CrapHammer

Wayne knows what many Word of Mouth experts don't

I was asked [for] a LinkedIn answer on how to build Word of Mouth for a new Montessori school (www.montessorinl.ca) that Steve Bannister and his wife  are starting in St John's Newfoundland.  Here is a reprint of my answer.  There's a cool story about an amazing man Wayne buried towards the end...

  A lot of what I recommend can generally be equated to common sense.  This is because I believe that people are social beings and we desire connections, comfort and to feel valued.  The idea being that it takes a community to make an individual.  So if we behave in ways that are socially relevant and bring value to the individual, then I believe word of mouth will prosper.

  At the risk of being flamed by WOMers, I feel it takes anything but an expert on Word of Mouth campaigns to get Word of Mouth.  Rather, it takes a hard fought for awareness and commitment to caring and forging connections.  You need to align your passions with your values and create the most valuable and humane service possible while recognizing and being honest about your limitations and failings. ie: being open to input and conversation.

  I'm adding some links to services that could be very useful but they assume you are starting your centre here in Toronto.  Whether they are working/adopted where you are is a critical factor to be determined. 

  Namely: Gigpark, LinkedIn, Facebook

  Certainly no shocks in the above list.  These services can foster increased activity, but what creates the desire for people to share your service with friends and family?  I'd post some additional questions.

  How do people make recommendations now?
  Who are people in your community listening to today about schooling/education for their kids?
  What makes you stand out in a sea of noise?
  What values are at the centre of what you are doing?  The "What and the "How" are weak cousins to the "Why".

  I'm going to tell you a story about one of the greatest word of mouth examples in the city of Toronto.  A story very few people know about, but those who do will jump up and down in support.  And this individual has most likely never hired a WOM consultant, nor has he focused on WOM.

  Wayne runs a laundromat.  My google maps search leads me to estimate that there are potentially more than 1900 dry cleaners in the city of Toronto.  So how do you make one outfit stand out?

  Historically, I have always chosen my laundromat by location.  Then when a piece of clothing gets ruined or improperly cleaned, I often select the next best candidate that is slightly less convenient to where I live/work/travel.  This continues infinitum as I never run out of laundromats. 

  Only this all changed when I bought my first Hugo Boss suit and a couple of $200 dress shirts. I suddenly realized that it's one thing for an $80 shirt to get improperly pressed and glossy, but I didn't want this to happen with my much more expensive items.  So I walked into the agency where I was working and asked if anyone knew of a decent laundromat in the area.  I use the word "decent" here because in my brain I had no idea that excellence could occur in the realm of the sweaty, disinterested dry cleaning world I have witnessed every week of my adult life. (I believe an analogy with education could be made here.  ;-)

  I was accosted by a good friend at the agency who literally shook me until I agreed to save my soul and visit Wayne at King West Village Cleaners (1000 King West, 416-596-0559).  I thought it a bit strange that my friend knew the guy's name let alone that he was so emphatic and excited about me visiting him. This makes me chuckle because I now find myself doing the shaking and empathic gestures when asked about dry cleaners.

  It should be noted that I now live over 10 miles away from this laundromat.  I no longer work nearby, I don't have a car and I rarely travel to that end of town anymore.  I'm an East-ender and he is far on the west end.  (For my NY readers, this is like my living and working in SoHo but visiting an laundromat in the high 40's.)

  But every two weeks I rent my Zipcar and "fly" across town to meet Wayne.  And every two weeks he greets me by name, discusses any issues I have and personally picks out the shirts to be hand finished.

  And every two weeks I watch in amazement as someone else walks in before or after me and receives a level of service I've never witnessed elsewhere.  On my last visit, I watched as a woman bashfully handed Wayne the most destroyed pair of jeans on the planet and explained that they were her "special jeans".  She was in front of me and he apologized once to me and then turned his full attention to her.  It took close to 5 minutes for her to explain which rips were not to be repaired, how she wanted other things done.  This pair of jeans must have been 10 years old and he treated it with extreme care, listened to every point and ensured he understood what to do.  He treated this horrible pair of jeans as she intended - as her most prized possession.

  The last time I was in the shop, I asked Wayne what he does.  I wanted to know how he creates something so unusual in a space so crowded.  He told me a very simple thing.  "I just treat every piece of clothing as if it is mine."  I think there is more to it than that.  He acts with respect and integrity.  He fully shows up every day and as a result, his entire staff follow his lead to a level of service I am privileged to receive.

  He told me they were just selected by NOW magazine as the best dry cleaner in the city.  Rightfully so. 

(reprinted from my LinkedIn Response)

Image Source: pbo31

Creating Experiences that Bring About Change - Part 1

When Experiences Must Do Something

I feel it is important to start with a simple hypothesis - that what we are able to think of is constrained directly by what we are able to imagine.  So if we can't imagine different futures beyond the present situation, then we can't effectively explore new ideas, cover new ground or innovate.

Now imagine we are on a project with a large team and our role as a planner or as a UX person is to help the group frame the challenges and opportunities facing the client/organization. Some would say this is our only role.  Here I turn to a much needed conversation going on between Matthew Milan and Adrian about the overlap and state of affairs within planning and UX.

"As a planner I saw my job as creating new possibilities. I wanted to always be on the side of providing an opening for my brands and my colleagues to explore and play within a completely different and unexpected context."  Adrian

I agree and feel quite strongly that we have to "change" the audience so that they have the ability to "see" different realities in a world where few people spend time imagining things differently.  How we accomplish this is the "black art" of our field.  Do we draw a picture, create a powerpoint or tell a story?I

I propose that we must do what they are asking us to do - create an experience that has the potential to involve the viewer and enable the change to occur.

A Model For Creating Change
Hillis spoke some time back (2004) at the Long Now Foundation about the "Progress on the 10,000-year Clock".  Hillis is attempting the impossible by many accounts.  He is looking to change how we see the world, the future and - by extension - what is possible.

37 minutes into his presentation, he stops presenting what has been built to date and begins talking about how the clock is more than a thing - how it is an experience designed to change the viewer/visitor. 

He presents a model for the stages of an experience that can change the participant. (I was surprised to find out that he had spent time at Disney focused on creating experiences.)

• Picture:  we require a picture in our mind of what it is we are going to accomplish. 
• Commit:  the moment where we choose to engage - to commit.
• Glimpse:  a glimpse of something that pulls us forward - the "weenie in front of the dog."
• Trial:  a period of confusion where we leave behind our old ways of thinking - where we are unsure and even frightened enough to look for something different or new.
• Arrive:  we achieve what we set out to accomplish.
• Payoff:  the "high". A moment of reflection.
• Secrete Payoff: secret and personal payoff that only the people who have the experience can realize.
• Return:  start over at the beginning.

((Rituals appear to share many of these.  Future article?))

7 simple stages to think about in crafting an experience (or series of experiences) with a loop back to the beginning.  For this article, I want to call our attention to the very first step.  To have a picture.  A step so very often overlooked and yet so critically important.

It seems simple enough.  We paint a "picture" of what the experience is going to be like and use our media people to get this picture in front of everyone that matters.  If only it was that simple.  Going back to the opening hypothesis, our audience has to believe something is possible and be able to imagine it before they can even have a hope of "seeing it" let alone believing it.  So what do we do when we are trying to invent something "out of the box" or "new/different"?

Role of Comics
I've spoken about comics a few times now and I've been using them as a prototyping tool in a variety of situations.  This has been great, but it is becoming clear that comics are applicable for far more than just prototyping. 

They excel at the first step in the Hillis model.  They not only present a picture, they give the user the tools to imagine a different world and slowly change their perception to the point they can consider an idea.

There's been some high profile and really amazing uses of comics recently in just this context.

Google Chrome: Google wanted to introduce a new browser into the market that redefined a whole slew of protocols, technologies and methods used to build a browser.  They needed to generate awareness and buy-in on the concepts and why a new browser is needed - topics generally beyond most people's interest or ability to comprehend.   Yet critical if one were to imagine a new standard for browsers.  Their initial launch idea?  A brilliant comic by Scott McCloud.

Akoha: Akoha is attempting to bring "pay it forward" into a social networking environment.  This requires that people be engaged in learning what "pay it forward" is and then to be interested and willing to explore how Akoha works.  A lot of work when the goal is to create sign-ups and growth in the usage of the site.

 

I'm interested in what others in the field have to say about experiences that can bring about change, the Hillis model and/or the role of comics in this context.  Join in!

Digital Storytelling

I concur that this is a wonderful example of digital storytelling by a brand.  I enjoyed the flow, pace, and the fact that it treated me as a person.  Funny how many sites forget the last part.

http://www.truthaboutsmart.co.uk/

Pros:

• Great use of the medium.  I love the opening while it's loading the flash.  One of the best wait screens ever.
• The interactive parts were integral to the experience and I found it sort of fun.  Something I didn't expect from a selling-a-car website
• Simple and consistent progression of the story, allowing me to dig deeper should I so choose.

Cons:

• I could have done without is the flying cursors of previous visitors.  It looks like a "cool gadget" that someone wanted to try but it really doesn't play into the experience at all.  Sort of distracts from it.
• I'll save you from my "yet another micro-site" rant and just leave it at that.
• It would be nice to see some elements I could have used to spread the word about this campaign.  A short youtube video teaser?  A small interactive guess the right answer widget?

P.S.  Let it sit idle for a minute.  LOL.  Nice.

Many thanks to swissmiss for this find.

Say Hello to Ellen!

I'd like to introduce everyone to a wonderful woman and a new blog that just popped onto my radar.

http://www.ellendiresta.com/

Ellen has a serious and deep background with marketing.  Nothing new there, eh?  But there's something different about Ellen.  I met her at Overlap08 - a self-organized conference at a retreat center in upstate Connecticut with a focus on Design and Innovation.  Beyond being a sharp cookie, her work is anything but top-down and her perspective on engaging customers to generate real insights was eye opening to say the least. 

In fact, she refers to herself as "an innovation and growth strategy consultant."  And the focus of her work "is connecting consumer insight to opportunities to create value for my clients."

Woot!

Here are a couple articles on her recently "gone public" blog that I recommend checking out:

• How an aversion to saying "I don't know" is killing innovation
• Innovation through storytelling

 

An extra helping of dementia, please.

I've been watching a lot of socially focused PSAs of late.  And I hate to say this but most of them are dreadful.

I was just watching the one with people carrying logs around for Greenpeace and had to sigh to myself.  And then a friend sent me the following and I wanted to slap someone at Zig/Greenpeace.

Embedded Video

I wish more organizations would look for opportunities to partner with demented but talented and caring individuals like Dr. Octagon.  What an amazing piece.  But no.  Let's go and spend money putting out some more PSAs that no-one will remember.

Savior of AdTech San Francisco

We were able to spend some time yesterday with the true star of AdTech San Francisco 2008.  We got a quick snapshot of this wonderful gentleman before he was ushered off to spend some time with a jostling mob of the press.

Shows know they have to provide wireless access.  I find it hard to believe that they don't then realize that anything using wireless requires a power source, sooner or later.

But no.  No power drops in the room.  Instead there are 10 to 20 people gathered around a side wall sharing our tiny smuggled in powerstrip friend.  Oy.

Image Source: villagelinca

A place for serendip?

"The greatest promise of SNS is a seamless network of personally relevant digital channels through which we will be able to share and retrieve information that is personally meaningful and useful."

The dauntingly intelligent Arauz wrote a lengthy piece on how we are getting closer to a Functional Collective Consciousness and the role that Social Networking Sites (SNS) are playing in this.  I love his focus on the shift away from "collective" relevance and towards "personal" relevance.  In other words, when we search for something on Google, we are given what is believed to be the best choices for anyone else in our region searching for the same thing.  Whereas our individual needs and interests are likely different from what is relevant for the collective in our region.

Mike's discussion of "organic organization" is dead-on and quite interesting.

"Each of us implicitly categorizes every bit of information that we encounter."

He talks about how we use an intuitive and organic method of categorization.  And while each person's relationship to information and the world is unique, there are overlaps between each of us that help to define our membership in a group or movement.  ie:  I may think of (and categorize) political "news" differently from my neighbor, yet I am also a member of the same party so we likely share some traits in how we view or process information.

Where Mike loses me a bit is when he shifts into how new tools will achieve personal relevance.  "When we search, we will search through a system that understands what the topic means to us. And when we share, we will be able to pass on the content to only the people who we know will find it compelling."

I agree that the Social Networking Sites will take big steps forward in defining more relevant content, but disagree that these systems will be able to achieve such a utopian state.  Of even more relevance is the implied sense that this is a good thing, if I am wrong and it is indeed possible. 

I would offer that the overlap discussed earlier on how we categorize information, while experienced by us all, is actually an illusion.  It is a non-linear abstract that has no mass and as one digs down it will fractionate in locked step with every increase in magnification.

But even if it does turn out to be possible, what of serendipity?  What of finding content that was NOT desired yet proved critical to moving our ideas forward?  Here I turn to an equally thought provoking post by Richard Huntington.

"Serendipity is not only a beautiful word it is a very beautiful thing.

...

But I’m rather afraid that it is progressively disappearing from our lives, collateral damage in the quest to deliver and receive ever more relevant entertainment and communications."

The history of the word "serendipity" is a very interesting tale in and of itself.  It was coined by Horace Walpole and he sites a Persian fairy tale of Three Princes of Serendip as his inspiration.  It is a tale of three princes banished from their kindgom and how their adventures with the irrelevant and unexpected were but opportunities to discover things by good fortune and sagacity.

"... history reveals many examples of accidental and sagacious discovery while in pursuit of something else. Christopher Colombus’ discovery of America, Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin, and Alfred Bernard Nobel’s discovery of dynamite, are just a few examples."   (source)

I will let Richard, in absentia, close out this post with a quote from his blog.  I'm off to try a new sandwich bar in the meantime.

"Now, few of us will have the pleasure of discovering a life saving solution to bacterial infection but we do enjoy the pleasure of serendipitous discovery all the time. It is when we get to do or experience something that we didn’t know we would enjoy. Maybe its a shop we discover hidden down a backstreet that we take because of roadworks on our usual route, or a fascinating article in a magazine left in a waiting room we thumb through out of sheer boredom, a website we come across while hyperlinking through cyberspace, or a sandwich bar you try because it is recommended by someone you meet in a lift carrying their lunch."

Source articles:

Mike Arauz on the Functional Collective Conciousness

Huntington on Serendipity

Three Princes of Serendip by Richard Boyle

Photo Sources: beggs, HORIZON

Craft of a funny order

The craziest thing I've ever seen on stage.  I'm still amazed that it's not animated.

[link to embedded video]

Thanks to the Frith'ster.

Stab this in your eye and chew on it

Definitely worth a listen.  The kaiser strikes again.

The man who brought us Sacrum now brings us a monologue on a shit life.

"You are a bundle of light and energy.  And the sun gives you a glint of optimism.  The kind of optimism that would cheer up the most downhearted of procurement managers."

Charles has taken character creation into media creation and I found this not only funny but also an interesting experiment in new media art.  The idea of a persona having a crafted and celebrity take on life.  A life that is shit, but a life nevertheless.

This idea of characters that live and die in a world where we are all presenting crafted facebook, blog and other personas to the world almost makes me wonder if Max Headrom was actually hitting on something back in the 80s.  ;)

A week away

I'm back.  What a wonderful respite it was away from work, the city and so many pressures.

Rather than move into posting, I'd rather catch up on all the amazing writing everyone else has been up to.  So I'll just post a photo or two and some experiments around the campfire using a long exposure, iStopMotion and some flashlights.  Enjoy.

(embedded stop frame movie above)

Painting with light slideshow on (flickr)

music source: geometer