buzzblog

There are two types of coffee drinkers in my world, Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts … and both are fiercely brand loyal.  In my youth, I loved Dunkin’ Donuts coffee, and as a doughnut finisher one summer in the local Dunkin’ Donut shop, I learned a great deal about grinding coffee beans and making a good cup of coffee.  I admit it. I have the addiction and no morning is complete without a cup of coffee.

Today I am a Starbucks fan, but my younger sister remains faithful to Dunkin’ Donuts.  She thinks Starbucks is too strong. I think Dunkin’ Donuts is not strong enough … but for me it is as much about the smell as the taste, and I am not one for any calorie added foam or shots, even if it is skinny … just give me the coffee.

I am brand loyal, but only because I cannot find a cheaper, competitive product that tastes even close to Starbucks. I buy the large bag of beans at Sam’s Club and grind it.  Thankfully, my husband is also a fan and we enjoy our morning coffee ritual.  When I travel, I look for a hotel property with a nearby Starbucks … or even better, one in the lobby.

Meanwhile, at my sister’s house … she is bribing her 4 year old with doughnut holes if she will behave, but I know better … she wants that afternoon coffee lift.

These companies are taking the competition to new levels.  Dunkin’ Donuts even has a site and campaign “Friends don’t let friends drink Starbucks” complete with t-shirts and mugs promoting the fact that in a nationwide taste test Dunkin’ beat Starbucks by a few points … yeah, yeah.

It is great to see the advertising wars and understand the gorilla marketing of it all and how creative companies can get over something so consumable … I would love to see the data on what kind of lift Dunkin’ saw on this … while I am drinking my morning Starbucks.

“I never worked a day in my life, I enjoy everything I do and so … consider it play!” My father told me this more times that I can remember … and I always thought he was just a little bit too optimistic.  Lately I find I have taken this quote and made it my own.  I live by it. (Don’t you just hate it when your parents turn out to be right?)  I never work … because nothing I do I consider to be labor … it’s all fun.  What is work … is it one’s life, or ones task list … or maybe it’s the actions you are directed to do.  I believe you can still look at everything you do in life as play and therefore not only enjoy it, but do it very well.

Work is defined as exertion, direction to produce or accomplish … I can’t say I exert or am directed to produce. I look at my profession as collaboration between my clients, my team and myself. It’s an opportunity to partner up and create excellence. Now I ask you … how can that be work?

Even my yoga class … which I love and cherish … is called practice, not work.  In yoga I find a great opportunity to clear my brain, stimulate my body inside and out and prepare myself for creativity, which is awesome.  It’s true, I am exerting, perspiring and concentrating hard … but I am not working. I feel energized and I leave the room ready to take on the day.  Each time I write an email, proof copy, creative direct an ad or hold a brainstorming meeting … I savor every minute. I anticipate the next stage, the response from the client … and ultimately the final product.  It’s all big fun if your head is in the right frame to accept that everything you do can be fun, and the more simple the task, the more perfectly you can do it.

So here is my advice for all my friends and colleagues … think of it as play … not work … and go get ‘em!

I feel so equipped with this device … it provides the weather report, time of day, alarm clock and phone I use every day. I make calls, send email, Google words and concepts and scan QR codes … and I take photos, keep a calendar and grocery list, read the news, tweet and even have a flashlight and that’s not all … now I can even pay for my morning coffee with it.

I am continually amazed at the applications that are being created around this technology and I hope one day to eliminate the use of a pocketbook all together. As soon as this thing can apply lipstick – I’m there. And how about eliminating these rewards cards that are dangling from my key ring? And while you are at it, eliminate the car key too. I would love to open and lock my car with my phone, pay for my groceries and get my valued reward points, flash my membership at the gym, open my office and buy gasoline with my Smartphone. I believe in my heart it’s coming … virtual keys, reward cards, credit cards and driver’s license … I can see a way smaller pocketbook now.

The one thing that is a down side is that out in public no one is making eye contact any longer … they are all making Smartphone contact. All the folks in line at Starbucks are texting, reading and scanning … in the grocery store folks are chatting with someone miles away about the price of coffee, or what to have as a side for dinner … lots of personal information, arguments and chit chat that I would rather not be subject to. I see teenagers who literally have the phone attached to their ear for hours at a time and I wonder … how long will that battery last while they are in the phone zone. So maybe it is true that we will become less social in the real world … but oh my … how social we are in the virtual world … on Face book I have to hear how many miles my friend walked, what the weather is in Detroit, what song my niece remembers a year ago on a trip and other ridiculously inane information that I could totally live without. But my Smartphone … how did I ever live without it?

Like my son says … “Ma, it’s not a phone, it’s a computer that has phone”

Better … faster … cheaper … are there any real bargains in web services?  Well, it actually depends on what you consider a real bargain to be.  Some people consider a bargain the absolute lowest price. Others consider a bargain to be the instant gratification of getting online the quickest.

For me, a bargain means getting the most value from every dollar I spend.  I am a value shopper.   I want to know that anyone with whom I enter into a business relationship actually knows what they are doing and will provide the best performance for my expenditure.  Performance consists of experience, creativity, common sense … or … my personal favorite, no voice mail – always an informed person at the other end of the phone.

Consider the people you are doing business with … are they thinkers or order takers? Do they have the know-how and then take the initiative to problem solve? It amazes me how many people want to work with an online web company to develop their web site because it is economical. Sure, it can be very economical if there are no paid employees involved.  Consider then, whether the value remains if your web site is not functioning properly and you are unable to speak to a soul and it’s just you and the FAQ’s or trouble shooting guide.  After a few hours you will be asking yourself, “Now what?”  And you are struck with the realization that “bargain” doesn’t necessarily mean “value”.  It also kind of brings to mind the expression “Jack of all trades, master of none”.

In the business of web design, advertising and graphic design, because there is no licensing, certification or oversight, there is no real way of knowing whether  the firm you hire has experience, ability, or even a working knowledge of the services they offer.  For example, if an individual knows Photoshop, he can sell himself for hire as a graphic designer, despite the fact that he may know nothing of layout, design, font use or visual dynamics.  The same thing happens with web design.  Programmers are now calling themselves designers.  And about the copy…who is writing that copy? The programmer?  The client? Websites often contain a lot of information, but is that information engaging the readers and motivating them to act or buy?  Worse case, and we hear this a lot … my nephew is a student and he made the web site. A great  bargain? Yes.  A great value?  Not so much.

Bottom line is…investing in a good web site will truly be an asset to your business.  Consider the abilities, experience, creativity and accessibility of the firm you hire … you will find the best bargain is in choosing one with the greatest performance value.

Yes … we had a baby! Well, technically Suzanne  had the baby … a little girl named Lillianne – but the rest of us in the office just considered that we all had her too, since she came to work every day and charmed us since that very first day.

When we learned the happy news of Suzanne’s pregnancy, we immediately jumped into nesting mode.  We cleaned…we purged…we spruced up our offices. And we spent countless lunch hours discussing the most pressing issues of the day. Like where to set up the changing table and how will Suzanne handle the experience of nursing in the office.  Yes indeed. We were all very excited.

And then, in what seemed like the blink of an eye, Lillie arrived… a tiny thing with perfect soft skin and sparkling eyes … and we instantly fell in love.  She stayed perched on her mom’s desk in the center of the office and as we walked by her throughout the day, we fell into our baby talk voices – cooing and smiling.  What a reality check it is to have a baby in the office!  Lillie “interned’ with us for over 3 months and we loved every second of it – taking turns holding, rocking, serenading and consoling her.  Even the crying was easy to tolerate … because once you become a mom, you draw on your own earliest precious experiences with your baby and can take on the small challenges with expertise, affection and even humor.  Today we can say that Gemini Studio is truly a family business.

Ok I confess. Up until now I’ve had the leanings of a Luddite. Hey, I didn’t get a cell phone ‘till age 44. My tv remote remains my nemesis. I break out in hives when I have to consult with tech support.  Facebook? I’m guessing you’ve figured that I’ve been shall we say… resistant?  Still, I really have come a long way in my personal journey towards becoming more tech savvy, and have become better friends with the internet…embracing all it has to offer.  Well, ok fine maybe not all it has to offer. Because that would be a tad time-consuming and I really do want to keep my day job.  Lucky for me I was turned on to, and have since become addicted to (!) a site called Stumbleupon. I simply confessed my interests, passions and predilections upon registering, and with a quick click on the stumble icon on my toolbar I am served up any websites that pertain to them.  I can rate them, store them as “favorites” or share them with others, along with comments.  And others can send me sites that they find noteworthy for one reason or another as well.    To date I have managed to accumulate over 1000 “favorites” including Youtube videos, TED lectures (check them out…really good stuff) and urls pertaining to one of my favorite areas of interest…surprise, surprise…advertising! So what’s next in digital for this newbie? Perhaps an about face…about Facebook? OMG!

-Susan-