Thanks to Chad Caufield and MMB Boston for calling us in on this :30 Subway project. The original spot was conceived by the creatives at McCarthy Mambro Bertino. Transplant was subsequently called in to assist with transcreation into Spanish language, casting selects, and voice direction.
¡Muchas gracias, compadres!
We all know the calls. They interrupt our dinner, our weekend paper, our children’s bedtime. They make us shift our attention from what’s important to us for something someone deems important to them.
The wonderful news is these types of unwanted interruptions are migrating en masse to our social networks. The bigger Facebook gets, the more it will happen. The more “friends” we have on Facebook, the greater the odds one or more of them will treat us with the same disrespect unruly marketers treat people on purchased email lists. What’s worse, we gave these “friends” our permission to do it — absolutely free.
Just because we accept someone’s friend request (or vice versa) doesn’t give them — or us — free reign to email anything and everything at will. We have to remember that we can click the “block” button with the same ease as we clicked the “accept” button.
Before going to that extreme, however, it would be good to let them know. If we don’t, then we can’t complain when it continues to happen.
Tonight I received this 7-second message from Jim Bennight of Brian Barnard’s Flooring America Tallahassee. In it, he simply says, “Hello, Michael. You’re gonna make a technophile out of me yet. See you Friday.”
Why is that so exciting? Because it’s a big step for Jim, but I’m sure it’s just one of many many more. He’s been attending Conversation Fridays at The Conversation Factory since day one. He’s been curious all along — asking questions, participating in our discussions and really digging in. Now he’s tweeting, blogging, and digging deeper into his passion for rugs.
You’ll be seeing more from Jim I’m sure. Hopefully, so will I.
If you’ve got any questions about area rugs, well, Jim’s your man.
See you Friday, Jim.
On Thursday evening, during Jane Campion’s new film, Bright Star, cell phones glowed in the foreground throughout the film like cicada-sized fireflies. On, off. On, off. Check here. Check there.
The next day, a guest at Conversation Friday explained how her daughter and her daughter’s friends sometimes interact — how they have conversations with friends standing right in front of them while their heads point down, waiting for something to happen on their cell phones.
Another guest followed, telling us how their son reacted when he and his wife took his cell phone away for 24 hours. His son’s physical reponse fell just short of hyperventilation, which led to the comment: “You can’t! It’s my life!”
Have we arrived at tech-co-dependency? Can we not disengage for the duration of a movie? A meeting? A conversation? Is the presence of another human being no longer enough to hold our attention?
While I certainly engage on Facebook and twitter quite frequently, I’m not referring to the frequency or intensity of participation, but rather, to the ability to disconnect when necessary, appropriate, and respectful. In an effort to curb my own use during such instances, I’ve resorted to leaving my cell phone in the car when out to dinner, leaving it at my desk during meetings, and plugging it in to charge in a different room while I’m doing puzzles with my daughter. Despite the efforts, I’d still plead guilty to many incidents of attention deficit in the presence of others.
So, how do we turn this around for ourselves and our children? How do we remind ourselves and educate our children that engaging in the moment with the people right in front of our eyes is more important than virtual engagement with the people we’re connected with through a mobile device? That giving our undivided attention these days is more valuable a gift than it has ever been?
Thoughts? Opinions? Leave a comment. Better yet, why not forget the computer altogether and write me a letter? Or call me to chat about it. Yeah, sure, fine. On the phone.
Photo Credit: compujeramey
So. What do you do when you launch a facebook page featuring a new product people hate? If you’re Honda, and your product is the CrossTour set to release this fall, you put a copywriter and a lawyer together in a freshly-disinfected room, turn on the fluorescent lighting, set the thermostat to about 64º, and get to work.
1. Set up a “Message to Fans” tab; after all, who wants to speak directly to anyone responsible for the very thing being berated?
2. No matter how strong the urge, do not respond directly to anyone.
3. Post a commercial that doesn’t even show the car, thereby fueling fans’ opinions.
4. Make visitors become fans to access “exclusive content.”
5. Explain the removal of comments with something warm and fuzzy like, “We removed comments that were posted contrary to American Honda’s consumer-generated media policy for associates.”
I could go on, but you get the point. Although a lot of bad has been said about the Honda CrossTour (and its social media efforts), it’s apparent Honda didn’t do enough social media homework to soften the blows they never saw coming. Personally, I don’t think the car looks all that bad — certainly the social media effort was designed much more haphazardly. I’d say it was as well thought out as the Pontiac Aztek (now THAT is one ugly vehicle).
Happy Sunday.
I’ve been extremely fortunate over the last four Fridays. Everyone listed below (in no particular order) has shown up at The Conversation Factory — most more than once — with a willingness to share ideas and connect with other Tallahassee business people. I’d like to thank each and every one for their contributions to Conversation Friday.
Fifteen people. Not a hundred. Not a thousand. The whole experience makes me wish for a button to fan each of these people as individuals on facebook.
I also want to thank Fred Tedio from Uptown Cafe who, though not in attendance, sent lunch for our second session in exchange for a one-on-0ne session with yours truly (hopefully, I can compete with his turkey wraps; I already know I can’t compete with his smoked salmon in apricot glaze).
If you’d like to stop in for Conversation Friday, just let me know by leaving a comment or dropping a note on our facebook page.
Although I love Bank of America’s online chat service, the conversation you see below was a let-down (it was copied and pasted from my online chat window).
Live conversations with customers is a huge responsibility. The potential to do great things is only matched by the potential to do serious harm to your very own company and reputation. As you’ll see from the the example below, it only takes one brief online conversation for the damage to be done (and now it finds new life on this blog).
Just something to think about before putting people with little customer assistance experience and poor communications skills on a very outward-facing platform. This social media online thing that you may call a fad isn’t a game. It’s business, and we all have a lot to learn.
(No — Joe isn’t the representative’s actual name. I decided to “protect” his identity since it’s not his fault he was thrown into the online chat room. In cases like these, management is to blame, since it’s obvious he wasn’t properly trained — and, it seems, neither was the person looking over his shoulder telling him what to type.)
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Joe: How are you doing today?
You: Good thank you — I need to put a stop payment on a check.
You: It was made out to XXXXX
Joe: Sure, I will certainly check it for you and I will try my best to assist you.
You: I sent it via online payment
Joe: Okay.
Joe: Could you please provide me the last four digits of the account number?
You: XXXXX
Joe: Michael, I can see that you are not log in with your own ID.
You: i don’t understand. i’m logged in through my business account
Joe: I would request you to sign in using your own Online ID and we would be happy to assist you at that time.
You: i did — how else could i be here?
Joe: Okay.
Joe: So in this case I would request you to please call our business specialist.
Joe: Please excuse my inability to assist you in this regards as I solely with checking and savings accounts.
You: that’s what i want help with — a stop payment on a check
Joe: Alright.
Joe: Michael, we do not have necessary excess in business accounts, so I would request you to please call our specialist only they will be able to place an stop payment for business accounts.
Joe: Please be assured that we know your time is valuable to you and we would not direct you to contact us by telephone unless were absolutely necessary.
You: what does “we do not have necessary excess in business accounts” mean?
You: nevermind — i’m outta here
Joe: I mean that this Chat service is for personal savings and checking account.
Joe: Please be assured that your concerns will be taken care of in the best possible way by our associates.
Joe: “Please call us at 1.888.287.4637 and we will be happy to assist you. We are available from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday – Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday Eastern Time.
Joe: I thank you so much for your kind co-operation and understanding in this regards.
Who needs a blog to blog? Not this guy. He screwed some dry erase boards on the back of his trailer (hence, “trogging”). I’ve seen him driving around Tallahassee, and yesterday, I was lucky enough to catch sight of his vehicle — parked.
So what? Who cares about this guy’s “trog”?
Well, I see it as further proof of the shift in power from mass media to everyone around us. The owner of this truck is publishing content. He got creative and figured out an easy way to make his opinion public (and the medium he chose makes his content fully updateable).
Whether you agree or disagree with his perspective is not the point. People with something to say are publishing content whenever and wherever they can. Everyone wants — and has a need — to be heard, and the passionate among us will always find a way.
I say three cheers for the trog, and most importantly, its creator. (To download a larger image, just click on the photo.)
What do you think? Let me know by commenting below, or by writing it on the back of your car and sending me a photo.
Hope you’re well.
I’d like to thank today’s Conversation Friday attendees (left to right) Howard Libin of Adventures in Advertising, Juli Puckett and Allie Merzer-Fleming of the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, and Fred Addonizio and Jim Bennight of Brian Barnard’s Flooring America.
We got the Conversation going by playing Chris Brogan’s “Don’t be that guy” video, which sparked plenty of discussion about when to be human, and when to sell. We talked facebook and twitter strategies and pros and cons, what’s working in retail and what isn’t. By 1pm (from right to left), the facebook regulars had converted Fred from a member to user (here’s a quick before and after); we discussed how Jim could use his blog to cast a wider net and attract readership and and drive online conversation; talked about how, just yesterday, Allie’s facebook feed fed more ideas for next year’s Annual Chamber conference; discussed how Julie could use twitter hashtagging and explore twitter from a professional and personal standpoint; and how Howard’s love of the yard sale has inspired a weekly series of updates.
I’m grateful for everyone’s presence here today. I learned a heck of a lot about each of these people’s businesses and their points of view. It was a group effort that offered a human dynamic you just can’t get online. (We all know each other better than we did at 11:59am that’s for sure.)
If you’d like to join us next Conversation Friday, just leave a comment here or drop me a note at our facebook page.
Have a great weekend.
Last week at a conference I got a bag full of swag. It’s a business conference reality that would be more welcome if companies thought a little harder about what they’re putting their logo on. (Imagine thinking of something so cool, people don’t even consider it swag!)
Anyway, this one from Veolia Environmental Services put the frosting on the swag cake. It’s an energy saving light bulb made of foam.
I’ll repeat that: It’s an energy saving light bulb made of foam — from an environmental services company.
It does nothing but sit there with a logo, website, and phone number in tiny red print. Do you think it will emit a faint, muted glow if I screw it into a socket? It’s not an eraser, and I can’t give it to my dogs because they’ll rip it to shreds and eat it, causing further injury to the environment within hours. This thing is of absolutely no use. It would have been more environmentally conscious to give nothing at all.
I confess, however, that I may be speaking too soon. After all, their tagline is “turning waste into a resource.” Perhaps they’ve got a plan to turn this bad idea into a good one, but as far as I can tell, it’s just more landfill.
What do you think? Got any swag gripes? Love to read about ‘em.
Have a good one.
