Brains on Fire

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  And just for fun…

  Posted on October 31st, 2008 by Robbin and currently 0 commenting.

  Our very own Brains on Fire-Bot, Justin Gammon. IS that beautiful or what?

  
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  SWOMFest Wrap-up

  Posted on October 31st, 2008 by Spike and currently 5 commenting.

  Wow. What a great day October 30th was down in Austin, Texas. The founders of the Society of Word of Mouth, Jackie Huba and Ben McConnell, put on a whiz-bang event filled with great speakers ” and even more importantly ” great interaction.

  Here are some of the highlights:

  1. The event opened with a great Texas breakfast in an beautiful venue. Even better, DJ Mel was crankin’ out the tunes. A very cool way to get the blood pumping.

  2. As we all took our seats, we heard a very familiar sound coming through the sound system: Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller.’ And from out behind the curtains came Austin’s own Zombie Dancers who rocked out the entire song in full zombie attire. I think I even saw Jackie in the back gettin’ her groove on!

  3. Hayley Rushing, founder of GSD&M’s Purpose Institute, was inspiring as she talking about finding your purpose. Here are some of my tweets from her talk:

  -    It’s a privledge when people invite you into their lives and share what’s important to them.
  -    Purpose is a definitive statment about the difference that you are trying to make in the world.
  -    Everything you do as a company should be purpose-driven
  -    Always ask: Does this help us fulfill our purpose? It it does, do it. If it doesn’t, you don’t.
  -    Purpose will hold you steady
  -    Purpose fosters meaningful innovation. Creates the focus and inspiration necessary to create great ideas
  -    Purpose turns employees into evangelists
  -    Purpose is a path to high performance. Orgs driven by purpose and values outperform the general market 15:1
  -    Purpose + relevace = WOM

  4. Screenwriter Yaphet Smith was a HUGE highlight of the day. Such a simple presentation, no fancy slides ” but very powerful content. He reminded us all about the power of stories and the elements that make great stories:

  -    As long as there have been people, there have been prople who want to consume stories
  -    Stories are the ideal vehicle for WOM
  -    People do not yearn for tech specs and product featuers in the same way as they yearn for stories
  -    If you’re telling stories about something you’re passionate about, it moves people.
  -    Stories are composed of character -> setting -> problem -> resolution
  -    Core is in the center of everything you do. Then close to the center is your mission. Then strategy. Then Tactics. Then actions.
  -    Writer’s block is being overwhelmed with options.
  -    All stories need a problem. Imagine Batman without the Joker.
  -    Stories are magic. And to find the magic, seek the neat. What’s neat aobut it? Harness it.
  -    Stories are continuous, vivid dreams.
  -    Generic stories don’t connect with anybody.
  -    Crafting a story: 3 types of research: Facts, Imagination, Memory
  -    Super Simplified Story Worksheet: 1. Purpose 2. Audience 3. Goals 4. Theme 5. The neat 6. Story
  -    You can create your own audience by being true to yourself and it becomes a beacon for kindred spirits

  5. After lunch, Jackie was up and gave a talk about the Nuances of Networks. My highlight was her giving props to the Fiskateer movement! Very cool.

  -    Networks are a fabric or structure of chords or wires that cross
  -    Channel 9 - 4.5 visitors a month. 11, 420 creators = .2%
  -    Inequality is the rule.
  -    The 5th P is Participation
  -    Question for Jackie - Does size of community matter? Her answer - It might.

  6. Shawn McDonald from Dell was up next. He’s the Director of Communities and Conversations at Dell and talked about teaching WOM at a big company:

  -    Sean starts out by giving props to the Dell team he’s a part of. Classy.
  -    Why don’t companies embrace WOMM? Fear. Disbelief. Ignorance.
  -    Would you rather have people say something bad abot you or have to go looking for it?
  -    Let people see the negatives. But let them also see what you are doing about it.
  -    It is 10% technology and 90% people and places
  -    Repeat back the obvious episodes of WOM to your business partners; executive sponsorship helps; start small; fly under the radar

  7. The last speaker for the day was Trey Reeme from the Young & Free Texas program run by a credit union here in Texas. His mission was to talk about using social media to reach a new market ” namely getting young people to consider credit unions for their financial needs and education.

  -    Don’t be the mouth. Be the mouthpiece.
  -    Align social media with your purpose.
  -    (At this point my battery was dead on the laptop, so I was on the iPhone, so please forgive the lack of info on this one.)

  8. The day ended with the attendees getting into groups and working on a live case study for a local start-up in Austin called Mambo Berry. I think the poor guy was overwhelmed with ideas, because he got a lot of them! I hope we get an update on him in 6 months to hear how he’s doing and if he’s implemented any of them.

  That was it! I got to meet so many great folks with so many different approaches to WOM. It was a refreshing approach to an event with beer from Flying Dog, to the DJ all day long to the great, great content. Here’s to SWOMFest 2!

  Tags: Ben McConnell, Channel 9, Dell, DJ Mel, Fiskateers, Flying Dog, GDS&M, GDS&M Purpose Institute, Haley Rushing, Jackie Huba, mambo berry, purpose, Shawn McDonald, sustainable word of mouth, SWOM, SWOMFest, the swom, Trey Reeme, WOM, Word of Mouth, Yaphet Smith, Yong & Free Texas
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  Age of Conversation 2: Why Don’t They Get It?

  Posted on October 29th, 2008 by Spike and currently 2 commenting.

  I was lucky enough to be one of the 100+ authors to write a brief chapter in the Age of Conversation last year. It’s a short collaborative book that included many different viewpoints and subjects surrounding this wide new world of marketing.

  Well, not ones to rest of their laurels, Gavin and Drew have teamed up again, doubling the number of authors for The Age of Conversation 2: Why Don’t They Get It?, which is available starting today. All proceeds will go to support Variety Children’s Charity.

  Just the sheer logistics of coordinating an effort like this ” without pay ” is impressive. And while I don’t know all of the authors ” and don’t agree some of the ones I DO know, this little beauty might just be one of those books that you keep by your desk for some tidbits of inspiration (as each ‘chapter’ is only one page). So cough up your $12.50 for you and another $12.50 to give one to your friend and enter the Age of Conversation, will ya?

  Here comes the obligatory link farm of authors:

  Adrian Ho, Aki Spicer, Alex Henault, Amy Jussel, Andrew Odom, Andy Nulman, Andy Sernovitz, Andy Whitlock, Angela Maiers, Ann Handley, Anna Farmery, Armando Alves, Arun Rajagopal, Asi Sharabi, Becky Carroll, Becky McCray, Bernie Scheffler, Bill Gammell, Bob LeDrew, Brad Shorr, Brandon Murphy, Branislav Peric, Brent Dixon, Brett Macfarlane, Brian Reich, C.C. Chapman, Cam Beck, Casper Willer, Cathleen Rittereiser, Cathryn Hrudicka, Cedric Giorgi, Charles Sipe, Chris Kieff, Chris Cree, Chris Wilson, Christina Kerley (CK), C.B. Whittemore, Chris Brown, Connie Bensen, Connie Reece, Corentin Monot, Craig Wilson, Daniel Honigman, Dan Schawbel, Dan Sitter, Daria Radota Rasmussen, Darren Herman, Dave Davison, David Armano, David Berkowitz, David Koopmans, David Meerman Scott, David Petherick, David Reich, David Weinfeld, David Zinger, Deanna Gernert, Deborah Brown, Dennis Price, Derrick Kwa, Dino Demopoulos, Doug Haslam, Doug Meacham, Doug Mitchell, Douglas Hanna, Douglas Karr, Drew McLellan, Duane Brown, Dustin Jacobsen, Dylan Viner, Ed Brenegar, Ed Cotton, Efrain Mendicuti, Ellen Weber, Eric Peterson, Eric Nehrlich, Ernie Mosteller, Faris Yakob, Fernanda Romano, Francis Anderson, Gareth Kay, Gary Cohen, Gaurav Mishra, Gavin Heaton, Geert Desager, George Jenkins, G. Kofi Annan, G.L. Hoffman, Gianandrea Facchini, Gordon Whitehead, Greg Verdino, Gretel Going & Kathryn Fleming, Hillel Cooperman, Hugh Weber, J. Erik Potter, James Gordon-Macintosh, Jamey Shiels, Jasmin Tragas, Jason Oke, Jay Ehret, Jeanne Dininni, Jeff De Cagna, Jeff Gwynne & Todd Cabral, Jeff Noble, Jeff Wallace, Jennifer Warwick, Jenny Meade, Jeremy Fuksa, Jeremy Heilpern, Jeroen Verkroost, Jessica Hagy, Joanna Young, Joe Pulizzi, John Herrington, John Moore, John Rosen, John Todor, Jon Burg, Jon Swanson, Jonathan Trenn, Jordan Behan, Julie Fleischer, Justin Foster, Karl Turley, Kate Trgovac, Katie Chatfield, Katie Konrath, Kenny Lauer, Keri Willenborg, Kevin Jessop, Kristin Gorski, Lewis Green, Lois Kelly, Lori Magno, Louise Manning, Luc Debaisieux, Mario Vellandi, Mark Blair, Mark Earls, Mark Goren, Mark Hancock, Mark Lewis, Mark McGuinness, Matt Dickman, Matt J. McDonald, Matt Moore, Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Michelle Lamar, Mike Arauz, Mike McAllen, Mike Sansone, Mitch Joel, Neil Perkin, Nettie Hartsock, Nick Rice, Oleksandr Skorokhod, Ozgur Alaz, Paul Chaney, Paul Hebert, Paul Isakson, Paul McEnany, Paul Tedesco, Paul Williams, Pet Campbell, Pete Deutschman, Peter Corbett, Phil Gerbyshak, Phil Lewis, Phil Soden, Piet Wulleman, Rachel Steiner, Sreeraj Menon, Reginald Adkins, Richard Huntington, Rishi Desai, Robert Hruzek, Roberta Rosenberg, Robyn McMaster, Roger von Oech, Rohit Bhargava, Ron Shevlin, Ryan Barrett, Ryan Karpeles, Ryan Rasmussen, Sam Huleatt, Sandy Renshaw and James G. Lindberg, Scott Goodson, Scott Monty, Scott Townsend, Scott White, Sean Howard, Sean Scott, Seni Thomas, Seth Gaffney, Shama Hyder, Sheila Scarborough, Sheryl Steadman, Simon Payn, Sonia Simone, Spike Jones, Stanley Johnson, Stephen Collins, Stephen Landau, Stephen Smith, Steve Bannister, Steve Hardy, Steve Portigal, Steve Roesler, Steven Verbruggen, Steve Woodruff, Sue Edworthy, Susan Bird, Susan Gunelius, Susan Heywood, Tammy Lenski, Terrell Meek, Thomas Clifford, Thomas Knoll, Tim Brunelle, Tim Connor, Tim Jackson, Tim Mannveille, Tim Tyler, Timothy Johnson, Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Toby Bloomberg, Todd Andrlik, Troy Rutter, Troy Worman, Uwe Hook, Valeria Maltoni, Vandana Ahuja, Vanessa DiMauro, Veronique Rabuteau, Wayne Buckhanan, William Azaroff, Yves Van Landeghem
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  Hand-Me-Down Bands & Brands

  Posted on October 28th, 2008 by Geno and currently 19 commenting.

  
  YouTube video by WasteTimeChasingCars.

  My daughter and I discuss music a lot it’s one of those things that we connect on. It’s also one of those things that we disagree on, not the music itself but our philosophies on bands. My daughter complains about bands selling out and forcing her to hand-down a band. I get it, as a teenager once a band become mainstream I didn’t think I had that personnel relationship with their music anymore. Is that realistic… probably not but that’s the thing about music. As a teen and an adult your music is very personal. For example let’s take Metro Station and there song ‘Shake It’ my daughter likes them but calls the song a sellout. I’ve said so what, they make music to connect with as many people as possible and to sell their music. But my daughter takes it real personal to the point that she stops listening to them and as she says, “hands-them-down to her friends.”

  Digging deeper my daughter feels that these bands lose what they had. In the beginning they were sacred to their underground fans, these fans have a special emotional connection that they have invested in from day one. This causes an odd conflict of sharing your band with others too. A person’s selfishness could cause them to keep their secret band to themselves. The desire to keep this music theirs is complicated. When a band gets popular due to creating a hit song, they tend to write more hits, over-produce their sound and ultimately become a big band to the masses. Does this translate to brands? I think so. Early adopters are the underground scenes for a brand; their first-hand experience is very personnel. The risks are greater at the beginning of the fan cycle.

  Geno’s Top 5 Hand-Me-Down Bands & Brands
  1) Aerosmith
  2) KISS
  3) Green Day
  4) Banana Republic
  5) timbuk2

  So, what’s your Hand-Me-Down Bands or Brands?

  Tags: Brains on Fire, geno church, word of mouth marketing
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  Overheard in the Brains on Firesphere

  Posted on October 27th, 2008 by Spike and currently 3 commenting.

  “The thing about the Adoption Phase in the Fan Cycle is that it’s personal. Companies can’t expect there to be a cookie-cutter adoption that everyone does exactly the same way. When you adopt something, you make it your own. And when you make something your own, it becomes unique.”
  -Geno Church, WOM Inspiration Officer

  Tags: Cycle of a Fan, Fan Cycle, geno church, WOM