iMedia Connection - ad:tech blog

Tomorrow is one of my favorite days. April Fools Day. It allows us to dream big, take risks and believe that anything is possible.
When I was the CMO of Kodak, I was known as a prankster. I introduced the eyeCamera 4.1 and “Aromatography”. The eyeCamera offered such features as a facial recall assistant (eliminated that awkward thought… who are you?) and selective auto-focus and zoom to name a few. Aromatography, on the other hand, allowed you to smell your photos online. Neither one of these were real products. But, we sure got a lot of buzz, and, what’s more fun than using your imagination and coming up with something outlandish?
One of my all time favorite pranks was back in 1996 when Taco Bell purchased a full-page advertisement in the New York Times announcing that they had purchased the Liberty Bell to reduce the country’s debt and renamed it the Taco Liberty Bell.
You can only imagine the outrage the National Historic Park in Philadelphia received. People were up in arms about how the United States could sell such an iconic part of American history.
In the end, Taco Bell announced that it was just a hoax. Mike McCurry, the White House Press... Read more

This week I’m speaking to a great group of executives in the travel industry at the Pearl Theatre in one of my favorite cities, Las Vegas. So I thought it would be timely to share with you an important piece of advice in my book “The Mirror Test” – it’s a syndrome to avoid at all costs. It’s called “Johnny Vegas Syndrome”.
Johnny Vegas Syndrome simply is getting away from the core of who we are. Too big for your britches --that’s what my grandma used to say. It’s the swagger you get after a big victory or success or sale; it’s an inflated sense of self. Too many successful businesspeople let Johnny Vegas invade their leadership style and their business.
And no one, NO ONE wants to work for, do business with or be around Johnny Vegas.
People do business with people they know, like and trust. Let me say that again. People do business with who they KNOW, LIKE AND TRUST.
Johnny Vegas Syndrome is the evil outgrowth of success. The quickest way to offend customers, deflate morale and start down the path of bad decision making is letting Johnny Vegas take over.
So make sure you bust Johnny Vegas, stay true to... Read more

Seems like everywhere you go you see or hear something about Charlie Sheen. Whether it’s on TV, the magazine stand or at your local coffee shop… everyone is talking about Charlie Sheen. How did he in less than twenty-four hours go from zero to over a million twitter followers?
It’s human nature to be curious. Everyone is interested in knowing what Charlie is up to. And, he’s done a great job of using social media to get the word out. Being curious myself, I thought it would be interesting to see what a representative sample would say when asked the question – “Do you believe Charlie Sheen will make a comeback”?
I enlisted Itracks, a world-leading marketing research company that provides its customers with insights for growth via its innovative suite of online applications and insight analysis to do a poll. The poll was taken between March 7 and 9 and a total of 237 participated in the poll. There is a margin of error +/- 3%.
Sample Results:
Do you believe that Charlie Sheen will Make a Comeback?
Yes (1) - 47.26%
No(2) - 52.74%

I was actually surprised at the results. Pretty much split decision. I think it really doesn’t come down to whether Charlie... Read more

Are you using your social media tools to their highest potential?  There are many tools out there. But, for business, LinkedIn is tops.
With that being said… Have you checked your LinkedIn profile today?  If not, maybe you should.
In today’s changing business world, it’s important to stay in contact. I was shocked the other day with I was reviewing correspondence from LinkedIn. Last year, a whopping 17% of my connections changed jobs. Then, I started to panic. Did I remember to send each of them a personal note congratulating them on their change?
It’s all about creating good habits and sticking with them. I recently wrote about the power of thank you. The same principles apply here.
Set the tone with your connections right away.  Let your connections know that you are an open networker and then be one.  I am not just talking about LinkedIn, but any type of networking tool.  Determine whom you want to connect with. Keep in mind, the connections you have on LinkedIn may be very different than those on Facebook or those you follow on Twitter. Lucky for you, your updates and ways of reaching out can be connected simultaneously through all three tools.
Now, drive engagement with... Read more

Some say they never know when an opportunity is going to arise.  That is true. But, you do have the ability to be in control of your opportunities – even the unexpected ones.  I say one of the best things a business leader can do is to be in a constant sense of awareness.  Be open to the things around you that you might now know about.  One of my favorite sayings is, “I don’t know what I don’t know” so by being in a sense of awareness I am willing to be a beginner and open to all kinds of possibilities.
Opportunities will not always come with the presence of a video camera and microphone.  Don’t miss an opportunity just because you are blinded by the array of opportunities.  The Internet today brings an array of different ways to increase your visibility.  But, don’t get ahead of yourself! I always say “crawl, walk, run”.  Start off in places that you feel comfortable and then get a move on to those that challenge you.
I choose to make myself available to opportunity.  If there is an interview opportunity, I take it.  If someone wants to have breakfast, I go. Who doesn’t like... Read more