worries of the phone: touch and no buttons, thin, all screen, no second chance when dropped

Apple stands under the innovation tree

I talk to my friends and everyone has all these experiences with what I call “I” equipment.  Apple continues to be in the front lines when talking about innovation and the latest with computers and mobile devices.  Although they continue to come out with all the latest devices, I appreciate the cross adaptability between the old and new pieces.  I have an IPhone that is three models out, yet it works fine, perhaps not as fast as the new ones but it works well.  The same holds true for my older models of the IPod.  Apple, I applaud you in your efforts to connect both your consumers that keep up with your innovation and those, like me, who choose to take our time and enjoy the ride.

 
 
Today I sit here and I think about the new ways in which we can communicate.  Yes, this subject is broad, but I feel it important to look at the past to see where we are going.  Let me narrow this down a bit and focus on a personal situation.  Throughout the observations of innovation in this blog I will refer back to communication between my mother and me. 

Summer camp and Snail Mail!

Flash back to the days of Spice Girls, Backstreet Boys, and butterfly clips.  This was my first ‘away from home’ experience.  The key to surviving your first away from home experience is communication with MOM!  The irony of it all was that you were only gone a week, and mom had sent letters before you left to ensure the arrival of them the first morning you woke up there.  Anticipation of the time laps between sending and receiving a message was days, not seconds that we experience now.  Let’s move on to the early 2000’s.

You’ve got mail?

Summer camp eventually evolved into a month during the summer in which I was abroad.  Spending a hot July month in Japan was not the smartest idea in the world, but the success of it all was again based on communication and support from Mom.  This time it was different. A few years the wiser and a few years for technology to really develop left everyone with email addresses.  No longer did Mom have to send a letter a week before I left to know I would get something, she could boot up the computer and talk to her daughter that was many times zones away with the magic of a send button!  This was amazing, the time difference in receiving a message wasn’t days, or minuets, one simply had to start the computer and type a response.  Suddenly the shift was starting to move towards this being a benefit for mom more than daughter.

I can see you and you’re 3000 miles away!

Hello 2007 and college study abroad.  My mom and I are close, and the thought of me being away for an entire semester in Europe quickly became not a good thing for Mom. Four months away with no physical contact, email pictures (yes), call from a phone booth (yes), but it would not be the same as Mom talking to her daughter in person. The answer (no not flying to Europe, use your educational and technology savvy brains…) SKYPE! Suddenly we could see and talk to each other, and only a few times did I have to remind her to, “stop yelling, I can hear you fine” and “stop waving, I can see you”. 

Present day…(Facebook, twitter, and apps oh my!)

This week my mom signed up for Facebook.  A whole new training is in progress to communicate through a social network with Mom.  Although she calls me to tell me to go on Facebook so we can talk, I have hopes for this.  She will figure it out. 

I look at the past, where we have come, and wonder where we can go.  I constantly wonder how the various generations are adapting to all these new ways of communication.  What happens to those who just refuse to jump on this social network bandwagon? Are they missing out because all the information being sent via Facebook and Twitter is not being sent through the postal service or telephone anymore?

So I question you...Is it our responsibility to engage others and train them into this new phenomenon to ‘keep up with the times’ or do we let them sit back and schedule that telephone call and remember to write that letter?