Music Is In Us

I have been stuck on TED lately.  And i liked this..... a lot.  The power of the pentatonic scale.

I Choose To Disagree

The paradox of choice...I too find myself wishing I had made a different decision on the meal I chose at a certain restaurant, that there were less options on the menu so that my girlfriend would  pick already, and at times wanting more options.  However, I believe that these issues root from the faults of our human nature.  I do not believe that because we have more options we now have more regret.  The grass is always greener, and it has always been.  If I chose a candy bar A over Candy Bar B I will question my decision.  If I only have Candy Bar A to choose from I will wish I had more options.  If I have hundreds of candy bars to choose from and choose candy bar A, I will say I should have chose one of the other candy bars. Humans are always taking hindsight  into consideration.  When we had less choices we wanted more.  Now that we have more we think it is probably better if we had less.  I call BS.  I say that we are naturally unsatisfied beings.  The only thing that I agreed with was that with more choice we now have to put the blame on ourselves.  I believe this is a very good thing, but it does not come with more choice.  We have always been solely responsible for the outcome regardless the amount of choice we have.  Having more options does not pass responsibility from one person to another, it just removes the ability blaming it on someone else.  We are always responsible for the choices we make.    The doctor does know more about medicine than me.  But if he did not give me the choice and something went wrong I would blame him.  Would it be his fault?  No I made choices to get into his chair in the first place.  So now he gives me the choice and all I want him to do is choose for me.  There is major flaw in this.  But it is not due to the amount of choice I have, there are far too many other variables at play.  

Maslow, not so fast....

I recently stumbled upon this video on TED talks.  This gentleman, Tony Robbins is a life coach and addresses the question of why people are happy, and what drives our success.  As he speaks he asks the audiance why the people in life that have been given all the luxuries money can buy throughout lives usually end up in and out of rehab.  He then states that on the other side of the spectrum there are people who have gone through strugles upon strugles.  These people have been abused, harrased, and suffered, yet they usually end up happier than the oposition, and they contribute more.  He explains that he believes that there are six major needs humans face, that emotion drives excelence and that decisions equal destiny.  The human needs he describes are certanty (stability), uncertantiy (variety), signifigance, love, growth, and contribution.  He states that these needs are the cause to all human activity including violence, terrorisim, and acts of love.  The differnce comes because these needs are not of the same signifagance in all of us.  Some people require more certantity others the opposite.  To continue he states that are decisions then define where we will take those needs and how we utilize them. He states that we all have different maps that we use to make these decisions.  And lastly our emotions ultimately define how we percieve it all.  If you have disbelief that your decsion is not going to end well it probably won't. 

I found this video very infomative and given its nature on why we as humans (consumers) behave the way we do to be very fitting.  This information can be applied to all areas of life including why we buy what we do.   

here is the link : http://www.ted.com/talks/tony_robbins_asks_why_we_do_what_we_do.html

What Do You Sink?

I thought that this one was funny and creative.  Enjoy.

Make It Count

Nike has a new wrist watch out that keeps track of the steps you take, calories you burn, and basically every movement you make throughout the day.  I saw this ad on youtube while watching another video.  I have to give nike props on this add because I was given the option to skip the ad, but chose to watch the entire minute long video.  This was the first time I have ever done this, and it was because the video did such a great job catching my attention.  These days I am constantly analyzing every ad I see, and my conclusion on most of them is that they are garbage.  For this ad I found myself wanting to watch it all because at first I didn't understand what was happening ( I kept asking myself, What do you mean it counts?), the clips were interesting and funny, and when the ad was over I still had no idea what they were trying to sell to me ( which caused me go to their website and look it up).  So not only did nike  keep me tuned into their ad for a full minute, but they also managed to get me to take a visit to their website.  I also found that the tag line was very fitting with the product and what it does for the consumer, which is to count!

Legends

My father’s side of the the family is form Terry, a town located in the eastern part of Montana. My grandparents owned an ran a bar and cafe up until I was around nine years old.  As a child the bar was the best place to go and visit, my cousins and I turned the restaurant into our playground.  After my grandmother retired and sold the restaurant my memories changed from the playing in the cafe to watching movies in my grandmothers living room.  My grandmother had  one  VHS film that was worth watching and it was ‘Legends of the Fall.’ My mother would watch the American classic every time we visited.  At first I hated the film.  I was too young to understand it.  However, As my younger brother and I began to revisit the film when we got to an age where we could appreciate it, became one of our favorites. 

Terry became our thanksgiving destination as it allowed us to hunt while enjoying the common thanksgiving traditions.   From these visits and our previous in the past my brother and I birthed a Thanksgiving ritual.  Every year him and I sneak away from all of our family members within a few days of thanksgiving to watch Legends by ourselves.  

I don’t fully understand what it is exactly about the film that we relate to thanksgiving, or what urges us to watch it every year.  I'm sure that we connected the film to terry and then terry to Thanksgiving, and thus the connection.  However, I know there is much more too it.  The nature of the film is about a family growing up in the state of Montana in the 1800s.  Its story contains love, war, hunting, brotherhood, and more.   The characters in the film live a self sustaining life in the mountains, which is something I only dream of doing.  My brother Chase and I have a connection with this film through our personal relationship.  We correlate with the season of giving thanks and remembering the pioneers that once founded our country. And we pay our respects every year in our ritualistic viewing of the film.  

If you want to be a successful marketer in the near and upcoming future,  don't look to books or so called experts for advise, because they don't have it.  According to an article in Forbes, people are becoming immune to traditional techniques, and no one really knows what to do about it.  The successful campaigns these days create an experience for the customers of the brand, and successful marketers are those that are curious, love change, and generate ideas that drive change. The article uses campaigns like Nike's "Write the Future", as an example of this.  It seems that creativity is key successful marketing these days, and the beauty of creativity is that it is undefined.  To accomplish it you have to create it....

Nike's "Write the Future" campaign :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBZtHAVvslQ

Forbes' Article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/dorieclark/2012/11/11/the-end-of-the-expert-why-no-one-in-marketing-knows-what-theyre-doing/

In Case of Zombie Attack

What if it happens? What if our worst fears are realized? If the Dead walk, the continuation of the human race will become a daily struggle. Are you prepared to protect and defend your family and friends? Your best chance lies in the Gerber Apocalypse Survival Kit. Enclosed in a super durable canvas carrying case with reinforced stitching, the kit is compact and packable. To beat the uprising we must work together. We must arm ourselves and organize.  (Actual product description taken from gerbergear.com)

If zombies attack gerber gear has got your back.  Yes they are actually selling a kit that will provide you with every knife variation necessary to keep you alive when dead walking humans plague the earth.  They call it the Apocalypse Kit, and it costs $350.  The kit has been a highlight in many of Gerber's recent marketing strategies.   They recently used product placement on the hit television show The Walking Dead, when a character found the kit in an empty car. Apparently they are using the popularity of the television show along with the recent increased popularity of zombies, vampires, and other mystical creatures, to sell knives.  They also did a promotional giveaway on Facebook, where they gave away a kit on Halloween.  Lastly they sponsored a series of How to commercials.  The commercials gave step by step instructions showing viewers how to sever zombie heads, remove zombie limbs, plan escape routes from large groups of zombies, and survive when the world ends.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6zO7GBCNEo&feature=relmfu

Is this a smart move?  Who is to say how many people actually buy the Apocalypse Kit.  However, if they are trying to sell a knife or two to fans of The Walking Dead, this campaign was the way to do it. Im sure it will also sell to people preparing for the end of the world.  I believe they are using it as a creative way to bring about more brand awareness.  Thoughts?   

Hello Gerber

This is a piece taken from Gerber's add campain known as 'Hello Trouble'.  It does a damn good job of bringing together people, product and setting to reflect the lifestyle of Gerber Knives.  Which is pure badassness.  A knife can be used for so many reasons which makes the target market large.  This is both good and bad for Gerber.  On the plus side they can and do sell a lot of knives.  On the other hand it is probably difficult to convey a single message that can be applied to the wide variety of knife uses. This ad campaign, however, does it.   

 "I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off". - Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) Fight club.  

 This quote was taken from the movie Fight Club.  After recently watching this this film I gained a new perspective on it.  What I once thought was a film about boxing in basements has changed into something much more than that.  The film's story does has lots of fighting, blood, schizophrenic characters, and crude humor, but it is underlying theme is about materialism.  The characters in the film view the world as a slave to advertising, media, meaningless items, and the choice architects that create it all.  I don't know if we are slaves, but I have to agree that we spend a lot of time behind televisions, computer screens, and consuming more than is needed. I know at times that I am at fault of these things.  

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bullet

I would like to formally introduce you to the the Bullet.   Bowl cut?  Mullet?  The answer is yes.  This new hair style combines the two into a unity of awesomeness. Talk about two wrongs that make a right.
This stylish new hairdo (hairdon't)  may shout trash, but there is no denying that it is also screams bad ass!  So if your looking for a new style to extend your "self," become a gunner and rock the Bullet!

Above is a snap shot of the "Searching For West" film.  The film features Mark Seacat who was followed throughout his 2011 elk hunt.  The people behind this production set out to do something unlike anything in the industry, and they accomplished it.  The film exposes the desires and trials of a hunter as he travels through the mountains and through life.   All in a way that captures the truth and beauty of nature.

Among the many unique things about this film is the way it advertises.  It is no doubt that companies sponsored this film as an avenue to market products.  But rather than over exposing the products in the common fashion with cheesy tag lines or product puffery, the film merely tells a story.  The gear that the featured hunter uses is shown, but never spoken about.   This form of marketing is sometimes referred to as product placement or embedded marketing. As with the film it had a very honest feel to it.  No gimmicks, just the products in use in a real life setting.

Check out the film  at  http://searchingforwest.com/