lindsey velloff

Friskies New Branding Revealed

Check out Friskies new website full of exploratory tools. One that Nick built is called "Friskies Pix"... I won't say much - just be sure to add a photo and have a laugh!

Lindsey

Friskies Pix

test images

Consumer Experience and Mindset

Interesting presentation about the value of experience vs technology/functionality. About how we approach putting things out into the market, for people to use and test. Talks a bit about Steve Jobs and his focus on experience and the fact that features are too easy to add these days. Yes they are important , but Experience is the way to distinguish yourself in this marketplace...brand experience. Making sure that you focus on WHAT THE USER WANTS TO DO, HOW YOU WELCOME THEM - how you create awareness and productivity.

From those guys over at Adaptivepath.

Arcade Fire Neon Bible

Even though it was a dry concert and the scary Mormon police stole our flask..Arcade Fire put on a damn good show in Lehi, Utah last night. Oh and it was about 35 degrees. They played enough songs from both funeral and neon bible to keep the crowd going for about 3 hours.

Inspired Office Design Links

Long time no post. So I just ordered a whole bunch of fun art and decor for our new MRN office. I thought I would share a few neat links I discovered.

FlavorPaper
Yes, it exists. Scratch and Sniff wallpaper. Although I didn't get any for the office, this is just an amazing thing to put into an office break room.

V2 PaperForms by Mio Culture
Neat wall decor idea made out of 3 Dimensional paper.

Shop Twenty2
Racer stripes and wall stripes. These I definitely got for our new office.

Nama Rococo
Amazing wallpaper. Out of everything out there right now, these designs are simply fascinating. 

Blik
I know they are not a new site, but they do have some new work by a friend of mine Undoboy. Check it out. I definitely got some of the rings for the office. For $30  a  pop, wall decals are a great way to design a space.

Wallter Paintable Wall Applications
Yes, I got the squares. Very cool.

The Art Farmer
Great canvas and prints. Check out Oshimoto.

Jocelyn Warner
Beautiful, classic wallpaper designs.

Interactive Wallpaper
Fun. Fun.

DNA11
A little bit big brother, but you can have your DNA made into a piece of art.

Chiasso
Overall - great home designs and accessories. 

wow

Thanks for sharing Amanda.

Velloff House for Sale

Hello everyone -

Nick and I have finally posted our house for sale in Arlington, VA. Check out the nice reduced price ready for  a fast sale ( The appraisal value is $120k+ more than listing price).

-------------------

201 N Edison Street Arlington, VA

Fresh on the Market!

Perfect for young professionals who need to commute to DC or enjoy going out at night.

Enjoy the luxury of a fully remodeled Arlington brick colonial within walking distance of the Metro. Come home to the comfort of a historic neighborhood, but live in a modern style that is your own.

Renovated in 2006, this bright and welcoming colonial features wonderful minimalist upgrades throughout, allowing you to showcase your own personality.

Enjoy entertaining in this home that features an expanded open gourmet kitchen with Kraftmaid maple cabinetry, custom concrete counters and professional stainless appliances from GE Monogram and Dacor. Adding barstools, pull up to the counter and talk with friends and family while preparing meals in this very well appointed kitchen.

You will love the maple entertainment room, wired with Bose Surround sound, and boasting a unique pocket door bathroom. Enjoy the style of this room that showcases an exposed brick wall on one side and 19 feet of maple Andersen sliding glass doors to create the other side. Step through the doors to a 25 foot deck with modern cable wiring that overlooks the quiet trails and trees of Lubber Run park.

Stats:
3 BR / 1.5 BA
1,432 Sq Ft.
8.715 Sf. Ft. Lot

Please find out more at : http://velloff.com/edison/201NorthEdison/main.html.

New Corporate Site Launches

For everyone that has been curious about my recent project, please visit our new corporate site for Manufacturers Resource Network  . I hope you find it fresh, elevating, and in this industry, something that makes you take a second look.

Check out our new logo from Collective LA.

 

Minority Report reality

First photosynth, now Surface? Wow, Microsoft Labs is cooking up some neat things in Washington.
Let's hope they all reach the end-users and soon.

Surface allows you to interact and move things on a screen with your touch. Several people can work together, or you can fly solo. I have seen this with various new products showcased at TED. I hope MS will push this forward as the technology appears to be ready, and now there is a willing and able audience to adapt the technology into everyday situations.
Check out Microsoft Surface

Photosynth : Please become mainstream

Have you seen this yet? This new process/tool from Microsoft uses algorithms to extract hundreds of distinctive features from photos. The photos that share the same features are then linked together via the Web.   When pattern recognition is identified, it creates points which are then compared to convert the image into a 3D representation. The experience is seamless, allowing a user experience that is amazing. Personally, I am surprised this is Microsoft and not Apple. Pretty cool..

This is almost a new navigation online, a new way to express stories about a building or family photo.
I think early adopters will be ad agencies to do products such as the Eye Project.

Check out this BBC sample. 

Here are the stats on the product.

From Microsoft Live Labs:

With Photosynth you can:

• Walk or fly through a scene to see photos from any angle.
• Seamlessly zoom in or out of a photo whether it's megapixels or gigapixels in size.
• See where pictures were taken in relation to one another.
• Find similar photos to the one you're currently viewing.
• Send a collection - or a particular view of one - to a friend.

Your brain knows that your eyes are about two inches   apart. But when Photosynth does its magic, it doesn't know where the cameras   were, or which way they were pointing. Fortunately, when there are many   cameras, and many features in common, the algorithms behind Photosynth   can figure out not only where the features are in 3D, but where all of   the cameras would have to have been, and which way they were aimed, consistent   with the features they "saw".

Sopranos End : Love or Hate?

Whether you like it or not, David Chase joined the following with a classic "end" to The Sopranos. Curse or smile, it certainly has been a discussion point. My take, curse.

Here are a few  examples from Tribune critics:

        - "THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT" (1999), written and directed by Daniel Myrick and  Eduardo Sanchez.

 

  Where it stopped: From the point of view of Heather Donahue's videocamera, we see her searching a decrepit old house for her hiking/filming companion Mike (Michael C. Williams). She spots him hunched in a basement corner, the camera suddenly is knocked to the floor, and the picture goes black.

     Major unresolved issue: What exactly happened to her and the others, and  who was doing it?

        - "GONE WITH THE WIND" (1936) by Margaret Mitchell.

Where it stopped: Rhett Butler packs a bag and leaves home angrily, informing wife Scarlett, "I don't give a damn," about what will happen to her, while she vows, through her tears, to someday win him back.

     Major unresolved issue: Does she?

        - "STUART LITTLE"  (1945) by E.B. White.

     Where it stopped: As the plucky mouse drove away, "he somehow felt that he  was headed in the right direction."

Major unresolved issue: Much to the frustration and dismay of children everywhere, we don't know if he ever finds Margalo, his beloved bird.

        - "THE LADY, OR THE TIGER?" (1882) by Frank R. Stockton.

     Where it stopped: "Did the tiger come out of that door, or did the lady?"

Major unresolved issue: Readers don't know whether the prisoner/suitor gets killed by a tiger or lives happily ever after with the beautiful lady.

        - "DON CARLOS"  (1867) by Giuseppe Verdi.

Where it stoped: At the end of Act 5 (in the original French version of Verdi's grand historical opera), the Spanish crown prince is about to be handed over to the Inquisition but is suddenly snatched into the ether by his dead grandfather.

     Major unresolved issue: What really happens to Don Carlos at the final  curtain?

        - "GREAT EXPECTATIONS"  (1860-61) by Charles Dickens.

Where it stopped and major unresolved issue: Dickens wrote two separate endings, suggesting very different results. In the first, Pip and Estella meet casually with no suggestion of a future marriage. But Dickens wrote a second, more ambiguous version, at least hinting that a marriage might be possible. Contemporary printings typically feature both versions, enshrining this novel as a rare literary masterpiece boasting two separate, equally authentic resolutions.

        - "BASIC INSTINCT"  (1992), directed by Paul Verhoeven, written by Joe  Eszterhas.

Where it stopped: Seductress author Catherine Trammel (Sharon Stone) has been cleared of murder and is in bed with Detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas). But then the camera spots under her bed ... an ice pick, the murder weapon.

     Major unresolved issue: Does she eventually kill her lover detective?

        - "ANGEL"  (1999-2004)

Where it stopped: The TV show's good-guy vampire, Angel, and his loyal crew were in an alley, poised to take on an attack from a horde of baddies.

     Major unresolved issues: Did they survive? Were there just too many bad  guys for Angel and company?

        - "EINSTEIN ON THE BEACH"  (1976) by Philip Glass and Robert Wilson.

Where it stops: At the end of a nearly five-hour music-theater piece without plot in any conventional sense (the "story" is a transcendental meditation on the life and work of Albert Einstein, told through slowly shifting visual images and repetitive, incantatory music), two lovers are sitting on a park bench. "Kiss me, John," the woman implores. He does. Curtain.

     Major unresolved issue: Nothing is resolved in this opera. Or everything  is.

        - "WAITING FOR GODOT"  (1952) by Samuel Beckett.

Where it stopped: The tramps Vladimir and Estragon await Godot, who never shows. "Well? Shall we go?" Vladimir asks. "Yes, let's go,' Estragon says. "They do not move," says the final stage direction.

Major unresolved issue: Does life have any meaning whatsoever? ---------- And we're sure there are many more. Please send yours to ctc-arts@tribune.com (please follow this format and put ENDINGS in the subject field) and we'll publish a selection in an upcoming Tempo.          

The 4th browser

Make sure you check out this article that realizes the importance of the "4th browser."

However, what struck me was a parallel moment to the one i'd had around SEO a few years earlier... the impact of social media & social networks has become so significant, you should actually be designing a separate use case for your website & content around the social media audience... or to paraphrase Danny, you should be designing for the 4th browser. while the meaning of "design" might be up for interpretation here, the "4th browser" is very real... it's Facebook, it's MySpace, it's YouTube, it's Flickr, it's Digg, and it's Twitter.  These audiences don't have a user agent crawling for interesting stuff -- rather, the audience *itself* is the communication medium for new memes & new information.  The People have become the Machine.

Yahoo CTO says "bye bye"

I chuckled at this article today. With all their new flash, flex hires it seemed like he was just wasting money and moving in every direction. Talk to someone at yahoo, and you'll hear "The tech dept. is incredibly messed up. I can't believe this is Yahoo." Time to fix it - I'm looking forward to it. I think they can push rich and really change the face of the Internet.

Yahoo Tech Chief Resigns

"It's well known, too, that Yahoo makes less money per search ad than Google, a gap Yahoo's hoping to catch up with via its new Panama ad system.

Nazem's response? From all outward appearances, nothing. He let Yahoo run on an aging FreeBSD architecture for too long when others, like Google, moved to the more popular Linux; moved too slowly to build data centers while Google snapped them up on the cheap; and, of course, failed to develop in-house search technology, forcing CEO Terry Semel to go on a billion-dollar-plus buying spree."

Park City Snapshots

Nick and I took a nice ride up Park City Mountain on Saturday afternoon and I thought I would share some photos of our new backdrop. We took a fun steep hike down to get a feel for the terrain/trails and what type of bikes we would need up there. Boy, do I need to get in shape. Yes there is still snow on some of the mountains in the background and No it is just a chairlift, why I seem to look like I'm going 50 mph is beyond me. Our house is just down the street of the first photo and the mountain is our backyard.

 

On a side note, Smokey is fairly confused and upset as to why new machines keep coming and none of them are for him. One day, he will get his very own Apple MacBook Pro - but not today.

When will my SUV be offered as a hybrid

I have been thinking alot about Hybrid cars recently and how one could fit into my life. I have always driven SUV's and I will never chose a sedan. Why? I feel safe in an SUV. I have better vision. I can complete errands easily. I move alot, this car helps. I love the feeling of the roominess of the car.

Today, I saw this article "Fighting for the Right to Make Big Cars" in BusinessWeek discussing a $1 million campaign to urge consumers to understand what is happening in Congress and how they can help to avoid extreme fuel mandates. I am pretty shocked that this is their solution - not sucking it up and paying for more fuel effecient vehicles. You can not prevent the inevitable.

I think most consumers would buy hybrids, but it has to be available with the brands that they are used to and identify with. On earth day, I listened to Governor Schwarzenegger speak about conversions of Hummers running on vegetable oil. I believe this is the right line of thinking. I'm not going to give up my SUV for a small hybrid, but show me ways to adapt my life - not sacrifice/completely change it. If you can continue down this road, it will be more successful than pushing "being green" on people and associating their current lifestyle with guilt.

Why not spend that $1million dollar budget toward the costs of modifying Range Rovers, Yukons and Expeditions?

Park City it is

Alright, so we're pretty taken with this place. It was definitely a good idea to grab a place off Main Street. Nick and I are settling in and in hot pursuit of some new mountain bikes to enjoy the trails out here. I'm sure my first experience will be quite pathetic at 7-10K feet. I'll post photos soon, but for all of you asking to come visit, here's the schedule of events in town, you can walk to everything from our house. Check it out and we'll let you fight over the extra rooms.

http://www.parkcityinfo.com/events/

Brands : Powerful and Respected

1. Google
2. General Electric
3. Microsoft
4. Coca -Cola
5. China Mobile
6. Marlboro
I'll stop right there. Powerful they may be, but respected?

Here is the way that Millward Brown Optimor explains the reasoning behind the list.

Strong brands have the power to create business value. They impact much more than revenues and profit margins. Strong brands create competitive advantages by commanding a price premium and decrease the cost of entry into new markets and categories. They reduce business risk and help attract and retain talented staff.

Download the Brandz report here.

Interesting. I prefer the Forbes list that specifies innovative brand values and next generation leaders. The list was created by asking CEO's and consumers.  It included the brands whose values increased the most within their respective industries during the past four years. Created in 2005, it still holds true. 

1. Apple
2. BlackBerry
3. Google
4. Amazon.com
5. Yahoo
6. eBay

See the compete list here.

Secondlife is moving in an interesting direction

This is Tania Derveaux running for Belgium's Senate and she approves this message:

"I am the leading NEE party senate candidate in Belgium. And due to popular demand, I will give 40,000 blowjobs to anyone who requests one on this page. Note: those who are married or shy can also choose to receive their blowjob in Second Life."

From TOS:
"Submitting several applications will not result in more blowjobs. Services for female applicants can only be provided in Second Life if the applicant has the necessary avatar modifications."

Also - Playboy Island in Second Life is opening soon. Look for Playboy in group search, join, and you too can be a playmate (that's the title group members get automatically).

Your creative AOR is now Microsoft

News of the Microsoft aQuantive 6B acquisition just hit my radar screen. Amazing. aQ is buying small shops and now those small creative shops are part of Microsoft - what a shock for creative advertising MAC shops. Not to mention Microsofts global AOR - McCann Worldgroup. In fact I remember when Microsoft took the MSN ad account away from aQuantive and awarded it to McCann. This was July, 2005 after a six year relationship with Avenue A/Razorfish. Just food for thought -

aQuantive — the former Avenue A/Razorfish — is based in Seattle (no remote management needed). Microsoft is planning to use its various tools and technologies — as well as its relationships with publishers across all media, from IPTV, to games — to supplement its existing set of digital-advertising wares.

Advertising there's the kicker. MS wants to be in the business and revive MSN.com as well as make their Zune trump the iPod. I know sounds ridiculous, but part of my gut says this will be used to push Zune as they are bitter about the iPod.

This makes things less exciting in the ad world - and in my opinion, stifling. Let's see what just happened.

Google bought DoubleClick.
Yahoo bought Right Media.
WPP took bought 24/7.
Microsoft has now purchased aQuantive.
Brightcove next on the major acquiring list?

Where's the Buffalo?

Prior to this post, I suppose I should note that Nick and I just moved out to Park City, Utah this week. We were a bit nervous to say we were in Utah - but that all went away when we got to drive up from California and see the beautiful landscape of this state. Park City is pretty dead right now, but you can tell its full of character, relaxing moments and projects the ambiance of a great American ski town.

Last night we headed down to the only place that seemed to have people in it, the No Name Saloon. Great place - if you come up here, make sure you visit. We bonded a bit with the bouncer asking about the heavy vs 3.2 oz by weight beer and then took a look at the menus. The restaurant serves up good bar food, but mainly, as I get to the point of this post, buffalo burgers. I was reminded of the health of buffalo or bison meat by reading the menu. The burgers were a bit overcooked and didnt have much flavor. I was a bit disappointed. I've had a bad burger though,  so today I decided to set off in pursuit of cooking my own buffalo meal.

Here are some quick facts I found about buffalo meat while searching online today.

Important differences when compared to beef include:

1. 70% to 90% less fat (depending upon the cut of the meat.)
2. An average if 50% less cholesterol.
3. 30% higher in protein and less calories.
4. No growth-inducing hormones or steroids.
5. No known human allergies.
6. Higher in Iron (great for Women)
7. No Problems with E-Coli in Buffalo
   

   Nutritional Value of Buffalo (Bison) and Elk
   3 oz. serving	Calories	fat	cholesterol
   Bison	93	1.8 g	43 mg.
   Elk	94	1.7 g	40 mg.
   Turkey	125	3.0 g	59 mg.
   Beef	183	8.7 g	55 mg.
   Chicken	140	3.0 g	73 mg.
   Fish	125	3.0 g	59 mg.

I did quite a bit of research online and found these as the top links:

1. Jackson Hole Buffalo Meat
2. Elk Usa
3. National Bison Association

I am not impressed. I found no recipes at Allrecipes.com   and just a few on the Epicurious site. The websites for meat distributors all had the same recipes. There were a few articles with leading chefs discussing the benefits of the meat, but these were few and far between.

So off to Wild Oats I went. We picked up some frozen patties, but were also persuaded by the butcher to buy a pound of Bison tips. The butcher talked us into it and was a PR machine! We wrapped some up and took it home. Seasoned lightly I broiled it ( no grill yet) and served it with Polenta, mushrooms, red onions and diced tomatoes. I may have overcooked it a bit - but it was wonderful! Mainly we were just amazed by the nutritional values and comparison to what a steak would have been and cost. Some say buffalo is pricey, but compared to a filet or nice lean cut of beef theres no comparison.

So I ask, where is the campaign? This meat is GOOD for you. There are studies on the Pork Board Campaign and they even have ads on TV's in Wal-mart of all places. Campaigns with streaming video, banner ads, clever recipes at local grocery stores are all shown for beef and pork. Their website is scary and incredibly poorly designed, but it does show up in Google as #4. I even worked on the Wild American Shrimp project and saw more public attention paid to shrimp. When i look up buffalo, or buffalo campaign details come back about adopting buffalo and of course things about buffalo wings.

From the  National Bison Association site, I can see an upcoming International Bison Conference, growth strategy fluff and information about Wagon Trail Spaces ( whatever that means). As a consumer, I am clueless to this delicious and nutritious meat. I would love to see some money thrown at an advertising campaign. Goodby, Silverstein & Partners  is doing a wonderful  ,award-winning job for the California Milk Processor Board. Their new tactics are hilarious and are getting strong attention. Now, I realize GS&P may be over budget, but there are so many interesting and creative low-cost PR tactics that could help get Bison on the American dinner table. If there is budget, never underestimate the power of the television.

The number one issue I am sure is mass distribution to the grocery stores. But you are right, your demographic is Wild Oats and Whole Foods shoppers who don't care about cost, only health and the "gourmet factor." When we asked the butcher about the availability he noted "Eh, it's sporadic, when I get it it will sell out - but its rare we have it in regularly."

To the National Bison Association:
1. Distribute, distribute , distribute - cost to consumer does not matter. Take care of that when there is  higher demand. Consumers will spend for high end meat.
2. Get recipes on the web and highlight the meat on popular sites with direct links to purchase.
3. Building on #2 - you need to get Buffalo in the mouths of your target consumer. Free shipping, 
whatever - but get it to them fast. If they are thinking about it, or on a recipe site, they want it now or in at least 3 days. After that you may have lost them.
4. PR is your best machine. Use the channels.
5. The buffalo is a great animal for marketing. Don't even get me started - get it out there. Including on
the plaza of the Today Show and on Leno. I'll have to do more research to see how you have worked with Food Network.
6. Follow up your PR efforts with in store offerings and merchandising.
7. Most likely your best success may be WOM. Don't forget the power one purchaser or diner has - they     will send you more customers than an advertisement.
8. It's summer. It's festival time. Be there - once again, you have a buffalo as a mascot - you couldn't ask for anything more.
9. Hook up with some national chains. Ruby Tuesday's has just rebranded - healthy is BIG for them. I know you are on the Chili's menu(or you used to be), but you get lost there. RT has a large commercial  budget - tag along, tag along.
10. Get grocery stores to include recipes with meat, no matter what. It's not hard.

Think Big. If you have the stock, you have an open playing ( or shall we say grazing) field.

On another Note: We watched the Best Burger Competition on Food Network yesterday. they had an alternative burger category. I saw shrimp, turkey and chicken - NO buffalo, or veg. burgers -

Amazing New Technologies

I can't get over how amazing it is that this invention will be able to breakthrough and become mainstream.
Desktop Factory, started by IdeaLab, a technology incubator will start selling its first 3-D printer for $4,995 this year.
Read article here

I have been listening to Angels & Demons on a long car trip from Orange County, CA to Park City, UT. I find that it is incredibly similar to The DaVinci Code in story line, main characters and even plot. However, I was surprised to open my computer yesterday to see on the cover of NYTimes.com a particle accelerator. Is CERN real? Yes. Wow, I guess I need to study up more on my Dan Brown.

Read article here

 

Valerio Mezzanotti for The New York Times

All the things to think about

When starting a digital campaign, all of these things run through a planners head -

--

oh boy.....sony

 

     PS3 Song Trashing    

                              

Small companies don't put up with bullying

Yes, you small agency can hold true to your morals and Fire Bully Clients. You are smart, creative and there is a reason clients have and will continue to flock to you. Stand your ground. Read the article posted on Advertising Age.

Best Presentations

What a great idea. Slideshare ,a new tool, created a contest where everyone can enter a Powerpoint presentation. The result, great content that can be viewed for free and give you some ideas. I remember when this product launched and I got an invite from the founder who actually wrote me back after I congratulated him and asked a few questions about his business philosophy's.

One of my current favorites -

Unlocking cool by Jeremy Gutsche
By methodically approaching innovation, organizations and individuals can generate ideas, stimulate creativity, and ultimately unlock cool.

Prada Touchscreen Cell Phone

It won't be coming to the US market anytime soon since this version is limited to tri-band GSM 900/1800/1900 with EDGE data. The KE850 PRADA's UI is Macromedia Flash-based and opts for a minimalist, white-on-black display. Read more at Engadget. I've also heard that Carphone Warehouse  is giving it out for free verses the $500 pricetag. Boy, would I rather get this than the $799 Nokia N95.

               

                        

Outdoor Advertising : Bus Shelters

TORONTO

Bus shelters in several Canadian cities were equipped with built-in two-way radios "that connect commuters between different cities, in real time, with just a push of a button." 

LONDON
It's a huge Sony Ericsson Walkman embedded in a bus shelter. You can watch real videos from it.

And while scented advertising in bus shelters is new in the United States, it's been tried in London, where one campaign spritzed the air with a citrus scent to promote a fruit drink.

Viacom Outdoor has developed the Lightning Poster that adds flashing effects to outdoor advertising. Bacardi Flavours is already using the system on posters installed all over The Netherlands.

Advertising innovation introduced by Viacom Outdoor this year include interactive bus shelter (via bluetooth) and the fragrance bus shelter.

Here's an example of a campaign created by AKQA for Yell.com.
This involves the use of GPS enabled buses and bus shelters. The buses actually change ads depending on where they are in London. And the bus shelters contain digital touch screens that enable people to search for local businesses within walking distance of the bus shelter.

SYDNEY

 

Here is a campaign for Emirates Airlines using JCDecaux’s Opinionator, a voting mechanism found on such street advertising venues as bus shelter panels.

The "Favorite European Destination" campaign touted the 20 European destinations that Emirates flies to with an ad featuring a clickable map of Europe allowing consumers to vote for their favorite destination. Ads were placed in high-trafficked areas with a running tally of up-to-date results displayed.

Billboard: "The idea is simple, first give MINI USA some irreverent information about yourself (nothing too personal). MINI USA then sends out a special keyfob (4-6 weeks after sign-up) that identifies you to each of the Motorboards you pass. When the boards detect that you are about the drive by, they deliver a personal message based on the information you originally gave."

Description of Creative Mind

powered by ODEO

Download creative_mind.pdf 

Description:
Narration around the inspiration and thinking that resulted in the visual.

This is great! I found it on Logic+ Emotion and had to share -

 

powered by ODEO

Download creative_mind.pdf 

Description:
Narration around the inspiration and thinking that resulted in the visual.

This is great! I found it on Logic+ Emotion and had to share -

Designers list of hellish projects

This is great -  It's the road to hell according to graphic design legend Milton Glaser. Ah the constant challenge of educating clients as to why these are BAD things not GOOD.

Number 1 makes me think of the video when Microsoft creates the iPod Package:

 

 

Turning the Pages : Small is the New Big

Last week I picked up a copy of Seth Godin's Small is the New Big. I am about 1/3rd of the way through but already have many corners turned and have read aloud about 5 sections to my husband. Here's a book anyone in the digital space ,that is seeking a way to make their ideas shine, can really feel a connection. Rarely do I find a marketing book a "page-turner" and not something just full of fluff.

The title of the book is best defined by these quick concepts of Seth,

Small is the new big only when the person running the small thinks big.

Don’t wait. Get small. Think big.

A small law firm or accounting firm or ad agency is succeeding because they’re good, not because they’re big. So smart small companies are happy to hire them.

A small restaurant has an owner who greets you by name.

In the advertising world, small = boutique, and boutique is BIG. We see this as large 150M accounts transfer from media giants and holding companies down to the independent. They go where there is talent. Brands are starting to realize that a 150 person ad agency still will outsource all of their development and interactive to the best talent...so why isn't all of that talent working together in a boutique shop? In many ways that is happening, and those companies are winning accounts. But, in many ways, the creatives and best programming minds are not necessarily entrepreneurs. It's daunting to reach out for funding to open your own shop, find ways to recruit and maintain talent, imaging how you would even start with "financial modeling" and to make sure you are not just hitting salary, but paying taxes..among many other things.

Seth's book inspires me.

Some of my favorite one-liners:

"If your target audience isn't listening, it's not their fault, it's yours ( p 14). "

"Today, working hard is about taking apparent risk. Richard Branson doesn't work more hours than you. None of the people who are racking up amazing success stories and creating cool stuff are doing it just by working more hours than you are. And I hate to say it, but they're not smarter than you either. They're succeeding by doing hard work.( p 19)"

"What would happen if you fired half of your clients?"( p 69)

One main thing that I have taken away is the question of hiring and working with people who declare themselves to be competent. I was recently exposed to an environment where there were competent people. Competent yes, but "Fast" was not a concept that was understood.

This environment/project needed competent people to make smart, fast decisions, but not the type or person that is predictable and reliable. The competency here, hindered this project as the people  resisted change and didn't understand how to perform in a fast paced ever-changing environment. I really learned a lesson here. When deciding to work with this team, I applauded and felt comfort in what I described as the reliability and competency of the team. But I later learned that this sacrificed a certain "freshness" , a drive to do something different and be creative. To ask this group to step outside of their world or even answer a question that shifted their world, required asking four other people and completely handicapped them in being assertive and handling responsibilities. The ability to move from opportunity to opportunity, to re shift, to analyze, to look at something from a different perspective - not something that could happen. I liked how Seth made me think about this and identify what I already knew, but could not put into theory. I also enjoyed  his recommendations to hire the "serial incompetents" who are quick to master a task and try something new.

So in writing this blog, I think Seth would call this all apart of the "Flipping the Funnel" section that shows the power of making your customers into your salespeople =) Well, that's ok - Great book, and can't wait to turn a few more pages.