Analytics: from nerd to the coolest kid in school

Analytics used to conjure visions of computer nerds staring at graphs and trying to explain bounce rates. Today, innovative companies are putting analytics into sexy leather jackets, avaitors and Nike's. 

While metrics are actually part of our everyday lives, many people don't think of their individual activities as cumulative actions - rather days are comprised of piecemiel events that turn into nights and allow us to re-boot the next morning. 

Nike's FuelBand ($149), Fitbit Ultra ($100) and Jawbone's UP ($100) - pictured above - are three examples of ergonimically designed devices that are revolutionizing our relationships with ourselves. By visualizing and contextualizing personal data, these devices can help to motivate us to take the stairs instead of the elevator, sleep better, get more from our food - and get your ass to the gym, girl!

Each contendor syncs with a mobile app, for more detailed and ongoing tracking of key metrics, including: sleep patterns, daily activity (calories, steps, etc), meal tracking, challenges and - of course - some social spice.  By setting either personal or competitive goals and challenges, participants are more likely to push themselves toward healthier (and techier) lives. 

Nike, being the marketing-wizard-brand that it is, has already set itself apart by creating a movement around the FuelBand, calling Fuel 'the ultimate measure of activity' which is earned. Gotta earn that shit. Work that stairmaster. They're positioning Fuel as a universal output that everyone has and contribues to, thereby connecting all FuelBanders.  Soooo, ya, I want one. 

What do you think of PA (personal analytics)?? Anyone buying??

Wander the world with Instagram pen pals

Came across these guys last week and just getting to this now but I love the idea behind Wander, a new iPhone app that uses Instagram's API to connect people around the world through photographs.

“What Wander does is create impossible connections with people who you would never meet, allowing users to explore life in other countries in an interactive, meaningful way” says Darien Brown, CEO of Wander - via Mashable

I love the idea of facilitating more intimate, one-to-one connections (and maybe even friendships) between people internationally, while introducing us to new perspectives in seeing the world through someone else's eyes. 

Here's how it works:

Download the free app from Apple's App store and create an account (with you name, birthday, location and an interesting fact about yourself).

Wander will match you with a 'partner' from somewhere else in the world (my first partner is Mikhail, from Moscow) and you're both interested you will be paired together for a week.

Each day Wander will send you 'missions' to complete in order to help share your lives and surroundings. For example, "show your partner how you got to work today" or "if you eat out today share a photo of the menu and what you ordered".

Apparently Wander has a built-in translator, so thankfully I won't have to learn Russian..! I just signed up today so I'lll update this post in about a week and let you know how my new Russian friend and I get along.

In addition to modernizing the idea of a pen pals, I can see this being huge for travel.  Imagine you were planning a trip to Cape Town or Berlin or wherever, and had a bunch of guide books and blogs to read but didn't actually know anyone in your destination city. It would be super cool to tap into some type of location-based Wander library and check out spots that locals frequent (with the potential to connect once  you're there). Some people use sites like A Small World to connect with people in new cities but Wander could bring an element of personal and artistic context and panache to the experience.

What do you think of this new app? Will you Wander??

True Blood: the perfect gift for almost everyone

Loving this ad by HBO promoting True Blood as the perfect gift for the holidays... except maybe for your grandmother.  The video has actually gone viral, with over 900,000 hits on YouTube since it was posted one month ago.  

Why did it go viral?

1) True Blood has a massive fanbase (of fang bangers - including myself)

*True Blood is also wildly adept in social media, with over 340,000 followers on Twitter, 9 million Facebook fans, 81,900 people 'talking about this' and super  timely content, apps and posts.

2) The video itself is facking hilarious! And it does a pretty good job of summing up the show.

HBO also promotes multiple True Blood hash tags under the video, encouraging people to keep sharing and talking about it! 

#GiftsGrandmaWontWant, #YouNeedTrueBlood, #GlamourYourFriends 

"...Sookie... she's a waitress and a fairy and a mindreader. Some people call her a fang banger but those people are religious freaks... No offence. Her best friend Tara lives with she demon who sometimes makes Tara's eyes go all black, and the whole town has a huge orgy.  Merry Christmas Grandma, I love you so much"

Skype hooks holiday travelers up with free WiFi

Great execution from Skype - the brand is sponsoring free WiFi hotspots in select airports across the U.S. between December 21st-27th in order to help connect people with the people they love over the holidays.  Skype details the initiative on their blog, adding "a voice or voice call via Skype when you can't be together for the holidays is the next best thing to being there".  

Such a great fit with their equity. Enjoy that Wifi- hopefully you won't be stuck in the airport for too long!

Happy holidays!

*It would also be cool if they set up "Skype Stations" in airports that allowed people to connect with friens 

Harvey Nichols classes up your walk of shame

Nice

London's Saatchi Gallery gets G+'d up

As loads of brands continue to try and figure out WTF to do on Google+, the Saatchi Gallery in London is off to a sexy start with their Google Photography Prize.

Leveraging Hangouts and Circles to create live, interactive experiences and better segmentation, respectively, have been some initial brands like Intel and AT&T have taken to differentiate from their Facebook content. 

One of my biggest questions about brand integration with G+ so far is how brands will integrate offers/promotions/contests into their G+ pages, since the main that people fan and interact with brands in social spaces is for special offers.  The Saatchi Gallery and Google+ Photography Prize competition is the best (mind  you, also the first and only) example of that (have you seen any others)??

The Saatchi Gallery in London has teamed up with Google+ to host a global photography competition on Google+, whereby entrants can submit to one of ten categories by uploading and hash tagging their submissions pics.  People can follow the contest by either searching under specific category hash tags or following the official Google+ Photography Prize Page, which will be updated to feature submissions.

The categories are:

Me #megpp

Food #foodgpp

Travel #travelgpp

Fashion #fashiongpp

Action #actiongpp

Street #streetgpp

Sport #sportgpp

Night #nightgpp

Sound/Silence #soundsilencegpp

Point of view #pointofviewgpp

Before you start submitting your face off, note that the competition is only available to students in higher education (18+).  According to the Google/Saatchi, they “decided to narrow the contest to students because we know there’s a very active student photography community on the web who will hopefully be keen to accept the challenge” [via Photography Prize FAQ]

What do you think of Saatchi's Google Photography Prize?? Seen any other great branded G+ interactive executions yet??

Public scenes of chaos and joy: Improv Everywhere

Pantless subway parties, blue t-shirt Best Buy crashers, black tie swimming and oh-so-much-more.

Absolutely LOVE this TED talk by Improv Everywhere founder and chief mischief-maker, Charlie Todd. Charlie started Improv Everywhere in 2001 when he moved to New York as performer with nowhere to perform. He began staging public missions with ‘undercover agents’ to disrupt otherwise routine situations.

I adore the idea of taking an everyday act – like riding the subway or shopping – and turning it into a shared experience or spectacle.  Besides being hilarious, Charlie’s missions are so interesting in that these random public acts create a sense of connection among strangers. 

Yes. Please.

LBi's Hyper Island Master Class

Two weeks ago I had the privilege and pleasure of attending one of Hyper Island’s esteemed Master Classes in Sweden with LBi and friends (clients and press).  The purpose of the weekend was to explore Blending, LBi’s collaborative business and cultural approach, which is ingrained in everything  we do.   

The question I’ve received most since I got back is, “so, did it live up to the hype??”

For those of you who don’t know, Hyper Island is an internationally esteemed school that started in 1995 in Karlskrona, Sweden and has since expanded into an incubator for all things digital.  In 2008 Hyper Island began offering three-day Master Class programs for professionals who wanted to challenge themselves in – and become immersed in – digital.  

The Hyper Island Way champions learning by doing, and that’s how the weekend was run – with a heavy focus on workshopping and reflecting on group dynamics and our personal experiences. 

We were lucky to have two of Hyper Island’s founders with us - David Erixon (@DexoDexo) and Jonathan Briggs (@jonathanbriggs) – along with CEO Johanna Frelin (@JohannaFrelin), and facilitator Åsa Silfverberg (@Silfverberg).

There was a great presentation on change, and how if you can’t adapt as a company, you’re dead. We evaluated ‘dinorsaur’ industries (newpapers, travel agents, book stores, etc) and identified key values and beliefs that have helped lead to their current challenges (for example, ‘people will continue to do things this way because that’s how they’ve always been done’).

Another key takeaway was the Customer Activity Cycle (CAC), which calls for a re-evaluation of ‘what type of business you’re in’ based on the emotional value you provide to consumers.  The CAC takes a detailed look at the entire customer journey from before, during and after an activity with the purpose of identifying ‘waste’ and key value gaps.

We talked about value a lot – what is value?? How do brands provide value to customers?? At the end of the day value is really intangible. It’s the emotional/psychological feeling you get from an experience or exchange. As more and more companies strive to put their customers at the heart of their businesses, understanding value is crucial. 

So back to all the HYPE. If it’s not already clear, my answer is a resounding HECK YES – Hyper Island was one of the most effective, valuable learning experiences I’ve ever participated in.

I came to Sweden with great expectations and a huge, over-packed suitcase (girl’s gotta have options..!)

I left with new enthusiasm and appreciation for working with smart, passionate people in a truly collaborate way that produces exceptional results.  

That, and a pretty sweet hat :)

 

TALK TO ME (and then take a pic)

The other week I attended the MOMA’s latest exhibit, Talk to Me: Design and the Communication between People and Objects. The exhibit focuses on the shift from function to meaning of objects in the way we interact with them.  Each of the (almost 200) objects featured in the exhibit contains information that extends beyond their immediate use or appearance.

Examples range from a few iconic products of the late 1960s to several projects currently in development—including computer and machine interfaces, websites, video games, devices and tools, furniture and physical products, and extending to installations and whole environments – MOMA. 

I’m not going to write about all the pieces featured – you can explore them for yo-self at the MOMA, if you’re in New York, or also in great detail on the interwebs.

Apart from the wonderful collection of interactive objects, the most interesting element of the exhibition is the way that (it’s set up for) people to interact with it.

Each piece is accompanied by a QR code, which viewers are promted to scan for more information.  Upon scanning you’re directed to that concept’s page on MOMA’s website, which in some cases provides enhanced content (such as a brief video) and in other cases reiterates the info already presented in person.

This scanning behavior (for extra/hidden/momentarily unavailable information) draws a parallel with many of the intriguiing pieces featured in the show, which, with a bit of user interaction/participation, unlocks new information, scenes or even worlds.  Some of my favorite ‘revealving’ pieces are: Kageo, “little shadows” that appear in everyday objects; The Haunted Book, which reveals a hidden layer of virtual animation; Notepad, a seemingly regular series of notepads with hidden, microprinted text, and Hide and See, a series of LCD screens that hides information in plain sight.

We all like to peer behind the curtain and image there’s more to things than meets the eye.  As QR scanning continues to blow up, mobile will play an increasingly central role in faciliaitating that exchange.

Instagram hits 150 million photos and 7 million followers. And that's just the beginning.

 

Instagram was built to blow up

The start-up launched last October 6, 2010 and within six hours it’s back-end became overwhelmed.  Co-founders  Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger quickly switched over from a single server in LA to Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, or EC2 (**that’s as techy as this post gets, I promise!) It basically gave them the ability to minimize downtime and continue to scale the app as it grew.

Last week Instagram announced that it’s reached 7 million users and over 150 million uploaded photos. And according to Systrom, community members are uploading photos at a rate of 15 photos per second.  To compare, it took Flickr 2.5 years to amass the same number of photos.  

So what does this mean to you? With the amount of existing photo-sharing options available, what makes Instagram so special?  Well for starters, Instagram is much more than a photo sharing application… it’s the next big social network.  

Instagram's 150 millionth photo

A shift in social focus

Where Twitter and Facebook provide live news feeds centered around status updates (by you), Instagram flips the focus to the image.

On Instagram, it’s less about ‘you’ (what’s interesting about you) and more about what’s interesting to you…. Which in  turn, makes you more interesting.  Kapeesh? Contrast that with Facebook and Twitter, which tend to be more self-centered (pics of you, your friends, where you are, what you’re doing, why you’re feeling gassy  today…thanks for the update...) and a fresher picture emerges.

If self promotion is the new ente.rtainment, Instagram makes it less obvious.  You’re still self-promoting – whether it’s a hipster pic of you and your friends or a super cool sunset that you’ve captured - but there’s a filter (16 filters, to be exact) of artistry over it.  Instagram takes the campiness out of a Twitter update about your lunch – and instead makes that update appetizing.

My pal @RitchieBloom, making Bisquick look dayum fine@sosticky - my hipster friends, en filter

Another powerful thing about Instagram is the connections it creates. When you follow someone, you are subscribing to their vision of the world around them. There’s an element of voyeurism to it – and who doesn’t like voyeurism? I’m wearing binoculars right now…  It also fosters a sense of intimacy. It’s a window into someone’s day, mood, moment.  And in following multiple people, Instagram offers a constant steam – or montage of moments.

In terms of building out your network, Instragram is much more like Twitter than Facebook.  Friend requests from people you’ve never met / heard of are creepy.  You know what I’m talking about.  But following / being followed on Twitter is much more about interest (in content someone is sharing) than the person themselves. Unless you’re a celebrity. And then it’s just about watching them talk to each other.  

The feed and fact that you can follow anyone from all over the world (pending their privacy settings, obv) unlocks a creative lens to both (keeping up with) friends or (peering into the lives of) strangers.  Either way, Instagram inspires.

Enjoying my friend, Matt's, take on restroom signage: @hirsutegent: "Creepy public toilet forces parents to change their babies in front of wheelchair bound paedos"

Admiring a strangers [victorgallus_gf] entry to the imagination challengeLooking into another stranger (and Insta-celeb's) fridge @ninenune

Marketing + the next phase of 'web celeb'

I won’t be surprised if within the next year we start to see Insta-celebrities pop up, as we have on YouTube.  There are already users with thousands upon thousands of followers.  And it’s not that prophetic to imagine a brand run Instagram competitions (take photos of [X] and tag them [brand name] for a chance to win [amazeballs prize]). Content publishers will to start including Instagram feeds on their websites. Brands (Burberry, Red Bull, Jamie Oliver) and agencies (Made by Many) have already started dabbling in Grammaland. 

While you can’t tag images yet or search Instagram hashtags (*you can use hashtags and grab them from Instagram's API), I imagine that’s somewhere in the pipeline and it sure to add to both personal and marketing opportunities for following, tracking and participating.  Gollin Harris’ Lollagram (an aggregate of Instagram images from Lalapalooza) is a great example of what’s to come.

Watch. This. Space.

And follow sosticky on Instagram! :)

'71 Big Walls' in street art - changing perceptions of public space

Just a quickie this AM - a friend just sent me to '71 Big Walls - A Street Art Collection', curated by Street Art Utopia.

Love the way that these change the way we view and interpret public spaces and tickle the imagination (ew I kind of hate that I just used that expression) by interrupting expectations of 'what is' and delighting people with 'what might be'.

See all 71 walls at Street Art Utopia.

via Sticky Siegal

On another note (I'm going to write more about the ever-expanding city + image cataloguing by Google soon) Red Bull Street Art View (by Loducca) does a fab job of mimicking the Google Art Project by curating a global collection of tagged street art. But more on that later.

More on Red Bull Street Art View:

Later skaters. Enjoy your Saturdays :)

If by Quirky, you mean amazing

Quirky Manifesto from Quirky on Vimeo.

I just stumbled across Quirky on Josh Spear's always-interesting Trendspotting blog and am really digging this concept. You know the saying, "90% of success is showing up"?  Let's say you have that 10% light bulb idea but don't have the resources to set it off.  That's where Quirky comes in. Intrigued?? Ben Kaufman, the company's founder, is only 24... Clearly that boy can execute. 

Quirky is essentially a crowd-sourced product design company that makes inventing accessible.  Their premise is that people are programmed to invent (we're constantly thinking about what's next & how we can improve things), however the actual inventing process can be a bit of a pickle (more like a giant, gorilla-sized pickle)...what?? I don't know, stick with me, though.

Basically, Quirky creates products by connecting people with ideas to the resources they need to get their shit madeeeee.  Anyone can sign up to Quirky and submit an idea for a new product.  Each week, the Quirky community rates top ideas and then Quirky's team (including top designers, brand peeps, etc) weeds through submissions and votes on the top two ideas.  Those ideas are then put through R&D and a prototype is created. Then, they put the product up for sale. If a product reaches 'threshold' - meaning a certain number of people purchase it - the products get manufactured (hello, China) on Quirky's dime and they continue to push sales. Inventors and influencers (people who were involved in the successful 'birth' of the product, including community members who voted for it) are rewarded based on their impact on product development. In dollars.  You follow?  If not, check out their handy infographic (I love a good infographic).

One of my favorite lines in the manifesto is, "failure is a crucial part of success at Quirky. Quirky is just as powerful at killing good ideas as it is at pushing great ones forward".  Wise words that apply to more than just product design.  Just become something seems like an OK or 'pretty good' idea, doesn't mean you should hop on board. Proper research and vetting need to happen before you commit to something. Even a puppy. Even if it's the cutest facking puppy ever.

I love the collaborative and creative nature of this start up and am looking forward to many more Quirky inventions.

What will you invent??? What do you use in your day-to-day life that could use a little design botox?