Thursday, June 29, 2006
Advertising's future has finally arrived
Terrific piece in Strategy + Business on Advertising at The Future of Advertising is Now. We hear so often how this and that is going to change – and then when the promises / prognostications are not fulfilled we say that people were ahead of their time or they were wrong or we just forget about it. For a variety of reasons many many factors need to be in place for a sizable fraction of society is able to take advantage of a technological improvement. Well the future at least in advertising (and many other components of marketing) is finally here (or at least just around the corner). Whether it be the much more widespread us of the Internet, the vastly greater availability of broadband to so many, the integration of internet / email / instant messaging / and all htat into our lives and particularly the lives of those who don’t know life as a teenager or young adult without these tools. The piece hits on this terrifically well and should not be missed if you are interested in marketing and advertising trends.
Advertising's future has finally arrived
Terrific piece in Strategy + Business on Advertising at The Future of Advertising is Now. We hear so often how this and that is going to change – and then when the promises / prognostications are not fulfilled we say that people were ahead of their time or they were wrong or we just forget about it. For a variety of reasons many many factors need to be in place for a sizable fraction of society is able to take advantage of a technological improvement. Well the future at least in advertising (and many other components of marketing) is finally here (or at least just around the corner). Whether it be the much more widespread us of the Internet, the vastly greater availability of broadband to so many, the integration of internet / email / instant messaging / and all htat into our lives and particularly the lives of those who don’t know life as a teenager or young adult without these tools. The piece hits on this terrifically well and should not be missed if you are interested in marketing and advertising trends.
Why is it that the more visible someone becomes, they less attractractive they so often seem.
I recall being a fan / admirer of Gary Hart some time before his run for the President. In and after 1984 -- the year of his surprising challenge of Walter Mondale for the Democratic nomination, he became somehow less and less appealing -- he seemed less edgy, less willing to buck the establishment (at least as I saw it), and less new. Was it me or was it the level to which he had been propelled to?
Why is Angelina Jolie so much less interesting since she got an Oscar and then of course a source of such fascination for the public as her relationship with Brad Pitt blossomed (or more likely was revealed since it probably blossomed before the newpapers got wind of it).
I was such a Paul Tsongas fan before he ran and then tired of the deficit talk (which I thought so important) and the bear he carried around (I can't remember what for). Afterwards I was very mixed.
Is it possible that part of it is the feeling that if I have to share him with so many others than he's no longer as appealing. Do people's appreciation of something they felt "they discovered" and felt some ownership of diminish when so many people discover the same things?
For example, did the early Starbucks lovers sour a bit or at least appreciate considerably less their coffee sipping locale when it became so widespread? Is smaller / a niche element have a virtue in an of itself?
I recall being a fan / admirer of Gary Hart some time before his run for the President. In and after 1984 -- the year of his surprising challenge of Walter Mondale for the Democratic nomination, he became somehow less and less appealing -- he seemed less edgy, less willing to buck the establishment (at least as I saw it), and less new. Was it me or was it the level to which he had been propelled to?
Why is Angelina Jolie so much less interesting since she got an Oscar and then of course a source of such fascination for the public as her relationship with Brad Pitt blossomed (or more likely was revealed since it probably blossomed before the newpapers got wind of it).
I was such a Paul Tsongas fan before he ran and then tired of the deficit talk (which I thought so important) and the bear he carried around (I can't remember what for). Afterwards I was very mixed.
Is it possible that part of it is the feeling that if I have to share him with so many others than he's no longer as appealing. Do people's appreciation of something they felt "they discovered" and felt some ownership of diminish when so many people discover the same things?
For example, did the early Starbucks lovers sour a bit or at least appreciate considerably less their coffee sipping locale when it became so widespread? Is smaller / a niche element have a virtue in an of itself?
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Monday, June 26, 2006
Memories of Working with Aaron Spelling
Memories of Working with Aaron Spelling
Nice thoughts on Aaron Spelling. Written by someone who worked closely with him / for him so it may be a hagiographic but it demonstrates how he was able to build loyalty.
Nice thoughts on Aaron Spelling. Written by someone who worked closely with him / for him so it may be a hagiographic but it demonstrates how he was able to build loyalty.
Pixar Management Style -- Key to Creative Success
Terrific piece from the LA Times by Entertainment reporter Claudia Eller a few weeks ago on Pixar's Ed Catmull, the management the person who's infused the successful creative culture of his company.
"The 61-year-old computer scientist, who is also president of Pixar, is nothing short of a spiritual leader, his colleagues say -- a soft-spoken man whose personal philosophies infuse the Pixar culture that has produced nothing but blockbusters.
"Ed is the reason we're all here," said Lasseter, noting Catmull's anti-bureaucratic, artist-driven, bottom-up management style.
"He's the ultimate parent -- he helps you be the best you can be..."
"Sometimes, it's the leadership that's blocking something," Catmull said in a recent interview in his new office at Disney, a place where animators have griped for decades about being micromanaged. "I've always believed that you shape the management team around the talent rather than try to force people into a certain way of doing it."
It's too early to know. But already, Disney animators say a remarkable change is taking place.
The principles that guides Catmull's management style according to the piece:
1. Hire people who are smarter than you.
2. Invest in people -- a priority over investing in ideas.
3. If your film audience is everyone, you should listen to everyone.
4. A series of successes can hide problems, so learn when you make mistakes.
Terrific piece from the LA Times by Entertainment reporter Claudia Eller a few weeks ago on Pixar's Ed Catmull, the management the person who's infused the successful creative culture of his company.
"The 61-year-old computer scientist, who is also president of Pixar, is nothing short of a spiritual leader, his colleagues say -- a soft-spoken man whose personal philosophies infuse the Pixar culture that has produced nothing but blockbusters.
"Ed is the reason we're all here," said Lasseter, noting Catmull's anti-bureaucratic, artist-driven, bottom-up management style.
"He's the ultimate parent -- he helps you be the best you can be..."
"Sometimes, it's the leadership that's blocking something," Catmull said in a recent interview in his new office at Disney, a place where animators have griped for decades about being micromanaged. "I've always believed that you shape the management team around the talent rather than try to force people into a certain way of doing it."
It's too early to know. But already, Disney animators say a remarkable change is taking place.
The principles that guides Catmull's management style according to the piece:
1. Hire people who are smarter than you.
2. Invest in people -- a priority over investing in ideas.
3. If your film audience is everyone, you should listen to everyone.
4. A series of successes can hide problems, so learn when you make mistakes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)