www.galfromdownunder.com
Gal for hire | Other credentials
Lynette wasn't exactly a model Chinese student: she was more excited about effectively marketing the monthly school disco than Calculus IV. Computers. After spending many nights on a computer science degree and many days as an ORACLE analyst/programmer, she kicked off a new career in advertising by winning the top Student Honors at the Australian Writers and Art Directors School. Advertising. Mentored by Siimon Reynolds, she became a diligent student at last, scoring numerous Australian advertising awards, serving on local and international awards juries and winning a Cannes Advertising Festival Bronze Lion in one of its toughest judging years. Bicycling. She then jumped on folding bicycle and pedaled into a new sunrise. Working and traveling. En route she worked as a senior copywriter at Saatchi & Saatchi Ireland and Creative Director for Saatchi Costa Rica; she declined offers to climb ladders in favor of work that keeps you out on a windy ledge and learning tough: waitress, trainee chef, manager of a mountain top Costa Rican hotel, and spending a freezing winter outside Windsor Castle dressed as an Edwardian Lady. Customer Evangelism. In 2002, she landed in the USA as salesperson then later, Chief Online Content Creator for Bike Friday, maker of the world's leading travel bicycle. She quickly filled the company's website with rich, adventure-laden multimedia content that readers say "makes them late for work". Revenue doubled over this period and site traffic regularly surpassed that of more famous bicycle brands. Seeking to draw this cult-like community even further under the Bike Friday spell, she went on the road as the company's card-carrying Customer Evangelist, "taking relationship marketing to the nth degree", by homestaying under customers' roofs.
(Someone wrote and bequeathed Lynette their bicycle bell).
Her prolific social networking skills led to Bike Friday topping the Saatchi & Saatchi Lovemarks.com poll and featuring in Saatchi chief Kevin Roberts' book, The Lovemarks Effect: Winning in the Consumer Revolution. CustomerEvangelists.com ranked her among renowned word of mouth mavens, she is featured on Forbes.com's Rugged Individualists and New York-based FastCompany magazine invited her to share her work/life observations in an Expert Blog, The 24/7 Customer Evangelist. Travel Writing. The Handsomest Man in Cuba (published Australia, USA, Germany), an award-winning memoir of Lynette's solo trip across Cuba was favorably reviewed in the New York Times Book Review. Filming. Lynette creates feature-length adventure films she calls "handlebar movies", using a simple digital camera. 16,000 Feet on a Friday: Biking the World's Highest Paved Road (45 mins), won the Audience Choice Award at the inaugural Boston Bike Film Festival. Route 66 by Bicycle: Pedaling the Mother Road (57 mins) is a collaboration with Race Across America legend Lon Haldeman. Her films have been praised by travel, cycling and digital technology and Apple Store Made On a Mac audiences from New York to LA, and featured on public television. Public Speaking. Lynette is a sought-after keynote speaker on customer evangelism, minimalist multimedia, travel and "the marketing you do when you're not doing marketing". Her unusual career path inspires women, seniors and minorities of all ages and stages to "Just (get on a bicycle and) Film It". Read more about Gal talks | Gal books and movies
Contact Lynette via email: galfromdownunder at gmail dot com, phone 541-513-7711 (USA), 0420 968 967 (Australia). |
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REFERENCES | RESUME | STORE
Blogging and ghost blogging:
Lively and opinionated posting and paraphrasing, any topic. Bullet points and preferred angle are all I need.
Copywriting and Advertising: Say it straight, then say it great
Multimedia Event Coverage: I'm the cat among the pigeons, filming, interviewing, catching people off guard. The goal: make readers late for work.
Community Building: Using social media tools, new and old, to create sprited, loyal community. Facebook and Twitter aside, content is still king.
What's wrong with my Business? I nail the niggling things that get in the way of making money. Your friends won't tell you what you're doing wrong; I'm not your friend (yet), I'm also Australian, so I will.
Letter writing/email campaigning: Did I mention, say it straight, then say it great?
Advocacy, PR stunts and B2B Collaborations Multimedia coverage to inform, inspire - the right kind of attention-seeking behavior
Reviewing: A love of design, technology and creativity inspires my informative and entertaining critiques of everyday events and technology.
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Lynette Chiang in the media:
CustomerEvangelists.com AdNews "Pedaling Bikes" Profiled in Dumbo Feather 2008, Australia MyBusinessMag.com Forbes.com Rugged Individualist New York Times Book Review TV/Radio interviews
On Minimalist multimedia:
Talks, Books, DVDs:
Advertising and Design:
Blogs:
Galfromdownunder Movies:
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