Tim Bursch

My wife and I have a budget and we try really hard to stick to it. We’ve tried a variety of systems over the years and some have worked, some have not. We were comparing notes with some friends recently about budget woes and they talked about Mint. While it appears to have some cool features, what stuck with me after the conversation was the potential solution for some of our current system challenges.

We signed up and we are trying it out. It might not be the best solution yet, we’ll see.

Here’s the deal. These kind of word-of-mouth interactions happen every day between friends. Online and Offline.

What problem are you solving?

Tweet from Tim Sanders

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I keep hearing this term Transmedia thrown around in marketing, advertising, and social media today. What is it? Does it matter to me?

Well, here’s what I’ve found:

• The term was developed by Marsha Kinder and later expanded by Henry Jenkins.
• Essentially Transmedia is immersive and participatory storytelling across multiple forms of media.

In English? It’s a story that draws people in using multiple forms of media with many story entryways.

How is this used in marketing? Have you heard of Lost? A TV show that has spun off web sites, products, and a cult following.

How about the Halo game? Games, products, events, books, and more around a story. I think what Chipotle is doing with Jamie Oliver could fit into Transmedia Storytelling (TV, web, social media, print, in store, fan activation).

So, why should you care? Stories are compelling and therefore they sell. Stories are part of our DNA. We connect, fight, and come together over stories. They touch us at a deeper level and I think as consumers we want to make meaningful choices. Would you rather just buy a pair of shoes or buy a pair and give a pair?

I’m not saying there won’t be a place for commodity-type products and services. I am saying that more and more customers are buying the whole story, not just the widget.

Read more from the standard wikipedia entry, Mitch Joel’s blog, Big Spaceship, and Henry Jenkins’ site.

How is your company thinking about Transmedia? Does your story draw people in? What if it did?

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This is my story for #FAILweek. How to Fail. Don’t Plan.

The State: I was working with a partner in the investment business. Big dreams. Lots of ideas. We were targeting clinics and hospitals for new clients. Our project was a big conference down south at a hotel/casino. I was responsible for marketing and running our booth. Our goal was to find (big) clients and build relationships. I was hopeful that running a golf contest (Doctors like golf right) would work.

The Fireball: I walked away with one or two leads. Boom!

The 3 main reasons I failed:

1. I didn’t have a good plan. It was generic.
2. I wasn’t offering anything of value to prospects. Except golf balls.
3. I didn’t engage with people where they were. The potential clients were there for education. I stayed at the booth.

The Lesson: Looking back it’s pretty obvious. I got zero results because I didn’t have a plan. I am learning more and more to start at the goal and work backwards. Break the big mountain into small hills. I also learned to bring something of value to a prospect. It could have been a resource or a connection.

Failure is not fun, but I’m slowly learning that it’s part of being human.

Have a story about failure? Add yours to the comments. Or head over to #FAILweek.

Image by: PhotoDu.de

Tags: fail, plan.

I found out about The Pants on the Ground video from my son. He saw it at a friends. Hilarious.

I talked about it with another friend, showed it to my wife and daughter. More laughter. So everyone’s talking about General Larry Platt and his song. We are sharing this story.
I then clicked on a link in twitter for the video above and being Viking’s fans, I roared some more. These guys are sharing the same story.

So, what happens to a business team when they share a common story? Probably not the manly pats, but fun? Sure. What if you shared one fun story each week with your team? And then you found some application together? Larry did not give up. He didn’t care about his age. How about when a prospect says no? Have fun with that and find another prospect.

A story connects people. It can bring out joy and smiles. What do you do to connect your team?

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