Wreathian

Authentic. Creative. Passionate. These are all adjectives that add up to the holy grail of a great story - Original. And they are all perfectly demonstrated by a Swiss artist named Sala in his latest effort. His One Thousand Paintings have already become instantly valuable (people are already being solicited to donate them to MoMA ). This is the first idea of its kind. It started in February when Sala displayed his newest works at a show in Basel, Switzerland. Before today, he had sold 109 paintings. Someone picked up the story and broadcast it across the internet this morning. Today alone he sold 208. Remarkable stories and ideas spread quickly and without much effort. Reminisce about Sala's story next time you spend too much time thinking about advertising or marketing campaigns and consider spending more time thinking about the fundamental story your service or product tells your customers and prospects.

For centuries, putting something on paper (disk, etc.) and distributing it has been exclusive to huge media companies. Anyone can create a website or a start a dry cleaner, but publishing has been traditionally dominated by gigantic media houses. No more. Along comes Lulu and enables anybody to publish a book. A real book - with hearty paper, professional covers, and a listing in the Library Of Congress ! One at a time, they turn them out. For less than the price of a DVD player you can even have your book distributed through the same mainstream channels from which companies such as Barnes & Noble and Amazon buy their inventory. The book certainly will not market itself, but it is definitely there in front of decision makers where it would never have been otherwise. Lulu has turned an entire industry on its ear by giving power back to creators and customers, alike. For industries like pharmaceuticals, where huge companies took the power of independent pharmacies , the pend...

An usable idea to bring in web traffic without enlisting technology.

That is the estimated amount of money I have personally been offered for assisting the relatives of rulers/activists/businessmen whose uncles/fathers/mentors have been unjustly exiled/assassinated/sent into hiding from their native countries. Too bad they are all scams. $31.2 billion would be pretty useful.... This week 565 people were arrested in five countries in connection with similar e-mail fraud scams. It is terribly unfortunate that over 2.8 million people have already been victimized. The criminals can manage to weave a convincing tale, but we as consumers are seemingly unable to manage protecting one another. The ridiculous part of this whole scenario is that foolish, greedy opportunists have discounted an entire media into a state of capitalistic torpidity. Advertising? Disintegrated. Direct marketing? Flushed. Story-telling...?

Do you really think the girl in the picture has anything, anything , at all to do with the quote next to her? Delivering an effective message is more than simply finding a photo you like, pairing it with the best customer testimonial you have on file, and publishing an advertisement . Every time you put something out into the public it tells a little piece of your story. Consider how those pieces add up. Take the time to ask some questions and to think as your audience would when they see your message. To whom is it speaking? What does it say? What does it mean? Is it offensive? Is it insightful? Is if funny? Is it supposed to be? What is its goal? How does it accomplish that goal? Why is it trying? Marketing is (no surprise) all image. The best images are refined. How refined is your message?

In an era of information on demand, decision-making tools are more available than ever. Of course, as technology increases and is implemented sooner and with more efficiency, information will be even more readily available. According to CIO Magazine, information is the leading tool for quality decisions. So why do folks still take forever to make up their minds? The Harvard Business Review has some ideas. It is about fear of change. Correction - fear of being different. In most cases, decisions take longer, far longer, than they need to because the decision-maker is afraid of stepping outside the lines of what is currently being done by the industry, by the company, by the world.... Those organizations that are unafraid of failure make decisions quickly, bring products to the market first, and are on the leading edge of profitability. They know they will fail. They move forward with the understanding that risk equals reward in spite of the obvious risk of failure. They do not...

Have a goal? Tell someone about it. Actually, tell everyone about it. Why keep your goal to yourself? When you spread the word about what you are trying to accomplish, people will help you. Most folks want to be part of something and, if they like you or agree with your perspective, that want will translate into action. Whether it be telling other people, blogging, sharing a contact, or introducing you to an opportunity, any little bit helps. Of course, there will always be those who are convinced their idea will be stolen and run off to success under someone else's agency. Once a vision has been shared with the world (that is the eventual point, right?) it will be fair game for plagiarism and corruption, anyway. Like children, ideas can only be coddled for so long before you have to let them into the world to fall and scrape their knees. Good ideas beg to be spread and people starve to hear them. They make no difference any other way. Evangelize.