Sorry for the #TweetScare today @KellyGroehler! So lets start out from the beginning! Where did you grow up and attend school?

Kelly:    Thanks. spent childhood in Adrian, MN. Left in 10th grade; graduated from ROCORI H.S. But Adrian will always be home.

Q – #1    After H.S, what did you go on to? Did you know what kind of profession that you wanted to get early in life?

Kelly:    Original plan: sports broadcasting. But I turned down Emerson College. Suzy Kolber at ESPN has my childhood dream job.

Took intro broadcasting class at SCSU (TOP-NOTCH mass comm school). Hated it. I sat in my advisor’s office, crushed.

she suggested PR: Either ask the coach a question as a reporter, or help the coach answer it. That was my PR awakening.

graduated ’93 with a B.S. Mass Comm, PR emphasis/minor: Human Relations from SCSU. Accredited in Public Relations 1998

but I don’t do sports PR. I enjoy being a plain ol’ fan, but I do respect well-handled team PR. To wit: #YANKEES. :)

Q – #2    Great that you found your calling! :) What then was the first job that you got to apply your newly acquired skills?

Kelly:    internship at St. Cloud Hospital; learned I don’t enjoy health care PR. Dad was patient at that time, so didn’t help.

then, 8-month internship at @padillaspeer. A fantastic, grounding experience. I recommend for any graduate.

Q – #3    Take us down the road from the SC Hospital to you getting to end up at Best Buy. How did you know you were a fit?

Kelly:    From @padillaspeer, did short stints at a St. Cloud ad shop, then in Brainerd at Russell & Herder. Back to PSB in ’96.

I was at PSB from ’96 to ’05. Amazing experiences; manufacturing, tech, labor negotiations, supply chain, change mgmt.

learned so much about the value of good communication, and the role of intangible assets like reputation to biz goals.

most importantly, learned to think and speak the language of business, and how to explain PR in those terms.

Best Buy – came here in ’05 to help build corporate PR capability, reputation mgmt & comms strategy for sustainability

understanding how sourcing, supply chain, labor, manufacturing works helped immensely in a retail environment.

Q – #4    Nice! With your experience, how have you seen technology/internet change how PR is done? Has it effected the quality?

Kelly:    It has affected quality. we get caught up w/new channels like SM. Adoption curve; PR principles needed more than ever.

There is an adoption curve while we all figure out the best way to approach a new channel: earned, paid, owned, or all.

the lines between paid-earned-owned are fuzzier than ever with social media.

Principled PR approach to SM – audience, message, prioritize, focus, proactive, relevance, perseverance – will prevail.

I’m happy tech is here to stay; we need to adapt PR principles to new ways of engaging stakeholders & sharing stories

Q – #5     In your mind, when a CO. is hiring a Social Media Manager, what should be the top skill – PR, Marketing, cust serv?

Kelly:    Depends on where the position is staffed. I don’t think social media warrants own department. It’s a set of channels.

If it’s in PR, I’m looking for a PR manager with experience integrating social media into communications strategies.

It’s highly unlikely we’d ever seek a social media manager, or seek to create a position so specific to one channel

Q – #6    Good points! Lets shift gears.  Please reveal your own @vanityfair version of “My Stuff”. What’s your “stuff”?

Kelly:    have you ever seen one of those lists? I was kidding – we’d be here all day

Q – #7    It was new to me, but I’d figure that I’d play. :)  FAVORITE(S): Restaurant, store, comfort food, recent book or blog?

Kelly:    Restaurant: MSP – @travailkitchen, Manny’s, Fuji Ya, @Barbette, @tilia. NYC: Balthazar, Del Posto, Republic (noodles!)

And I LOVE the cereal milk soft serve & compost cookies at @momofuku Milk Bar, East Village NYC

comfort food: Anything Ole whips up (mac/cheese, Spinach-scallion-jalapeno pizza, marinara). Also love roasted chicken.

recent book: I’m ashamed to admit I have a list a mile long on my iPhone, but haven’t cracked open a new one in 1 year.

I do read @Fortune & @VanityFair issues cover to cover. NatGeo, too. I reread Salem’s Lot this summer (favorite book).

favorite blogs: Same Rowdy Crowd, Smart Politics, Daily Beast, HuffPost. @freshtart to drool. @judy3x for crazypants.

ah! One last comfort food: @Aveda tea.

Q – #8    Busy mom! To close, what’s one goal that you have, personally or professionally, that you hope to reach soon?

Kelly:    Happy, well-adjusted teenage boy. T-minus four years to go! Professionally: an overseas assignment and a CCO role.

@JoelECarlson:    Thanks SOOO much for your time and comments today Kelly. I hope that you reach your goals soon. Have a good week!

Kelly:    Joel, this was fun. Thanks very much for the opportunity!

Hello everybody. Happy to be on Twitter instead of Facebook? :) Lets get started now with the Twitterview of @FoxyFalafel.

Q – #1    So @FoxyFalafel (Erica), what was life like growing up in South Dakota? Did you live in town or have acres?

Erica:    I grew up on the farm on a river with acreage. A great way to grow up and I’m very thankful for that!

Q – #2    So did you raise animals? If so, which ones did you have? What made you decide to go to school in NY?

Erica:    We raised pigs till I was in Jr. High and my grandparents who lived 5 miles from us raised cattle and chickens.

It was always fun to have animals around. We learned the circle of life at a young age. We had cats and dogs too.

I decided to go to NYC b/c I found the @nutritionschool (Institute for Integrative Nutrition)#bestfit

The founder of the @naturalgourmet Anne Marie Colbin spoke at @nutritionschool and I was hooked!

The @naturalgourmet was founded on the principle that what we eat affects our physical, mental and spiritual well-being

Q – #3    For those that missed your video on http://www.youtube.com/JoelECarlson, how did you come to learn about the making of Falafels?

Erica:    After culinary school I worked w/ an israeli chef for 2 years. I learned middle eastern and Mediterranean flavors

And the art of falafels!

Q – #4    So when did you start making Falafels in Minnesota and start prepping the sauces that you would bring to markets?

Erica:    Foxy debuted last summer at @kingfieldmarket All the sauces and pickled items started then too, but has grown since.

Q – #5    Besides @kingfieldmarket, where else can you be found, and what’s the “Smoothie workout”?

Erica:    Pedal Powered Smoothies & Kombucha @MCFarmersMkt Blender attached to a bike. You can pedal your own!

Q – #6     So what options does a person have when the order a falafel?

Erica:    Curry, Beet, or Foxy Falafel w/ hummus & seasoned cabbage in a pita topped w/ cukes & tomatoes. Your choice of sauces

Sauces are Cucumber Mint Yogurt, Green Tahini, Spicy Harissa and Amba (pickled mango) sauce

Lots of pickles too! Baby bell peppers, onions, cauliflower, hot peppers, banana peppers, dill pickles

Q – #7    Tell us more about yourself. FAVORITE(S) Restaurant, store, comfort food, recent book or blog, herb/spice.

Erica:    Love @namastecafe, just tried Bachelor Farmer. Yummy

Really enjoying stewed meats and warming comfort food as it gets colder.

Q – #8    You can share a few of them. :) What are your plans for the future with your business?

Erica:    Future plans are to keep on feeding people delicious food! More to come so watch twitter for details!

Q – #9    So how much longer will your falafels be available to the public? What’s the Foxy-Falafel season? :)

Erica:    @kingfieldmarket ends October 30th. You can get the falafels there and then stay tuned for winter events/distribution!

The farmers market season typically runs from the end of May till the end of October.

I do caterings too so people can feel free to contact me for events!

@JoelECarlson    That’s awesome Erica! Thanks so much for you time and comments today. A video of how Falefels are made will be out soon!

Erica:    Thank you Joel! So much fun to meet you! I hope you have a great day! Come and eat a falafel anytime!