Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .
IN OUR WORLD
I wish I could really relate the insanity of my schedule. Of all the things I do and the intense amount of planning it takes to take any project from start to finish, my calendar remains at the mercy of the random universe. It’s like a river, it’s in constant motion.
This week I get a call from a client that out of the blue cancels a project with no reschedule date, hey, it happens. Last week I had a client call to book those same dates and I had to say “can’t do it, sorry, already booked”. Did a quick scramble to call them back and tell them the dates are now available. Too late, the project was tabled to some future date. AGGHHHHHHH! As singer Brett Dennen says; “it’s enough to make you go crazy!!!!!!”
I worked on the RICH MEDIA side of my APPLICATION STRATEGIES this week.
Colton Woolford is my video guru and creative master when it comes to use of video. We finished the almost final draft of a fantastic client video of a teambuilding project. We then went back to the studio and I shot 5 new videos for my new web site as well as a ton of other applications.
The use of video is the most powerful tool for your story or delivering your message. Through the development of technology, the filming process is now within the budget of any company and with an unlimited and free distribution system, the internet, I am positioning RICH MEDIA as a primary strategic tool for many of my clients.
I also had the great fortune to meet with a good friend and former client who is interested in push the envelope towards developing an extraordinary strategy around customer loyalty. If it comes together it will be a FANTASTIC project!
Next week is an insane travel week with trips to Atlanta and back to Phoenix!
HEY, YOU CAN FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER –CREATIVEVENTURE
AND ON FACEBOOK – STEPHEN HARVILL!
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
Here are some financial bits that I found really interesting:
- Retail sales rose in February. That’s good news, but the interesting part is that this rise absorbed a DECLINE in auto sales of 2%. Despite that sink point, the overall retail picture is starting to improve almost every month.
- Say good bye to Bill Gates as the richest man in the world. Mexico’s telephone king Carlos Slim hit the $53.5 billion point! To give you an idea of the scope of that kind of wealth – if you used $1,000 bills and stacked them up, his fortune would reach the height of a building about 1,855 stories tall! The other interesting part is that most of the billionaire club saw their wealth RISE during the decline of the recession during 2009.
- Companies are spending and transforming:
- Met Life just bought AIG’s overseas health insurance and medical business for $15 billion. Opportunity is found in all economic conditions.
- Cisco just introduced a NEW mega router CRS 3 to handle the new wave of video and rich media booming on the internet. Innovation pushing forward. They are ready for the explosion of internet TV that is just about to ignite!
I am amazed at the incredible variety of economic news that hits the media every day. The economy is recovering. The economy is tanking. The world is on the brink of economic disaster. The world is showing a strong recovery. The market is up. The market is down. The Street predicts this and low and behold, the business community did that.
Nothing and I mean NOTHING shows the incredible random and flexible aspect of the world more than the smell of money!
ENTERTAINMENT
MOVIES: Repo Men: I’m really not sure that this will send me to the Studio Movie Grill or not! Last week USA Today ran an article on the big wave of dinner/movie theaters that are developing to take advantage of the boom in movie going. Interesting stuff!
NetFlix Fans: This Is It: It doesn’t matter if you are a Michael Jackson fan or not. This is incredible to watch from the sheer creative force you see on the screen.
TV: Set your DVR for the new FX series – JUSTIFIED. It’s about a tough as nails US Marshall and is destined to become a big hit in my viewing. It airs on Tuesday nights.
BOOKS: Clever – Goffee/Jones: The value of a clever employee cuts like a two edged sword. Their passion makes them valuable while also making them difficult to manage. This book shows how if you show them what needs to be done and allow them to figure it out for themselves; they can grow your company faster than any other internal factor.
MUSIC: Brand new from the wonderful Paolo Nutini!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3xYXGMRRYk
WEB SITES: I am a singer/songwriter fan and this site is a pretty good place to keep an eye on the genre.
SOUTH OF NORMAL
During tough times you might think that people would pull back from their charity work. You know, “need to get conservative”, “not sure about the future” – stuff like that. NOT TRUE. We are behaving South of Normal finding ourselves in a compassion explosion.
- 94% of people surveyed feel it’s important to be personally involved in supporting a cause they believe in.
- 91% believe they can impact the world at large.
- 78% feel they can make a real and true difference.
- 65% talk to their children about important issues.
- Here is the biggy – it’s not just about talk, it’s about doing, doing on any level: 87% support a cause financially.
So DO SOMETHING. It feels good!
Drop me a note with your comments at steve@creativeventures.com
Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.
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