Month: July 2007

No Way Down?

Good Works

no elevator
Originally uploaded by Tatiana Cardeal

Rob Campbell has a great post that has generated a lot of discussion about the plight of homeless people and the potential that we have to actually DO something about it. There are a lot of good ideas and actionable programs surfacing in the comment section — even some links through to social programs that are already achieving great outcomes.

But which way and in which direction should we go?
As I have said before and will say again … it is not that we have a dearth of ideas. Ideas are easy — solutions are hard. Outcomes are difficult to deliver. Consensus is almost impossible to achieve. And sometimes people simply do not want help or want to change.

One program that I loved recently was Choir of Hard Knocks. Johnathon Welch who is the driving force behind the choir turned good intentions into actions, and good ideas into a tangible event that really transformed lives. Perhaps there are lessons to be learned from the Choir and the approaches taken.
Don’t forget to join the debate over at Rob’s site!

BrandingWire: Estes Park

BrandingWire

This month we are looking at Estes Park … and as this is an entirely new destination for me, I want to look at some of the challenges that face small towns with small budgets seeking an overseas audience.

Now, I want to make it clear, from the beginning of this ramble, that not all tourist destinations want or need international tourists — for international tourists bring a whole level of complexity to a localised economy. There are the language/cultural needs, the challenges of cuisine and even safety/signage concerns (something that seems somewhat relevant to Estes Park). However, the single largest challenge is awareness.

There is a whole world out there … and much of this is driven by the blockbuster icon. Generally what cuts through our tourism radar is natural beauty combined with a man-made structure. Think Sydney Harbour and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Think New York and the Statue of Liberty. Think Paris and the Eiffel Tower. Think Cairo and the Pyramids.

It strikes me that Estes Park has a unique quality in this respect. Estes Park is the gateway to the Colorado National Park — and it consists mainly of two streets running along a ridge. The town is landlocked but home to an eclectic range of shops, locals and spectacular views. The potential is to draw out the history and "present moment" of the town. And who, exactly, would be interested?

I am thinking that the desire to balance local needs with increase in high yield tourism indicates a focus on high net worth tourists. This means targeting a demographic we call "grey nomads". This baby boomer generation has plenty of spending power and a taste for adventure … and there are a couple of immediate steps that could be taken:

  • Package offers: Work with a string of similar destinations across the USA to build seasonal short stay tours. This could include self-drive and full-service elements. Build the offers and then think about how to activate them.
  • Association marketing: With a focus on self-drive tourism, marketing through motoring association newsletters makes sense and would be highly effective
  • Sister-community marketing: Estes Park should find and activate a sister-city style relationship with similar towns in other countries. This could be done through organisations such as Rotary
  • Web: I am sure that some of my BrandingWire colleagues will address "web strategy" … but there is obviously a range of work that needs to be done from SEO through to presence, community and storytelling points of view
  • Closed loop feedback: Finally, one of the most powerful opportunities for those targeting this lucrative group of travellers is feedback. By finding ways of closing the loop — allowing good experiences to be discussed, furthered and broadcast, and by bringing the voice of the town into this discussion (whether through on or offline comms), Estes Park will be able to turn the destination into a "talking point".

Get more high-voltage ideas at BrandingWire.com.

Other members of the BrandingWire team include: Becky Carroll, Olivier Blanchard,  Derrick Daye, Lewis Green, Ann Handley, Martin Jelsema, Valeria Maltoni, Drew McLellan, Patrick Schaber, Kevin Dugan and Steve Woodruff.

Talk is Cheap

Age of Conversation

Age of Conversation Cover
Originally uploaded by servantofchaos

We are getting close to finishing up the groundbreaking Age of Conversation so I thought you might like to see a little of David Armano’s design work (we are aiming to launch next week).

Actually, you have probably already see this over at Drew’s site … but I did want to reiterate the fact that this book would not have been possible without the work and creative thinking of over 100 contributors from around the world.

As I have said before, it is one thing to generate an idea or a strategy but it is quite another to activate these things. Talk is cheap. Transforming chatter into something tangible is a rare skill … and I am proud to have been a part of this undertaking.

The book will now be available in three formats — eBook, soft cover and hard cover. All proceeds will be donated to Variety, the Children’s Charity. We hope to raise THOUSANDS of dollars. So please, think about how you can help us with this goal:

  • Can you promote this innovative book via your blog
  • Is there another network you can activate
  • Would your company purchase a number in bulk to distribute as client gifts

Remember, talk is cheap. The time for action is almost upon us!

It’s A Long Way Down the Z-list

Memes

Eastbourne 2005 – Cliff Edge
Originally uploaded by Tom Grau

Over the last few weeks I and my fellow Z-listers have watched as our Technorati rankings start to drop. First it was a few places here and there, but then, slowly but surely, there were larger drops … 50, 100 … more.

It was great while it lasted, and it really did provide a lot of blogs with some great exposure. But as with all things web 2.0 … the network waits for no-one. Now we look to see which ripple comes next — wondering whether we can surf it like a wave — or wondering even whether there is a desire to do so. Makes you think about what is important … fleeting fame and rankings? Community? A few extra emails? Or the chance to meet up with some of the people behind the words?

BrandingWire: Estes Park

BrandingWire

Estes Park sign
Originally uploaded by OneofThem

Tomorrow, the BrandingWire team will be investigating yet another marketing and branding challenge — this time it is Estes Park in Colorado, USA.

As usual, each of us will take our own direction on this, but work from a central brief.

By way of a sneak peak (sorry, couldn’t resist), I will be looking at what can be done to reach a global audience — right back to the basics. This is relatively easy as I had never heard of Estes Park before …

But, my new favourite fact about Estes Park is that the Stanley Hotel was the place where Stephen King found the inspiration for The Shining. Hmmm … ghost tours …

Stay tuned tomorrow (Monday) for BrandingWire’s July festival!

I Will Show You Fear in a Handful of Dust

Creativity

Into Dust
Originally uploaded by TjF Photography

Kristin Gorski has a great post on Billy Collins and his use of animations to accompany personal poetry readings. When an author does a "reading" it can generate a lot of interest — we seek a definitive or authentic interpretation of a text, so we seek out its creator — but often times (I find) that an author’s reading or interpretation will leave me cold.
For example, when I first heard a recording of TS Eliot reading The Waste Land I was astounded. I could not believe how badly it was done — how he rushed at his delivery, how he held off at some points and where he obliterated the rich yet desolate language in a single breath. But despite this … and many years later … I can still hear those words in my head. Is this to do with the extra layering of authenticity over the top of meaning? Was it just my teenage disappointment? (Thanks to Sharon for prompting my memory on this.) If you are interested, you can take a listen to the man himself here.

I have heard others perform TS Eliot’s poetry — and do so in a more compelling manner … and sometimes a writer will hold too tightly to their work, will try to limit the interpretation or contain the meaning. The same can be said of IDEAS. Releasing our ideas, our words and our thoughts into the world can be terrifying … but the only thing that really can hold them back is our own fear.

Keeping an Eye on Technology

Social Media

Ouch. (day twenty-two)
Originally uploaded by kelly-bell

It is everywhere and nowhere. It is being Twittered, blogged and tumbld. It’s Myspace, your space and everywhere in between. Every day a new social network appears (or disappears) … and we drag our addled brains towards each new invention — just to try. We beg and cajole and weasel out exclusive invitations to like it provides us with a valuable form of social-network-currency.

But where does it land us? What happens to all those "accounts", "profiles" or "homes" when we forget to update them? Do they end up in the same place as odd socks? Is there a way to MAINTAIN these sites, profiles and communities? Are they communities at all or just copies of the same communities you interact with elsewhere?

Now I love something new and shiny — perhaps this is the one thing that I share with Paris Hilton — but there comes a point where you need to re-assess. There are only so many hours a day that can be devoted to actively caring for a social network … so where does it end? This is exactly the question that Valeria Maltoni asks. What is it that has value and how do you determine where to invest your time and effort?

A good way of understanding where the value of social networks lie is this chart borrowed from Mike Press by David Armano. If our experience of a social network does not sustain us or provide us with a degree of pleasure or allow us to resolve some need, then we can quickly move from commitment to disengagement. The challenge for these social networks is to constantly work to uncover unrealised need states within and around the community base … and then continue to drive this cycle forward — into a new life context and cycle of commitment.

Music to Blog By

Web 2.0
free music

Researcher extraordinaire, Sharon Sarmiento, has unearthed this neat online music system. You can simply and easily create playlists and embed them on your blog. Now you can listen and write at the same time to your own or to others playlists.

Thought it would make a nice addition to my new music blog.

Oh, and did I mention that Blogmusik is free? What are you waiting for? Go on, share your music taste with the rest of us … don’t you know it tells us more about your personality?

Web Day at MarketingProfs

Web 2.0

It looks like it is web day over at MarketingProfs!

Gerry McGovern has a great post reminding us of the importance of designing websites that can be easily managed and updated. His post, Web Sites: Designed by Dogs, Managed by Cats, describes the enthusiasm of web designers and also the need to balance this with the "cool" of cats — to sit back and plan for action.

This is something I also touch on in my new post — The Importance of a "Web Strategy" — not the cat/dog thing, but the need for a plan — and a smart plan at that. Check it out.

Oh So Pretty

Creativity

Littledeviantthumb Normally I complain about car companies not being creative enough in their marketing, so I was pleasantly surprised to see this beautifully executed site for Scion (thanks to the good folks at Organic). It is a Tim Burton-esq world in which we grown ups can play with the Scion brand.

It seems like the car companies are really digging into the online world all of a sudden — as Katie points out — Ford’s latest moves are much more impressive than their bold moves of not so long ago. Who says you can’t teach an old dog?