Rohit Bhargava's Blog, page 68
October 31, 2017
Flavor Changing Skittles And Other Fun Halloween Stories
Given next week is Halloween – I thought it fitting to share a few related stories this week. The first is about Skittles “Trick Plays” bag which features candies that do not taste like their colors, which is sure to frustrate some die-hard Skittles consumers. Last week I featured Snickers hunger bars and this week I came across these stories too: Goth wines for people who take Halloween way to seriously, Teal pumpkins to make Halloween safer for kids with allergies and a last minute costume...
October 30, 2017
The App That Lets You Brag About Disconnecting
As more experts suggest that we should all stop bragging about how many hours we work, this app from Ariana Huffington is timely as it rewards you for disconnecting from tech and social media. Given how common it is for people to seek validation for achievements (like people who post about working out or finishing a tough race), it will be interesting to see if this app might encourage more boasting about the ability to survive without your phone for blocks of time. The app will be released i...
October 27, 2017
Stop Selling Products & Services and Sell Projects Instead
This post from GlaxoSmithKline exec Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez really got me thinking about a new way of selling. Rather than focusing on products or experiences, this article argues that the future might belong to brands who excel at selling “projects.” He uses the case study of how Philips moved from selling medical devices to instead partnering with Westchester Medical Center to develop and launch the entire facility as an example. This is a great article to read and share with your team.
October 26, 2017
Snickers Launches Plan To Sell Candy Bars Based On Emotions
Forget using tech and big data for personalization – Snickers has a better idea … just let people tell you how they are feeling. The new versions of their “hunger bar” (as they are now calling their product) which will come out in June 2018, branded along with the emotion that they might fit with (like Salty&Sweet for “Indecisive”). It’s a fun idea that might even work on a subconscious level you head toward the checkout, find a long line and pick up an Espresso-flavored Snickers bar just bec...
October 25, 2017
Nissan Will Make Its Electric Cars “Sing” To Protect Pedestrians
Electric cars are too quiet. For years, unsuspecting pedestrians accustomed to listening for cars would walk into the road in front of electric cars, unaware of their proximity. At the Tokyo Motor Show, Nissan proposed an interesting solution: they will make their new cars “sing.” As creators continue to innovate to make tech as human-friendly as possible – this move raises all sorts of sonic branding possibilities as cars may one day be imprinted not only with a “face” through their headligh...
October 24, 2017
Why You Can Focus In A Noisy Coffee Shop, But Not A Noisy Office
For years one of my favorite tools for writing is a website called Coffitivity which simulates the background noise of a coffee shop. I find this little tool a perfect backdrop for writing and use it almost every day. In this article, author David Burkus shares some research behind why having this type of “white noise” in the background can be so beneficial for driving creativity and help you be far more productive than demanding quiet. It turns out, you don’t really need silence to concentra...
October 23, 2017
How Diverse Are US Newsrooms? Not Very …
In this data visualization, the shift in diversity of both race and gender in newsroom staff and leadership across the country is analyzed with some interesting results. The newsrooms overall, as you probably expect, are overwhelmingly white and skewed toward men. More interesting is the fact that over the past 15 years the Washington Post and NY Times have come closer to gender equality, while the USA Today has gone the opposite direction. There is lots more food for thought in the visualize...
October 20, 2017
Google’s Cupcake Problem Shows The Dangers Of Tunnel Vision
Recently Google engineers tested a Maps feature that equated the distance you walk to a number of mini-cupcakes you would burn off in equivalent calories. The only problem is, their fun little cupcake idea was a trigger for some people with eating disorders and others were just annoyed at the unsolicited suggestion. The feature and backlash illustrate a common issue when it comes to product or feature design … the people who like it don’t care enough to tell you that, and the people who hate...
October 6, 2017
5 Amazing Examples of the Future of Storytelling
Every year in October, I visit Staten Island to participate in the Future of Storytelling Festival (FoST). This week I tried 3D audio recording headphones, watched a performance with music created by artificial intelligence, played a voice controlled sci-fi game and shared ideas with storytellers from some of the biggest brands in the world. This article is a compilation of some of the most interesting people and storytelling experiences from the #FoST summit.
September 28, 2017
Adidas Launches Beer And Vomit-Proof Oktoberfest Sneakers
Just in time for Oktoberfest, Adidas in Germany launched a new pair of sneakers with a durable leather coated in what Adidas is calling “DPBR” coating: durable puke and beer repellent. You have to love the acronym and the idea behind these shoes. They are affectionately called “the München,” after the home of the biggest Oktoberfest celebration and already on the market considering Oktoberfest gets underway in Germany well before October actually starts.
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