Monthly Archives: July 2011

July 29, 2011 · 10:35 am

Pulpo A La Plancha

Polbo á feira with bread and wine

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To end the week, it’s pulpo. For those of you who don’t speak Spanish, that’s octopus. I have had pulpo on my mind since dinner last night and since it’s Foodie Friday I thought I’d share some of what I’ve been thinking about.
The Mrs. and I went to a tapas place last evening and there was a special of pulpo a la plancha. I’ll explain what it is in a second but I ended up ordering two plates of it and eating them both by myself. Gluttony? No, just a great business lesson. Continue reading →

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July 28, 2011 · 9:13 am

Just Throwing It On The Wall

Screenshot of Mozilla Thunderbird 1.5.10 under...

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One would think that as media gets more specific and measurable they’d get more efficient as well.  One would think, but one might just be way off the mark.  I say this after reading the results of the latest Harte-Hanks study on email.  More details in a minute but  while companies seem to be doing a better job of getting their messages delivered to their intended recipients, those recipients seem to read them far less often and aren’t reacting as conversions either.  In my mind, this is just throwing it up against the wall to see what sticks, but let’s see what you think. Continue reading →

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July 27, 2011 · 12:29 pm

I’m An Addict?

There is a bit of buzz this morning around the interwebs about a study that was done in the UK about people’s emotional dependence on technology.  I’ll share some of the details in a minute but the headline is that many of us are “digitally dependent.”  As in addicted.  Although most of the respondents to the study don’t call it that, the psychologists evaluating the data say that the responses are similar to how addicts describe being without their drug of choice or smokers envision life without cigarettes.

So are we a bunch of junkies or what? Continue reading →

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July 26, 2011 · 9:08 am

Thermostats

Thermostat for controlling the temperature in ...

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I finally got around to looking at Sunday’s paper and in the Times’ magazine I found this interview with Cornel West.  Now, as you know we don’t do politics here so I have no comments in this space about most of what Dr. West had to say.  However, there was one quote that I found to be relevant to those of us with a business focus and I’d like to share it with you.  While Dr. West was referring to President Obama, I think what he had to say applies to any of us who are responsible for managing organizations and dealing with changing circumstance.  But let’s see what you think. Continue reading →

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July 25, 2011 · 2:50 pm

Familiarity Nixes Contempt

I’m a little tardy in posting today and I apologize.  Funny how time slips away, as Willie would say.  In any event, I have a quick question for you and then a few data points you might find of interest.

What’s the most important factor in consumer thinking when buying electronics?  What influences the brand decision?  How about when buying clothing?  Do you think it’s the same as electronics?  Well, it is, and that factor is familiarity.  This is according to The NPD Group Brand Landscape Report and reported late last week.  Why do you care? Continue reading →

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July 22, 2011 · 9:04 am

When To Shut Up

It’s time to end the week on a food-related note as is our custom here. I was out last evening with some former work colleagues, most of whom I hadn’t seen in quite a while. It was fantastic to see them and to catch up. Most were pleasantly surprised at the physical changes I’ve been making and a few pulled me aside to know how they could do the same. I explained it to them as I did to you all in this space.
Someone ordered some snacks for the group to enjoy as we conversed and imbibed. It was the usual bar food fairly even divided between the pretty healthy yet tasty (veggie plates, humus) and utter crap but so delicious (fried mozzarella).  What was interesting to me was who chose to eat (and drink) what – some of the same people who expressed a desire to get healthier were eating the junk and drinking fruity, high sugar drinks.  And that’s where the business lesson came in. Continue reading →

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July 21, 2011 · 9:19 am

Taking Flight

Texas Tech alumnus Rick Husband was the final ...

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The Space Shuttle landed this morning, bringing an end (for now) to the USA’s manned space program. I’m old enough to remember John Glenn’s first manned flight and how we used to gather as a school to watch the liftoff of each manned flight thereafter. It was exciting and inspirational to a young boy and remains so to a man in late middle age.
One thing we don’t hear enough about is all of the things we have today which are a direct result of that space program. It turns out that there’s a business point in there too. Continue reading →

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