Me and Shel Israel

So, there I was chatting away to a nice lady (Orla) next to the toilets of the the Lewis Media Centre (there is a relevance)  explaining (rather loudly) why I was so excited to hear Shel Israel talk when - *TAP* (on the shoulder) - and there was the great man himself introducing himself to me.

Well - introduce himself wasn't exactly what he did (as he kinda expected me to recognise him - which I didn't immediately) - it was more like "Oh my Gawd [he's got a great Noo Yawk drawl] I'm pleased I've got at least ONE fan!".

So that was it.  My introduction to the great Mr. Israel.  Blogger.  Marketer.  Writer.  And Twitterer extraordinaire.  The introduction, though, was pretty short lived - and was swiftly followed by a "Do you know where the men's is?"

Shel is one of those guys who you wish was your uncle.  And if he was your uncle then he'd be your favourite uncle - the one that isn't overly enthusiastic about you (as he's got better things to be interested in), however he's the one that is unashamedly wise (but quite often openly wrong in a humanising way) and says off the cuff remarks that make SO MUCH SENSE.

And the things that made SO MUCH SENSE in his talk were:

- "I'm a story-teller": I've heard this from other people too, but being a story-teller is what every marketer (self-marketer) and brand should be like.  We all need to tell stories better.  As stories engage and entertain.  They give.

- "Buzz is what you hear before you get stung": am not 100% sure what this means - though it sounds kinda profound.  I guess it's to do with hype and reality.  Reality bites once the hype dust has settled.

- "Every business should have a 17 year old on their board": I like this. Getting different perspectives in business is essential.  Bring on the teenager non-execs . . . (this actually came from Peter Whitehead from the FT)

Social networks + smart phones = perfect harmony

Did you start using social networks more after buying an iPhone or one of its smart phone rivals? Before I joined the iPhone bandwagon I interacted with Facebook in fits and starts.

However, since being inducted into the iPhone cult, I've become a more active user. It's especially good for uploading photos on the move that you want to share and if you ever find yourself in an office where Facebook is banned (a surprisingly high number of workplaces do) it's great for getting around this inconvenience.

A US-centric report by Openwave has backed up this anecdotal evidence with some stats, in which it found that four of the top 10 mobile domains by page impressions are social networks including Facebook.

Perhaps more surprising though is the absence of Google although this can be explained by most people accessing Google via their tool bar rather than google.com. Given that Twitter's short, quick updates are perfect for mobile users, this trend is only set to grow.

Balls out brand borrowing

I've been over in NYC for the last couple of days, and whilst out in Soho spotted an overly enthusiastic girl selling Obama Condoms.  Her pitch was pretty tight - buy one for $5 or go for the ultimate triple stimulus package for $10.  I went all out for the $10 stimulus deal.  Bang!

Beyond the amusing concept of politically themed condoms, I'm kinda intrigued as to whether they've had any law-suits / threats from Obama / the government lawyers. If someone had launched Beckham branded condoms, the Beckham's legal-eagle(s) would swoop within seconds, however politicians seem to have a lighter legal touch.

Anyone for the "Brown French-tickler" (a favorite amongst the gay community) or  the "Cameron CONdom" (one for the Notting Hill set)???