Captains of Industry

By Jean Levasseur, Captains of Industry

We all have one – an ever-growing list of website quirks that irritate us. Sometimes it’s something that interrupts our experience online (popup advertising), other times it’s just a peripheral annoyance (pixilated images).
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Monday Deal:

1. You must unlearn what you have learned

According Jedi Master Michael Troiano, hailing from the planet Scalable Intimacy, all we need to do to master the new world of marketing is to stop thinking in black and white (or, black and white we need to stop thinking in). These days it seems as though marketers are split on two sides. Old media versus new media. The Oldies believe that advertising isn’t dead and that pushing messages to an audience will still yield the most promising results. Newbies think that creating new content is the only way to get audiences to listen. It turns out, both sides are wrong and both sides are right. A combo of new and old media is actually the best way to market a product. Troiano explains that by following three simple steps, we too can become Jedi Masters in marketing. Check it out:

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Despite the bitter taste of failure, one good thing came out of Game 7. I learned about Bill Simmons. During each commercial break, my borderline Celtics-fanatical beau would leap off the couch to see what the sportswriter had to say about each play. And you know what? Even I, a basketball novice, found his comments hilarious and sarcastically honest. My favorite? “It’s in the works. If the Celts lose, I will still wear the 2010 World Champs t-shirt around L.A. all summer and pretend I’m in an alt-reality like a Lost character.” Phenomenal. If you’d like to be dazzled by some serious wordsmenship, check Simmons’ entire commentary on NBA.com or follow him on Twitter @sportsguy33.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

I’m no fool. I know the last thing you’re thinking about today is marketing, funny ads and what kind of sentence slaying I can come up with for your Thursday Deal. Any Bostonian worth their salt has ants in their pants about watching the game tonight. And if you’re a real diehard, then you’re probably stroking your massive playoff beard while you pray to the basketball gods above for the Celtics to turn it out in Game 7. So I’m going to give the people what they want. Check out some footage from one of the greatest NBA Conference Finals wins the Celtics ever played, lead by The Hick from French Lick himself.

Go Celtics!

Until tomorrow,

Captain Lindsey

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Wednesday Deal:

1. Can I put you on hold?

While everything else in the business world is getting more social, customer service seems to be getting less involved. Just the other day, I was happily engrossed in the bickering mess that was The Real Housewives of New York City reunion special when my cable froze, and the reason why Jill has been heinous to Bethenny the entire season was lost. Just like that. Rather than stewing, I decided to be proactive and call Comcast. Multiple times. They didn’t pick up. So, I tried going online and chatting with a Comcast employee about my reality television woes. No dice. I was the 784th person in line to speak with someone. Obviously they were having some sort of glitch in their system, and I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t happy. But the thing is, I’m still not. They never sent me an email, called or gave me a letter explaining what happened, or even to apologize.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Monday AND Tuesday Deal. Forgive me?

1.

Have you seen a bevy of locusts buzzing around lately? Or maybe four guys riding horses looking to spread war, famine and death upon the planet? If not, then hell must be harboring Jack Frost. Why? Today is the first day I have ever disagreed with David Meerman Scott.
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

In between watching the World Cup, be sure to take a look at your Friday Deal:

1. Drink. Watch The World Cup. Eat. Watch the World Cup. Tweet. Watch the World Cup.

For most soccer fans, this lineup will closely resemble their itinerary for the next month. In case you’ve been living under a rock, or you’re just not a fan of hot guys kicking a ball around, today’s the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. What’s special about this Cup, versus all the other tourneys since 1930, is that this will be the first time that fans won’t be limited to cheering their teams on from their local bar or living room. Heck, now they can do it across the state, the country or even the world.
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. Two for me, one for you

Leveraging your company’s brand with social media is a must these days. So it’s not surprising that a lot of businesses are asking their employees to blog, post and tweet all in the name of new sales leads. But what if your employees already have a social media presence for their own personal branding? Will your business benefit from their social media efforts or will your employee’s brand outshine your own? According to Paul Chaney of MarketingProfs, it’s a delicate and tenuous balance. But there are ways to make sure that it can benefit both. For instance, don’t make social media a one-man job. In other words, think of it more like a function and less like a job title. The more everyone participates, the more your company will appear as a transparent and socially responsive organization. Check out Chaney’s guidelines for both employees and employers on MarketingProfs.

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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Wednesday Deal:

1. Time to Learn Some Netiquette

More and more companies are realizing that they need a social media presence. It’s not that they don’t WANT to blog, tweet or link, they do. The problem is, they don’t know what to say or how to say it.  Thankfully for the social media illiterate, Brenna Ehrlich and Andrea Bartz of the blog Stuff Hipsters Hate, are skilled at schooling newbies on how to tweet without seeming like a total twit. With more and more people joining the tweetosphere, veteran tweeters are finding it easy to spot the rookies. A dead giveaway? Too much information. Or not enough. But the good news is that there’s a way to find a happy medium. Observe the masters at work:
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Tuesday Deal:

1. Crayola 2.0

I was once an avid colorer. It started with coloring books, but eventually I graduated to creating my own masterpieces. Lindsey with Mom and Dad. Lindsey with a dog. Lindsey in the pool. You get the idea. But once the second grade hit and I learned the exotic art of cursive writing, it was all over for me. Crayons were baby toys, and I was a hotshot 7-year old. So I traded in my 24-pack of Crayolas for some big-kid pencils and thus my love affair with coloring ended. But fortunately for the youngsters of today, they don’t have to say goodbye to Crayola once they hit grade two. They can graduate to “Liv Crayola.”

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By Ted Page, Captains of Industry

This past weekend, I lay on my porch by the shores of Lake Willoughby in Vermont’s remote and wild Northeast Kingdom as a major thunderstorm crept across the water towards me, its dark grey claws raking the water, its growl making the whole cottage shake. I counted the seconds between the flashes of lightning and the rumble to gauge the distance:
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By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Monday Deal:

1. Tsk-tsk

Those who aren’t at all concerned about the ecological ramifications of the Gulf oil spill remind me of carefree teenagers. And not in a good way. When you were 16, you must have suffered from “nothing bad is ever going to happen to me” syndrome. I know I did. Although this was often a delightful and sometimes euphoric feeling, it almost always lead to catastrophe. Or I wound up grounded. Most times, both. But, thinking that BP’s spewing oil well won’t eventually affect you is just like being 16 again. Only now we should know better.

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