Our industry demands we stay relevant. That means keeping up with the latest technological advancements to help clients. Keeping our fingers on the pulse of pop culture so we are always “in” on the joke. Staying opened minded enough to adjust and change directions when conceptualizing campaigns, programs and marketing strategies.
Over the course of the last several years, staying relevant has meant pushing the limits of social media and the amount of targeted messages in which our clients communicate with stakeholders and clients over these mediums. We’ve been achieving this through the realm of social media, but are we really succeeding? Are people listening? The advertising industry has definitely drank the Kool-Aid when it comes to apps, Facebook fans, blog posts, YouTube and using social media to enhance a brand.
Don’t get me wrong, social media can be great when used properly and in some ways it can definitely make our jobs easier. But I worry that many in our industry might be missing the real message when updating clients’ Facebook pages, Twitter accounts and such. What, is the message? Human interaction — and that as advertisers we should still strive to create an intimate relationship with living, breathing in-your-face human beings.
Ad Age columnist, Derek Walker, had a great column on this very issue last week. In this article, Walker talks about how we as advertisers, “throw out words like ‘honest’ and ‘authentic’ like they can be manufactured.” He speaks of our common need as an industry to focus on, “speaking to the human connection in all of us.” Really, I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Just imagine, you wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat thinking: What happened to that sticky note with all of my passwords? I sure hope that guy with Geek Squad can recover my files. I am so in trouble if I can’t get those reports back. All of my contact information — gone! All of my financial information was on that computer; what am I going to invoice? The dog ate my thumb drive!
The reality of this scenario is not that it can happen but that it will happen. Computers break. As you become more dependent on any aspect of technology, you also need to consider how to recover or back up the irreplaceable. Think of an imaginary worst case scenario, hurricane, tornado, flood or fire. What information is critical for you to get up and running? Once you have decided what is absolutely necessary, it’s time to decide how to protect it.
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In the “need it yesterday” pace at which we all work, it’s important to keep business etiquette in mind. Be aware of the messages you send - not just text, e-mail, Twitter, etc. - but the messages we send to those around us. In the electronic age of smartphones and 24-hour access, we can’t forget about the people right in front of us. They expect and deserve our full attention.
You’re sitting in a meeting and it happens - that familiar buzz that lets you know that a message has just arrived. It could just be junk mail, but it could be that important email you’ve been waiting for all day. It’s OK to check it, right?
Wrong.
Forget for just a minute about that e-mail you might be receiving. Think of the message that you’re sending to those around you in your meeting - especially the guy who thought he held the floor. Put yourself in his shoes. You’re giving a presentation that you’ve been preparing for some time and you stop, look up, and scattered throughout the room are several heads (down) engrossed in the contents of their little black box.
Insulting, isn’t it?
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Has your office’s e-mail system ever gone down? Remember that panic you felt? That feeling of helplessness? Today, conducting business without the luxury of e-mail is unthinkable - downright prehistoric. It’s become an indispensable business tool, yet many people don’t treat it with the gravity it deserves. Far too often, professionals fire off half-formed thoughts or messages rife with errors.
Of the many mistakes made via e-mail every day, here are the Top 10 according to AllBusiness.com:
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As BBR Creative’s production manager, it’s my job to ensure there are no last-minute surprises (read: catalysts that awaken emotional outbursts of insanity) resulting from a missed task. On a daily basis, I am charged with keeping creatives in check and with managing the account service department’s veritable laundry list of daily responsibilities.
Essentially, I function as a hub for scheduling and as a system of checks and balances. Nobody’s perfect, but I like to think I’ve learned a thing or two about time management. Below are a few selected time management tips, courtesy of yours truly - a woman who dreams in checklists.
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What do you think can make a difference to your day? Catching all the green lights on the way to work? Watching TV without commercials (well, you can actually do this, bad example)? Never having to wait in lines at the store? Being able to go 90 mph instead of 70 mph (legally) on trips? Sure, these could all help you gain more time in a fantasy world, but what practical, time-saving steps can you take to create a more realistic fix?
Considering most of us spend more and more time on a computer each year, devising ways to save time on them is a goal that is easy to accomplish. Realistically you can improve your day by simplifying repetitive tasks and taking a little time to organize yourself digitally. At the end of the day, it will help you to achieve the things you want to do instead of the things you have to. In reading this post, keep in mind the differences between Mac and PC. Some suggestions will be platform specific, but if it can be done on one, you can usually find a way to do it on the other.
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