A while back the incredible, edible egg was transformed into an ad delivery vehicle.
Now ads are coming to a watermelon near you (if you live in the Southeast or Midwest).
Creative? Yes.
But is this a self-fulfilling prophecy?
People ignore ads because they are inundated with them in all sorts of places, some new and unexpected. So advertisers place ads in ever more new and unexpected places.
There’s a logical end to this progression, right?
A fascinating list of 10 things the author wishes were taught in freelance school.
These are great lessons for anyone working for themselves, in whatever capacity. Here are my faves:
1. Not all your time will be spent writing, or doing whatever it is you tell people you do.
2. You may consider yourself “just” a writer (or designer or consultant), but really you are a marketing specialist.
5. Train others to treat you right.
8. Continue to challenge yourself.
1. Take it slow and build up a base, by repeated and brief communications. This became very clear to me when I was up all night trying not to scratch the sun rash my winter white skin got from being out all day in the bright sunshine for the first time.
2. If it’s timed right and the content is roughly what’s expected, the message, and the writing, doesn’t have to be perfect. Think: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Not the greatest movie ever written, but exactly what one expects, and wants, in a summer blockbuster (minus the ants, that is).
3. Keep marketing on a regular schedule. Yesterday, the Red Sox finally broke their on-the-road losing streak. So…keep trying. With marketing, like everything else, if it isn’t working make small changes until it does. Second…you can’t win all the time, and you’re not supposed to. (And if you are, you’re probably not challenging yourself enough.) So get used to not winning over every prospect, and let it spur you on to make the next contact an even better one.
Enjoy your summer.
And remember…whether it’s a day with an unbelievably blue clear sky, a brooding summer thunderstorm, or one of those nondescript muggy, gloomy days, the day still has something to offer if you look closely enough.
It’s possible I’m the last holdout, but I don’t have a mobile computing device–i.e., a Blackberry or an iPhone or other web-enabled phone. (Actually, my phone is web-enabled, but I don’t use that service).
Given the ridiculously small screen size and the typing challenges, what are people doing to ease viewing and navigating of their websites on mobile devices? And how necessary do people think that is for a small service business?