livingbrands

The problem with brainstorms

Ran what I thought was a rather productive workshop with a client last week, using a methodology that takes FutureScoping as its launch pad (slight plug...and on general release soon!)

The idea of it is to avoid this kind of brainstorming navel gazing nonsense...

...because from my experience: blank sheet of paper + 'now be creative' = lots of (wasted) time + ideas which are slight variations on what happens currently, because we are constrained by what we already know.

There has to be a better way!

10 things we didn't know before the 13th week of 2008

1. Up to one quarter of the sand on shorelines can be composed of plastic particles.
2. nakes can give you salmonella poisoning.
3. Barack Obama was known as "Barry O'Bomber" at school because of his basketball prowess.
4. Lions were kept in the Tower of London in the 14th century.
5. In Brighton and Hove, there are 46 takeaway outlets and sweet shops for every secondary school.
6. Sharks can be used to predict storms.
7. Italy produces 33,000 tonnes of mozzarella each year.
8. Somalia, ranked the third most unstable country in the world in a recent stability index, has eradicated polio.
9. Hillary Clinton, Madonna, Angelina Jolie and the Duchess of Cornwall are all distantly related.
10. Human beings can detect danger through smell.

(Source: BBC)

New Cadbury Dairy Milk ad

Airport truck racing is here.

More comment to follow, I'm sure. But this is just a vain attempt to try and be first :-)

(That 8.52 am GMT on saturday 29th March)

Brand inspiration

Some nice research turned up by Tom Asacker, showing that people primed with a momentary glimpse of the Apple logo are more creative than those exposed to the IBM logo...who are also less creative than a control sample.

All of which may be a little harsh on IBM who, objectively, are much less the dull and grey monolith they once were. But, as in all thing, it's the emotional response that matters.

So brands matter (surprise!)...at least when it comes to tricks with bricks.

And if your brand has real and potent meaning, which is about more than a set of adjectives in a marketing document, it can have a significant (if subconscious) impact.

The economic crash and burn

(Johnthurm)

John Grant has just written a couple of very challenging posts on the current state of the economy.

He argues (and I would agree) that we are living in consumerist denial and way beyond our means. And that all the 'choice' and 'innovation' we enjoy is as chimeric as the 'growth' it purports to fuel.

Basically, there's a strong case for it all going horribly wrong if we don't find a different model to live by.

It's not even as if 'choice' is the panacea of happiness it's often made out to be, as this TED talk by Barry Schwartz (he of the Paradox of Choice) points out...

Or as Borat takes 4 painful minutes to demonstrate (because it's always worth watching again!)...

Clearly, this economic crisis of over consumption is inextricably linked to the equally significant crisis faced by the environment (maybe that's an eco-mental crisis then?).

But because it's impact will be felt more immediately and closer to home by those of us in the industrialised West, maybe it will take this economic downturn/meltdown to trigger (voluntarily or otherwise) changes that have a positive impact on the environment.

Which fits with a recent New Yorker piece by James 'Wisdom of Crowds' Surowiecki.

And with some of the things I've posted recently about slowing down and living more simply.

All of which I must admit to finding a continual challenge, given what I do...and how I increasingly feel about doing it. Although what value is there in running away?

Maybe it's better to be a dissenting (if often compromised) voice speaking from within. 

Slowing down in a world built for speed

I definitely think there is something in taking things slow, which is why I will recommend having a watch of this talk by journalist and author Carl Honore, from Ted 2005...

Because slow is sustainable!

PS Sorry if you've seen this before! I managed to delete by mistake, so this is a repost. I've been having problems with the TED embedded video player (possibly a function of moving to IE7) - at least at my end, But this alternative player seems to work.

10 things we didn't know before the 12th week of 2008

1. An obituary for Captain Birdseye appeared in the Times in 1971.
2. Arthur C Clarke wrote story-lines for the comic-book hero, Dan Dare.
3. The Easter Act 1928 fixes the date for Easter but the law has not been implemented.
4. The average child's clothing costs are £600 a year.
5. Lhamo Thondup was renamed Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso when he became the Dalai Lama aged 15.
6. Sleepwalking is linked to sleep deprivation.
7. The CND sign is based on semaphore for N(uclear) and D(isarmament) but it also signifies human despair.
8. Having alcohol in glass containers in football grounds in Scotland is illegal.
9. Men eat more Brussel sprouts and broccoli than women.
10. The most frequently used term of abuse in schools is "gay".

(Source: BBC)

Celebrate the truth of who you are

One of the things we always say to clients is that they need to celebrate the truth of who they are, rather than pretend to be something they're not. Even when, on the face of it, this truth doesn't seem immediately motivating, or may even be 'negative'. In fact, these are the times you have to be most confident. Because it's a human truth that if you can't be confident in yourself, can't like yourself, everyone else will feel the same way.

Vespa, in Canada, have a good example of this. You may be able to pick holes in the execution. But the idea is good. Overcome criticism the brand faces (in this case that a it isn’t a proper motorbike) by celebrating the truth of what they're really all about (Italian-style lurve machines).

The positive but humorously self deprecating tone makes current users feel good (I'm guessing) and gives confidence-boosting (post) justification to those on the cusp.

Do one thing and do it well

(Hungryblank)

Which is the Unix philosophy, and well worth following.

Thanks to Faris for pointing this out, and for a good piece on feature creep.

The Last Shadow Puppets

How talented is Alex Turner? Here's the first fruits of an Arctic Monkey's side project he's done with Miles Kane of The Rascals...

Say goodbye to gritty kitchen sink drama and hello late 60's widescreen soundscapes. All very Scott Walker.