next steps in customer-service

In a USA Today story this morning, it's reported that Concierges go the extra mile in the Internet age:

• High-end brands are upgrading concierge operations and training staffs to improve their neighborhood knowledge. And other brands are looking for better ways to share information with guests...

I think it's a great way for the consumer review popularity online to mix with a Let's Go/Lonely Planet DIY feel, moving the authenticity of these reviews to a brand experience.

• Hotels must not only figure how to get local knowledge in the hands of employees and train them to deliver it, but also how to provide local knowledge that is relevant to guests' needs. (Marriott)
• Guests are looking for whatever it is that makes Detroit Detroit. There's a desire to say, I caught a slice of that. - Michelle Lapierre, Marriott's senior director of customer relationship marketing. COOL!

This could be a push for updating the hiring process when looking for hotel employees. Hire the people who are passionate about their city and enhancing tourists' stays. See the sites! Get out: go to this restaurant, see this offroad place, etc.

Some of the more notable initiatives are:

• Courtyard by Marriott later this year will roll out its first "Go Board," a flat panel HDTV with local information, including restaurant recommendations, for guests.
  
• At Loews, the new "In The Know" program calls on concierges each week to come up with a list of local tips.
• Marriott's extended-stay brand, TownePlace Suites, plans to put an 8 by 8 feet wide map marked with restaurants and local places of interest on the lobby walls of all 128 hotels.
  
• Marriott (clearly the leader in this trend) will also give guests pocket guides and two-sided cards with local information.
• Hyatt will launch a website that lets members chat with concierges and other travelers.
  

I'm not sure if recommendations will be tainted with marketing sway...but I'm hoping for a more "consumer review" / authentic approach to the information provided. It could be real easy for money hungry, less-educated advertisers to see this as a marketing jackpot calling their name. Let's hope it stays more honest and real. :)

it's not easy being green

I subscribed some time ago to The Hartman Group's newsletter. The following is their intro to a new publication to follow the trend in sustainability:

• In 1969, the cultural icon, Kermit the frog sang, “It’s not easy being green.” Now almost 40 years later those words still ring true for most corporations interested in or involved in sustainable issues.

It's overwhelming for Americans to think about all of the sustainable hippie activities that they aren't doing/could be doing. "Green with just a touch of blush: the environmentally conscious feel guilty when they slip up," an article in USA Today Monday touched on this a bit more:

• 20% of Americans experience so-called green guilt.
  
• A Catholic priest in England is reportedly taking green confessions at environmental festivals. (potential sponsorship idea here anyone?)
• Danny Seo, an environmental lifestyle expert, sees a lot of eco-inspired guilt. "The No. 1 thing I get from everyone is I'm sorry, I have an SUV, but I have children." He notes that guilting someone can easily backfire.
• Environmentalists have a bit of a reputation for being sanctimonious.
  

When I was in Miami Ad School, my team put together a campaign for the NRDC: National Resources Defense Council. Our message was in response to this notion of guilt; we wanted to address what people actually are doing to help the environment, so we said Thank you.

• Thank you. By turning down the dimmer all the way, you've [closed the gap and] taken the first step in protecting the environment. We know you might think you are not doing enough, but know that small things like this support a healthier Earth. So keep doing the little things. The world appreciates your contribution.
  

We tried to bridge the gap between thinking that what you're doing isn't enough and realizing/being aware of what you are doing is appreciated (that's where close the gap came in). It would be a first for a company to spend a lot of money on a campaign to thank people, but we agreed that acknowledgment of efforts in the environmental arena should be rewarded in the efforts to accentuate their importance. :)

The USA article provided some web resources for more info:

• Carbon Fund
  
• Native Energy
  
• Care2 > a social networking site dedicated to social change and action: recommended
  
• Grist

"Right now, green is trendy. We want it to become second nature, like it is to put on a seat belt. Word. Green on!

symbolism of a smile

The smile is crazy. Whether you see someone on the street smiling to themselves, or you're looking at a baby and you smile to solicitate the same response from the infant, the smile my friends is a powerful thing.

This post was influenced by the smiles I frequently saw in educational advertising on the subways in New York: Maybe the students were in cap & gown like above, or maybe they were in another situation, but the ads seemed to communicate that the educational system gave them a smile (i.e. gave them a reason to smile.) The smile communicates a list of positive, possible emotions: happiness, success, pleasure, achievement, glee, euphoria, etc. But in ads; smile=happiness=success=education=you gotta have this product in order to get a smile. Hmmm, what about the other emotions that are part of the personal development process that education also rewards you with?

The symbolism of a smile: I Googled this phrase and the first thing to come up was a website about Art Direction & the Web. My first Smile Point revolves around the smile as communication:

• An art director would perhaps come up with a concept which communicates the importance of the smile. What does a smile communicate? Power? Confidence? Happiness? Amusement? All of the above? The art director might choose to delve into the smile as a symbol of healthy teeth and gums. She might even choose to categorize types of smiles and relate these to types of toothpaste, exaggerating the images used to portray the toothpaste types:

• Cool Minty Fresh: the smile of a climber on Mount Everest.
• Extra Sensitive: the smile of Dr. Phil.
• Extra Strength: the smile of Dracula.

• Smiles of “power people” paired with success stories. Smiles of comedians — laughter is the best medicine. The smile as an international language of friendship. Why not develop our own “smilies” or emoticons?

"The smile as an international language of friendship" leads me to my second Smile Point: that of seeing a smile and wanting to smile in return. We do this with babies and even other people, trying to get them to smile by smiling ourselves. "Smile and whole world smiles with you" has a nice community/networking aspect to it. Want to learn how to smile? Yeah, there's a website for that too.

The smile is infectious. The smile is a phenomenon. It's been a fad with the ever popular Smiley face (yellow background, black eyes and smile). Emoticons have given us the ability to smile online. Smiling, backed by scientific support, actually has the power to make you happier if you force one to your face.

There's even a bit of disgruntlement (ok, this is personal) when someone requests a smile. This typically seems to happen with a man making the request to a female: smile more, can I get a smile? I think this is a bit out-dated: the idea that women should be constantly happy and smiling is...sexism and to say the least, highly unlikely a state to occur round the clock.

Anyway, I like smiling. Smiling is good. Advertising is a powerful industry to take advantage of such such an innocent thing. Let's make sure we're using our smiles in an honest way.

strategy takes the reins

• "It's surprising to me how much opportunity there is to offer insight, whether it's helping [clients] to better target their existing customer set, or helping them with straightforward things like emerging media and social platforms," said Organic's CEO Mark Kingdon.

Organic announced it's starting up a strategy pracice > basically a consulting group to help clients understand what it is we (planner/strategists) can bring to the table.

• "Historically, the weight was a lot more on execution, not strategy. It's a lot harder today. There's a huge digital connection strategy that needs to be considered with lots of touch points that have been considered individually but not holistically."

Touch points have to make sense and weave a trail for the consumer/customer/audience to find and opt-into. They need to make sense from one to the next, intriguing a consumer and sustaining that interest through to the point of purchase. THIS is strategy > how are all these puzzle pieces going to fit together. It's not quite a game of cat and mouse, fish & hook; it's more like planting a seed and making sure the environment is right for it to grow.

Hope + Change: Barack

Obama's message takes experience out of the equation, saying that his is a different kind of experience.

Obama's got the social network thing going with pages on myspace, facebook, partybuilder (?), eventful (?), flickr, and youtube.
Again, I am not turning this blog into a political forum, just wanted to get the messages out there for discussion.

Wowsers, just found out he's got a page on LinkedIn. Only 152 connections thus far. Hmmm...

Experience + Change: Hillary

"Change is just a word without the strength and experience to make it happen." I like Clinton's campaign title.

It's all about making ideas actionable. I agree there needs to be a plan in place (eh hem Mr. Bush) and experience is more likely to make the plan a good one.

This is not indicative of who I'm voting for, just a campaign and a brand's message.

what to wear to an interview

So you've got your resume and it looks great: check. And you've got your portfolio all in line, the pieces you think represent your skills the best: check. And you've got a list of really good questions to ask your interviewer based on research you've done on the agency/company: check. You've gone on a run to clear your mind and you're feeling optimistic: check. You want to feel your best so you put on your favorite jeans with your favorite button-up shirt and these awesome sneakers that everyone gives you compliments on, you look like a perfect version of you: NO! WAIT! STOP! Do not pass go, do not collect $200. The wheels are screeching to a halt. huh?

My story is the above one. It's like the first day of school and this is the outfit that makes me feel good about myself. When we were children, our parents and communities would emphasize "be yourself, be you, don't conform, have opinions."

I am trying to get into a creative field, and so, my clothing choices reflect my creative personality. Come to find out, when it comes to interviewing (even at ad agencies), the process is the same across all fields: look like everyone else in a suit or otherwise, spiffy outfit.

At about.com they tell you how to "Dress for Success." Adjectives such as moderate, conservative, coordinated, limited, professional, etc. are used to describe women's and men's attire to get the job. Ugh. Gross. Ew. Ick. Bleh. And god forbid you have highlights or lowlights or some other color punctuation in your hair: This would not fit into the "neat, professional hairstyle" about.com says is necessary for success.

I don't want to be Diane Sawyer or Katie Couric applying for a job at a creative boutique agency. I don't want to play pretends like I'm stodgy a-hole who wants to look better than everyone else. I did sales for a bit and everyday, I felt like I was playing a part. I think I could have sold a lot more if I'd felt comfortable and approachable. That's what advertising should be, so why should the industry expect the people in it to be anything else? Dar.

my world: overhead in New York

"You're black. I'm brown." ~ teen on the phone with her significant other (?)

"You stupid bum, get up! This is America!" ~ late 20s man to a bum in Brooklyn

"What is this? A glass of water. No. Wait for the object to show you what it is." ~ friend explaining patience to another friend in Park Slope

"It's America! ...it's just two people in love. Yes, there's a matchmaker! But it's not a pre-arranged marriage like..." ~ early 30s Chinese man on phone in the back of the store where his mother is running the cash register

"I love to barf." ~ teen talking with two girlfriends on first-day of school

Fallon-London still has it

just watch....wait...and enjoy

Consumption Consumption

"What the World Eats" was an exhibit I saw last year at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. It detailed what a family eats in ONE WEEK, photos and exact foods are listed for 24 different families in different regions of the world.

You can read more at NPR.

Today is BlogDay

What IS blogday?

• BlogDay was created with the belief that bloggers should have one day dedicated to getting to know other bloggers from other countries and areas of interest. On that day Bloggers will recommend other blogs to their blog visitors.

The site suggests that we mention 5 blogs that deviate from our own blog subject theme and in a thought-provoking manner:

1. Kanardo
   
2. HispanicTrending
3. EggLog
4. Mashable
5. AllDayBuffet

There ya go. Happy Blog Day. Blog oN!

art of dialogue

Not too long ago, I watched the movie Interview with Sienna Miller and Steve Buscemi. I'd rate it about a 3 of 5, interesting to watch but so-so in terms of entertainment value. It make me think about asking questions and engaging someone in a dialogue; How, if you ask bad questions, the respondent will most likely give a bad answer.

I like reading interviews. I like seeing how the question is presented and watching the ellipses in thought or that emotion in language unfold in reaction to a stimulating question. (check out Interview Magazine if you're into this too) There is a certain art to engagement. Maybe this is nothing new for you smarty-pants interviewers out there, but for some people (you don't know who you are) there is a reason that a question needs to be asked in a certain way if you want a good answer. NPR did a story called "The Art of the Interview" that detailed ESPN's awareness of low-profile, sucky interviews. "We weren't capturing moments," says the SVP.

Capturing moments is what art seeks to do. I like that. I like the awareness it calls to the situation. Photography captures moments. It's neat to think of interviews trying to do the same thing, but really it's all about information being available in the present moment in such a way that you have an "ah ha" moment of enlightenment and growth.

I'd like to create advertising that does the same sort of thing; advertising that makes the audience go "oh...I never thought of that before" or "hmm...that makes me think blah blah blah." The art of engagement. We know it's there. Seek to attain the status, and I think we'll be handsomely rewarded with "moments" that are unique.

add stuff to your portfolio time...

Wandering around the internet this weekend, I found two ways to get your mind thinking AND possibly add work to your planning portfolio:

1. Planning for Good, a relatively new Facebook group has posted a brief for an Idea Village in New Orleans. Take a stab at it here, brief provided.
2. Account Planning School of the Web, originally created by planning celeb Russell Davies, is now being handled by Gareth at Brand New. The current assignment is for Mr. Clean, brief provided with project due date here.

It's Idea Time: Go! Have fun!

enough already, Write!

I've been in a writing funk since relocating to New York. I really thought my blogging was going to take off in full force once I was here. I was sadly un-aware that my environment had so much to do with my ability to focus on content quality. I thought all I needed was the thoughts.

It's not that I don't want to write or that I don't have anything to write about; it's more that "finding the time" hasn't moved itself to the priority list with get a job, find friends, settle into a living situation, etc. My life is chaotic and it's ironic that I can't find time to do the one thing that settles my mind. It's time to take control of my mind and harness it's power to focus on a path. So with a little help from Scott Berkun and his tips for writing, my goal is to get back into the swing of things.

start with a word: PR, Public Relations

write about writing: PR is something I want to figure out. It's in the realm of communications, I can't be too far off from comprehending HOW, WHAT or WHY in relation to the topic.

have a conversation: working on a blog-PR project right now, I shared my anxious reaction with a friend who was in total agreement with my take on the duty: It's like you're bugging people to pay attention to your topic; really intrusive, etc. But isn't this how some people view advertising? (yes) Thinking along these lines, I should be able to get the hang of PR. It's messaging and every message needs an audience, blah blah blah.

read/talk about/find something you hate: I thought about all of the Spam I get in my inboxes-these solicitations are very irritating. How is PR different? Hmmm...

warm up with something motivating: "All we can hope is that more people in the [PR] profession realize that it's about relationships and not pitches or target audiences." Ok, I've got my feet somewhat wet in the relationship/online department with blogs and whatnot, so using these relationships to network a message should be doable. (quote via Hyku) And actually now that I think about it, the way I currently think about PR is just an attitude which is changeable. :)

Ok, I'm ready to write. For other writing tips check out Berkun's blog (he goes on to recommend running and drinking whiskey). Cheers!

quote at Anomaly

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW, Maxims for Revolutionists

quote from Anomaly's wall. see you Monday ~

consumer generated content

We give them advertising and they give us:
#1 - "Whores"
#2 - Child: "Help" Father: "This is turning me on."
#3 - notice the line drawn on the tennis player, or maybe Chase bank wanted to emphasize the buttocks...?

Then there's this link to Blograffiti. The images drawn are repulsive & disgusting. Who draws these and why doesn't Blograffiti say anything about it?

I don't have much to say about this point, merely to note it and draw attention to the other side of cgc - the one where they add their thoughts to a message v. creating their own. I guess in a world of messages everyone's looking to make their mark (literally). In an industry that emphasizes "engagement" these days, I don't think this is quite what we're going for. :p

my world: overhead in New York

(preface: this is my version as opposed to the actual online community if you didn't know about it already.)

"What's wi-fi?" - employee in Carroll Gardens cafe

"He asked me to be his Myspace friend..." - 25+ something girl on cellphone in Brooklyn

"This is like a pop-culture museum." - 20-something guy about Simpson's 7-11 in Midtown

"I'm a super-freak, super-freak, I'm super-freaky" - three street-men , dancing at 8a in the West Village, it was awesome and should be picked up for a music video asap!

"Art doesn't kill." - 75+ teacher at the School for Visiaul Arts, having a conversation about art & politics at a bar in SoHo

"Shoes, that was the 80s. Today, it's iPods." - NYPD talking to me about safety and theft

a dialogue takes many forms

In museums, there is a language that goes on between each piece of art. It's something I hadn't really thought of before until I read an article about Carmen Gimenez, a curator for modernist sculpture.

Designing a show or museum exhibit requires a vision for how the artwork will communicate from piece to piece. There is a language here: "Sculpture is a very spatial idea. When you build a museum you need to think about sculpture. It needs space. All in their own space, they aren't mixed at all, but they are in dialogue."

It made me think of a museum curator as a planner: setting up the creative brief as a tool to stimulate possibilities. A brief should not mandate and focus on only one path. It should open up the room for creative dialogue and let the reader/viewer/user take their own journey.

Gimenez works in the Guggenheim Museum, a beautiful building by Frank Lloyd Wright. "The whole museum becomes a situation," she says, "there are many possibilities for dialogue." Her exhibit Shapes of Space is on exhibit through September 5.

What are Windorphins?

I don't know what the campaign's presence is outside of New York, but for those of you in the city, I'm sure you've seen the colorful characters on the subways by now. These characters are called Windorphins.

They're like endorphins only they don't come from exercise, they come from eBay-ercise. Weird, right? The campaign itself (all print for what I've seen) makes no mention of eBay. Subway passengers can sit in front of the campaign for 30+ minutes but unless they're active consumers (enter % of active v passive consumers here) they won't follow up at home to actually see where windorphins.com takes them. And further more, in a city of distractions everywhere, New York is not really the place to try and firmly cement curiosity and hope that it peaks hours later when you're in front of your computer.

Random guy Frank is an avid eBay user in NY. He brings his laptop to a wifi area and peruses it consistently while he does other things: drinking beer, having a conversation, talking on the phone. He is familiar with the campaign: "oh yeah, I've seen those in the subway, they're cute." I asked Frank if he knew they were associated with eBay: "No. Really? Weird." There you go client/advertiser/whoever you are. Yay creatives but where's the communications planning?

I did a little web research and this is what I found:
Objective: increase brand fun factor
Tactics: make your own windorphin chracter at ebay.com
Results: increased awareness for Windorphins, connection to eBay is up for discussion

Consumer Behavior: windorph mania here Windorph

creative possibilties and ideas

are endless at a Museum! Go to one NOW! This post comes after going to Target FREE Friday at the MoMA with my friend Kent (copywriter in training).

First of all, if you're not into crowds do not, repeat DO NOT go on Free Fridays. The place is swarming with people. There is no sidewalk to follow, no path you should take. It's chaos! It's like Pamplona and the running of the bulls only they have cameras and children. There's no set pace; everyone's moving in their own directions at their own speed. I wondered if there's ever been any studies done on crowd movement within museums. What I found:

• something called adaptive movement behaviors
  
• the Crowd Farm by two MIT students hoping to harness energy from human movement

and not much else. Hmmm...seems that "movement science" as defined for human physical and mechanical movements should/could be applied to crowd flow. It could help us determine factors that contribute to movement, blah blah blah. Architects and structural engineers probably have to consider this sort of thing: where should we put the stairs? how do we position the escalators? I think there's a difference between walking on a sidewalk and moving around a museum. I see an opportunity here for research or maybe I just haven't found it.

Weird fact: You can take pictures (no flash) of the permanent art collections in the MoMA but not the temporary exhibits. Yeah, you can take pictures but you can't point at the art (bringing your finger inches from the canvas). Miss Pointy here got reprimanded several times with "Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Nothing. I'm pointing. Those people are taking pictures in a museum.

Next thing that occurred to me was the potential for copywriters to exercise their skills with "Untitled" works of art. When I moved from Ringaround Arosie to Sleeping Gypsy to Untitled I became irked by the lack of name. Like, come on, if there are blank boards titled The Twin and The Tree, surely you can name a sculpture of three pillars and some mysteriously hanging balls (Magic, Storm, and Horizon come to mind). Anyway, I see this as a campaign opportunity for copywriters. Maybe they could pair up with artists who don't want to spend the time titling their work. But then we have to ask: What's in a name? Google returns 261 million websites for the question: ranging from "What's your Viking Name?" to "What's your Spammer name?" Sounds like quiz time to me.

Lastly, when Kent and I came to the Sleeping Gypsy (above), he interpreted it as pre-feast for the lion: "That lion's ready to tear her apart." I interpreted it as lion curiosity: "The lion is just checking things out, saying hello to another being in the desert way of life." He was shocked that I would have such a contrast in perception. But I think our interpretations say more about who we are rather than what we're looking at.

These ideas & observations are open to YOUR interpretation. Feel free to comment. Have a great Sunday.

Where did you take your insight?

This is a question I've been asked many times in interviews. It takes a bit of thinking (that in an interview might be an awkward pause) so take some time now to map it out:

• what is your insight?

What was the gold nugget that set your creative work (supposing your showing a portfolio) in motion? Don't get stressed out about it, this is where planning should be simple in nature. An insight is an "ah ha" or "that's it" moment. Just know where and why your conversation happened: what the problem was and how your insight addressed it.

• where did it come from?
• research you did
• questions you asked

What did you do to support and develop your insight? Was it a conversation with your creatives or fellow planners? Was it research-based? Jen M (a fellow planner) told me there are two kinds of planners: Madness and Meticulous. Madness planners are all over the place, gathering culture here, talking about it there. Meticulous planners are all about the #s and research: based on this study, we know that blah blah blah. I want to point out that neither of these answers is right v. wrong. Don't think that because you didn't do any research that you're insight isn't insightful. Just be conscientious of how you grounded your gold nugget.

• where you did you take your insight? > Strategy
• how did you make it actionable? > tactics

Easier said than done, I know. Christopher Owens, from The Richards Group, broke it down for us. An example:

Insight - I feel unhealthy
Objective - lower stress levels
Strategy - go on vacation
Tactics - visit South Beach, fly JetBlue, leave Sunday

Just do some thinking before you throw some bomb creative work on the table and say "look what I did." We all need to know how we got there and why our specific solution makes the most sense.

different media habits for different generations

Looks like we ALL don't use media the same! What a surprise, right? It shouldn't be.

• Millenials - embrace new tech like instant messaging, texting and uploading their own videos to the internet. They are at the forefront of the social networking and user-generated content trends.
  
• Xers - embrace digital video recorders and are the most likely group to watch TV-shows online.
  
• Boomers - browse the web the most, still read newspaper and care about local news and weather content.
• Matures - use the web for personal use and make frequent online purchases. They care about national and world news content in addition to financial information.
  

how to have a conversation

In this age of conversation, it might be nice to evaluate the pieces that contribute to this art form. I just finished Plato's Symposium, and for anyone who hasn't read it, it is the ultimate conversation book. The topic is Love, but on a larger scale, the topic is discourse. Read it and learn. I will now take this post as an opportunity to expand on what Richard said a couple weeks ago: "great dialogues start with a passionate monologue."

When I came to New York, my roommate gave me some interview advice: Make statements rather than ask questions. Say what? It's important to have a point of view. Someone else told me, "It's easier to react to a statement than answer a question." Interesting.

So when a brand (new or old) comes into the market and starts spouting brand speak, this and that, shouting deals or mantras, or whatever, think about it. If the brand wasn't opinionated or didn't have a point of view, it would be neutral in a sense. And of all things, neutral is certainly not engaging by nature.

To conclude, I'll give you a rough idea of how to have a proper discussion via Plato and his buddies:

1. fill everyone's cup with wine and refill as necessary
   
2. set a topic for the evening and lay the ground with some established definitions
3. start on the left, do not speak out of turn, and only speak your pov when the person is finished entirely with their own pov
4. borrow snippets from each speaker to show respect for each and to also help make your point more relevant
5. sound as wise as possible (i.e. have a point of view and speak with conviction).

stage-setting for your message

Call it a messaging environment. Call it a context. The message you (as a planner) have decided is the most important to communicate, needs a world to belong to.

This is where a manifesto can play a huge role, or a tonal board, brand film or brand book. These tools have been created (most likely by planners) to give a big picture personality and tone to their message.

Found this about context & meaning from the book Beyond Buzz, some examples of context:

• "fast-food companies talking about their products and values in the context of healthy eating
• car makers talking about hybrid vehicles in the context of being less dependent on gas and being better stewards of the environment
• insurance providers talking about long-term care in the context of aging and health care policy.
  
• Today, public policy is framed in the context of security and the war against global terrorism.
• As you can see, marketing anything requires explaining ideas within people’s existing frames of reference–that is, in a context they already understand.”

A term you'll hear a lot these days is Brand Relevance: making brands seamlessly fit within a consumer's lifestyle so that all elements of the marketing mix make sense to both the brand and to the consumer. It is largely the planner's responsibility to make this relationship seem effortless and simple.

Here in New York, there's a lot of developing going on in the departments for experiential marketing and digital strategy. Both of these are so distinguished because they're disciplines built around the importance of the user's experience, the messaging environment and brand relevance. Planners, get your fingers in this dirt!

Consumer Reviews

Research done by Spendallyourmoneyhere-Mart says:

• 80% of shoppers have more trust in brands that feature reviews and that 75% of shoppers say it's extremely or very important to read customer reviews before making a purchase. Peer reviews are preferred over expert reviews by a margin of 6 to 1. (adagemobile)

Stick this in the back of your mind and take a trot around the internet. More companies these days are welcoming customer feedback (not Sprint) and are creating online platforms for user reviews. Yelp.com is fast-emerging as user-friendly and fun.

• Yelp is part social network, part localized review site - think Facebook meets Zagat - and it's fast becoming the web's gift to small business.
• When we discover something wonderful (or horrible), we love to tell our friends about it. We also turn to people we trust when we need a good recommendation. Yelp is enabling those conversations to happen on a massive scale. (money.cnn.com)

Yelp is quickly blending the boarders between a consumer review site (amazon, consumerreports, or epinions) and a social networking function (myspace & facebook). Web browsers (I'm referring to the people) are of course looking for convenience online as well as off. If a site can provide information as well as community, then it's good to go > or at least live on someone's toolbar for a while.

The question on companies' lips is: Will social networking sites make people buy more products? Answer: No, via Jupiter Research. But maybe the question should be: Will social networking sites make my products better, in turn creating greater customer love and loyalty? Answer: Yes.

• “Your customers are out there saying things about you, whether it’s on Yelp or on some blog. The faster you can fix problems, the better you’re going to do. Customer service is the new marketing.” (itbusinessedge)

figuring out digital

Liquid communication [via planning from the outside] - flowing through media and around people rather than at them.

I've been thinking about digital lately > what is it about this medium that is so catchy? And no, the answer isn't social networking. Social networking is just one opportunity of many that that digital sphere makes possible.

At Influx, Ed Cotton says, "Brands seem so enamored with their own self importance and insist on building social network destinations, but is that what consumers want?"

No one really understands digital movement: how consumers/people/users navigate this evolving space. It's hard to put your finger on > why exactly I click on the links I do or rather how I map my way online. Let's think about it: The nature/DNA of the net is to provide information. Information can either validate or provoke. The nature of communications strategy is to find a way into a consumer's mind. Entering the digital sphere, a strategy needs to inspire the creative packaging of information targeted to an identified audience. Now, the hard part is figuring out where this audience is.

Cotton suggests hiring ethnographers to help us here > good idea. But let's think about our own internet usage: the sites we visit are innumerable and fluctuate on a daily basis. What holds us to certain sites is their ability to educate and engage. A site earns its goldstar if we bookmark it or add it to our toolbar. This can be a digital goal, but the strategy for achieving it needs to address communication in liquid form, as I'm inspired to do from Mark Lewis.

here's to the crazy ones

The ultimate insight. The ultimate ad. The ultimate context for a message.
Thank you TBWA/Chiat/Day.

would the real Account Planner please stand up?

AdAge put out an article today discussing the evolving character of the planning discipline. It seems that the term "account planner" has become outdated. We now have: connection planners, engagement planners, trans-media planners, communication strategists, digital planners, channel planners, media planners, etc.

I had an informational interview with a senior freelance planner in NYC a couple weeks ago where we discussed this topic of a flourishing title. He made the point that it's more for the client's sake than it is for the agency's > if an agency can bring a sort of specialist to the table via "a title" then it's a selling point against an agency that has just an Account Planner. Hmmm...

It seems that whatever your title might be as a planner, what we're really all here for are the Ideas.

• Today's planning ideas need to stand up to all forms of advertising and every way consumer's spend their time. "A big challenge is being up to date," says Ed Cotton with Influx Insights.
  

We are here to provide a function that account people and creative people just don't have the time for: discovering where the real issue lies and finding the insight to solve a business problem in a creative way that is in alignment with what the brand has brought to the table, taking into account where the consumers are and what they will respond to in terms of communication.

Planning is responsible for processing information > a reason you'll find a lot of blogs by planners. Just look to the right to find a planner who's sorting through their thoughts in hopes of pinpointing the idea that will drive creative, steer a brand and get more product in consumers hands.

Hip, Hip, Design!

Glad someone else is saying it too...

"Innovation is no longer just about new technology per se. It is about new models of organization. Design is no longer just about form anymore but is a method of thinking that can let you to see around corners. And the high tech breakthroughs that do count today are not about speed and performance but about collaboration, conversation and co-creation. If you are in the co-creation business today—and you’d better be in this age of social networking—then you have to think of design. Indeed, your brand is increasingly shaped and defined by network communities, not your ad agency. Brand manager? Forget about it. Brand curator maybe."

"Design and design thinking—or innovation if you like--are the fresh, new variables that can bring advantage and fat profit margins to global corporations. In today’s global marketplace, being able to understand the consumer, prototype possible new products, services and experiences, quickly filter the good, the bad and the ugly and deliver them to people who want them—well, that is an attractive management methodology."

And that's just what agencies with a new-type of model are doing. Thank you Anomaly. Thank you Mother. Thank you Undercurrent. And many more are getting closer to the real issue between consumers and companies: that of disconnection & distrust.

Consumers demand more honesty in the commercial realm, and the internet puts accountability at the front and center of conversations nowadays. Think smart. Think consumer. Listen to them. Innovate as needed. Proceed with confidence and conversation. Design/planning/strategy, whatever you want to call it, it's a necessary component if you want to be a smart company and make smart decisions. My philosophy is that it's about making ALL of the elements make sense and fit together in a seamless, authentic, honest way.

new economy: a happiness index

Here it is, my first book review for junior planner i am: Deep Economy by Bill McKibben. In a well-written, short and easy read, he spends time talking about resource-use, energy production, economic happiness, community conversations and shopping local. These are some points I'd like to highlight:

• We are beginning to assess 'satisfaction' differently, he says. Americans have emphasized hyper-individualism for too long. Making something of yourself is more of an economic task; More is not necessarily better. We need a different view of the economy.
• We have a surplus of individualism and a deficit of companionship, and so the second becomes more valuable." His statistic: Consumers have 10x more conversations at farmer's markets than they do at supermarkets. (i.e. where you shop affects your social life.)
• Branding works its magic only up to the point of sale, and then actual human need returns, unfulfilled. *time for a new strategy!*
• In a changed world, comfort will come less from ownership than from membership. We need to once again depend on those around us for something real. One-tenth the energy; ten times the conversations - that's an equation worth contemplating.
  
• With the American syndrome of private, the car is the ultimate expression of individualism; a crosswalk is about community.
  
• McKibben spends time talking to a rabbit farmer in China whose mission is to make a family become more positive instead of passive. A passive attitude can be changed. The key is they have to have a dream for the future, develop a mission. *where planning could have a big play*
  
• Bhutan, a Himalayan mountain kingdom, has stopped calculating GNP and replaced it with a "happiness index," saying that we have to think of human well-being in broader terms beyond levels of possession.
• And to end, Americans have grown steadily less satisfied with their lives. Statistic: The percentage of of Europeans predominantly satisfied with their lives has increased from 79 to 83%. The decline in happiness (or social capital) is largely an American phenomenon.

The book quickly references Branded Nations by James Twitchell, giving a nod to brands that create communities but then shaming them for dropping the consumer with just a product. I think though with the increasing focus on contextual-based marketing > creating an experience for consumers, customers, audience, people to be a part of > in combination with social networking and media > we should see a natural, organic, inherently built-in increase in social capital. No? I'd like to think so.

And if reading isn't your thing, there's sure to be a movie about it soon...

a city of distractions

"If you spend your whole life working and sleeping, you are left with no time for observation, let alone thought." (Thomas Pychon) quote via Silvia's blog (Thanks girl!)

So in the post below I gave props to the creative people - the restless spirits who stay up late creating with imagination and innovation.

This is a short post to give props to the strategists - the thinkers, the absorbers, the watchers and listeners. The ones who have a thirst for the new and an appreciation for culture and community (especially those that live in the Big Apple itself). Lee wanted to meet with some of his blog-commentators this past weekend in NYC. It was a thrill to 1)meet the minds behind the blogs and 2)share stimulating, thought-provoking conversation in a bar on a weekend night in Soho.

In a city of distractions (my personal, official summation of New York) it's hard to wrap your idea around a thought sometimes. Anybody with me? It's important to have an outlet for these fleeting moments > thank you tiny notebook, and it's also important to find your own way to opt-out: iPod or a good book are the two most popular options. Not only is it important to "take a break" from the constant stimulation available, for planners it's paramount to be able to take it all in and process what you've been exposed to; take the time to be aware of exactly what you're observing.
Bring it on New York! Spin my mind faster and let's see what happens...

staying in touch with creative

As some of us might know from experience, creatives -those crazy people jumping around an agency like firecrackers, ideas flying out their eyeballs, minds wide open for the latest stimulus to grab their attention - they think different. They are the reason Think Different was created: "The roundpegs in square holes." They are vulnerable and need to be understood to produce their best work.

read about the Creativity top 50 here at adcritic. They are the innovators, the crazies, the stay-laters and the late-to-risers. They are the people planners/strategists need to work with the best; like one of those foam animal thingys you get in a toy store > give it the right environment and watch it form into something unique. Want to know how much YOU think with your right brain v. your left?

planners > think of someone you know who runs on his/her own creative mind > pick their brain, become friends with them and figure out how their mind works and when it doesn't, what YOU can do to keep it going. This is what we were lucky enough to be exposed to in Miami Ad School, x10 = they ruled the school and we came in like...where do we fit? We fit together but it can't be a forced relationship. It needs to grow organically and when it does, watch the work be splendid.

here comes the packaging...

or actually, there goes the packaging > into the trash. I just cut three large tags (about 2 and a half inches of un-necessary cloth) off some new underwear.

Why do we have tags? And why do they have to be so big (and ugly?). They seem to be the least-evolving characteristic of clothing products and I cut them off when I see them, so what good are they?!

I have bought some clothing over the past year that has chosen to print their label onto the inside of the actual clothing. And if you want to discuss this issue with more people, you can go to the T-shirt Forum. yeah, there's a whole forum to discuss it.

This seems like a new trend in product design but also maybe can be clumped with packaging design. I can't remember where I found it (maybe in Miami) but I bought...let's say some cookies, and each one was individually wrapped inside plastic inside a larger plastic package and then had an outer package that the shopper actually sees > three f'n layers of material to get through Useless! right?

anyway, i'm going to start posting more on packaging. It's something that interests me. I'd be interested to learn about the packaging campaigns that have emerged in direct correlation with their advertising. For starters (and interested readers) here are 13 trends for packaging reported for 2006. How did they do?

the customer's NOT always right

A MAS friend (thanks LB!) called today with the news: Sprint Dumps Customers. What?!?! In a period where customer-service is coming under the brand microscope, Sprint has decided to say: this relationship isn't working for me.

On one hand, I agree that a brand engaging in customer-service is half of the relationship. It's interesting to think about: What if customers had certain obligations to a brand/product, more than just pure love and loyalty? Sprint is putting it's feelings on the line sort of like a person saying, hey this isn't fair and I'm not putting up with it anymore.

On the other hand, what is Sprint thinking?!?!? In a period where most people would still mark "true" when asked if the customer's always right, Sprint has said it's not playing this game anymore. What are the rules of the new game? And if we wanted to, how do we play?

I think Sprint is taking a huge leap of faith. I'm also curious to know what Goodby added to this conversation...it won the business earlier this year with "Sprint Ahead." Maybe Sprint thinks it can get farther ahead without the excess baggage (true) but does it know where it's going?

and interesting conversation to keep your ears open for...

generational marketing

Eleven 7-Elevens (weird) have been Simpsonsized in the U.S. to resemble the show's staple location Kwik-E-Mart. Customers can find Duff Beer, Buzz Cola, and KrustyOs cereal on the shelves. These will no doubt be collector's items and will represent this awesome campaign for years to come. F'n brilliant TracyLocke!

i'm calling it generational for the reason that this will speak to Simpsons' fans all over the board. I grew up watching the Simpsons when it first hit network television, back when I was in highschool (8 years ago). This promotion intrigues me, brings me back to the brand and even raises an affinity for 7-Eleven. And on top of it all, it's just an f'n cool experience that people will want to get themselves to, not to mention all of the free press the movie will get. (when i posted this, Google returns 780,000 sites) Can we say viral splendorific?

Matt Rand, an Associate Creative Director with TracyLocke, calls it a natural creative idea. i completely agree and hope to see more of these campaigns in the future. An AP article calls it an example of "marketers making life imitate art." cool! now where can i find one of these renovated stores...DOH! none in NY!

network like a fan

we are all familiar with myspace and facebook > but have you ever used these services to meet new people? and i'm not talking about sending to/receiving from users with butt/tits pictures looking to "hookup." I'm talking about legitimately finding new people to hang out with, talk to, and network with.

when i came to new york two weeks ago, my blog was a huge connector for me. it put me in a realm with other people who blogged, this provided a sense of community, and this enabled me to connect in real-time. Examples are: Adrian and Johanna.

some other networks to start utilizing are:

• LinkedIn - you'll find a lot more professionals here, but hey, that who you want to talk to, right?
• Flickr - if you like pictures, then find other people who like the same kinds of visual stimuli
• Plannersphere - if you're a planner like i am, then join the "myspace" for planners, you'll find some heads/directors here and if you can chat them up, that's pretty cool
• Likemind - if you like coffee and stimulating conversation early in the morning, connect here for a friday social warm-up
• Meetup - have not used this one yet but seems like it's got a lot of potential

start connecting now! have a great weekend.

what do i want to know?

my intention for this website is to be a resource. based on the industry i'm in, i would like to make this as user-friendly as possible. so i've done some categorizing based on what i would want to know about HOW TO GET A JOB:

• networking - groups to join
• extended education - pros/cons
  
• job interviews
  
• informational interviews
• resume
  
• creative portfolio/book

you can find these sections in the blogposts to the right among other things that interest me. if you have other inputs or questions that you think i could answer, give me a shout out comment and i'll do my best to give you more information.

in new york now, my sense of community is a bit fragmented and transitory. cheers to having a blog. :)

politics & advertising

Happy 4th of July! As we come together today to watch fireworks and all the rah rah that comes with being an American, let's pay tribute to another day soon approaching >>>>>>>>>>>
get ready to rally your political troops around one of the following up & coming stars:

Barack Obama
Hillary Clinton
John Edwards
Rudolph Guillani
John McCain
Mitt Romney

what will their messages be? how will they get their information to the people? how will their brand position them in the run for the 2008 Presidential Campaign? In the digital realm of Google and YouTube, how big of a role will User Generated Politics play? things to think about while i keep blogging...

and just for kicks, if you want to spend some money on useless but funny crap, buy it here and support Bush's Last Day with buttons, stickers and lots more!!!

New York, New York

I came. I talked. I'm back.

Interview today went great. My first round had been with the head of planning and one of the two planning directors. It'd been one of the most engaging and exhilarating interviews of my life. So I was excited to come back and talk with the next person.

I immediately liked Andrea > she was "alternative" from a clothing perspective > boots with socks underneath and a studded jean skirt. We clicked. But I "put it out there" that I'd clicked with people before and nothing came of it. If interviewing for a job is a numbers game then it seems I should have offers thus far. And honestly, I'm not happy about "selling myself" to everyone and anyone. I'd like to keep some integrity about the people and agencies I choose but...at this junior stage, I cannot afford to be picky. Andrea insinuated that our connection felt genuine to her too. She introduced me to some other people in the agency which always feels cool. I left feeling positive but am not holding my breath. Off to the next agency...

Plug time: GO MIAMI AD SCHOOL! While I was waiting for my interview, two MAS creative students came in the door: It was their first day! It was an exciting example of comradery and community. I was happy for them like I would be a child on their first day of school. I said "maybe I'll see you in there in couple weeks." THEN, after the interview, I called up my friend Julie who's working at Anomaly now (so f'n cool). She was one of the planning graduates in my March program. So if you're thinking of going to MAS...stop thinking about it. Do it > some wisdom brought to me by George a planner at AKQA when we met at likemind, NY.

My "little town blues" are melting away...

spritual goodness

stole this from a friend's blog but wanted to share it with readers of mine. most of you will be surprised to learn this exists in the state of Arkansas...yeah, really.

It's called the Thorncrown Chapel. Check it out here.

good service: happy customers

had one of thee best customer-service interactions EVER this morning (getting my hair done, so males, you might not understand this). what made it so special?

Communication. she listened. i was the customer and she listened to me explain in a very roundabout way "the process" i have accumulatively put together to make my hair what it is. I am not just a highlight or a lowlight or an all-over-color customer, I'm a this is sort of what i want and do you see the same thing in your head? type.

In a service industry, they're working for tips and as much as it's built into the American psyche that you naturally leave a tip, but it's also something to be used when the service goes above and beyond your original intentions or expectations. Define "above & beyond"

• she was enthusiastic about the process
• she listened to my suggestions and tried to work with them
• she did not act rushed or hussied when it took longer than originally booked
  
• she provided un-solicited feedback on "how good it looks" throughout

and she got a 20% tip and i would have left more if I'd had more. It will receive the most gratitude in the form of WOM.
I think this is the customer-service we should propagate and tip big for. and fyi, if i ever have my own agency, i'm going to work tips into the mix, like if someone brings me my mail or does something more service-oriented... Tips are grrreat! :)

do you know your Meyers-Briggs typology?

I was asked this at an interview in New York and quite frankly, off the top of my head, No i don't.

I've taken a number of online quizzes, Meyers-Briggs being one of them, but damnit, it's not on my resume. thinking now...maybe it should be. I took the test when I got home. I am an "ENFJ."

Extraverted is an attitude. I draw energy from action. If I'm inactive, then my level of energy and motivation tends to decline.
Intuitive is an irrational/perceiving function. I trust information in a more abstract or theoretical sense, whether or not I can associate it with other information I have.
Feeling is a decision-making function. I prefer to come to decisions by associating or empathizing with the situation (i.e. putting myself in the other person's shoes).
Judging describes how I like to get things done. I prefer to have clear plans and do not like to be distracted.


The personality test I could recall I had taken was my personalDNA. From an earlier post, I am an Animated Creator and that's pretty cool.

Belbin (first name Meredith) has 9 team-playing roles you want want to be familiar with as well:

• 3 Action oriented team roles – Shaper, Implementer and Completer Finisher
• 3 People oriented team roles – Co-ordinator, Teamworker and Resource Investigator
• 3 Cerebral oriented team roles – Plant, Monitor Evaluator and Specialist.

knowing who you are and what personality you bring to the table will benefit YOU and the company you're interviewing with. good luck!

interactive planners, where are you?

Interactive planning, throw it in the growing mix of "types of planners" along with connections planners, insights planners, communications planners, engagement planners, etc. It's here to stay. It seems to be a lot about the consumer's experience.

this blog's title came from a search led by john keehler (he blogs) with Click Here the interactive division of the Richards Group in Dallas. he posted his search on the plannersphere > one would guess (at least i did) that the response would be ginormous/endless/exhaustive...nope.

what's going on with the digital sphere? and why aren't more people grabbing at these opportunities? this is the future and if you can get yourself in, i say DO IT!

I talked with R/GA in New York and found that their planning department is only two years old. Wow, young blood with immense potential. "It's about showing people the value of planning and re-defining new places," said Anne Benvenuto. I was extremely impressed with their vision and energy for the future.

just reading the iPhone's latest press (thanks greg)- "a new media frenzy" needs planners to navigate virtual worlds, viral videos, content aggregation sites, blogs, changing search engines, etc.
Advice: educate yourself on digital strategy, have ideas, get your foot in the door. The future is now.

feedback: to give or not to give

I've been working on some freelance projects here in Portland > great to get my hands on some "problems" and put to use some of the tools in my planning bag. It's appealing because it puts more experience on my resume; and mind you, when I was in New York spreading my brand, it was nice to say I was doing freelance work in Portland on the side.

After four completed projects, I would like some constructive criticism moving forward. I admire the nature of feedback > to make your work stronger. Feedback is to provide useful information for future decisions/development. Maybe it's just me, but it feels like a necessary part of the process that has been deemed "not a priority."

My roommate Alana says I should feel confident enough in my work and not to worry. She says most people will only give you feedback if it sucked. (Really?) I think that if it was good work, a short email saying "good work" is an easy thing to do. Hmmm....I'm left wondering...
i need a consultant.

moving to New York

yeah, sorry for the long pause > i was gone for a week to walk the streets of NYC and talk to people about planning. it was super cool! Now I'm moving because I was "high on good conversations" there and i want more. :) Crossing my fingers that it's the right place to be with the passion and enthusiasm i've got. It's a costly move but I feel it needs to be done.

will post more info about the trip soon. I've got a lot of new information to share with you all about "getting a job" and "networking." But due to travel, i am sick! it totally sux. i hate being sick, yeah i used the word hate (which i never feel good about). if any of you are sick, maybe other people being sick with you will make it better...maybe not. but i know community helps when you feel low. :)

talking with a screenwriter...

about telling a [brand] story. Michael Hauge is super great and took time out of his busy L.A. life to tell me the art of a good story.

• A story has three elements: a character (Hero); desire; and conflict. "You have someone who wants something and have to overcome certain obstacles."
  
• A good story creates empathy with the Hero so then we (the audience) are experiencing the same emotion because it's happening to us. "You become the character."
• There are five key ways to be relevant with an emotional/psychological connection.
  

1. sympathy
   
2. jeopardy
   
3. humor
   
4. power
   
5. likability
   

Michael said they talk about ads all the time in their business; "they're like little movies. But, ads are different from a movie because the way to your goal is always through the use of the product." ok ok.

• In every Nike ad, there is a character we identify with. The ad positions the product as helping the character achieve their goal. In this case, the product is Hero.
• We identify with the goals of the character in the ad, and if we want to be like them, we need that product.

Ads offer empathy (this is where knowledge of the human condition comes in); they need to be relevant to the consumers' condition. This is where strategy and planning come in. It's all about knowing what's really going on with your audience so you can make a product pitch that they're likely to pick up on by making it relevant. So go find your emotion and then start telling a story.

assignments on the web

if you surf, you will find.

Over at Influx just now, I found a sweet new way to get involved, network AND add some work to your portfolio along the way. It's by Wired (good job guys!) and it's called Assignment Zero, check out the newsroom for what's going on. This is a little bit about how it works:

• "Once you've picked out the work you'd like to do, simply visit the assignment's reporting page by clicking on the assignment. The reporting page is your temporary workspace. There you'll find everything you need, including a way to save your draft or file your reporting; a collection of others' reporting; the option to check in with the editor; and a discussion thread about the assignment."

Another option for work online can be found at Russell Davies' blogsite. It's called the Account Planning School of the Web. He posts assignments and then gives feedback. Awesome! It's great because it's work that makes you think, and you get feedback to make it better AND you get to network via blog-style. With all-in-one you can't go wrong.

does sex still sell?

or rather, is a nude model really the ideal way to express a song via vh1? i think he could have done a lot more with this song than a naked woman.

an earlier post touched on where we'd come from with the notion of a cowboy selling cigarettes. so i ask now, does sex still sell product, aside from condoms, viagra, lubricant, and various other products that are actually used for the act?

smart design

In an article titled Design for the unwealthiest 90%, so named because of an exhibit opening up at the Cooper-Hewitt in NYC, Alice Rawsthorn asks "Why are designers so focussed on designing for the wealthiest 10 percent? ...because that's where the money is. dar!

• "It's a call to action," Cynthia Smith, the show's curator, explained. "There's a big interest among design students and design professionals in finding socially responsible design solutions to the underpinnings of poverty.
• "I was stunned by how simple, simple solutions could have a direct impact on people's lives," said Smith.

here are some category names of design movements happening worldwide:

• humanitarian design
• socially responsible design - pioneer touted as Victor Papanek
  
• sustainable design

spread the word: sustainable is here to stay. be smart about it.

Americana

is the cowboy still considered the antithesis of our modern, go go go, slightly materialistic society? In an NPR (great station) story that covered breakaway advertising, the Marlboro Man was described as "his own man in a world he owned, a man whose environment was simplistic and relatively pressure-free."

my latest and greatest campaign for cigarettes goes something like this: Got the hiccups? Smoke a cigarette. came up with that one this weekend at a party. hiccups are a damn party ruiner...there's no pill, no exercise, no solution. Couldn't we change the image of cigarettes to a more solution-based positioning statement? i'm kidding.

the title of this blog is Americana. to my roomie, Americana means all things relating to our culture in very white-bread american terms: homecoming, BBQ, drinking beer, watching a game, etc. She brought this up after i told her about an endearing window onto human life i'd had: Picture a garage filled to the brim with tractor parts, a small tv screen in the back playing the latest, interesting sports-replay, and three men sitting with their beers/coffee mugs in hand. there's a girl, about 9, tap dancing, practicing her routine, showing off a little but concentrating like there's no tomorrow. the men share time watching her and watching the game. it's silent. it's genuine.

it was a moment i enjoyed for what it was. thank you.

Fad v. Trend

just curious how these two words are used in different situations...somebody already tackled this topic at wisegeek. This is my interpretation.

A fad refers to a fashion that becomes popular in a culture relatively quickly, but loses popularity dramatically. Some examples are: beanie babies (1990s), pet rocks (1970s), Rubik's cubes (1980s), and Pokemon (1998-2000). Fads tend to be short-term. For more fads, check out http://www.crazyfads.com/

A trend is a general direction in which something tends to move. Trends carry out over a longer period of time and have a greater influence on the future of a given market. This is what planners need to pay attention to in long-term brand development planning.

Fads seem more gimmicky -more product (not lifestyle/mindset) based. We can take advantage of these to gain and peak current interest, but need to watch trends to see where we can go with a particular movement of message.

just found flip.com and this search-worthy archive for "what is a trend at your school."
Go frolic and play, it's the weekend!

harnessing your chi

this post is inspired by Scott Goodson's Feng Shui Marketing. this would be considered a strand maybe...off of that information. would the techys out there concur?

he emphasizes the essential balance between marketing elements so that energy flow is accentuated. This flow affects consumers and ultimately, he says, to engage in a full dialogue, consumers need to be rewarded with this energy.

i would like to add on to that with the notion of chi. Shoot, just checked wikipedia and i've been mis-spelling 'chi'. it's Qi for cryin out loud. :P Qi is a good term to use when describing how elements come together to produce a positive outcome. In a marketing/advertising sense it means that all the elements should work together > harmonize them.

1st - it's good to know what elements you need in the mix, just throwing random stuff in isn't going to help you organize how they should all interact. Focus.
2nd - prioritize. i think this is where media planning might come in...if a message needs more emphasis or play then make sure it's in the right medium.
3rd - think about the outcome; the feel; the big picture. what should the result of our efforts be? align the elements.

maybe this sounds hokey pokey (and it does, a little bit) but as i'm typing it, my chaotic brain is already feeling more relaxed about putting ideas into action. and isn't that what PLANNING is all about? oh yeah, and a little classical music now and then doesn't hurt. :)
for some more in-depth help harnessing your qi > whatever it be: more energy, desire to be happy, time management, etc > check out Steve Pavlina's blog and website. For a warm-up, ponder what he has to say about productivity:

• The sad truth is that most people are so incredibly bad at managing their time that rock-bottom personal productivity is simply accepted as normal. (so is half-ass, bad advertising) So anyone who can consistently invest 80% of their time each day in intelligent, productive activities is going to look like an overachiever by comparison. The average college student in particular is probably operating at only 20-30% of their capacity.