A note from Whrrl’s new Community Manager
As some of you know already, two weeks ago I joined the Pelago team as the new Community Manager, taking over for Erin Crabb. Erin left some big shoes for me to fill, but I’m pretty dang excited to start connecting with the awesome community that makes up Whrrl.
To tell you a bit about myself and why I chose Pelago… I’ve been a self-proclaimed Internet junkie for a number of years now. After graduating from college with a degree in journalism, I spent some time writing for a nonprofit and working in the marketing department of a global commercial real estate firm. I also started my own lifestyle blog four years ago, connecting with 20-somethings across the nation, and blogged for a local city Web site and newspaper, too. It was during this time that I fell in love with what blogging can do – break down barriers in distance and time – by sharing the common thread of human life with people who you might never had the chance to meet or connect with otherwise. And, what I find to be even more amazing is when you have the opportunity to take these connections offline.
The power of the Internet never fails to amaze me, which is why I made the decision to pursue what I love most – managing an online community. I believe it’s no accident that I met Erin online and was given the opportunity to interview my little heart out for the Community Manager position at Pelago – a company whose mission is to remove all barriers to information, inspiration and human connection – the very reason I fell in love with social media.
Aside from being the very definition of my dream job, the best part about being the new Community Manager is the ability to connect with you – the Whrrl community – and represent your feedback, ideas and suggestions to the Pelago team. After all, if it weren’t for you, Whrrl wouldn’t be where it is today. And, I get to read your blogs and Tweets, see your stories and discover new places, experiences and moments through you on a daily basis!
My first big goal is to turn this blog into a living, breathing space for the community to unite. We can share tips and troubleshoot, highlight our fabulous members and stories, run fun contests, recap all the awesome events we attend as a company, and more. The first of these events is BlogWorld Expo this week in Las Vegas – where I get to meet a number of you in person and my inner blogging geek heart sings with the opportunity to put Web sites to faces, and listen to all the keynotes and speakers. *Squeal*
If you’re coming to BWE, I can’t wait to meet you. If you’re not, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at jeanna@pelago.com or leave a comment here. You can also friend me on Whrrl, find me on Twitter or other sites, or view this story to learn a bit more about me:
About Jeanna Barrett
Jeanna is the Community Manager for Pelago, makers of Whrrl. She considers herself technology obsessed and a lover of laughter, sushi, wine, books & sunshine. Jeanna also prefers to live life through rose-colored glasses.
Twitter: @jeannabarrett
great writing – welcome and enjoy your new job.
Hmmm, I didn’t get it, why do some companies need a community manager, isn’t it just a community where members – who happen to be the service’s users – interact with each other? Why do they need someone from inside the company to manage them and drive them somewhere?
Thanks for your note, Tarek. As a Community Manager, it’s not my job at all to manage our members and drive them somewhere. It’s my job to be their go-to person for troubleshooting when there’s a problem, to listen to suggestions from our users about how we can make the product better and to share those suggestions to the people in our company who can make this happen. :) You can reach me at jeanna@pelago.com if you want to chat further.