Being heard around the world

I listen to a number of podcasts during my commute. A few weeks back, the host of MacWorld podcast solicited listeners to record their experiences with Macs. I did because I really wanted to win an iPod Nano FM Transmitter. This morning, I found an email from the host saying my comment was selected and included in their latest podcast.

There is something cool and exciting about hearing your voice online (plus my comments are being heard round the world by MacWorld listeners).

Check it out if you are interested:
Macworld Podcast #40 05/25/2006
My comment starts about 25 minutes into the Podcast.

Here’s what I listen to regularly:

• Technology News (This Week in Tech, This Week in Media, DL.TV, Inside the Net, Diggnation, What’s New New, Engadget, Cranky Geeks)
• Advertising and Marketing (The Advertising Show, RadioLounge, 360 View, Business Tips and Traps)
• Mac-specific (MacWorld, The Mac Geek Gab, MacCast, Mac Tips Daily)
• Favorite TV shows (Lost with Jay & Jack, Generally Speaking Lost Podcast, SciFi Channel Official Battlestar Galactica Podcast)
• Fun (Ask A Ninja)

What do you think? Have any great podcasts to share? Please post your comments. Thanks.
-Roland

Thou Shalt Not Blab About the Company’s Internal Business

Check out this NYTimes.com article:

Interns? No Bloggers Need Apply
By ANNA BAHNEY
Published: May 25, 2006

Most experienced employees know: Thou Shalt Not Blab About the Company’s Internal Business. But the line between what is public and what is private is increasingly fuzzy for young people comfortable with broadcasting nearly every aspect of their lives on the Web, posting pictures of their grandmother at graduation next to one of them eating whipped cream off a woman’s belly. For them, shifting from a like-minded audience of peers to an intergenerational, hierarchical workplace can be jarring.

There’s some good advice here. Novices have a common sense learning curve, but it’s not just up to them to figure it out. Management, HR, and line managers need to set expectations upfront, too.

Similarly, we on the agency side typically sign non-disclosure agreements, both with our companies and the clients we work for. We don’t just sign them, but we need to treat them seriously. Careless chatter in a bar, on blog or between friends can cause problems where least expected.

What do you think? Please post your comments. Thanks.
-Roland

Roland Reinhart is an interactive marketing professional. His observations can be found at Chaos365.com and AdMadMan.com.

©2006 Roland Reinhart. All Rights Reserved.

Cool Tip: Free clock for your Blog

Check this out, free, customizable clock faces for your Blog or personal Web site.
I bit cheezy I admit, and more useful to put on your computer desktop. But a fun distraction nonetheless.

You can customize size, color and time formats. There are also countdown styles. Checkout ClockLink.com.

What do you think? Please post a comment. Thanks.
-Roland

Cool Tip: Giving your blog a voice

BLOATED TROUT: WWW - make your blog a podcast… with robot voice!

An interesting, free, tool for your readers to listen to your blog. Check it out.

-Roland

Fun Video: Managing an empire with style

Check this out. Darth Vader explains to the Emperor that the Death Star has been blown up. Even evil emporers have problems with their support staff…

What’s your management style? Please post a comment below.
-Roland

Clients that make you SCREAM

It happened again. The Friday POW-POW, WAM-BAM, One-Two, Hit-n-run. We were wrapping up a long, hard week then the phones start ringing. Various clients at the same company started calling us. It’s budget cut time.

It actually ticked me off, so I decided not to immediately write about it. Instead I pushed it out of my head for the weekend and waited until Monday to think about it again. We started 2006 planning in 3Q last year. By November, all the budgets should’ve been approved. Then one nutty thing after another happened and most of the budget wasn’t approved until late March. Now we’ve been waiting for the past two months for some remaining portions of the budget to get approved, but they are on hold again.

The clients had very specific goals for this year, but they’ve caused so many problems that I don’t expect they will achieve their targets.

In my experience, budget cuts with annual clients usually start in Q3, around July/August. To get a call suspending Q3 in mid May is unusual. But this particular company is so screwed up right now in it’s marketing execution I’m not surprised. Just frustrated.

I recognize that sometimes a company needs to stop, step back and re-align, but it is frustrating when all the active work has to crawl to a halt. Deadlines are tight and in some cases are past due.

I have several clients that excel in creating chaos. We’ll always try to give them the best advice and counsel, but inevitably, these people just cause one frustrating situation after another.

Tell me about your worst clients. Please post a comment.
-Roland

Roland Reinhart is an interactive marketing professional. His observations can be found at Chaos365.com and AdMadMan.com.

©2006 Roland Reinhart. All Rights Reserved.

Just pick up the phone!

I don’t understand exactly why this happens, but I’ve noticed a lot of people I work with seem to be reluctant to pick up a phone and call someone (from outside the office) that they need to talk to.

People seem to have become more comfortable with sending emails. The problem is they sit back and use the excuse that the other person hasn’t responded. Well, in my humble opinion, if the other person hasn’t responded and three days have past and you are not moving forward on your project, YOU SHOULD PICK UP THE FRIGGIN PHONE AND CALL! What are you afraid of, getting an answer?

Just because email is an effective tool, you can’t hide in anonymity. Human contact is actually necessary. Using the lack of a reply by email as an excuse for missing deadlines is not acceptable, especially if you haven’t made multiple attempts to reach out and get the answers you need.

What do you think? Please leave comments below. Thanks.
-Roland

Roland Reinhart is an interactive marketing professional. His observations can be found at Chaos365.com and AdMadMan.com.

©2006 Roland Reinhart. All Rights Reserved.

Next Page »