Welcome to MAYAMI:Wynwood

MAYAMI Mexicantina & Bar (127 NW 23rd Street) is the newest "it" place to be in Miami. Brought to us by the same people that opened El Patio, the location is a 10,000-square-foot Mexican-inspired indoor and outdoor restaurant and lounge that gives off total Tulum vibes with the mix of the artsy Wynwood neighborhood. Mayami is open for dinner, happy hour and brunch from with different operating hours, depending on the day of the week. Though, the place says it closes at midnight, the waiters pass out the tabs at 11:30, music is cut off and lights are turned on as a way to have all guests leave by midnight and have no one lingering around the premises.

From the outside the location looks like a simple restaurant in the middle of busy Wynwood but once you walk in, you become teleported to a Mexican temple. The restaurant is lined with stone sculptures, wood carvings, traditional mural paintings, with the main focus being the ziggurat-shaped ceiling replicating the inside of a Mayan Pyramid. The space mixes the nightlife feel of El Patio with a restaurant by featuring an expansive pyramid-shaped bar, multi-level Terrazas, stages, and numerous VIP booths. 

Mayami menu is filled with Mexican-inspired dishes like guacalote, queso fresco and tacos with various proteins alongside larger dishes filet mignon. Meals can be paired with creative cocktails using Mexican ingredients. My favorite of the night was a surprisingly, easy-to-drink Mezcal-based cocktail, shaken with 400 Conejos mezcal, corn syrup, lime juice, real agave azul and egg white, served with a hibiscus salt rim. 

Though this place is my new it place to drink, dance and smoke hookah, the food needs a lot of work. There was nothing wow or even tasty that I tried and was actually very disappointed in the presentation and lack of ingredients used to cook. I always find that Mexican cuisine should always remain as true to it's natural ingredients as it can. When you start to alter the dish and replace traditionally ingredients the flavor gets lost in translation.  Overall, I would rate this place a 8 out 10 just taking points off for the food and early dismissal. 

The importance of social media monitoring

Whether a small new business or a world wide known brand, there is a huge importance on knowing what individual's are saying about your brand online. 

Social media monitoring is the act of watching a brand or business’s online engagement through reviews, mentions, questions or complaints towards them. More importantly, social media monitoring extends out to posts that mention the business or brand without tagging them directly. These posts do not come up in the page’s regular network notifications, which is why it is important to set up social monitoring tools to avoid bad comments and reviews. A few weeks ago, I mentioned the importance of social listening, which is when the brand or business just takes an overall look at customers wants and needs through research to make future marketing decisions. But monitoring takes listening a step further by responding when they need to. Therefore, monitoring involves more human effort, filtering, which needs to be set up, and time. 

Moreover, there are a number of metrics to monitor and track but some have more significant, such as mentions, customer sentiment, reviews, hashtags, and competition. The easiest way to stay in concurrence to the social media conversation about your business is to track all brand mentions the company receives on all social media platforms (including social media profiles on Facebook, Yelp and Google, all of which have native reviews). Many companies use social media monitoring to focus their attention on which posts are worth addressing, especially negative reviews. Using the hashtag metric allows brands or businesses to get a feel for how their targeted audience perceives the company. Another metric that companies monitor is observing their competition, to discover the ways in which the competitors are having more success than, and when to apply the same tactics. 

As mentioned, social media monitoring involves the tracking of online brand mentions and the subsequent responding of them. Monitoring keeps a business or brand on top of messages before they might become viral for the wrong reasons. They also help maintain a positive brand image among consumers and identify potential influencers. When choosing the right monitoring tool, a company needs it to cover all the networks that they are presently on and hopefully all in one space. Some apps that allow social media monitoring focusing on social customer care and maximizing the value of a brand or companies’ campaigns are Hootsuite, which oversees all of social media management and marketing while creating a one-stop shop for brand's social media marketing needs, and social mention which allows the monitoring of social, video, blogs and more, by just entering the search term and the tool pulls up everything that is being said about it. Ultimately, monitoring social media is a strategy that is critical for any brand or company whether small or large. 

Endless Summer

          

Who is ready for an Endless Summer getaway? This past week I was fortunate enough to spend my 31st birthday at Universal's newest resort: Endless Summer Resort. I wanted to share my overall experience and review on the resort, so if you are interested and were thinking of booking this resort read along. 

First and foremost, let's talk about how NEW everything looks and smells which is always a a big perk for any resort with such a vast amount of occupants. As soon as you walk into the lobby your temperature is checked and a colored armband signifying each day is given. Currently, there is no pool or hotel hopping due to Covid measures but the shuttle to the parks and CityWalk are functioning with spacing precautions. The resort has two towers (Dockside & Surfside) for the time being the only rooms available are on the Dockside towers. The lobby has great modern beach décor with a Starbucks and Sunset Lounge attached. This side of the resort is known for it's great sunset views, so don't forget to grab a drink and enjoy the view from the Sunset Lounge.

We booked a double queen bed room with a pool view and I was highly impressed with our room. If you have ever been to any Margaritaville resort, the rooms and décor are very similar with the relaxed beach themes. I slept like a baby all three nights and have zero complaints about the room. The bathroom is filled with great lighting, a spacious shower and the most beautiful mint floor mosaic I have ever seen. 

The pool area must have been my favorite with its heated pool, speakers underwater and the sand. Looking out into the water definitely makes you feel like you are washed away in a resort on a tropical island. The pool does not go deeper than five feet and is huge, so it makes it a great place for kids, families and those who just want to relax and get some sun. The bar is open for drinks but if you want to get some snacks or lunch, you have to go to the lobby market, where you can order and take your food to eat poolside. Overall, this is a great value resort for both families and those who want to get away for some time. I will definitely be making another reservation to visit very soon. 

Why create video content

Social media platforms are constantly evolving to provide authentic social interactions and engagement, which, as a result, social media engagement has become a vital part of any marketing strategy. Currently, there is an importance in creating content that stands out and using videos in social media marketing has a huge importance in engagement. Though video does not fall into the traditional social marketing, videos can be used throughout all platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or even a blog post. It is not too hard to see why videos are so popular these days and anyone headed towards digital marketing careers should incorporate video into their content in order to remain competitive. Videos are a versatile and engaging content format that consumers like because it is entertaining and engaging, allowing marketers a potentially huge return on investment (ROI) through many channels.

Moreover, videos are accessible to anyone with internet access, both to watch and to produce. In the last year, videos have grown popularity due to their connection, demonstration of personalities, brand awareness and engagement. Videos are one of the best ways to get up close to your audience and give them a real glimpse of what you or your business are all about. Statistics show that about more than fifty percent of world watches videos online every day, and social media videos generate up to twelve thousand percent more shares than texts and images combined. These numbers represent why video content marketing is significantly important. The key is to think beyond profit and product show and show the audience something about the brand, or offer some valuable information through creative content. 

Additionally, videos give anyone creating content the same reach, influence, and opportunities previously enjoyed only by large corporations and media companies. Video marketing allows users to reach a larger audience with very little cost. Whenever users feel none inspired by their own content creation, joining discussions or groups allows ideas to flow and be shared among other content creators. Discussions are meant to keep learning and expanding through the sharing of shared interest or goals, for example a user can join a video marketing discussion to get ideas for new projects or learn tips for starting out. Ultimately, videos on social media is proving to be the most powerful business asset for gaining new followers, growing your brand, and driving sales. 

Why skinny jeans are dead

Recently, a Tik Tok trend went viral discussing how Gen Zs want to cancel the wear of skinny jeans, but as a Millennial, I might have to to agree with them. There is no doubt that when skinny jeans first grew popularity, they were a revelation. They accentuated the butt, elongated your legs, and were high-rise, so before you attack me, here are my reasons why. 

Yes, skinny jeans were once an outfit stable but let's be real, skinny jeans now just make me look lumpy, stuffed and overexposes my body's problem areas. Not to mention that skinny jeans have largely been non-existent on the runways for several seasons now, and no matter what I pair them with, the proportions somehow always just feel all wrong. Another factor that led to the demise of the skinny jeans is the dreaded jeggings. As soon as they started to mix the denim with too much stretch, it just became trashy. Yes, the fabric is extremely comfortable but, so are sweats. Not to mention, that the materials you find in your typical pair of skinny jeans or jeggings is unrecyclable and deeply bad for the planet. 

Now I know, I am not the only one that feels this way either. The truth is, as we get older and our bodies change, showing off our curves or wearing tight clothes is no longer a big priority. I am now in my thirties, and I worry more about feeling sexy rather than showing too much. I prefer to invest in feeling comfortable rather than being in some tight jeans. Sadly, Millennials need to move on from their skinny jeans phase and begin to buy bootcuts, straight legs, wide legs and baggy styles which are classic alternatives to swap out your skinny jeans with. 

*See examples below