I guess it was 8 or 10 years ago now that the Air Miles card was introduced. I believe, at the time, that this was a unique proposition - The ability to get something (in this case an ability to earn points for free air travel), for nothing! But, like many cautious people, I wondered what the catch was and argued that I was not interested in having someone track every thing I did – every transaction I made regardless of the purpose or the payoff. That it might only be used to advertise to me made no difference. Not withstanding the fact that Air Miles (in my limited experience) has mostly done a poor job of leveraging the information they mine, I still do not have a card. Having said that, I am not naive enough to think that what we might get directly from Air Miles by way of promotional offers is only a small part of the business model – who knows how much information is collected and where it is sold?
Other companies like Shoppers Drug Mart have done an excellent job through it's Optimum Card program which I am told offers customers savings based on real purchases... direct advertising based on direct knowledge (a unique concept?).
To me, all of this speaks the central issue of privacy and while creating mailing lists and contacting potential customers is simply good business, the question is where does it begin and where does it all end. As mentioned in previous postings, despite my embracing social media, so far I have avoided Facebook. Despite the fact that I receive numerous friend invitations, I am not interested in posting my personal photos or information regardless of the controls that are supposed to be available. At various times over the years it has been suggested to me, that I am overly paranoid. Perhaps so but after reading this article on privacy (or our lack privacy) on MSNBC I think even the most trusting person would have to stop and think.
It is a long article but worth reading as it points out how we guard our privacy at times yet have little regard for the same issues when we are on the web…or specifically on Facebook.
Based on trends, this is likely just the tip of the iceberg – after all, we live in an age where nothing seems to be off limits!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Lost Generation
I will start today by admitting that this post is a bit off topic. Having said that, I think the content is topical. Of all the uses of social media, the simple importance of it is the increased ability to communicate thoughts and ideas and broadcast to a larger audience then ever. Perhaps this notion is a bit simple but the world (be it old or new) is clearly not always measured by advertising revenues or sales volumes.
Monday morning I was driving to an appointment and caught the last minute or so of a radio talk show dealing with the current crisis in Haiti. While we are all familiar with the recent events the discussion finished with a thought about the faith of the Haitian people. I am not a strongly religious person but it made me wonder – with all the tragedy that this tiny country has seen over the years, the disease, poverty, natural disasters and cruel dictators, I wonder if a person would find comfort and strength in their faith or would they begin to question their it. I certainly don’t presume to know the answer.
Interestingly, when I got back to the office, an email from a friend was waiting for me. It was not a comment on faith but somehow I felt the two thoughts were somehow connected. Below is the text and link. Before you watch it is important to read the text:
A Lost Generation?
A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward. This video reads the exact opposite backwards as forward. Not only does it read the opposite, the meaning is the exact opposite.
This is only a 1 minute, 44 second video and it is brilliant. Make sure you read as well as listen forward and backward.
This is a video that was submitted in a contest by a 20-year old. The contest was titled "u @ 50" by AARP. This video won second place. When they showed it, everyone in the room was awe-struck and broke into spontaneous applause. So simple and yet so brilliant.
Lost Generation
This is likely something I would never have seen without YouTube.
Cheers and have a great day,
George
Monday morning I was driving to an appointment and caught the last minute or so of a radio talk show dealing with the current crisis in Haiti. While we are all familiar with the recent events the discussion finished with a thought about the faith of the Haitian people. I am not a strongly religious person but it made me wonder – with all the tragedy that this tiny country has seen over the years, the disease, poverty, natural disasters and cruel dictators, I wonder if a person would find comfort and strength in their faith or would they begin to question their it. I certainly don’t presume to know the answer.
Interestingly, when I got back to the office, an email from a friend was waiting for me. It was not a comment on faith but somehow I felt the two thoughts were somehow connected. Below is the text and link. Before you watch it is important to read the text:
A Lost Generation?
A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward. This video reads the exact opposite backwards as forward. Not only does it read the opposite, the meaning is the exact opposite.
This is only a 1 minute, 44 second video and it is brilliant. Make sure you read as well as listen forward and backward.
This is a video that was submitted in a contest by a 20-year old. The contest was titled "u @ 50" by AARP. This video won second place. When they showed it, everyone in the room was awe-struck and broke into spontaneous applause. So simple and yet so brilliant.
Lost Generation
This is likely something I would never have seen without YouTube.
Cheers and have a great day,
George
Monday, January 18, 2010
Old and New
For the past several weeks I have been reading and experimenting extensively with social media and networking but in fairness still feel like I have only glanced at the surface. Twitter still confuses me but I have recently seen some uses that had not occurred to me previously. In addition, it is not lost on me that I do read a lot of articles that are “tweeted” so it had proven to be a useable resource.
For the most part I think that I am getting a pretty decent understanding of everything else I have looked into – at least as social networking tools. My next challenge is to determine how linking these new technologies with traditional marketing and advertising vehicles can be successful. Last week I was forwarded this great clip all about social media.
It clearly illustrates how powerful the reach of new media is. Without doubt, there has been a quantum shift in how the world communicates and how news, information and knowledge in general is given and found.
However, I believe that the new advertising paradigm must integrate old with new. In the same way the email changed the way we communicate, the true value has been in augmenting verbal communication – not replacing it.
My central question still revolves around effectiveness – the video does not address this. With the mass of information available, are we able to penetrate past what an individual might be looking for or may be consciously interested in? The video referred to earlier is a fascinating collection of statistics but all pertain to users and reach. What are the statistics on sales (and I don’t mean internet advertising revenues which we know are rising)?
As a very simple example, if I log onto a retail site looking to buy pencils, will the ad or pop up for pens engage me enough that I would click through on the link to find out more? If so, is this predictable? I know that there are click through statistics but do we have enough data to predict the impact of ads and/ or information available in the same way we can predict more traditional media like direct mail? Who is looking, how closely are they looking and what percentage of those looking at advertising vehicles are buying?
In the end, as we continue to change, finding the way to combine old with new is the key. I was reminded about the effectiveness of old via a Wall Street Journal article - ironically tweeted by one of the people I follow. It is worth reading.
Cheers and have a great day,
George
For the most part I think that I am getting a pretty decent understanding of everything else I have looked into – at least as social networking tools. My next challenge is to determine how linking these new technologies with traditional marketing and advertising vehicles can be successful. Last week I was forwarded this great clip all about social media.
It clearly illustrates how powerful the reach of new media is. Without doubt, there has been a quantum shift in how the world communicates and how news, information and knowledge in general is given and found.
However, I believe that the new advertising paradigm must integrate old with new. In the same way the email changed the way we communicate, the true value has been in augmenting verbal communication – not replacing it.
My central question still revolves around effectiveness – the video does not address this. With the mass of information available, are we able to penetrate past what an individual might be looking for or may be consciously interested in? The video referred to earlier is a fascinating collection of statistics but all pertain to users and reach. What are the statistics on sales (and I don’t mean internet advertising revenues which we know are rising)?
As a very simple example, if I log onto a retail site looking to buy pencils, will the ad or pop up for pens engage me enough that I would click through on the link to find out more? If so, is this predictable? I know that there are click through statistics but do we have enough data to predict the impact of ads and/ or information available in the same way we can predict more traditional media like direct mail? Who is looking, how closely are they looking and what percentage of those looking at advertising vehicles are buying?
In the end, as we continue to change, finding the way to combine old with new is the key. I was reminded about the effectiveness of old via a Wall Street Journal article - ironically tweeted by one of the people I follow. It is worth reading.
Cheers and have a great day,
George
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Bits and Pieces
Well – today a few odds and ends. I thought it would be appropriate to update you on the travels of Jessica Watson. Jessica is the 16-year-old Australian girl attempting to become the youngest person ever to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world. I have been following her daily blog since she left Sydney harbour on October 18th and on January 13th she rounded Cape Horn – a significant milestone. It is great to be able to follow her daily progress and challenges – one of the great uses of technology.
I think I am particularly interested in the adventure itself as much as the challenge (although, I suspect that 8 months alone at sea will present a unique set of challenges especially for someone so young).
I wrote recently about a company called Patagonia and in hindsight I feel that I did not really do justice to the company and it’s philosophies or how strongly I admire them. If you have not had a chance to visit the Patagonia web site it is worth a look. Of particular interest to me was the environmental section including the 1% For the Planet program and the “Footprint Chronicles” attached to some of their products.
Also of interest over the last few days has been the CNN and Twitter link. While (as I was recently told) I have yet to have the “aha” moment with Twitter, I have been interested in the CNN coverage of the Haiti earthquake disaster and how much information was being sent via Twitter in the early stages. A use I had not really seen or thought of.
Lastly, I tip my hat to Google and their stand against China.
I know that the politics are unique and that Google has tried to balance the censorship issue with revenue and profits being the obvious “carrot”. In the information world we live in, it is difficult to understand how China expects to live in, work, and supply the global economy while at the same time trying to keep its people in a vacuum. Perhaps, if Google stands firm on this issue, other companies will see the light and redirect energy and resources to other emerging markets. In this age, who will walk away from China’s potential profits in the name of principles?
I think I am particularly interested in the adventure itself as much as the challenge (although, I suspect that 8 months alone at sea will present a unique set of challenges especially for someone so young).
I wrote recently about a company called Patagonia and in hindsight I feel that I did not really do justice to the company and it’s philosophies or how strongly I admire them. If you have not had a chance to visit the Patagonia web site it is worth a look. Of particular interest to me was the environmental section including the 1% For the Planet program and the “Footprint Chronicles” attached to some of their products.
Also of interest over the last few days has been the CNN and Twitter link. While (as I was recently told) I have yet to have the “aha” moment with Twitter, I have been interested in the CNN coverage of the Haiti earthquake disaster and how much information was being sent via Twitter in the early stages. A use I had not really seen or thought of.
Lastly, I tip my hat to Google and their stand against China.
I know that the politics are unique and that Google has tried to balance the censorship issue with revenue and profits being the obvious “carrot”. In the information world we live in, it is difficult to understand how China expects to live in, work, and supply the global economy while at the same time trying to keep its people in a vacuum. Perhaps, if Google stands firm on this issue, other companies will see the light and redirect energy and resources to other emerging markets. In this age, who will walk away from China’s potential profits in the name of principles?
Monday, January 11, 2010
Snow Days?
Ugh! I have been accused recently of being obsessed with the weather. To be clear – I am no storm chaser! I do admit to having an interest in all places warm. For those who know me, I love the hot weather and don’t like the cold and despite a commitment to embracing the winter, I still find myself longing for the heat of a sunny southern afternoon.
That the world continues to be mired in odd weather patterns has only peaked my interest. Record snow falls in Britain, record cold in Florida.
If you can believe, we actually woke up one morning last week to the same temperature in Toronto as they had in Atlanta (-8C / 18F) and Monday morning, Toronto was again a brisk -8C while Tampa boasted a sunrise temp of -4C (24F). Now that really is crazy! Being cold here is one thing…being cold in Florida is quite another.
Sadly, I think Florida was having a good tourist season and hope the cold will not impact bookings going forward. I hope that things change quickly for all my Florida friends with no heat or insulation in their homes or work places.
On quite a different note, yesterday was an interesting day. I was interested to read a NY Times article (retweeted to me) dealing with the 10th Anniversary of the AOL/ Time Warner merger and (to a lesser extent) why it did not work. With the growing momentum of all social media be it Twitter or Facebook or Kindle etc., etc., it is always worth remembering the past and considering what constitutes real value. Historically, for all high growth industries, the “mushroom of growth” is followed by a rapid revaluation. Only then do the real value propositions emerge - Google a great example for now….
I was reading recently about Google's "cloud computing" which is supposed to launch in 2010. If this is the next revolution in computing (where complete hard drives are stored remotely), does the idea of having only a hand held device as your only computer then make even more sense? Also, should we be even more concerned about security issues? In the end, it will be interesting to watch Google in the coming years to find out if they are able to maintain their momentum, to continue to advance technology and ultimately to grow.
Enjoy your day,
Cheers,
George
That the world continues to be mired in odd weather patterns has only peaked my interest. Record snow falls in Britain, record cold in Florida.
If you can believe, we actually woke up one morning last week to the same temperature in Toronto as they had in Atlanta (-8C / 18F) and Monday morning, Toronto was again a brisk -8C while Tampa boasted a sunrise temp of -4C (24F). Now that really is crazy! Being cold here is one thing…being cold in Florida is quite another.
Sadly, I think Florida was having a good tourist season and hope the cold will not impact bookings going forward. I hope that things change quickly for all my Florida friends with no heat or insulation in their homes or work places.
On quite a different note, yesterday was an interesting day. I was interested to read a NY Times article (retweeted to me) dealing with the 10th Anniversary of the AOL/ Time Warner merger and (to a lesser extent) why it did not work. With the growing momentum of all social media be it Twitter or Facebook or Kindle etc., etc., it is always worth remembering the past and considering what constitutes real value. Historically, for all high growth industries, the “mushroom of growth” is followed by a rapid revaluation. Only then do the real value propositions emerge - Google a great example for now….
I was reading recently about Google's "cloud computing" which is supposed to launch in 2010. If this is the next revolution in computing (where complete hard drives are stored remotely), does the idea of having only a hand held device as your only computer then make even more sense? Also, should we be even more concerned about security issues? In the end, it will be interesting to watch Google in the coming years to find out if they are able to maintain their momentum, to continue to advance technology and ultimately to grow.
Enjoy your day,
Cheers,
George
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Tech Time
With the new year comes a new season … CES season. CES (Consumer Electronic Show)
is the annual gathering of all things techie in Vegas. Several years ago, I happened to be in Vegas for a convention that coincided with CES and one afternoon found myself wandering through this enormous tech jungle. It is difficult to describe how big this event was except to tell you that as a small part of the show they had 2 massive tents (larger then football fields) that were exclusively showing car speakers!
When I was there, digital cameras were the newest technology, and “i” anything was not even thought of.
I spent some time looking at some of the CES product launches and continue to read about “tablets” (which seems to be the next wave in the tech craze). Amongst all this gadgetry, I have come to the conclusion that I must be missing something. A few years ago the buzz word was convergence. What happened?
I am clearly not an expert but here’s what I know… or at least think that I know…
• Most people use their computers for a few simple tasks. We all use MS Office (or some variation) for word processing, spreadsheets, etc.
• We all use a web browser and most people use some kind of calendar / day timer program that in many cases is linked to some kind of smart phone.
• Every program I use on a daily basis is also available in a mobile format.
• At work, I have a laptop, at home I have a desktop and mostly I use these because the screen in larger and it’s easier to type on the keyboard.
• For me, content space on my hard drive is used principally for music and photos.
• The latest iPhone has 32GB of storage and Apple now has a combo Wi-Fi base station with 2TB of wireless storage.
So my question is this: Would it not be possible to have a mobile device with an office and home dock connected wirelessly to a base station with a larger screen (perhaps a tablet) and keyboard? I think that the total cost would be less then a good laptop and everything would just be simpler. I could walk in, dock my smart phone and work seamlessly using the larger keyboard and screen.
What am I missing?
Cheers and have a great day.
George
is the annual gathering of all things techie in Vegas. Several years ago, I happened to be in Vegas for a convention that coincided with CES and one afternoon found myself wandering through this enormous tech jungle. It is difficult to describe how big this event was except to tell you that as a small part of the show they had 2 massive tents (larger then football fields) that were exclusively showing car speakers!
When I was there, digital cameras were the newest technology, and “i” anything was not even thought of.
I spent some time looking at some of the CES product launches and continue to read about “tablets” (which seems to be the next wave in the tech craze). Amongst all this gadgetry, I have come to the conclusion that I must be missing something. A few years ago the buzz word was convergence. What happened?
I am clearly not an expert but here’s what I know… or at least think that I know…
• Most people use their computers for a few simple tasks. We all use MS Office (or some variation) for word processing, spreadsheets, etc.
• We all use a web browser and most people use some kind of calendar / day timer program that in many cases is linked to some kind of smart phone.
• Every program I use on a daily basis is also available in a mobile format.
• At work, I have a laptop, at home I have a desktop and mostly I use these because the screen in larger and it’s easier to type on the keyboard.
• For me, content space on my hard drive is used principally for music and photos.
• The latest iPhone has 32GB of storage and Apple now has a combo Wi-Fi base station with 2TB of wireless storage.
So my question is this: Would it not be possible to have a mobile device with an office and home dock connected wirelessly to a base station with a larger screen (perhaps a tablet) and keyboard? I think that the total cost would be less then a good laptop and everything would just be simpler. I could walk in, dock my smart phone and work seamlessly using the larger keyboard and screen.
What am I missing?
Cheers and have a great day.
George
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
I mentioned in a previous post that over the last few years, part of my daily routine is to find and read an article that has something to do with the environment. Each day I look for something of interest, some new idea, a company's environmental policy, green building initiatives, international trends… whatever I can find that looks interesting. As I am committed, most days I manage to find and read something. As I am a bit of a procrastinator, there are some days when I simply don’t get it done. With the Olympics only a few weeks away, I have read with some interest some of the green initiatives that have been part of the organizing committee's mandate.
Overall, I have found that there is no shortage of environmental initiatives from all over the world but recently not a lot that is terribly ground breaking. It would seem that the low hanging fruit has been picked! In fact, and perhaps not coincidentally, I have seen an increasing amount written that is questioning many of the environmental / climate change statistics … suggesting in some cases that these statistics amount to nothing more then an “eco scam”.
In the end, reading about the climate change conference in Copenhagen, it became clear to me that the whole issue is now in the hands of the worlds governments and the grass roots movement that created a great deal of awareness is now bogged down in economics and the diverging interests of nations. I suppose it is not that surprising... perhaps inevitable.
Hopefully, the ideals will not get lost in the rhetoric. Statistics may be manipulated but it should not serve to create an excuse that prevents us from living better, treating our world better.
A few years ago, after discussing my interest in all sustainability, an aquaintance gave me a book titled Let My People Go Surfing
by Yvon Chouinard
.
Yvon Chouinard is the founder of Patagonia and the book details how the company started (reluctantly) and how Chouinard and a small group of friends, with like principles, shaped the way the company operated (and does to this day). It is a real example of how success can be born out of “doing the right thing” and a good read.
Cheers and have a great day!
George
Overall, I have found that there is no shortage of environmental initiatives from all over the world but recently not a lot that is terribly ground breaking. It would seem that the low hanging fruit has been picked! In fact, and perhaps not coincidentally, I have seen an increasing amount written that is questioning many of the environmental / climate change statistics … suggesting in some cases that these statistics amount to nothing more then an “eco scam”.
In the end, reading about the climate change conference in Copenhagen, it became clear to me that the whole issue is now in the hands of the worlds governments and the grass roots movement that created a great deal of awareness is now bogged down in economics and the diverging interests of nations. I suppose it is not that surprising... perhaps inevitable.
Hopefully, the ideals will not get lost in the rhetoric. Statistics may be manipulated but it should not serve to create an excuse that prevents us from living better, treating our world better.
A few years ago, after discussing my interest in all sustainability, an aquaintance gave me a book titled Let My People Go Surfing
by Yvon Chouinard
.
Yvon Chouinard is the founder of Patagonia and the book details how the company started (reluctantly) and how Chouinard and a small group of friends, with like principles, shaped the way the company operated (and does to this day). It is a real example of how success can be born out of “doing the right thing” and a good read.
Cheers and have a great day!
George
Monday, January 4, 2010
Welcome 2010!
So long 2009 – I am certain that many people are happy to see it go.
Personally it has been an interesting few weeks. A couple weeks of being sick reminds me how crappy daytime TV is (and most television for that matter), and how slowly time passes when you have nothing to do and feel poorly.
In the end, I read a few books, read lots of magazines and even spent a bit of time on the internet although I admit that caused a bit of eye strain. My fascination with technology persists however, with particular interest in looking at how companies are changing the scope of their advertising to encompass social media opportunities. Perhaps an extreme example can be found in Pepsi who have decided to forgo advertising during the Super Bowl this year and instead are spending the money to develop a social media campaign
The campaign appears to be tied to a Pepsico social responsibility plan…something to do with making communities better. The article does not really describe the concept in any detail but combining the media trends with the corporate worlds new found marketing of social responsibility programs seems to be the focus. It would be interesting to know if the strategy is successful. I would suspect the only way we will know is to look at the advertisers for next years Super Bowl.
As an interesting sidebar to this idea is to consider the whole notion of social responsibility for corporations and how we got to where we are today. I believe that somewhere shortly after the movie An Inconvenient Truth there began a demand that large companies look at their environmental impact and improve. In truth, I am not sure that the public demanded it so much as marketing departments decided it was a good thing to promote. Born from this was the “Sustainability Report” which may have started as an environmental commitment statement but now will likely contain a very brief overview of recycling programs and reduction of carbon output with a large section on social responsibility.
Since when did being a good corporate citizen become the leverage for a media campaign. Has this always been the case? Also, has this served to divert our attention from issues of the environment?
Cheers and have a great day,
George
So long 2009 – I am certain that many people are happy to see it go.
Personally it has been an interesting few weeks. A couple weeks of being sick reminds me how crappy daytime TV is (and most television for that matter), and how slowly time passes when you have nothing to do and feel poorly.
In the end, I read a few books, read lots of magazines and even spent a bit of time on the internet although I admit that caused a bit of eye strain. My fascination with technology persists however, with particular interest in looking at how companies are changing the scope of their advertising to encompass social media opportunities. Perhaps an extreme example can be found in Pepsi who have decided to forgo advertising during the Super Bowl this year and instead are spending the money to develop a social media campaign
The campaign appears to be tied to a Pepsico social responsibility plan…something to do with making communities better. The article does not really describe the concept in any detail but combining the media trends with the corporate worlds new found marketing of social responsibility programs seems to be the focus. It would be interesting to know if the strategy is successful. I would suspect the only way we will know is to look at the advertisers for next years Super Bowl.
As an interesting sidebar to this idea is to consider the whole notion of social responsibility for corporations and how we got to where we are today. I believe that somewhere shortly after the movie An Inconvenient Truth there began a demand that large companies look at their environmental impact and improve. In truth, I am not sure that the public demanded it so much as marketing departments decided it was a good thing to promote. Born from this was the “Sustainability Report” which may have started as an environmental commitment statement but now will likely contain a very brief overview of recycling programs and reduction of carbon output with a large section on social responsibility.
Since when did being a good corporate citizen become the leverage for a media campaign. Has this always been the case? Also, has this served to divert our attention from issues of the environment?
Cheers and have a great day,
George
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