Czech Business Weekly “Media campaign will highlight benefits of print:”

Today’s consumers are protesting against perfection because they cannot relate to it. That is one big reason why blogs are a hit,” Engeseth said. Since people often equate some kinds of publicity with deception, the more “real” or common a promotion or an ad seems, the greater the likelihood that people will connect with it. Irena Fuková

Did get a strange question for a while ago: Stefan, what words should stand on your gravestone? I responded: Time flies…
Even if the question is strange to must of us, we talk to little of death. That’s why people got chocked when Anita Roddick, founder of the Body Shop, started her first store in 1976 in Brighton, England, between two funeral parlors. People appreciated the irony of the name The Body Shop, but the funeral parlors saw it as ridiculing their businesses.
Today I have to say with deep sadness that: Time flies to fast even for Dame Anita Roddick. Here family like to here your stories of what you did think of here, here is Jack Yan story.

Want to meet Will Ferrell? Well, if you have some extra cash lying around, you could end up being his next co-star! OK-magazine.com

The auction will start on Sept 17 at eBay.com. The opening bid is $5,000, not so much money to make you to a movie star.
The movie you can do a “cash audition” for is Step Brothers. This whole project would have been so much bigger before Youtube.com made everyone a start for free. But still it’s a fun project and well connected to charity, the money goes to CancerForCollege.org.

That’s how the staff at Jungle Jims describes work.* They do “play” so good that the numbers on the bottom-line are around 100 million Euros (that’s good work). Big Wall-Mart is trying to compete but they don’t know how to play.

A supermarket as it is a tourist attraction and stands as testament to Bonaminio’s commitment to “making grocery shopping fun. Junglejims.com

Play this video and learn: We play work.
* Interview by journalist Jim Cordts, Forma Publishing.

Yesterday I did attend at a really good seminar “Handelns hetaste varumärken!” (Retail hottest brand). IKEA did get the nr 1 award; finance director Ulrika Persson for IKEA did collect the award. Onstage she did tell a fantastic story that I believe is the reason for why they are nr 1:

For not long ago, we hade a record in sales at IKEA. Then came to legendary fonder Ingvar Kamprad to our headquarter and hold a speech. He started with thanking al of the staff for making IKEA so successful. Then went silent for a while and everyone was waiting for what should come next (should they get a bonus ore something?). Then Ingvar said, I want you al to hold a 2 minutes silence from now, so we al can calibrate this moment of success.

WOW! He is not only the fonder of a great companies, he a great storyteller. I believe that this story is one of the Ingvars way of creating nearly “religion level” of their famous corporate culture. Ingvar is a culturestone that they don’t can afford to disappear. He is born 1926 and cannot in person stick around forever. I believe there going to have a mayor crisis if is they don’t make him more a part of there corporate DNA. There are a lot of companies that have the same problem but not many are as big as IKEA ore having a so strong corporate culture (based on one person).

Here are to good examples of the small and big advertising agency. Lets start with the small Barbermartin.com its al about people.
Then we have the big and global Leoburnett.com a website that probably is one of the most creative website an agencies ever done so far. But its not about people its about what we done and can deliver. I ask my self is big business not always personal?

Al Ries is a great speaker, click play and listen to his bullet points about iPhone and branding.

Al delivers points as: Brands that is everything is nothing… Here are more bullet points for your business from Al and Laura Ries at TheRiesReport.com

Today is days we cant afford to forget. We will not forget 9/11 if grass rots grow into a forest of memories. 259 000 000 hits on Google.com are a lot of seeds. Not of them are serious, but not al trees survive in a forest. Here is one that seems like a good tree that grow with a clear message:

See you in the streets!! 911truth.org

I know it is sensitive but I can’t stop thinking of the connection between: Children vs. brands:

Children don’t survive without your help!

What brand don’t survive without your help?

The interaction between children and you is building strong relationship. What brand ore webpage are having the same moment of “WE grow momentum?” well IKEA is close, but what else got it? For most brands you really don’t need to care about them, so why should you feel for them?

It takes a lot of time to find good blogs, that’s why I recommend Advertising Age list of 435 top ranked blogs. The list is created by Todd Andrik (check out his blog). There are a lot of blogs that are good, but most of them are from the states (because they are good).