My mother is a great shopper.

Of course, she has many other qualities I appreciate, qualities that are more important in this life. But, over the years I have been a close observer and sometimes benefactress of this particular expertise and I can tell you with confidence: she’s got a gift.

So it was jarring when I received this email from her the other day:

SUBJECT: CHRISTMAS GIFTS
I’ve been thinking that perhaps we should exchange names among ourselves this year…I’m trying to pay attention to my consumption and cut down on unnecessary purchases, reuse bags and save the earth. (Dad says maybe I’m just cheap). I’d like to commit to buying nothing new for a year, except for food and hygiene, but I’m not there mentally yet! Santa would still have stockings for everyone…but there would only be one present for each of us. How do you feel about it???

What’s most striking to me about this email is that it is proof positive that the change in consumerism we have been talking about in marketing meetings and in the media is at hand. Possibly, it’s even bigger than we imagined. Continue Reading »

John Lennon was right about so many things. This morning it was instant karma.

On my way to work I stopped at the farmer’s market for a single tomato and two ears of corn for dinner. Short on time and low on space in my bike bag, I was determined to keep it at that despite the irresistible bounty of mid-summer. As I passed a pile of peaches, I wavered. They were a deep orange red, plump, and I could tell they were soft before I even touched one. I quickly chose two for dessert.

As I was walking away from the stand, an old man stopped me. He appeared to be homeless. The calm in his manner made me hesitate. As I looked into his sad brown eyes I saw they were cloudy with cataracts. He asked in a soft voice, “Could you help me out please and buy me a peach? I’m a little hungry.” Continue Reading »

A Moment of Clarity
March 2, 1966
“A flash of sanity: the momentary realization that there is no need to come to certain conclusions about persons, events, conflicts, trends, even trends towards evil and disaster, as if from day to day, and even from moment to moment, I had to know and declare (at least to myself) that this is so and so, this is good, this is bad. We are heading for a “new era” or we are heading for destruction. What do such judgments mean? Little or nothing. Things are as they are in an immense whole of which I am a part and which I cannot pretend to grasp. To say I grasp it is to immediately put myself in a false position, as if I were “outside” it. Whereas to be “in” it is to seek the truth in my own life and action, moving where movement is possible and keeping still when movement is unnecessary, realizing that things will continue to define themselves and that the judgments and mercies of God will clarify themselves and will be more clear to me if I am silent and attentive, obedient to His will, rather than constantly formulating statements in this age which is smothered in language, in meaningless and inconclusive debate in which, in the last analysis, nobody listens to anything except what agrees with his own prejudices.” –A Year with Thomas Merton: Daily Meditations from His Journals

There is so much wisdom encapsulated in this journal entry I hate to take it into a business context, but it did strike me deeply as a writer (often welding words onto experiences) and recovering trendspotter.

Trends have become a crutch in marketing. Companies unable to open their eyes to their current reality crane their necks forward, looking for the sure thing that will get them to the future first.

In my own life and professional practice, I have stopped trying to harness the future, and have instead focused my senses and instincts on getting to the truth that is the present moment. When companies hire me to do trends, I tell them that I won’t guarantee the future, but what I can do is bring them a multi-dimensional, inspirational, accurate, and thought-provoking portrait of what is. What they do with that is up to them…and that is the future. It’s not something that happens to you, it’s something you make yourself.

I left the world of big advertising two years ago for some very good reasons. This article in Adweek is just further confirmation I made the right decision: Marketers Use Hypnosis to Mine Deep Thoughts.

I do not know what hypnosis will get you that an honest conversation between two respectful people can’t. As a sometimes-reluctant marketer, I insist on absolute transparency with consumers. I do not conduct interviews under false pretenses and I will not run a workshop or discussion where the participants are not briefed in advance on the purpose and use of their contribution. More often than not, when my team and I leave an interview with a consumer we have made a friend. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Using hypnosis to disarm consumers is the kind of “stunt” marketers love to flaunt in front of clients. The article refers to the practice as a “secret weapon.” Weapon against what? Consumers? PEOPLE? I am all for using unconventional means to generate insights, but this seems devious and unnecessarily so.

I actually saw some of the raw footage of one of these groups a few months ago over the shoulder of a colleague. As I walked past, the stultifying background and bad audio signaled the familiar footage of a focus group, but the half-closed eyes and dreamy speech of the participants was different…creepy.

What magical insight was being imparted? What depths of the subconscious were laid bare on the table? When asked to describe the experience of biting into a certain classic snack cracker, the response was a deep, meaningful and breathy, “Mmmmmm, butter-y.”

When I snap my fingers, your dignity will be restored. Snap!

Although, as the soundtrack begins to fade and the human babble rises, post-orgasm clarity kicks in ad nauseum. My promenade begins to feel more like “Arrow Up” on a Wii. It’s me and my best tennis racquet attachment vs. hoards of stillettoed boob jobs with exceptional attitudes. And the world is going to suffocate in cheap silicone if I don’t take vengeance first..

But. I’m letting it go today. I’m in a good mood because I opted for my comfy, dancing sneaks. The air smells delicious and the music is more than inviting, quenching any ill will. Me and my girls are ready to go dancing and the line up is delightful. It was my first Winter Music Conference although I’d always wanted to go to an American music festival. I’d cavorted through many a counterpart in the English countryside back in the day, and wanted to see if they’d compare. That, and Gilles Peterson had already given it a head nod, and if he’s down, I’m down. I was there to check out anything with drums and bass, which was equally a ploy to avoid the Eurotrash and find like-minded souls in the madness. I found them with fair ease because they sparkled like real gems in a giant rock of poorly gold-plated plastic. I danced with them till 7am every night, massively unaware that I ever contained such impressive stamina.

Continue Reading »