Absolute Steve

Two Sides Of The Business Coin

There are two sides of the business coin, profits and people.  You have to have one before you can have the other.  So which comes first, profits or people?

Three ways to establishing a profitable company:

1) Bootstrap your way up the ladder of success as a sole proprietor.  The owner starts out then gets busy enough to hire his first employee then continues this process until the company becomes a very profitable company.

2) Founder finds investors who invest into company before company even takes form.  In this scenario the founder can hire on the employees she needs to expand the business quickly and grow the company into a major power house.

3) Team effort this is similar to scenario one but in this case you have a handful of individuals each with their own talents who can operate as a small business right from the start.  Think of all the Web Based companies who began this way as well as all the great rock bands.

Of course we can look at this from another point of view.  What is more important to the company? The people who work for it or the profits the people make for the company? 

People first:  This will be an award winning work place where employees thrive and grow and continue to spread their creative wings.  Mistakes and pushing the status quo are viewed as a means to an end not an end.  Thus employees are freed up to make the company very profitable. 

Profits first:  This will not be an award winning work place and employees will feel used and limited in their ability to grow.  Yes the company may be profitable but it wont be a place where people will wish to work for very long and the creativity will be very limited.

Which type of company do you work for? What type of companydo you own? What kind of company do you wish to start? What companies do you know that fall into each of these categories?

Creativity is Expressed in Many Different Ways.

Creativity is expressed in many different ways.  Recently my son Noah and his robotics team were honorer in the official First Lego League Robotics Blog for the branded hats they came up with.  You can see the pictures here.

Many may think creativity is limited to artistic endeavors but this assumption would be false.  Creativity can be found in almost everything we do, from stylized automobiles to product design and even its packaging.  Creativity is used in branding of a company or a team.

When was the last time you stopped and looked at a cardboard box?  Next time you are at the store look at all the cardboard stands.  Examine the portable file boxes you purchased and folded together to make a rigid box to hold 50 pounds worth of files.  The ability to create a box is a very creative endeavor. 

Building a company is creative, selling something is creative and so is manipulating the stock exchange.  Creativity is who we are and it comes out in everything we do.  The next time you make an excuse for a mistake you made, you are guilty of creating. 

Creativity is a reflection of God, the Bible states we are made in His image. Thus the fingerprint of God is upon everyone of us and that's why we are creative.

When God is "removed" from our life by God haters, the end result is blandness.  Just look at the former Soviet Block Countries and the type of buildings they made.  Look at the cloths etc.  Now take a look at the things around us that lack color and creativity, does this bring comfort and joy or is it depressing? 

Creativity when allowed sets the spirit free but when it is a reflection of a tormented mind it reflects misery and hopelessness.  Thus the aim of a good designer is to break free of dullness and create inviting elements which energizes the mind. 

The best in creative design be it hats used by a Robotics Team or the latest smart phone can and will be a determining factor in thier overall success or failure.

Here's to creativity!

Learning From Sears New Social Media Engagement Plan

I just read a wonderful article at Forbes.com by Brandon Gutman where he interviews Mark Bonchek, SVP of Communities and Networks for Sears Holdings. In the article, Mark shares how Social media is being used by Sears.  At one point the guest stated the following: 

“In the past, brands could control the message. But not any more. Marketing has become like a political campaign. Every message gets thrown into the social spin cycle. This is a big change for marketers trained in traditional advertising, with its focus on segments and channels. Marketing is now more about sociology than psychology. Brands need to focus on the social context of their customers’ lives. Do they create a sense of social identity? Can they create social currencies that help customers connect with each other?”

This statement can be offered up for all Media of today where individuals create fan sites and blogs and facebook pages where they gather and chat about the latest in whatever.  We are the news, we make the news etc.  Instead of the corner store where everyone hangs out and shares opinions we hang out at our favorite social site. Instead of relying on professional critics we become our own critic via Amazon and other on line book sellers with tools which allow readers to write comments.

As for Companies and socical media lets take a took back for a moment:  A casebook study in social engagement would be the Harley-Davidson Motor Company who created the Harley Owners Group out of thin air.  This is pre World Wide Web.

By creating the H.O.G. they built a community in which to be active engaged member of (if you own a Harley, that is).  By creating the H.O.G. they created a commonality that exists with H-D owners, they provided membership and the rights of membership. They provided Company sponsored events, rallies and rides, they have engagement of riders who can write in and contribute to the exclusive HOG monthly magazine.  The company offers every kind of Branded product under the sun which continues to create co-hessian and ownership of their brand even by those who don’t own a Harley!

Taken one step further all the H-D dealers participate in the very same social context, by providing weekend meet ups, free coffee and BBQ’s along with swap meets and monthy parties open to all members and non members alike.  The Dealership is where H-D riders meet and then set out for rides or just hang out and talk about all things H-D.

When was the last time any car dealership or other manufacturer ever did this?  Yea they have Corvette clubs and such but these are not company owned.  H-D kills it in the social context.  Today on top of what they have done, they are also working hard on the new media front with the H-D site being one of the highest ranked sites for a company.  They also have facebook, etc.

As for Sears, they have always offered 24/7 service it’s called catalog sales as well as in store sales. In the old days everyone had a Sears catalog in their home. You would order from it and it would be delivered to your home or to your nearest Sears. As a side note how many young men caught their first glimps of a womens breast while pawing through the bra section of these catalogs? 

As a child I loved going to Sears, when we came through the front doors of the Bellingham, Washington Sears store we were greeted with good feeling smells coming from the candy and treats case.  I would always beg my Mom or Dad to buy me some heated red skin peanuts or chocolate covered raisin.  Even as a teenager with his own car, when I was near by I would make a point to stop in and buy some warm peanuts.  This built into me fine memories of shopping at Sears.

Don’t forget the local Barber Shop, it was and still is in some cases the scocial hub of the small towns across America. It was where retired men or young men alike would hang out and read the latest magazine and chat about the latest goings on.  You could stop in any time and hang out even though you didn’t need a haircut.

In deed the idea of offering information and engaging customers through education, assistance and shared interests has been around as long as the barber shop.  It's just now we can do it 24/7 on a global scale and the owner of the business doesn’t have to be a part of the ongoing conversation just a facilitator who joins from time to time much like the Barber. 

What many call new, is just a re-framing of what has always been, the only exception being, we are  expecting it to happen a lot faster than in days past and that’s the real problem facing companies and marketers alike.  Thinking that we can build a monster following in a short time is crazy stupid, it takes years even decades to build a trustworthy brand.  Even in today's fast paced market people want to know you will be around for a while before they will invest a lot of time in you excluding the latest pop star or movie sensation. When it comes to building a trusted brand it still means offering quality all the way around and something distinctive your competitor isn’t offering.

Engineering gets a boost through First Robotics Competition

This past weekend I spent Saturday rooting for my sons whose robotics team was competing in the First Robotics League competition here in Seattle.  Nearly a hundred schools were represented thousands of onlookers and competitors attended this 3 day event where teams competed against each other for top honors as king of the Robotics Teams.

But unlike most sporting events you don't just win on the field but you can also win in numerous other categorieswhich can be as big a deal as placing on the field.  As it turns out the Royal Robotics Team from Lynnwood High School came in 6th overall and went onto compete in the playoffs. B ut their aliance of three teams against the other three top teams failed to place so they ended at 6th overall still a great accomplishment since it has been five years since they last placed in this category.  But that's not the end of the story.

As it turns out, we were sitting through all the other awards being handed out to the various teams when it came down to the last two honors when our team was called out to be awarded Best in Design and Engineering category.  Wow were we all surprised.  We cheered for our team as they ran down and walked across the podium and were awarded the honor.  This automatically places them in position to attend and compete at the Saint Louise International  Competition.  The next leg is raising a $1000.00 each for students and mentors to attend and compete in this event.

First Robotics is the brain child of Dean Kamen is an inventor, entrepreneur, and tireless advocate for science and technology.  The First Robotics league is where Grade Schoolers through High Schoolers compete against each other through various grade level competitions.  It is open to both girls and boys.  It consists of all types of categories one can win in. as I see it, it's set up just like a venture capital funded start up technology company which included all aspects of running an R&D driven company: Marketing, fund raising, branding, promotions, demonstrations, public and private sales pitches and so many more.  Both my sons are learning to use CAD to draw up and document all the parts used to build their Robot.  It is a real boost for engineering with many kids wishing to go onto engineering as a career.

Firsts mission statement is as follows:  "To inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership".

It is great to see so many Engineering based companies supporting these teams Boeing and Microsoft along with Plat and so many more.  Why? Because these kids will go onto work for them in the future it is a very low level investment to garner future engineers and technically inlcined individuals.  So much more to write but time runs out. Visit the First website to find out how your child (girl and boy) can get involved in this program.  Its intense but well worth it to the kids who are involved.

I contribute to the team by handling all the screen printed and embroidered garments as this a portion of my business services along with meals for 50 cooked up by my wife and the car pooling of kids to and from all the activities.  Well worth the effort to say the least.

Are Educational Games effective use of Classroom Learning

Are Educational Games an Effective use of Classroom Learning?  One parent’s view of educational games used to assist children with learning.

    Recently I was requested to write a blurb on game based learning.   So, instead of keeping this article to my self, I thought I would publish it and get your response. 

    Interestingly enough, after I wrote this article, I read an article in a magazine I subscribe to which covered the role game based advertising plays in todays media mix and the way they are being used to engage prospects who visit various websites.  The survey pointed out a huge increase in engagement by site visitors and even an up tic in sales, tied to game playing.  So is it any wonder game based learning could also be used to engage students? 

    As a father of three boys I’m very aware the draw video games have on my sons.  They fight over which game to play and which platform to play it on. They enjoy the challenge of killing, building and exploring.  What I’ve noticed is that all these games are designed to offer stepped up challenges and quick rewards based on achievements. The games are designed by fellow gamers who understand the challenge to reward, learning to mastery ratio. They are designed around intuitive learning.

    It’s no wonder then this type of thinking would be introduced into children’s learning games.  Children’s learning games incorporate the same principles found in the games kids and adults play. In learning games, there is an achievement component not found in the normal class setting, the rewards come much quicker.

    My youngest son is currently using a couple online learning based games to brush up on his Math and English (both recommended by his teacher).  He enjoys learning without thinking he is learning.  The built in challenges and immediate gratification keep his interest levels high.

Hands on learning

    In our everyday life many of us learn by doing not hearing. For example, when you buy a new piece of book keeping software you learn just enough to begin to balance your check book then go on to learn more ways to use it.

    If you want to learn how to plumb, you watch and you do, until you can plumb a house. Hands on learning, is as old as human kind. Game based learning takes advantage of this style of learning just supercharging it with intuitive learning and rewards. 

Rewards based learning

    The challenge in learning something new without having an immediate reward attached to it, can lead to getting board, losing interest or getting frustrated and stopping altogether.  This is one likely reason so many kids drop out of school, not the lack of ability.

    You wouldn’t work for your boss if you didn’t get the reward of a paycheck so why would it be any different for students?

More teacher per student time

    A big plus in game based learning models is that teachers are freed up to walk around the class room and offer one to one instruction tailored to each student’s need. In the gaming scenario the teacher is seen as an “expert” not the authoritarian teacher figure. 

We live in a connected world

    As a nation we’ve shifted away from an industrialized culture and now live in the connected age. Every kid alive today will be using a computer and the associated software to do their jobs.  From machinist’s who program computerized manufacturing machines to the engineers and nurses and auto technicians.

    When people want to know something they use online based tools.  Our brains are being rewired by the thousands of hours we engage in the digital world. Thus using the platform we work and play in to learn is just a natural evolution.

Old World verses New World

    The only reason a school system wouldn’t wish to try such an approach has more to do with policy making and less to do with what’s best for the kids.  The one size fits all model of the past 100 years isn’t working.  The drop out rate is far too high and the major reason I believe is the rigid one size fits all system of learning, which keeps the status quo in place and those who benefit from it.

    Those whose careers are tied to this antiquated system will push hard against the introduction of games based learning systems within the classroom. Yet if America wishes to be the number one provider of public education, we better quit with the self serving antiquated systems and open our arms to whatever works to engage and educate our children including Educational Games used in Classrooms.

    Educational games can be a wonderful way to educate students whose learning styles need more hands on engagement and immediate rewards tied to it.    No it’s not the only way but just one more way to engage and capture the hearts and minds of today’s students.

The Legacy of Steve Jobs Co-Founder of Apple

The Legacy of Steve Jobs Co-Founder of Apple

The world now knows that a man by the name of Steve Jobs has passed away.  In the following days and weeks we will be reading and hearing citation after citation of the great works Steve did during his lifetime. Having never met the man, I can only write from what I do know of him.

Steve Jobs was a true game changer, an iconoclast, maverick, trend setter, brilliant strategist and extremely talented person. His company Apple changed the world. If Steve Jobs had not been born the world of computing, music, entertainment and communications would be far different place than what it is today. His legacy will be felt for many years and decades to come.

Steve Jobs turned Apple into a true lifestyle brand with a world wide loyal following.  Apple’s marketing took a page out of Harley-Davidsons marketing playbook when they began selling a lifestyle rather than a computer.  They like Harley developed a cult following of die hard fans. Even if you don’t own an Apple product you darn well know who they are.  This is an envious position to be in that very few companies ever achieve.

Yet with all this to his name Steve Jobs will also be known for another thing, the way he treated people. His legacy will be known as either a positive one or a negative one.  He will be known as one who encouraged, supported and uplifted those around him or one who belittled, downplayed or used people.  Only those who knew him can tell you which they remember him for.

Legacies highlight more than our public work, they highlight our private lives too. It reveals the true character of the person we thought we knew. Character is found in the everyday interactions of how we treat people.  Do our lives add to or take away from the lives of those around us. Many mistakenly believe our legacy is the positive press we put out about our self, not the negative pres we make for our self by how we treat those closest to us.  Our business accomplishments will fade away much faster than our private interactions with the people we spent time with.

You see our legacy cuts both ways, we leave a public legacy and a private legacy. It’s been said, death is the great equalizer. When we die its then we will be most remembered. The question then is this. What type of legacy do you want to leave behind?  Steve Jobs was the heart and soul of Apple and he will be sorely missed by many. 

Will you be missed when you pass from this world?

The global Online Goldrush is on

In talking with a good friend and fellow Pod Caster the other day he made mention that we are in a global on-line gold rush.  That those of us who are early players are like the early miners who staked out territories ahead of the crowds who came later.

After some thought we came to the conclusion that their is indeed a parallel between what happened then and what is happening today. Their are a limited number of people who make money using technology specifically Pod Casting and Social media just as their was a limited number of people during the Gold Rush who made money.

Those who strike it rich first and promptly file the claim to protect their asset.  Amazon, AOL, etc.

Those who who supply the minors with supplies as in tools, clothing and food.  Go Daddy, Register.com and All the Marketers selling you Get Rich off the Web schemes.

Those who buy out all the small claims and bring in machines and man power to build an empire.  Google, Microsoft, etc.

Those who claim jump as in steal what others struggled so hard to create.  I won't  mention any names here.

Those who supplied the entertainment namely prostitutes, gaming and drinking.  Think Porn makers, on-line gaming industry and purveyors of cheap thrills.

So the question is, which will you be?  Or will you choose to sit out the Gold Rush and choose another path to riches? 

Bottom line, even if you don't plan to launch your own on-line gold mine operation, you will either benefit or curse those who are building their fortunes on-line.

Is it real? Or is it Memorex? Imitation verses the real thing!

For those of us who lived in the Tape Deck world there was great Ad campaign put out by Memorex Cassette Tapes.  It asked the question: Is it real or is it Memorex? The assumption was theirproduct was so good you couldn't tell the difference between a recorded session using Memeorex tapes or a live session.

It was a great campaign and I for one bought a lot of Memorex tapes to dupe off albums to cassette for car playing. 

So this brings me to the subject at hand. Companies selling imitation verses real.  Imitation Vanilla extract, imitation maple syrup, imitation butter, imitation fur, imitation leather shoes. 

For those not accustomed to the Real Thing you wouldn't know the imitation you are consuming was inferior would you?  Not until experienced the Real Thing.

Examples:  Fake Leather boots crack and can not be polished like real leather can.  These shoes are inferior and don't last worth a plug nickle.  They make your feet sweat and they just look fake.  On the other hand leather boots will outlast the soles in most cases.  They can be polished and kept in near to new condition for years to come and they don't make your feet sweat.

Fake vanilla tastes ok until you have tasted the real thing, especially when you apply it to French Toast or Egg Nog.  Try 100% pure Maple syrup sometime and then try to go back to Mrs Butterworth! You will never go back to flavored corn syrup again unless of course you can't aford the real thing like parents with a hoard of young kids. 

One company selling flavored Crisco stated in their ad:  "I can't tell that's it's not butter" well that individual never ate real butter!  The margarine makers sold the US public on how bad Butter was for you and the dairy farmers failed to fight back.  They stated such things as fat (butter) can cause  heart disease.  Never mind, their vegetable oil substitute had to be chemically changed to stay hard isn't good for you either.

Dairy farmers dropped the ball and should have ran an opposing Ad campaign stating the obvious "If it's good enough for God, it's good enough for you! Noting that Milk is natural and comes from cows and margarine is made in a chemical plant!

Another imitation which has been foisted upon the US public is the addition of Ethanol in our gasoline.  This non gas additive has been prov-en to reduce the gas mileage of the vehicles that burn it.  Why?  Because ethanol burns cooler than gasoline does thus you have a liquid that produces less effective combustion which in turn leads to poor mileage. 

So who foisted this upon us? The Giant Agri companies who just like the margarine makers pushed bad press about Gasoline and now we are stuck with 10 to 15 % addition of ethanol in our gas tanks.  I thought the idea was higher gas mileage vehicles but that's not the case here  instead it biz as usually as politicians were bought off by big Argi biz.

Branding is what makes these imitation such a part of our life.  Without the long term campaigns mounted by these companies designed to re-educate us we would have rejected them as substitutes and imitations! 

Don't let anyone tell you Advertising doesn't work!  Indeed branding is powerful and as a nation we are now faced with living with bad legislation, bad food and poor quality goods because we ignored the truth and bought a falsehood foisted upon us through well organized marketing campaigns.

Hey and I don't begrudge anyone for having done their work as good marketers that's their job. It's our job as consumers to stay on top of things and make sure we are allowed a choice if we don't we end up with what we now have.

P.S. do a web search on ethanol verses gasoline also do a word search using Germany and how it is dealing with this situation its eye opening.

Technology allows for less office space

With today's technology the need for office space will and is begin to shrinking.  The reason is simple: If your work is tending to customer needs via phone or data entry or programming there is no reason why you should have to show up at the office.

Today many trend setting companies have recognized they get more work out of their workforce when they are allowed to stay home and work from their home offices.  These employees still do their job but they no longer have the commute to deal with, they don't have to worry about dressing appropriately and they save a lot of time they can do other things they would rather be doing than sitting on the freeway everyday.  In many cases these very same employee's end up working more productive hours than their office counterparts. 

These companies in return reduce their overhead by reducing the need for more office space, utilities go down and the staff is happier and more customer friendly and also achieve more since they aren't interrupted by in office chit chat and other non essential meetings and interruptions.

Of course not everyone see's it this way, some companies continue to expand office space and hire in house employee's thinking by being on the company premises guarantees better production and team buy in.  I understand their old world ideology for bigger is better but with the web their really is no reason many of these employee'scan't work from home and thus save millions each year and create better producers.  In some cases creating mini corporate countries is more on the mind of the CEO than productivity, (my company is bigger than yours) but that's for another blog.

Brands change colors

    Over time Brands do indeed change their colors. Recently while reading Fast Company, I came across an article dealing with the various color changes to various brands.  Apple going to a silver toned logo, Kraft launching a new logo which includes a pastel burst and other assorted well know brand names.

    The importance of this may not come off as something worth noting at first but when you take a second look at why these and other companies do make changes to their primary identity namely their Logo, you will see it sometime makes sense to do so.

    Every decade brings with it a new generation, each new generation grows up with different factors that influence them in how they see life and the products around them.  Take a look at any company that’s been around a100 years and you will see plenty changes with their logos and even color schemes. 

    Today’s audiences are being raised with high def imagery both online and off line.  TV, Web, printing and packaging capabilities have all changed the way we visualize our consumer world.  The cost of printing full color imagery on labels, cans, packages and the like has been drastically reduced thanks in part to continued improvements within technology. 

    Companies that track trends know they must keep up with the times if they wish to be relevant with each new generation.  Color washing is one way to do this.  Transforming your logo by changing its color is probably the least expensive transformation one can make to ones corporate identity this side of changing the actual logo itself, which is a much more costly endeavor.  Thus companies are doing so on a regular basis.

    One bit of caution when changing colors.  If you are known for your distinctive color you might be better off leaving it well enough alone.  Think of UPS, if they changed colors, to say white or green, the cost to them would be astronomical as compared to an Apple logo being changed to silver rather than the multi colored rainbow image it started out with.  Apple computers aren’t and have never been wrapped in rainbow colors so they will not be costing themselves what UPS would cost themselves if they changed colors.

    A final thought. When choosing a new color make sure its something which will hold up for another decade and not go out with the latest fad as in interior paint colors which come and go every couple years or the latest colors found on each Falls clothing lines.  Speaking of clothing lines, white T-shirts are the number one selling T-shirt color with black coming in second. Some things are just timeless white and black being two of them.