John Winsor

Bob, Say It Ain't So!

The New York Times reports, "On Monday Comcast is to announce the details of its new 24-hour digital cable channel for preschoolers, which will feature Elmo, Big Bird, Barney - and commercials. PBS not only approves, but is a partner: the channel's co-owners are PBS, Sesame Workshop and HIT Entertainment, producer of "Barney and Friends" and "Bob the Builder."

PBS and commercials just doesn't seem to fit. It's another example of the shifting paradigm of content and marketing.

Time to Travel

I had dinner last night with Adam DeVito of Big Boing Toys. They've got the coolest internet based toy called Gnomads. What a great idea!

San Francisco

I'm in SF today giving a speech at a Market Research Conference. Altougth the attendance was light, there was a good group of interesting folks in attendance. I really like these smaller events because they become more of a dialogue.

The highlight of the day was hanging out this morning with Evelyn Rodriguez. What fun. I love her blog and am in awe of her ability to synthesize the world! Check out the latest post on being real.

I also went to the Niketown and picked up a pair of Considered boots that my friend Steve McDonald designed. You've got to check out these sustainable shoes. The rock! Great job, Steve!

The Power of Blogs

I just read Aaron Dignan's post about Wayport, the internet provider for the Pan Pacific Hotel in San Francisco. It seems Aaron had a bad experience with the service.

Well, I'm staying at the hotel on Monday for a speaking engagement. Aaron's experience makes me think twice. At the very least, I'm going to talk to the front desk about the potential problem when I check in.

Thanks for the heads up Aaron!

Intuition

I have finally gotten around to starting Gladwell’s Blink and am enjoying it so far. I spent some time thinking about intuition in Beyond the Brand. Here are some things to think about when it comes to engaging with you customers:

“Why use your intuition? Well, when you really get to know your customers and use your intuition, your ability to co-create and beat your competition to market with breakthrough innovation can be greatly enhanced.

What is intuition? Intuition is what really separates those who are good at innovating products and marketing from those who are great. It’s the ability to weigh options and take a stand – even when the evidence points to a different solution. Intuition is a creative act that takes over at the border of knowledge. It assembles previously unrelated facts and experiences into a new judgment about an untried solution.

Remember, there are all types of problems, but they can be broken down into a few major categories to help you think about when and how to use intuition: a scarcity of information, a complicated, complex or chaotic environment; or a short timeline.

It pays to develop better intuition at a time when businesses are under increased pressure to be more creative, more quickly, in an uncertain environment. Think about how you can practice using your intuition, tell more stories, encourage others to flex their own intuition, listen more and rely on your own experience.

Think about your company’s decision-making process. How intuitive is it? Can you react to rapid changes? Does your gut tell you something is right only to be confirmed weeks if not months later, after in-depth analysis? Try implementing a few of the tools mentioned above. Start by getting out on the street and getting experience in the dynamic community. Instead of taking the same route to work, try a new one. Turn off your rational mind and let your intuition guide you. Likewise, at work, think about starting a new format for meetings that allows creative thinking and intuition to be a part of each meeting. Instead of making meetings a time to share progress reports, interject some questions that make people use their gut. Support people’s creativity. Once you feel comfortable with your intuition, get out in the market and start using it with your customers.”

How do you use intuition when it comes to co-creating with your customers?

Inspiration

I've been really inspired by Metacool, lately. Thanks, Diego!

I'm Recovering!

Wow!

I finished the Carnival of the Captialists post late Sunday night. It was a lot of fun and totally absorbed me for a few days. So, sorry for the lack of posts. As you can see to the right, we've got a couple of new contestants! Welcome Andreas and Carl.

I've got a lot of good stuff from some SPARK interviews that I'll be posting in the next few days. I also want to continue rapping about co-creation with people. The Economist had an interesting article the other day on the subject.

Speaking of co-creating, check out the contest entries here and here and vote!

Carnival of the Capitalists

Welcome to the March 21, 2005 edition of Carnival of the Capitalists, the Internet's most intriguing weekly round-up of free-market articles. The best part of hosting COTC is the chance to explore some new and interesting territory in the blogosphere. So, grab a cup o’ joe, sit back and enjoy over 50 great entries this week!

Blogging

Jason Davis at Recruiting.com takes a look at recruiting, blogging and the effects it has on those who write these blogs.

Jay Allen at The Zero Boss talks about Adagio Teas and how it botched a promotion aimed at the blogosphere, threatening its reputation.

Yvonne DiVita of Lip-Sticking points to an interview of Neville Hobson who talks about why blogging for business makes sense.

Business Law

Abnu at Wordlab looks at the trouble with lawyers and advertising: lawyers don't have a clue about branding.

Listen to Anthony Cerminaro as he is interviewed by SMB Trendwire on The Well Utilized Business Lawyer.

Entrepreneurship/Small Business

Jeff Cornwall looks at the challenges of going into business with friends as partners. 

Greg Manter at the Retail Store Blog takes a look at the Reef ads and 3 tests for evaluating sexy ads.

Steve Rucinski at SMB Trendwire asks you to join a conversation with Ron Finklestein, author of Celebrate Success: Fourteen Ways to a Successful Company.

Anita Campbell of the Small Business Blog shares a new survey showing that one out of four small businesses with employees works out of the owner's home and talks about this trend’s implications.

John Dmohowski of Drake Review shares serial entrepreneur Jeff Black from iAtlas and Vision Ventures view of the current state of wireless market.

Gordon Smith of Conglomerate looks at both sides of the issue of getting confidentiality agreements from a venture capitalist.

E-Commerce/Technology

Barry Welford at The Other Bloke’s Blog thinks about web design and the need to design for more than just Internet Explorer. 

Finance/Economics

Gary at the New Economist offers a thoughtful review of recent economic literature about the timing and effect of democratization on growth.

Allen Bellinger thinks about the impact that the British Government’s budgeted deficit will have on small businesses in the UK.

Will Franklin asks the question, do personal accounts achieve solvency for social security?

Rob Sama discusses the implications if something is structurally wrong with Boston’s big dig.

Brian Gongol suggests that we learn from the creative destructive forces that sweep through our economy and remember not to be too jubilant about those companies being destroyed.

Jonathan Wilde shares a post by Patri Friedman discussing his thoughts after listening to economist Robert Shiller on the topic of risk and risk management.

Steve Conover at the The Skeptical Optimist talks about the US debt fifty years from now.

Individ takes a look at China’s growth as it relates to raw material prices and the growth of its military. What effect will China’s growth have on the rest of the world?

Tex the Pontificator analyzes John McLaughlin’s led comments social security reform.

Government/Politics 

Different River makes a great case for experience ratings for Medical Malpractice Insurance.

Jack Benway reports on his hesitation to support the private school voucher program in Arizona.

Joe Kristan at Roth & Company Update reports on a new IRS ruling that disallows home equity loan interest is to be deductible for alternative minimum tax?

Tim Worstall asks the question: If Fair Trade for coffee is a good idea, shouldn't we also be having fair trade for wheat?

Mike Pechar reports on the Trans-Erie ferry service.

The New Federalist posts that selling "herbal supplements" with big, long claims does not amuse the Feds as they raid the Enzyte HQ.

Dave Sheridan of No Illusions says that feel-good activists cause unintended harm for the World Bank.

Innovation/Trends

Wayne Hurlbert at Blog Business World gives a great explanation of Podcasting.

David Jackson from The Internet Stock Blog discusses Yahoo 360 and it’s implications in the marketplace.

The Market

Dale Franks has an interesting post on The QandO Blog about the effects of the privatization of Social Security could have on investment markets.

Rawlon Adams of the Capital Chronicle says it isn't plain sailing being a bear in this economy.

Mario Jurkovic of Thoughts and Observations does an analysis of PartyPoker.com, the leading company in the online poker industry and the IPO rumours that are circulating on the Web.

Marketing/Sales

Nellakantan posts that for as little as $12 you can fly between two second tier Indian cities, on Air Deccan, India’s newly launched budget airline. While it doesn’t have the frills, $12 sounds like a good price to me!

Jim Logan reminds you that there's never a bad time for a great sales promotion.

Ankesh Kothari of Marketing eYe asks what is branding, really?

Peter Capula of pc4media outlines how to get your event online by using the web before, during and after the event.

Sugarmama provides a first person look at managing her first project and why managing people can be hard.

Rosa Say in a post named Experience Required (Are You Sure?) talks about the Catch 22 of  Experience.

Ironman explores the ethical standards that shareholders should demand from their publicly-traded company's board of directors in choosing a CEO.

Martin Lindeskog from the EGO blog takes a look at the recent business scandals and sees them as an example of a company practicing rational business ethics.

Ashish at Ashish’s Niti has an interesting point of view on Corporate Philanthropy.

Lisa Haneberg of Management Craft offers a process that can be a manager's quarterly refresher!

David Foster at the Chicagoboyz asks the question: if you suddenly became CEO of General Motors...what would you do?

Misc

Will Turman has a great little riff on human connection and office space size.

Josh Kaufman brings us his “Personal MBA” program adding to the discussion that Seth started about avoiding the cost of an MBA by reading the right 30-40 books.

Get in on the Hardwork versus Laziness debate that’s happening between Steve Pavlina and Fred Gratson today!

Mad Anthony takes a look at the possible end of production for Iran's national car - and what it says about capitalism vs. state controlled production.

Heather Burke at Pro Wrestling Impact asks is Paul E. a brilliant mind or WWE puppet?

Last, But Not Least

Come enter the The Best Customer Response Contest here, at Beyond the Brand.

Thanks to all the participants and readers of Carnival of the Capitalists. It's been fun reading and putting together this week’s round-up of business articles.

Next week, March 28, 2005, Carnival of the Capitalists will be posted at The Mobile Technology Weblog.

For more information about Carnival of the Capitalists, including information about how to submit your articles or about hosting the round-up at your site visit the Carnival home page.

Contest Update #2

The contest is rolling along. Christopher Carfi has gotten a response from JetBlue and Aaron Dignan continues to wait as Whole Foods points tick away.

I need some help judging the entries. Check the rules for judging. Also, you've got time to enter, as well. April 1st is the deadline.

Carnival of the Capitalists

Wow! My brain hurts!

I'm hosting the Carnival of the Capitalists post on Monday, March 21st. There's some great stuff that people have submited, so far. I think my mind is expanding too quickly from reading all of this great stuff. If you want to submit something, be sure to do it by Sunday at 3:00 EST. Check back here on Monday for all of the fun.