My Changing Worlds and Internet World

This time last year I was living in Hampshire, England, working full-time building the audio branding consultancy Sound Strategies with my business partners, while addicted to social media and helping to run the Social Media Club in London. I also devoted three full days absorbing in the 'technology' conference, Internet World.

How things have changed.

In February this year, I permanently relocated back to Northern Bavaria, Germany, where my husband works at one of the several Siemens businesses headquartered here. I've now spent more years outside my native Scotland than in it, taking in Switzerland, France and England on the way. Strangely, once you start a family somewhere and become part of the community, it becomes your home. In a very real sense, we've come back home, I just don't speak the language as well as my children!

After much soul-searching, I've also decided to return to mainstream international communications, ideally for one of the several local corporations, either as an employee or through my consultancy RPPR Limited. I'll be thrilled to add in for good measure a dose of social media, as one thing that hasn't changed is my conviction that it is permanently changing how we communicate with each other. In the meantime, I'll remain an active member of Sound Strategies Advisory Board, and drive ahead with some internet-based business and client public relations projects.

If, as you read this, you have any thoughts or suggestions, projects I can support you with, or people I should speak to at companies including Siemens, Adidas, Puma, Playmobil, Staedtler, and Stabilo I'd love to hear from you at ronna(dot)porter(at)btinternet(dot)com.

So why mention Internet World? Well, Internet World 2008 kicks off again at Earls Court in London tomorrow for three days - 29 April to 1 May, and were I in London I'd definately be there as its a great value (ie. free) opportunity to learn about and emerse yourself in the marketing and new media imperatives of the internet. My greatest pleasure at Internet World 2007 was recognising that it was no longer a technology exhibition and conference, but a business and marketing one. You really don't have to have spent much of your working life in the technology and telecommunications business, as I have, to get a huge amount out of going along.

Another reason for mentioning Internet World 2008, is that my Sound Strateges business partner, Michael Spencer will be closing the Enterprise Content Management Conference at 15:00 on 1 May, picking up on our reseach that only 2% of multinational companies show strategic thinking in the use of sound on their websites. Michael would love to meet you if you make it along to the exhibition.