Mitch Joel's Blog: Six Pixels of Separation, page 349

Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #63

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Year One Labs, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, PressBooks, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see".

Check out these six links that we're recommending to one another:

Lizards Rapidly Evolve After Introduction to Island - National Geographic . "This National Geographic piece is the best, most recent proof I've seen of evolution. In just a few decades, the lizards' guts changed dramatically in order to survive in a new environment. All five thousand lizards are direct descendants of the ten that were introduced in 1971; but now they're dramatically different, in response to life on the island." (Alistair for Hugh).

Overdone - Why are restaurant websites so horrifically bad? - Slate . "If you've visited a restaurant website, you may have given up and chosen to just read what Google has to say. The sites are graphics-heavy, flash-laden, and unintuitive. According to Slate author, Farhad Manjoo, the reasons are a chewy mix of chef ego, designer greed, and a misunderstanding of how prospective diners find their meals." (Alistair for Mitch).

Visual Complexity: Mapping Patterns for the Information Age - Brain Pickings . " Manuel Lima has just published 'Visual Complexity: Mapping Patterns of Information,' a beautiful book of some of the juiciest data visualizations of the past number of years, and earlier." (Hugh for Alistair).

Local Rules: The Death (and Rebirth) of Retail - City of Sound . "Australian designer/thinker Dan Hill writes a brilliant piece about digital, retail, and how cities work." (Hugh for Mitch).

In Tribute to Steve Jobs, Tokyo Man Runs Giant Apple Logo - PC Magazine . "I guess we're all learning to cope with the new that Steve Jobs has resigned from Apple in our own little way. I've been surprised by how much time, energy and thought I have put against it (mostly out of personal concern for his health and well-being). I'm not sure what to make of how this person is dealing with the news. I find it both interesting and strange beyond words." (Mitch for Alistair).

The marketing genius of "Led Zeppelin IV" - Superhype . "David Deal has become a friend over the years and while I knew he also has a deep passion for music, I never knew how intense it was until I read this Blog post. To me, this is why Blogging and Social Media matter so much: where else will get this type of in-depth analysis about one of the greatest rock bands (and albums) of all time and how it relates to marketing? If you're beginning to lose faith in the power of Blogs, please do yourself a favor and read this." (Mitch for Hugh).

Now it's your turn: in the comment section below pick one thing that you saw this week that inspired you and share it.

Tags:

alistair croll

apple

bitcurrent

blogging

brain pickings

city of sound

complete web monitoring

dan hill

data visualization

david deal

designer

evolution

farhad manjoo

gigaom

google

hugh mcguire

human 20

iambik

led zeppelin

led zeppelin iv

librivox

link

link exchange

linkbait

managing bandwidth

manuel lima

marketing

media hacks

national geographic

pc magazine

pressbooks

retail

slate

social media

steve jobs

story

superhype

the book over

visual complexity

website

year one labs

Draft And Burn

We can sometimes forget how easy it is to blast off a message in the heat of the moment.

One of the biggest drawbacks to these digital channels is that it's hard to understand the emotion that happens behind a text (emoticons can both help and hinder this further). I grapple with this on a daily basis. In person (and those who know me can attest to this), I'm quite dry and sarcastic (maybe even a little dark) with my sense of humor. It is something that I can't turn off and it can be hard to read in person, so I can't imagine how challenging it might be to "get" in a tweet on Twitter, through a Facebook status update or in an email. There's a reason why I write and Blog the way that I do. I'm shooting much more for clarity and directness.

When you're really pissed off.

Social Media often makes me laugh (and/or shake my head). I'll read posts from people who are using their fingers and connectivity as if it's a steam valve and it happens right in the heat of the moment. As frustrated as I may be, as wrong as I think that someone is in certain instances, I apply one simple trick that (usually) staves off a tweet or post in the heat of the moment...

Create a draft first.

Write that tweet. Unload via a Blog post, but save it as a draft before hitting the "send" or "publish" button. Bruce Lee used to write and write and when he was done, he would set it all on fire. It was less about publishing or sharing his thoughts and much more about the critical thinking and/or brain dumping. I'll often write drafts upon drafts - especially when it's something that is making you mad. The technique is similar to counting to ten before blurting something out to the kids or a spouse, but the difference comes after the draft is saved. More often than not, you should burn it, delete it and forget it.

Knee jerk reactions tend to lead to moments of jerkiness more than anything else.

Tags:

bruce lee

critical thinking

digital channel

draft

email

emoticon

facebook

message

social media

twitter

writing

Getting The Social Customer To Buy

Shopping is a social act. We'd like to think that it's the perfect fit for Social Media. Is it?

Between us friends, I've shifted and changed my presentations on Digital Marketing in the past few months. It has moved away (almost completely) from what brands either should be doing in the Digital Marketing and how to think about the space to being one hundred percent customer focused. I wish I had the source for the following thought, but someone recently said that this is the first time in the history of Marketing that the consumers are ahead of the marketers.

It's true.

What are brands really up to?

They're asking consumers to "like" them on Facebook while few actually make an effort to connect to those individuals on their own spaces.

They're asking customers to subscribe to the RSS feeds of their Blogs or share their content, while the brand editors spend zero time engaging in the comments on the Blogs being created by their customers.

They're looking for customers to follow them on Twitter, but don't actually push beyond their own tweetstream to build affinity and loyalty.

They're asking customers to watch their videos on YouTube, but few brands are doing anything unique on the channel. It's mostly their traditional advertising or a longer version of a TV ad.

Social Media is not a destination.

The greatest struggle facing brands is the paradigm shift away from Social Media being a destination to Social Media being everywhere - a simple and true part of their lives. Brands make the (wrong) assumption that people will go to Facebook, like their brand, do something on the wall, then the brand will be in a better consideration space for purchase further down the sales funnel.

Create a new scenario...

Here's some fiction for you: Sara needs a new sun dress. She goes online and does some research. She posts some options up on Facebook and asks her friends on Twitter to check it out and help her decide. Then, she heads down the store (if she hasn't made the purchase online) to buy the dress. Sounds realistic, doesn't it? It's only half of the story. Let's try again: Sara needs a new sun dress. She does some online research, posts some options on Facebook and tweets them up. Her friend, Mandy, sees the tweet and they text each other to head over to the mall together. While strolling through the mall, they're both not only chatting to one another, but they're connected. They're responding to text messages, they're being alerted to Facebook and Twitter updates, they're laughing at posts and - maybe - they're even checking in with Foursquare to see who else is around. While in the store, they notice a couple of other dresses, they snap some pictures and post them, but then a question comes up about the materials that were used to make the dress. Sara and Mandy do some quick online searches... nothing. They realize that the brand is on Twitter so they ask the brand directly...

...and so the story goes.

The new consumer is not linear. They are scattered. They are connected - not only to one another, but to the world - and their Social Media engagement is highly untethered. I'm often critical of brands who try to make Digital Marketing bend to their will instead of spending the time, effort and having the patience to build valuable credibility (which leads to loyalty). This is another prime example of that: your consumer is social... much more social than they have ever been before, but it's not a linear relationship (like the one they probably have with your flyers or coupons or five years ago with a website) and you're not going to be able to make them bend to your will, either. Facebook is not a destination in their worlds. Facebook is everywhere and anywhere.

This is not my consumer.

There are many brands who feel like smartphones, iPads and Social Media have no direct impact on them, because this type of consumer is not in their demographic. Those same people used to wonder why they need a website. Whether or not this is a current part of your customer's media and technology diet is irrelevant because it will be. The question is how long? Ten years? Five years? Two years? It's hard to say, but my gut says less than five years and closer to two years. Most brands are already in planning for next year, so this means it needs to get on the business slate now. Today.

Ask yourself this: are you really ready for the social customer (as they are and not as you would like them to be)?

Tags:

blog

brand

brand editor

business planning

credibility

customer focused

digital marketing

facebook

foursquare

ipad

loyalty

online video

purchase consideration

rss

shopping

smartphone

social consumer

social customer

social media

traditional advertising

twitter

youtube

The Myth Of Reciprocity And The Social Life Of Brands

I follow you. You follow me. Right?

No. Not really. If you dig deep into the dynamics of relationships, conversations and engagement on Twitter, you'll quickly discover two camps:

Those who will follow back anybody and everybody.

Those who only follow back those where there is mutual benefit.

It also clear that there are instances where it's hard to define if someone who is following you is worthy of a follow-back at first glance. Personally, I see this as an opportunity to truly extend an olive branch, provide value to the individual and figure out where there is a mutually beneficial meeting of the minds. Like any other relationship, some of them gel right from the get-go (hence the saying, "love at first sight"), while others take some time.

What's a brand to do?

For the majority of brands, the most logical and strategic play is to follow back each and every individual who has taken the time to follow, friend, like, or plus you. The mindset in this instance is to think of your brand as a media entity. If there are individuals who want to connect to you, it makes perfect sense to follow them back and leverage this group to build your audience. There is no doubt that the more people that a brand is following, the more opportunities they are creating to get their message to spread to more and more people (and this includes these individuals and their social graphs).

People are not brands.

The challenge for individuals (both celebrities and everyday people like you and I) is in figuring out how to make these bigger dynamics work most effectively. Chris Brogan (co-author of Trust Agents with Julien Smith and co-host of our Media Hacks podcast) pulled an interesting move the other day: He unfollowed everyone who was following him on Twitter (you can read all about the reasons and then some of the initial reactions here: The Great Twitter Unfollow Experiment of 2011). With nearly 200 comments (and growing) on his Blog post, it's an interesting mix of both opinions and emotions. It also shines a light on a more fascinating aspect of relationships when things go digital: what, in fact, does reciprocity mean? What is the value of following someone back?

It's simple...

Reciprocity in the social life of online media should mean that if someone connects with you, you should reciprocate and connect back - sight unseen. The problem is that reciprocity is actually not that simple. True reciprocity (as far as I can tell) is the act of both people deriving a level of value towards the mutual relationship. If people are offended by this or think otherwise, they're not interested in reciprocity... they're interested in their own, personal gain.

Reciprocity is momentary.

In the digital world, reciprocity can be momentary. If we live next door to one another and you loan me a cup of sugar, each and everyday that I walk to my car or take out my garbage, I will both remember your kind and generous act and think of ways to help you back. If you're kind enough to follow me on Twitter or Facebook but you then decide that it's not for you or you simply aren't committed to any type of engagement, it's not like you're notifying me (and I'm not spending much time thinking about you, either). So, the only way for me to find  out that you're not reciprocating beyond the initial connection is either when your account gets hacked (and I'm suddenly being spammed by you) or during some kind of Social Media clean-up where I realize we've had zero interactions.

Filter, filter and more filters.

Have you read my Blog post called, The Dirty Little Secret Of The Twitter Elite? Those who are using Twitter for their own personal gain (as most of us are) are using filters and technology like Hootsuite, TweetDeck, or Twitter Lists to filter out the noise of those who they are following, so that they can focus on those they actually derive value from. Think about the current ruckus over Google +: the number one reason people like Google + is because they can both choose and create the circles they like ("circles" is the same thing as "filters"). They can mute the people they don't know and amplify those that they truly want to be connected to. In essence, none of this is about reciprocity. The majority of people with a lot of followers and/or friends are interacting with a small handful of individuals but continue to drive for more followers and friends so that they can spread their own message far and wide.

Does that sound like reciprocity to you?

Tags:

audience engagement

blog

brand

chris brogan

facebook

filter

google plus

hootsuite

julien smith

media

media hacks

online media

online social network

reciprocity

relationship

social graph

social life

social media

technology

trust agents

tweetdeck

twitter

twitter lists

Apple Turns Its i To Television

Are you paying attention to Apple 's next move?

At the top of the trending rumors for the next version of the iPad (iPad 3 - for those keeping score at home) is that it will have retina display. The everyday user of the iPhone 4 probably doesn't realize how powerful this feature-set is for the mobile device. It's also a feature that Apple apparently struggled to get into the iPad 2, but simply couldn't get it perfected in time (it's also important to note that all of these stories are based on hearsay as Apple never speaks publicly about product development, challenges, upcoming devices, applications or features). In simple terms, retina display creates a pixel density so tight that the human eye is unable to make them out. In even simpler terms, retina display makes reading on a screen as good as (if not better than) the resolution that the human eye captures when it reads the printed word. Yes, the line between resolution quality of print and screen has happened. On the iPhone 4, everything not only looks crisp at every size, but the resolution quality is as good as print.

Steve.

While many are still lamenting Steve Jobs' decision to resign from Apple last week and what that impact will have on the company (which is one of the most valued in the world), it's clear that their product development roadmap and lifecycle is primed for another major disruption of an already established media industry. Beyond personal computers, mobile devices, the music and film industry, it seems clear that television could well be the next entertainment industry that Apple looks to re-invent (and own).

Prime time.

If retina display is ready for prime time (pardon the pun) on the iPad 3, the bigger breakthrough will be if they can deliver retina display to any screen size. If so, how difficult will it be for Apple to create a screen that actually looks (and acts) like a very, very large iPad? Much of the initial dissent about the value of Apple's iPad when it first launched was that it was simply a large version of the iPhone (without the phone). Apple proved that there was a huge market for this type of tablet device and you can imagine what a sixty-four inch version might look like (push that further and imagine using your iPad or iPhone as the remote control to flick content on to the screen). As an interim concept, take a look at the recently update iMac computers the next time you're strolling by an Apple store... it's an impressive and beautiful sight to behold.

I won't be the first.

I wish I could lay claim to being the first person to talk about the possibility of Apple entering the TV fray, but this has become a burgeoning topic of conversation by technology journalists and media pundits alike. VentureBeat's news item, Apple is working on a television for 2012, sources say, published on August 26th, 2011 points to multiple indicators that this concept is more than likely already something Apple is tinkering away with in their labs. Pointing to more than five different sources, the article says: "Venture capitalist Stewart Alsop, of Alsop Louie ventures, lent credence to the 'iTelevision' theory in an interview with VentureBeat. Alsop sits on the boards of TiVo and Sonos, follows the hardware industry closely, and says he has heard from multiple sources throughout Silicon Valley that the Apple television project is underway."

What about Apple TV?

Apple has already had Apple TV in market since 2006, but the second generation (which came out in September 2010) has already begun the true fusion of online content with our television screens. Along with being able to rent or own the latest television shows and movies (although, last week Apple stopped allowing consumers to rent TV episodes), Apple TV (along with competitors like Boxee and even Xbox 360) also enables consumers to watch YouTube on their TVs and stream movies from Netflix. To date, the success of Apple TV has been minor when compared to the computer, iPhone and iPad market, but just imagine a world in which Apple is able to perfect a new kind of television screen and integrate that with the content of Apple TV. If you're having a hard time with that image, take a look at what the iPod combined with iTunes did to the music industry.

Is TV the future for Apple?

It seems like one of many obvious paths, especially when you consider the appetite that we all still have for watching content and the lack of true innovation from within the television and broadcasting industry. In looking closer at the technical ability to steam digital content in HD anywhere, the likelihood seems even more obvious. The challenge will be in how Apple deals with both the cable and mobile operators and how those operators change consumers for bandwidth - the issue of both cost and throttling access is already a hot debate.

Stay tuned. 

The above posting is my twice-monthly column for the Montreal Gazette and Vancouver Sun newspapers called, New Business - Six Pixels of Separation . I cross-post it here with all the links and tags for your reading pleasure, but you can check out the original versions online here:

Montreal Gazette - Apple turns its i to television .

Vancouver Sun - not yet published.

Tags:

alsop louie ventures

apple

apple store

apple television

apple tv

bandwidth

boxee

broadcasting industry

business column

business model

cable operator

digital content

entertainment industry

film industry

hardware industry

imac

ipad

ipad 2

ipad 3

iphone 4

ipod

itelevision

itunes

media industry

media pundit

mobile device

mobile operator

montreal gazette

music industry

netflix

newspaper column

personal computer

postmedia

product development

remote control

resolution

retina display

silicon valley

sonos

steve jobs

stewart alsop

tablet computing

technology journalist

television

television industry

throttling

tivo

vancouver sun

venturebeat

xbox 360

youtube

Failing Miserably

It's easy to get down. It happens to the best of us. I'm not even a "best of us" and it happens to me all of the time.

Currently, I'm failing miserably at:

Reading a book every week. I'm doing my best to keep pace, but it's late August and I should be at 32 books read and I'm only at 26 and struggling.

Losing ten more pounds. I'm exercising a few times a week and trying to avoid things like sugar, white bread, fried foods and other fatty foods, but I go through phases and I often cave in to temptation (which immediately leads to self-loathing and regret).

Finishing my book proposal. The book proposal for the follow-up to Six Pixels of Separation was due this past holiday season. I've got the book title, sub-title, chapter concepts and both my literary agent and book publisher excited about it. All I have to do is write the chapter abstracts and it's done... yet I've been idle on it for months. To make matters worse, I'm excited about the concept too!

Responding to every comment on the Blog. I made a promise to do my best to respond to every Blog comment. For a while, the getting was good, but I've dropped off. I jump back in and commit to making it happen, then it fades away and doesn't happen. I read Mark W. Schaefer's Blog or Gini Dietrich and it reminds me of how bad I am at doing the whole back-and-forth in my Blog comments. I'm often embarrassed by my lack of presence in the comments.

Community service. I used to give nearly one-third of my time to community service. I was involved in many charitable and community-based groups. As work and home life evolved, I've retracted from the many different groups and organizations, and haven't been active at all in the past while. Yes, I've taken on the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Marketing Association, but I'm also interested and passionate about doing something to help those in immediate need. I miss my community service.

I'm failing miserably at a whole bunch of other stuff too (no need for family, friends and colleagues to remind me about them in the Blog comments below!).

The funny thing about failing miserably is how obvious it is to the individual, but how ridiculous it looks to others. I'm sure many people would be thrilled to find the time to read five books a year or even have the problem of a Blog that gets enough comments to require a response. Pushing that further, I'm sure there are many people reading this who are recipients of some of the services that the charitable organizations I've volunteered for dish out or would be thrilled to have the physique I have (though, I doubt that ;).

"The grass is always greener."

Let it come as no surprise that the greatest marketing and advertising preys on people's self-image. It does an amazingly powerful job of pointing out perceived flaws and how their product or service is the cure-all. Beyond that, human beings have a natural temperament to believe that someone else's lot in life is better than theirs. As an agency owner, ridiculous deadlines, temperamental clients, trying to deliver breakthrough creative and inter-office politics is par for the course... not just in my agency, but in every agency. The key to overcoming this stress/struggle and the key to not letting everything you think you're failing miserably at is to add a dash of real-life perspective into your diet.

What does this look like? 

Here's a personal tip... In the past short while, I've had many people close to me deal with personal and health situations that have involved kids being sick. Really sick. If you ever think you're failing miserably at something, think about your local children's hospital. Think about all of those kids, with all of those medial issues and what goes on in there - day and night - without end. Think about what these little kids are going through then think about what their family friends and going through. Reading another book, losing ten pounds, finishing a book proposal, responding to some Blog comments, dealing with a frustrated customer, grappling with a new idea, and having the fortunate position to be able to volunteer for a community organization doesn't really seem like any sort of real problem that should be considered "failing miserably" at if you're not one hundred percent at every single waking moment.

Does it?

Tags:

advertising

blog

blog comment

book

book proposal

business book

canadian marketing association

childrens hospital

community service

failing miserably

gini dietrich

human being

mark w schaefer

marketing

marketing agency

Media Hacks #39 Is Live

Episode #268 of Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to. This is also episode #39 of Media Hacks.

Joining me for this chat is both Chris Brogan and C.C. Chapman. We tackle a whole bunch of topics, but mostly meander through the resignation of Steve Jobs from Apple and what this means to technology and marketing. We then segue into Chris' new book, Google+ for Business: How Google's Social Network Changes Everything and our conversation goes into a whole bunch of different places about individuals online, the new media and how we're constantly grappling with value, business and making it all connect. Enjoy the conversation...

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via iTunes): Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast #268.

Tags:

advertising

apple

bite size edits

blog

blogging

blue sky factory

book oven

business book

cast of dads

cc chapman

chris brogan

christopher s penn

david usher

digital dads

digital marketing

facebook

facebook group

google plus for business

hugh mcguire

in over your head

itunes

julien smith

librivox

managing the gray

marketing

marketing over coffee

media hacks

new marketing labs

online social network

podcast

podcasting

pressbooks

six pixels of separation

social media 101

social media marketing

steve jobs

trust agents

twist image

Why Are More And More Marketers Paying For Blog Posts And Tweets?

Simply put: because it's working.

As usual, eMarketer comes out with some new data that will - more than likely - rattle some cages (mine included!). From the news item, How Valuable Are Social Media Sponsorships?, published yesterday: "In Q2 2011, social media advertising company IZEA surveyed marketers and publishers about their preferences for such practices and the value they place on certain sponsorships. The survey found that 48.8% of marketers have used a sponsored blog post, while 32.5% said they would use it, and 39.4% have sponsored a tweet, while 35.6% said they would use that social media sponsorship. Additionally, only 23.2% have sponsored an online video, but 50.2% said they would use such a social media sponsorship."

What's easier: to start a Blog and build an audience or to buy your way into an existing/popular one?

That's not a trick question. It's obviously easier to "pay to play" and (sadly), Marketers have a reputation for doing whatever is faster, easier and cheaper (which could mean both money and time). While the eMarketer news item nets out with this thought: "Social media sponsorship can be a controversial practice, particularly if bloggers and other publishers do not disclose when they some type of compensation for a product or brand mention. But as marketers continue to measure success and see the value in these mentions, doing social media sponsorships the correct way will become a more accepted practice," there's a bigger thought that I would urge Marketers to think about: don't make this type of marketing act like that type of marketing.

New is not old... so don't make it old.

Personally, it's not a question of whether or not buying tweets or paying to have a Blog post placed on a popular destination is ethical or not. If it's clear that it's a paid placement and the author of the content is not a mystery, I'm fine it because the audience and community will decide. If a Blog is littered with posts that are all paid for and this maintains readership and people enjoy it, you won't see me raining on that parade. People are grown-ups and they can make their own choices about which types of content they find relevant. I'm sure that I follow a ton of Blogs that most people would find completely useless to their daily lives - much in the same way that I, personally, don't have an appetite for paid Blog posts. I'm fine with the concept of "different strokes for different folks." To me, the disappointment comes from trying to make these very new and interesting ways of connecting with our consumers so boring and traditional.

It's called New Media because it's not traditional media.

Content, conversation, engagement, measurement, extended connections and beyond. There's no doubt it's easy to pay a media company to write some content and plunk it somewhere, but there's just so much more that brands can do these days. It's not supposed to be a pain... this is an opportunity. I'm often reminded of what Seth Godin says about this, precise moment in time for Marketers. He constantly reminds us, "not to waste it," and he's right. Call it an evolution... call it a revolution... it's an opportunity.

Let's do more than just use it as an advertising opportunity. Let's not waste it. What's your take?

Tags:

audience

blog

brand

content

conversation

emarketer

engagement

izea

marketer

marketing

measurement

media company

new media

online video

seth godin

social media

social media advertising

social media sponsorship

sponsorship

traditional media

tweet

twitter

Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #62

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Year One Labs, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, PressBooks, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see".

Check out these six links that we're recommending to one another:

A Tale Of Two Countries: The Growing Divide Between Silicon Valley And Unemployed America - TechCrunch . "The tech bubble (yes, we're in one) is driving insane, multi-million-dollar 'acqhires' where companies buy startups solely for their talent. Startups have catered lunches. Signing bonuses are common. If you're a technical worker with chops in the Bay Area, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the US economy is fine. Is this just a consequence of increased productivity from those who know how to put tech to work? Or is it a collapse of the social contract?" (Alistair for Hugh).

Lessons Learned from The President's Tweet - Expert Labs . "If the medium is the message, then a flat, open medium leads to a lot more analysis. The White House held a town hall using Twitter, and the folks at Expert Labs did a great job of digging into it. Here's what they found..." (Alistair for Mitch).

Russia plans $65bn tunnel to America - The Sunday Times . "What is it about tunnels that's so... romantic? How crazy does it sound to have a tunnel between Siberia and Alaska? That would mean that you could get on a train in Halifax (or Florida), and ride the train all the way to London." (Hugh for Alistair).

Graeme Hamilton: Quebec seeks special status for select journalists - National Post . "From the Department of Terrible Ideas, Quebec floats the notion that only 'certified' journalists should... well it's not quite clear what privileges they should get - maybe better access to politicians? But in any case, journalism, apparently, needs protection, and the best way to ensure that is to make sure that bloggers and other unwashed don't get to have a Professional Journalist card without meeting certain 'criteria.'" (Hugh for Mitch). *I agree Hugh, and I Blogged about it here: One Step Forward And Fifty Steps Back For Bloggers (And Society).

Steve Jobs's Patents - The New York Times . "I'm still shook up by the news that Apple CEO, Steve Jobs , signed his letter of resignation this week (more on that here: Steve ). While wishing him nothing but good health, this interactive feature is one of the best ways to understand the impact that Jobs has - not only on technology, but on the world at large. Some companies would probably scoff at a mere 313 Apple patents that lists Jobs as one of the inventors, but take a look-see at this. It's not hard to see how the name 'Jobs' will be right up there with Newton and Bell in the grand scheme of things... and yes, I realize the implications of that statement, but it's true." (Mitch for Alistair).

Local Library Lends Out Humans As 'Living Books' - PSFK . "We get all hot and bothered about what happens when books become digital. One of the hardest adjustments to this new reality is (and has been) what happens to libraries? There has been a lot of discourse online about this and I've sat through many fascinating conversations about the future of the library at events like O'Reilly's Tools of Change for Publishing conference. Most of the conversation is about making libraries destinations for people to share information, etc... This article made me both laugh and think. Imagine this: a library that lends out people as 'living books'! If that doesn't make you click, I'm not sure what will?" (Mitch for Hugh).

Now it's your turn: in the comment section below pick one thing that you saw this week that inspired you and share it.

Tags:

alistair croll

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year one labs

Don't Forget To Be Human

Technology makes it easy to...

Say "no."

Ignore somebody.

Speak your mind without looking someone in the eyes.

Be "off the cuff."

Quit.

Brag.

Be greedy.

Spam people.

Be rude.

Blow someone off.

Close yourself off from the opinions of others.

Don't let technology makes us less human.

We've had a tough week. From countries falling and people starving to weather warnings to seeing people we admire call it a day. In the end, we only have each other (and I'm not just talking about your family, friends and close ones). All of us are in this together. I've often raged against the machine that tries to splinter what goes on in here from what happens in our protein forms (you can read more about that right here: The Real World). While I may not be great at thanking everyone who retweets something I've put out on Twitter or responding to something that was posted on Facebook, I do my best to acknowledge my appreciation for all of the interactions and connections that happen in these digital channels.

Along with that...

I do my best to conduct myself professionally in the online channels - much in the same way I do in the offline channels. What does this mean? Someone recently asked me if I would be willing to review their resume. While I'm always happy to help a friend out, I let them know that I have not looked at a resume in a very long time and I currently don't have one. When pressed for what I would do if I needed a resume, I replied that anyone interested in knowing about who I am, my work experience and what I'm all about and capable of can do so with a very simple online search. That's me. When pressed for what I would do if I needed to learn more about someone else (with full disclosure that I don't touch HR at Twist Image), I had the same response. For my money, there's no better resume than a Blog, a Twitter feed or a Facebook page. That's me. That's how I think. Anybody can fill an 8 1/2 x 11 white page with accolades about their accomplishments. It takes a very different person to constantly and consistently build credibility through these online channels.

Be human.

Being human doesn't mean that you have to divulge every little personal bit of information about yourself. It's not about exposing the world to your personal life. It also doesn't mean that you have to reveal everything about your professional life and what you're going through. How much you reveal has nothing to do with acting in a human... and a humane way. People often confuse this and they shouldn't. The brands that attract us most are the brands that speak to us - as individuals. Brands are not people, but brands can act in a human way by leveraging the power of the individuals that work for them. We've seen this magic happen. Sadly, we've also seen this fail when brands think that corporate speak and marketing mumbo jumbo is the way to connect. If you do anything over this coming weekend, ask yourself this: how can I act more "human" and real in these online channel? Bonus question: how can the brands I represent be more human too?

True success in Digital Marketing is about being human. It's not everything, but it's a great place to start.

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