Week 4 : Jim Mitchem

This week, Jim Mitchem, is our spotlight of the week.

Jim is a father, husband, copywriter and founder of smashcommunications.com. You can find him on Twitter @smashadv

Tell us more about yourself, what do you do? Where you come from? Where are you headed?

I am a copywriter that owns an ad agency. It’s the most dangerous business proposition known to man. Based in Charlotte. Native Floridian. Two daughters. A wife. Some dogs. It’s a very good life. Oh, and I have no idea what I’m having for dinner much less what’s going to happen in the future.

More about http://www.obsessedwithconformity.com/ ?

Obsessed with Conformity is my initial take at blogging. It’s a blog is for writers – as I recruit colleagues on Twitter to guest post as a way to help build reciprocal equity. The blog is intended to be a venue for strong writing – regardless of topic.

How did you find out about twitter?

I was having lunch with a friend in November 2008. We were talking about the popularity of Facebook and he asked if I was into Twitter yet. I said no, and that I didn’t see its commercial applicability. The next week I tried it – and had an epiphany.

Tell us more about your Twittering experience.

I came to Twitter blind. I followed blindly. I tweeted blindly. And in January I was blindsided by an attack of several dozen ‘hate’ bots after I tweeted how proud I was of America (prior to the inauguration). I locked down, cleaned house and reevaluated why I was here. At the time I had about 200 followers that I trusted. But I was fascinated with the prospect of developing a virtual network of industry peers and thanks to the urging of a few special people in Twitter, I unlocked my account and reemerged into the stream. Better for what happened.

How often do you twitter and mostly what for?

I twitter daily, about whatever pops into my head. As a copywriter, this is a perfect venue. Remember, I am trained to write billboards – where you get one second to catch and hold eyeballs. To me, 140 is a novel.

Any set goals with Twitter?

No real goals. Some ideas. Some things brewing. But mostly I use Twitter for real time interaction with people who are a lot smarter than me. It’s a great place to learn. I use Twitter as an inspiration tool.

Is twitter helping you get your message out in the open?

Yes. My message is simple – I can make you think about something in a new way. Or I can piss you off. Or make you laugh or cry. It’s not unlike doing my job as a copywriter. Except, here I get to talk with people I ‘know’

Do you use Facebook? If yes, which has been more effective towards your cause, Twitter or Facebook?

I use Facebook as a more intimate, personal place to connect with ‘my life’ (my family). I like Facebook because of the extended shelf life of ideas. In Twitter, your idea (a tweet) is in and out of the stream in a matter of minutes or seconds. Then it’s history. In Facebook, ideas are displayed longer – and they’re more manageable.

Rate your experience on Twitter, on a scale of 1 to 10.

My experience on Twitter is 8.6

Any message to our readers?

Yes – always tell the truth, there’s less to remember.

Your contact info on twitter, facebook and other social networking and connecting platforms.

@smashadv in twitter, Jim Mitchem in Linkedin, and my agency website is smashcommunications.com

Some More Pictures of Jim

Jim Mitchem

orange-jim

Jim as a boy