The radical speed that is changing the way business is conducted is the same as which drives the process of design (innovation). Bruce Nussbaum recently spoke at Innovation Night at the Royal College of Art in London and his interesting talk is now available on BusinessWeek
How to hire the best people you've ever worked with by Marc Andreessen (Mr Netscape/Mosaic). It's not all about 'intelligence' it's about drive, curiosity and ethics.
Clement Mok gives his perspective on why advertising is broken and the new models that are replacing the outdated system. Meanwhile Pete Blackshaw, Chief Marketing Officer at Nielsen BuzzMetrics, discusses the use of data-mining technology and deep research to measure CGM (consumer generated media) for clients.
By promoting numbers in magazines, commercials and other forms of advertising, companies are now starting to look at the possibility of selling directly to customers via text message.
With advertisers looking for more ways to get their message out - more agencies are looking at viral, guerrilla, and ambient methods. Metropolis magazine thinks these methods will become old and weaken our 'trust filters'. A new survey by media post suggest marketers see this style of marketing as nothing more than a fad.
Trendwatching look to what consumer trends will take off in 2007
A simple 3 steps to turn your ideas into reality from Eric Hill
Brandchannel look at some of the trends that will define branding in 2007
As companies around the world try to mimic Apple's iPod success, BusinessWeek looks at the substance behind Apple's style.
The best customers are the customers that are passionate about your product. How do you make a customer a true believer?
Is burnout the gap between 'expectation and reward' or is it just one side of your personality being under used while the other side is pushed to it's limit? New York Magazine looks at Burnout
With 'Innovation' being the latest buzzword within business more large corporations are looking for unique thinking that hasn't been pushed out of the standard MBA course. BusinessWeek look at this new phenomenon and Core77 have some suggestions for designers who wish to break into this new area
Some tips on avoiding common mistakes made by startups.
While some are talking about Social Media Optimisation (promoting your products to the social network sites like MySpace) others see the internet as a place to deposit their TV commercials on YouTube hoping to access the millions that trawl through their videos. But when your audience is sceptical of advertising new techniques are being used to slip them in under the radar - what is real on YouTube?
The old advertising adage 'Sex Sells' seems to be not so true
Food outlets in Britain are finding that their customers do not always purchase their product based on price. It is becoming more common that shoppers are looking at the source and content of their food before they make the decision to buy. These new 'ethically aware' food outlets/growers and distributors are not your stereotypical hippies either - this new wave is expanding out of the niche and coming to a store near you - Ethical consumerism
The old maxim 'The customer is always right' dates back to Harry Gordon Selfridge, the founder of Selfridge’s department store in London in 1909 - but times have changed and here are ten reasons why the customer is not always right
It's not always about consuming - there is now a growing desire to produce. With new channels to sell through (re: eBay) a new trend has emerged - the Minipreneur
If you are interested in what makes the publishing world go around then here is a good statistical resource. For example: They pay an average of $276.25 for illustration on each book, $465.17 for a simple cover design to as much as $3,533.26 for a complex cover design, between $5 and $18 per page for interior page layout and on average it takes 475 hours to write a fiction title and 725 hours to write a nonfiction title.
A good look at the business behind running a business using eBay as the sales point
Lord Saatchi of Saatchi & Saatchi and now M&C Saatchi fame has come up with his new management fad - 'One Word Equity' - John from Brand Tarot takes a look at this pointless attempt to revitalise the advertising industry.
China's desire for fashionable luxury products is driving a resurgence in the handmade 'artisan'/craft industries within Italy.
"Hong Kong people enjoy looking for 'flaws' on handbags, clothes they see on others. 'Look, that's a fake. I can tell, the buttons are different,'" said Bobo Lee, a shopper in Hong Kong. "Chinese shoppers like me, I definitely would not buy any named brand products that are 'Made in China.' It's a real turn-off. I would immediately throw it back on the shelf."
According to Mintel's GNPD (Global New Products Database) in 2005 a new product was launched every 3.5 minutes
When commercial entities climb into bed with cultural entities how symbiotic is the relationship?
Wal-Mart are looking at trademarking the smiley face
If you need to make flowcharts quickly and easily try this little technique of printing out graphics onto blank business card stock. Write on them and move them around - the five minute flowchart
When Japanese company NEC found out that fake 'NEC' CDs were being sold in Beijing and Hong Kong, they hired an investigator to track down the perpetrators.
What the investigator found was that these fake CDs were being sold by a fake NEC company. This fake NEC company had links to a network of more than 50 electronics factories in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan and had developed their own range of consumer electronic products - everything from home entertainment centers to MP3 players - counterfeiting a company
The Royal Society for the Arts have an interesting selection of MP3s to listen to. Topics range from 'Is the internets golden age over?' to 'Transhumanism: the next stage in human evolution?'
With more people avoiding marketing messages companies have begun to sponsor, script and produce television programming, film and various other media. One of their outlets has become YouTube
What happens when innovators step outside of the confines of a genre and start blending/fusing or cutting new ground? Hayagreeva Rao from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, looks at the how chefs in Europe were welcomed/rejected by their peers once they started to blend the old with the new.
Saatchi & Saatchi, have created a new girl group, ready to go. Anyone with the right amount of money can purchase this currently unnamed group and sponsor their tours, names, song styles and lyrics. It's an off-the shelf group - for the right price
Harvard Business School article on what can be learnt from the browser wars at the turn of the 21st century
Rachel Rosmarin from Forbes writes about the smaller businesses that exist around the internet phenomenon MySpace
A day in the work life of Bill Gates
Stanford Law professor Lawrence Lessig is well known for his unique presentation techniques such as using one colour backgrounds and single words to convey his message. Presentation Zen, talk about his method here. Presenter, Aigars Mahinovs discusses his technique at creating these unique types of presentations.
Two different ways to look at managing your staff. The google way or the Despair way
A new online marketplace for handmade goods from all over the world - Etsy
Brand channel look at some of the best examples of product placement for 2005
BusinessWeek look at Built NY and their two bottle tote bags. A simple idea that could be easily ripped off. The company has protected their ideas, grown their range and now employ 27 full time staff, bringing in over $18 million in sales.
Does sitting around in a group trying to come up with ideas really work? Does group creativity give the best results? The British Psychological Society sees this technique of brainstorming as an ‘illusion of group of productivity'
Guy Kawasakai gives his insights into the Art of Schmoozing
After 25 years and 1,500 versions of print ads built around the shape of its bottle, Absolut vodka is shelving the campaign that made it famous. Absolut vodka has dropped the bottle from it's new $20 million advertising campaign.
Tom Doctoroff from JWT has compiled "Twelve Facts About the Confucian Consumer" an insight into the Chinese worldview.
Internet advertising has been hailed as the perfect way to target your customers directly - unlike mainstream advertising which tries to sell products and services to people that aren't interested. But what happens when the clicks you are paying for are being made by your competitors, purely so they can use up your advertising budget? Wired looks at Click Fraud in online advertising.
Forty Media look back at their first year in business and discuss what they have learned.
As those in the persuasion industry wake up to half the marketplace being women, a rush to 'pinkwash' their retail outlets and products has resulted in some 'Technology stores' desperately attempting to connect. - via popgadget
More than just a rock group, U2 have been selling music and all that surrounds it for over 25 years. IHT look at how U2 continue to perform sell out concerts while their peers find it difficult to get any media coverage - The business of U2: It's more than music
Developed by ID Magasin, this new device has found that in 90 minutes, the test subject saw 250 adverts from more than 100 brands in 70 different formats - the number recalled without prompting was 1.
November 25th, Adbusters have decided that this day should be 'Buy nothing day'
Luxury goods in China are being bought at up to 10 times the rate of the rest of the world.
Coca-Cola, the world's biggest brand, is in trouble. It's share price has halved over the last seven years as the company struggles to deal with the growing trend for new, healthier drinks.
The Economist looks at product placement.
The Guardian looks at some of the techniques the marketing and advertising industries are using to turn todays children into avaricious consumers.
Is viral advertising separating the content from the advertising? or is the advertising the content? Either way, it's a growing business.
Fortune talk to Landor Associates about 10 companies that have taken their brands to new heights.
"Bootstrapping" refers to setting up a business without any funding- relying solely on your own skills, money and efforts. Keith Robinson at Lifehacker, gives some tips and lessons on how to avoid the many pitfalls along the way.
Books, DVDs, Toys, Cars... MSN Money have a list of 10 things you shouldn't buy new
How do you take an idea and make it something real? What if you don't even have an idea? - Paul Graham has some
The British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) are suggesting that insuring your mobile phone is a waste of money.
When a product is placed within a film or television programme, the recall by viewers is less than 20% - unless you promote your product placement.
Kevin Roberts (CEO of Saatchi) has been signed up to help the Pentagon spin the War on Terror into something more palatable.
The 'tone' that is used within a business' written communications can convey a culture that consolidates the values of a company. But confusing the idea of 'tone' with managerial jargon can have the reverse effect creating a dull lifeless organisation. - Brandchannel
Some good tips on contemporary branding practice
Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation have expanded their online prescence with the purchase of online games network IGN.
The business of spotting the latest trend in consumer behaviour constantly comes under fire for providing insights into consumer direction with very little to back up them up.
The Independent Online looks at this maturing industry and how it's role is changing.
Reebok's new ad campaign is based on funding the production of music videos - where the product shares centre stage with the performer. Not a new concept, just more 'honest'
If your manager is driving you crazy here are 5 tips that might help
Brands like Bombay Sapphire and Bailey's Irish Cream use myth and heritage to add authenticity to their products. Is this trickery or a common method used in developing brands?
If you're bored of your current job you could find your dream job in 33 days and then use these 10 easy ways to sharpen up your resume
Has the current business climate making the business world a safe haven for psychopaths? Fast Company asks the question 'Is your boss a psychopath?'
Advertisers are using scientific termonology to make the products they sell more believable - but when put to the scientific test very few actually pass.
Keeping on top of everything is a full time job, this list of list categories are sure to help out.
A new study of over 30,000 consumers have found that American brands have slipped in the likeability stakes.
The next wave of advertising techniques/technology is creating excitement among the faithful. But few are willing to make that leap in case these new forms of 'intimate persuasion' are not appreciated by the marketplace.
It is all about the clash of cultures
Unable to advertise on American television, top alcohol brands are using product placement as a way to get in front of consumers. But watchdog groups are concerned with what groups they are trying to get their product in front of.
Paul Graham looks at how those who do things for the love of doing it (amateurs) are changing the way business operates - something that todays businesses need to take note of.
If your work day is filled with boring meetings that don't go anywhere, then you may be interested in these 10 steps to better meetings.
Following on from this article on the creative economy and The Harvard Business Review - Business week online has joined in - it's no longer the knowledge economy, it's the creative economy.
If you invoice customers via the internet, then you might be interested in trying Blinksale
If you spend to much time being 'connected' and not enough time getting 'the job' done then maybe you are being 'driven to distraction'
Some good tips to help with making presentations.
The Harvard Business Review have a good article on the future of successful management within the creative economy
Tips on how to buy and sell on eBay from a student in Canada
An interesting look at the current competition between 'Yellow Page Publishers' who 'own the advertisers' and Internet publishers who 'own the consumer'.
Capturing the consumer zeitgeist is becoming easier by following the blogosphere, the Wall Street Journal looks at this new marketing tool.
Seth Godin talks about making the product better by telling a good story, an authentic story and a story that is different from your competitors.
Nike's relaunch of the NikeID site is seen as a way for consumers to differentiate the products they buy and that this customization trend (re: iPod and mobile phone covers) will only get bigger.
There is more to Ecko than the Rhino - it's all about the brand permeating vertically through culture. Marc Ecko knows where he is going.
Dyson, the vacuum cleaner has stormed the American market taking 21% of the market from other multinationals - Hoover (16%) and Kirby (14%). Another good example of design playing a major role in product success.
Fast company asks some top 'brands' what they have learned from selling themselves to sell their products - those asked include Tony Hawk, Todd Oldham and Nigella Lawson
Using 'design thinking' to develop a more competitive product.
Why are top business women dropping out?
3M come up with an interesting way to promote their new product
With the expiration of Lego's patent they are now turning to trademark and design to protect themselves from the competition - NYT [bugmenot]
When Dell CEO Kevin Rollins called the iPod a "fad...a one product wonder" the usually restrained CEO was showing how little he understands the home market.
Is the iPod the razor or the blade? Robert X Cringely looks at Apple's business model.