There is a common misperception that generating a quantifiable ROI from sponsorship is difficult to obtain.  The truth is that a majority (i.e. 72 percent) of sponsors commit 1 percent of their rights fee or less toward measurement according to IEG.  Established brands that deem brand awareness and brand loyalty lifts as less important measures are skeptical of the impact that high attitudinal and behavioral shifts have on the bottom line.  …read the rest of this Read More...

Skip is second from the right, with his ABC colleagues in 1963. In the late summer of 1963, a young man named Skip Branch set off from Salt Lake City for Los Angeles with his wife. The couple temporarily left their one year-old toddler at home in Utah with his grandparents as Mom and Dad set off for the big city to pursue a new life. Skip was putting himself on a path that would land him squarely into the world of TV’s Mad Men. At 21 years old, Skip was only a few years younger than Read More...

Craftsmanship. It’s one of those words you don’t hear much in a digital environment. And yet, craftsmanship is just as vital today as it was a thousand years ago. It’s analog and pastoral connotations are merely that — connotations. The pursuit of excellence is just as fitting for the cabinet maker as it is for those of us who spend our working hours in front of a monitor. Craftsmanship takes practice, observation, and patience. The road is long and paved with Read More...

When my kids were very young, I read a book by Hugh O’Neill called Daddy Cool: How to Ride a Seesaw with Dignity, Wear a Donald Duck Hat with Style, and Sing “Bingo Was His Name-O” with Panache. The stories helped me through puréed carrots and sleep deprivation. O’Neill also wrote A Man Called Daddy and Here’s Looking at You, Kids: The Crowded Romance of Mom and Dad. “Welcome to a world where apple juice is the nectar of the gods,” he wrote. Read More...

Hi Everyone it has been almost 3 weeks since my last post. For all those who have an RSS feed with SHARE blog I sincerely apologize for the lack of posting. Over a 3 year period I have been able to be dedicated and consistent – regarding our posts week in and week out. A month ago, what is happening to many of us all – happened to me. My father who at 90 has been healthy, mobile and busy with some general illness issues – that anyone with almost a century behind them would Read More...

Whether you read Marley and Me or saw the movie, or ever dealt with a crazy dog that you loved regardless of his or her mishaps, you will appreciate meeting Rock. Rock is the third featured Hambone Award nominee on the RIESTER website. Watch his story: Read about all of this year’s nominees and vote for your favorite at the 2010 Hambone Award website. Read More...

Every year, thousands of people visit colossal theme parks and other big-name tourist attractions throughout the United States. While they welcome visitors by the busload, a quieter tourism movement is gaining popularity. …read the rest of this post» Read More...

Nike’s Chalkbot may be the perfect convergence of technology, social media, and cause marketing. Essentially a pneumatic chalk-paint sprayer driven by a computer, ChalkBot takes messages from around the world via text messaging, Facebook, Twitter and the LiveSTRONG web site, and sprays them in yellow on the roads of the Tour de France during the event. According to The Inspiration Room blog, the system includes a text-message interface, web-based queue and approval system for tour Read More...

As a growing number of businesses begin to include social media in their marketing mix, it is increasingly important to quantify the ROI of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and other popular sites. Old Spice saw an increase in sales from their viral video creation, Dell raked in a few million dollars via their @DellOutlet Twitter account by tweeting specials and coupon codes and Wheat Thins is attempting to score big with their latest Twitter campaign delivering a palate of Wheat Thins to Read More...

About two hours north of our office, in the Chattahoochee National Forest, lies Springer Mountain, a common starting location for Appalachian Trail hikers. At Springer Mountain, hopes are high: a return to nature is afoot. But, it’s not uncommon for hope to be spoiled by the unforseen. Many hikers give up only a week into the 6 month journey. The conservancy reports: “They give up for all kinds of reasons. Starting too early, heavy rains and snow, a schedule that is too ambitious Read More...

In 1923, on a trip to New York City, Englishman and explorer George Mallory was asked “Why climb Mt. Everest?” His famous reply: “Because it’s there,” says something important about the human spirit. George Mallory. Photograph courtesy of The Alpine Club Photo Library, London–via National Geographic. Why do anything? From getting out of bed in the morning to going to the moon, our species often does things because we are driven to do them, often by Read More...

This year’s Hambone nominees have been chosen and it’s time to vote! Each month Veterinary Pet Insurance picks the most unusual insurance claim that comes through. The stories of crazy pet insurance claims are compelling. Through August 16th we will be featuring different nominees for the 2010 Hambone Award. Here’s Ellie the bee eating dog: Read about all of this year’s nominees and vote for your favorite at the 2010 Hambone Award website. Read More...

Spell Check can mess you up. Anyone who’s used the program before knows this. You think your document is 100% accurate, approved and blessed by the Spelling Bee Society of America (does such a thing exist?) and low and behold, while your spelling may be correct, the use of the word in that particular context [...] Read More...

Companies always want to be cool, but few companies actually are. Most are predictable and boring. If you’re predictable and boring, and you ask an agency for cool, what you’ll get instead is slick. Cool requires only one thing: Be unique and do interesting things. Companies that are cool embrace their quirks. They don’t find the latest trend and hop in front of it like a dude desperate to lead the parade. They add to the culture and remix it; they don’t exploit it. Read More...

Ideas, like tea, need time to steep. Beneath the surface of the water, or the surface of your mind, magical things are happening. Unfortunately, all too often people try to generate great ideas with sheer brute intellect. They suppose if they think about it long enough and hard enough, the answer will come. But that’s rarely the case. In James Webb Young’s tried, true, and excellent little book A Technique for Producing Ideas, he describes a five step process for creating ideas. Read More...

Rocky Mountain Power’s Utah customers have a new tool available to them: Cool Keeper is an example of a tool Rocky Mountain Power is deploying to be wattsmart. Jeff Hymas of Rocky Mountain Power is making the media rounds in Utah to spread the wattsmart message. This week Jeff appeared on Salt Lake’s NBC affiliate to discuss energy saving tips. This post from STAND FOR LESS gives an overview of the power grid and discusses issues affecting the grid as we look forward to a future Read More...

Rocky Mountain Power has a program in Utah to help manage power usage in the summer . . . Learn more about Cool Keeper. This post from STAND FOR LESS gives an overview of the power grid and discusses issues affecting the grid as we look forward to a smarter grid and a future with cleaner energy. Thank you Rocky Mountain Power for implementing this innovation. Pretty cool! Read More...

There are two theories of history. The “Great Man” theory states that history can be understood by looking at the impact of extraordinary individuals over the course of world events (Hitler, Napoleon, Cromwell, etc.). This theory is contrasted with the “World-System” theory. The “World-System” approach proposes that history can only be understood by properly examining macro-economic factors. Advertising history generally espouses the “Great Man” Read More...

At this year’s Tour de France, Bottle Boy was a hit. Bottle Boy represents Clean Bottle, a new reusable sports bottle that unscrews at both ends. The rather simplistic design concept makes the job of cleaning residue out of the bottom of the bottle easy and helps prevent mold, a concern among runners, cyclists, hikers, and other athletes. The product is available through REI and others. Clean Bottle launched only months ago with a limited budget. So Dave Mayer, founder, built the Read More...

Bill Levitt, the long time mayor of Alta, photographed in front Alta Lodge. I met a man recently. He’s no longer with us but he lives on—through the legacy of community. His is a community in an exalted place. A place that exists high in the mountains. This man gave refuge to the famous and the destitute. He ran an inn–a simple place, a place where family is paramount. When you visit his mountain lodge you feel like you’re home, surrounded by strangers and friends who it seems Read More...