In order to introduce myself into this blog-crazy world, and for you to get to know me better, I'd like to share the story of how I got my first job in online marketing. This is relevant because it has to do with online shopping, which generally is my more preferable shopping channel.
Time: Circa very late 1999 - very early 2000
Obsession: A pair of black leather, calf-high Via Spiga boots with the perfect heel height
Major Dilemma: Could not live without them
It all started when I spotted the perfect pair of Via Spiga boots in a store and they didn't have my size. Don't you just hate that?
Well, if this had been in, let's say 1996, what options were there? Not many, as we may all remember. Driving to 10 different malls and stores with our fingers crossed that the next one was going to be the one? Fun? Not so much.
Well, lucky for me it was late 1999 - early 2000 and this wondrous little thing called the INTERNET was really catching on like wild fire! It was just nuts! And what was the best thing on the Internet? GOOGLE!! OK, so I have to admit, it wasn't like I put the name of the boots in the search bar and voila! It was more like, how many different ways could I enter search phrases that would give me something *close* to what I wanted. And then, the patience to click on all those links, search the sites, to see if maybe, just maybe, my boots were there. Well finally, because I AM NOT A QUITTER, I found a store in some town in Florida I had never heard of, but I didn't really care because they had my boots in my size. Oh happy day!!
What on earth does this have to do with my first job in online marketing? Well, as you also may remember, that was the height of the dot-com bubble and I was in the midst of an early mid-life crisis involving a major career change. The Internet sounded like an interesting opportunity, so on my very first interview, which was with an online marketing company, I was asked the question "do you have any experience with the Internet?" Online talent was pretty sparse at that time as you can imagine. My answer? I told that story. That, my sparkling personality, intelligence, and kick-ass interview skills got me the job.
Whoever said shopping was not a productive, life-altering activity has no idea what they are talking about.
