Sep
2011
Hacker. Mad data scientist. London-born, NYC-residing. Unmistakable red hair, British accent. Unafraid to speak her mind. Blogger, story teller, traveler. Are you ready to get to know the secret weapon behind Hashable?
Meet Hashable’s Data Scientist, Emma Persky
Today, Emma will share some tips and tricks for aspiring developers…and recount an epic story of her traveling past. Before we get to the interview, here’s the lowdown on Emma:
- Follow Emma on Twitter here
- Hash with Emma here
- Check out Emma’s blog here
- Check out Emma’s portfolio here
- City of Emma: London –> NYC
- A short bio: “A vocal technology evangelist. An avid traveler and vibrant storyteller. You can’t miss Emma with her bright red hair and distinctively British accent. When Emma is not at home in New York, she can be found on an intrepid expedition.”
1. What were you up to before joining Hashable?
Hanging around, hacking on things, lauching my own startup Domainful, that kind of thing. Seriously though… alongside all that hacking, I did have a day job at Purpose (a digital agency in NYC). Before then I spent some time at eBay in London, and at Trampoline Systems where I picked up many of the skills I use at Hashable today.
2. You are very active in the NYC ‘women hackers’ community. What tips and tricks might you give to other women aspiring to code one day?
Don’t be afraid to push your own boundaries and make mistakes, ask for help when you need it, and make sure you celebrate your successes.
3. You are renowned for your epic stories of traveling in (and outside of) the Hashable HQ. Can you share one of your most memorable experiences from traveling?
Which would you prefer, the one where I stranded myself in the middle of the forest near Lake Tahoe over night with no cold-weather gear, or the one where I found myself in the hotel bar from Lost in Translation, drinking champagne with three guys who didn’t really speak English?
THE FINALE: Get To Know Emma In Five Fast Questions
1. What languages can you program in?
Ruby, Java, and Objective-C. I stay away from the front end!
2. Not counting your home city of London and adopted home city of New York, what is your favorite city in the world?
3. What is your favorite website?
I don’t really consume web content like that. I get my news curated through my Twitter friends and go where they send me.
4. What is the one thing you miss most about London?
Being able to get out of the city easily. New York is physically and psychologically hard to leave.
5. What is your favorite place in NYC?
For view point: I’m quite partial to the view from the North End of the Central Park Reservoir. If you face your back to the south at dusk, the city is so beautiful then. Other than that, I recommend:
- Brunch: Nougatine by Jean Georges (1 Central Park West, at 60th Street)
- Steak: Quality Meats (57 West 58th St)
- Wine: Tangled Vine (434 Amsterdam Avenue at 81st St)
- Whisky: Brandy Library (Tribeca)
- Absinthe: White Star (Chinatown)
- Cocktails: Milk and Honey (Lower East Side)
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Have any questions you’d like to ask Emma? Well, go right ahead! Ask away in the comments below.
Sep
2011
At this point in the ‘social web’ era, we should all understand the value and potential that is inherent in meeting new people. In fact, we believe being a good connector carries even more weight.
However, we’re here to change the minds of those who think making an intro is as simple as hastily sending an email introducing two unsuspecting friends who seem like they ought to connect.
When you write an email to introduce two people who don’t know each other, you are effectively putting your trust to the test with each person. Your reputation is on the line. The less you adhere to Fred Wilson‘s ‘Double Opt-In Introduction‘ philosophy, the more you stand to lose.
EMAIL INTRODUCTION ETIQUETTE
Before you introduce two people who don’t know each other, ask each person for permission to intro the other person to him/her. This way, your email won’t blindside either person and put one (or both) of them on the spot. Doing this the wrong way even once can put you on icy waters.
It is very important to show your respect for others’ time.
HOW TO MAKE AN EMAIL INTRO
We’re trying to simplify the introduction process as much as possible here at Hashable. As an example, let’s say Katie Felten asked me if I could intro her to my friend Rachel Sklar. After I get Rachel’s permission to intro Katie to her, I can open the app and get right to it. First, I go to my Contacts and tap on Katie’s name. Next, I tap the Introduce button at the top of the screen.
Since I want to make the introduction over email, I’ll choose email when prompted. Next, Hashable asks me who I want to introduce Katie to. So, I will type in Rachel’s name and tap her name from the contacts list.
We can then write a message to Katie and Rachel by tapping the optional note button. If you don’t write a note, Hashable will auto-generate a message for you here. While this makes it faster to introduce them, I think it is almost always best to include a note explaining the purpose of why you thought they should connect.
Then, all you have to do to make your introduction official is to press “Send” at the bottom of the screen. There you have it! Hashable will also save this intro for you.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
It is important to treat every introduction you make with care. Your attention to detail will say a lot about you to those whom you introduce. Treating each person’s time with respect and including a note about each person in your email (along with a clear statement of the purpose/nature of your introduction) will put you on the fast track to becoming a well-respected connector.
*What tips do you have for making better introductions?
Sep
2011
Attention Android users: We have another update for you! Version 2.1 is here to give you a better and more seamless Hashable experience. Our developers Joe and Aaron have added some great new features to create a quicker and more fluid tool for storing and managing your contacts. Head over to the Android market for an update and here’s what you’ll get:
Simplified Hashing: We’ve streamlined the process of saving connections. There’s a lot less to think about while Hashing. Let us know how you like it!
New filters by location: Want to get a list of all the people you met at your last event? With our newest filter you can search and browse your connections by location – including at specific venues, like that meeting you had last week at Starbucks on 14th St.
Set notes and reminders offline: No wifi? No problem! You can now set connections, notes and reminders offline, making it even easier to keep track of your connections no matter where you are. Hash on the A train and your data will sync when you get your 3 (or 4) G back.
Sticky location: Are you at a conference? Going to be in the same place for a while? We’ll now detect this and bring up your previous location when you are still in the vicinity. It’s great for Hashing multiple people in a row at an event.
Hash faster! Hashable now provides email address autocomplete suggestions for common email addresses and merges email addresses and twitter handles for new contacts, so you can spend less time typing. Huge.
General upgrade: We’ve fixed a few bugs – also, the app is now faster and takes up less space on your phone. It’s the little things.
Here’s what it will look like:
Get the new update here and feel free to ping us at @hashablesupport or support@hashable.com with questions and feedback.(iPhone users, your version is here.) Enjoy the new app – hope you find it useful!
Sep
2011
There’s really no other way to put it – her story is one of a small town heroine making it happen in the Big Apple. Hers is the tale of a woman who built a lovable personal brand in Milwaukee and then leveraged it to evangelize her favorite networking app – all the way to landing her dream job in Manhattan. Let’s get to it!
Meet Hashable’s Community Manager, Katie Felten
Today, Katie will shed some light on the community manager’s role…and stand up for her home city of Milwaukee. Before we get to the interview, here’s the lowdown on Katie:
- Follow Katie on Twitter here
- Hash with Katie here
- Check out Katie’s blog here
- City of Katie: Milwaukee, WI…sometimes Midtown, NYC
- A short bio: “Social Media junky with a passion for living life. Red wine drinker, traveler, voracious reader, trance enthusiast, 101 days Bikram Yoga, #ungeeked conference geek.”
1. What were you up to before joining Hashable?
I was running MKELive, a Milwaukee-based company that hosted events and offered social media training. MKElive also consulted for companies on how to create a social strategy.
2. Community Management is a role that is becoming more prevalent in companies everywhere. Can you explain what a typical week looks like for Katie Felten?
Wow, that’s a tough one! The community manager role can be all over the board. However, first and foremost, it is about establishing (and maintaining!) a connection with your users. You have to act as both the external voice of the company and the internal advocate of the users (to the company). Beyond that, community managers spend a lot of time creating content for their company’s blog, email newsletters, white papers, how-to guides, Twitter and Facebook presence, and video explaining the product.
3. What is the biggest difference between the tech/social media ecosystem in NYC versus that of Milwaukee?
I think the biggest difference is simply how the rest of the world perceives the two cities. Without question, NYC is huge and one of the meccas of technology. However, Milwaukee is a market that often gets overlooked! When it comes down to the people, I think that the cities have a lot in common. Both of the tech communities are relatively small in that everyone seems to know (or have heard of!) each other. I think there is a lot of passion and collaboration in both markets. Frankly, as much as I love being a part of the NYC tech/social media community…I really, really love Milwaukee! I think people would be surprised at the talent there.
THE FINALE: Get To Know Katie In Five Fast Questions
1. What was your favorite TV show growing up?
I grew up in the countryside and beyond PBS, I didn’t get to watch much TV. I still don’t watch that much TV today! Looking back though, I loved Nova and Jacques Cousteau. As for today…most of what I watch is on either the History, Discovery, or National Geography channel.
2. What do you think is the most number of tweets you’ve sent in one day?
Ha! I am not sure…maybe 40-50? I attend a lot of conferences, and it’s easy to get carried away when you are tweeting from interesting sessions! Also, I was a #hashvangelist at SxSW earlier this year…safe to say I got a little crazy tweeting all of the #justmets.
3. As a community manager, which do you prefer: TweetDeck or Hoot-not-sweet (inside joke!)?
You are funny, John. I love Hootsuite! I started out using it simply because it was browser-based. You see, we weren’t allowed to download anything onto our laptops at the last company I worked for. With all the traveling I was doing, I needed a Twitter fix frequently! Once I started using Hootsuite, I fell in love with all that you could do from the dashboard.
4. If you could recommend one person for everyone to follow on Twitter, who would it be?
That’s a little bit of a loaded question – I have a lot of favorites! Can I do my 3 favorite blogs instead? Julien Smith’s blog is in my top 3 simply because he keeps it real. I also love Fred Wilson‘s blog AVC because he shares awesome information on being a venture capitalist. Fred writes in an easy-to-understand way and shares personal stuff as well, so his readers have the feeling that they know him personally! My 3rd favorite blog is Mashable, mostly because I am a tech junkie.
5. What is your favorite all-time song?
To be honest, I really don’t have a favorite song. I grew up listening to Amy Grant, and I still listen to her occasionally…but these days I am a huge trance and house nut.
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Have any questions you’d like to ask Katie? Well, go right ahead! Ask away in the comments below.
Sep
2011
Are you addicted to your email? Or, do you sometimes feel imprisoned by your inbox? Either way, we think we’ve got the answer for how anyone (smartphone user or otherwise!) can network better.
If you don’t have an iPhone or an Android phone, fret not – you can still use Hashable via email to keep track of your professional life. Hashable and email are like a match made in digital-Heaven!
The Trick To Using Hashable With Email
It’s easy to get started. First, enter the recipient’s email address. Next, you need to Cc Hashable on the email. You can send to post@hashable.com to hash a public connection, or dontpost@hashable.com to make it a private connection. Choose an appropriate tag to describe the interaction and place it in the subject line (don’t forget the hashtag ‘#‘!). Hashable then saves your email as an activity you can refer back to at anytime.
How To Save an Email Introduction With Hashable
If you want to make an intro via email and have Hashable remember it for you, just use the “introduction” tag (this time, you don’t need to include the hashtag ‘#’!) in the subject line of your email. Any time that you make an intro, we will follow up with the friends that you introduced 5 days later to see if they connected.
If you would prefer Hashable not send a follow-up email to see if your friends connected, simply Bcc dontpost@hashable.com!
Of course, you can send any message you wish in the body of the email. We are fully committed to ensuring your privacy: we never publish the content of an email on Hashable.
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Anything we didn’t cover on this topic that you wish we did? Drop us a question, idea, complaint (or anything!) etc. in the comments below!
Sep
2011
Happy September! Since our release of Hashable Version 2.0, we’ve been working hard to make Hashable quicker, better and more useful. With today’s release, we have. So update your iPhone, because we’ve added the following features:
- Filter by location – Trying to remember that dude’s name from that conference in Dallas? You can now search and browse people you’ve connected with by location. Pick a city, and lo, a menu will drop down with all the places you’ve been.
- Set notes and reminders offline – Stuck in a subway and want to set a reminder or make a note about someone? You can now do this offline – Hashable will sync the data when you regain connectivity. Underground productivity FTW.
- Search notes – You can now search the contents of notes you made on people directly in the app. You can also scan them all in one view via the ‘Filter’ button.
- Hash faster! – Hashable now provides email address autocomplete suggestions for new contacts so you can spend less time typing on a mobile keyboard. Huge.
- Autocomplete profiles – If you hash someone using an email address and that person has a Twitter handle, Hashable will merge the person’s Twitter avatar, name, and bio automatically.
- General upgrade – Performance improvements and bug fixes, so your product can work better
Here’s a quick look at what the updated screen will look like:
Yes, I should probably clear some of those notifications, and yes, I should probably charge my phone. And yes, you should go update your iPhone! Go ahead and download it here . As always, feel free to ping us @hashable, support@hashable.com or comment on this post with feedback or questions. We hope you find this useful!
Sep
2011
People spend an average of $500 on business cards per year. Most everything from bills to mail has gone paperless, but business cards are late to the party. According to GigaOM, virtual business cards have the potential to “retire the business card.” Electronic business cards are a rising trend – so, here are five reasons why you need start riding the trend now:
1. Access Anywhere – You can ‘carry’ your virtual business card anywhere you go because it’s always accessible from your phone. When you send your virtual business card from your mobile device, your contact info appears instantly in the recipient’s phone. No need to manually type in the info or find a paper business card later. No need to go back to your Rolodex on your desk because your contacts are with you everywhere you go.
2. Searchable – Have you ever looked through your stacks of business cards to find someone? Virtual business cards enable you to use powerful search features that allow you to search for names, companies, dates, or even where you met.
3. Update Information Automatically – Don’t you hate it when your email bounces back because someone switched companies? With virtual business cards this doesn’t happen. For example, when you update your contact information on Hashable, your information will be updated in each of your contacts’ address books instantly.
4. Integrate with Social Graph – Virtual business cards often have links to LinkedIn and Twitter profiles. Connect with new contacts on LinkedIn, follow them on Twitter, and maybe even friend them on Facebook. Your contacts are no longer just names on paper, but instead people you can engage with through social media.
5. Convenience – No more worrying about forgetting to bring business cards (or, Heaven forbid, running out!) No need to deal with the awkward exchange. Just email your virtual business card to anyone before, after, or during your meeting. And, you will never run out of business cards again.
As a savvy-sounding-futurist might say, join the digital revolution by creating your virtual business card today! Seriously, it’s effortless. For example, you can create your virtual business card in under a minute using Hashable. Check out our iPhone or Android app and let us know what you think.
Start sending your information to anyone – without using paper. It’s free and simple. See what mine looks like below!
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Do you want my business card? Share your comments below!
Sep
2011
Today, we will learn how one of NYC’s most recognizable, up-and-coming entrepreneurs uses Hashable to make a killer 2nd impression (hint-hint: by consistently following up). Read on to see how Mr. Middleton makes it happen in the city that never sleeps.
Meet A Home-Grown Hashable All-Star From NYC: Jesse Middleton
Before we get to the interview, here’s the lowdown on Jesse:
- Follow Jesse on Twitter here
- Hash with Jesse here
- Check out Jesse’s blog here
- By day: CEO/Co-Founder of @guyhaus, @GetMinders and @WeWorkLabs.
- City of Jesse: New York, NY
- A short bio: “In addition to being a founder, I’m a mentor with @bphealth and used to be a restauranteur.“
1. Can you give us a sample of the type of music on your favorite playlist, and the kind of beer you stock your fridge with?
Well, I grew up with 70s rock and roll. I know I’m young, but my father and mother only listened to that stuff and it grew on me. Billy Joel, Elton John, The Eagles and other artists from that time seem to calm me down the most. I really get into it and usually sing along (which my business partners probably don’t appreciate). As far as beers go, I’ll drink anything but I try to stay gluten free – so I keep my eye on wine, cider and certain hard liquors to relax.
2. Can you a describe a typical day in the life of Jesse Middleton?
Every day is a new adventure. My mornings begin anywhere between 7am and 9am, or when I get to the gym. Recently, I began swimming and it’s probably the most relaxing part of my day. After that, I spend a lot of my day on the phone with business partners (or potential business partners); tackling bits of code with my co-founder, Mike [Oliver]; or planning our next move. The other part of my day includes chatting with customers, mingling with investors and helping run WeWork Labs (the shared office space for entrepreneurs that I co-founded with Matt Shampine and Adam Neumann).
3. If you don’t mind playing ‘the favorites game’, can you share your favorite Hashable feature with us?
Reminders for sure. I set calendar reminders all the time after connections. Following up with people in the future is super important. Sure, first impressions are great – but when you reach back out to someone to see how they’re doing a month later, they really appreciate it. Plus, you never know what might come of that newfound-friendship.
4. How do you describe Hashable?
It’s a super easy way to make introductions and keep track of your real life connections. It’s simple, fast and efficient and it’s available almost anywhere you are (including while offline).
BONUS QUESTION: What is one feature that you would love for Hashable to build?
Well, I’m still waiting on the ‘sync with my calendar’ feature. I want Hashable to recognize that I had a meeting with someone and ask me if I’d like to track it or setup a reminder. During a busy day it’s easy to forget to tag that awesome meeting you had.
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Have any questions you’d like to ask Jesse? Well, go right ahead! Ask away in the comments below.
Aug
2011
Today, we want to show you a really cool way that the Hashable app puts you on the fast track to maintaining your relationships. One of the robust features of our mobile address book is being able to contact your contacts instantly and in a number of ways, directly from the app.
You see, the Hashable address book doesn’t just hold your contacts’ data – instead, you have a number of options at your fingertips for communicating with people quickly.
The Options: Email, Call, Text, or Tweet
When you are looking at a specific contact’s profile in your Hashable app, you can contact the person right there. You can email, call, text, or tweet the contact right from the app.
Now, you can maintain your relationships by staying in touch with your contacts simply and seamlessly.
The Example: Contacting Katie Felten From The Hashable App
To get started, select a contact from the Contacts list. Here, we’ll demonstrate using Katie Felten. Once we tap Katie Felten’s name, we can view her profile. This should show us the contact information she has chosen to put into her Hashable profile; including email address, phone number, and Twitter handle.
To communicate with Katie, we can choose any field from her listed information. Tapping on her email, phone, or Twitter will prompt us to contact Katie.
In this case, we’ll send Katie a text message. If we tap her phone number, we are prompted to either call her or send her a text message – right from the Hashable app! Just type your text message and then tap send.
This makes it easier to stay in touch with your contacts. Try it out and see how easy it is to quickly communicate with your contacts!
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Let us know – what do you think of this feature? Leave us your tips for staying in touch in the comments below!
Aug
2011
*Image credit: Galo Delgado, The Photobooth Project
If you didn’t get a chance to meet our interns from this summer, don’t fret – we’ve got you covered right here. Today, we interview Kishin Manglani and John Exley to find out what they love about the city, what they’ve learned this summer, and what they were up to pre-Hashable days.
Let’s hop to it!
Part I: Meet Hashable’s Business Development + Marketing Intern, Kishin Manglani
*Image credit: Galo Delgado, The Photobooth Project
Before we get to the interview, here’s the lowdown on Kishin:
- Follow Kishin on Twitter here
- Hash with Kishin here
- Check out Kishin’s photography skillz here
- City of Kishin: Murray Hill, New York, NY
- A short bio: “Intern at @Hashable, Intern at @TechCrunch, working on @CrunchBase, VC Analyst, Developer, CS and Business student at @UofPenn”
1. What is your favorite thing about NYC?
As a lifelong New Yorker, it is very difficult for me to narrow it down to just one aspect of this city that I love. I won’t say people, food, and nightlife because these are all pretty obvious answers. Of course these are all awesome, but that’s also why everyone loves New York. The thing that really excites me is the size of the city. Sometimes people forget just how big New York really is. I love being able to walk around and discover new places in different neighborhoods. When I had jury duty for two weeks this summer, I went to 15 different tiny dumpling places in Chinatown, searching for the best, and I had only scratched the surface. Foursquare’s explore feature is very useful when trying to find the best places in any given neighborhood.
The best thing about it all is that I don’t have to drive! I still don’t have my license. I don’t think I would do too well with the rush hour traffic.
2. What was your favorite experience from your summer with Hashable?
Meeting people. The team at Hashable was awesome, and I learned so much from everybody. One of the things that drew me to Hashable was its emphasis on people and relationships. I knew that I would be able to meet brilliant people working at such a cool company.
More specifically, I am really glad that I was able to meet so many great interns here in New York. It is amazing how many college students are so enthusiastic about the tech scene here in New York. When John and I organized the NY tech intern events, the turnout was much higher than expected. It was awesome interning with John this summer. If I could go back in time, I would do it again in a heartbeat.
3. What were the top 1-2 lessons you learned from running your “Computer Repair NY” business back in the day?
1) Discipline – Running a business in middle and high school was a lot of fun. More importantly though, I learned some long lasting lessons that have left a memorable impression. Between working after school, scheduling meetings, and making time to study, it certainly instilled a solid work ethic in me. You cannot just expect things to happen for you because you have particular skills or smarts. Doing stuff is the most important thing. One of my favorite quotes is, “I make my own luck.”
2) Selling – Before my computer repair business, I tried to do web design. I hadn’t even reached my teens when I started. Of course, people can tell when you are only 12 years old. It was very difficult to establish my credibility and sell my services at such a young age. By the time I started doing computer repair, my sales skills got much better. In college I have continued to work with student organizations and startups to hone my selling skills. Whether you are selling yourself or your product, you should aspire to do so extremely well.
THE FINALE: Get To Know Kishin In Three Quick Questions
1. What camera do you use?
2. What languages can you program in?
Java, Ruby, Python, Objective-C.
3. What is one skill you’d like to improve by next summer?
Coding.
Part II: Meet Hashable’s User Support + Community Management Intern, John Exley
*Image credit: Galo Delgado, The Photobooth Project
Before we get to the interview, here’s the lowdown on John:
- Follow John on Twitter here
- Hash with John here
- Check out John’s blog here
- City of John: Rochester, NY
- A short bio: “Loyal. Compassionate. Ambitious. Interning at my dream startup, @Hashable. Aspiring entrepreneur. LOVE learning & helping others! Technology + Fashion + HUSTLE”
1. What is your favorite thing about NYC?
There is no other place on earth where more people regularly perform at a ‘#1 in the world’ level than in NYC. For so many of the things I love, it stands alone as best-on-earth, and I guess it’s this cultural phenomenon as a whole that is my favorite thing about NYC. For example, the city has birthed so many of the best hip hop artists to ever live (Fabolous, Tupac, Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G., 50 Cent, The Diplomats, Wu Tang Clan, et. al.).
Additionally, I grew up playing basketball outdoors all over Rochester and in Bristol, and I looked to Rucker Park in Harlem as holy ground. NYC is the mecca of street basketball and is home to the most famous basketball arena on earth, Madison Square Garden. I could go on…NYC is also a hub for international fashion and is currently undergoing a technology renaissance.
As such, the energy and the ‘hunger to win’ in NYC is absolutely electric. Contagious. It is the greatest city in the world.
2. What was your favorite experience from your summer with Hashable?
Oh man, there are just so many to choose from. I looked to the team at Hashable as my dream team…like the Los Angeles Lakers of the Internet. Being apart of the team alone was amazing. Working together with Kishin all summer and organizing the NYC Interns events with him was also something I won’t forget.
My absolute favorite experience actually took place just 2 weeks ago. My heroine (and boss) Rachel Sklar invited me to be her personal photographer at an event she had organized for Change The Ratio, sponsored by Fashism. The event took place at Cindy Gallop’s infamous ‘The Black Apartment’. Hanging with Rachel and watching her lead a room packed with some of the top female founders in the city (and in the coolest apartment I’ve ever seen) was so sick. Let’s just say ‘The Black Apartment’ is itself something unforgettable haha….
3. What are the top 1-2 lessons you’ve learned from interviewing entrepreneurs on your blog?
It’s all in the preparation, the homework. I learned that telling the story of each entrepreneur who had agreed to be interviewed on my blog in a detailed, compelling fashion was the way I could be most helpful to the entrepreneur. To do so, I researched each individual in depth – reading and watching every interview I could find with the person. I was motivated by the idea of asking questions that hadn’t been captured in any previous interviews about the entrepreneur and his/her company.
Interviewing taught me how to do extensive homework on the background of entrepreneurs and then present his/her story in a compelling, readable way.
THE FINALE: Get To Know John In Three Quick Questions
1. What are your 3 favorite cities?
Rochester, NY (my home city); New York, NY; Rome, Italy.
2. Who is your favorite artist?
3. What is one skill you’d like to improve by next summer?
Writing – higher quality content, faster.
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Have any questions you’d like to ask Kishin and/or John? Well, go right ahead! Ask away in the comments below.