practical small business and marketing strategies

Waiting for the Next Generation of Hulu

2010-03-07T07:09:00Z

They almost had me hooked. The concept is sound. The technology is good. But there are two things wrong with hulu. One, they have a really crappy selection of movies so far. Two, there are already too many damned commercials, and very bad ones at that.

Just the other day I was enjoying a particularly interesting episode of Stargate Atlantis. But to my dismay, every five minutes and without synchronization with the show breaks, I was bombarded by commercials, bad ones at that.

Listen,I don't mind a short ad or two during the course of a show, being that I'm a marketer and all. The most enlightened advertisers are those that merely offer a brief bit about their sponsoring the show or film. But a commercial every five minutes? Sorry, that's just not going to fly.

So after what looked initially to be a wonderfully matched relationship, two months later I'm done. I'll wait for the next generation of Hulu. What will they be like? They'll be subscription based for sure, perhaps with tiered options. They will have a far, far better selection of movies for sure. They will have an expanded repertoire of TV show as well. Probably online gaming options, too.

A girl can dream.

Sign of the Times: Another Local Small Business Closes

2010-02-27T03:54:00Z

It's Friday night and after a long work day I can now reflect on the news a friend of mine told me yesterday. They are closing their coffee shop/cafe...tomorrow.

It was three years ago when they first opened their doors to the public. Three years ago they graced the landscape with an interior and atmosphere that rivaled Starbuck's in their hey day. This cafe had style. They had an in-house chef. There was live music on Friday nights and Saturday mornings. Local artists' work gave the interior a changing mood and color. Oh, yes, and there was very drinkable coffee.

Business grew and as of late, it's been bustling. Nonetheless, they are closing their doors. The high cost of their storefront rent and the rigidity of their landlord to renegotiate it has priced the cafe out of business. Strangely, the landlord doesn't see a problem with the fact they've only had two renters the past couple of years, and now there will be only one. And they apparently missed the memo about the commercial real estate fall out.

It's one thing when a business closes because it failed to meet customer demands. It's another to watch a one that did, fold. It is a sign of the times on many levels. All I can tell my friend is that they can be very proud of what they did achieve. They took an idea, wrapped it in style and taste, and turned it into a business that won over customers like me. I thank them for gracing the community and for a friendship that developed in the process.

Weighing in on the Tiger Woods Speech

2010-02-19T22:59:00Z

The carefully crafted, carefully staged Tiger Woods speech absolutely begs at least two questions. First, what's up with the timing? Why does Woods' team say that it couldn't have waited until Monday, as opposed to running smack dab in the middle of the Accenture tournament?

Secondly, given the nature of the speech itself, was anything the man said really newsworthy? To us there was nothing that Woods said that couldn't have been said sooner...or later for that matter.

Our take on the speech? We agree with those commentators who deem it self-serving and illogically timed. Certainly in the months to come we may learn there was indeed a strategy to the timing in particular. But right here, right now, Woods and his posse must contend with the response to this one singular event---an event orchestrated to make it appear more important than it actually was. Because if you read the speech script, there was nothing new or enlightening offered. Indeed, it reads choreographed to appeal to each and every anticipated viewer, hitting on gleaned touch points along the way, but avoiding reference to any substantive corrective actions. This opposed to a heartfelt confession from a truly humbled individual.

As crisis management goes, we are among those who find Woods' PR team woefully wanting. From the beginning that team failed to move swiftly or effectively in response to the tsunami-sized wave of scrutiny of the November 2009 car accident. Today's speech does little to change our perspective. In fact, we are left with the impression that these guys are simply thumbing their noses at Joe Public, by showcasing their ability to manipulate media scheduling with what turns out to be banal sound bites, and implying that they know things they have no intention of sharing.

In summary, we are not impressed. As Woods himself said, from hereon in it will be his actions that ultimately speak for him.

The Customer is Superfluous

2010-02-16T20:08:00Z

Customer service? We don't need no stinking customer service.

From online marketing and finance services to an organic foods producer, we're simply exasperated by the lack of sales skills and customer service focus each of these companies has demonstrated. Cocky salespeople without a clue are the bane of our marketing existence. The organic foods producer we mention pointedly put the responsibility in our hands to motivate a local store to carry more of their products. God forbid they'd do the job themselves or launch an e-commerce solution. But hey, we're just a lowly customer, right?

Honestly, and as relates to the vast array of marketing service companies we've encountered in recent years, only one representative has demonstrated a true skill for sales and customer service. That's right, just one. We'd love to give her a medal. Or perhaps MCTT should launch an awards program honoring her and her very rare breed. On the other hand, there may be too few entries to make the program worthwhile.

If your company cannot sincerely express focus on the customer, than at least learn how to fake it well. Buyers like us will greatly appreciate the effort, and bestow you with initial orders and return business.

The U.S. Economy and Paradoxical Realities

2010-02-14T20:40:00Z

As we traverse the tenth year or so of this particular "recession" I continue to come across perplexing realities that defy logic. What about you? What have you found odd or illogical?

Doctors offices where the first question is "may I have your insurance card?" as if that is still the norm.
Online news reports about the precipitous drop of women getting regular mammograms and speculations as to why.
Big ticket items sold out on etsy via their email blasts.
Community banks with exact replicas of big bank "small business" lines of credit offerings and criteria.
Anyone surprised to learn how many people have been reduced to living in their cars or worse, and how quickly it can happen.
The still high prices of organic products/foods regardless of the fact the industry has matured and grown exponentially. In any other industry consumer prices would have fallen by now. Apparently the term organic does not go hand-in-hand with the terms integrity and communal good.

There are more examples I could share, but these particular items have been brewing in my head for the past week. I'd be interested to hear yours.

Dear NBC and VOC, I Won't be Watching the Winter Olympics

2010-02-13T15:33:00Z

While I applaud the opening ceremonies salute to fallen luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, I find the quick and dirty "investigation" results into the cause of his death deplorable. So to NBC and the Vancouver Olympics Committee I say, don't count me among those tuning into this year's Winter Olympics. I wish I could support all of the other athletes who have worked so hard to compete at this level, but I cannot be party to yet another example of the exponential growth of institutional irresponsibility.

I completely agree with Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports

Cross-Cultural Marketing Test: Think You Know China? Think Again

2010-02-03T22:35:00Z

MCTT has been a proponent of cross-cultural intelligence for a long time, so it's great to see coverage of related topics and specifically insights such as those of P.T. Black, partner at Jigsaw International, a boutique lifestyle research agency in Shanghai that looks at the direction of change in China, particularly among young adults.

Check out his article "Think You Know China? Eight Things Foreigners Get Wrong"

Practical Entrepreneurship 3.0 / The Quick and Dirty Reference

2010-02-02T23:31:00Z

Entrepreneurship is both dream and nightmare. The dream is you get to decide what your business will be, how you will run it, the type of customers/clients you ultimately want to have and not have. You have the flexibility to change direction if you want, make modifications on the fly.

These days your company can be totally virtual. Or it can have a storefront/offices with virtual business tools. Know that his transparency can be both gift and albatross. Know that the iPad and other tools like it bring the upside of yet more mobility, along with downside of being locked into proprietary platforms.

On the nightmare side your success can create as much stress as potential failure, because your business saps time and energy. It takes Olympian dedication. It demands personal sacrifice.

Like anything else in life, there is both good and bad to being an entrepreneur. The key is going in with your eyes wide open and fully prepared.

REALITY CHECK 3.0

Unless you are either brilliant or lucky with V.C. or Angel funding, be prepared to manage your business on a cash basis, as credit lines have been slashed or closed across the board.
- Other financing options are community banks, credit unions, and more creative options you will need to assess with great care (see the February 2010 issue of Entrepreneur "Bankology" article for details).
Successes like Tatto Media are still more the exception than the rule.
- Beyond a great idea, what generally facilitates such college student start-up success is:
  - No business experience baggage/major preconceptions
  - High energy and fewer life distractions
  - Team bonding virtually unparalleled in the business world
  - Luck and great timing

For more pedestrian small businesses, if you will, owners on a daily basis must balance huge workloads with family matters, cash flow constraints, employee issues, not so flashy business ideas and models...all while pursuing new business and managing operations. FYI, just because this is the case does not make your business any less important than that of the likes of Tatto.

While so-called experts like to refer to Entrepreneurship 3.0 as the true blend of lifestyle and business, the reality is that has always been the case. You live and breathe your start up. It becomes woven into the fabric of your life.

THE BOTTOM LINE 3.0

At the very least, entrepreneurship gives you a chance to divine your own destiny. It provides the means to pursue a passion or a different lifestyle. You can redefine who you are. And whether you succeed or not is in both your and fate's hands, not someone else's. At best you succeed to the point you have gained control over your destiny and no longer have to worry about money from month to month. You create a new paradigm in your own existence. And perhaps along the way you manage to make others' lives better in the process.

Late Night War: Kimmel Scores with A+ Mockumentary

2010-01-22T19:36:00Z

Lesson Learned from Fish, Part II

2010-01-17T23:44:00Z

This morning I found our smaller Chinese algae eater lying belly-side up in the three gallon tank, with Peetie the Danio hovering over him. She was frantic; trying to help Mr. Chang. I ran for my husband for help (as I am still too ignorant in the ways of fish), knowing he was dying. Doctor Husband removed both fish from the tank and completely cleaned it of the egg debris Peetie had created earlier in the week, in case Mr. Chang simply couldn't breath because of it. Once the tank was back to pristine condition, both fish were returned to their home.

From that moment forward there's been a Mr. Chang watch. Diligent Peetie has nurtured her cross-species man along, as he has slowly shown signs of regaining a bit of his former health. Just now, while I checked in on them both, I watched as Peetie did an amazing thing. She lowered herself to the algae wafer my husband dropped in a while ago and lifted it up with her nose. She then swam over Mr. Chang, then back to the wafer. Again she lifted it with her nose then went back and swam over Mr. Chang, more and more frantically each time. And then it dawned on me. She's trying to get Mr. Chang to eat. She's still doing so at this moment. She knows he's weak, still vulnerable. Peetie is determined that he recover.

Earlier today I read that Danios tend to mate for life, which is up to five years. Being that we found Peetie abandoned alone in a tank in a rental home, we can only guess that she is now about one and a half years old. Chinese algae eaters can have a ten year lifespan. That our algae eater is only an estimated six months old means he should be given every chance to live to a ripe old age. If Peetie has anything to say about it, he will.

Ever since I truly opened my eyes to how our fish live among each other; paid more attention to them individually, I have become awe struck. They are as individual and unique as each of us humans. They demonstrate compassion. They can be competitive. They have social structures. They convey joy. They feel sorrow. They can play. They use tools. They can be fickle in the ways of love or completely devoted.

I'm learning priceless lessons from a source I could never have imagined I would. But at this very moment I simply hope that Mr. Chang will be all right.

Lesson Learned from Fish

2010-01-13T00:57:00Z

My husband and I have two fresh water fish tanks at home. We inherited the first one, along with one very tenacious Danio with a strong survival streak. The second tank we got once we introduced a bunch of new fish to the first one and the Danio proved to be somewhat of a bully. Now he/she shares a small tank with a Chinese algae eater; we suspect they are a couple now.

The bigger tank seems to be run by a large and growing Chinese algae eater we call Mr. Chin. While he had been a recluse since we brought him home, recently we've noticed he's become much more comfortable in front of us. He's even taken to playing with a marble he discovered, scooting it around with his nose across and around the entire tank. In fact, he's playing with right now as I write about him.

Mr. Chin also decided he didn't like the location of his home, aka the partial "sunken ship." So, he redesigned it by pushing it over until the open bottom was sideways, making his exit much easier. He's in process with some additional excavation, the goal of which we're waiting to see. Fascinating.

Over the course of a year and a half we've had fish, we've learned that the Perches are pretty sedentary and shy. The yellow Glow fish are hilarious and gregarious, and aren't bothered by the hand that feeds them.  They have a ton of energy. One of them, Yellow Man, is a speed freak and likes to do fast laps around the tank. Meanwhile, the two Neons tend to be watchers. Neo, for one, is friendly and mild-mannered.

Speaking of mild-mannered. Our three bottom feeders are very sweet and non-plussed by Mr. Chin who always manages to get in their way while on his food hunt.   Two of them often park next to each other at the front of the tank for time out from their almost constant dining. One of those seems smitten with the third, smaller and spotted bottom feeder who's normally hiding behind a shell in the back of the tank.

While I already knew that humans by no means have a monopoly on personality, emotions, thought processes, and tool usage, I have been very pleasantly taught that these attributes extend to fish and beyond.   The lesson is both eye-opening and humbling.

2010 Marketing Predictions

2010-01-07T23:17:00Z

MARKETING PREDICTIONS FOR 2010
Everyone's making them, so why shouldn't we? Why shouldn't you for that matter?

First, here's a brief bulleted summary of what the MCTT team has heard and read:

Mobile marketing/e-commerce is hot, white hot...finally.
Android is the hot mobile operating system, red hot.
Community marketing is the new marketing mecca.
Augmented Reality...show it as it will be and they will come.
Pay-for-Content publisher revenue models will pervade the online world.
Public Relations as we've known it: It's dead or on life support.
TV advertising faces down historic fork in the revenue road.
China is the holy grail of consumer sales.
Multiplatform media usage measurement pressure is applied.
Disenchantment with the novelty of video ads hits.
Online search functionality mutates as advertisers struggle to keep up.
2010 will witness the rise of the "social graph."

Here are some of our own predictions:

Mobile marketing is in fact coming into its own and then some.
Social media will continue to facilitate two- or more-way conversation. New developments will help reign in the time it takes to manage it all.
The inevitable growth of social media tracking devices should scare everyone and give pause as to how much personal information people share with the rest of the world. Additionally, everyone should be picky about which tracking cookies they allow to follow their every online move.
Offline marketing will continue to be a solid component of overall strategies for specific industries and markets.
PR is not what it used to be. The rules have changed and so have the channels for distribution.
Marketing budgets will continue to be tight, so marketers must use common sense and creativity to manage their constrained resources intelligently.
Success with the pay-for-content business model will logically hinge on how well publishers identify what consumers deem as valuable. Then again, if net neutrality fails publishers will get to do whatever they bloody well wish to and at the consumer's expense.
New technological developments arise on a regular basis, so in turn will the tools at marketers' disposal. What should always prevail is logic and common sense, followed by strategy.

COOL TREND ALERT: "Anti-static" Digital Billboards

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE FAME COMPLEX
Just as 2009 brought us loopy celebrity behavior, the fall of iconic sports figures and financial wizards, and in consideration of how cost-effective reality entertainment is, it looks like 2010 will bring us more of the same.

Which brings us to marketing by hanging one's company hat on celebrity ties. As we all have learned with the continuing Tiger Woods scandal and sponsor freefall, the moral of this story should be clear---that great thought and planning should be given to these relationships, the correlation between sponsor and celebrity reputation. Marketing on the coattails of a famous person's success is one thing. Betting on that person's ability to manage their personal integrity is quite another.

Along that line, have we all now read Miley Cyrus' proclamation that "my job is to be a role model"? LOL. All knowing at seventeen (and has been since she was fourteen), never stopping for air when she talks, generally about herself, interrupting her father in interviews to do it. Publically globetrotting with her older boyfriend. Looking for edgier music and films to do, to keep with her all-knowingness. Gag.

On the one hand she's proven to be marketable, obviously. On the other hand, she believes she can do no wrong, so how close is her image to imploding the way the supposedly more mature Woods' reputation did?

As a side note, none among us at MCTT ever buys anything simply because a star or athlete endorses it. We're also the same people who have no interest in buying any of the proliferation of celebrity-branded fragrances. We do, however, appreciate the undeniable value of fame and its contribution to sales. Again, we caution against drawing direct correlation between company and celebrity reputation.

Holiday Story: Entrepreneur Quietly Making a Difference with Cancer Patients; You Can Help

2009-12-07T13:44:00Z

Willie Zuniga is a jewelry designer. Willie is also a cancer survivor. Most importantly, Willie is a fine human being with a big heart. In the process of navigating her own journey through illness, her interaction with other cancer patients sparked an idea that has become a full-blown program called "Angels in the Parlour."

Willie's story struck such a cord with us that we want to share it with you. The holiday season seems the perfect time to do so. Here is her story, in her own words, straight from her Esty shop profile.

Welcome! My name is Willie Zuniga, and I thank you for visiting Morning Glory Designs.

I offer an heirloom-quality selection of vintage style jewelry, reminiscent of the Victorian and Renaissance eras. Each piece is hand-crafted with exceptional care, in the hope that it will be cherished for generations.

I first began making jewelry during a long illness, and what began as a means of keeping busy soon became a passion. I returned to work briefly, but in 2003 my recurring illness forced me to leave my job permanently.

It was a terribly difficult time. I couldn't imagine how I would remain a productive, useful person without working, let alone learn to live with the results of the surgeries and treatments that were required.

During this time, I came across a website featuring Victorian style jewelry components, VintageJewelrySupplies.com (Originally AccessoriesSusan.com). There I found a whole world of Susan's creations, design ideas and lesson plans, all using the most beautiful components I'd ever seen. (Lesson plans and photos can now be found at her new instructional site, FiligreeJewelrySupplies.com.)

I immersed myself completely in learning to design with the amazing products she offers. Although I was still very sick, this process shifted the focus away from my seemingly hopeless health problems, and on to the timeless beauty of vintage design.

During my day-long hospital treatments, I often worked on my jewelry. When other patients showed an interest, “Angels in the Parlour” was born. I started bringing extra tools and supplies along, and soon we had a small group of budding designers ... all very sick, but each surely changing what might have been a terribly dismal time.

As a result, I have formed many treasured friendships, and most cherished of these is that with Susan Street, the owner of VintageJewelrySupplies.com. Susan continues to give freely of her time, experience and resources, and truly makes the Angels project possible by maintaining a high standard of quality and variety in her components. Even a beginner can make something extraordinary!

I hope you’ll take a moment to look through my “Angels in the Parlour” category. 100% of your purchase from this section will be used to buy supplies for our project, and whenever possible I’ll feature items made by the patients themselves as well. Although my hospital visits are just once every three weeks at this time, I additionally hold informal jewelry-making “classes” in my home, and no patient is ever asked to pay any dues or fees.

I am honored by the company of these courageous and amazing women, and blessed by their example. While fighting the greatest battles of their lives, they create and dream, laugh and cry, and share their strengths and sorrows. I am eternally grateful to these "angels," for through them I have not only made peace with my situation, but have found a happier and more productive, useful life than I ever dreamed possible.

We encourage you to visit Morning Glory Designs on Etsy, to see Willie's beautiful designs for yourself. Should you purchase any of the "ANGELS" designs, know that 100% of the proceeds go back into the Angels in the Parlour program.

Thank you, Willie, for allowing us to share your story. Best wishes to you and Angels in the Parlour.

Tiger Woods: The Dismantling of a Living Legend; Lessons to be Learned

2009-12-03T22:39:00Z

Over the course of days that have passed since news of Tiger woods' car accident broke, we have all watched this sports legend's public image unravel before our eyes. It's jarring for many reasons. It's been fast and furious. It's been devastating. It affects not only sports fans, but a range of groups and individuals who admired this athlete for other attributes considered as formidable and worthy of respect as his golfing talent.

This singular individual who so riveted even a non-sports watcher like myself with his breathtaking grace, style, and success on the golf course, who has achieved historical fame and fortune and won our collective respect, is falling from grace at mack speed. From a PR standpoint, it's mutated into a problem of Olympic proportions. From a societal standpoint, many people feel betrayed to a degree that could not be anticipated.

As Tiger Woods attempts to navigate this personal and public nightmare, there are a few business lessons to take away from this sad development.

BUSINESS MARKETING LESSONS TO BE LEARNED

Don't believe your own PR.
- Too often companies as well as celebrities come to think they are as good as their PR portrays them to be, then they are surprised to learn they do in fact display the human frailties the rest of us possess.
Don't hide behind your public image.
- If your company profile to the world is merely a facade, the truth may just catch up and then you'll then have to work hundred-fold to save face as well as your business. Instead, try living up to the qualities you promote.
Be prepared.
- Don't wait until it's too late to find out a crisis management plan is needed. If your business is highly visible, any required damage control needs to be swift and well-thought out. Better yet, consider the degree of damage that can result from making mistakes you hope will go unnoticed, and avoid making those particular mistakes all together.

Lady Gaga: Marketing Goddess

2009-11-27T23:16:00Z

We are Lady Gaga fans. We think she's got talent and personality in spades. We love her music, her videos. Her style is off the charts.

She's literally exploded onto the music scene. Her songs and videos have caught on like wild fire. Her style is raising eyebrows and setting trends. She's making the press rounds. All seemingly out of nowhere.

At 23 Lady Gaga's a marketing goddess. Here's why. She clearly:

Defined her product
Determined her target audience
Established her core messaging
Identified her marketing outlets
Created competitive differentiation
Delivered on the promise
Made smart business moves: Lessons for the Music Business

Lady Gaga's official site

FYI, when we think of Lady Gaga style we're reminded of Jean Paul Gaultier's costumes for The Fifth Element. Futuristic, unique, with a sense of humor.

Uber Cool Solar-powered Gear

2009-11-02T15:01:00Z

Here's a fine way to make your Monday enjoyable. Check out these "can't wait to get my hands on" solar-powered gadgets. See the slide show from Fast Company.

Guest Blog Entry: 3 trends that will Shape the Digital World over the Next Decade

2009-10-26T13:28:00Z

Reprinted with permission
Author: Greg Satell of Digital Tonto (About Greg)

This article first appeared on August 16, 2009 @ 10:33 pm. At MCTT we're absolutely fascinated with technology as well as marketing trends, particularly as related to the possibilities with Quantum computing. Therefore, we hope you enjoy Greg's article as much as we do.

We’re often consumed by what will change over the next few years, but taking a longer view can be more interesting and instructive. Some of the world’s smartest people are hard at work developing amazing things that will dramatically change the way we interact with technology and each other over the next decade. Here are a few of them:

1. Virtually free and unlimited bandwidth and storage
This is so important that Chris Andersen (of “Long Tail [1]” fame) just wrote an entire book about it: “Free [2]“. Storage and bandwidth, already fairly substantial, are improving performance and cost efficiency even faster than processor speed is . The marginal cost is falling to practically zero.

The trend is significant because it changes usage drastically. What is scarce is conserved but what is abundant is used freely. The days of waiting those agonizing few minutes for web pages to load are already long past. When we can trade full length movies as easily as we can download web pages and store as many as we want, the way we interact with media will change. The restriction won’t be download time, but real time (as rock bands today give away their music but charge for performances).

As people become able to colloborate on media like they do a PowerPoint presentation, we can expect to see a lot more “peer to peer” stuff with people creating and sharing back and forth – Marshal McLuhan [3] style. If you think about where storytelling, music, and other performance media would fit into a “Global Village” – a virtual campfire without any boundaries – you can imagine all sorts of primordial things that people will want to do digitally: sing-a-longs, treasure hunts, mythmaking, etc.

2. Quantum Computing [4] and encryption
In order for technology to advance, computers need to get faster and cheaper. That’s been done successfully for 50 years, but now the ability to continue progress is threatened. If we can’t make chips faster, we can’t move forward. This is a big problem and researchers are working overtime to find an amazing solution! This one is a little bit hard to explain, so stay with me here…

Current Chip design is based on transistors [5], which were developed at Bell Laboratories [6] in 1947. They replaced vacuum tubes in electronic devices and were much smaller and more efficient. Transistors could have two positions, which could be translated into binary code (ones and zero’s). By producing a series of transistors it became possible to generate enough information to translate the ones and zeros into something intelligible. Everything computers can do today is limited to how many ones and zeros the computer chips can generate.

Eventually, William Shockley [7], the “father of the transistor’ left Bell labs to form Shockley Semiconductor. He was long on intelligence (and was a recipient of the Nobel Prize) but short on personal qualities and key members of his staff left to start Fairchild Semiconductor [8]. It was there that the silicon based integrated circuit [9] (what we now call computer chips) was invented in 1958. They key people at Fairchild would eventually form Intel [10].

Chips today are exactly like those in 1958, with one important difference: they have a lot more transistors. The transistors are basically drawn (etched) into silicon and the smaller they can be drawn, the more transistors can fit onto a single chip and the faster the processor speed (which means that the computer is both cheaper and more powerful). Current advances to chip design, for the most part, involve drawing the circuits smaller and smaller, but that’s about to change because it won’t be possible to draw the circuits smaller than a few atoms (and we’re approaching that limit).

We’re running out of space (measured in nanometers or billionths of a meter) that we can fit transistors into. The present “etching [11]” technology is coming to the end of its usefulness (current chip design already utilizes spaces just a few dozen atoms across). But what if we weren’t limited by ones and zeros anymore?

The most likely solution is Quantum Computing which goes beyond binary by using electrons’ energy states to record information. “Qubits [12]” (quantum processor units) will replace bits and processor speed will increase exponentially. We wouldn’t be limited by ones and zeros, but could utilize apotentially infinite amount of values between one and zero! There are still a lot of problems to be worked out, but there is a wide and intensive effort to solve them.

Another important aspect is that it’s possible that computers will become so powerful that current modes of encryption will become obsolete (using an algorithm developed by Peter Shor at MIT [13]). This is a potential nightmare scenario. It would have enormous consequences for e-commerce and any kind of electronic payment (to say nothing of the military significance). We won’t have to deal with this for at least a decade and so I’m sure it will get worked out. (One possibility, as outlandish as it sounds, could be teleported bandwidth). However, both the strength of the quantum processors and the solution to the encryption problem will both probably change the way we think about a lot of things.

3. Exploiting synergies between technologies and appliances
Way back in the 1987, Nobel Prize winning economist Robert Solow famously said “we see computers everywhere except in the productivity statistics.” Of course, soon afterwards productivity rose to levels not seen for 30 years, but the point is that it takes time for technology to be used effectively.

Up until the mid to late 90’s, the internet was in its infancy and people didn’t do things like collaborate on documents. Even e-mail wasn’t pervasive yet. It took time not only for people to adopt technologies into their daily routines but also for technologists to figure out how to make things work together. It was much like early in the 20th century when cars needed roads and gas stations to really change the way people live. Economists call this the “Productivity Paradox [14].”

We’re living in a unique time because, although we are still learning how to use the new technologies of ten years ago (i.e. social media), in the meantime important, paradigm shifting technologies are being developed (i.e. quantum computing). The most exciting things we can expect to see over the next decade will be based on how we will learn to use and combine the technologies that have just recently become available and how those technologies become further enabled by greatly increased processor speed, bandwidth and storage.

One of the amazing possibitities is Augmented Reality [15] based on the following three existing technologies:

RFID [16]: Radio Frequency Identification is a virtual “bar code” that can track objects and locate them in space.
High Definition Satellite Imagery: Widely available commercial satellite imagery makes available real time images of the earth that previously were available only to governments. It’s only a matter of time before the really cool military grade technology goes mainstream.
Holograms and Virtual Environments: With an expensive set of goggles, it is possible to walk through a virtual environment as if it were real. Moreover, as anybody who watched Barak Obama get elected on CNN knows, Holographic technology has come a long way, with 3-D volumetric displays [17]becoming more viable (watch video below).

Imagine a primtive verson of Star Trek’s “Holodeck.” Through combining those three technologies it is only a question of processing power and bandwidth before it is possible to change what it means to “watch” a performance. We may be able to not only attend a global event locally, but also interact with the event as it interacts with us, in real time.

These are just a few of the possibilities, there are many more. As far as we’ve come, it’s still “early days” and there are still a lot of exciting surprises in store for us…

- Greg

Watch video

Related posts

What's in a Name? Your Brand. Future Sales.

2009-10-19T21:13:00Z

Today's blog entry is specifically directed at startups and small businesses, but is just as pertinent to all other companies.

This weekend I visited a farmer's market in another city. It wasn't a big outdoor event, but there was a nice blend of merchants and some great items for sale. I was particularly drawn to a stall displaying a range of delicious looking breads. I bought two loaves. They smelled incredible all the way home. Today I tried the first one.

Oh, my. This loaf is delightfully aromatic with basil and Asiago cheese. You can see the herb and cheese. They are perfectly balanced in flavor and quantity. The texture is also perfection; a slightly crunchy crust and a soft yet dense interior. It is heaven on its own. It completes an awesome sandwich. I can't wait to try the second loaf, which appears to have just the right amount of Greek olives blended in.

These breads are so superior, so satisfying that I want to order more directly from the baker. But wait; how do I reach them? They gave me the loaves in an unmarked brown bag. They did not include a flyer or business card with my purchase. I don't know the name of the bakery or their location.

Here I sit, money in hand, no way to be a customer. Sigh.

Dear mystery bakery, why would you spend your time and resources at this farmer's market and NOT make sure customers have your name and contact information? Events of any kind are very expensive in terms of resources and labor. For pete's sake, don't waste all of your efforts by overlooking the point of being there.

So, listen up all of you startup owners and budding entrepreneurs. YOU NEED TO BRAND YOUR COMPANY, YOUR PRODUCTS/SERVICES EVERY CHANCE YOU GET!

Incongruity

2009-10-15T14:42:00Z

Here are two headlines I saw on Yahoo this morning, as they appeared. What's wrong with this picture?

• No cost of living increase for Social Security recipients
• Goldman Sachs profit tops $3B on strong trading

Need we say more?

Guest Blog: 5 Marketing Innovations for Recession Survival...a Case Study

2009-10-01T20:46:00Z

This is a particularly eye-opening case study presented by Nancy Schwartz, who advises non-profit organizations on marketing for success. We thank her for allowing us to reprint the study, from which we all can learn.

© 2009 Nancy E. Schwartz. All rights reserved.

About the Author
Nancy E. Schwartz helps nonprofits succeed through effective marketing and communications. Subscribe to her free Getting Attention e-update (http://www.nancyschwartz.com/getting_attention..html) and read her blog at http://www.gettingattention.org for more insights, ideas and great tips on attracting the attention your organization deserves.

5 Marketing Innovations for Recession Survival

Dear Readers,

Marketing your way through a recession is gritty, sweaty, get-your-hands-dirty work. Just when the need is greater than ever, resources are way down. And it's all too easy to let your dismay or fear seep through to your organization's base; which motivates lack of confidence, rather than increased support. The challenge here is to respond with courage and innovation. It's the only choice. That's exactly how Tracy Mitchell, General Manager of Sag Harbor, NY's nonprofit Bay Street Theatre, tackled her marketing dilemmas, even before the recession hit in full force. Read on to be guided, and inspired, by the way Bay Street has introduced new strategies into its marketing mix at minimal risk and cost!

All the best, Nancy

Nancy E. Schwartz, Editor & Publisher
Getting Attention


   ===========================================================


   (2) CASE STUDY: 5 Marketing Innovations for Recession
              Survival: Bay Street Theatre Expands
              Programming, Hours and Marketing to Grow
              Its Base and Revenue


   Every organization serving a geographically-sprawling base
   struggles to find feasible ways to build awareness and
   engagement among such a spread out group. Add to that
   the challenge of serving a community that's half-peopled
   by summer- or weekend-only folks (and so for over half
   the year has 50% of its summertime prospects), and you
   have every nonprofit marketer's worst nightmare.

   But every nightmare has its silver lining, as Tracy
   Mitchell, General Manager) of Bay Street Theatre in
   Sag Harbor, NY, shows here.


   CHALLENGE: Diverse Audiences Hard to Reach and Engage, Much
             Less Build into a Loyal Community of Supporters

   Even with a successful 18-year run under its belt,
   Sag Harbor, NY's Bay Street Theatre is threatened by
   the challenge of serving its diverse base as well as
   by the recession.
     http://www.baystreet.org/

   Bay Street is a vibrant arts and educational center seeking
   to satisfy residents' varying lifestyles, tastes and income
   levels. The theatre prides itself on delivering shows that
   "shake up expectations of what theatre is, to nudge you to
   look at the world a different way," says Mitchell.

   But there were two main barriers to Bay Street's health:

   * Potential audiences and supporters are spread over seven
     towns on the eastern Long Island shore, so aren't united
     by geographic community.

   * Residents range from full-time locals to more-monied
     second-home owners, some there for weekends and summers
     others for summers only. So both the population count
     and interests vary greatly.

   "Our greatest marketing challenge, even in good times, is
   reaching such a range of residents across the towns,"
   says Mitchell.

   Mitchell also felt confident that there were ways to
   engage those beyond Bay Street's traditional supporters
   (mostly in the 45 to 65 age range).

   Marketing-wise, Bay Street had relied heavily on print
   advertising, placing ads in seven subscription papers for
   the locals plus many freebie papers (read by seasonal
   residents) and related websites for all. But ads had
   become cost-prohibitive and, even if it hadn't been so
   costly, wasn't effective enough to keep Bay Street
   thriving as the recession settled in.

   Mitchell was also faced with the likelihood of former
   Bay Street patrons cutting attendance this past summer.
   Since Bay Street counts on ticket sales to cover
   47% of its operating budget (with the balance from
   donations and a few grants), Mitchell knew she had to
   find a "way beyond traditional marketing and programming
   to expand the theatre's role in residents' lives."


   STRATEGY: Putting New Programs, Hours and Outreach
            Campaigns into Play to Engage More People,
            More Regularly

   Knowing that the disconnect between residents' habits,
   preferences and wants and theatre offerings
   (summer-focused, closed January through March, not
   cheap) was the heart of the problem, Mitchell delved
   into refining programming to close that gap, and into
   marketing those changes more effectively.

   And understanding that shaping new programs requires
   experimentation (as well as a good sense of audience
   wants, needs and habits, which Bay Street had),
   Mitchell and colleagues decided to introduce a series
   of (relatively) low-cost programming changes.

   Here are the new strategies she introduced to boost
   audiences and revenue, and the impact of each:

   ==> Change: Keeping the theatre open the entire year,
               instead of its traditional closing January
               through March.

       Impact:
     * Demonstrates to year-rounders that Bay Street cares
       about their interests and needs, and is a real member
       of the community.
     * Provides a venue for the community when most others
       are shuttered.

   ==> Change: Scheduling family/children's programming for
               non-primetime hours (those are dedicated to
               theatre in high-season months), including a
               school vacation kids club and serving as a
               party venue.

       Impact:
     * Cultivates a new group of potential theatregoers
       (parents).
     * Fills a community-need for children's activities.
     * Utilizes an otherwise empty facility.

   ==> Change: Renovating the theatre's bar. Okay, this is
               not a traditional program but let's look at
               it as a program enhancement.

       Impact:
     * Makes any event at the theatre more of a destination.
       Attend a performance and have a drink right there.
     * High profit margin.

   ==> Change: Introducing an off-season classic film series
               for $5 a head; each film followed by a cabaret.
               Low cost to provide, and to attend.

       Impact:
     * Cost-accessible entertainment for those not likely to
       purchase a theatre ticket.
     * Builds awareness of Bay Street among attendees, and
       introduces theatre to them via the cabaret.

   ==> Change: Hosting community events; some, like the Oscar
               Night party, at no charge.

       Impact:
     * Establishing the Bay Street brand as "more than just
       an entertainment venue."
     * Drawing first-timers to Bay Street.
     * Emphasizes the theatre's dedication to the community,
       a key component of its mission.

   But the Bay Street team knew they'd have to market these
   new programs hard and creatively, particularly since they
   targeted those likely not to know the venue. Here's how
   they shook up their marketing approach:

   ==> Offering stay and dine packages, via partnerships
       with local restaurants and hotels. The discount
       lures residents into town, even off season.

       "It's a cost-free way to bring in more business.
        Our partners do some of our marketing for us,"
        says Mitchell.

   ==> Shifting from print ad-heavy marketing to adding
       posters (cheap and easy to distribute over a broad
       geographic area) and online marketing to the mix.

       A more robust website supplemented by a Facebook
       page, Twitter presence and weekly e-updates engage
       the younger demographic Bay Street is trying to
       court, at low cost. Mitchell is still refining
       these efforts but being there is the first step.

   ==> Reinforcing relationships with seasonal supporters
       through year-round emails and occasional direct mail.


   RESULTS: Broader Awareness, Increased Engagement,
        Diversified Income Streams

   Bay Street's hard work is paying off, with a much bigger
   network in place just one year later. And, because the
   theatre is nurturing its relationships with its early (i.e.
   more traditional) supporters, those relationships are
   stronger than ever.

   The theatre is benefiting from a greater range of
   income streams. That ensures greater stability, as there's
   some decrease of dependence on any one source. "I guess
   the biggest question remains who will spend money on
   theatre. It's a big unknown and we begin spending
   heavily on the summer shows (rights, rehearsal space,
   sets) in the spring," says Mitchell.

   "So we're doing what we can do, working to weave our
   programs into people's lives, way beyond theatre in the
   summer."

   However, Mitchell emphasizes that innovative marketing
   isn't a miracle cure. In spite of these changes and a 25%
   cut in operating budget, Bay Street's income is down.
   "We know it's due to the economy because we see it across
   every line item, from ticket sales to grants and individual
   giving. While we have built awareness and good will in the
   community, we hope that it will boost the $500,000 public
   appeal we just launched," she says.

   Mitchell's committed, realistic but inspired approach
   to marketing is a strong model for nonprofit organizations
   working in all arenas. Her perspective, and focus on
   creative survival, is the way to go at all times. It's the
   only choice in hard times.


   THE TAKEAWAY: 5 Marketing Innovations for Recession Survival

   Here's the beating heart of Bay Street's recession
   marketing model. Follow these five steps to see where your
   organization can go, at minimal risk and cost:

   1) Launch free or low-cost activities to reach new audiences.
      Attract people in a belt-tightened world.

   2) Partner with new groups and people.
      Everyone is hurting and looking for new ways to make
      things work.

   3) Strengthen your ties with your community or base.
      Double-down on your relationships during tough times.

   4) Gingerly expand your definition of your target market
      to see if tough times open up new synergies.

   5) Expand service offerings, if even only around the edges:
      e.g., food or bar service, children's programs.