We’re at a good halfway point in the year, so I think it’s an opportune time to look back on the first 6 months of this blog and reflect.
All in all, I think I’ve done a fairly good job of finding a relevant and clear point of view. It’s evolved from something narrow when I started to a bit broader now. Most everything has been grounded in OOH – I just look at things with more experience and exposure as time has gone (and goes) on. I’m also surrounded by different people in my everyday life who have impacted my thinking. So, naturally, my point of view will evolve. I just don’t want it to slow me down and/or turn into something crazy and incomprehensible.
I need to write more. I’m averaging about 10 posts a month. I feel like I need to double that so I’m providing a steady source of information. I’ve asked a couple of my work colleagues, all of whom are very bright and have an opinion and aren’t shy to voice it, to provide guest posts on as regular basis as they can. So, hopefully, you’ll not only get more content, but you’ll get more (and different) perspective. If any of you want to provide a guest post, just let me know. I’m open to it.
I haven’t found the secret sauce of doing conferences. Blogging, tweeting, meeting people, and just plain going to the conference is a lot of work and certainly requires some juggling. I’ve provided a decent mix of “live streaming” + my perspective. I feel like I need to focus on getting in front of some of “names” there and interview them (or something.) I can see how that would be valuable. So, any of you names at these conferences, take this as my initial request :)
Other than that, I’m pretty happy with everything. It’s still very new and the test is really going to be sustaining over time. I’m committed to continue learning and doing and writing. I expect big things and as a result, everyone reading this will experience that with me.
I’ve met some really great people through this avenue and that, more than anything, is the thing I’m most proud of. This blog allows for these words to live on until some Y2K catastrophe, but I hope to keep those relationships for much longer.
I thought it would be a fun exercise to share some of my favorite posts. I’ve enjoyed reading back over everything and for those who are new to this blog, it might help you navigate through some of my thinking up to now. To those of you who are not new to this blog and my regular readers (again, thank you guys for regular readership!!), I’d love to hear some of your favorite posts. So here they are, broken down by month (I picked a favorite per month):
January – The 11th Screen Puzzle – this was my 3rd post and really where I felt like I was able to really give everyone a sense of where I’m coming from and what to expect from this blog.
February – Keep It Simple Stupid – here, I showed a few examples of “simple” and effective Interactive Out of Home (IOOH) and an example of not so simple and not so effective. To me, there are many different kinds of enabling technologies that make OOH solutions “interactive.” These technologies are vital, not only for the industry, but for the future of marketing. On one hand, these technologies allow us to merge the offline with the online and on another hand, they allow brands to make “complete” experiences.
March – Facebook + QR Codes + A Good Idea? – a little snarky here, but this was on the heels of doing a big QR code initiative for one of our clients and all I was reading was how Facebook was going to save QR codes. That’s right, I said “save” because here in the US, I think they might have died before they were even born. I personally think there’s value to QR codes, if used the right way + proper eduction, but how many of you have used QR codes and like it? I just don’t know that we, as consumers of information through technology, need this particular technology. Point is – is Facebook going to save them? I don’t think so.
April – Why Business Cards and Video are the Same to Me – one of the un-IOOH-related posts, but something that allowed me to provide my perspective on more of what I do everyday.
May – Are You an Expert Learner? – I am of the mindset that if you aren’t learning, you’re wasting your time. I don’t particularly care for know-it-alls, but I really like learn-it-alls.
June – Kinect (and others) – “DOOH” Killers? – the launch of Microsoft’s Kinect should really open eyes on what can be done sooner rather than later with human computer interaction. It is particularly compelling for anyone in the “DOOH” (if you’ve read this blog, you know how I feel about that moniker) industry.
And here we are in July. Many more to come.