Let’s give them something to talk about: Trendhunter’s top 10 publicity stunts

Jeremy Gutsche, the colorfully successful founder of Trendhunter.com, presents this Trendhunter TV feature entitled “Top 10 Publicity Stunts.” Chronicling Improv Everywhere’s 2008 Grand Central Station stunt in New York city, the recent “Sound of Music” performance in Antwerp’s Central Station, and other sensational videos deemed “Must See” by enough people to ensure they’ve quite likely … Read moreLet’s give them something to talk about: Trendhunter’s top 10 publicity stunts

At age 23, self-styled creative agency ATTIK keeps making “Noise”

Ask the world’s leading entrepreneurs, top-level marketers, and graphic designers what companies have inspired them the most over the past 20 years, and you will very likely hear the name ATTIK. In 2002, when Advertising Age reported that Toyota had “stunned” the automotive industry by naming a “little-known graphic design shop-cum-advertising agency” to handle its new youth brand, in validating their choice, ATTIK’s newest clients quickly pointed to the firm’s design aesthetic and its strategic thinking.

Read moreAt age 23, self-styled creative agency ATTIK keeps making “Noise”

The American dream….

In so many ways, today is just like every other day. Some people who have set out to achieve something will be successful, while others may be disappointed in their quests. Depending upon fate, we can probably expect those in either of those groups to find, soon enough, that their journeys continue… that another day will come when they’ll have another chance at victory. At the same time, there’s a good reason why, in 2008, so many people are still familiar with a phrase written more than 2,000 years ago by the Roman poet known as Horace: carpe diem… seize the day.

Read moreThe American dream….

Winning friends and influencing people, in all the right ways….

Many thanks to AccuQuote VP of marketing and business development Sean Cheyney and the publishers of iMediaConnection.com for the recent post entitled 5 ways to ruin your industry reputation. In the piece, Sean uses his talking points to share colorful and insightful thoughts on some of the things people really do every day which can work against them big time. Personally, the behaviours Sean describes really drive me crazy, and I know we’ve all experienced our share of them first-hand — probably by the time we entered the first grade. On some level, I am thankful for all the hatred, conflict and negativity I’ve encountered in the world, because it has made me realize how very much I care about diplomacy, peace and optimism. To me, conducting myself through positive, sincere, well-meaning behaviours is of the utmost importance in managing my reputation… and my overall success in life. In this spirit, I’m spinning Sean’s points to provide three reputation-savers likely to keep each of us on firm ground, both professionally and socially.

Read moreWinning friends and influencing people, in all the right ways….

Roger D’s tips for superior public and media relations: Getting started…

As a public relations (PR) professional, I see a lot of edgy cross-chatter about my field in the blogosphere, and while I normally don’t leap into the debates, occasionally, something will get under my skin. That happened a few weeks ago when Rohit Bhargava wrote a piece on his Influential Interactive Marketing blog with the subject line of “The Future of PR Means Dumping The Inferiority Complex.” Rohit backed-up his antagonizing claim by writing that PR is rising in importance at least in part because “…it is about more powerfully articulating where a client needs to go and becoming the partner that gets them there.

Next week, I will be off on vacation with my family, giving thanks for a sensational 2007. Due in part to this virtual jab from Rohit, the process of gathering my thoughts for this post has led me to realize that my knowledge, expertise and talents in the field of public and media relations definitely are worth shouting about.

Read moreRoger D’s tips for superior public and media relations: Getting started…

Friends, passionistas and influencers… shall we roar?


Some of the most interesting takeaways from this year’s Advertising Week in New York came from a four-hour session presented by Yahoo Inc. and MediaVest introducing us to our Web 2.0-empowered selves as passionistas. The Sept. 26 session entitled “Passionistas: The New Empowered Consumers” was hosted by craigslist founder Craig Newmark, and further propogated by a BusinessWire press release on the new Yahoo/MediaVest study providing in-depth statistics on us in the course of proclaiming us as proverbial apples in marketers’ eyes. Why? Because we are passionate about our interests… and we devote significant amounts of time (much more than most others) to exploring our interests and applying our talents to make impacts and foster change.

Read moreFriends, passionistas and influencers… shall we roar?

What has your business acumen done for you lately?


Earlier this year, Strategy+Business magazine published a piece by Ram Charan entitled “Sharpening Your Business Acumen.” Teasing the piece in an email newsletter, S+B Editor-in-Chief Art Kleiner informs us that uncommon success can be forged by those of us who can accurately assess larger trends and roll the most poignant implications into our business practices, so long as we’re ready, willing and able to break new ground and preconceive all the possibilities change can render. Charan’s detailed, example-rich article — in which he defines the demanding but yet all-important art of business acumen as “linking an insightful assessment of the external business landscape with the keen awareness of how money can be made… and then executing the strategy to deliver the desired results” — is inspiring.

Here’s my take on his keys to making the most of change.

Read moreWhat has your business acumen done for you lately?

Marketing Case Study: “Shrek 2”

by Roger Darnell ..Challenge.. In hindsight, it’s clear that few films in the history of motion pictures have been as successful as “Shrek 2” from DreamWorks Animation SKG. When development and production began on the film, closely following on the heels of its big green 2001 “Shrek” predecessor, a global marketing workforce was spurred into … Read moreMarketing Case Study: “Shrek 2”

Everybody’s talking ATTIK…

They had hidden cameras, water and Mars bars. It was inspiring, scary, enlightening and stupid (at times). See how it turned out.