This site is extensive; thousands of articles, videos and commentaries; -but you can search it quickly and effectively.

For example: Looking for 9/11 films simply enter 911 or 9/11 you'll be directed to all 7 feature length films about the World Trade Center Disaster. OR: Food Inc, Music, Currency, Depression, Kennedy, FDR, Nixon, Reagan, Carson, John Stewart, Fiat, Hyper-Inflation, Gold, Silver, Foreign Relations, Missile Capability, Exponential Function, Depleted Uranium, Monsanto, Plunge Protection, Deriviatives, Money Graphics, Occupy etc.

 

 

 

Generational Time Capsules

 

December 31, 2012 My takeaway from this article is much the same as it was after reading Chris Anderson's The Long Tail (free here); -is that we should be skeptics of predictions, and recognize that internet action taken today, eventually counts. This hints that this isn't time to ignore the internet gauntlet.

Production is not static in art or music. Not on the factory line, or IPhone design. If we want to outsell Android tomorrow, then we should be sending time-capsulated content for next generation consumption now.

 

 

 

Leadership Ensemble

 

December 30, 2012 An entertaining study on the pratfalls of leadership can be deduced from the 2012 hit Pitch Perfect. No spoiler alert necessary. IMDB describes the plot:

Beca, a freshman at Barden University, is cajoled into joining The Bellas, her school's all-girls singing group. Injecting some much needed energy into their repertoire, The Bellas take on their male rivals in a campus competition.

The film incites emotion from the inherent conflict between democracy and leadership. This is interesting because the leader of the Bellas is exemplary in traditional military measurement of the role. She gets it right at the beginning, but despotic in the end.

This song and dance explosion, attests to the virtues of collaborative leadership and how challenging the status quo is critical to success, especially when trying to break out from the crowd. If you've seen it, then you may see it in another light, otherwise I'm afraid that you'll have to see the movie for the reveal.

Here's a taste of the a cappella that makes this a theatrical sensation as well.

 

 

 

 

Champagne Finish

 

December 29, 2012 Whether you're a restaurant, hotel, manufacturer, service provider or professional,  there's always going to be customers that can't be pleased.

There’s nothing that we can do about that, except step up.

If the problem is our negligence and is correctable, then it is our responsibility to fix it. Our culpability should not be based on small print. It should be what we’d expect of common courtesy.

The shame comes when we can do everything right;- website, adwords, social media, advertising, answer on the first ring, be competitive, responsive, show up on time, know what we’re doing, sell the right solution; then foul the entire masterpiece by not finishing the job.

Finishing the job means, tossing out the garbage, breaking down boxes, sweeping the floor & answering questions.

People remember how we finish. If you want to be cherished, you have to gift-wrap and then offer something unexpected.

There is magic in unexpected.

Imagine buying a car privately. After the insurance and title are transferred; -You're excited to pick it up. You give it a once over and you're satisfied, and with keys in hand, you hop in. The seller says: "Aren't you going to check the trunk?".

To great delight, there's a Hallmark™ and bottle of Champagne lavished with ribbon and bow.  Congratulations!

That's an indelible finish, and one that you can hardly wait to share.

Shake Down or Champagne; It's your choice.

 

 

Plot Fuel & Social Media

December 28, 2012 The Utilities and Banking industry use social media to help manage customer service; Media & Entertainment, and Leisure use it to shotgun en masse; and High Technology sprinkles a mix of envy and low self-esteem to curry doubt about the adequacy of a PC before it leaves the factory. Paraphrased from: Forrester Research Study commissioned by Dell™.

It is no wonder that social media has gained such wide acceptance by the corporate world. It's powerful. It's flexible. It's a strategic control & manipulation system posing as a friendship vehicle. Hollywood has a term for this: Applied Phlebotinum (a versatile substance that may be rubbed on almost anything to cause an effect needed by a plot).

Though Big Business may be able to get away with this, don't try it at work. It is the equivalent of Deus Ex Nukina ("I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's The Only Way To Be Sure." -Ellen Ripley, Aliens).

We may safely use social media as a way to let the public know that we stand for honesty, fairness, transparency and caring, but be forewarned that as soon as you start 'friending' on Facebook, you have to act, or suffer the consequences of an unattended child. Left unmanned, damage control will be necessary.

If you can't use social media to promptly interface on a personal level then carefully consider the strategy. Don't promise to go to the Prom with everyone that asks or you will be breaking hearts instead of winning them.

 

 

What's Behind Me Doesn't Matter

 

December 27, 2012 The eyes are the window to the soul is an ancient English proverb.

Sight is the major viaduct that web pages travel to your mind.

Scientific studies have quantified the ways that we eyeball websites, and beg the question: "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" (Berkeley). If the eyes ignore it, is there a message? Does it exist?

Here are some points to keep in mind.

23 Actionable Lessons from Eye-Tracking Studies:

 

Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the most eye fixation.

Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.

Bigger images get more attention.

Clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.

Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.

Formatting can draw attention.

Headings draw the eye.

Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.

Large blocks of text are avoided.

Lists hold reader attention longer.

Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.

One-column formats perform better in eye-fixation than multi-column formats.

People generally scan lower portions of the page.

Readers ignore banners.

Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.

Show numbers as numerals.

Text ads were viewed mostly intently of all types tested.

Text attracts attention before graphics.

Type size influences viewing behavior.

Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right.

Users only look at a sub headline if it interests them.

Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.

White space is good.

 

 

 

Auld Lang Syne, My Silicon Friend

December 26, 2012 Here are some facts (about social marketing aka listening) as laid out by a Forrester Research Study commissioned by Dell™;

This study focused on three key industries: utilities and banking services (UBS), media, entertainment, and leisure, and high technology and found distinct differences in how they are using listening as a way to engage with and drive value to customers.

UBS organizations focus their social media efforts on customer service, while media, entertainment, and leisure companies focus on reach, and high technology companies focus on demand generation. (emphasis mine)

The salient point that I feel qualified to comment on, is that high technology companies use eavesdropping tools under the rubric of social marketing, to manipulate your computing world view, so you're always inclined to believe your PC is out-of-date.

That is one of many ways used to drive growth. Willie Loman would be apoplectic about the built in obsolescence.

If carefully tuned, your older PC (if purchased after '06; -prior is questionable) is more than likely robust enough to do anything that today's software can throw at it. An hour with a technician vs. buying new, stuffed with bloatware, and none of your personalizations is a win/win for you and the economy; Local journeymen tweak your system, instead of someone in Shenzhen, China. You are more productive and America is self sufficient.

Before singing Auld Lang Syne to your older desktop, give her a day at the proverbial spa. If you want to gloss her up, buy a bigger monitor.

 

 

We Wish You A Merry Christmas

December 25, 2012 "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" is a popular secular sixteenth-century English carol from the West Country of England. The origin of this Christmas carol lies in the English tradition wherein wealthy people of the community gave Christmas treats to the carolers on Christmas Eve, such as figgy puddings that were very much like modern day Christmas puddings. It is one of the few English traditional carols that makes mention of the New Year celebration and is often the last song carolers sing to people.

 

 

 

The Secrets to Site Building

December 24, 2012 Most of us want to believe in online riches. We often envision web success as the visitor counter spinning like fruit in a one armed bandit. We spend, spend, spend in hope to have a moment on our soapbox in town square, where maybe an audience will materialize. It's lonely gig when no one stops.

The 7 year overnight success of the Beatles is a lesson. The band travelled in the back of a van to two shows, often in different towns, on the same day. Despite the grueling schedule, they gave extra every time.

Developing web presence is no different. Your website is the event. You want people to leave with something. Yearning for more. Always new and thus entertaining, never old and ergo boring. You want them to feel you are hot and cool and proud to share it with friends.

A static web site would be as if John, Paul, George, and Ringo, played the same Liverpudlian hangout for seven years. Close to useless in developing an overnight success.

The Secrets to Site Building are: Be Periodic (Daily, Weekly), Be Peerless (As good as, doesn't count), and Pragmatic (Share what is time consuming to learn and of immediate help).

 

 

Cherish The Challenges

December 23, 2012 The more remarkable we strive to be, the more resistance we'll encounter. No one likes to admit someone more clever. How would it look if we're wrong? Critics find fault, so they can skate on the same ice. In a concerto, who is the boss; - the soloist or conductor?

Steep in the blood, sweat and tears, for no one else can claim them. Time, place and energy will wind until we say we're finished; -or the spring breaks. Persevere. If it was easy, everyone would do it. Cherish the challenges.

 

 

 

Scribbled on the Wall: 867-5309

December 22, 2012 Jenny's number is world renowned.

Would it be beneficial to own that keyword on Google Adwords?

It's debatable. The fact is, having your results at the top of the list might corral traffic, but what good is it if it isn't focussed?

Let me put it another way; what good is your site if it isn't focussed on what the viewer's looking for? From her perspective your site is frustrating the quest for all things Jenny. Within 2-3 seconds, she's bounced.

Volume may give you some bragging rights, but what most of us want, is to convert prospects to customers.

It has been proven that focussed customers are much more likely to buy than unfocussed customers. In other words, if someone is looking for a copyright infringement attorney, then it is unlikely that they will waste any time browsing a cigar bar landing page.

 

 

The schema is the same whether the person comes from a keyword like Jenny's, a link from Digg or just because you have a cool name. The visitors will bounce in three shakes, if you seem spammy or remotely resemble a sales pitch. If you think that a lot of traffic is what you want, there is an SEO advocate ready to pounce on that opportunity. Good luck with that.

To win converts, one has to be focussed on prospect's needs. You have to engage with them and show that you are there to assist.

If you are a professional, then share useful knowledge. Help educate with the intent to improve decision-making. Increase their participation. Earn their permission to answer questions. These are the people that you care about and they are the one's that will care about you. These are your future ambassadors, but not without some diplomatic relations.

Magic and rags to riches are not a game plan. Courteous, professional, helpful membership in a community is a form of symbiosis and it isn't instantaneous.

 

 

 

PJ Knowledgeworker

December 21, 2012 Knowledge workers can work from anywhere.

If you are going into HQ it better be worthwhile. Yes, that's right. Driving 40 minutes each way to do what can be done at Starbucks or in pyjamas, is silly.

One of many reasons offices are important is that there is energy and engagement. If there's a meeting with a client, then there is no choice but to be prepared, energetic, creative, charming and engaging, because she too is thinking; this trip better be worthwhile.

If, on the other hand you are not going to engage, and just sit in a cubicle, there's not much point in being at the office. You know what you have to do, you have a deadline to meet, or some thinking to do. If the office doesn't make it worthwhile, don't make the trip.

 

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