The Food Network has built its whole business around basic social concepts since its beginning in 1993. Fans of different shows are often drawn to the host instead of what types of food they cook or how they cook it. I love Mario Batali because he comes across as knowledgeable and funny, in addition to [...]
I have two takes on Tiger’s first new ad with Nike Golf after all that’s happened over the past six months. It’s a pretty even split for me. The Best: After I screwed up as a kid and everything cooled down, my dad would always try to look for a lesson to be learned. It [...]
If the users of Facebook were citizens of a country, all 400 million of them would make up the third largest nation on the planet. And with over 50% of them logging into the site every day, developing a Facebook presence or maximizing your existing page is becoming an important part of the overall marketing [...]
If you’ve been thinking about getting started in social media but are not sure what to say, check out a few episodes of the SyFy Channel’s show Ghost Hunters for inspiration. Why? Because Jason, Grant and the rest of the TAPS crew are a great examples of being interesting by just creatively explaining what they [...]
I love listening to people explain their take on their own stuff. This is an interesting interview (even if the two hosts are kind of cantankerous) with Evan Williams & Biz Stone, the two main public faces for Twitter. Highlights: Inspiration for Twitter came from software written for taxi cab dispatch messages. “And we thought [...]
I’ve found that when businesses think about getting started in social media, a lot of time is spent debating and planning strategy. Are we trying to build brand recognition? Is Twitter going to be a new customer service channel? Is the content for the Facebook page going to be strictly business or should we mix [...]
As someone who’s been active with Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites on an almost daily basis since 2008 (to my wife’s sometime chagrin), I thought writing about what I’ve gotten out of my efforts would be a good blogging execise. (Tip of the hat to Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh as this post is [...]
Interesting keynote from David Ogilvy for a direct response conference (I assume that is the context). I love the line about “…tasting blood.” I am sure Mr. Ogilvy would have loved all of the data that comes with online and social media marketing and the ability to get feedback straight from the customer. Here is a [...]
My son is one month old. Having your first kid makes you think about a lot of stuff. One of the biggest thoughts for most first-time parents is “How in the world are they putting me in charge of this little person?!” Insecurity and paranoia are large pieces of the joys of being a new [...]
This commercial on Food Network is pitching the newest season of The Next Food Network Star. As our pal Bobby Flay walks toward the elevator, various people (I’m assuming they’re contestants) hold up different signs describing qualities they possess that will make them the next superstar TV chef. All of the traits that go into [...]
