Blog o' RAMA

Brandjam the RAMA Way

We hosted brand expert, Marc Gobe, yesterday, at the Riverside Convention Center. He was marvelous!

The focus was introducing a new concept to marketing - that of the Brand jam (in honor of his book, which was given to every attendee). In other words, more minds at the table create more opportunity to touch customers with an emotional message. A true jamming session. Can't you just hear the music?

I polled the RAMA board and got some immediate responses. Here are the two questions I asked, with answers from our illustrious president, Denis Caysinger, and from one of our program chairs, Katharine McMahon.

I asked, "What was the biggest/best take-away idea you got from the presentation?

And, "Will you be sharing your experience from yesterday with co-workers and business colleagues? How?"

Denis said, I was surprised how much he he uses market research, while at the same time understanding the limitations of research.  Their agency has a really good process to uncover insights at a much deeper level than most agencies are ever are able to do.

I've already talked to one of my co-workers and told her she should have been there to hear the talk.  All of the information about social networking, emotional connection, etc. is something she would have been very interested in.  Her loss!

Katharine said, "The integration of supliers/vendors into the brandjam and how that can amplify the results."

I have already given the book to a couple of people who couldn't attend, and I sent the link to the blog interview to a couple of my clients.

The New Influencers by Paul Gillin

I had the distinct pleasure of reading Paul Gillin's new book, The New Influencers, recently. I wrote about it on my blog at Lip-sticking, and thought I'd share some of my thoughts here, too.

As a blogging professional - someone who blogs for pay, and for pleasure - I was pretty eager to read this new book about how social media is changing the way we do business today. I've read a whole lot of books on this subject, and even worked on some, but this one is different. It stands out from the others because it doesn't preach. Gillin isn't out to change your mind about social media and blogging. He's out to show you what it is, how some smart people have used it, and how you might consider using it, also.

One of the best things about this book is the way Gillin writes. He's conversational. It almost feels as if you're reading a blog! Because social media is so proactive and transparent, it attracts a lot of people. That's what this book is about. The people. Some bloggers are good writers and reporters, some aren't. Some are in it for the fun...some for profit. All of them count - and Gillin explains why.

But...some count more than others, and that's the key.

AdAge Go Sit in the Corner!

A little ranting here - on behalf of those professionals who actually want to excel at what they do, including marketing.

A friend (member of our board - Jennifer Young) sent me a note about AdAge doing a scathing review of Seth Godin's new book, not out yet but many of us have advance proofs, in which they essentially said,"..."The Dip" is little more than hollow self-motivation pap, the sort of stuff that late-life losers spend hundreds of dollars on at seminars across the country in some desperate hope to pull their lives together. I'd say "The Dip" reads like a bunch of disjointed blog posts, but that would be an insult to the hundreds of bloggers out there crafting thoughtful, insightful essays about business."

Wow! Ken Wheaton and Matt Kinsley sound like two guys who still need Mommy to hold their hand when they cross the street! They were looking through The Dip (which takes italics, guys, NOT quotation marks), as if it's the Holy Grail or something. Exactly the kind of thing folks who don't want to do the work of learning how to accomplish a goal react when someone of some expertise says, "Just go do it."

I am not a huge fan of Seth Godin. I'm a fan, just not a huge fan. I am a huge fan of his writings, however. And, this particular book hits the proverbial nail right on the head! It's a, "Just go do it," kind of book. It includes advice on when NOT to keep doing it - because you're roaming around a circle that never ends. In fact, to quote from the book,"Quit the wrong stuff. Stick with the right stuff. Have the guts to do one or the other."

Matt and Ken want the 'secret' of what's the right stuff and what's the wrong stuff. They accuse the publishing industry of "slobbering" over writers like Seth, as if he's the greatest writer out there - when the reality is: the world likes Seth, so, of course the publishing industry is going to like him. It's never the writer, it's the audience. As long as smart people keep reading Seth, they'll keep publishing him. And, for the not-so smart readers who read him and think he's an overwinded blowhard, so be it. You're entitled to your opinion. Go read some pop psychology, if it will make you feel better.

Here's the scoop, folks. There are no answers. There certainly are no EASY answers. The advice to "Just go do it" is the best you'll ever get. If Seth had outlined everything step you need to take to build a world class organization, he would fail you miserably. It's NOT FOR HIM TO SAY what YOU should do. It's for YOU to figure out.

The book the AdAge boys tout, I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations By Stuart Smalley sounds like Pop Psychology to me- real drivel, if you will. (no, I haven't read it - sounds too mamby-pamby for me.)

IF you don't know when to quit, you're NOT good enough. If you don't have a clue about when to persevere and when to pack up and move on, you're NOT smart enough. And, I don't really care if people like you. People liked Ted Bundy and Aaron Burr, and the Mayflower Madam - so what? Doggone it, does that make them worth paying attention to?

Here's the fundamental truth - as Lee Thayer would say, "If you want to be a success - don't fail."

Simple as that. The Dip outlines exact moments that you might want to be thoughtful about moving forward or quitting. Because sometimes - you're better off saying, "This isn't working. Let's do something else." And, it all happens in just under 80 pages. Ken's and Matt's author takes 352 pages, bent on convincing you... that good enough is good enough.

Let me think: in my time-strapped life which book do I want to read on the plane that will help me make a success of my business? And, as a leader, is it my role to recognize the right time to quit, or to motivate my partners and workers to be happy because they're good enough, smart enough, and people like them?

In the end, I want to be the BEST - not good enough. I don't much care if people like me - hard choices are seldom popular. As Seth says: "In a free market, we reward exceptional." As Lee Thayer says, "High-performance: hard. Mediocrity: easy."

Are you getting the message? Read The Dip. And then, read Lee's book, How Executives Fail: 25 Surefire Recipes for Sabotaging Your Career.

If you know Matt and Ken, send them a copy.

Small is the New Big in Rochester

Seth should be arriving in just an hour or so. The luncheon is all set - the players are in place - and we are all hyped! RAMA has been phenomenally talented in bringing in such outstanding speakers - like Seth Godin - in to talk marketing, for the last two years.

I'm tingling with excitement. Will report on the event tomorrow or Friday! I'm sure I'll have too many notes to fit in one post. All I can say is: Small is the New Big!

Stay tuned for other exciting events - driven by the dedication of our members, especially Jennifer  Young, program chair. She's a dynamo!