Get Out Of My Face

I don't like it when brand represenatives try to make that extra sale when I don't want it.

I don't like it when the server at Starbucks asks me if I want a blueberry muffin with my cappuccino even though I am standing in front of them and quite clearly haven't asked for one with my order.I like it even less when a group of "volunteers" from Friends of the Earth, a brand I previously had a lot of time for, were virtually patrolling the pavements on Victoria Street, accosting pedestrians, some of whom were clearly not interested, and trying to get them to sign up. When I approached one of them with my camera phone pointing in their direction they scarpered and hid. I suggested to them they were not doing their brand any favours by engaging with the public in such an aggressive way and would be better off having something which 'gave' to the pass public; music, some speakers, etc.

I like it even less when what is being fostered on me seems to make no sense. I went to the gym yesterday for a quick lunchtime swim. I gave the receptionist my gym membership card and a pound deposit for the towel before going through the turnstile when the receptionist turned to me and said "Would you like a drink?"

Now I understand why, even if I don't care for it, the server at Starbucks would ask me if I would like a muffin when I order a cappaccuino, or a shoeshop salesperson would ask me if I would like some polish or a shoe tree when I buy a pair of shoes, but I asking me if I want a drink when I going to have a swim, well that is a bit of a stretch. I didn't like it. I told him I didn't want a drink but I would like a swim.

These brands just don't do themselves any favors by trying to make that extra sale. Perhaps the numbers DO add up. It would interesting to find out if these staff prompts actually generate enough sales to justify the little bit of sales training required to push today's hot sell AND overcome the level of negativity they will be building up around the brand.

In contrast, I was walking through St. Pancras/Kings Cross station a few days ago. There were a few Gt. Ormond St. volunteers dotted around the station concourse (never more than one, not a pack like Friends of the Earth folk) holding a bucket into which they wanted passers by to put their cash. They didn't make a sound. They stood still and just waited.

I immediately put all my change into one of the buckets and told him of my encounter with the Friends of the Earth "volunteers" in Victoria. He replied, sagely, "they are probably on commission".

A Revelation In Every Cup

Green Mountain Coffee. Great company. Great marketing team. Wish them great success.

Here is TJ in Ad Age's CMO column.

It's the Cricket Season

When I was a teenager summer meant the cricket season and the cricket season meant summer. I played a lot. It is a wonderful game. I cannot think of a game that is better. It is subtle yet explosive, incredibly physical yet idle for long periods, it has endless stats (always good for geeky teens), is exclusive for those who understand its laws and rituals yet open to all. Some of the best moments of my life have been towards the end of a game, fielding on the boundary, after a long spell of bowling, chewing on a long blade of grass, as the shadows cast by the local village church spire stretch further across the ground and the wheat in a near by field sways in the gentle wind. It is like nothing else. It wouldn't be invented today. It takes too long. And that is part of its charm.

Coley Porter Bell Blog

A plug for the Coley Porter Bell blog that went live today. It is worth a look, here.

Design Time

I love this digital/analgoue radio. Not just because I can listen to the BBC World Service broadcast in great clarity, but because of its super design. It has very simple lines when we see it face on. All the dials and buttons are on the top so it is pretty easy to use in this vertical position.

Swivel the handle right the way around and it can be used as a stand/rest for the radio.

Put it on a desk, like I do, or a shelf, and operate it in the horizontal.

It was designed by the innovation house, IDEO .

I can't do a post on design without quickly showing this:

It must be nearly 5 decades old, and with kind hands it still works very well.

Molecular Boardroom

Having posted yesterday, here, about looking at the world in detail, it was a wonderful coincidence that I was lucky enough to see a boardroom that does just that earlier this week. This is the boardroom at DSM in the Netherlands:

The idea was to signal a more creative environment. The company understands the world at a molecular level and used that as an inspiration for the room. As well as the amazing walls, the room has a glass ceiling as well; and effect that makes it even more extraordinary. Below is a good example of how the ceiling amplifies the effect:
The company also has a history of buying art from local artists and employes a curator full time to run the collection. I couldn't resist putting some more shots of the boardroom walls in my 'Artzy Surfaces' flickr collection, here .

Blue Sky

Coley Porter Bell hold an annual competition called 'Blue Sky' which encourages entrances to explore a passion, one that is likely to in some way be connected to creativity. Past winners have created an adult, retro ice cream brand, explored the role of colour on buildings, looked at the effect of billboard ban in Sao Paulo and even explored fear. Here is a link, and here as well. The winner gets £3000 and two weeks off to spend on their Blue Sky project. They have to give a presentation to the company once completed. The entries are submitted anonymously, so the selection panel are judging on the merit of the entry.

The winning entry for 2006 was to write a book. This is it, written, printed and complete with blurb and quotes on the back cover, a 400 page plus parody of the branding industy:

Brilliant Business Cards

A (bad, it's the Blackberry camera again!) picture of Eco3's business cards; well, stickers really.
Eco3 are an environmental and sustainability consultancy, see here for more details. Their business cards are terrific. They re-use other bits of card, for example a train ticket or a cut a bit of card from chocolate packaging and then put their sticker on it. Brilliant!

My first question was whether the 'sticker' method was more damaging to the environment than the 'print business cards' method. Of course they had done the research and it was a third less damaging.

Wonderful stuff.

What's Your Story?

I was in a Waterstone's recently, trying to buy a basic book on economies for inquisitive eleven year old when I saw lots of 'story cards' on the wall. Here are a couple:

Though the photos are pretty bad, taken with my 2 megapixel blackberry camera, the stories and the idea behind it is really good: people sending in their story on a card. The competition is now closed, but the website is still up, have a look, here.

It reminds me a little of the American Visionary Art Mueseum, and in particular the Post Secrets exhibit which people post cards anonymously of their secrets.

Intangible Brand Value

Strikes me that paper money is possibly one of the best examples of creating intangible value. The paper itself isn't really worth much. We can't eat it or grow crops on it. Yet because we all believe in its value it has value.

Chocolate shop face off: M+M's vs Hershey's

The M+M's shop in Times Sq. Although there were a few long tubes of various colour M+M's to buy, the store seemed to be predominantly all manner of M+M merchandising; clothes, hats, soft toys, famous landmarks, and more. Why on earth would anyone want to buy this stuff? Admittedly, there were plenty of people in the store but I didn't see them buying anything. Perhaps M+M see it as an experience store. But I can't get inside a huge M+M nor see how they are made (Hershey factory in PA is very good for that), nor dive into a sandpit full of them. The brief for this store must have been something like "create maximum merchandising experience".

Across the road is the Hershey store. I believe it was there before the M+M store. I have heard that a smart ad creative, when asked to do more ads for Hershey, retorted "you don't want any more ads, you want a store", which may be a tad unoriginal nowadays but apparently was revolutionary at the time. Hershey did it. Good for them. Now the store doesn't have huge areas of space, like the M+M store, but nor does it have a lot of superfluous nick-nacks either. It has chocolate, and lots of it. OK, it may be a little gaudy and very busy, but it feels like a chocolate shop, and I can buy many varieties of Hershey's. The brief for this store really could be "make it feel like a kid in a candy store".

"Welcome Home"

It's 2.12 am , EST time, and I have finally arrived at the Hampton Inn in Round Rock, nr Austin, TX. My colleagues all got earlier flights. I had to get the 8.45 pm. It is wet and windy. I have never stayed here before. I am very tired. I didn't even notice the sign on the door (right) that said "don't use this door", and tried to get in. The man at reception, after letting me in, apologised for the sign being bad - it may be a little small but really, it was my problem. Then he said 'Welcome Home'. On one level it is a bit rich me never having been here and all that, but you know what, having done a working day, then a 4.30 hr flight, a 30 min drive in my rental car, it was great. It wasn't over the top. It could have been so bad. In fact it was just a nice touch.

Living in IKEA

On NPR this morning I heard an article about Mark Malkoff, the comedian filmaker, living in IKEA in Paramus, NJ. Apparently, his appartment needed fumigating and he didn't want to burden his friends so he asked if he could go live in IKEA for a week. To their credit, they agreed. He lives in the showroom, uses the customer restrooms, and a shower they have laid on for him, but has problems cooking (the appliances don't actually work) and sleeping (the flourescent lights are on 21 hours a day) but posing as King of IKEA, he is allowed to make the 10pm "ok folks it's time to go announcement, and he has had some fun with the night security guard, Jarvis; laser tag, kart racing, rollerblading, for example. Have look at this for more details. Good for IKEA. I wish more brands shared this spirit.

By the way, it is comes as no surprise that Malkoff also pulled the stunt of visiting all Manhatten's 171 Starbucks in one day.