Hispanic Heritage Month: What it means to be here today
Today we kick off Hispanic Heritage Month, a month-long exploration of the Latino experience in the United States. For me my culture serves as inspiration for my work as a visual designer for Google Shopping, as a small business owner and as a working artist. My parents immigrated to the United States from Huejotitan, Jalisco, to San José, California, where I was born. Growing up my family and I would sometimes make the trek by car from San José to Guadalajara to visit family. Each trip meant I got to collect colorful trinkets, devour candy and make new memories that inspire my art everyday. The nostalgia of these experiences combined with my parents’ struggle to thrive in the US are the filters that color my work in and outside of Google. As a first generation college graduate and Chicano, it is my privilege and responsibility to share and celebrate my culture with new generations, and amplify the stories about my community the world has yet to hear.
I invite you to take a moment to honor, learn and reflect about the impact and contributions Latinos continue to make in America everyday. Here are some of the ways Google is honoring our legacy and spotlighting our bright future.
Unite with Might: 12 Top Ways Successful B2B Influencers Are Building Powerful Marketing Collaborations


How can B2B marketers build powerful and enduring collaborations using influencers?
There are more tactics available today than ever for influencer collaboration in the B2B space, but how can marketers find those that are actually achieving ongoing success?
We’ve been fortunate to feature top influencers from a number of industries in our third season of the Break Free B2B Marketing series of video interviews, and we wanted to share their top tactics for both being an influencer in the B2B space, and for improving collaboration.
Let’s dig in and learn how 12 subject matter experts are creating powerful collaborations between influencers and brands, with insightful tactics you can implement in your own marketing efforts as we head toward 2022.
Ramon Ray of Smart Hustle Media
@ramonray
Founder, Smart Hustle Media

“I think there are different ways that brands do different things. One thing talking to the brand at least, I think, and the influencers, is that — first, are you clear on what the goals are? Why do they want you? Is it reaching numbers? It could be. For me, it’s oftentimes that they want safety and security. We want someone who can consistently deliver and give us a good seminar, webinar, or host a product and be excited and draw the expertise out of our subject matter experts. So that’s one,” Ramon noted.
“Second — are you living your brand, offline and online? Meaning can they trust that what you tweet — what you post on Instagram, is going to be something that’s going to make them proud. That’s okay for the brands you’re working with. So that’s two. And I think point three, I think the other thing to consider is, are you within the wheelhouse of what they want? If you’re an influencer for a headphone company, and you’re not all about music, you may not be a fit,” Ramon added.
“I think those are a few things that I think about when we look at how we’re working with a brand, and how a brand may evaluate us — it’s safety, security, we try to do the right thing, and be good to work with. And I think that’s important,” Ramon also shared.
Watch, listen to or read Ramon’s full interview by checking our the full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Ramon Ray of Smart Hustle Media on Small Business Success & Thinking Big.”
Minda Harts of The Memo
@MindaHarts
CEO and Founder, The Memo

What what does it take to be a thought leader, subject matter expert or an influencer?
“You know, I would say consistency. One of the things that I started before I had a best-selling book, or any of those things — I was consistent with the content that I put out there,” Minda said.
“I picked one or two social media platforms, and I said, you know what, I’m going to give my all to these. My demographic is not on everything, right? So if I pick a couple, and I’m consistent, and every Monday I start with a newsletter, because you want to capture your fans or your potential clients. So I think that for me, it was being consistent,” Minda added.
“Since 2015, every Monday I put out a newsletter. And then I repurpose that content on LinkedIn or Twitter — those are the most active platforms I’m on. I also try to be authentic to my voice, and talk about the things that I know my demographics are interested in. I bring my personal stories, and I asked them questions,” Minda shared.
“Whether you have 300 followers or 300,000, it’s the way that you engage, and people have to trust you. Once you build that consistency and that trust, then all you need is those people who will constantly repurpose and retweet, and do some of those things. But it starts with that consistency. So make sure that you’re being true and authentic to the voice that you add to your community,” Minda explained.
Check out Minda’s full interview and visit our full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Minda Harts of The Memo on Having Courageous Conversations.”
Keith Townsend of The CTO Advisor
@CTOAdvisor
Co-Founder, The CTO Advisory

“I’m fine with calling it being a influencer, a thought leader, or whatever you want to call it. You have to put your thoughts out there. And sometimes putting your thoughts out there is the scariest part about becoming an influencer — but let’s just call it being known within your industry,” Keith shared.
“Becoming an independent influencer is a little more difficult, because there’s not quite an established marketplace for the things that I do. So is going to the likes of TopRank Marketing or working directly with vendors to find out how do I help a vendor tell us their story, while keeping my authentic voice,” Keith added.
“To stand out, don’t avoid those difficult conversations,” he also noted.
Watch Keith’s full interview in “Break Free B2B Marketing: Keith Townsend of The CTO Advisor on Bringing Value Through Friction”
Dez Blanchfield of Sociaall
@dez_blanchfield
Founder, Sociaall Inc.

“When we have a conversation, we don’t just talk about influencer marketing. That’s a tiny segment of what we do. It’s taking an idea from a business plan and sales and marketing strategy in a go-to-market roadmap, around sales, marketing, comms, and business development, and mapping, ‘what’s the outcome you want?’,” Dez shared.
“What have you started to do sales investing in? Where are the gaps in that? How can we fill those gaps of digital social conversations, and how can we create these campaigns to drive those outcomes such that if and when someone has a pain point or a buying decision, we have ensured — through driving awareness, education engagement, in the form of influence — that you are top of mind and center of heart at that point of a buying decision,” Dez added.
Watch, listen to or read Dez’ complete interview by checking our the full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Dez Blanchfield of Sociaall on Joining the Conversation.”
Tamara McCleary of Thulium
@TamaraMcCleary
CEO, Thulium

“What is your purpose in using an influencer? Is your purpose to create brand awareness? Is your purpose to increase product sales? What is your purpose? Then, let’s reverse engineer from that and go, ‘Okay, who has the eyes and ears of the folks that are most interested in your product or service?’,” Tamara shared.
“Once we start calling people followers, or an audience, we start diminishing them — thinking somehow they don’t have any thought leadership. But the point of the matter is every single person has thought leadership, it’s just whether or not they’re building it by putting content out there,” Tamara added.
“Be clear about why you want to work with an influencer, what you hope to get out of working with the influencer,” Tamara suggested.
“If you don’t work with an organization that knows what they’re doing, that knows how to harness what that end result should be, knows what the influencer should be delivering to the organization, knows what the organization shouldn’t be asking the influencer, having a company like like TopRank to do that is important, because when I see organizations try to do influencer marketing themselves, it often fails. And then the big bummer for that is when it fails, they think influencer marketing fails. Influencer marketing hasn’t failed. It’s just the way you did it failed. You didn’t do it right,” Tamara observed.
Watch Tamara’s full episode, “Break Free B2B Marketing: Tamara McCleary of Thulium on Visions of the Future and Doing No Harm.”
Nicole Brady of SAHM Reviews
@SahmReviews
Publisher, SAHM Reviews

What makes influencer content powerful?
“Because it’s real. It’s someone that is sharing their opinions. It’s not scripted. It’s not a commercial,” Nicole explained.
“Do your thing, do what you’re good at. You want to start a business because you want to fill a niche. You have to be doing it because you’re passionate about it,” Nicole added.
“Find out what makes you different and what makes people want to talk to you, and then leverage it. Share those details, and create content around those details. As more and more people are on social media, being able to find those out-of-the-box environmental things that make you tick — that you might not have known — showing them off, that’s the way to do it.”
Watch, listen to or read Nicole’s full interview by checking our the full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Nicole Brady of SAHM Reviews on the Importance of Empathy in Reaching Your Niche.”
Eric Vanderburg of TCDI
@evanderburg
Vice President of Cybersecurity, TCDI

“Meeting other influencers in the space and learning how we all could better support one another, and how they were getting their messages out,” has been a helpful approach, Eric noted.
“I’ve always seen this as bigger than any individual, so a lot of these collaborative works have been great,” Eric added.
“Sometimes the influencer stuff can get almost like a back door sponsored content kind of thing, or an endorsement, and that’s something that we definitely try to avoid. Make sure the brand shares the values that you have,” Eric also suggested.
Explore all of Eric’s episode in “Break Free B2B Marketing: Eric Vanderburg of TCDI on The Changing Cybersecurity Landscape.”
Sarah Barnes-Humphrey of Shipz
@bevictoryus
CEO, SHIPZ

“There’s a lot of collaboration that can happen with supply chain internally, and a lot of different companies. I think we’re seeing more and more of that, which is exciting, especially for supply chain professionals, because they really want to work. They’re problem solvers, right? That’s who we are, as professionals — we are problem solvers. That’s what we do on a day-to-day basis,” Sarah shared.
“We want to collaborate with the different departments internally, to really create that success for the company that that we’re working for,” Sarah added.
“Collaboration is the future of business. I truly believe that. I think the only way forward is to really be able to understand what your colleagues in marketing, customer service, or procurement are going through, and what they do on a day-to-day basis,” Sarah also noted.
Watch, listen to or read Sarah’s full interview by checking our the full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Sarah Barnes-Humphrey of Shipz and The Art of Consistent Change.”
Liam McIvor Martin of Time Doctor
Liam McIvor Martin
Co-Founder, Time Doctor

“If you’re like — man — I want to be the TikTok influencer. I want to learn how to get people ranked on TikTok — do you like TikTok? I kind of do, but not enough to be able to spend the next five years of my life talking about TikTok. You really have to figure out a lane that you’re passionate about,” Liam urged.
“Get super laser-focused on something,” Liam added.
Watch Liam’s full interview, “Break Free B2B Marketing: Liam McIvor Martin of Time Doctor on The Revolutionary Power of Remote Work.”
Oliver Christie of PertexaHealthTech
@OliverChristie
Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, PertexaHealthTech

“I was curious. I wanted to know more. So I talked to a lot of people — people who had deep knowledge in one area, and I kept talking and I kept asking questions and discovering more and more and more. I think the main way I’ve got to be where I am today is curiosity. I’ve been curious about the world, curious about technology — I’m really curious about people and how they act,” Oliver explained.
“I’ve got to like what the project is about, what it’s trying to do. And I’ve also got to believe in the technology or the approach. I think without that, you’re selling something. You’re just selling something which you don’t believe in. And that’s not a reason to work,” Oliver added.
Tune in to Oliver’s complete episode, “Break Free B2B Marketing: Oliver Christie on Making Life Better With AI.”
Tim Crawford of AVOA
@tcrawford
CIO Strategic Advisor, AVOA

“It’s shocking how the B2C definition of influencer kind of muddies the water of a B2B influencer, which is why I think we don’t use that term all that much in B2B, because we’re more focused on subject matter expert, thought leader, and authentic thinkers,” Tim explained.
“I have also had to explain the difference between a B2C influencer and a B2B influencer. And sometimes that’s like pushing string uphill, because they think that the B2C model will apply to B2B, let’s face it, it’s unlike B2C,” Tim added.
“Decisions are not made based on a tweet. A blog post. A webinar. These decisions are made based off of trust over an extended period of time. And so knowing who you’re working with and having trust in that individual is incredibly important,” Tim also noted.
Watch, listen to or read Tim’s complete interview by checking our the full blog post “Break Free B2B Marketing: Tim Crawford of AVOA on The New Normal.”
Kevin L. Jackson of GC GlobalNet
@Kevin_Jackson
CEO, GC GlobalNet

“Change is constant and change is accelerating. As an influencer or a subject matter expert, your ability to describe and explain the impact of information technology on business and key performance metrics is critical,” Kevin explained.
“When you communicate, you need to use the industry’s vernacular, because that is what will make you unique. Communication is key. You need to be able to communicate information effectively using the written, spoken, and visual word, and you have to be able to do that through multiple channels — mass media, including social media. By being able to communicate well in those different forms across these different channels, your audience will grow rapidly and organically,” Kevin also noted.
“It’s really important to understand or accept this as a relationship. Not a short term experience, but a long term relationship where the influencer is a valued part of not just the marketing team, but the communications team, and the sales team. You really break free through collaboration and open dialogue with your colleagues and partners,” Kevin added.
Learn more from Kevin and see his full interview in “Break Free B2B Marketing: Kevin Jackson of GC GlobalNet on Cloud Computing.”
Reach New Heights With B2B Influencer Marketing
These days successful B2B influencer marketing hardly ever follows the way it’s always been done, as all 12 of our subject matter experts have shown. We hope you’ll find the tactics and insights from Kevin, Tim, Oliver, Liam, Sarah, Eric, Nicole, Tamara, Dez, Keith, Minda, and Ramon inspiring and useful as you plan your upcoming B2B influencer marketing initiatives.
For even more insight from leading B2B marketers, be sure to also check out our Inside B2B Influence series of video interviews and podcasts, including the latest featuring Sarita Rao of AT&T, in “Inside B2B Influence: Sarita Rao of AT&T on Growing B2B Executive Influence with Social Media.”
Crafting award-winning B2B marketing with a skillful mixture of influence takes considerable time and effort, which is why many firms choose to work with a top digital marketing agency such as TopRank Marketing. Contact us and let’s talk about how we can help, as we’ve done for businesses ranging from LinkedIn, Dell and 3M to Adobe, Oracle, monday.com and others.
The post Unite with Might: 12 Top Ways Successful B2B Influencers Are Building Powerful Marketing Collaborations appeared first on B2B Marketing Blog – TopRank®.
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Driving success for Australian retail with digitalisation
In spite of the significant disruption to the retail sector, we’ve seen firsthand how companies have accelerated their digital transformation journey to better differentiate themselves in a highly competitive market.
In fact, the Google Cloud Retail Digital Pulse looked at the digital maturity across Australian retail and found the segment to be steadily advancing towards becoming more digitally resilient. The business sentiment is however still mixed and the market shows a split between those who have embraced digital and are thriving, and those that have not and are struggling.
Among Australian respondents, almost a quarter (23.3 percent) said investment in digitalisation was driven by the desire to reduce costs and improve profitability, with 17.5 percent wanting to improve customer experience to drive revenue and/or increase KPI scores. Building customer data platforms, enhancing capabilities around marketing optimisation and the ability to drive personalisation are some priority use cases for Australian retailers. While challenges remain around budgets, inability to harness customer/operational data and lack of digital transformation roadmaps, more than half (58.3 percent) of respondents are looking to Cloud Services providers for help with digitalisation.
We’re proud of the role we play in supporting the retail sector in Australia (and beyond) to enhance digital offerings and embrace the future of retail, empowering businesses to harness their data to achieve tangible business results and enhance customer relationships.
Here’s a look at how some of our Australian customers are leveraging Google Cloud to transform their offering for customers:
Country Road Group & David Jones: Unearthing data for digital growth
When COVID-19 forced the closure of storefronts, the Country Road Group and David Jones marketing teams sought to demonstrate the value of digital for both engaging customers and sales. After experiencing a 50 percent increase in requests for data analytics, pulling reports from multiple dashboards and structuring them to be meaningful and relevant, became extremely time intensive.
Looking to Cloud Services providers for help with digitalisation, Country Road Group & David Jones engaged MightyHive to transform marketing for the business. The provider leveraged BigQuery as the business’s data source, connecting with Looker to better explore, share, and visualise the company’s supplier and campaign data.
Consolidating multiple disparate data sources into just three dashboards has minimised the volume of manual reporting, saving the team a full day per week. Looker has also delivered more comprehensive insights to inform the future growth of the business.
Hanes: Data drives enhanced consumer experience
Hanes Australasia is home to some of Australia’s best-known apparel and lifestyle brands, including Bonds, Bras N Things, and Sheridan. It’s among the 40.8 percent of retailers who adopted technology for marketing optimisation.
Hanes recognised that data was key to understanding consumer behaviour, preferences, and to driving revenue from its ecommerce investments. The company implemented Google Cloud services—including scalable and serverless BigQuery data warehousing, the Firebase mobile development platform, Cloud Functions to build and connect cloud services, and Pub/Sub event ingestion and delivery—to deliver on these opportunities.
The business can now collect detailed in-store transaction data along with on-site transaction and customer event data, that is streamed in near-real time into Google Cloud. This data provides a wealth of information that can be transformed into actionable insights for marketing optimisation, and to help support wholesale partners.
JB HiFi: Personalisation drives transaction value
With 39.8 percent of Australian respondents leveraging technology for product discovery and search, JB HiFi is one example of how personalisation can be a powerful driver of success.
Previously, JB Hi-Fi’s buying team would manually recommend products to visitors — a time-consuming process that meant recommendations of three or four associated products represented only a fraction of the more than 50,000 products available on its website.
After deploying Recommendations AI, JB Hi-Fi found the average transaction value (ATV) for products recommended increased, when compared to manual processes. Furthermore, monthly average revenue from recommended products increased when compared to manually curated products, and the conversion rate for products offered on the JB Hi-Fi home page also improved.
The adoption of Recommendations AI has also given JB Hi-Fi the ability to give its customers a more personalised online experience matching it to the personalised, expert experience delivered to customers in-store.
Continuing momentum in a ‘post-COVID’ world
Beyond the noise and challenges of COVID-19, retailers are still navigating what the ‘new normal’ looks like for them and how to manage the blurring of online and in-store interactions with customers. As ecommerce continues as the driving engine for growth, digital transformation remains central to retailers’ long term success. Commitment to a digital strategy and investing to accelerate the journey to digital resilience is going to be the key. At the same time, it is a great opportunity for retailers to further build on their digital foundations to enable differentiation in the market.
Google Cloud is committed to leading the digital transformation of Australia’s retail sector. We’re continuing to expand our capabilities for merchants, offering tools and solutions designed specifically for the retail industry. Our aim is to empower partners with a scalable platform of innovation, digitisation and efficiency to ultimately give our retail customers the tools they need to thrive.
Il Delirio del Giorno: mi devo fare un allevamento di bufali
I deliranti scarseggiano da un po’, lo so, e quei pochi che arrivano a fare il Piccione Scacchista della situazione non sono neanche particolarmente creativi. Però la rubrica del Delirio del Giorno è ferma da parecchio tempo, e quindi vi offro questo scarso sforzo letterario, che riporto esattamente come l’ho ricevuto.
Oggetto: fatti un allevamento di bufali
l’allevamento di bufali per te sarebbe un lavoro molton piu’ dignitoso.
e vero CHE lavori e fatto carriera al cicap?
sei un clone di Piero angelA?
stai sicuro, che i servi come te verranno giudicati dalla storia.i tuoi padroni, invece verranno giudicati molto piu’ severamente da quel DIO che tu
disconosci e insulti.
adesso hai chi ti sostiene, ma poi?Sent with ProtonMail Secure Email.
Mittente: stefano.pelo (stefano.pelo@protonmail.com).
Gli ho risposto così:
Se non ricordo male, quel Dio che citi insegna ad amare il prossimo, non
a odiarlo.Inoltre la volontà di Dio non è conoscibile dagli uomini, per cui se tu
dici che sai come Dio mi giudicherà commetti peccato di superbia.Addio, e grazie per tutto il pesce.
Paolo Attivissimo
(orgoglioso clone di Piero Angela)
Aggiornamento (23:30): è arrivato anche un seguito, altrettanto ondivago nell’uso delle maiuscole, delle minuscole, della punteggiatura e di molto altro.
vergognati.dicci da dove prendi tutti i soldi per dire queste cazzatte?come paghi le tue cazzate che diffondi?da dove vengono i tuoi solodi?Non ti senti un po’ ridicolo?ma la dignita dove la metti.hai fatto carriera al cicap, ti senti un altro piro angela.piero angela ha piu classe di te, lui quando parla di scienza dice cose interessanti, ma da buon massone e’ contro la religione, contro GESU CDRISTO.tu sei un servo, swenza neanche capire la massoneria. di scienza non capisci nulla.toto rina e’ molto piu intelligenhte e acculturato di te.basta un ignorante come mazzucco per smentirti.dove metti la tua dignita?poi vorrei sapere il tuo precedente lavoro prima di fare il cazzaro?ti do un consiglio, sparisci dalla rete,(la tv non ti da spazio perche’ non sei alla loro altezza o bassezza).comprati delle pecore, o se preferisci dei bufali, saresti un uomo molto piu dignitoso.ciao preghero per te.
Una ulteriore postilla mi è arrivata alle 23:47:
scusami e’ vero Paolo sono diventato un po superbo.sono un uomo con i miei peccati, li riconosco non sono PAOLO perfettissimo.ma chi te l’ho fa fare?davvero non capisci che il lavoro che tu fai,(ben pagato, perche ricavi soldi e non spendi dal tuo portafoglio), dello smascheramento delle false notizie, e’ il contrariovedendo te che smonti ragionamenti logici, (kennedy,11 settembre,vaccino, ecc. ecc.)Io credo in DIO nel suo figlio GESU CRISTO, e nella MADONNA.TU in che cosa credi?davvero lascia lo smascheramento dele bufale e fatti un branco di pecore, guadagneria meno, mala tua coscenza(anima) stara meglio.se ti fai prendere per il culo da un ignoranhte come mazzucco, la genhte ride di te.davvero ti piace farti umiliare cosi?IO credo in GESU, tu in cosa credi?Non capisco perche lo fai?Magari sei una persona migliore di me, ma perche ingannare gli altri?
Gli ho risposto così:
Credo nell’ortografia.
Ho messo il mittente nell’elenco dello spam.
Una AI influencer raggiunge le 100 sponsorizzazioni
Our Grace Hopper subsea cable has landed in the UK
Last year, we announced a new subsea cable — named Grace Hopper after the computer science pioneer — that will run between the United States, the United Kingdom and Spain. The cable will improve the resilience of the Google network that underpins our consumer and enterprise products. The 16-fibre pair Google-funded cable will connect New York (United States) to Bude (United Kingdom) and Bilbao (Spain).
Today, the Grace Hopper cable has landed in Bude, Cornwall.
Many people around the world use Google products every day to stay in touch with friends and family, travel from point A to point B, find new customers or export products to new markets. As our first Google-funded cable to the U.K., Grace Hopper is part of our ongoing investment in the country, supporting users who rely on our products and customers using our tools to grow their business.
We know that technology is only becoming more important for the U.K. economy. The amount technology contributes to the U.K. economy has grown on average by 7% year on year since 2016. And U.K.-based venture capital investment is ranked third in the world, reaching a record high of $15 billion in 2020, despite the challenging conditions from the COVID-19 pandemic. What’s more, 10% of all current U.K. job vacancies are in tech roles, and the number of people employed in the tech sector has grown 40% in two years. With this in mind, improving the diversity and resilience of Google’s network is crucial to our ability to continue supporting one of the U.K.’s most vital sectors, as well as its long-term economic success.
Grace Hopper represents a new generation of trans-Atlantic cable coming to the U.K. shores and is one of the first new cables to connect the U.S. and the U.K. since 2003. Moreover, with the ongoing pandemic fostering a new digital normal, Google-funded subsea cables allow us to plan and prepare for the future capacity needs of our customers, no matter where they are in the world. Grace Hopper will connect the U.K. to help meet the rapidly growing demand for high-bandwidth connectivity and services.
Triboo acquisisce il 69,50% di Adglow Italia e si rafforza nel digital e social advertising
Taste Mexico: Sampling centuries of Mexican heritage
“From yellow corn and white corn their flesh was made; from corn dough the arms and legs of man were made,” reads the ancient pre-Hispanic legend written in the sacred Mayan book, the Popol Vuh.
The connection between food and cultural heritage couldn’t be stronger. And according to Mexican chef Martha Ortiz, Mexican food is identity. “It’s such a strong gastronomy that it makes us believe why the Popol Vuh said that we’re made of corn,” she says. “And even Mexico’s flag is quite gastronomic, with the eagle devouring a snake while standing on prickly pears and nopales (prickly pear cacti).”
Martha is one of the chefs who participated in Google Arts & Culture’s latest program, Taste Mexico. It showcases the deep connection between food, culture, legacy and art represented in Mexican food with more than 220 stories, 6000 images and 200 videos from 31 partner institutions. Subjects range from the traditional Mexican female cooks, called mayoras, to internationally known chefs like Martha and Enrique Olvera.
A spoonful of Hispanic legacy
Martha says Mexican food represents Hispanic heritage in its inclusivity, capturing the fusion of beliefs and traditions that created the mestizo culture. “Nowadays there’s a big discussion on the past, the indigenous peoples and colonization. The way I see it, is that in gastronomy there wasn’t violence,” she says. “The earth was fertile, and in the clay pots and wooden spoons were mixed local ingredients like chili peppers with new ones, like the sesame seeds brought by the Spaniards, who were introduced to it by the Moors.” The Taste Mexico virtual exhibit includes topics like the fusion of Mexican cuisine and the blend of cultures in new creations, like chocolate.
For Martha, Mexican gastronomy is more than just food — it’s art. It’s a mix of narratives, sounds, images and senses. She thinks about the sound and the feel of the chilli peppers breaking against the stone when preparing a traditional mole, or the clapping sounds of the women making tortillas in a market, which she refers to as a tortilla symphony. “It’s a mise-en-scène. There’s theatricality, a plot, a lyric, beauty and taste.” Through Taste of Mexico, experience that theatricality through iconic markets like Melchor Ocampo or the ones in Puebla.
Martha remembers the colorful paintings of the Oaxacan artist Rufino Tamayo, and it makes her think about the colors of that state where you can have a black mole with red rice served on a blue plate at a deep green “fonda.” That’s why she doesn’t refer to the people who visit her restaurants as dinner guests, but as dish collectors.
A flavorful concert
With this in mind, Martha organized an art and food physical exhibition and event in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art Querétaro, “We Eat Color” — which is now part of Taste Mexico — that offered a fusion of art, gastronomy and music. Martha prepared surprising dishes in six colors — white, yellow, green, red, black and psychedelia, which represents the combination of all the colors. — that merged with the music from the State of Querétaro Philharmonic and with the plastic work of five local artists.
Creating narratives is the base of Martha’s cooking style. It’s not just about preparing a dish, but about telling a story based on Mexican history and culture. From the way pink mole connects a wedding tradition in Taxco and the local religious beliefs of Santa Prisca, to the way the national dish, Chile en Nogada, represents hope and freedom, or how eating a black mole with a tortilla is like having a dish of night and day, since pre-hispanic tradition dictates that tortillas are the communion with the sun. “Mexican cuisine is a cultural manifestation that has a powerful legacy, and thus a powerful future,” she says.“Life is meant to offer beauty, and Mexican gastronomy is beautiful.”
5 things I learned from Google’s productivity expert
I’ve primarily worked remotely for the better part of the last decade, but when the pandemic sent everyone else home from the office, I struggled. Even though I was extremely familiar with working from home, I wasn’t used to spending all my free time at home, too. Like people everywhere, staying productive when the home became the office, and the gym, and the dog daycare, and the everything else was challenging.

Google’s Executive Productivity Advisor Laura Mae Martin
Fortunately, I knew there was someone who could help me. Laura Mae Martin is Google’s Executive Productivity Advisor, and over the years, she’s been offering Googlers advice on how to stay productive, even when our surroundings make it difficult. Her guidance has been an incredible resource — and now it’s available for everyone. “The Google Workspace guide to productivity and wellbeing” is a downloadable, free ebook that shares tons of Laura’s best tips and ideas for making the most of your time. As a bit of a preview, here are five things I learned from the guide that I’ve found most helpful:
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Pinpointing my peak times:One tip from Laura is to figure out when you work best. “Make a list of the times throughout the day and week when you feel most energized and focused,” she writes. These are “peak times,” and likely when you’re going to be the most productive.
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Don’t fight that Friday feeling:There’s a reason Friday afternoons can feel like they’re dragging on. In her guide, Laura advises that you don’t try to overplan the end of the week. “Fridays can be a great window for returning emails or planning the next week,” she says.
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Check in even if you can’t respond: Getting through email is one of the most daunting tasks of any job, and everyone’s experienced the pile-up problem. One tip from Laura is to respond to emails that require your input within 24 hours — even if it’s just to say “I can’t get to this right now, but I will by the end of the week.”
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Sometimes, less time is more: According to Parkinson’s Law, “work expands to the allotted time,” meaning if you put 30 minutes on the calendar for a meeting, you and your colleagues will feel like you have to use all of that time even if you’re done within 20 minutes. Laura’s advice: Put shorter amounts of time on the calendar.
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Welcome the “whitespace”:We spend a lot of our time at work getting things done, or “closing loops” as Laura puts it. But it’s important to make time to just think and brainstorm, to come up with new ideas. One way you can make that happen is by putting blocks on your calendar for dedicated time to do exactly that.
That’s just a tiny sample of everything I learned from Laura. The guide has so many ways you can maximize your time at work (so you can maximize your time not at work) plus how you can use Google Workspace to put these ideas into practice. You can download it now.












