Where I am now....  I've started a new venture; applying my social Web knowledge to help tourism-related companies and organizations navigate social media. On September 9, 2009, Oklahoma-based entrepreneur Becky McCray and I launched Tourism Currents, a membership site and learning community for tourism professionals. We feature social media training materials (with a new lesson every month) a moderated private member forum, exclusive interviews, a free newsletter and more. To find out more and consider membership, we answer the question - Is Tourism Currents right for you? Related sites and info:  You're welcome to visit Sheila's Guide To The Good Stuff, my personal blog about using social media and technology to enhance travel and tourism.  We'd love to have you as a fan on our Tourism Currents Facebook Fan Page, and you're welcome to follow Tourism Currents on Twitter. Almost daily, we put up interesting social media, tech and tourism links on our Tourism Currents Delicious page (a public bookmarking/Favorites site.)   Also related to the travel and tourism industries....I'm on the Marketing Advisory Board for the innovative travel metasearch site UpTake, based in Palo Alto, California, and I'm one of the Travel Insights 100 group of travel writers and thought leaders in the industry.    In March 2010, I was honored to be selected by the Austin American-Statesman news organization as one of 25 Texas Social Media Award winners state-wide, in recognition of my work in helping destinations use social media tools to tell the compelling stories of their towns to a worldwide audience of prospective visitors.     Becky and I look forward to continuing our work in the social Web, particularly as it can benefit economic development and downtown development programs both large and small.                Where I was before.... Most of my social media consulting and training work since mid-2008 was with Connie Reece and Every Dot Connects, part of Austin, Texas-based Reece & Company, "savvy communications for the digital age." We've offered hands-on, practical, no fear workshops to teach people how to use social media tools and applications like blogging, LinkedIn professional networking, Twitter, Facebook and simple online video like YouTube. Corporate, nonprofit and governmental training is also available; in December 2008 I held two full days of workshops for numerous staff Cox Ohio journalists with the Dayton Daily News, focusing on writing for the Web and creating powerful online content. Every Dot Connects consulting includes working with companies on social media communication strategy and integrated campaign creation. For example, HomeAway.com vacation rentals hired us to help them launch their new blog/microsite and run a successful social media-based giveaway contest. Contestants participated using blog posts, Flickr photo galleries and YouTube videos - it was a perfect fit for our skill set.  For the latest news, please visit these associated blogs and sites: Every Dot Connects, for Web 2.0/social media insights The Every Dot Connects Facebook business page (become a fan at the digital storefront!)

Sheila Scarborough featured in AustinWoman magazine It was an honor to be featured along with several other "Social Media Mavens" in the March 2009 issue of AustinWoman Magazine. Feature Profile: Sheila Scarborough, Blogger

What the heck is Twitter? It's just another social media tool for connecting; sort of a way to IM/chat worldwide with lots of people - I'm @SheilaS on Twitter. I saw it for the first time at South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) 2007, and I'm now a featured Austin local to follow in the Austin American-Statesman. To shed some light, I wrote a guest post for the very active Australian site ProBlogger: Why Twitter Isn't a Waste of Time

Over and over, I hear the same question....how do I get traffic to my blog? Here is my answer for corporate and B2B blogging, published in the monthly Bulldog Solutions Marketing Watchdog Journal: How to Build a Blog that Draws a Crowd I also wrote an article about LinkedIn for the Journal: Fly-by-Night Fad - Or the Best Networking Tool Around?

Sheila at Jelly Coworking Round Rock TX Sure, the solitary life of a freelancer or solo entrepreneur has its advantages, but sometimes we miss that "office water cooler" networking and support. Taking matters into my own hands, I launched Jelly Coworking Round Rock (TX) in early 2009 - it's an opportunity for independent creatives to get together about once a week to exchange news and ideas, plus we occasionally collaborate on projects.  I'm proud to be a part of the growing entrepreneurship and startup network in Williamson County. I built our Jelly Round Rock wiki page and also set up our Jelly Round Rock Flickr pool. Stop by sometime if you're in the Austin area on Jelly day!

Thanks to my blogging work and presence on Twitter, I was invited to participate in the China 2.0 tour in Beijing and Shanghai. My distinguished group included TechCrunch UK and Ireland journalist Mike Butcher, author Shel Israel and representatives from innovative companies like Web2Asia, Edelman Digital and the China Business Network. Here is my tour participant profile on the China-focused CNReviews blog: China 2.0 Tour profile: Sheila Scarborough