So WRONG it’s Right: The Bucketful of Wrong Done Right

First off, thanks for the positive response to my last post, Bucketful of Wrong.

Personally, I feel like I’m still recovering from it– I don’t know about you, but that image will be seared forever in my brain. Or, at least,  for the next few days…

One of TheLiquidBetsy’s readers forward what can only be described as a “Bucketful of Wrong” done, well, done right. And it’s a great “Get.” (A moment of Cheers and gratitude to all that sent me items to post. Thank you.)

I think you’ll agree.

Courtesy of the talented hoodlums at Energy BBDO, I proudly present Canadian Clubs’ “Your Father…. Damn Right He Drank It” ads. This ad grabs you by the Noggins, makes you say “What?!?!! and then goes in for the kill with clever, nostalgic and just plain great copy.

Enjoy.

And another:

Courtesy of adsoftheworld.com

I LOVE the annoyed look on the faces of the Daddy fisherman- like someone asked if he was wearing sunscreen, or tried to stop them before they made a clean getaway.  Hysterical.

Hats off to the whole team.

Advertising Agency: Energy BBDO, Chicago, USA
Chief Creative Officer: Marty Orzio
Creative Directors: Derek Sherman, Jason Stanfield
Copywriter: Derek Sherman
Art Director: Jason Stanfield
Designers: Steve Denekas, Jason Hardy
Senior Art Buyer: Liz Miller- Gershfeld
Assistant Art Buyer: Jackie VanWinkle
Print Producer: Linda Dos Santos
Photographer: Robert Whitman
Account Services: Doug Ryan, Marzena Grecki

And

Brutal Baby- The Teenage Media Consumer

Veruca Salt, original brutal baby from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 1971

You in media?

Social Media, Media Products, Newspapers, TV, Cable, Mobile Phones, Computers, Gaming?

You want to meet your customer? Really meet them?

Say hello to Matthew Robson, the 15 year old “analyst” from Morgan Stanley (UK.) His recent piece “How Teenagers Consume Media” is causing a sensation, even being featured the front page of the Financial Times. He and his mates are your customer now and for the the next 20 years. Socio-econo-techn0-politically developed and served fresh. He’s being shaped by our recent past, present and future. He’s preferences will shape our world as he (and his pals) buy & consume, create and creatively destroy.

By just writing this sensational piece he’s probably already changed the future media landscape.

Out of the mouths of babes, the truth. Brutual. Beautiful. Honest. Complete with Oompa-Loompas lyrical commentary.

What are you going to do with it?

I just because I love this- Veruca Salt’s demise in 1971’s Chocolate Factory. Brutal Baby. Brutal. But perfect.

FLIP it baby, FLIP it REAL good.

The Sexy Little FLIP MinoHD Camcorder

Warning: Technology has struck again.

This is going to be quick, because I’m trying to train myself to be brief. And you probably have something else to do: RSS feed, emails, TV, Pilates, competitive disco dancing. You know, the usual.

So my husband brought home a FLIP MinoHD Camcorder home.

We have kids, and the hubby was, at one time, almost semi-pro photographer. So we document, photographically speaking, every step, snot-bubble and goofy grin from the “Wild Bunch,” as my progeny has been nicknamed.

We have kids, so that’s also why we’re on our 4th camera and 3rd video camera. They drop, they get used. They get left. On a bus. (OK the last one is not really true but it has almost happen an ungodly amount of times I feel I can at least include it.) Mostly they stop working for us, metaphorically speaking.

Too big, too small, too complicated, too cumbersome…. the litany of why goes on and on.

Enter the Flip MinoHD.

Pros: Slim and lightweight (3.3 oz,) Easy (One touch recording & digital zoom a true Idiot’s Delight,) Nifty (Flip-out USB arm plugs directly in computer, launches built-in FlipShare software)

Cons: We only bought one (so this one totally mine, hubby can borrow.)

First off, I am not being reimbursed, paid or sponsored (via cash or swag) by FLIP for this love letter of a review. I just like it and if fitted the “Good is Good” mantra of TheBetsy.

So if I’ve been too subtle up to this point, let me say I love this little tasty piece of high-def technology. Smaller than an iPhone it fits in one my pocketbook (the big and little ones)– and though it only takes 60 mins that really is plenty for me and the myriad of parties, events, holidays that I usually film anyway. For business this is great for quick interviews (yes, I have one in the works for TheLiquidBetsy) and if you are at all a person in the visual arts (photo/design) this is a MUST or if have a project that you might need to want to take quick visuals for (decorating, marketing, etc.) What I like most about it is that it is with me. All the time. At the ready. And at $192 (at Amazon.com)  it is inexpensive enough to make it worthwhile.

On an interesting business note, FLIP was purchased by CISCO- for $590 Million. Bandwidth. Bandwidth. Bandwidth. But that’s another story folks.

This might even make one of my top 50.

And because I know the title made you hum a little mad Salt ‘n’ Peppa here you go:

TheLiquidBetsy’s Newest Partner- The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation

In an effort to expand my horizons and legitimize my endeavors on TheLiquidBetsy I decided to see what trouble I could stir up by offering to champion a cause or product, so long as it fit Betsy’s motto: “If it’s Good, it’s Good.”

Well, it doesn’t get much better than The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and The Campaign to Cure Paralysis. It’s as good as good can get, and I am honored to be able to help.

The thing is, spinal cord injuries don’t discriminate- they are an equal opportunity life destroyer. The ripple effect of these types of injuries affect not the victim but care-givers and loved ones, friends, co-workers. And it not just an injury, these people need “whole life” treatment with services and assistance, not just therapy and medical care, to get back to being productive, contributing members of society.

But what if we could just cure paralysis? What would it be worth to you, to a loved one?  This is a “pay it forward” type of prevention. No one can mitigate a spinal cord injury, paralysis- cutting out the fat, taking up running or eating organic isn’t going to do the trick. Because it often finds you, via accident or injury.

So join in the Campaign to Cure Paralysis– ’cause if it’s Good, it’s Good.

This, my friends, is just Good.

The art of folding, running and walking away.

Kenny Rogers, the original Gambler

Sometimes, as Kenny Rogers says, “You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away and know when to run.”

Often the hardest is to learn to walk away. Being stubborn, too smart for my own good, I have had to learn this the hard way, several times, both in business and in life.  There is a fine balence of what you can push and make happen or what can only unfold or evolve on its own. And sometimes there’s the third, where try as you might, putting as much dedication and perserverence it goes no where, or only gets worse.

Some call the force that shapes the direction destiny, others call it fate.

In my own way I believe there is a current that shapes our lives. Times you just flow into new experiences and achieve new things almost effortlessly, others you’re swimming against stream and can achieve nothing no matter what. I’ve come to find that when you’ve tried everything, and nothing is working, perhaps it’s time to say sayanara and move on. Perhaps it was a life-lesson you needed to learn, or an opportunity to learn new things that will help you in the path your meant to be on.

When you’re with the current, things are beautiful. When you’re swimming against it, it can incredibly frustrating and disheartening. You try and try and try and keep hitting a wall. That can’t be fun.

So stop.  I’m all for the Jeffery Katzenberg “If a door closes, find an open window” approach but it you’ve tried every window, the basement, the doggy door, the chimney– perhaps it’s time to burn the house down? Or at least walk away and perhaps revisit later? When the price is less? Or the sellers are more wiling to sell?  (Can I take this house metaphor any farther? No? Ok…)

I believe everything has a reason for being and happening. If it is meant to be ,  it is meant to be. Tenacity is an awesome trait– but also is wisdom. What is that AA prayer?  ”May I have the courage to change, accept what I can not, and wisdom to know difference.” 

Not a bad prayer.

Fantastic Internship Opportunity: Inquisix Seeks Amazing Interns.

 

(Goofy shirt not required)

Inquisix is looking for a few good great interns.  

Do you blog? Love business, marketing and PR? Fascinated by Social Media and can succinctly express yourself in 140 characters or less?

Inquisix is a up & coming business referral network start-up looking for some marketing and sales interns. This is an unpaid internship.

At Inquisix, we all wear a lot of hats. This is a fantastic opportunity for the right person. No coffee-making, no errands, no copying. You’ll be thrown right into the fray, get hands-on experience and will have genuine work-product to show for your efforts. Areas you may work on: strategy, blogging, tweeting, member relations, sales presentations/materials, and media outreach.

We want enthusiastic, creative entrepreneurial problem solvers who happen to be persuasive writers and speakers. Our interns will work remotely, so while we’re based in Boston, you needn’t be (though we prefer it)– you do need to be self-directed and be able to work independently, have a computer with dedicated Internet access and can consistently devote at least 10-15 hours a week to us. 

Above all be smart (book/street, it all works for us.)

So send shoot us an email with your resume and why you want to be our intern. Charm us, dazzle us. Be creative. 

Send your resume, pitch letter and a sample “tweet” to:

Betsy MacKinnon, V.P. Marketing & Communications at Inquisix 

betsy@inquisix.com

Just thinking…

I was driving around thinking….

In my last fabulous post I was trying to make a point that, in Social Media, the more features (or crap, depending who you are) you add doesn’t mean the more people you attract.  Facebook, who I use, has taken this approach to the nth degree (a real mathematical concept, but not equative to the “nth degree” or “n dimensions”) and lo, though they have a gazillion people,  I really wonder what the rate of change has been since day 1 after the latest release. My bet is that they might be gaining users but at a slower pace and that they are starting to see less repeat visits going on 30/60/90 days.

Am I wrong FB?  Tell me.

And, If you’re one of these people that are not returning, or stopped using them, let me know that too (and why!)

So this brings me to the “just thinking” part– could we quantify the “stickiness” (I know a totally 90’s dot-com term but I couldn’t come up with a better one) of a social media app?  I’ve tried to ask around to people that I respect and it seems that the general consensus is not really. It just clicks and sticks. Like Pet Rocks.

The 70's phenomena the Pet Rock

I refuse to believe this. I can admit this could be my Moby Dick, but there has to be the “7 +/- 2 chunks“ rule to Social Media. Given the set of people attracted, their needs and the known technological variables one can introduce (features) there must be a range of “stickiness” that can be estimated. Only so many “connections” and features that one can deal before  a site loses value to the end-user. 

Working much like the coefficent of friction, which gives an indication how slippery a surface might be (ice on steel would be close to zero,whereas rubber on pavement is over 1, more like 1.7) the higher the number would indicate how sticky or  attactive a feature or site would be. It would have to be a range as people are not black or white in choices, nor 1 or 0, but all grey matter (I know… nice joke.) Lumber jacks want and need different features from show girls, unless you’re from Monty Python.

Perhaps we test successful sites and come up with a range of success– given that set of people, this worked wildly well. Think of this phantom sticky-coeffient (“sticky-co” for short?) as a litmus test for new features and if, in testing, yours doesn’t make the successful sticky-co range, then you probably got a dud in the making.

Look even as I’m typing this I’m having second thoughts. But I sometimes like to throw things out there and, well, see if it sticks.

So go ahead, weigh-in. Collaborate. Tell me I’m on to something or not.  I can take it. Tell me you’d be interested in it if it does exists.

This is what I think about while driving.

Does Social Value = [Social + Media ( X stuff)], as X ⇒ ∞

Now Social Media is maturing, it might be entering adolescence. Growing pains are showing, limits are being found, growth stunted, slowed or exponential and not but a few incidences of acne.

Facebook just debuted it’s latest redesign and it has not exactly been a success.  I don’t know about your FB homepage but mine is starting to look like a mixed-media installation. Seems that poor FB, is trying to be to much to too many people- aspects of  Twitter, Blogging, FriendFeed, Flickr, Gaming, to name a few. The result- a wee bit of acne.

In an effort to understand this, I tried to quantify it. Hey, once a math geek, always one. So as the X (or the amount of stuff/features a social media service tries to do) goes to infinity does its value to its members go down?

Is this why Twitter is so popular? It is simplicity in itself. It’s the second-party apps that surround it, manipulating the variables, that are getting complex. The real difference is that they lie outside Twitter and are optional and only affect how the end user sees and manipulates data Twitter provides. My Twitter experience, both using and viewing it is entirely customizable. I can use Twittergrader, lessfriends, HootSuite, Tweetdeck, Twitterfriends, Tweetie, Twittelator Pro (to name a few) or not, or i can simply default to the Twitter-provided online UI. I don’t have to lose followers or any information in the process. No goofy lil’patches sent. No viral “what 80’s Rock Star are you?” quizzes clogging my in-box.

Does the real value lie in the customization that users are able to do on their own- picking and choosing from the vast array of Social Media offerings in the market place? Perhaps. Some things like UnHub actually try to organize the various sites under one navigation bar  (I have my Twitter, Blip.fm, Facebook, and delicious on one.) 

Is it when one tries to do it all, that it loses value by becoming too dense? Offering too many options? What do you think?

QUICK SHOT: Guardian on Twitter- April Fool’s or Great Freakin’ Idea?

[Note: There was some confusion. My bad. What I MEANT here was that a newspapers could go forgo print and only have a web presence and "tweet" the headlines.  Folks, even my 5 year old twins know that you can synthesize an entire story into 140 characters. But with brick and mortar costs virtually minimized (no printing and going virtual) this maybe a viable way to save a newspapers as a brand.]

Ok I was totally had.

I saw a tweet (on Twitter, natch) about The Guardian going exclusively on Twitter after 180 years in print. I was totally gonzo excited. All of a sudden it just made sense!

Papers are going by the wayside, but information isn’t. Branding that information as quality, well-written & sourced is key.

“This is HUGE” I tweeted. Only to be “@” back that it was an April Fool’s joke. Ok, that deserved a “Good Show,” as it was a seriously good prank — I’m tipping my cloche to my overseas cousins.

But after a good laugh, I had one of my epiphanies.

A newspaper going exculsively to Twitter was totally a joke. Or was it?

Some of the most amazing things happen by happenstance, blunder or folly: maple syrup (’cause no one goes “Hey, let’s just boil some tree sap” unless it’s by mistake,) Chocolate chip cookies, Coca-Cola, Rubber, implantable cardiac pacemaker and penicillin to name a few.) 

Currently, with the slow death of printable media, newspapers are folding left and right. What would happen if one just decided to stop printing and go only digital: online, Twitter and Facebook?  Could they survive?  Could they negotiate a great deal to “deliver” exclusive only to Twitter? Would this help Twitter monetize themselves as a content deliverer? Perhaps a subscription model (w/ ads?) and revenue-share with partners?

Could this work?  

And if it did, now THAT would be hysterical!

The Rebuilding of Babel

The Tower of Babel by Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1563)

The Tower of Babel is one of those famous biblical stories– too lofty we reach, position ourselves (literally and figuratively) too close to God, we’re torn down.

A little historical background: speaking one language, the city of Babel was an epicenter of commerce & culture. Only after displeasing the Almighty with the erection of the immense tower dedicated to Man’s achievement, God dispersed them across the lands, each speaking a different language. Hence the origin of our world’s differing dialects (end history lesson.)

This is a world economy. On most levels. Money speaks all languages. Achievement, for all intensive purposes, is really limited by the self. Presently language is one of the last significant gate keepers for true world commerce.

I mean, which is more desirable: Two MBA’s, same school, same ability. One speaks fluent Chinese in addition to English? Yeah, you get my drift.

Technology has gone a long to helping us blend the economies of the world– especially with the Internet. The latest communication newcomer, a phenomenon known as Twitter, impacting business, marketing, product development, PR, you name it. Twitter’s growing, and at an exponential rate–  it’s being touted as an alternative to search giant Google. I’ve personally used it for marketing, test-marketing, sourcing new businesses, and information just to name a few, and to great success.  

So you will have to believe me when I say it was like Christmas came early when the latest version of Tweetdeck was released. For those not in the know, Twitter to Tweetdeck is like Alex Rodriguez on steriods (oh, wait that’s redundant… oh, well you know what I mean.) If you “tweet” any more than just casually, you need to upgrade yourself to Tweetdeck. Trust me. One feature stands out (though there are A LOT of really great ones– a more intuitive UI for one,) is the added language translater. I’m seeing that as a real paradigm-shifter.  Users have the ability to translate johnny-on-the-spot 30+ languages- both sending and receiving.

What does this mean?  Why a paradigm-shifter?

It means we are one step closer to actually being a truly diffused world-market — especially when the average business person can easily haggle their wares in German, French, Spanish, Chinese (both traditional & simplified), Serbian, Hindi, Japanese, Vietnamese, just to name a few. 

Imagine the effect of a seamless language translator would have on a wine distributor, an import & exporter, manufactures, or creatives (PR/SM/Marketing/Design) when they can do business across the world, without necessarily hiring a translator for initial marketing purposes?

Huge. That’s what.

I know a few marketing plans that would change if they could make efficient inroads into foreign markets.  Thanks to twitter and tweetdeck, that just got a heck of a lot easier.  Of course we’re not at full Star Trek Communicator level but you can wisps of the future coming.  Next step: having a preferential language setting– so no matter what language is tweeted it would be received in YOUR preferred language. Some current issues that still need to be addressed are colloquialisms, syntax and certain words and concepts that just don’t translate readily.

Granted there are limitations: legal, medical and higher business negotiations shouldn’t be left to a simple auto-translator. But for preliminary marketing and sales, to basically get the conversation started- what a heck of a tool!

And once you get to where negotiation and legal is necessary, you can source that pretty easily. (Hello Twitter?)

So back to Babel. As the communication barriers break down, and we move toward building a truly world economy, one that even the smallest business can participate in- what does this mean? Should we be wary of building temples to our vast achievements over nature and circumstance?

Honestly don’t know.

But it sure is going to be exciting to watch it unfold.