Culture Scout Blog

Where Vision Meets Action

2012-01-27T09:04:00.000-06:00

I love this! Watch a group of passionate artists revitalize a gritty Oakland block in 6 weeks.

Check out PopUpHood

Checking Out Self-Reliance Technologies

2012-01-25T08:25:00.004-06:00

Ever wonder why people wait in line at the grocery store check-out or the public library when self-check-out is available? I’d like to argue that in a digital culture, we get emotional support from live human transactions. The neuroscience proves that the more social our technologies become, the more human contact we‘ll crave: hi-tech/hi-touch. So it’s not about efficiency.

Transacting at check-out is all about having a plush human exchange. This is where brand personality shines. For example, at my library there are a couple of librarians who lavish patrons with eye contact and smiles. People will cue up to have their books checked out by these librarians, while self-check-out is idle nearby.

In grocery stores, self-check-out is a bust. The process is clunky and riddled with errors that cause delays. Invariably the customer is forced to seek help anyway as the robot voice scolds them about unscanned items. It’s a downright punitive customer experience.

The trouble with some self-reliance technologies is that they are replacing something that people value more and more - positive human connections. More importantly, technologies that attempt to fix the problem of lousy customer service using the fig leaf of hip technology is an infuriating idea. When I saw this video about a mobile app for shoppers, I couldn’t help but wonder: what problem is this solving? Efficiency? Self-reliance? User freedom?

Or is it a techno-fix for bad customer service at check-out? The latter doesn’t need an app. It needs leadership.

See for yourself. Would you adopt this mobile app for your shopping trip?

A New Story

2012-01-23T07:13:00.005-06:00

Photo by pic fix

It's sunrise in New York. I am writing this from my hotel room, hours before the curtain goes up on TEDx Broadway.

Last night, I snagged last minute tickets to The Book of Mormon. Terrific show! It lived up to every Tony it won.

I couldn't help feeling uplifted by its deeper themes about America: even when the chips are down, even when we are lost and have no idea what to do next, we are always able to tell ourselves a new story. It keeps us hopeful. And hope is always magnetic.

I am thrilled to be a part of TEDx Broadway. And I thank Chris Anderson, curator of the TED Conference, for being hopeful enough about the future of ideas to dedicate a business to it.

And look where that has taken him. And taken all of us.

Wish me luck...oops, I mean "break a leg."

Show Don’t Tell - Communicating for Impact

2012-01-18T08:51:00.001-06:00

My children were cursed, they said, with a mother who loves words. I used to fuss at them about their school essays, “Show don’t tell.”

My son is a now a poet. His bio reads: “…and his mother inquired of his second grade teacher: 'How is his prose?'" My face reddens to recall that memory.

Words are powerful when they paint pictures. Take this poem by the talented Matt Rohrer. It reads like Exhibit A from Strunk & White’s Elements of Style under the section: “Show, Don’t Tell” which advises on the use of imagery.

I’m tweeting this to Dan Pink, who is equally afflicted by a language infatuation, although his rapture is signage.

Your Kid’s Too Fat: Changing the Culture of Obesity

2012-01-16T08:39:00.002-06:00

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta is taking the heat for its brazen campaign against childhood obesity. I applaud their approach. In fact, it’s way overdue.

Back in 1997, we spotted evidence that the obesity issue would balloon into an epidemic when we helped a yogurt brand get adopted into school lunchrooms. At the time, carbonated beverages and sugar-laden snacks were the norm.

Our research uncovered a sentimental belief among adults that kids were impervious to obesity. Parents believed their kids were so active, they’d naturally burn off the calories. Turns out the reality was very different. The one-two punch of a refined sugar diet and less outdoor play left an entire generation of kids dangerously obese.

Check out these attack ads running in Georgia to fight obesity. They are stimulating a lot of debate. I’ll be curious to see if they will indeed change the culture of child-rearing around food, snacks and exercise. The fully-integrated ad campaign includes outdoor, digital and television.

Mega Brands Do Social Media

2012-01-11T08:41:00.000-06:00

To write Tipping the Culture, I interviewed social media gurus at big brands such as Red Bull, Ford Fiesta, Google and more. Ever since, I’ve been fascinated to watch mega brands wade into the social web.

People underestimate what it takes to deftly wield social media as an expression of brand personality when you are a giant. Thanks to Scott Monty, head of Social Media at Ford Motor, here’s a cool infographic about which brands are rockin' it lately with social and why. (Disclosure: Unisys is on the list and we were retained during the launch of its LocalLife community-helper portal.)

Created by Voltier Digital for ScottMonty.com

Monday: Do We Live in Two Worlds?

2012-01-09T10:34:00.003-06:00

Mondays are always slow to unfold. My ambition arouses more slowly as I shake off the dreamy weekend world. Weekend and work week can seem like two different worlds. That notion inspired me to post this Monday meditation.

I came across this trailer for Upside Down, a new movie set in a universe with two earths. Lower Earth is poor. Upper Earth is, well, the upper crust. Contact between the two worlds is forbidden. Two star-crossed lovers find each other and, despite coming from opposite worlds, fall in love (Romeo and Juliet reprise). The film has no release date. Producers are marketing it early to seed interest and crank up the marketing churn.

When I found the trailer over at Digital Trends, I was struck by a phrase of dialogue I couldn’t shake. Her love gives me hope, the man explains.

Simple enough. Love is hope.

It’s a wild world. It’s Monday. I’m stepping off my week with this little gem in mind: love is hope.

Ponder that and have a great week.

Infographic: Social Media Makes Attention Deficit Disorder the New Common Cold

2012-01-04T08:45:00.005-06:00

As you will see, my love for infographics persists into 2012. Here’s a recent one from Assisted Living Today about SMADD (social media attention deficit disorder).

I’m afflicted. I came down with it back in 2004 when I started this blog. I haven’t been able to shake it. I have the attention span of a toy poodle. But I’m doing everything I can to fight back. I’ve even returned to practices I learned in Catholic grade school, like preparing lovely handwritten notes with painstakingly neat penmanship. But it’s blowing my time management regimen, let me tell you.

There are some eye-popping findings in the infographic. Like the one about how social media leaches oxytocin into our blood streams. Yowzer! Anyone who has ever been in love knows that resistance is futile in the face of oxytocin, especially if you are female, since it’s widely accepted that oxytocin does for women what testosterone does for men, sans the chest-beating.

Have a look and see how social media is changing us:

Infographic sponsored by AssistedLivingToday

Cracking the Code on the 3 Most Difficult Habits to Break

2012-01-02T09:17:00.000-06:00

If you’re like most people, you’ve made a list of resolutions for 2012. I have. And this week, I plan to embark.

My top resolutions for 2012:
1. Join a new gym and become my most fit self in 2012.
2. Improve eating habits so I have more energy.
3. Manage time better. (hmmmm…where to begin?)

Seems like a pretty simple list, except that the odds for success are stacked against me. If you saw the cover story about weight loss in The New York Times Magazine, you know about how our bodies retaliate when we change what we eat or how we exercise. It’s an uphill battle.

As for time management, I’ve identified a few culprits that eat away at my time: email and distraction.

The research on email shows how much it interrupts our day and eats time. The trouble is, changing our email behavior is also notoriously difficult. For me, it’s a thoughtless reflex. So I am re-wiring my email habits by spotting patterns I can retool using this app.

And I’m letting go of things that corrupt my concept of time by being truthful with myself about the root cause of these energy-sucking behaviors. I consider it my own behavior mod program. I’m attempting to retrain myself using negative associations:

1. Multi-tasking is a guilt trip when I feel I can't keep up. I’m not talking about typing out instant messages while waiting in line at the Whole Foods. I mean that frenzied ADD flurry of unrelated little problems and emails and interactions that slowly drain away our focus. Multi-tasking is bad for us. Kathy Sierra turned me onto to mindfulness as an antidote for multitasking.

2. Daily to-do lists with over 10 things are for psychos. I learned this first-hand during a recent move. I kept these crazy lists of 20 or 30 items a day. One day, I laid out my week in review on the kitchen counter and saw the pattern. Truthfully, I accomplished about 10 items a day and carried the others over. I went to bed each night feeling under-accomplished. Starting each day with a Top 10 is more efficient, if not more realistic. You don’t waste time feeling bad about having left so much undone. Besides, happy people are focused, as Gretchen Rubin believes.

3. Email addiction is bad for my soul. Long ago I gave up checking email on my iPhone. It’s clunky and unsatisfying. I actually like email as a medium, but I have come to appreciate that like “slow food”, it’s best savored in 3 e-meals a day. When I moved, I went for a week without Wi-Fi at my house when Comcast not only dropped the ball, but kept kicking it from Help Desk to Help Desk. Without wireless at home, I set aside time segments at my local coffee shop to check email and surf the web. It was efficient. People got more thoughtful responses from me, and I felt more complete and more serene.

If you haven’t made your list of resolutions, here’s a good place to start.

I chose some tough nuts to crack in 2012. But I’m giving myself a little credit for keeping it to 3 things in 2012. Not 10...not 20...just three.

Wish me luck.

Why Millennials Won't Grow Out of It

2011-12-28T10:38:00.000-06:00

On my holiday lunch circuit with clients, I kept hearing a similar refrain from people. They are struggling to manage Millennials right out of college. They appreciate that they're tech-savvy, creative and enthusiastic. But harnessing those qualities in the work place is elusive. As people, they seem so different, I kept hearing.

It's no hype: folks between 18 and 29 are very different from the rest of us. Their aspirations, political leanings, attitudes and beliefs set them apart from generations preceding them.

Infographic and full article at The Huffington Post

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T00:00:00.003-06:00

Photo by peripathetic

I come from a long line of women who believe that food is love. I have the love handles to prove it.

It’s Christmas Day. A veritable cooking bonanza!

Today, I will fill my house with family and will cook to my heart’s content. Beginning at dawn, I’ll be cutting and sautéing. I’m talking complicated recipes that take all day. You see, no other day allows me the luxury of making fish stock from scratch.

My family will lounge and nibble in their pajamas until noon.

Come evening, we will set a table near the fireplace and tuck into our supper. The love will be plentiful and piping hot. And before diving in we will hold hands and pray for peace.

I love Christmas.

I hope your day is filled with love however you express it. For best results it should be plentiful and served piping hot.

How Will You Recharge?

2011-12-21T09:41:00.000-06:00

Photo by Wondermonkey2k

Outside my office window, the crush of shoppers and twinkling lights on Michigan Avenue beckon me to knock off early and get into the holiday groove.

Why not unplug?

The year ahead shows every sign of being busy. With marketing programs to be created and strategies to be hatched, why can’t I just relax? Maybe the economy has made high-anxiety the new normal. Could be I’m suffering from decision fatigue.

I look and see that I’m booked solid for business networking events that I plan to leverage using this. But I’ve reserved far less time for pure fun and family time.

Read the full article and find holiday relaxation tips at MENG Blend

Seeding Your Ideas in the Digital Culture Using Google Currents

2011-12-19T09:19:00.000-06:00

Creating content that’ll be published electronically raises a touchy questions: will people actually want to read it? Truthfully, digital publishing lacks the "curl-up-and-read" coziness of standard print. More so than print, electronic formats are still emerging just as attention spans are narrowing.

It’s proving difficult to design content that is truly engaging for smaller digital formats. Sometimes it feels like a race to the bottom intellectually as nuances and complexities are shaved off, leaving Neanderthal nubs for people to nibble on.

This year, we published our first true e-book designed by these guys to be read on hand-held devices. We learned a lot as we pushed the content across platforms.

Big Lesson: Digital publishing lacks the "flip through" factor
The main lesson we learned is that people are more willing to flip through a print pub than scroll through digital content. Why? Not sure, but my hunch is that it has something to do with ease of sampling. We’ve all done that - picked up a book or magazine and flipped through it quickly to snatch a tidbit or make a decision to commit more time to it later.

Promising Solutions
Recently, I’ve been noodling around with Flipboard and like how it brings together content from Twitter and Facebook into a magazine format. I have yet to break the spine of the Kindle Fire that enhances the reading experience for e-books. It’s on my list.

Last week, Google offered Google Currents, an app for Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android that lets you curate content you're curious about and pulls it into a magazine format. Nice!

Technology’s Hidden Barrier to Adoption
The trick is not managing the technical challenge of loading and testing these apps. It’s finding the time to hike the learning curve.

I confess with a red face that I’m way behind on mastering Google+. I just skipped over it and went on to the apps I was really curious about because they help me run my business.

Since we advise clients on how to seed their ideas into communities to speed adoption, Google Currents is highly relevant to me.

As the digital culture evolves, we keep expecting apps to be ubiquitous. Believe me, Google, Microsoft and Apple are banking on a universal use case for every new program or app they create. But that’s not what seems to be happening.

I’d like to argue that the long tail has entered the realm of e-content and that includes apps, epubs and devices. The limiting factor is not personal preference or use case or even access. The big barrier is time.

I have a kitchen timer in the shape of a little pink piggy. It just went off. It’s my new time manager. It’s telling me that I need to end this blog now.

Ciao!

Visualizing LeWeb Makes Me Wish I Had Been There

2011-12-16T10:59:00.001-06:00

I’ve been following the outtakes from LeWeb 2011 and fell in love with this slide show of hand-drawn images generated by graphic facilitators during the event. We work with Brandy Agerbeck, who continually reminds me of the importance of helping people “process” ideas at their own pace.

Visuals ALWAYS speed absorption of your content.

Check out this handy deck and see…and learn…what we missed at LeWeb this year.

Are Americans Still Eager to Learn?

2011-12-14T09:20:00.001-06:00

At a recent leadership conference, academic leaders voiced concerns about the future of education in America. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, their remarks were punctuated by angry protesters who openly confronted the panel of college presidents about the high cost of a college education.

What struck me is how much "Occupy" behaviors are creeping into daily life. People are no longer willing to politely sit and listen when they hold a collective grievance. This open defiance frays the warp and woof of authority and raises the question: who's in charge?

Last week, I was in Denver giving a talk to non-profit leaders. They shared their anxieties about the road ahead. After years of uncertainty, there seems to be confusion about what it means to be a leader. In the past, authority and leadership went hand-in-hand.

Unless you live in a cave, you're already feeling the impact of the societal shifts underway. These tremors are being amplified by a rising generation no longer willing to knuckle under to authority. Why should they? The status quo has failed them. In large part, it has made the core value proposition of getting an education all about failure and hardship, rather than striving and achievement.
Read the full article at The Huffington Post

Coca-Cola's Polar Bear Debacle

2011-12-09T09:05:00.000-06:00

Photo by The Rocketeer

Coca-Cola executives meant well. But their customers had a different idea about the beverage giant’s partnership with World Wildlife Fund. By putting a polar bear on Coke cans, “to raise awareness and funds to help create a safe haven for the polar bear – an Arctic refuge,” it inadvertently led consumers to confuse diet with regular Coke. Not good if you’re weight conscious or diabetic.

Now Coke is having to backpedal. The cans are being recalled. Thanks to Raz Godelnik over at Triple Pundit there’s this back story on the promotion.

With all due respect, I beg to differ that this is, “another story of good intentions gone wrong.” I really like this cause-marketing promotion despite its implications. And it’s beautifully rendered for the holiday season. Consider the conversation it started, not to mention the passions it ignited.

What brand wouldn’t kill to evoke these emotions?

Yes, yes, it’s a scary thought that a diabetic could mistakenly consume a sugared Coke product. That aside, I think the polar bear debacle was an early Christmas gift for two legacy brands—WWF and Coca-Cola.

Creating Order Out of Chaos

2011-12-08T08:47:00.002-06:00

One delight about hitting the mid-century mark in life is that you get really clear on where your talents don’t lie. I admit it. I am lousy at space planning. This simple truth has led to all manner of confused rooms and unproductive spaces in my home and office.

A recent move set me adrift. Because of a goofy moving schedule brought about by a “hurry-up-and–wait” loan process, I ended up harried at the last minute. To make matters worse, I used recycled boxes from other moves. They are marked: bedroom, kitchen, bath in various colors of Sharpie. So which is it? I never know until I open the box intended for the kitchen and then have to drag it to another room entirely.

This led me to seek help. Next week, my friend Francesca is coming over to help me sort myself out. Thank, goodness. One of Francesca’s secrets to success in her restaurants is how the space is plotted out. Cozy, close and elegant.

Before she drops by, I’m busy unpacking. With each box I get a little more clear on what matters. What’s really worth keeping, and what needs recycling.

I guess I should be grateful for the chaos it’s causing. It’s forcing me to take my time and bring order to my life. It's a slow process.

And it’s teaching me what I’ve come to believe is my New Year’s resolution: I must learn patience. It’s a valuable lesson and one I’ve never, ever mastered.

I’m looking for help on the patience front. Got any tips for me?

Familiarity Breeds Contentment - To a Point

2011-12-06T08:55:00.006-06:00

Photo by whatatravisty

As I head to Denver to give a talk, I’m mulling over the bankruptcy of American Airlines. Actually, AA is one of my favorite airlines. Not because it’s consistent, on time, or even friendly. It’s that I got to know some of the personnel on well-worn routes, and it felt more personal to travel.

Familiarity is becoming a big driver in consumer behavior. It’s true that the high cognitive load of daily life is making familiarity a default mode. What’s not so obvious is the emotional succor we get out of the deal. Familiarity means we’ll put up with all manner of weak service and incompetence. The question is...for how long?

That’s what American Airlines is about to discover.

How to Generate Buzz - A No-Fail Recipe

2011-12-05T08:35:00.001-06:00

Exhausted after a road trip to Detroit, I forced myself to clean out my car. Amidst the pile of newspapers I dug out of the back seat, I scavenged a recipe for root vegetable soup from the WSJ via The Spotted Pig. Curious to know more about the NYC gastropub and its owner chef, April Bloomfield, I wandered over to its website.

The simple, clever design with its Technicolor pig does something very smart that I wish more websites would do. It directly invites blogging. How? It simply asks for the order: “Blog about us.”

People ask me how to generate buzz in a digital culture. There many answers to that question. But the shortest route is a straight line—ask people to do what you want them to do.

Time and again, internet behavior is more led than inspired. I know…it’d be more romantic to believe that people are “inspired” to take action online. It’s simply not true. People do as they are told, pretty much.

So…here I am blogging about the Spotted Pig. Why? Because Chef April asked me to. And tonight, I will use leftovers from Sunday supper with family and friends to whip up Bloomfield’s Golden Root Vegetable soup to welcome in a wintery week.

I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Bing’s “Most Searched” List for 2011 in a Cool Video

2011-11-29T08:28:00.002-06:00

According to Bing searches, 2011 was the year of fascination over musical superstars, celebrity, saving money, concern for human tragedy and royalty. To their credit, Bing has captured the year in history through the searches in this fun and informative video. It’s based on the aggregation of billions of search queries.

<a href='http://video.msn.com?vid=6e2a2b22-3351-4dec-9ec2-9f8b7bed4ac7&mkt=en-us&from=sp^en-us&src=FLPl:embed::uuids' target='_new' title='The Top 2011 Searches from Bing: A Year of Breakthroughs and Heartbreaks' >Video: The Top 2011 Searches from Bing: A Year of Breakthroughs and Heartbreaks</a>

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-22T08:25:00.003-06:00

I can be stubborn. Over the years, I’ve grown accustomed to walking against the tide. I don’t flinch from certain situations. Maybe I should. It’s tough to know which advice to go with when making a big life decision: “He who hesitates is lost!” or “Fools rush in where angels daren’t tread.”

Take, for example, my recent decision to buy a house. I was miserable renting a flat. It was on the second floor of an intimate building. I had little privacy. I also had no easy access to the garden, no connection with the natural world. I found it a withering lifestyle.

Besides, I was curious to see what life had in store for me if I could pursue my passions—gardening and being outdoors, and feeling like I was a part of something greater. My curiosity about what might be possible overruled my fears.

The trouble with making big decisions is that we never really know. We can labor over the pros and cons all we like. But eventually, our sense of wonder moves us down a path. We are making progress just by exploring a new life. Eventually, my toes curled over the edge of the chasm, and I had to leap or fall to my peril. I leapt.

Yes, I’m facing some hard truths—I can’t run the dishwasher, radio, coffee maker and toaster without tripping the circuit breaker. But I’m also waking up in a lovely, solid little house built by German machinist in 1936. I look out over a park. I feel both safe and inspired.

I’m hoping you’ll be inspired by my 2011 Thanksgiving list. This is just a slice of the many things for which I’m grateful:

• I’m grateful to have a healthy happy daughter who’s at this very moment taking her first set of college exams and hopefully passing!
• I’m grateful that my son had the confidence in himself to forge his own path and build a life with the woman he loves in Florida.
• I’m grateful that my relationship with my team has been strengthened, not weakened, by a tough economy, as we innovate and seize challenges. 
• I’m grateful for my assistant, Ellen, who tolerates my terse mails when I’m displeased and never, ever backs down when she believes in something.
• Most of all, I’m grateful to be living the Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times.

Happy Thanksgiving! I’m spending time unpacking boxes and overeating with family. I will return to regular blogging next week.

Peace.

Changing the Culture of Student Debt

2011-11-15T08:13:00.003-06:00

From the We Are the 99 Percent Tumblr

Occupy Wall Street may be an amorphous, platform-free movement. But as the protests that began in New York in September have spread across the United States, and the world, one clear issue of concern has emerged: student loan debt.

For over a year, I’ve been working on a foundation-funded project that hopes to change America’s debt culture, especially among Millennials.

I’ve begun following the young people on “We Are the 99 Percent” Tumblr, and am taken by their use of handwritten signs with their personal stories. It’s a stunning testament in its authenticity, and more powerful than any high-priced ad campaign conceived on Madison Avenue.

“I have $50,000 in student loan debt and my B.A. is useless,” one wrote.

From another: "Graduated college: May 2010. Debt: $35,000. Jobs in US: None.”

Some are resigned: “I am 38 years old. It will take me almost 30 years to pay off my student loans (in 2023).”

Others cry out: “I am 24 years old and am $90,000 in debt from getting a college education. Why are we being punished with debt for getting a higher education?”

The trends are converging into a perfect storm: rising college costs, an increasing need for access to higher education for low-income students, more borrowing and fewer entry-level jobs for new graduates.

Read the full article at The Huffington Post

Remix Culture: Why The Future Likes Hybrids

2011-11-10T10:04:00.004-06:00

The most dangerous problems we face are not typically problems that can be held within a single disciplinary frame. For example, the future of the post-industrial city will not be fully addressed within urban planning or sociology or geo-remediation. The effects of pollution will not be fully addressed within chemistry or public health or oceanography.

The world craves solutions right now. I’m seeing a new kind of thought leader emerging. They are not only cross-disciplinary, but post-disciplinary. They defy category. And they may or may not have academic credentials. What’s important is that they are able to see what others cannot. And communicate it using a constellation of creative technologies.

Take James Powderly, for example. He defies categorization. He describes himself this way:
“I guess I’m a designer, somewhere between an artist and an engineer.”

Powderly continues to fascinate me because he is rocking the remix culture.

As hybrids thrive they will transform what we think about branding, which is defined by specificity. A good brand has boundaries. It is this, not that. But in the remix culture—how will we define our brands?

A Poet’s Power: Silvi Alcivar

2011-11-09T08:02:00.002-06:00

This is a terrific video about a magical poet, Silvi Alcivar. She conjures spontaneous poetry from her vintage Royal typewriter and her immaculate mind. She charges $15/poem (order online from The Poetry Store).

At a loss for words? You will never find a better deal.

a desire for words from silvi alcivar on Vimeo.

People who have hired her for events say she elevates the energy in the room. But what is Silvi’s power? Sure, she transforms people’s simple experiences into something poetic. I think the alchemy begins by her listening. Hearing people out. John Gray, author of the bestselling series Men are From Mars, Women are from Venus, cites research that being heard stimulates a sense of well being.

Silvi is just one of the many examples I’m starting to collect of artist entrepreneurs who demonstrate transformative powers. They use their craft in helpful ways that change the energy between people—and turn a profit.

Avoiding the Kiss of Death Online. Hint: It's Not About Targeting.

2011-11-04T08:09:00.003-05:00

What’s the kiss of death for brands in a digital culture? It’s boredom.

That’s why this shocking video by Dermablend caught my attention. It graphically demonstrates the brand’s attributes—namely to cover up severe blemishes or scarred flesh (NB: I have no professional relationship with Dermablend, and they don’t know me from a hill of beans.).

The campaign’s Halloween timing is spot-on. Everyone takes a certain interest in the bizarre this time of year. In this case, it’s the full body skeleton tattoos of Rico Genest, aka Zombie Boy, a 26-year-old professional model - or should I say “anti-model” - who gets work because of his head-to-toe skeletal tattoos. He went mainstream when he appeared in a Lady Gaga video.

Looking at this video might make you wonder who the target is. Let me tell you, in a viral realm, targeting doesn’t matter as much.

Read the full article at MENG Online

Digital Culture: Interactive Murals

2011-10-31T08:08:00.002-05:00

To my delight, an interesting mix of offline/online experiences continues to proliferate. The folks over at Simply Zesty spotted this interactive mural that comes from the Canadian tourist board. It promotes Canada as a holiday destination to Americans using a gigantic interactive Twitter mural.

Set up on city streets, it powerfully funnels live tweets, video and photos from tourists currently on vacation in Canada.

While this campaign is very cool, it does make me wonder about the value to the end user. After all, it interrupts the pedestrian.

Time-starved urbanites tend to treasure the mind space they have while roaming urban streets. Advertisers continue to believe that people WANT to be distracted from their inner thoughts as they walk city streets. So the campaign has to lure people over using barkers, if you will.

Meanwhile, somewhere else across town people are standing in line, or otherwise captive, and open to a uniquely engaging experience such as these digital murals.

Infusing a Brand into the Culture: Bing and Jay-Z

2011-10-27T08:17:00.000-05:00

Cultural relevance can be grown organically or hyper-infused. A blockbuster example of cultural infusion is the partnership between Jay-Z and Bing. This epic multi-channel marketing campaign used an online game as its pinnacle element of engagement. Econsultancy reports that Jay-Z added 1m Facebook fans and Microsoft reported that the average player engagement was 11 minutes per visit. (That’s big!)

Here’s a behind-the-scenes tour of the campaign:

Occupy Wall Street Raises a Militia

2011-10-24T15:28:00.004-05:00

It’s fascinating to watch Occupy Wall Street explode into a full-fledged movement. The latest is the rise of a well-trained volunteer militia. In this case, it’s retired Marines.

If you haven’t seen this video yet, it’s circulating rapid-fire around the world. It’s an ex-Marine dressing down NYPD for its aggressive handling of protestors. It helped launch the militia, which is organizing via Twitter using the hash tag #OccupyMarines.

The militia even has a required uniform:

“An OccupyMARINES shirt or sweatshirt with military service affiliation and Occupy Wall Street logo ; Dickies EMT black cargo pants;  Ranger Joe's Corcoran Boots-I XC Jump Black Aviator Boots;  and blouse bands - Elastic bands used by military members to fold the hem of their pants up and drape over the top of their boots.”

Uniforms are a visual signal that the movement is turning a corner. They express a desire to be seen, as well as heard, as an organized and intense movement that can protect its activities on a daily basis. This creates a sense of safety for members of the movement. Once its safe, a broader swath of citizens will feel free to join the fray.

When a movement can raise a standing militia, things escalate. I continue to gather lessons into how Occupy Wall Street is seeding its message and going viral.

Stay tuned...

Cool Infographic: Yelp Heat Map

2011-10-18T10:51:00.005-05:00

I’ve got a thing for infographics. If art and science had a baby, it’d look like an infographic. When I spotted this one about Yelp usage, I couldn’t blog about it fast enough.

The trouble is what to say. I mean, this heat map of Yelp usage has a jillion stories to tell. For example, why Chicago is the 3rd Yelpiest city in the U.S. or how a bakery in a tiny town out West has earned outrageous Yelp love.

I don’t know about you, but in my experience, Yelp reviews have been helpful and accurate. From where I got my tires to where I get my toenails done, I’ve benefited from its solid recos.

What’s at the beating heart of Yelp’s success? It isn’t its social media utility or any fancy algorithms. Nope. I’d like to argue that it’s a gooey interface as old as the hills—passion.

People take the time to write a Yelp review because they either love or hate an experience. Earning that level of excitement (love) for your brand is the brass ring of marketing. And what this Yelp heat map reveals is that it doesn’t take a colossal marketing budget to do so.

Later this month, I will be moving house. This time, I’m choosing to keep only things I love. It leaves me with less. Much less. But it’s all stuff that enhances my life--like the ornate cut glass tumbler I brought back from Rome that I sip from while writing.

Life is busy. Life is messy. Now more than ever, we need to love the ones (and things) we’re with.

What's Your Favorite Color?

2011-10-17T09:38:00.000-05:00

Photo by Sarah and Mike ...probably

What’s your favorite color? Bet I can guess. Okay, I’ve got inside wisdom on the matter. Dulux Paints conducted a survey and found that 42 percent of males and 30 percent of females have the same favorite color.

It’s blue.

Sky, water…the world is filled with woozy blue things that enthrall us.

The reason I ask is that I need to choose paint for the house I recently purchased. So far, Glass Slipper from Benjamin Moore is my favorite. Kind of blue-ish.

This got me thinking...If the color blue is so popular, why is it used so infrequently in marketing?

Hmmmm...

The Zombie Apocalypse Starts Now

2011-10-13T09:45:00.000-05:00

Just in time for Halloween, Culture Scout Mark Hayward and his Los Angeles-based company, Idea Monkey, announced its first location-based mobile gaming experience: Living Dead Uprising using SCVNGR.

Pop culture loves zombies. Consider that the cult classic Night of the Living Dead caused a sensation when it premiered forty- three years ago. The coming zombie apocalypse has become a fun part of contemporary culture with books like The Zombie Survival Guide and even this site from the CDC. Living Dead Uprising resurrects the classic film by engaging a modern audience in an interactive game that is part scavenger hunt, part trivia game and part physical challenge, all driven by updated clips from the original film optimized for the smartphone format.

In Living Dead Uprising, players assume the role of zombies taking over the neighborhood. Players are encouraged to check-in via a mobile phone application to a series of locations in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles. Each location offers a unique challenge to be solved by the players. Players earn badges and points for completing challenges which can be redeemed for prizes at a private after-party hosted at 1739 Public House. The game can be played Thursday, October 20, 2011 and Thursday, October 27, 2011 from 6pm to 11pm and tickets can be purchased at www.livingdeaduprising.com

The blending of reality and fantasy is perfect for Halloween season. “Our participants are both players in a game and players in a play,” said Idea Monkey CEO Mark Hayward. “They are entertained not just by watching, but by taking part in a story unfolding in shared time and space."

Keep an eyeball out for more opportunities to live out fantasy lives in real time as mobile gaming gets hotter.

Social Media Metrics - Consumer Behavior

2011-10-11T09:41:00.002-05:00

This presentation is full of cool stats on social media from Digital Buzz. Just yesterday, my team was debating which metrics matter most when it comes to consumer behavior online. These stats reveal just how much big players are penetrating the culture—Facebook and Twitter, as well as how mobile is shaping up. For example, find out why people download apps they never use.

Social media around the world 2011

View more presentations from steven van belleghem
Source: Digital Buzz

Farewell to Steve Jobs

2011-10-06T11:45:00.002-05:00

Screenshot from Apple.com's tribute

By now, practically every blogger on the planet has written about the loss of Steve Jobs. I have only this to add: Steve Jobs made a difference in my life because he imbued his company and its products with the simple belief that creativity mattered. During the rise of the PC, the predominant work culture favored conformity over creativity. But Apple persisted. Thank goodness.

I just want to add my personal thanks to Mr. Jobs for waging the fight to empower people’s creative spirits.

Here’s a list of Apple products that made a difference in my life as a writer:

1. Macintosh, 1986--I write my graduate thesis on a Macintosh for which I traded my vintage Morris bicycle to an employee of the Apple Dublin store.
2. Apple 1995—My mom gets a free Apple for opening a savings account at her local bank and gives it to me to help me bootstrap my start-up.
3. iBook-I still have my first laptop with the roller ball cursor. I can’t bring myself to give it away.
4. iPod Classic—My son has lovingly curated my collections, blending MC5 and the Clash to keep me ever-rocking while running or racing to catch a flight.
5. iPhone—My least favorite product, crappy battery life, glitchy, but still feels like a magic wand in my hand.

Thanks, Steve, for continuing to believe that creative people deserve great tools.

Road Wisdom: How The Energy From Within You Can Change Things

2011-10-05T00:41:00.002-05:00

Photo by Martin Cathrae

It’s been a little crazy. I’ve been traveling across the country sharing my latest research about which brands are Tipping the Culture and why. These events have left me a little breathless, and it’s not from leaping into cabs. Rather it’s been the way people seem to be connecting to the content that is blowing me away.

My first clue was when I started getting late-night emails from people who had heard me speak. They wanted to tell me about their ideas, situations, life events that aligned with something I’d said. They want to make a personal connection with the information.

These heartfelt emails are a window into ways human beings are feeling as we shed one culture and adopt a new one. The pressure we are under as a society is transforming us...from the inside out.

Beyond feeling honored, I also feel re-committed to my work each time I read one of these emails. It’s energizing.

I recently overheard someone say, “Bad energy is like second-hand smoke.” Which really got me thinking: if that’s true, then positive energy can set off a chain reaction of compassion, touching others in its flow.

No one is immune to the changes we are undergoing. So maybe it’s time to get smart about managing the flow of energy in our lives. From what I can tell, it flows in a circle. So it is in giving that we receive the kind of energy that fills us with sweet, scintillating potential.

It’s after midnight. Before I pack it in, I want to share this: if 20th-century leadership was all about the chain of command, then the 21st century’s leadership focus will be the chain of energy.

Surround yourself with people and ideas that enliven you. It’s what will fill you up, light you up and charge your batteries.

That and a good night's sleep…’night.

Facebook’s Brand Personality - The Sandberg Effect

2011-10-03T09:41:00.001-05:00

It used to be that when people talked about Facebook, they talked about its founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Move over Mark. There is a new personality humanizing the Facebook brand - Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO.

Last year, Sandberg's speech at TEDWomen created a stir when she explored why a smaller percentage of women than men reach the top of their professions. You've seen these numbers - of 190 Heads of State around the world, only 9 are women. In the corporate world, only 15% of the top leadership positions are held by women. (Those numbers haven't moved since 2002.) There are more examples - all that either suggest that women drop out or don't have access.

Rather than focus on the problem, Sandberg offered practical ways to turn things around. Her 3 memorable principles suggest that woman can change the culture by exuding a different attitude about success:

1. Sit at the table--not on the sidelines. That means doing things that are really hard for women - like owning our successes and negotiating for better pay.

2. Make your partner a real partner.  Women with a significant other and children do 2x the housework and 3x the childcare as their partners. The division of labor among married couples is one of the most difficult to navigate, but creates the foundation for career success and plain old happiness. In households where partners evenly split the workload, divorce rates are lower and sexual satisfaction is higher.

3. Don't leave before you leave.  If you’re planning maternity leave, don't leave before you leave. Keep your seat at the table until it’s time to leave. Too many women take a back seat years in advance (while the men keep moving ahead).

Is Sandberg’s speech changing things? I only have anecdotal evidence. I’m hearing the ripples among younger, 30-something women as they quote the 3 Sandberg Principles.

Changing a culture around gender roles is a slow process. But in any shift of beliefs, it always begins at the grass roots with individuals and percolates upward.

That’s good news for the Facebook brand, and Sandberg...and women.

Trend: Online Therapy Grows

2011-09-29T08:13:00.000-05:00

Wigged out? Need someone to talk to…NOW? Online therapy may be for you. It’s helping hundreds of people get the support they need to get through life’s high-anxiety moments using Skype.

The New York Times reports that encrypted digital software used by third-party sites like CaliforniaLiveVisit.com, have made online private practice accessible for many more patients to get therapy on the fly.

Expect this trend to grow. Especially considering that a younger generation of tech-savvy patients are coming up through the ranks. One online therapy site, Breakthrough.com, said it has signed up 900 psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors and coaches in just two years, according the NYT.

Digital culture is noisy. Millions of voices call out for our attention. The real impetus driving this trend is the simple fact that everyone’s talking—few are listening.

With listening at a premium, people are willing pay to have access to good listeners. This is just the beginning.

Think about this: we could see “retail therapy” utterly redefined. People may shop just to be listened to. Customer service could start to look more like counseling.

Think about your own marketing. Everyone’s clamoring to nail the right messaging.

Here’s my question: Are you listening?

Subway Tokenism: May the Force Be With You-Lightsaber Handrails

2011-09-27T11:28:00.002-05:00

Photo from Digital Trends

Public experiences are a great way to use the culture as a medium. I love this clever promotion in Japan subways that turn hand rails into lightsabers. Hands down it’s a big win in the “surprise and delight” category. It’s both cool and clever enough to deliver online buzz, as well. (Hey, I’m blogging about it.)

The idea is the brainchild of the marketing department at 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Japan, which is promoting the recently released Blu-ray DVD box set of Star Wars: The Complete Saga that went on sale in Japan on September 16.

More information at Digital Trends.

Infographic: Best Social Marketing Mix for B2B

2011-09-26T10:04:00.000-05:00

Wondering how to integrate social content for better sales pull with your campaign?

This handy infographic will give you something to chew on:

Graphic by BaseOne, posted at Econsultancy

Getting What You Want—6 Simple Things I Did To Get My Dream House

2011-09-23T08:42:00.008-05:00

Right now, I am sitting in my cluttered writing studio, which is actually a dining room. Boxes are strewn about, some half filled. I’m restless.

Thing is, I’m getting ready to move.

You bet your boots, I bought a house. Nothing grand. But it's directly across from a 5-acre wood. Well, let me not be too grandiose. It’s more like a giant community park with gardens and a stream. Just outside my new front door lies a lush, verdant place to air out my brain.

It's my dream house: fireplace, cook’s kitchen, and only minutes from the big city. I plan to use the roughed-out attic as a writing garret. With a southern exposure, it’s sunny enough to convert Emily Dickinson into an optimist.

Here’s how I made my dream come true:

1. I made the dream more concrete.
Our imaginations work from the concrete to the abstract, not the other way around. For instance, I blogged it into being, I wrote a letter to myself describing my dream house and mailed it to myself.

2. I made the dream feel close, not far.
This spring, I took to walking in the park to calm my imagination when it convulsed with a fear of abandonment. The house caught my eye. A sturdy little brick house with the peaked roof and a red door. I walked past it every chance I could get. This made the dream seem as if it were part of my routine existence. Close, not far.

3. I let myself believe in small victories.
One day, a for sale sign appeared on the tidy green lawn. I threw my head back and cheered right out loud in the middle of the park. I danced across the footbridge. I made up a little song in my head about the house. When I toured it against the protestations of my realtor (“It’s overpriced by $75K! for God’s sake!”) I truly fell in love. That night, I posted a picture of it on my fridge, poured a glass of champagne and toasted it.

4. I slit the veil of fear.
Whenever I'm afraid to take a big step, I close my eyes and picture a thin gauzy veil that stands between me and what I want. I imagine myself gently parting it and stepping through. My big fear was that the house was beyond my reach. And it was, at first.

5. I stayed everlasting at it.
People tell me I’m bright. If that is true, I should be smarter about letting go of bad things sooner - bad ideas, bad men, bad business deals. The trade-off is that I am tenacious. With patience and persistence I persuaded the family to sell me the house at a fair price. It had belonged to their grandma. It bore an emotional sales price. It’s a flawed cliché to say that persistence pays off. I have a string of failures that prove otherwise. But when it is the thing you both want and need, and it pulls at your heart and makes sense to your head--you stay at it...everlasting at it.

6. I became a time traveler.
I looked back and re-connected with fond memories of every house I ever owned or lived in. I looked ahead and imagined small daily miracles unfolding in my new home: flowering plants and raucous dinner parties where people fight good-naturedly to get a word in. I kept my imagination engaged in ways that formed a joyful bond between me and my dream. And in the process I learned a secret about joy...it gives a person courage.

I move next month. After two years of living in a rented flat, lovely as it was, I will again have a home of my own.

What are the first things I will do once the boxes are unpacked?

a. I will build a roaring fire.
b. I will sing songs at the top of my lungs.
c. I will wear a black bra and dance around until 2 a.m. if I so desire...because I can.

The trouble with dreams is that a part of us wants to chicken out. I discovered that dreams need constant reassurance to stoke them. Our rational minds fear that getting our hopes up just isn’t prudent. When I was tempted to retreat to the safety of premeditated disappointment because it kept me in control, I decided instead to gorge myself on fantasy rather than starve myself on fear. It helped and it was more fun.

You have a dream inside of you.

So let me ask you:
When you finally get your heart’s desire, what’s the first thing you will do?

Getting Clear on Social Media Integration

2011-09-21T10:20:00.003-05:00

More and more, social media is being treated like adventure island. Bad idea. Penetrating the culture with your message means mixing it up. More seasoned marketers know that social media delivers best when treated as an essential part of the integrated marketing mix. This slide presentation delivered by Econsultancy’s Jake Hird at Agillic's social media seminar addresses how to tackle the integration of social media into wider marketing and business practices. We found it useful and hope you will, too.

Social media integration sample

View more presentations from Econsultancy .com

Will the RenGen “Like” Luxury Travel? A New Article

2011-09-19T09:50:00.000-05:00

Virtuoso is the #1 network of luxury travel advisors in the world. I spoke at their industry conference a few weeks ago. Luxury travel is undergoing a renaissance as people seek downtime, unplugged, free to explore exotic terrains. But like many industries, travel is a non-essential investment.

I was thrilled to set my team loose to unearth where the consumer culture is heading with leisure, travel and a revised idea of what luxury is. Because every talk is its own mini-research project, I was stoked to unveil some red hot data for people. In the audience was Dori Saltzman, a travel writer who was so inspired by what she learned that she wrote this follow-up piece. Thanks, Dori. You honor me.

The Future Path to Purchase -- Life Without My Wallet

2011-09-16T08:29:00.001-05:00

I have an emotional attachment to my wallet. It’s worn and a little tattered, but I refuse to replace it. If Google has its way, I may no longer need it.

A couple of months ago, Google rolled out Google Wallet, giving us a glimpse into the future of payment transactions. The new service uses NFC (Near Field Communication) to allow consumers to swipe their phones to make payments.

But there’s more to it than that.

Google is embedding itself into lifestyles well beyond search. And, as it does, it is altering the culture—for merchants and consumers. Combined with its acquisition of Zagat, for example, the path to purchase for dining will be facilitated by Adwords, reviews, offers, rewards, and swiping your phone.

What Google understands is that lifestyle is largely local. And, for a rising generation of Millennials in particular, lifestyle is the arena where purchasing happens—not necessity-buying or conspicuous consumption, as it was for previous generations. If a product or service lacks relevance at a lifestyle level, it may as well be invisible.

Read the full article and see the video at MENG Online

I'm in Scottsdale

2011-09-14T11:25:00.000-05:00

Photo by Take A Hike Arizona

I’m in Scottsdale, Arizona today. I’m giving a talk to corporate sustainability leaders. This summit represents an array of major brands in packaged goods and retail. It’s a summit I’m proud to be presenting at. My talk is about reaching younger audiences with a digital culture.

Surprisingly, sustainability is not a slam dunk in big business. In any business. But this confab is here to turn that around.

As I gaze out at the desert from my balcony, I wonder if corporate social responsibility needs rebranding. To Millennials it sounds like school: boring. To fat cats it sounds like taxes.

The sunset is gorgeous over the desert. I marvel at the contrast. Dark and light.

Long Live Passion: Lyric Opera’s Marketing Campaign Gets the Social Mix Right

2011-09-12T10:04:00.001-05:00

This past Friday, I got an email inviting me to see Renee Fleming at Millennium Park...FREE.

No brainer.

I quickly gathered together a group of friends via email and Twitter. We trundled our lawn chairs and wine bottles down to the park.

It was thronged.

Sponsoring Ms. Fleming was part of a larger effort to make opera relevant to the uninitiated. The Lyric Opera used the event to launch their new season and their new marketing campaign themed “Long Live Passion”.

People were invited to tweet it up (a hash tag was announced from the stage) and the best tweetsters were awarded a set of season tix.

Ms. Fleming did not disappoint. In honor of the families of the victims of 9/11 she belted out “You’ll Never Walk Alone". People sat in total silence, no one moved, a rare achievement for a rowdy outdoor crowd that size.

We sat next to an elderly couple who’ve been members of the Lyric for 20 years. They were hip and hilarious. We merged our picnics. I helped them back to their car and we embraced when said our goodbyes.

This is why event sponsorship works. It helps people make a human connection. Yes, Renee Fleming was terrific. Yes, it was a soft, Indian-summer evening easy to enjoy. But it was the human exchange that made the event sing.

I counsel my clients to pay attention to the human connections they need to forge to make their brands relevant. As our world and our identities grow ever more fractured, it’ll be the human bonds we make that will be the glue in our lives. And we will reward the brands that sponsor these moments with our loyalty.

Long live passion.

Why Insight Trumps Data - Understanding Millennial Males

2011-09-07T08:35:00.001-05:00

Some groups are better understood through engagement, not surveys. And the psyches of an entire generation of young people are proving nearly impenetrable through focus groups. This juicy article from The Globe and Mail tells the story of how a distiller used a cultural approach to research. By doing so the brand discovered that Canadian Millennial males are mad as hell.

How YouTube Helps You Seed Excitement at Pre-Launch

2011-09-01T10:55:00.001-05:00

Check out this energetic take on 100 years of East London fashion. It zips by in just 100 seconds. If video is all about virality, it’s already an epidemic. It earned a whopping half million views within a few days. And, it’s a great way to pre-launch with some message you want people to share.

The video is being used to promote a new shopping center in the heart of London’s fashion district. It’s a great example of the role we’re seeing video playing in the digital culture. It’s all about generating excitement and anticipation. It borrows from its movie trailer ancestors in this way.

Note there is no heavy call-to-action. That comes later, when your campaign is at the starting gate. After you’ve got the audience liking the cut of your jib.

Hat tip to Simply Zesty.

Making Reading More Social

2011-08-29T10:09:00.000-05:00

Photo by zandwacht

Readmill is a new API that will make reading a social exercise by making it easy for readers using an iPad to recommend and share their ebooks. It also allows you to discuss books with others and leave a closing remark once you finish reading a book. Readmill’s current library consists mainly public domain titles for now, but as you read through your selected books, your profile keeps track of your progress and the time you have spent reading.

This last point is powerful because it signals an important trend in the making. Time matters. The time it takes to read, compose, relate, transact will all become important considerations. The speed/quality equation will enter consumer consciousness most especially with regard to devices.

Although it is only available for iPad, Readmill is aiming to make the app available for all reading devices. The app is in closed beta. But you can ask to be included in the Beta network through the Readmill website.

When to Say “Yes”-- Becoming a Senior Research Fellow

2011-08-26T08:56:00.000-05:00

Taking the next step in life is not always obvious. Things can get cloudy before they get clear. Take this past winter—it was a muddle of unmet aspirations. I had a number of irons in the fire waiting to catch fire.

I’m happy to say that my work with the Institute of Cultural Affairs International has caught fire. Last month, they officially invited me to become a senior fellow.

ICA is a worldwide network, with a presence in over 20 countries. It has a proven process for collaborative problem solving for high stakes issues—water rights, medical systems, anti-violence and smoking cessation. Their unique process sets the stage for cultural change.

Adding the fellowship to my consulting and writing work will make for a busy life. So why’d I say, “Yes?”

I looked at it this way:

As a senior fellow, I’ll be collaborating with a new generation of researchers on novel ways to measure social impact. This work gets me out of my head and into the field. It also complements my recent work on marketing and culture.

The alchemy feels right.

I’m going with, “Yes!”

The Making of the Millennial Mindset—Beloit College’s New List

2011-08-25T08:29:00.003-05:00

Photo by Thomas Huston

This weekend, I plan to take my daughter Grace shopping to trick out here dorm room. Yes, my youngest will be starting college in the fall. It fills me with pride, not to mention a serious hankering to rethink my own living space.

The occasion also put me in mind of one of my favorite psychographic treatments of young people: The Beloit Mindset List. It’s clever and bang-on.

Most members of this year's freshman class were born in 1993, the same year Mosaic was the dominant Web browser. This is a class that has truly been raised on the Internet.

The following is a sampling of the first 20 items on the list. Read the full list here.

1. There has always been an Internet ramp onto the information highway.
2. Ferris Bueller and Sloane Peterson could be their parents.
3. States and Velcro parents have always required that they wear their bike helmets.
4. The only significant labor disputes in their lifetimes have been in major-league sports.
5. There have always been at least two women on the Supreme Court, and women have always commanded some U.S. Navy ships.
6. They "swipe" cards, not merchandise.
7. As the students have grown up on Web sites and cellphones, adult experts have constantly fretted about their alleged deficits of empathy and concentration.
8. Their schools' "blackboards" have always been getting smarter.
9. "Don't touch that dial!" ... What dial?
10. American tax forms have always been available in Spanish.
11. More Americans have always traveled to Latin America than to Europe.
12. Amazon has never been just a river in South America.
13. Refer to LBJ, and they might assume you're talking about LeBron James.
14. All their lives, Whitney Houston has always been declaring, "I Will Always Love You."
15. O.J. Simpson has always been looking for the killers of Nicole Simpson and Ronald Goldman.
16. Women have never been too old to have children.
17. Japan has always been importing rice.
18. Jim Carrey has always been bigger than a pet detective.
19. We have never asked, and they have never had to tell.
20. Life has always been like a box of chocolates.

Infographic: Human Productivity in the Digital Culture

2011-08-22T09:45:00.003-05:00

Graphic by pure360

This infographic about email opening habits tells a story about the shift in human behavior around work. People may be at their computers much longer than before. But the zone of work is pretty slim--two hours. The "do not disturb window" is between 10-noon. It says something about human productivity, doesn't it? We may actually be bleeding our lives of precious hours chained to our screens, but not really accomplishing much.

Note to self--sign up for that time management class this fall.

Sustainable Innovations To Love

2011-08-19T07:37:00.000-05:00

Check out this terrific Bell light design. I want one.

The pitch was created for Bogusky's new endeavor--CommonPitch, part of The FearLess Cottage's agenda to accelerate creative, pro-social business.

CommonPitch - Bell Solar Lamp from Kristian Bye on Vimeo.

Creating a Design Culture in Philadelphia

2011-08-17T08:09:00.003-05:00

Every now and then, you get a client and it's a marriage made in heaven.

When DesignPhiladelphia came to us, they wanted to play a vital role in advancing the city's economy by promoting the design culture in Philly. We helped them rethink their relationships with the business community and retool their sponsorship offerings. This video series is a step toward a new kind of engagement.

What's Your Version of Hell?

2011-08-16T09:53:00.002-05:00

We all know some kind of Hell. For most people it's a feeling of relentless discomfort...or more so, down right pain that has no end. The reason we can't really say it's true hell, is that somehow, tragic situations do have endings even if they are bad ones. They do end.

Yesterday, I was trapped on a plane in the desert for 4 hours yesterday waiting on the tarmac. We baked in the hot sun. Little air flow. I expected people to get angry. Sitting next to me was an ex-Marine. We struck up a conversation about things we've done in our lives that were really difficult. Others joined in around us. Things got competitive as people offered their toppers.

Eventually, the plane took off. Things got back to normal. And we all avoided that horrible after burn of negative emotion that can fill the cabin like second-hand smoke.

My definition of hell is not being trapped on a plane going nowhere. It's being trapped in a situation where everyone panics. Anxiety is contagious. And in this economy I continue to be impressed with brands that take the high road and seek to uplift people rather than scare the hell out of them. Old Spice, Geico and Virgin come to mind.

Fear-based branding is dead. And with it a whole system of selling to people that made the work of marketing more like war than art. Ironically, it took a confident young ex-Marine to drive that home to me.

Viva Las Vegas

2011-08-10T10:33:00.001-05:00

I'm heading to Las Vegas this week to give a talk at the Virtuoso® Travel Mart. It's a conference of travel professionals who craft high-end and unique travel experiences. As I always do, I'm making a list of some can't-miss events to check out while in Vegas.

My can't-miss this time? A photo exhibition, put together by the Las Vegas News Bureau and curated by Brian Paco Alvarez, of classic photos of Paradise Palms. Paradise Palms was created in the 1960's as an ideal suburban enclave, with its own weather-controlled(!) shopping center, movie theater, schools, and golf course. The units themselves were designed for the 1960's cocktail/pool party lifestyle, and Paradise Palms was home to many of the major entertainment celebrities of the time, including Johnny Carson and Debbie Reynolds.

There are two major reasons that this exhibit draws me. First, Paradise Palms was intended as a fiercely residential area, somewhat removed from the non-stop party atmosphere we associate with the Strip. There are similar developments all around Las Vegas, full of the normal everyday kids and families who call Las Vegas home and celebrate the ordinary community events, hidden to the tourist crowd. So, although the photos of Paradise Palms are primarily of its celebrity inhabitants, the exhibit reminds me of that other Vegas, full of the small victories and tragedies of suburban childhood.

The second reason is that Paradise Palms has had a renaissance recently. Young active professionals have embraced the uniqueness of the 1960's architecture and the "community" inherent in a planned community. In January 2011, the community applied for a Historic Neighborhood designation, and residents have organized to be a part of the Clark County Pride Zone project, which gives communities small grants to organize a community project - in this case, a massive cleanup.

Paradise Palms developed a blog and a Facebook page, and has embraced digital culture as an organizing tool for its residents. I love this example of community building that is so wonderful in the digital culture. I'm anxious to see how it all began.

Is President Obama Using Social Media for the Right Reasons?

2011-08-08T08:27:00.010-05:00

Excerpted from The Huffington Post
President Obama doesn't tweet non-stop. He shouldn't. After all, the leader of free world has the business of the keeping the United States safe and solvent to contend with. But because he was the first presidential candidate to "socialize" an election, pundits wonder what happened to the pre-presidency levels of social media activity once he took office. Some contend that he abandoned the vast tribe he built once he it had served his purpose.

President Obama's recent Twitter blunder hints to the possibility that using social media only when you need others to do something for you is usury -- and hence a flawed social media strategy. But there's something deeper afoot here. It seems there are ways we like to be engaged to achieve political ends. Twitter may be too terse and too immediate for relaying more complex issues. It may be showing us its limitations as a medium for protest and debate. But it's perfect for affirming your approval of a candidate.

Twitter may be the digital culture's happy-talk medium. Save the hard news for longer format social media is what I'm thinking.

True, social media is about "engagement." That means different things to different people, but at the end of the day, the key to effective engagement is that everyone involved feels that he or she is getting something out of the interaction. If you want social media to work for you, you have to provide good reasons for people to tweet and re-tweet that gives them relevance among their own audiences.

Read the full article at The Huffington Post.

5 Tips for Socializing Content in a Maturing Digital Culture

2011-08-03T09:00:00.001-05:00

Just one thing. That's what people want to know. Not five things, 10 steps, 100 ideas--just one. I often get asked to distill the most valuable lessons I've learned from a piece of research or a marketing experiment. In a recent blog post for MENG (marketing executives networking group) I shared 5 lessons learned about what it takes to build an audience for new content. In this case, the content was an eBook (also an experiment), Tipping the Culture. It's free and you should download it now if you haven't already!

Okay, so I shared 5 lessons. Too much? For the impatient and overstimulated among you, let me break it down to one. Here's the one thing I've learned about socializing content: patience. Read on.

Vintage Library Gear: It's Hip to be Square

2011-07-29T11:06:00.001-05:00

Guest post by Ellen Willett

Photo from LittleLadyCompany

It's a bit of an understatement to say that vintage is popular right now. From roller skates with keys to old-timey mustache styles to rockabilly bands, things that can be retrieved from a bygone age and enjoyed again are hot commodities.

Remember physical library cards and date stamps with ink pads? As libraries went digital, the cards were shoved in drawers and on shelves as antiquated analog systems. Now, they're making a comeback as a wedding save-the date and party invitation trend.

GalleyCat found multiple sources on Etsy when they wrote a brief piece on the trend. Hugely popular wedding blog Offbeat Bride posted the story of one couple who made their own, with the clever twist of including the crossed-off wedding dates of their previous marriages to show that they'd been "checked out before".

Libraries themselves are an increasingly popular wedding location for couples who embrace and want to celebrate their inner geeks and nerds. The classic architectural styles of many older libraries doesn't hurt, either.

The renewed cool factor is good news for libraries, but while the extinct tools of libraries are being re-purposed with great fondness and nostalgia, those looking for a vintage experience at the library itself may be disappointed to find that the library has not remained a dusty old relic. Despite recent budget cuts, libraries have embraced the digital age and have remained a vibrant community resource, with offerings as creative as the Heirloom Seed Library we've mentioned. Check out a fantastic blog by our friends Erik Boekesteijn and Jaap van de Geer with interviews from innovative librarians around the world doing some amazing things.

Power Lunch

2011-07-28T09:03:00.005-05:00

Photo by A30_Tsitika

I know this is very last minute, but today at 1PM ET you can tune in and get a glimpse into the future of marketing as 30 marketers, including leaders from American Express, IBM and Coca-Cola, give a 60-minute 'microconference'.

It’s today at 1PM. Cancel your lunch date. Instead, roll your office chair up to your desk, unwrap your sammy, and listen up.

Cool Infographic: How Color and Words Affect Buying Behavior

2011-07-27T09:14:00.006-05:00

I stumbled across this amazing infographic in the KISSmetrics Marketing Blog. Take a look!

Five Questions to Ask A Sponsor

2011-07-25T10:02:00.000-05:00

This popular post was originally posted in September, 2009. I've gotten a lot of questions lately about sponsorship as some of my clients gear up for their 2012 projects. These five questions are great for discovering where the synergy lies between your project and your prospective sponsor, and this process is a step that organizations often forget in their rush to pitch. Taking the time to find the right fit is crucial to a successful and lasting relationship.

Originally posted September 28, 2009
Time is money. Sponsors are busy. When selling something visionary--like a sponsorship deal to a new event--it's tough to know when to flat out pitch, and when to take a more consultative approach. How do you choose? Don't ask the customer. He/she will always want the fastest, least invasive experience--the pitch. The consultative approach is better for a prospecting call, or "discovery meeting" which precedes a pitch. It's all about discovering if there's enough fit to keep investing time.

Taking the consultative path demands that you master the short-handed pitch: a rock solid elevator speech and a quality document to leave behind that captures the essence of the opportunity and builds credibility.

Next, you'll need to plot out the exchange you envision when the prospect is seated across the table. The following script is for a discussion with a prospect that helps you ascertain whether there is a fit between the prospect’s problem and your service.

Here's a rough idea of how you might structure the conversation:
1. "I had a look at your website, and I see that you are _________, but it would help me enormously if you could give me the bigger picture of your company’s marketing goals in this region. What’s essential for me to know about your company’s current situation?"

2. "It might make sense for me to explain what we do and how we do it to see if we have a fit."

3. "Does any of what I described sound like it could help you achieve more __________ in the community?"

4. "How will you measure the success of our relationship?"

5. "Do you feel it makes sense to keep talking?"

This conversation should take no more than 30 minutes, max. You're in and you're out. Before you leave, agree on next steps. More on that next week.

Seriously, I Need a Think Pad

2011-07-21T09:01:00.000-05:00

Not that kind.

I’m talking about finding a place to live in where I can think and write and endlessly create. My colleagues Will Hopkins and Mary K. Baumann have a stupendous think pad. As loyal readers of this blog know, I’ve been house hunting. It’s been eye-opening in more ways than one.

First of all, you learn a lot about the economy by walking through vacant homes that have been foreclosed on. Some have gutted kitchens left gaping—no stove, nothing. It’s eerie. This has taught me that houses are organic. They need life going on inside of them or they become dead zones. No spark.

Secondly, you re-learn lessons. For instance, people in the real estate business work harder than they appear to and rarely seem to enjoy it. Perhaps the lack of joy in the job has something to do with overall deprivation: lots of time in the car, heavy amounts of detail, and a lack of personal indulgences that might otherwise cheer a person up—like treating yourself to a nice outfit once in a while.

Finally, you find your X factor: that thing you really need. Me? I need a place to think. I don’t need terrific neighbors who become my best friends. Although I am friendly with my current neighbors, I prefer intimate friendships to casual ones. I don’t need a restoration project—I already have too many deadlines. And I no longer need a place to raise my children. They are out in the world.

Place is important. On the macro level, the cities we choose to live in define our lifestyles. It’s why we should demand that they be inspiring. Check out Carol Coletta’s new gig and see why she continues to be at the forefront of urban design.

On a micro level, our immediate surroundings are either conducive to creative work or not. My home must be a catalyst for ideas.

My creativity wish list is as follows:
I need light, room for work tables to lay out projects, spacious empty walls for endless sticky notes and doing pattern recognition. And sunlight. Hours and hours of it.

I need a think pad—to live in.

Wish me luck.

Summer Reading with Christopher Walken

2011-07-19T08:51:00.000-05:00

This week the temps in Chicago are tipping the 90s. Summer’s in full swing.

One of my favorite rituals of the season is the summer reading program at nearly every library from coast to coast. I used to sign my kids up. When my son became an adolescent he used to volunteer to help run it.

In the spirit of summer reading, I bring you this hilarious video of Christopher Walken reading the Three Little Pigs. Thanks to Roger Ebert for finding and sharing it.

Making Room for Ideas

2011-07-13T14:34:00.007-05:00

I’ve spent the morning catching up on reading. I started my day with a lecture given by two Disney Imagineers. My brain runneth over.

As I sit in the sun-drenched courtyard of the Boston Public Library, I am reminded of why America needs libraries. In particular, beautiful libraries. This picture-postcard quadrangle, with its archways and sparkling fountain, is an oasis of serenity.

For many of us, libraries are about books. But on this breezy afternoon in Boston, I am feeling blessed not for the library’s vast holdings, but for its empty spaces. Places where a person can sit and be.

I think about Walt Disney. His vision for a theme park was hatched while sitting on a park bench watching his daughters play. Some times the very best ideas blossom in the quiet spaces or splashed onto blank canvasses.

For weeks I’ve been procrastinating about a book idea. It’s an unborn child stirring in me that I refuse to name or further imagine. The idea of making time for it in my life overwhelms me. How will I ever fit it in?

So for months I’ve stayed stuck, unable to further conceptualize it.

The longer I sit and free my thoughts, things start coming to me. I jot notes. I sketch out a hasty mind map.

Information is power. But absolute power corrupts. Whoever designed the magnificent Boston Public Library must have understood the need for the citizens of a new nation to dream as well as learn.

You don’t need reminding that your life is harried and overstuffed. But maybe a gentle nudge that invites you to grab some down time and give your imagination a fighting chance.

Flux-capacitor: What's Your Plan for Exploring the Future of Social Media?

2011-07-11T09:23:00.003-05:00

This weekend, I met an old friend for breakfast. Over scrambled eggs, we talked about the transitions we’re going through in our lives. When I mentioned wanting to experiment and be more adventurous, he asked—“What’s your plan?”

Huh? What’s my plan? I need a plan to be more adventurous? What does experimentation have to do with planning?

The more we talked, the more it made sense. We’re in an age of great flux. It’s left many people feeling unhinged. To keep the chaos at bay, it’s a good idea to have a strategy or two about how we’ll attack the exploration process to give us perspective.

In a recent post about Google+, Beth Kanter encourages us to approach the changes in the platform with a plan to experiment. And Vincent Mo shares his own strategies for creating circles of friends using Google+.

I’m not saying life is like social media. Life’s way weirder. I’m just saying that things that are more liquid than solid are best approached by having a way of thinking about it that says, “Here’s what I’ll try, here’s why, and here’s what I hope to learn.” More coffee?

Clever Marketing: When a Brand Name Hits the Spot

2011-07-07T09:01:00.006-05:00

Photo by SRCrawford

This weekend, I was house hunting in Chicago’s bustling Andersonville neighborhood. Hot and sticky from pounding the pavement and bummed out a bit after looking at condos with closets the size of gym lockers, I needed a break.

I nipped into a little café and ordered a Mrs. Howell’s lemonade. Coconut syrup, lemonade and, if you’re not driving, vodka. (I was on bike, so I went for the virgin concoction). It’s now my new favorite. Love the sweet/sour alchemy.

Absolutely delicious. I sat outside and watched the parade of characters that make up this colorful community.

So, why did I order the drink in the first place? The name drew me. It was marketed cleverly. I’m a sucker for a clever name. Most consumers are. Many find amusement in a t.v. reference that reaches way back. The name hits the spot.

So, here’s to summer. And being clever marketers. And to Mrs. Howell, III.

Content Marketing: Collaborative Capitalism is the Future

2011-07-05T08:43:00.004-05:00

Content is a commodity, no question. But who stands to prosper from it? There’s the rub.

So far, the ruling model falls in favor of the programmer and platform builders—not the content creators.

The latest revelation, rendered brilliantly by MyCube, that Facebook earned $1.86 billion from user-generated content in 2010 has people in awe. The problem is that the business model is passé — past its prime. It's just another advertising scheme. Why? Because it’s a lopsided model that leans in favor of the platform builder and cuts content creators out of the deal. Overtime, users can find other places and ways to connect, leaving the platform vulnerable.

Far more durable in “content-as-commodity” realm are the collaborative capitalists. My favorite to watch is Bandcamp. It’s one of the Web’s fastest-growing communities for artists. Think Etsy of the music world. Go to an outdoor concert this summer and you’ll hear musicians crow from the stage, “Check us out on Bandcamp.”

I recently sat down with one of Bandcamp’s co-founders, Joe Holt, while I was making a swing through the east coast. Over lunch at a quaint Vermont inn, Joe revealed how Bandcamp’s impressive growth has been linked to its ability to help its members sell their content. All future plans for Bandcamp, as Joe explained it, will be driven by helping members succeed financially and sharing in that profit-making.

Everyone being committed to the other person’s success is the future of business.

Certainly Arianna Huffington knows this. While she started off with a news aggregation platform and unpaid bloggers, the HuffPo sale to AOL put it in another league. The new model is a more balanced business model where everyone has a shot at making money off of content, not just Ms. Huffington.

The slug-fest between Google and Facebook is an interesting one to watch. But my eyes are trained on collaborative capital companies. It’s not only where the action is, it's where the future of business is headed…and fast.

Daydream Believer

2011-07-01T08:56:00.002-05:00

Photo by pengrin™

Lately, I’ve spent the wee hours of the day scanning real estate websites looking for a new home. I need to move. This is a good thing. But it’s made me obsessive. This weekend, I’ll take a welcome break from it all.

It’s July 4th weekend. Where I come from, July 4th marks a gateway to the rest of the summer. The weather in the Midwest is temperately warm. Most towns host parades. People fly flags and sip lemonade on their porches.

The other night, I was daydreaming in my kitchen. I pictured all my children and their loved ones gathered at a table laughing and eating BBQ. Why not? I can make that happen. I set down the bowl I was washing and picked up my cell phone. Several texts later and I have a dozen people confirmed for a Monday afternoon cookout.

I’ll make my killer coleslaw and grill steaks. (Oh, yes…red meat is also indulged on this holiday since it’s soooo red-blooded American). Fruit salad and whatever else looks good at the Farmer's market.

Maybe this nation started as some one’s daydream. Flawed and messy as it is, this Democracy is still worth celebrating because ours is a country where daydream believers can still make things happen. I’ll salute that any ole day!

How Mobile is Revolutionizing Our Intent to Buy

2011-06-30T09:17:00.001-05:00

I came across this eye-popping infographic from the folks at econsultancy and had to share it. It depicts the roles of mobile usage in consumer shopping.

What struck me is how mobile is changing the inputs that shape our intent to purchase. Check out the “methods to gather information” section. How many of these apply to your daily life? If you’re like most people, this looks spot-on as a snapshot of typical uses for mobile.

The Joy of Facebook Marketing Done Well

2011-06-28T11:29:00.005-05:00

Most brands use Facebook like another brochure, failing to capitalize power to get people to jump in with their own content. But this campaign from a European orange juice company is one of the most clever uses of Facebook I’ve seen. It encourages the idea that a smile has power—the power to squeeze orange juice that is. The more users smile, the more juice gets squeezed in real life.

The cause-marketing overlay is a little weird. The company allows users to choose a charity to receive the juice. Well, logistically, that’s a burden for many non-profits. The numbers speak for themselves: the FB page got 30,000 new likes, over 20,000 photos uploaded and 40,000 fresh oranges were squeezed.

There was also a level of personalization. The user's name was printed on the machine digitally as they used the app and watched the video. Terrific recipe for social engagement. Breaking it down, the campaign ingredients combined to make users feel good--smile--get some immediate gratification by watching their participation make something happen (product being freshly squeezed) and sharing photos of themselves and recruiting friends for the same.

Hat tip SimplyZesty

Fessing Up: The Inner Sanctum of a Workaholic’s Heart

2011-06-27T10:31:00.008-05:00

When I was younger, I wanted to be impervious to heartache. I was careful in my personal relationships to maintain just a little cool remove.

Emotional risks, like those that go along with failure and falling on my face, were reserved for my work life. Compartmentalizing in this way would cushion me from unnecessary pain, I reasoned.

Turns out, it had the opposite effect. Being too cautious meant I didn’t cultivate the antibodies that would make my heart more resilient.

A few years ago, the circumstances of my life forced me into a corner about this matter. I emerged from the tussle ready to risk a little more to allow myself to feel more powerful emotions. This business of “getting in touch with my feelings” wasn’t automatic. Sometimes, deeper emotions are neither secret nor obvious.

Next month, I’ll give a talk at an event where author Brene Brown is also speaking. If you haven’t checked out her popular TEDx talk, please do. Brown makes a convincing case for how being vulnerable makes us stronger. I very much look forward to meeting her.

This past weekend, I took a big emotional risk. The results were inconclusive. Ordinarily, I would have been devastated. Instead, I told myself that few things are in my control, and the whole point is to wade into life up to my nostrils. That means allowing my heart to be submerged as well. Okay.

Is this what is meant by work-life balance?

Cool Examples of Brands Taking Interactive Experience Offline

2011-06-23T08:42:00.003-05:00

With summer in full swing, it got me thinking about how digital marketing is joining up with outdoor experiences. Marketers are discovering ways to stand out by showing up in public places using interactive storefronts, shelters and touch screens. As part of pedestrian life, these experiences surprise and delight. They also help a brand create a sense of community while expressing the brand’s personality.

Check out these three great examples that engage consumers using digital interfaces for unexpected experiences in everyday life:

Diesel
A storefront becomes a way for consumers to put themselves into the scene. Is it art or is it advertising?

See more examples in the full article, posted at MENG Blend.

Permission Marketing Helps Privacy Get Teeth

2011-06-20T11:34:00.000-05:00

Permission and privacy are walking hand-in-hand. This is good news for brands. A new bill proposed by U.S. senator Al Franken, calls for users to be allowed to grant explicit permission for companies to access their location data in order to advertise to them. No longer would users of iPhones, for example, have to surrender their location info by default when selecting an cool app.

What Franken’s bill proposes is that there be a stage whereby the user grants consent for their location information to be shared with third parties which, if passed, could have a huge impact for location ad providers on mobiles. The proposed bill would affect both service providers and developers.

It’s gratifying to see that privacy has finally taken hold as a new norm in digital culture. It took a while. Think back on how often people quoted Scott McNealy's admonition dissing the movement toward privacy: “Privacy…get over it!”

Now, for the first time, a bill has been proposed in relation to mobile privacy and it represents an important shift as we move to a permission-based economy. The bill is titled the "Location Privacy Protection Act of 2011" and the title alone shows how pervasive local social networking has become and the legal implications this has as the service develops.

Franken’s bill could set the tone for making privacy and permission a required combination in the digital economy, which will become paramount as social media marketing develops.

Design and Tech Start-Ups Get Buyers Clicking Add-to-Cart

2011-06-17T10:21:00.001-05:00

Photo by jenlen

I’ve been following the news where art + design + tech = opportunity and I see that Fast Company reports on a new investor network for designers. Founder Enrique Allen says he wants to, "shift the paradigm of what design is. Design encompasses systems now, not just 'making things look pretty'."

A few years back, I was struck by Virginia Postral’s convincing theory that people perceive well-designed products as actually working better. This is where designers have economic impact.

Designers make things that people need AND want because they are both useful and beautifully executed, whereas most tech startups fail because they make things that people may want, but don’t perceive as needing or don't covet. It’s a failure of imagination poorly executed.

Look for more such mergers and infusions of design, designers and artists into the tech space. At last!

Dance Fever--9 yr Old Boy Rocks Vogue

2011-06-13T09:25:00.001-05:00

I watched the Tony Awards last night. I lamented how few of the plays I'd seen. In honor of "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" I share this trippy video of a 9 year-old boy dancing to "Vogue". It's from 1991. Maybe he was rehearsing for a musical that was yet to be created?

ME AT NINE, PERFORMING TO MADONNA IN SUMMER '91! from Robert Jeffrey on Vimeo.

Planting Seeds of Change: The Heirloom Seed Library Launches

2011-06-09T09:49:00.001-05:00

There’s a new reason to love living in Chicago during the summer: the new Jane Addams Hull-House Seed Library. It’s the first-of-its-kind library that lends heirloom seeds. By filling out a library card, I will have access to the seeds, reference guides and urban gardening workshops.

The Seed Library is similar to the conventional library. Instead of checking out books, seed library users can check out regionally adapted seeds and grow their own fruits, vegetables, herbs, and/or ornamental flowers.

At the end of the season, users are asked to save the seeds and return them to the library. What a terrific exercise in community building.

These small acts of community building are worth watching. They represent deeper consumer yearnings to thrive by sharing. Rachel Botsman, author of What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption, notes how the internet has facilitated the ability to share resources, including time and skills, with communities both local and global, and encouraged a shift in how we consume.

I plan to join the Seed Library. And I plan to watch how the concept takes…and if it sprouts a new spirit of community.

Time Is What You Make It

2011-06-07T09:17:00.001-05:00

I promise to get back to the serious business of blogging by mid-week. For now, I want to share this photo of my son (middle) and his BFFs. I snapped it immediately following the graduation ceremony.

I learned a big lesson out in Vermont as I waded through the knots of happy parents and jubilant graduates. It’s this: time is what you make it.

Therefore, I need to do a better job of honoring time. Seriously, 4 years has vanished in a twinkling. My kid is now out of college. How did that happen?

I hope you won’t mind if I use this blog to help me keep my resolution. It means sharing the good with the bad and the occasional personal post.

Starting with this...

Found Art: Virtual Concert

2011-06-03T09:15:00.002-05:00

When the Southern Theater in Minneapolis cancelled several shows due to financial distress, ICE still brought the concert to the people, with the help of WQXR and MeerkatMedia.

This was the program they had scheduled for their live concert in Minneapolis, including two world premieres developed through the ICELab program.

Live from the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway | ICElab from ICE on Vimeo.

Disclosure: One of our LitLamp staff serves on the board of ICE.

Is a College Degree a Cultural Relic?

2011-06-01T08:34:00.003-05:00

Photo by Werwin15

My oldest child graduates from college this coming Saturday, so scant blogging for me.

The family will make the trek to Vermont to partake in the ceremony. Lately, this ritual of college graduation has taken on a dubious distinction. Face it, the fact that Peter Theil is paying kids NOT to seek a college degree says something.

I’ve long been saying that higher education is the next bubble. Meaning, how it’s financed and operated is unsustainable. Creating a vast underclass of over-educated surfs who are slaves to big college loans is sheer recklessness.

Still, my heart flutters as I pack my suitcase in anticipation of the moment. I put a kid though college…during a major recession.

The American Dream may have seen better days. It has always rested on the belief in getting a good education. Call me a Luddite, but I still believe that a good education is its own reward. And when it’s your own kid, believe me, you happily invoke a willing suspension of disbelief.

Blog Sponsorships Enter the Big Leagues

2011-05-30T09:53:00.021-05:00

Blogs are becoming big media by offering conferences that help digerati come together to share ideas.

Take last week’s TechCrunch event in New York, for example. The sheer size of the sponsor roster TechCrunch Disrupt was staggering—including heavy hitters such as GE.

When I heard that they sold 2100 tickets at anywhere between $2,000-$3,000, it made me realize that one conference alone could be topping out at $10 million in revenue. Crazy!

Volkswagen’s Big Sponsorship Deal with MoMA

2011-05-25T08:27:00.007-05:00

Volkswagen is spending big on arts sponsorships. This week, the German automaker and the Museum of Modern Art announced a two-year, multimillion-dollar sponsorship in New York. Is this a push to capture market share lost by Japanese automakers? Could be. But it's pure VW to stay relevant by continuing to weave its iconic brand into the culture.

The deal will fund a range of programs: an exhibition of international contemporary art at MoMA’s Long Island City, New York, branch, PS1, in 2013; a series of installations in the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden; an expansion of online education; and the acquisition of two works by Belgian artist Francis Alys, whose current retrospective at the museum is sponsored by Volkswagen.

The company and the museum declined to disclose the total amount of the sponsorship. (I’m still digging to find the final price tag.)

The press conference announcing the sponsorship came a day before the opening ceremony for Volkswagen’s $1 billion factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Volkswagen has also partnered with a community college in Chattanooga to outsource its training programs, a move that is part of a more complete immersion into the community beyond factory walls.

More on the deal here.

Hidden Marketing Assets: Out-of-Office Email

2011-05-23T10:37:00.000-05:00

When I teach workshops on Sponsorship Marketing, I harp on the power of the “hidden asset.” I’m referring to those gem-like branding opportunities that can make an ordinary list of rights and benefits pop. That’s why the Out-of-Office email campaign from Saatchi & Saatchi caught my attention.

When their art director went on paternity leave, the folks at Saatchi & Saatchi decided to get creative with the out-of-office message and sell it to a production company.

It worked!

After all, what better way for a company to reach their target audience than by appearing directly in their inbox without even trying?

In fact, the experiment was so successful, an entire Out-of-Office Email Service is in beta.

It got me thinking….what if there is room to communicate differently with our email messages? Sometimes, I prepare my standard out-of-office email and yearn to bust loose with something truly radical:

“In her latest crime novel, Patricia goes back to rural Ireland where a younger, breathless version of herself goes missing. Five days later she turns up older and wiser, but no less breathless.”

Amidst the deafening roar of social media, email has become somewhat intimate. Does getting creative with it constitute “surprise and delight” or is it brand suicide?

The Dangers of Filtered Information via Google and Facebook Exposed

2011-05-20T08:12:00.004-05:00

Without your realizing it, a lot of information that you get from the web is edited for you. Facebook chooses which friends appear in your news feed. Google results are tailored based on 57 signals that Google reads about you.

The sheer volume of information and content out there on the web has forced filtering. In the old days the information we consumed was controlled by editors. Editors are being replaced by algorithms on sites like Facebook and Google and pretty much most of the other big sites you use on the web.

Even though most people are oblivious to the use of algorithms to sift what they search, it’s widely believed that they are a good thing. Less is more. Right? Eli Pariser of MoveOn.org gave a talk at TED that challenges the use of algorithms and the cultural impact of filtering information. (Video is 9 minutes long.)

This is by far the smartest thinking I have seen when it comes to this subject. Attendees agreed. To wit, he gets a standing ovation.

The Power 7: A Checklist For Future Business Models in Arts & Culture

2011-05-19T10:06:00.001-05:00

Open talk about new business models in the arts is a cultural signal. It’s a watermark that tells us the tides are shifting. Digital culture is eroding some of art’s traditional value proposition.

That’s not what worries me.

This does: Even if the arts can come to occupy a new role in people’s lives, will they will be able to communicate this role to attract new users—especially younger audiences?

Cultivating younger audiences will be important. They are the future. But using marketing messages and tactics from the past to reach them might mean that your organization—no matter what its business model, will not be around to see them join your ranks.

In 2009, Steppenwolf Theatre Company and my research team joined forces to investigate ways that other major brands were making themselves relevant to young cultural consumers, especially those between the ages of 22 and 30. You can download findings for free.

Business models are evolving in part because of a strong push from young arts leaders to rethink the traditional 501(c)3.

Why rethink the organizational structure?

Because this rising generation has already changed how it consumes culture and interacts with institutions. It’s just that the organizational structure has not yet caught up.

How do we get it right? Read the full article at ARTSBlog.

Step Into My Sweat Lodge: A Deviant Approach to Selling Ideas

2011-05-13T08:13:00.003-05:00

Photo by purincess

When you sign up to be in the marketing business, you become two people: a data wonk and a creative Svengali, able to conjure genius ideas on a whim.

My problem is that my creative self is more like a character in the novel Peyton Place: “Ripe, hotly passionate, but fickle, she comes and goes as she pleases so that one is never sure whether she will come at all…”

This winter, she abandoned me entirely. And with her went my confidence in selling new ideas. It forced me to break the rules. In the process, I discovered a new way to sell which I want to share with you.

Here’s what happened.

After completing a successful campaign for George Soros’s philanthropy to help heighten public interest in privacy, I sat down to work on a smallish piece of business for a repeat client. I created a brief for what I thought was a bulletproof concept. The earth shook when I presented it to the client’s team and faced blank stares.

Demoralized, I gathered the team’s feedback and went home to retrace my steps. I wrote the client and suggested we take a fresh approach, and invited her to my studio for a working lunch.

I was breaking a taboo.

There’s an unwritten rule in the agency world that it’s a bad idea to involve the client in the creative process. Consider also that classic sales training treats selling as a predatory activity. Prospects are prey. Sales people are hunters. This attitude is not only cynical, but it gets in the way of forging authentic emotional bonds many of us need to do breakthrough work.

When my client arrived, a miracle happened. Read more.

Information is Everywhere, Perspective is More Rare

2011-05-12T09:41:00.000-05:00

Today, I will be giving a talk at the annual gathering of Qualitative Researchers. What a thrill to be among very smart people who uncover the insights that help us innovate.

I spent the day yesterday holed up in my studio preparing. When I awakened this morning it dawned on me that part of the job of any research is to synthesize down what we discover. And that may be the greatest gift of a talented researcher.

Take, for instance, the researchers who discovered that for years we have misunderstood what motivates people, mainly because we relied on survey data that was under-synthesized. When qualitative researchers dug into the human subtext, a more complete picture emerged. The findings earned their place in HBR’s “Breakthrough Ideas of 2010”. (pdf)

There is no scarcity of data. There is a paucity of perspective. I am stoked to share the day with people who are all about gaining the human perspective to help business evolve.

Just think what I’m going to learn.

Finding A New Way to Sell Your Idea

2011-05-11T09:53:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago, I got a request from the professional organization I belong to asking if I’d like to become one of their official bloggers. I was thrilled. But I was also buried in so many content demands I nearly declined. Instead, I took a deep breath and assessed the situation.

There is so much content out there. Who needs more blog commentary, really? I’m already blogging in lots of places.

So if I blog for MENG (Marketing Executives Networking Group) what can I add to the conversation that will truly be helpful to other marketing executives?

This post contains my answer. In the months to come I hope to share intimate, honest stories about what it really takes to position, package and pitch something new. Something bold and original, where the failure rate can be high.

I’m delighted that I said "Yes!" to this opportunity. I hope you find value in my debut post.

And if you have a minute, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Will the Future "Like" Libraries?

2011-05-10T13:16:00.004-05:00

Today, I'm at the University of Minnesota giving a talk about cultural change and how it will effect libraries. The incomparable George Needham is also here speaking about information derived from the OCLC Perceptions Report. Not only is this audience absorbent, they are posing great questions.
Some data points from George's talk:
-20% of Americans have felt adverse employment impact;
-The impact has been felt most by younger workers;
-86% of the negatively effected were shedding consumer behaviors that were once core lifestyle choices-entertainment, eating out, buying books and;
-81% of the economically effected have library cards to save money.

People are re-discovering libraries to save money and are more willing to trade time to save money.

Comic Life and the Creative Impulse

2011-05-10T08:07:00.000-05:00

Most days, my life isn’t funny. But I’d like it to be.

That’s why Comic Life caught my attention. It’s an app that creates graphic illustrations using photographs that you can upload from your computer. The program offers many templates, fonts, colors, sizes, and styles that can create any number of comic illustrations.

My son tells me funny is as funny does; it’s all in your perspective.

The creative in me is itching to try Comic Life out. You know, create a funny world.

Anyone out there using Comic Life? Liking it? Does it make life funnier?

Read the full review from The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Portrait of an Arts Entrepreneur: Artisan Businesses Now an Economic Indicator

2011-05-09T09:31:00.000-05:00

If you need evidence that the pallid economy is regaining its color, just ask mural artist Doug Coggeshall. Last week, I caught up with Coggeshall for coffee between estimate meetings with clients. After 25 years, he considers his custom mural business serving metro-Chicago's most prominent residents "a canary in a coalmine" for the economy. Coggeshall felt the impact well before we reached the frothy tip of the credit bubble.

In 2008, the recession kept Coggeshall's business on a near-starvation diet. "You begin to wonder what cat food might taste like," he jokes. Despite his many devotees, Coggeshall admits that, "I'm selling a luxury. The society benefits from having art; it helps us understand who we are. But you don't NEED it." It was also the end of an era fueled by a consumer culture obsessed with lavish home decorating.

Lately, his phone's been ringing again.

The downturn forced him to innovate and expand his palette of projects. For example, he's painted sacred spaces and has been brought in to cut costs by camouflaging architectural flaws to save the expense of remodeling. For instance, when a client couldn't locate rare tiles to complete a backsplash, Coggeshall hand-painted an entire wall to look like detailed tile work at half the cost.

Despite the ups and downs, Coggeshall lights up when I ask him to describe the best thing about his small business: "When I stand inside the full surround of a very large piece and get lost in it. It makes me dizzy with pleasure."

Given the volatile nature of the economy, I ask if he's ever been tempted to throw in the "trowel". He shakes his head resolutely. "I painted my first mural as a little boy. I have to paint. It's not a hobby. It's a career."

Now that business is picking up, all from referrals, Coggeshall claims that the recession made him "feel stronger, more powerful" for having gotten through it.

One artist's story only renders a thumbnail sketch of a larger economic landscape, but artisan businesses are not a stray indicator. Consider also that Sotheby's and Christie's both report sizzling markets for art in China, according to China Daily. When people have the means and are freed from debt, they return to art.

With his mural business on the rebound, Coggeshall is feeling good about the future. "I love my work. I will paint until I drop." Smiling broadly, he shakes my hand and breezes out the door to get back to the business of making spaces beautiful.

Originally posted at The Huffington Post

Found Art: Jonathan Harris

2011-05-06T08:32:00.003-05:00

The latest from the incomparable Jonathan Harris.

On My Nightstand: Marketing to Women, by Marti Barletta

2011-05-04T08:21:00.000-05:00

Well, it took me long enough. I’d been meaning to pick up Marti Barletta’s seminal book on marketing to females for a while. But when I got the opportunity to meet with her recently, she gave me a copy. What a gift! It’s loaded with actionable information and descriptive case studies.

Consider the facts:
Women make up 51 percent of the population. And 86 percent of women are either the main decision makers (32 percent) or joint decision makers (54 percent) of household financial matters. Women make 80% of all consumer buying decisions and 53% of all investment decisions. Over 60% of all new car purchases.

So I wonder: why is it that the market place is still so male-centric?

Here’s my assessment:
Is it because the cultural underpinnings of how we market to women demand that we maintain a certain organizing mythology? Consider the princess mythology. The recent royal wedding was the penultimate expression of this myth.

In contrast to the mythology is Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty, which brilliantly subverts the prevailing fashion industry concept of feminine beauty, presenting it as something that is not only fake but corrosive to the self-esteem of young girls. This multi-award-winning campaign has parent company Unilever backing away from its basic premise. If it wants to sell products to women, it’s got to prop up certain cultural dynamics that keep women feeling insecure in ways that make them want to buy things to fix the problem.

In the long run, brands that want to truly win with women need to partner with men and women to establish a new premise. This opens broad frontiers for cultural brands willing to seed the culture to adopt new values. Based on Barletta’s extensive research, it’s a task worth undertaking because the upside is a gold mine.

If you’ve been late to the party like me, and have not read it yet, do. I encourage you to pick up Marketing to Women. It’s an important book.

RenGen City Revisited: A Philadelphia Love Story

2011-05-03T08:44:00.002-05:00

I spent most of last week in Philadelphia. It's a fascinating city for many reasons. I wrote about it in my last book. It's got a culture of ingenuity that goes way back to the founding of the nation. To tap into this vibe, companies like Apple are hothousing service innovations in Philadelphia. Why not? It's the cradle of invention.

Think about it. Benjamin Franklin came well before Brian Tracy or Tim Ferriss. Franklin invented "lifestyle management" books with Poor Richard's Almanack. "Waste not, want not." "A penny saved is a penny earned."

Philly's also got a population that looks like the future.

As we march into the eye of the dissolution that precedes the coming renaissance, in many ways cities like Philadelphia and Detroit are ahead of the curve. They have faced down their social and economic challenges earlier and are incubating new businesses and mashups in art, technology and urban life to foster unique enterprises. For example, I encountered the very cool Maiden Media, a digital agency that gave a workshop in Apple's Briefing Room.

Place is going to be important in the next 10 years as we re-tribe and re-build. As Anijo Mathew, professor of design explains, "Now, 'place' is more than 'space'. It's not just a location, but inextricably linked to people and the things that happen in that location that are meaningful to them."

At an Arts & Business Council event, I heard Philly native and Tonight Show musician Kevin Eubanks back up that thinking. He gushed about how different Philly was from his days growing up and openly contemplated moving back. Its food, art, and music scenes are all first rate. And it's all walkable and overseen by the elegant image of founding father William Penn, whose statue is perched atop city hall, reminding citizens of their pioneering roots. It's a place steeped in the American impulse to make things happen.

What's not to love about that?

Found Art: MOCA's Art in the Streets

2011-04-29T08:54:00.001-05:00

Review from Coagula's Matt Gleason of MOCA's Art in the Streets exhibit

Cool Content Curation Tool: Storify Opens For Business

2011-04-26T08:25:00.007-05:00

Curating information generated by social media always seemed like an innovation waiting to happen. It’s time has come.

Meet Storify.

Storify is opening its beta to the public. Now, many more people have the chance to tell stories using this publishing platform that will help journalists and content creators find the nuggets of news and micro-narratives that can blow open a bigger window for the public to view current events.

Want to know how it works? Check out Robert Scoble’s interview of the Storify founders:

From the archives: RenGen Brand Trinity

2011-04-24T08:55:00.005-05:00

RenGen brand trinity that I wrote about in AdWeek generated several emails. It must have struck a chord among marketers craving a little perspective in times when consumers are closing their wallets and hunkering down.

I Developed this graphic schema we hope you'll find useful. You can bring it to your next meeting, or email it to colleagues so everyone is on the same whiteboard.

Found Art: Catherine Karnow

2011-04-22T08:04:00.003-05:00

One of my great joys in life is getting the chance to work with remarkably gifted people. Catherine Karnow is such a person. Her photo of an Agent Orange victim, Nguyen Thi Ly, has won 2nd place in Pictures of the Year International. Brava, Catherine! We're so proud.

"Nguyen Thi Ly: Agent Orange Victim", by Catherine Karnow

For more photos and to hear the story, watch Catherine's video, Agent Orange: A Terrible Legacy

On my nightstand: An Improvised Life by Alan Arkin

2011-04-21T08:42:00.003-05:00

My son graduates from college next month. Because I am the target of his college’s marketing campaigns, I know that one of its famous alums is Alan Arkin.

Maybe it was because I was feeling sentimental about Emmet's impending graduation that I was inspired to read Arkin’s An Improvised Life: A Memoir. It’s not what I expected. That’s a good thing. Arkin leads us through his career as an actor with little bravado and plenty of candor. His re-telling of the Second City days offers a window into how new genres break through from the imaginations of people willing to take risks with their egos.

The humor is dry and delivered sparingly, so I found myself enjoying a few full-throated laughs. For instance, he recounts how he, a young man with failing grades, won an acting scholarship to Bennington College. By interviewing with part-time admissions counselor and English faculty Howard Nemerov, who would later be named poet laureate of the United States, the two bonded over multiple martinis. With a handshake, Arkin was in. When his dismal transcripts arrived from Los Angeles County Community College two weeks later, the admissions office exploded. But it was too late. “By then the professor and I were drinking buddies. I was Nemerov’s guy.”

The book’s a fast, fun read. Dialogue is thankfully quick and sparse, helpful for internet-addled brains like mine that find it harder and harder to read dialogue in print. I especially recommend the book for aspiring creative types who’ll benefit from having a glimpse into the profound amount of work and perseverance it takes to be Alan Arkin.

How to Lead Killer Sponsorship Meetings: 5 Hot Agenda Items for A Pitch

2011-04-18T10:35:00.004-05:00

We’re entering the busiest season of the year for most sponsorship marketers. Whether you are buying or selling, the next 3 months you’ll be in pitch meetings. Or you should be.

What should be on the agenda for pitch meetings? Begin with the critical challenges facing marketing departments right now. That way, meetings aren’t just a flurry of pitch slides. Instead, you'll find yourself in productive sessions that reveal exciting new ways to tackle bigger problems. It’s like doubling down on the tread mill—read AND walk.

The following list is derived from The Leaders Council, a peer-to-peer sharing group for marketing executives from a range of markets.

1. Leadership & Cultural Change

• Evolving internal cultures from a product to a customer focus
• Building marketing as the perceived “growth” engine of the corporation
• Harnessing focused and disciplined innovation
• Evangelizing marketing across the C-suite

2. Marketing/Brand Value

• Justifying marketing expense in a climate of cost cutting
• Using consumer positioning discipline to achieve low/no cost share gains
• Revenue driving rebranding due to organizational change or acquisitions
• Making the case for brand “investment” vs. expense

3. Customer Insights and Relationship

• Increasing customer lifetime value
• Making customer insights actionable over disparate sources and time periods
• Hidden sources for customer insights in the selling/delivery/servicing process
• Harvesting opportunity in “bottom 80%” of customer list

4. Marketing Communications

• Social media (WOM, wikis, blogs), brand “consistency” and profitability
• Digital media to enhance customer relations and hone corporate thought leadership
• Leveraging the agency relationship and managing media bias
• Allocation for “testing” vs. “tried and true” to leverage change

5. Product Management & Launch

• Circumventing technical/engineering bias in the product development process
• Objective measures for customer needs and satisfaction
• Creating product differentiation without attribute or pricing advantage

Armed with this, get to work on designing your pitch meeting to address at least one slide per category and everyone around the conference table benefits. Off you go!

Found Art: Cardholder Pride

2011-04-15T08:20:00.002-05:00

Cardholder Pride, by the Multnomah County Library

It thrills me to see libraries flex their marketing muscles. Check out this terrific promotion from the Multnomah County Library celebrating National Library Week. It engages users by asking them to flash their library cards with pride.

Is it just me, or does being a library-card holder makes you a certain kind of person? I once dumped a guy because he didn't have a library card.

Here's to Multnomah for encouraging their community with this very cool "if you've got it, flaunt-it" library card campaign.

What about you? Got a library card?

Philadelphia's Plan B Will Attract Pro-social Businesses

2011-04-14T11:38:00.011-05:00

Congratulations to the City Council of Philadelphia for unanimously voting to offer tax breaks to all B Corps located in the city. Turns out, research revealed that most B Corps are also contributing to the improvement of the city and the overall reduction of greenhouse gases. Making things official is a brilliant move on the part of Mayor Nutter and his Council to attract hip, pro-social enterprise to Philly.

It’s tax time, so maybe you want to know more about how B corp wins in return?

B corps can qualify for Sustainable Business Tax Credit. There are rules, of course. In Philly, your business has to be located in the City of Philadelphia. Next, "For tax years 2012 through 2017, 25 eligible sustainable businesses shall receive a tax credit of $4,000 to be used against the gross receipts portion of the Business Privilege Tax." That means you've got to hurry up and get your B Corp certified as a sustainable business to get one of those 25 spots.

According to TreeHugger.com, when the City Council of Philadelphia began looking at the B Corps already located within the city, they found a group that is already heavy into green energy, giving back to the community and promoting "practice what you preach." Here's what else they found:

- 72% of B Corps use renewable energy 
- 51% percent have public transit or carpooling incentives 
- They are 30 times more likely to be located in green buildings
- 82% have programs for community volunteering
- 74% are affiliated with a local charity and are 30 times more likely to donate at least 10% of their income to charity 
- 9 out of 10 are locally owned and are 3 times more likely to be owned by women or minorities 
- 44% offer some form of employee ownership 
- Twice as likely to offer health insurance and retirement plans 
- 25% are saving money thanks to their B Certification