Review: Summit 2022 Opening General Session, “Trustworthy: How to Foster Trust in a Brand Through Better Content”

By Maralee Sautter, IDL SIG Manager

Margot Bloomstein was the opening keynote speaker at the 2022 Summit. She is a respected content strategist and author who has worked with many large companies to improve their marketing strategies. She is the author of Trustworthy: How the Smartest Brands Beat Cynicism and Bridge the Trust Gap and Content Strategy at Work: Real-World Stories to Strengthen Every Interactive Project and is the principal of Appropriate, Inc., a brand and content strategy consultancy based in Boston. 

Her engaging presentation was How to Foster Trust in a Brand Through Better Content.  She contends that in today’s economy, organizations need a new strategy to earn trust and help consumers and citizens make confident decisions. Audiences have become more cynical and mistrusting of large companies and authorities because the information delivered is no longer trustworthy. Continue reading “Review: Summit 2022 Opening General Session, “Trustworthy: How to Foster Trust in a Brand Through Better Content””

So many awards, so much time (2021-2022)

It takes time to apply for STC recognition, so we are pleased the IDL SIG team came back from the 2022 Summit Honors Reception with a lot to celebrate. Our team and individuals worked long hours in 2021 to fill out and submit the necessary forms. We were rewarded with the following awards and honors:

At the Honors Reception, we also had fun cheering for Jamye Sagan, who received her 2021 Associate Fellow award.

IDL members Li-At (Ruttenburg) Rathbun and Ben Woelk collected their Fellow awards during the Honors Reception, as well.

Congratulations to our IDL SIG members for their many accomplishments!

Summit 2021: Finding Access in a Virtual World

By Anita Matechuk

Living in a northern community has its benefits. For example, the scenery is breathtaking and heavy traffic means my 5-minute commute across town turns to 10 minutes. However, access is not one of them, as the nearest city is an 8 ½ hour drive away. We have an airport, but the planes are so small that there isn’t assigned seating, and flights are expensive. So you get used to your company not including you in functions, as flights are too expensive and you would spend more time traveling than at the event.

When I heard how organizations and activities were going virtual, I started researching my options. I now had more access to schooling, work, and events; and I was excited to participate. For example, companies offering remote work meant I had access to jobs outside my community, and I couldn’t wait to discover what was available.

Not only could I choose a new career in Tech Comm, but I could take training in it from any school I wanted. It just so happened that the school I wanted offered my desired program virtually even before the pandemic. Still, I would never have expected it before.

Converting my quilting guild to a virtual guild showed me how many people had wanted to be a part of the in-person guild but could not attend. Mobility, travel, and childcare concerns had prevented some members from joining, and our virtual guild now provides them access.

I’m taking advantage of every virtual activity I can, from quilting retreats to STC’s Summit. This year might be my only year to attend a live Summit, and I wasn’t going to miss out. Being a student volunteer made me attend sessions I would never have attempted on my own. Granted, some of them were beyond my skill level, but I learned something from all of them.

I didn’t hear the din of a massive crowd in a conference room. The hush that takes over as a presenter steps up to speak. Still, I did get to hear friends talk about how good it was to see each other and colleagues discuss different aspects of their jobs. The smell of coffee came only from my cup, but I won’t forget how I didn’t feel alone rushing from session to session and smiling at a few technical whoops.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Summit, and I hope that someday I might attend again.