Final 50 for Murphy Goode!

I'm so thankful to be in the final 50 for the Murphy Goode Lifestyle Correspondent job! Here's why I think I'm the right person for the job (and I promise you this is the most you'll ever see me write in one post! I'm a video gal!):

This will not be an essay about Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Digg, VinCellar or the next new “it” social media tool that everyone will soon be using. While these are all critical tools to leverage in a dynamic marketplace, tools which harness a collaborative state of mind and a tech-oriented skill set that I have demonstrated, one’s ability to employ them successfully is not ultimately what differentiates merely goode candidates from the ideal Murphy Goode lifestyle correspondent. Successful social media comes down to the integration of three things – heart, quality content, and first-rate business experience – and I bring the rare combination of all three.

My passion for wine and food is essentially about the ways they foster connections among people. The memories that I have surrounding a shared meal or a memorable wine are precious to me; casual and special food and wine moments – Sunday night Pinot Noir and roast chicken with my friends, barrel tasting at Wente Vineyards, or hugging my grandfather in his kitchen – are when I feel most alive, most myself. This connection, a love affair really, between wine and food and the people in my life, has long fascinated me and shaped my social experiences, and I am now focused on integrating it with my professional goals. Much like face-to-face interactions, absent of heart, social media is insignificant. For a company like Murphy Goode, founded on tradition, family and fun, doing anything without sincere emotion would be unthinkable.

I have extensive experience with wine and food, beginning with a childhood spent in my grandparent’s restaurant, and later working at a winery, enrolling in food and wine classes, living all over the world, and savoring cooking, eating and drinking at every opportunity. This, combined with my contagious energy and drive for excellence, enables me to create high quality, compelling content like the video entry that ultimately led to my co-hosting a cooking show with Rocco DiSpirito out of thousands of entrants. My web content and links to other compelling sources I find make people laugh and want to share similar experiences, a key to effective social media.

Rather than following a direct path to my passion, I’ve had the opportunity to gather a set of diverse business experiences that are integral to achieving Murphy Goode’s goals. Heart and quality content alone may mean that Murphy Goode builds a buzz, but turning buzz into value for the organization requires a strategic perspective and a holistic marketing plan, of which social media is one component. My experience consulting Fortune 500 companies and receiving my MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, home to many of the most important technological and social media innovations, puts me in a unique position. I have direct experience with what drives companies to create value as well as strong connections and a history of experience with social media. I believe merging these elements for Murphy Goode is absolutely essential, not to mention exciting.

I have achieved noteworthy educational and professional goals, but never before have I sought something professionally that engaged my true passion this way. If given the opportunity to work with Murphy Goode, I would bring not only the extensive business experience and penchant for quality content that I have developed and delivered elsewhere, but for this position I would also bring my heart. This opportunity to work in a position where I can combine all three is absolutely thrilling.