Business Week is providing eight rules for brainstorms. Here's one that makes sense: BRAINSTORMING SESSIONS ARE WORTHLESS UNLESS IDEAS LEAD TO ACTION Brainstorming is just one of many techniques that make a company creative. It is of little value if it's not combined with observing consumers, talking to experts, or building prototype products and experiences that provide an outlet for the ideas generated. I've worked …
D.I.Y. Video Continues To Roll
The San Francisco Diggers of the 1960s used to feed the hungry in Golden Gate Park between theatrical perfornances. But there's a new group of Diggers in the Bay Area these days. And The New York Times says they just got VC funding for a video production unit. In 2004, Jay Adelson, 36, and Kevin Rose, 29, started Digg, a fast-growing Web site that allows users to play editor by submitting links to news accounts …
Ad Industry Turns To PR Firm For Image Help
From Ad Age: The American Association of Advertising Agencies has tapped GolinHarris, a global firm that represents corporate heavyweights such as McDonald's and SC Johnson, to stave off "negative headlines" and burnish the industry's reputation with reporters and other influencers. It's unclear exactly what tactics will be employed, but executives familiar with the situation said part of the outreach could target …
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Brand Impressions Formed At Retail (Few Things Are As Powerful In Business)
The Pacific Northwest is a fertile place. A place where good ideas take root. Today's New York Times Magazine looks at Umpqua Bank, a regional financial player that has made the wise decison to bank heavily on experiential and lifestyle marketing. With free wi-fi access, Umpqua brand coffee, a spacious seating area and flat-screen television monitors, the place has been designed to suggest a stylish hotel lobby where …
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Mehlman’s Moneyball
Adam Nagourney, national political correspondent for The New York Times profiles Republican Party Chairman, Ken Mehlman, in today's Magazine section. It's a flattering portrayal of a compassionate and intelligent young man. The article makes Mehlman look quite a bit more liberal than many mainstream members of his party. He actively courts African-American and Hispanic voters for one, something he claims the …
Buy A New Eclipse Or The Terrorists Win
You can't accuse car dealers, or their advertising, of being subtle. From The Columbus Dispatch: Some Columbus radio stations have rejected as insensitive an advertisement for a car dealership that invokes Islamic references. In the spot, Keith Dennis of Dennis Mitsubishi talks about "launching a jihad on the automotive market." Sales representatives "will be wearing burqas all weekend long," the ad says. One of the …
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Indie Not Just Another Market Segment
CNN is running a special section on indie culture. Ryan Schreiber, the editor and founder of Pitchfork Media, a popular online magazine that chronicles the indie music scene, said the indie spirit has been commodified and re-envisioned as a marketable lifestyle just like punk, alternative and grunge before it. "But those are all permutations of the same very resilient subculture," he said. "If the last 30 years are …
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Making Sense Of Edward Jones
I enjoy the Edward Jones "Making Sense of Investing" camapign. It's memorable, sensible and delivers a distinct service benefit. The spot above also benefits from sharp writing and great casting. …
