What do a camp counselor, a massage therapist and a an admissions nurse have in common?
They love their jobs.
How do I know? Well I don’t exactly. I didn’t ask them. But I did interact with each of them recently.
And I walked away feeling that they did.
Because their enthusiasm, attention to detail, and thoroughness completely transformed my experience.
And it reminded me of the simple, but nevertheless true, fact that more than anything, people matter.
“What do you mean you have to go to work in the summer?”
This from the lips of my precocious, yet insightful, 9 year old son.
I have to admit, I’ve had the same thought lately.
As both a parent and a career person, the rhythm of my life is very much affected by the rhythm of my children’s lives…including the seasonal changes driven by the calendar of a student.
In the fall as they prepare for back to school, I often find myself also exploring and committing to some new learning opportunity (e.g. honing my social media skills, attending a conference on a marketing topic I want to learn more about or flexing my creative muscles through a writing class or cooking etc.).
Similarly, when school ends in June and they get to kick back and take a break…I find myself longing for one too.
Sure things slow down in the summer a bit at work, there are half day Summer Friday’s, long holiday weekends, and the requisite summer vacation.
But sometimes it still doesn’t feel like enough.
I think what I am really longing for is…camp.
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This truck is parked permanently in Soho on Broadway. 
Eye catching and mouthwatering, but I just can’t seem to go for a cupcake in this heat. To me it’s more of a winter time treat.
That’s my point of view. What’s your twist?
Are cupcakes the new version of the NYC street hot dog?
Hema, a Dutch department store chain described as a European version of Target (low prices on generic housewares, and lots of original design) has created this fabulous product page with a great moment of surprise and delight.
Make sure you watch through to the end.
I love how they took this “functional” page and invigorated it with brand personality.
That’s my point of view. What’s your twist?
Have you seen other brands get clever with their shopping pages?
Fascinating article in New York Times about the New Touch Face of Vending Machines.
No longer the domain of candy bars and potato chips, vending machines are gaining popularity around the world as purveyor’s of higher ticket items like beauty products and small electronics from Apple.
The machines themselves have also gone hi-tech with touch pad screens that blunt vending machine rage through sensors that ensure that a customer’s credit card is not charged unless the chosen item has dropped.
They even have eye scans that can tell by looking at skin and wrinkles if customers are old enough to buy tobacco.
The economics of these new “automated retail stores” are quite compelling. No overhead, ability to quickly change out merchandise, and even to relocate the machine (for example, to another part of the airport) after analysis of foot traffic.
Sound like the perfect retail solution. So what’s missing?
In a word…People.
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Personal Branding: Looks Matter
- Tess in the film Working Girl
Remember this moment when Melanie Griffith’s character went from her “working girl” hair to a shorter, more serious do?
You can chalk it up to dramatic license, but I think there was actually an interesting tidbit on personal branding in there.
Like it or not, we are judged by how we look.
Lest you think that this is a women’s only issue, check out this article about a recent study that found that CEO’s (all men) look more or less credible according to their facial features.
In case you’ve been living under a rock….Betty White, the 88 year old Emmy winning actress, is back with a vengeance.
Her re-popularity (if that’s a word) started with a Snicker’s commercial during the Super Bowl:
This spot and her performance in it, triggered a Facebook campaign to have her host Saturday Night Live. Over half a million people became fans of the Facebook petition page and she will be appearing this weekend as the SNL host.
What branding lessons can be learned from Betty White?
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I am a brand enthusiast, passionate futurist and lateral thinker. I am currently working at Virgin Management helping to build the brand in the US by launching new Virgin businesses.*
Learn more » Email Julie »* Though I work at Virgin Management USA, everything here is my personal opinion and is not read or approved before it is posted. The views expressed on this blog are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.
