Idea Sandbox

Being remarkable isn’t easy. Often remarkability means doing something new that’s never been done before. It often requires doing something that others don’t or won’t “get.”

Walt Disney faced challenges in getting people to understand his vision of Disneyland before it opened. (Nothing like it had ever been done before).

Here’s a quote from George Lucas (Producer/Director of Lucasfilms Ltd), talking about the challenges of brand new ideas.

Well it’s always hard to get somebody to see something that’s never been done before.

It’s a big problem because there’s no precedent for you to base a judgment on.

People have to have a leap of faith. And trying to convince people to have a leap of faith, especially people that may be accountants or people about to invest - it’s extremely difficult because their imaginations don’t soar the same way creative people do.

Ever wonder what people associate with your company or brand? I do.

One measure is to examine the “key words” people use when they bookmark your website/blog.

Delicious is an online bookmarking service that allows users to label a site with tags meaningful for that user. By viewing how Delicious users have tagged your site, you can get an idea of how you’re perceived.

The pie chart below represents Idea Sandbox is perceived. These are the most common tags Delicious users have stuck on Idea Sandbox.

I don’t see the word “retail” or “retail marketing” on that list. I’d like to be associated with retail marketing. This means that I… (a) don’t convey that, (b) don’t talk about it enough, or (c) perhaps I *do* talk about it, but that’s not how Delicious users have used my site.

Important to note…these are not the tags I use to describe my posts or site (like what Technorati reports)… this is what you have labeled.

You can use the URL look-up tool on Delicious (http://delicious.com/url/), to see what tags people have labeled any website.

The email below from Colonel Benjamin F. Davis was in my inbox this morning. He contacted me from his Gmail, account offering me a cut of some $20 million in gold and cash he says he found in a cave in Iraq.

From: 1st Brigade - Col. Benjamin F. Davis

This is to write to your notice that I found out gold and revenue amount to $20M in a tunnel in Iraq, which I made an open declaration of the gold, but I hid the revenue, as I successfully secured the revenue with a Finance Company. Am hereby contacting you in assistance to bring out this revenue from the finance Company, as I will present you as the original owner of the revenue this will enable the revenue to be release to you by the Company to avoid notice that am directly involved, Which means I will part with you 20% for you and 10% for any expenses the success of this transaction may incur, while 70% for me.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Signed,
Col. Benjamin F. Davis

• Can he just take the money? Doesn’t it belong to the Iraqi people?
• If Col. Davis is an American citizen, why does he need me to help? Can’t he work with a resource on base?
• I’m sure the Colonel found me by reading the Idea Sandbox blog, but shouldn’t he be focusing on ending the fighting in Iraq than (a) stealing gold from caves and (b) reading my blog?
• Won’t I have to pay taxes on this sum? I don’t want it to screw up my tax bracket.

This guy is never going to make it to Brigadier with these antics!

The most popular post I’ve ever written for this blog was my July article about the Burger King Veg City tray liner.

WGN-9 Morning News in Chicago just ran a piece on the wacky tray liners and used the graphics from Idea Sandbox for their story. (hmmm…. with no credit to the source, though).

Here’s the clip:

I love how the news crew closes off this zany story with the blanket statement…

“Europeans are edgier… they go for… you know… anything!”

Thanks to Vorsatz13 for originally posting this on YouTube and for onionia for bringing it to my attention.

Have you ever watched Dancing With The Stars? According to the ratings, chances are you have.
This week, the celebrity line-up for the 7th season of the show has been announced.

According to the official release, the “Lucky 13″ include:

• Susan Lucci - American television legend and star of US drama ‘All My Children’
• Toni Braxton - Six time Grammy Award winner
• Maurice Greene and Misty May-Treanor - Olympic Gold medalists
• Cloris Leachman - 82-year-old Oscar winning actress (’The Last Picture Show’)
• Cody Linley - ‘Hannah Montana’ star (the youngest contestant)
• Warren Sapp - recently retired American football player and Superbowl Champion
• Lance Bass - former ‘N SYNC member
• Brooke Burke - actress and TV presenter
• Rocco Dispirito - celebrity chef ,
• Kim Kardashian - actress, model and reality TV star
• Ted McGinley* - actor, and…
• Jeffrey Ross - comedian

When I first saw ‘Dancing,’ my first reaction was, “Love Boat!!”

The purpose Love Boat served in the 70s and 80s is what Dancing with Stars is doing in the 00s. A venue where (great / once great / want to be great) actors could show themselves in a different context.

Love Boat was Cruising With The Stars!

Heck, famous TV moms Emily Hayward (Mrs. Cunningham on Happy Days) and Florence Henderson (Carol Brady on The Brady Bunch) appeared on Love Boat in at least 9 different episodes.

Love Boat promised something for everyone. Passengers could set a course for adventure or their mind on a new romance. In fact, the Love Boat promised love wouldn’t hurt anymore… love was an open smile… on a friendly shore.

Each week Captain Stubing, Bartender Isaac, Cruise Director Julie, wacky Purser Gopher, and Doctor Adam Bricker would welcome aboard a new batch of passengers. They were expecting them.

Appearing in episodes, no fewer than five times, included Florence Henderson, Charo, Jimmie Walker, Dick Van Patten, Ted Night, Milton Berle, Vicki Lawrence, Sonny Bono, Betty White and of course Carol Channing (playing Aunt Sylvia) always hoping to sit at the Captain’s table. And the list of credits goes on…

Dancing With The Stars is a mash-up in a time of of mash-ups. We’ve taken the Love Boat star platform + ballroom dancing + reality TV (a bit of American Idol and a bit of Survivor). And, as a bonus, a show that - heaven forbid there is a writer’s strike - won’t be affected.

Speaking of the 70s and 80s… Dancing With The Stars is ABC’s most watched Thursday 8 pm series since Mork & Mindy in 1979. Shazbot!

Check out ABC’s Love Boat: Where Are They Now?” slideshow.

*Ted McGinley (this year’s season of ‘Dancing’ was on, among other shows: The Love Boat, Happy Days, Dynasty, Married with Children, Hope & Faith. I think I’ve made my point!

The Love Boat theme was written by Paul Williams (the short, blond guy). Up until the mid-90s when introducing myself people would say, ‘Ah… Paul Williams, like that short singer?!’ I’d just smile.

I’m sorry to disappoint any of my future clients or fans, but Idea Sandbox is closing.

I just received word (via Yahoo Calendar) that I will be receiving $7-million in U.S dollars.

It seems General Philip Fadaya has selected ME as recipient of funds. (Details in image below) Sweet.

I’ve got to cut this post short… I’m expecting a Diplomatic agent delivering boxes of my money sealed with synthetic nylon.

By the way… if you ever think you’ve got an e-mail that may be a scam, you can screen the sender’s e-mail address using the Scam-O-Matic website.

What do you see when you look at this image?

At first glance, there is too much to take in at once. It all blends together. As if it were all the same thing.

Then… as you get used to how busy the photo is… you notice that there is actually an assortment of items displayed.

Further inspection reveals there are really only around six different things for sale (metal pitchers, tea pots, wooden boxes, hookahs, small statues…) but that there are many different versions (small, large, silver, gold, painted).

How would you choose? How do you choose?

Your business is one of these objects.

How do your customers choose you over the one next to you? Or below you? Or bigger than you?

And, just like the space where you do business… this stall at the bazaar is one of perhaps 500 selling the same objects.