Baby Steps

My first rule for a blog. As with most things digital, everything is "forever beta" so we'll make improvements along the way. So lets just dive right in and see where we get to. Despite (or because of) the fact that I have worked in advertising almost 30 years (with time off for being a tad disillusioned, and doing my own thing for a few years in the '90's) I've found the last couple of years the most exciting and interesting. It could be that I've been walking around with my eyes closed before then or that my memory is not what it was, but I prefer to think that with the advent of all things Web 2.0+ and the "social" revolution, the world of advertising and marketing has got a whole lot more interesting and stimulating, whatever age you are!

There's so much great stuff to be devoured, so many opinions, ideas, theories and innovation to get you thinking, and its changing so quickly. And probably the best thing is that there are few if any definitive answers or solutions. We seem to be living in a time when much of what is written and practiced (in both senses) is almost a (collaborative) "work in progress"; We are developing new ways of doing things, but before these are committed to marketing textbooks and theory the speed of technological development is challenging us to re-think and adapt.
A good illustration of this is the recent work done through the IPA on Social Media. (I do hate that term. As has been pointed out by many, it makes some just think in terms of media channels - Facebook, Twitter etc. I'll call it "Social" from hereon - unless of course I'm referring to Facebook and other applications). October last year saw the publishing of 10 points of view, each by an individual planner, on what they had jointly agreed as 10 of the key principles around (so called) Social Media. As Neil Perkin indicates in his summary presentation, these are not meant to be the 10 commandments, but rather the beginnings of ongoing conversations and idea development. You can join the conversation on Facebook.
For those of us that also need to have a practical view on Social Media, this cheat sheet from Drew McLellan looks like a good reference.

And finally, just because I love it and so want one, here's the ad for the iPad - do you think they are targeting current Apple Passionistas?

Well alright, finally finally, I aspire to write a blog as entertaining as this. I wonder if Elika started with baby steps or just hob nobs?