swarm theory

A new social media site called Polyvore allows users to create product design sets from their favorite brands. The user grabs an image from a site, and then pastes it into their Polyvore interface, allowing them to create designs that are customized to their personal expressions. The usability is very similar to Kaboodle - a popular social shopping site. The sets are fun and interactive to use - but also provide brand managers and product designers with an extremely valuable tool to gain consumer insight on use and design.

Twitter is all the buzz these days and I am doing my best to jump on the bandwagon - but the system keeps letting me down. I’ve read that they just secured some additional VC funds to scale up to meet the demand and popularity - but how many users will they lose in the meantime? Regardless of how big I grow my following, the system still dumps it all and moves me back to day one. I will give it another week then i’m outta there.

I’ve been pretty geeked on widgets and other web 2.o tools for quite a while - mostly due their power to provide greater depth and brand reach within social media channels. However, there are a couple of companies that have figured out ways to monetize widget use and distribution by integrating internet retailer stores/products into a widget - resulting in “mini-stores” - that can be shared through any social media channel.

The big leaders right now are ToldYa! and Nooked.  Check out their sites for examples.

I was watching the Tour over the weekend and noticed the return of an old school campaign for Specialized Bikes “Innovate or Die”.  I always thought that was such a kick-ass slogan, but somewhere around the late 1990’s it seemed to disappear.  Perhaps riders were not sure who was supposed to “innovate”?  These days the topic of innovation is getting major media play, gracing the covers of all the top business magazines and websites.

Specialized has always been innovative - as a designers, builders, and as marketers.  The Specialized ads have historically been about the ride - with less talk, more imagination.  The kind of stuff you would want to hang on your wall.  Innovate or Die!

Who controls a brands vibe? Is it what the company says it is, or what the public says it is? This is the basis of the website Brandtags.com. The basic idea of this site is that a brand exists entirely in people’s heads. Therefore, whatever it is they say a brand is, is what it is.

The Harley Davidson brand looks closely aligned in corporate and public meaning. Other brands are not so successful.

Ok, I’ve seen some things in my day, but nothing as “brand crazy” as what I experienced this weekend at the Vera Bradley outlet sale in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Vera fans from around the country made the pilgrimage to Fort Wayne - the city that has been home to Vera Bradley since the beginning (1982). The 5 day event provides fans with a killer chance to save big time on overstock and retiring products and designs.

I’ve been working on a number of projects for the company, and thus have become quite familiar with the social strength of the brand, and the loyal following of its user family. The Vera Bradley Facebook group, launched in November of 2007, already has nearly 23,000 fans. But the outlet sale event brought it all to another level. This is truly a phenomenal brand. 40% off select items from Vera Bradley

I took a bunch of pictures while my wife shopped (and bought like the rest of the women) - you can check them out on flickr. Also, check out the video link at the bottom of the post. The quality is bogus because it was taken with my camera, but I had to capture the “Swarm” otherwise nobody would have believed me.

See movie clip below:

p1010147.MOV

Another link to some more great pictures posted on flickr by AC.

I just launched a new Flickr page for Fat Katz and it is packed with lot’s of killer photos. The images show the incredible fabrication skill of the Fat Katz crew, along with some awesome product shots.

Looking to capitalize on more social media tools, I’ve also just launched a new Fat Katz blog to provide another touch point to the consumer and provide a place for news posting and syndication.

I finally have a new bike that I think is worth sharing to the world. From what I’ve been able to find out about the bike (haven’t really been looking too hard), this Zenith fat tire was built around 1950. My buddy “E” had this baby sitting in his garage so we did a swap. This thing is a total blast to ride and a refreshing change from my other rides.

You don’t become the American motorcycle industry choice for custom tanks and fenders by accident. Some of the biggest names in the bike industry are proud to say that they trust Fat Katz with all their customized sheet metal needs. It’s easy to see why, Fat Katz boasts both a selection and a quality of product that is second to none.

We recently launched a new site for the Fat Katz crew…take a look fatkatz.com

Let’s make the work week suck 20% less!

A plan we can quickly endorse. No doubt the work of our buddy Dylan - promo/web guru at Yakima. On-line/off-line promotion at its best.

Dylan with the Pope