Holiday Message from the SFIMA President

Dear all SFIMA Members, Sponsors, Partners... I should just say "Friends".

Here’s wishing you and yours the best of holidays. An entire season as magical and warm as when you were ten years old and opened the biggest present you’d ever seen and played with it for days and weeks on end... I hope you too can relive those experiences with your children, grandchildren, nephew/nieces, friends or that special person that you love with your whole heart.

Feel proud that we as an organization have helped many children feel the magic of the season with our Toys for Tots drive. Over 75 gifts were collected this year at our Annual Wine Social benefiting the US Marine Corps. We really stepped it up this year despite the economic climate to help the children of South Florida.

Of course, life is not all about the materialistic things, but the simplicity and greatness of knowing that the people you have surrounded yourself with all love and care about you - and if this isn't the case in your life, then make some changes because you are worth more than that! 2010 is a great time to refresh and reboot...

I have had the pleasure of meeting so many of you through my term as President, and you have made my experience at SFIMA better. So, thank you. And if you enjoyed 2009... Well "baby, you ain't seen nothing yet"! The SFIMA website is being redesigned by BGT Partners, we have an Internet Marketing "Summit" in the Spring, and some great programming, such as the Dolphins' Marketing VP in January, and so much more.

And, I wouldn't be doing my job as President if I didn't tell you to save the date for February 26th for the Full Day Workshop for SFIMA's Internet Marketing Bootcamp 200-level focusing on Search and Social Media. This is not the typical 101 session that you may have attended somewhere else. This is the real deal to help you grow personally and find business success in 2010! Sign up or check our more details.

And with that, I wish all of you health, wealth, happiness, smiles, laughs and many more good times to come. I raise my glass to you as I write this blog and I toast each and every one of you.

Happy Holidays and Be Safe

Taigh White
President, SFIMA

South Florida Association for Women in Communications Now Taking Nominations for Woman of the Year

South Florida Association for Women in Communications Now Taking Nominations for Woman of the Year!

The Women of the Year awards recognize women who drive positive change in the South Florida community through communications. Nominations must be submitted online no later than April 1, 2010 by 12:00 a.m.

If you’d like to nominate someone you think is an outstanding woman in communications, please submit your NOMINATION today!

The awards span a number of categories, including:
• Lifetime Achievement
• Advertising, Marketing & Public Relations
• Communications Education
• Corporate Communications
• Print Media• Government
• Nonprofit• Radio• Technology and Graphics Production
• Television
• Law

Google's New 5 Click Free Rule for Content Ads

Google has decided to limit sampling of paid content on publishers' sites -- to five free clicks daily per user. Well, actually, it's given publishers the option to do so.

Publishers who charge for content will find that Google has changed the parameters of its First Click Free program. The changes, published on Google's blog Tuesday, come after News Corp's Rupert Murdoch threatened to remove content from Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and other sites in Google search results. Reports also floated around online that he would pay Microsoft to exclusively index content. The issues are related to the fact that Google makes money from other publisher's content.

In the previous incarnation of First Click Free, users who accessed a particular article from a publisher's paid content through Google had to be allowed to read the entire piece. Non-subscribers would therefore use Google to get around pay walls. Now publishers can choose to limit that access further, to only five free clicks a day.

Google suggests the update protects the typical person from cloaking -- "the practice of presenting different content or URLs to users and search engines," according to its definition -- while allowing publishers to focus on potential subscribers who are accessing a lot of their content on a regular basis.

To see the rest of the article and analysis of how it will affect advertising & content, please see the whole article on MediaPost

Participate in SFIMA's Holiday Wine Social Event

Looking for a way to promote your business at the SFIMA holiday wine event? The SFIMA holiday wine tasting party is next Thursday, December 10, 2009.



You can get your company name promoted by SFIMA if you would like to bring a prize for the gift raffle. Any prizes are welcome!

Here are some prize suggestions:
Popcorn tins
Corporate prizes
Holiday Snack Baskets
Holiday Cookies
Wine/Spirit Gift Baskets
Flowers

Thanks to those who have already contributed prizes:

Godiva Chocolates
SantaSuits.com
ShortRunCards.com

Want to join this list and join the fun? Email: sponsorship (at) sfima.com

Tis the Season for Giving & Winning at the SFIMA Holiday Wine Social

The annual SFIMA Holiday Wine Social Networking event is next Thursday, December 10th!



This is an event not to be missed! Wine tasting, networking and lots of holiday cheer! This is also an opportunity for giving this holiday season, SFIMA is holding a toy drive for Toys for Tots! Please bring a new, unwrapped toy! This toy will brighten a needy child's holiday in our own community! In addition to feeling really great about yourself, you will also receive 2 extra tickets for our holiday prize raffle!

SFIMA Educational Workshop Video Recap

The testimonials keep pouring in from those who have been to a SFIMA workshop. Stay tuned and be sure to sign up for the next one!

Nautical Networking Event 2009 Video

Whether you were on board for the NNE or if you might have missed this amazing event, you have got to check out the video and see what the SFIMA Nautical Networking Event is all about!

SFIMA Holiday Party & Toy Drive - Please Join Us!

Thursday, 12-10-2009

Holiday Wine Party - In Support of the U.S. Marine Corps' South Florida

In the spirit of holiday giving, let's show the children of South Florida that we care! The Marines will be on hand to collect all of the donated toys, please bring a NEW unwrapped gift to this year's Holiday Wine Party and feel rewarded for giving to those in need.

As a thank you for supporting this very worthy cause and making the holidays brighter for our local children, you will be entered two additional times for the Grand Prize Drawing!

Join SFIMA and our sponsors as we celebrate the holidays with an international array of wines and appetizers. You'll receive a complimentary sampling card, that allows you to taste approximately 4-8 different wines. This is your chance to taste high-end and exotic wines. You will enjoy tantalizing hors d'oeuvres and festive company with South Florida's premiere marketers!

Plus, there will be terrific holiday prizes from our sponsors including a Godiva Chocolate gift. Come enjoy some food and wine while you network with marketing professionals.




Sign up today! Our last event sold out.

Member registration
Non-member registration

About the venue:
The Seventh Street Wine Company is a completely new concept which will allow customers the unique opportunity to taste a hundred wines drawn from our stock of 1500 wines using state of the art, computerized and customer friendly dispensing machines from Italy. Ample parking behind the building and at the adjacent bank parking lot.



Visit www.SeventhStreetWine.com for more information on their champagne bar and unique vintages.

Note: Register early to avoid the $10 walk-up charge.

SFIMA Text Alerts

Join the SFIMA Text Alert program by texting the word SFIMA to: 247365.

Benefits include:

• Monthly Alerts about events (we will not send more than 3 messages per month. No spam here)
• Last minute event updates and special announcments.

JOIN Today!

Event Details Time/Date: 6:30-10:00 Thursday, 12-10-2009 Place: 7th Street Wine Company 701 S Federal Hwy Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316 Contact: membership@sfima.com Member Cost & Registration No Cost for SFIMA Members Non Member Cost & Registration $39