Meshup catchup

some recent found stuff, etc, so I will embrace 140-style and contribute cause apparently not everyone sees what I see online and might actually find one of the following of interest:

In case you haven't been online today, 'subservient chicken' is 5 years old. Dance, chicken, dance. Liked reading the blog post unrolling the story.

Caught a link that's even more interesting re Barbarian, who are on assignment at GE. Looks like nerdy goodness, will watch with interest.

It's got to be good if it combines technology and cooking. Bakers Tweet let's bakers alert Twitter followers when their latest fresh batch comes out of the oven.

haha links, esp when you start finding wading through crap tweets for good annoying:

• newmediarage.com/
• Twittering newsreader courtesy rocketboom.com
• Plus this one is good for multiple viewings, courtesy the Onion: Prague's Kafka Airport Ranks Last in Service, 'oppressive atmosphere'

Got to find a way to get the CAT conference.

Elsewhere in space: Hubble Provides New Evidence for Dark Matter Around Small Galaxies

Enjoy!

From podcamptoronto2008

I was watching the stream from home and decided not as much fun as being there, so beetled over to Toronto. Here are miscellaneous tips picking up from sessions and chatting with people here.

Best tip in the "doh, why didn't I think of that? category": from Malle at Harlequin for those of you looking at producing company podcasts, she produces their editor and writer podcasts -- and edits herself out! So she will lead the discussion, get everyone comfortable, outline direction, and ask questions, etc, then in editing will take herself out. You get the conversational tone without the awkwardness of question phrasing or repeats to get at some meat.

I don't have a great recording voice and if I get into territory that's too technical will lose authority, but I do know how to get subjects talking more and what questions to ask. Brilliant idea and so simple...

MacBook Air Ad Makes Me Cry

The combination of beauty, simplicity and the Pollyanna hopefullness of the soundtrack just make me want to weep. And of course I want one.

[Disclosure: I worked for a subsidiary of Apple for almost a decade and have fond memories as well as deeply ingrained appreciation for the work and genius that goes into making good products user-friendly, simple and beautiful.]

And that, my friends, is what this space should really be about, because it's the stuff that makes me weep. Whether it's a campaign or product, the synergy of elegance and function that demonstrates it was really well thought out and executed with care and attention to the customer and their experience. That it fully represents the brand. And the end result are a lot of happy customers who will buy more and tell their friends (cause I'm a greedy marketer as well as a humanist...).

That's why I am so interested in the intersection of direct and social marketing, because you need to like and care for people to communicate so you will be heard -- and that means sometimes being quiet and listening, letting them do the talking.

I've been thinking of what this means in my own work, and will share some of those thoughts coming up. Please share what you've been ruminating on, maybe they intersect, too.

The Industry Standard being resurrected

Hey, for those of you born before 80s you might remember The Industry Standard. B2B reports it is being reborn in blog form.


Speaking of which, Being Direct is reviving, with a new look and the requisite plethora of tags, but most importantly regular postings starting November 5. (Thanks for the nudge.)

What will they create a newsletter for next?

Ken Magill rants about Colgate-Palmolive's toothpaste newsletter, SmileTalk, labelling it a stupid marketing idea and asking, "What next, an e-mail newsletter about toilet paper called The Daily Poop?"

What do you think? Stupid idea or way to go in capturing those toothpaste evangelists!? :)

Edit your copy for better search results

Or rather, "better search results with edited copy."

I'm a lover of words and appreciate the great writers I work with in my job. They each contribute in different ways. This article, "SEO improves with well-edited copy: ACES panelists" gives a couple great examples to illustrate how to assess your web headings and subheads to improve your search results. And it's another arsenal for marketers everywhere who need to fight for budget to hire a professional.

Trust me, from years of experience, you save so much time hiring a great writer who understands your space and how to craft prose to educate or sell. Not only do you get better response rates, good copy says so much to customers and prospects about your brand and how you feel about them as customers.