Samantha von Sperling for I'm Live at SES on Webmaster Radio

WebmasterRadio.fm - February 28, 2006

Interview by Sarah McKay (Ms. Write - webmasterradio.fm)

Ms. Write interviews from SES New York (InfoSearch Media). Ms. Write roams the tradeshow floor at SES New York speaking with experts from these great companies: Become.com, Ask.com, Content Logic, DM News, Elixer Systems, Acronym Media, Didit Search Marketing, iProspects, & Samantha von Sperling for IMLive.com.

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Transcription by Polished Social Image Consultants

Sarah MacKay: This is Sarah MacKay, Ms. Write, reporting live from SES [Search Engine Strategies] New York with Webmaster Radio dot FM [http://www.webmasterradio.fm]. I'm here with Samantha von Sperling of I'm Live dot com [http://www.imlive.com]. Hi Samantha, how are you doing?

Samantha von Sperling:Hello, hi, how are you?

Sarah MacKay: Good, good. Well, it seems like you have a very popular booth here today. So, tell us a little about I'm Live dot com. What exactly is it?

Samantha von Sperling: Well Sarah, what's really fabulous about I'm Live is that I'm Live allows a user to subscribe and log on to I'm Live and speak to an expert in a variety of fields who could be located anywhere in the world. So, twenty four hours a day. For example, if you would want to speak to a doctor, you are not limited to a doctor in your neighborhood, or your city, or your doctor who says "I'm not available until three weeks from Sunday." The doctor you speak to on I'm Live is probably the best - one of the best in the world in his field - he might be located in, I don't know, Hong Kong let's say, but he'll speak to you in real time through the aid of a webcam. So you could speak to a banker in Switzerland, a cardiologist in France, an image consultant like me here in New York City, or a tree-landscape architect in Vermont. So the possibilities are really endless.

Sarah MacKay: That's so neat. I never heard of anything like that. That's awesome. And, so, you're an image consultant for I'm Live dot com. So, what kind of questions do people generally logon and ask?

Samantha von Sperling: People ask me what color they should be wearing, or they're doing a business week in Germany with their company and what are the business protocols and customs that they should be aware of, how should they dress for a certain occasion, what is the etiquette or protocol for a particular situation, presentation skills, etiquette questions, grooming questions, makeup/hair questions, shirt-tie combinations ... a plethora of questions. So, I basically consult on things that either are aesthetic - or appearance related - or things that have to do with social graces and communication skills.

Sarah MacKay: Great and I have to tell all our listeners, she looks fabulous.

Samantha von Sperling: Thank you!

Sarah MacKay: So, you should take the advice to heart here. Now, so, is there someone from each discipline online at all times?

Samantha von Sperling: No, I know that I'm only available at certain days and certain times. But, there is an upside to that. The upside is to me, the expert, is that it might be an off-peak hour for me. Let's say I choose to be available to I'm Live Monday evenings from six to nine, I might not have any clients in New York City at that time anyway, because I've already seen everybody, but in another time zone it could be prime time for people to want to speak to me. So I haven't lost anything, I've only gained in the comfort of my own office, and it's the opportunity to be a part of an international community of experts that is far more valid, I think, than just an advertisement. So it exposes me to a much larger market space.

Sarah MacKay: That's so neat. So, the hours that you are online, is that posted for people that have come on and gotten your advice and really benefited from it? They can visit back at that time?

Samantha von Sperling:Absolutely.

Sarah MacKay: And, is there any charge for users?

Samantha von Sperling:Yes. From what I understand, because I'm a fairly new expert for I'm Live - I mean, they have just contracted me - for the user it is a per-minute arrangement.

Sarah MacKay: That's so neat though. How valuable to be able to just hop online and to talk to experts all over the world. Now you have this fabulous giveaway, I believe. Is that yours over there?

Samantha von Sperling:I'm Live is giving away a Jeep. Isn't that cool?

Sarah MacKay: That's so cool. I've got to throw my business card in there.

Samantha von Sperling:Definitely, most definitely.

Sarah MacKay: And also, your booth here is so neat. It's a really unique booth design. It seems like you've been busy the whole show, has it been good for you?

Samantha von Sperling: Yes, it's been really busy, and I've gotten all kinds of questions from "What is the protocol for this particular country?", or "I have an office that has multiple offices in different countries and we're having communication problems. Can you solve them?" I don't mean technology communication problems, I mean interpersonal skills. Somebody asked me how to propose to his girlfriend. Somebody asked me what to wear to a meeting, all kinds of questions. So yes, they're giving away that car today, and I know that they had a designer actually build this booth. I think that the idea, if I'm not mistaken ... well, to me, it says "Webcam lens". Because everything is round and three dimensional and it connotes that we are not separated by a time zone or continent. It's the same as if you were right in front of me.

Sarah MacKay: It's so neat. It's one of the neatest booths that I've seen at this show.

Samantha von Sperling: It's been really, really busy. It's been a great experience, a lot of fun. I've head a blast. I think one of the other, perhaps the best, benefits to the consumer is that you are not limited to, let's say, the best person on the subject in your city, or state. You can speak to one of the top people in their industry in the world, a great advantage to the consumer.

Sarah MacKay: That's amazing and it sounds like something that no one else is doing right now. So, we'll have to tell all our listeners to hop by the I'm Live booth, take advantage of Samantha's advice today, and you can also visit them online at imlive.com.

Samantha von Sperling: Thank you so much Sarah, thank you.

Sarah MacKay: Thank you Samantha, my pleasure.

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