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June 27, 2008

Dyson, a brand I can love

Dyson I recently needed to buy a new vacuum cleaner. As someone who works in the communications industry I value these infrequent high-cost decision points. They throw real light on the relationship between product, brand, consumer, and market. It's vivid because it's my money on the line. I am my own focussed-group.

Here's why I chose a Dyson:

They work really well. I had one before, it lasted 10 years and did the job well.
They look good, the attention to detail and the no-compromise attitude is obvious.
When they advertise, they tell me about product features, not higher-order emotional benefits.
The online experience is excellent, really consumer-centric.
They rang me up to discuss the best delivery options.
They answered my emails promptly and intelligently.
It has heart and soul.

It was "expensive" but the alternatives are anodyne, dull and uncommunicative.

No competition.

It's not about positioning, imagery, or tone. A brand truth simply and consistently expressed.

 

Bill Gates, a force for good?

Celebrate Bill Gates Day with us here at Engadget - Engadget.
Will the last one out please turn off the lights. This is a sad day.
He actually cared about the user experience, but the beast was beyond his control.
His philanthropic work will outlive his shonky software.

June 20, 2008

Blowing up the Whale

Neil Perkins on Media Futures.
Worthwhile presentation from Neil P on the consequences of the media revolution and where it leaves agencies, pushvertising and planning practitioners trying to explain to their clients that Elvis (the consumer) has left the building. For good. He's sitting outside in a white cadillac poking at his iPhone looking for the nearest White Castle if you ask me but that's the beauty of it all. The vogueish retreat from honesty, information and service that defined golden-age advertisng is being left high and dry like a beached whale. The industry remains impressive in scale and complexity, but like the landed leviathan is starting to rot and smell a bit. It'll take dynamite, but this carcass needs to be blown to high heaven.

June 06, 2008

You are what you buy, and definitely what you don't

Mind Hacks: You are what you buy, and definitely what you don't.

Am I more easily defined by what I don't do?

The customer doesn't care whose fault it is

The customer doesn't care whose fault it is - (37signals).

Here's a theme that I keep returning to. It's a valuable sense check - a touchpoint when dealing with brand hyperbole. You can't "position" your way out of disappointing your customers. Filling the bucket is expensive; ignoring fundamental leaks compounds the problem.

Online Video Consumption Explodes

Watch Out TV: YouTube is Taking Over - ReadWriteWeb.

It's not over yet, hardly even started. At the end of the day though it doesn't really matter...who cares about the underlying distribution models as long as the video flows. Consumers are choosing to watch new forms of content on new devices in new places.

June 05, 2008

High Altitude Cheese Making

City starts countdown to the Cheese Olympics - Times Online.

Dedication is what you need.

A new paradigm for immersive marketing

Fake bus stop keeps Alzheimer's patients from escaping - Boing Boing.

If only it was this simple...

June 01, 2008

Why Zappos Pays New Employees to Quit—And You Should Too - Harvard Business Online's Bill Taylor

Why Zappos Pays New Employees to Quit-

redefining bonus/reward structures

Google strategy is also worth a look

May 31, 2008

Prince covers Radiohead but blocks web clip | News | guardian.co.uk Music

Prince covers Radiohead but blocks web clip | News | guardian.co.uk Music.

Sadly for the witless purple one it doesn't work like that

One for the "Covers" playlist all the same