Out: Plastic people. In: Your people.

Nothing makes a company more forgettable than stock photo people on your home page. Sure, stock art plastic people are prettier than your real people, but you can’t build a relationship with a stock photo.

We do business with people we know, like and trust. Plastic people make your brand look like a commodity. Generic. Disposable. Forgettable. Replaceable.

Use photos of the actual people your customers will being working with (and hire a darn good photographer to help show them in a good light). It will help humanize your enterprise, engender loyalty and a sense of ownership from your team all while helping you build relationship with customers and prospects.

Your people are integral to your brand and brand experience. Online. Offline. All the time.

And while we’re bitching about stock photos… Take a look at the technology photographed in your brochures, collateral and website. Are the computers, laptops, cell phone and headsets in the photos older than your new intern? Dated technology sticks out like a sore thumb. Refresh and stay relevant.

Is it time to add photography as a required competency in schools?

We’re a visual society. We skim more than we read. And we love to look at pictures. A lot.

Take a gander at just about any marketing case study these days, and you’ll see smart marketers are using photos to drive traffic with Instagram, Pinterest, Flickr, Picsa, 500px, DailyBooth, TwitPic and Tumblr.

And that’s not even mentioning the insane numbers YouTube and Vimeo put up every day. Maybe we should be talking about adding video production/editing to the required curriculum?

The old world looked down at folks who could write or spell. And while that won’t change anytime soon, I believe the day is quickly approaching where we will snub job candidates who cannot light, compose, capture, retouch, edit and share.

Photo by the most excellent photographer Brad Stanley.
http://www.stanleyphoto.com

I’m in love with the new Ford Evos. There’s only one problem, Ford isn’t selling them. It’s a concept car. A design exploration. A glimpse at where Ford may be taking design in the future.

This tends to piss me off. My friend Nicholas Ellis put it best: “Did Apple ever introduce concepts?” He’s right.

Year after year, Steve Jobs introduced kickass, covetable products and built one of the most valuable and influential companies in the world. In that same time period, Microsoft unveiled prototype after prototype of vaporware products that never saw the light of retail or lit up their balance sheet.

Now, I know cars have a few more moving parts (not to mention more regulations and legal liabilities than a mobile phone), but I’d love to see Ford speed this car into showrooms.

Too often, companies release daring, evocative concept designs to test consumer opinions. The research folks listen to every piece of feedback, then the designers go back to work, sanding off all the corners that turned up noses.

And there’s the rub.

The next year, that bold concept is reintroduced as a ho-hum production model. The people who hated it now think it’s “meh”, the people who loved it now think it’s “meh” and the sales numbers usually end up being “meh”.

When you soften the edges that offend some people, you end up removing the edges that infatuate others. Never simply seek consensus when you have the opportunity to enflame true passion. Build remarkable. Piss a few people off. Create LOVERS and HATERS. Never create “meh”.

Evangelists and Raving Fans > Deal of the Day Customers

Ford Evos Concept Reveal by Ford Motor Company on Flickr.

I think we’re going to be left with QR codes junking up advertising, marketing and package design long after the technology is outdated.

QR code readers have yet to become standard equipment on most smartphones. Next generation, consumer friendly options like real-world scanning, logo recognition and near-field communication are already bubbling up with early adopters.

Meanwhile, I still haven’t seen a single consumer scan a QR code outside of a marketing or tech conference. The mainstream consumer doesn’t have the scanner, can type your URL faster or simply doesn’t care enough about your branded content.

Too often, marketers fall in love with new technology/gadgets/memes instead of loving their customers, prospects and brands. Before you blow your budget on the next gee whiz, ponder whether your customers will actually give a whiz.

Linkedin does email marketing better than any social network. They don’t fill my inbox with a ton of spam, and better yet, when they do send me a marketing message, it most always hooks my attention and garners a click.

Today’s email was five short personalized sentences with an interesting factoid sandwiching an irresistible image – photos of my friends who have recently changed jobs. Fish on. I’m hooked.

This email perfectly illustrates my first rule of marketing: Titillate. Don’t educate.

Your email blasts are too long (don’t feel bad, mine usually are too). We always tend to pack them with every bit of information – failing to realize it doesn’t matter what we have to say until we have their attention.

Quit selling. Quit explaining. Grab their attention. Tweak their interest. Present them with an obvious next action. Rule the day.

It’s pretty hard not to like Ford these days. The automaker is rocking it from product to promotion to profit.

Much of the credit on the promotion side goes to the good Scott Monty and his band of merry marketers engaging folks in new ways via social media. Recent case study-worthy marketing efforts include Ford Fiesta Movement, the World’s Largest Tweetup, Ford Explorer Launch on Facebook, the top secret Focus Global Test Drive and Doug the Ford Spokespuppet. Ford is even one of the few businesses to be welcomed by Google for the Google+ beta.

Now, Team Ford is giving the media junket a social media makeover.

Ford recently hosted a 3-day, in-depth look into the future called Ford Trends. The event took attendees behind the scenes for tours of Ford’s design, safety and technology labs. In the past, the event would have been reserved for highfalutin members of the automotive and business press. This year, Ford invited nearly 350 influential bloggers who cover a wide variety of topics to attend. Bloggers had an all-access pass to visit the Ford HQ in Detroit, Michigan and meet with executives, engineers and designers. My new favorite person, and Ford Social Media Manager, Craig Daitch hooked me up with an invite.

I share my impressions of the event in the video above. You can also see me tearing up the test track behind the wheel of the new Ford Focus in this clip. Or if tomfoolery and Disney showtunes are more to your liking, watch this video of Jenn Berry and I remixing Ford with The Little Mermaid.

For a look at the cool tech innovations highlighted at Ford Trends, read Jeffrey Powers‘ Geekazine Ford Trends posts. A few of my favorite bloggers also posted their impressions: Read CC Chapman, Sugar Jones, Curtis Silver, Naomi Shapiro and Christina Linnell.

For more information on the keynote speakers at Ford Trend, I highly recommend picking up a book or two from Malcolm Gladwell or Joel Garreau.

And most of all, if you haven’t found yourself behind the wheel of a Ford lately, you need to give them a second look. I’m looking at the Edge or Fusion for my next car. My wife Elena loves the all new Explorer.

“I Like you, now please shut up.”

“Like us on Facebook!” It seems to be the new rallying cry of every marketer in the world. And why shouldn’t it be? Facebook is THE place to be on the interwebs these days.

Brands are scurrying to add fans as quickly as possible - incentivizing people to click their Like button at great cost. Unfortunately, most of these companies are chasing the wrong cheese.

A recent study by IBM says most brands misunderstand what consumers want out of their social media brand relationships. Many consumers follow or friend a brand simply to save a buck.
More on the study: http://j.mp/IBMstudy

How can this be? Social media is a conversation!?!

Everyday, we all use hundreds of brand name products. We slip from our Wamsutta sheets into our Merrell shoes. We Sonicare our smile and scent up with Old Spice. We sip our Diet Coke and shift our Genesis Coupe into drive. Just about everything thing we touch, taste, see and smell at home and at the office is a brand wanting to be our friend.

Now imagine the nightmare of having all of them interacting with you (and cluttering your facebook feed).

We may like you. We may even love you. But that doesn’t mean we want to chat with you.

At Curve, our social strategy process looks for opportunities where Personal Interaction, Remarkable Content, Marketing Strategy and Relevant Value intersect. We help you balance your message, find your authentic voice and develop a likable brand personality.

Before your jump on the Like bandwagon with your social strategy, figure out what your customers would actually like from you in return. It could be just a coupon. It could be just answering an occasional question. Or it could be the start of a beautiful relationship.

Need some help creating a social strategy? Talk to the social media marketing pros at Curve Detroit: http://www.curvedetroit.com

Looking for an engaging presentation on the topic of branding, marketing and innovation? Invite Charlie Wollborg to speak at your company or event: http://charliecurve.com

Connect tech - looking beyond paper

Quit thinking paper or tech. Start thinking paper AND tech.

Here are a few new sites, applications and technologies that a smart brand marketer should be investigating:

Online Business Cards (Personal Brand Sites)
Everyone wants to be your new homepage, but no one is doing it better than About dot Me right now. Build a personal splash page. Write a short bio. Link to all of your social networks. Add links to your company site, personal site and more.
http://about.me
http://about.me/CharlieCurve

Also see:
http://magnt.com
http://businesscard2.com
http://twtbizcard.com

Mobile Business Cards (Contact Info Exchange)
Bump allows smartphone users to exchange virtual business cards by bumping there phones together. It’s slick technology and we love that the physical act of bumping makes an inherent connection between the recipients.
http://bu.mp

Also see:
http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=mobile
http://www.mynameise.com

Texting Business Cards (Contact Info Exchange)
Contxts is banking on all those teens and twentysomethings that love texting will one day love business networking too.
http://www.contxts.com
http://cntx.me/vRw

Technology should never replace remarkable a business card, but always be on the look out for new ways to connect and establish your brand. Remember: business cards don’t work at all when they’re sitting in your pocket. Get out there and meet new folks, grow your network and grow your business.

Need some help creating a remarkable brand and unforgettable business cards? Talk to the design pros at Curve Detroit: http://www.curvedetroit.com

Looking for an engaging on the topic of branding, marketing and innovation? InviteCharlie Wollborg to speak at your company or event: http://charliecurve.com

Just the facts. None of the fax.

Good news: Today, there are more ways to contact and connect with people than ever before. Bad news: All those methods of contact are junking up your business card.

No one loves social media and the mobile, connected lifestyle more that us. We’re all in favor of reaching out to friends, prospects and customers on as many nodes as you’re comfortable. But, that doesn’t mean you need to put them all on your business card.

You business card is part of your marketing campaign. It’s your brand ambassador. You contact information needs to be clean, simple and easy to read.

What do leave off your card:
- Your fax number (goodbye 1970s)
- Your social media URLs (we’ll be able to find you if your website is built correctly)
- Every phone number connected to you (don’t make us chase you)
- QR codes (sure, they’re neat, but do your prospects use them?)

What to include on the front of your card:
- Your logo
- Your name
- Your primary phone number
- Your primary email address
- Your primary URL

Build your brand. Build a better business card.

Need some help creating a remarkable brand and unforgettable business cards? Talk to the design pros at Curve Detroit: http://www.curvedetroit.com

Looking for an engaging on the topic of branding, marketing and innovation? InviteCharlie Wollborg to speak at your company or event: http://charliecurve.com

Senses Working Overtime

It’s time to think outside the business card. It’s time to start engaging the senses. It’s time to create something memorable.

Here are a few questions to ask as you brainstorm your ideal business card. Some of them may sound ludicrous, at first, but complete the exercise. You never know what good ideas may come from a harebrained scheme.

Sight
Graphic design is absolutely important. From a functional perspective, is your card easy to read? Look at the contrast between the background and type color. Are the fonts legible when you view the card actual size. From a brand perspective, are you consistent in your use of colors, fonts, logos and messages?

Sound
Musical greeting cards have been around for a lot time. As sound chips get smaller, is there a way to use a soundmark to create a memorable brand impression? More on soundmarks: http://youtu.be/QK3WeA2kFeY

Touch
People will touch your card BEFORE they read it. What feelings do you want to evoke? How thick is your paperstock? Is it paper, plastic, bamboo or metal? Textured or smooth? Have you considered a dimensional card, interesting die-cut shapes or a card sculpture?

Taste
A search for edible business cards returns everything from beef jerky to cookies to chocolate bars. Make your business card part of this nutritious meal.

Smell
Sure, I love that “new card smell,” but beyond that, does your brand have a scent? Seriously. Our sense of smell is one of the most powerful. Scented inks are available in everything from the kitchen to the factory to the forest. Remember how much fun you had with scratch and sniff as a kid. Invite your prospects to play again.