Is your marketing relevant? Is the product or service that's being marketed? These are tough questions in the ad biz. Brutal, really. Alan Wolk, for one, understands the lack of relevance in our midst, and what a danger it is. Agencies have stopped being relevant. Much of what they produce is reactive, out-of-date and lacks any real thought process. Hence their reputation for the ability to focus on finding the …
Don’t Panic, Grow Organic
John Adams planted a garden in the White House lawn. Will President Obama? According to Associated Press, many small scale organic farmers think it would be a great idea. In fact, they've organized on a Web site dedicated to nominating the nation's first official White House Farmer. Over 27,000 votes have poured in so far. Former pro basketball player Will Allen, who transformed into an urban vegetable farm in …
Guest Post: Jerry Ketel Spiffs His Brand
Editor's note: Jerry Ketel is one of Portland's leading figures in the agency business. He runs a firm with his name on the door and he's President of the Portland Ad Fed. Recently, Ketel attended a class that moved him. Here's his account. Instead of navel gazing, maybe it's time to rebrand yourself. Recently, I had a job change, not because of a layoff, quite the opposite, I was kicked upstairs in my organization. …
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Taking The Temperature of the Room
Michael Arrington of TechCrunch is visiting Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum. Arrington says there's fear in the air. There is a clear consensus among attendees that the worst is yet to come, and that we are facing the worst economic outlook of the last few generations. Some of the CEOs I've talked with (and most of the big company CEOs are here) are flat out scared about what kind of economic shock …
Is It A Service Or A Platform?
People are talking about Twitter possibly being worth a quarter of a billion dollars. Which people? Why, Sarah Lacy and Om Malik. Let's listen. …
Titles Are Static. Media Is Not.
Lots of people who are looking for work are asking Scoble for advice. And Scoble has copious advice for these seekers. Let's just look at one item he offers: Demonstrate you are "clued in." This means removing ANYTHING that says you are a "social media expert" from your Twitter account. There is no such thing and even if there were there's no job in it for you. Chris Brogan already has that job and he's not giving it …
Moving Lunches Through Mumbai
Idris Mootee is educating us on India's dabbawalas, or box persons. In Mumbai dabbawalas collect freshly cooked food in lunch boxes and deliver them to the workplace. The Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association is a streamlined 120-year-old organization with 4,500 semi-literate members providing a quality door-to-door service to a large and loyal customer base. It is probably one of the best ran organization in India …
Creative People Find Elegant Solutions (It’s Our Job)
Bill Taylor, co-author of Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win with Polly LaBarre, reminds us that tough economic times are also times of innovation. Don't let risky times dull your appetite for taking risk. More then ever, companies and their leaders have to offer a positive alternative to a demoralizing status quo. So why wouldn't you move now to shake up your market and transform your …
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