This man wants you to think more clearly (courtesy of Wikimedia)
You’ve heard the saying “to err is human and forgive divine”.
What you may not know, however, is that us Homo sapiens have been hardwired over the millenia to be illogical, distorted in our perception of reality, and inaccurate in our judgements.
In other words, to err repeatedly is human.
Do you know that your five senses (sight, sound, scent, taste and touch) play a major role in what you buy?
While marketers go gaga over social technologies and their impact on digital commerce, it is often our physical perceptions of a product which influence buying decisions.
What is the secret sauce to enduring corporate innovation?
Is it the ability to introduce disruptive technologies? Are smaller companies – also known as emergents – more able to shake the market? What about religion, climate, geography, education, patents or even (gasp) luck?
Social media marketing is probably the most heavily written management topic on the planet. Unfortunately, many books, articles, blogs and podcasts on social media focus too heavily on the “feel good” factor of success stories. These tend to be more inspirational than instructional.
Ric Dragon’s seminal publication Social Marketology is different. Providing a methodical framework covering strategy, organisation, execution and measurement, the book provides a step by step process to managing the social media marketing function.
Weird is the new normal. Mass is dead.
And the rich, who is anybody who can afford to buy stuff or do stuff for fun, are no longer embracing the mediocre middle of the bell curve.
Jerry Newman of University of Buffalo (courtesy of UB Faculty Experts)
Imagine a 57 year old management professor donning the uniform of an undercover fast food worker for 14 months. Opting for this “hardship” research project during his sabbatical, he goes through seven jobs in burger chains like McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s.
Along the way, the professor discovers “powerful truths about what makes businesses great” and provides lessons from behind the counter “guaranteed to supersize any management style”.
What are entrepreneurs and business builders made of? Who should you bring to your team at different stages of growth, and why?
The answers, according to venture capitalists and business leaders Anthony K. Tjan, Richard J. Harrington and Tsun-Yan Hsieh, are contained their book Heart, Smarts, Guts, and Luck (HSGL). Tackling the human aspect of entrepreneurship, leadership and management, the book surmised that each of us are biased towards one of four traits – namely heart, smarts, guts, or luck – in our decision-making processes.
Imagine watching a magical performance by David Copperfield.
Rather than dazzle you with his breathtaking acts, Copperfield regales you the audience with his childhood story. He relates how his grandfather – a crusty old man – never gave Copperfield or his father the approval they craved.
Do you know that most TV ad viewers avert their eyes the moment a company’s brand appears?
Or that 6 out of 7 “megaviral” branded videos – think Subservient Chicken and Old Spice Man – are jump-started with paid seedings?
“Caveat Venditor – Let the Seller Beware”
So proclaimed Doc Searls in The Intention Economy: When Customers Take Charge. Co-author of the legendary The Cluetrain Manifesto, Searls’ main thesis is that customers – like markets – should be free.
