Headed to Vegas for HIMSS? BOCA’s tips to have a great time on a budget

Las Vegas can be tough on one’s wallet, but you don’t have to spend like a big roller to have fun. It turns out that the BOCA team has a couple resident experts who know a thing or two about experiencing Las Vegas while staying on budget. Here are some of their tips if you get a break from the educational sessions and networking at HIMSS next week:

1. Walgreen’s for everything. There is no reason to pay $6 for a bottle of water at the hotel shop when Walgreen’s is steps away in the Venetian’s Grand Canal Shoppes. Open 24 hours, they have pretty much everything you need whether it’s bandages for blistery feet, Advil, snacks or souvenirs. But be warned, if your feet are killing and you’re looking for cheap flip-flops, most are bedazzled.
2. Check with the concierge for deals. If you’re looking for last minute Cirque du Soleil tickets, restaurant recommendations or reservations, start with the concierge at your hotel. They often have a hook-up to get hard to find or discounted tickets and are willing to do the leg work for a small fee.
3. Free entertainment. Concierges can certainly get you a deal but there are also plenty of completely free attractions to take in including the fountains at the Bellagio which are set to lights and music and run every 30 minutes throughout the day and every 15 minutes from 8 pm to midnight. Sadly, the very entertaining Pirate Battle at Treasure Island is no longer performed but you can still catch the nightly volcano eruption outside of the Mirage (right across the street from the Venetian) and see entertainers ranging from Elvis impersonators to Storm Troopers all along the Strip. If you want to get of the strip, check out the light show at the Fremont Street Experience. Live free music can be heard nightly including Spandex Nation, the “The ultimate ’80s hair and metal tribute band,” who will be playing Tuesday, March 1 at 8 PM.
4. Cheap thrills. Three words for you: SLOTZILLA ZIP LINE. SlotZilla offers two ways to fly, the lower “Zipline” and a super-hero style upper “Zoomline.” It’s $25 for the Zipline, $45 for the Zoomline, but you can save $5 by flying before 6:00 PM. Not as cheap, thrill seekers can also bungie jump or take a roller coaster ride at the top the Stratosphere. Package prices are available for multiple rides but beware, it’s a trek at 2 miles up the strip from the Venetian.  
5. Cheap eats.  Food trucks are a great option for a quick, low-cost meal. Our favorite is the Bacon Boys Truck (follow on Twitter @BACONBOYSTRUCK) but you can locate more local trucks by visiting Roaming Hunger Las Vegas. There’s also a yummy little gelato and coffee shop, Espressamente Illy,  located in the Palazzo Waterfall Atrium. Delicious!

Lastly, remember to hydrate. Next week will be mild in the mid-70’s, but it’s dry so drink plenty of water. You might even score a free reusable bottle on the exhibit floor. More excellent Vegas on the cheap recommendations were covered by the New York Times’ travel section just last week, check it out!

Being Social at #HIMSS16: Everything you need to know about engaging with media and influencers at the show

BOCA will soon we will be headed to #HIMSS16 to support our clients’ speaking engagements and meetings with reporters, analysts and investors. While in Las Vegas, we’re excited to participate in conversations that are happening on social media.

Following are some tips to make your presence at the show successful, as well as a preview of some of the media and influencers who will be sharing their insights on healthcare IT.

Some of the top media and influencers we’re following include:

• Bloomberg, Alex Ruoff: @alexruoff
• Frost & Sullivan, Nadim Daher: @Frost_Sullivan

• FierceHealthIT, Dan Bowman: @Dan_Bowman
• Health Data Management, Fred Bazzoli: @fbazzoli
• Health Innovation Media, Gregg Masters: @2healthguru
• Health IT News, Tom Sullivan: @SullyHIT
• Health IT Outcomes, John Oncea: @buck25
• Healthcare Dive, Jeff Byers: @jeffpbyers
• Healthcare Informatics, Rajiv Leventhal: @RajivLeventhal
• Healthcare Tech Talk, Kelley Hill: @Healthtechtalk
• HealthITSecurity.com, Elizabeth Snell: @securityHIT
• Healthleaders Media, Scott Mace: @scottmace
• JAMA, Edward Livingston: @EHLJAMA
• Mayo Clinic, AJ Montpetit: @mayoinnovation
• POLITICO, David Pittman: @David_Pittman
• TechTarget, Shaun Sutner: @ssutner

• Athena Health, Jonathan Bush: @Jonathan_Bush
• CMS Acting Director, Andy Slavitt: @ASlavitt
• Secretary of Health & Human Services, Sylvia Mathews Burwell: @SecBurwell
• Wharton School of Business and author of "Contagious: Why Things Catch On”, Jonah Berger, MD: @j1berger
• National Coordinator for Health Information Technology and Acting Assistant
• Secretary for Health, HHS, Karen DeSalvo: @KBDeSalvo

Additionally, HIMSS social media ambassadors will be tweeting news at the event. Following these 20 health IT professionals is a great way to prepare for the event and make sure you stay in the know while browsing the venue. Follow this curated list for easy access to all of the ambassadors: https://twitter.com/HIMSS/lists/himss16-sm-ambassadors

In advance of the show, we’ve already seen a number of helpful guides - a few we’re reading:

• Becker’s Health IT & CIO Review: 10 Things to Know Before HIMSS 2016
• Healthcare Dive: 5 trending topics to watch at HIMSS16
• Healthcare IT News: HIMSS16 Survival Guide: What you need to know before you arrive

If you haven’t already seen the list of HIMSS hashtags published by HealthcareITNews, be prepared -– there are 15 in all. While the number of hashtags may be a bit much, they are likely to start trending during even before the meeting.

Official HIMSS Hashtags:

• #RethinkRCM is the hashtag to use for revenue cycle management at HIMSS16.
• #WomenInHIT supports and empowers fellow women in IT.
• #PutData2Work is the official hashtag to follow trends and innovations for improved outcomes and efficiencies unveiled at HIMSS16.
• #Nurses4HIT is the HIMSS16 hashtag to keep up-to-date on care transformations making an impact on nursing.
• #IHeartHIT isn't just a declaration. Use this hashtag at HIMSS16 to share personal stories how HIT has affected you.
• #HX360 is designated for topics fostering advances to new models of care.
• #HITworks  helps you quantify the value of your HIT at HIMSS16.
• #HITventure is the official hashtag to learn how collaboration in HIT can contribute to tech-enabled solutions.
• #HITsecurity is the hashtag to follow to learn how the industry is proposing to solve cybersecurity problems in HIT.
• #GenY4HIT follows the discussion at HIMSS16 on the new generation's impact on HIT.
• #Engage4Health highlights the role empowered consumers play in their healthcare.
• #EmpowerHIT lets you follow how the push for interoperability is shaping up, according to the 40,000-plus attendees at HIMSS16.
• #DrHIT hashtag highlights the issues that result when integrating clinicians and technology.
• #Connect2Health helps you discover the role of healthcare IT thanks to mobile technology.
• #Aim2Innovate explores the ways innovation and HIT are being pushed to improve outcomes.

If you’re interested in hearing our take, BOCA will be live tweeting news as it’s trending and sending reports from the floor from @BOCAComms. Please direct message us or send us a note to newbusiness@bocacommunications.com if you want to catch up while we are at the show on Tuesday and Wednesday, March 1 and 2, 2016.

We look forward to seeing you at HIMSS!

Apple vs. The FBI: What’s at Stake?

We want to know what you think? Do you support Apple or the federal government when it comes to the data that is in your phone?

Here is what we think...

In the 70s when mobile phones were first invented, no one thought they would become a lightening rod for protecting personal privacy. Today things are quite different. Mobile devices have become the equivalent of personal diaries. Our phones are used to make purchases, communicate our innermost thoughts, and track our habits—healthy or otherwise.

This is why the letter that Apple CEO Tim Cook published on February 16 could very well become a defining moment in the history of personal privacy. In the letter, Mr. Cook said the company will oppose a federal judge's order to help the U.S. Justice Department unlock a phone used by a suspect in the San Bernardino, Calif., terror attack. Mr. Cook called the order an "unprecedented step which threatens the security of our customers" with "implications far beyond the legal case at hand."

By putting a stake in the ground on what Apple will and will not permit when it comes to accessing the personal data of its users, Mr. Cook has essentially drawn a line in the ground and, in no uncertain terms, requested that the U.S. government step back. I think we can all hear the bells at the Supreme Court ringing, and the sounds of the stock exchanges as all eyes turn to Apple.

Investor worries aside, this was a brilliant move by Mr. Cook, as it places Apple squarely at the center of the personal privacy debate, and it sends a message to the world that Apple will not compromise its customers’ privacy beyond existing fair and reasonable requests from the government. Not to be outdone, Google CEO Sundar Pichai weighed in on the ongoing issue over device encryption with a more succinct five-tweet response applauding Apple’s stance.

The debate about personal privacy has long been in the background in the U.S., popping up in conversations about the use of mobile devices for health and financial reasons. Now it is front and center, with new questions, dialogue and uncertainty emerging. While much of the technology community has put forth carefully worded support or, in many cases, silence, we at BOCA Communications strongly support Apple’s position. We advocate for what’s best for our clients and our people, and see the court order as potentially setting a troubling precedent for both.  

We, like the vast majority of people around the world, abhor terrorist attacks. We can and should do everything we can as a nation, communities and industry to thwart those efforts. However, when we start to compromise the very freedoms that terrorists seek to attack, where does that put us? And where does it end given the ever-evolving technology landscape?

When you consider that the Internet of Things doesn’t end from a technology perspective, this question grows even more concerning. As reported in a recent TIME magazine article, if the FBI wins, it could open the door to massive surveillance not limited by smartphones. With the billions of devices (and growing) now connected by the Internet of Things, the government, or others, could deliver spyware to connected appliances armed with code blessed by the developer’s secret key. Let’s hope an equitable solution is found that helps the government track down bad guys without compromising the rest of us. We’ll be watching and advocating for our clients.

A Letter From a Burgeoning CEO

(The Jerry Maguire Version) 

In the spirit of appreciation, fun, happiness and the month of love, we invite you to leap into 2020 with BOCA. Please join us for our third Leap Year party coming up on Monday, February 29.

It is our official eighth year in business – oh, how much we’ve changed, how much the world has changed, and what an adventurous journey.

Did I say, it is a “re-launch party?” Please celebrate the evolved BOCA: A Digital Agency delivering Communication | Content | Insight for 100% B2B High Tech and Healthcare brands – especially if you want to avoid the RSA Conference.

Coming soon is our new website with our expanded capabilities outlined. Stay tuned.

The fun stuff and party facts are above this sentence. The Jerry Maguire stuff is below.

A Step Back Into History: BOCA 1.0

BOCA 1.0 Original Crew

It was 2007. I had just finished reading Tim Ferriss’ “The 4-Hour Workweek.” I thought to myself, that sounds nice, who doesn’t want a four-hour work week, especially after years of 80-hour work weeks.

My original intent was to start small, as a highly coveted marketing communications consultant with free range and no boss. I knew deep down inside a business would come as I bought the URL for BOCA moons ago, but the original incarnation was to consult. Then, I thought, what would Tim Ferriss do? I bought a boat – the BOCAtina; I lived on the boat; I took off aroundthe world; and I started BOCA 1.0.

414 Francisco St., Our 1st Office

I knew The Great Recession was coming, I could smell it. Plus, my sister who owned a construction company was watching the housing market and literally called me saying, “get ready Kathleen - the s#!^ is going to it the fan.” My parents said, “this feels like the “Savings & Loan” crisis of the ’80s.” All the signs were there.

So the Recession came, and my more affordable services (not competing on price, just a contractor rather than an agency) came into demand. Next thing I know, comms professionals were in abundance so I could easily hire, and I started to win business - in steps BOCA 2.0 – awesome clients, full time employees, medical, dental and the like.

Let’s Be a Real Company: BOCA 2.0/BOCA 3.0

Inwardly Focused

One day, sitting at a cafe with two tables pushed together, I realized “wow, I did it.” I’ve got clients, employees and something is truly happening here. People want to work with and for BOCA. So began the journey of building a real company.

I thought long and hard about what do I want BOCA to stand for?

I wanted to build a company based on creativity, love, passion and, most importantly, honesty. I also wanted to stand out and show how much BOCA cares about each person we come into contact with. Isn’t that why a lot of people start companies?

I thought a lot about values and the importance of a company that can truly embody those values. This is what I came up with:

The New, Bigger Digs!

1. Authenticity: What you see is what you get. We are a genuine group of people fully invested in your success and driven by the process to get you the result.
2. Creativity: We need to engage and entertain, as well as drive interest and value around content and news.  
3. Family: We treat each and every person we touch with respect; we have the honesty you would with your family.
4. Passion: We love what we do; we put our hearts and souls into each and every project.
5. Savvy: We are more than strategic. We figure it out, avoid navel gazing and climb out of that boring, brown paper bag and turn it into something that sparkles.

I believe that has been done, and so have the wonderful people who work at BOCA. You have likely already interacted with these people through client engagement, new business, media briefings, events and more. This party is to say thank you and celebrate.

Outwardly Focused

Pre-2007, PR agencies already saw the writing on the wall. The world we lived in was changing. Online media was decimating the traditional print world, and we continue to see this today. It is chronicled in Dylan Tweney’s recent Medium post, “7 thoughts on the tech media in 2016; The media is in a state of upheaval. 2015 was a stormy year, and signs indicate that 2016 will be even more turbulent.” Beyond media, we all feel, know and see the disruption. A technology renaissance came and continues: Big Data, cloud, IoT (or, as we said at Wind River back in 2003, Connected World...Dave Fraser, you were so ahead of your time), mobile, social and the list goes on.

Evolve or Die + Bracing for a Hiccup: BOCA 4.0

Inwardly Focused

I always had a clear vision of the company I wanted BOCA to be, and, happily, it is finally “self-fulfilling.” Yay!

Since our first launch party on February 29, 2008, BOCA is and always has been a Communication and a Content agency, although I didn’t evangelize our Content side of the business (cobbler’s shoe syndrome). That said, I barely evangelized my brand (shame on me because we rock!).

I was (and am) also a solo partner building a business while simultaneously starting a family. I think I’ve pulled off a lot if you throw two babies under the age of five in the mix, too.

Today, we share that BOCA is expanding its capabilities across the board.

BOCA: A Digital Agency – Communication | Content | Insight

Why? Evolve or Die.

Another exciting piece of news is that we are also expanding into Healthcare.

PR Week Selfie Award Winners

Why?

While I love B2B High Tech, and it is in my blood (plus, I am just good at it), I’ve had a personal passion to work within the healthcare sector.

We are an aging population that will only continue to live longer and stronger. The advancements being made in healthcare – partially due to technology advancements – are remarkable. I want to personally be part of that, and I want BOCA to be at the forefront.

We’ve hired several healthcare veterans from PR agencies known for that expertise – MSL Schwartz and Webber Shandwick – as well as a senior content strategist that spent years at Carestream Health.

I am so excited about our move into Digital and Healthcare. I love you, Silicon Valley, yet you are “shaky territory” with a lot of ebbs and flows that I’ve personally felt and witnessed during my 20 years here in San Francisco.

Diversification is a good thing.

Outwardly Focused

Marketing heads are increasing telling me they need demand generation and lead generation. Of course, every company wants brand awareness. But why? Ultimately, it’s to sell product. Without sales there is no company. We understand that.

Our New Healthcare Practice

We hear you, CMO. And we want to support you with our new services.

Did you know that earned media and communication are the biggest drivers of search and “qualified” leads? So, I beg you, don’t dump your money in a content house that doesn’t really know what to do with the content.

We are a group of savvy Communication professionals, Content creators and data driven “scientists” recommending Insight to create campaigns that link back to clicks and leads.

We will SEO the bejesus out of everything. We will drive backlinks. If you need Web copy, let us do it. Then, we will turn it into a byline, then a blog post and publish it on a site that drives search ranking in the right direction.

Sneak Peak: Website Coming Soon!

You need an infographic, a video or a website? Let us do it.

Since starting BOCA in 2007, this has been my vision, and I am so proud it is finally realized.

Come party and rejoice with BOCA 4.0! We are ready for 2020 and walk into it together.

Happy Leap Year,

Kathleen Shanahan, a burgeoning CEO