Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Apple, Attitude & Aptitude, Confidence, Culture, Customer Service, Embarrassing Moments, Experience, LaLaLand, Standards
So before I left LA, I bought a new iPad.
Please note the words, “I bought”.
Yes, Bazza, Rodi and David were all too tight to give me one.
Pricks.
Anyway … one thing I found interesting about shopping at Apple in LA was that the people who worked were quite different to those I found in other markets like Shanghai or Singapore.
Sure, they were as knowledgable and – generally – as polite and [semi] helpful as their continental cousins, but they were all a bit Stepford Wives … that is if Stepford Wives looked like LA Hipsters rather than Virginia housewives.
But there was an exception, this guy.
Yes, that really is a genuine Apple staff member.
Now maybe he’s wearing pajama trousers and a cycle helmet because he woke up late for work and had to rush on his fixie [it’s almost certain he has a fixie] to get to Manhattan Beach on time.
Or maybe he’s fell off his bike a week ago, bumped his head and was rushed to hospital so now he is better prepared for either a bike accident or being put in a hospital bed.
But whatever the reason, I have to say he was a breath of fresh air to the kale-consuming Mr and Ms Perfect’s in the store and I was kinda disappointed he didn’t serve me.
Or I was until I saw he was wearing a ‘please notice me’ red iWatch strap, had tattoos and walked around the store like he was Mick Jagger on stage and then realised he wasn’t a victim of circumstance, but one of those people you meet all the time in LA … a ‘slash’ person.
Waitress/Model.
Barman/Actor.
Apple Retail Store Representative/Rockstar.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, America, Attitude & Aptitude, Business, Communication Strategy, Creativity, Culture, Egovertising, Embarrassing Moments, Marketing, Marketing Fail
This headline came out in AdAge not that long ago.
For me, it says more about the state – and ego – of advertising than it does about the state of the environment.
Don’t get me wrong, a company who is doing something positive is a wonderful thing.
But when that company uses their action to promote themselves in an industry mag … well, that kind-of takes the shine off it.
Then again, when an agency is in the press more for what they’re doing – or plan to do – than what they’ve actually done or made, then you can’t help but feel their strategy is more to distract from the truth than to celebrate the good.
Or maybe that’s just me.
I am still a cynic after all.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Advertising [Planning] School On The Web, Agency Culture, America, Attitude & Aptitude, China, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Empathy, England, Experience, Family, Happiness, Home, Imagination, Innovation, Insight, Love, Mum & Dad, My Fatherhood, Perspective, Planners, Planning, R/GA, Resonance, Technology
So it’s 2 months since we’ve been back in England and I have to say it’s been great.
Sure, the weather isn’t like LA.
Sure, finding a home and unpacking was a pain-in-the arse.
Sure, catching the tube is not like driving my beloved Audi to work.
Sure, I’m shocked at how bad the service is in restaurants and how many people smoke.
But all that aside, things are great.
There’s a bunch of reasons for that …
The first is my family are all together and well. Even Rosie, the moaning cat.
Seeing how brilliant Otis has adapted to his new environment [again] is inspiring, even though it has highlighted how much of an American twang he picked up in our time in the US.
To move home is a traumatic experience for anyone.
To move countries is often too much for people to even contemplate.
So to have moved home and country, 3 times when you’re only 3 years of age – and still be happy, positive and curious – is an incredible achievement and one that makes me even prouder of my wonderful little boy.
That said, we’re very mindful he is still trying to find where he belongs … find other kids he can form a connection with … so our job in these early months is to help him feel as settled and secure as we can, but so far, he’s handling it far better than we could ever hope, even though he did exactly the same when we landed in LA after Shanghai.
What a kid.
Another reason we’re enjoying things in England is that there’s an incredible familiarity to how things work.
Sure I’ve not lived here for 24 years and Jill is Australian … but we both have spent a huge amount of time here over the years so there’s a comfort in knowing how to make things happen. It’s allowed us to acclimatise to the new environment far quicker than we have in other nations while still feeling the buzz of excitement of being somewhere new.
Sure, there’s nervousness about some things we’ve never/rarely had to deal with before.
The school system and how insane that is here.
The inability to be confident a tradesman will turn up as promised.
The high price of public transport [which is still low, but comparatively high to say, China]
But all that is offset with the incredible culture that surrounds us, the friendliness of the people we’ve met and just being in a place where we can see ourselves for a good length of time.
Oh, and chips, mushy peas and gravy.
God, that’s magic right there.
But one other thing that has made things so great is work.
I’m really enjoying myself.
I have an incredible team full of smarts and opinions.
I have a huge array of colleagues full of creativity and provocation.
I have a bunch of clients full of fascinating challenges and ambitions.
I’m learning.
I’m being challenged.
I’m [hopefully] contributing.
There were a bunch of reasons why we moved countries – both personal and professional – and while no place will ever be perfect, I’m pretty shocked at how much I am enjoying being back in England given I never thought I’d ever move back.
I still wish I could nip up to Nottingham to see Mum and Dad.
I still wish Paul and Shelly lived down the street not 2 hours away.
But as much as I’ll always be a cynical bastard, I’m pretty happy right now and I’m sure that is as shocking to you as it is to me.
So on this bombshell of positivity, I wish you a good weekend and let you know that the APSOTW results will finally be out next week.
Ta-ra.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Comment, Confidence, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Empathy, Insight, Marketing, Perspective, Point Of View, Relevance, Resonance
Magic Magid is a British-Somali who has served as the Lord Mayor of Sheffield since May ’18.
Yes, the Lord Mayor.
Given he was born in 1989, his appointment has attracted a lot of media attention – not just because of his young age and cultural background – but because he is also the first Green Party councillor to hold the role.
But that’s not why I’m writing about him, I’m writing about him because of the way he connects to culture.
Where most politicians tend to say whatever they think their audience want to hear – and then, once elected, use fear and put-downs to control their audience’s actions – he not only says what he believes [and attracts people on those shared beliefs] but he also shows great belief in the capabilities and possibilities of his constituents.
Have a look at this …
How is that for a set of philosophical beliefs?
Pointed.
Topical.
Cultural.
Humorous.
Positive.
Is it any surprise he has made youth give a damn about politics?
While the opposition are fixated on scoring points against each other, Magic Magid communicates a way of living and behaving that pulls the community together.
A set of standards and rules you can live by.
A set of standards and rules you would be proud of following and representing.
Now of course his actions have to represent his words but just in terms of fresh energy, it sets a direction by which most things can either be filtered through or measured against.
Now look at adland.
What are our beliefs?
What are we saying that is making people want to believe?
Making people want to be a part of us?
Sure there are some agencies that still have them … still live by them … but the thing I find sad is all agencies started with a set of distinct beliefs that differentiated them from the crowd and yet now, the vast majority of the industry tends to behave in the same, blunt and ambigious way.
We say the same things.
We read the same books.
We aspire to the same goals.
Christ, we’ve become more corporate than the clients who used to hire us to stop them being corporate.
The World is changing.
I love that we live in times where the minority – or underdog – can no longer simply be ignored.
Where how you do things is becoming as important as what you do.
And yet despite claiming to know how to move culture better than anyone else, adland continues to stick rigidly with what it knows even though publicly, they’re desperately trying to associate with the latest new, new thing.
Where are the leaders?
The mavericks?
The pioneers?
Oh I know, in the file labelled ‘too much trouble’.
Let’s hope we learn before it’s too late.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Audio Visual, Brand Suicide, Comment, Communication Strategy, Content, Context, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Empathy, Entertainment, Honesty, Imagination, Insight, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Social Media
A few months ago I wrote a post about the shit that passes for ‘branded content’ these days.
Well after reading it, my friend King Adz [global street art/fashion expert, author, film director] sent me something a friend of his had written about how to make good content.
His friend has a right to do this because he started a YouTube channel last year that has turned him into one of the most interesting and fastest-growing content creators in London.
They’ve done a streetwear show [PAQ] and a food show [Bad Canteen] all aimed and consumed by the youth and from these experiences, he has identified twelve pointers for creating credible and infectious youth content.
To make sure this post isn’t the longest post in the history of this blog, I’m, going to split it into 6 today and 6 tomorrow.
I know, I’m so kind.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON ONE: Be Transparent
The first thing we learnt when we tried to make money and integrate brands into our content was this audience doesn’t mind being advertised to. They are smart and they enjoy consuming content. They understand that the content doesn’t make itself and it isn’t cheap aden they understand the pay-off.
Because of this, don’t try and fool them. You will get called out.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON TWO: YouTube is a direct substitute for TV
In the same way I would come home when I was younger and switch on the TV and binge on Nickelodeon or MTV until I got called for dinner, this generation is doing exactly the same thing.
They finish school, college, work … they come home they open their smartphone or laptop and sit in front of it until they are either told to turn it off by their parents or it’s time for bed.
The behaviour is identical.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON THREE: But the content isn’t the same as TV
Yes, consumers’ behaviour may be the same as TV behaviours, but the content that they’re consuming is completely different.
Content on YouTube doesn’t need to look like TV content to be successful.
In fact, one thing we’ve learnt is that in some cases it’s quite the opposite. Some of the most successful channels are self shot.
Self shot, hand held and more vloggy style content has a feeling of intimacy and authenticity that TV never offered its viewers.
That’s not to say that high production can’t work, we just learnt not to overlook the intimacy that this generation desires from content.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON FOUR: This audience wants to be entertained
Dude Perfect, The Slo Mo Guys, Lele Pons…
What’s their commonality?
They are all centred around humour and entertainment.
Exactly like TV.
We have to realise, 90% of people are watching it to kill some time, wind down a bit and escape their day-to-day life.
If we are being honest with ourselves, YouTube audiences respond best to lighthearted entertainment. Making meaningful, purpose-led content is great but there’s nothing to be ashamed about in creating content that simply entertains.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON FIVE: This audience left Facebook ages ago
Look I don’t have anything concrete in terms of statistics to back this up.
And honestly it’s just my experience.
I work with hundreds of young people every single week and I can categorically tell you that I have not spoken to one in the past year that actually uses Facebook.
NOT ONE.
There’s lots of industry speculation right now around this subject and the potential decline. I just want to say from my real world experience, that for this audience Facebook is long gone.
______________________________________________________________________________
LESSON SIX: Instagram is LIFE
In the same vein as the last point, this is also my personal experience.
But Instagram is by far the most powerful social media network the world has ever seen.
Speaking to these young people, it is jaw dropping how much weight is put on Instagram by this generation.
The Instagram profile [hard posts] is the definition of a person’s identity.
Instagram stories are an ephemeral window into a person’s life, in a slightly less controlled, more organic way.
Followers and likes are a direct measure of how relevant, popular and important somebody is. And look, I’m not here to pass judgement on if this is good or bad, but I will say to everyone reading this: take note, Instagram is a really, really big deal and it’s so much deeper than just posting photos.
______________________________________________________________________________
So there’s the first six …
Some you may know, some you may question but some may give you food for thought.
Remember this is specifically around youth orientated content, but for all the expertise out there, it’s funny how the most popular social content has not come from anyone in our industry.
Maybe this 2011 video from PHD can shed some light on that …