simply-blogging

Empty out that inbox

Came across this interesting article the other day on how to better manage email overload:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/163073/how_to_kill_email_before_it_kills_you.html

-Kelly

Lessons from the master

Let me introduce you to a good friend of mine, Khaled Ismail, Corporate Brand Director at Tetra Pak.  Last night we were enjoying the sights of Shanghai's famous waterfront - The Bund - when Khaled came across a street vendor selling come cute blobby toys (a ball of water in rubber that squashed itself when thrown and then gradually unsticks and reforms in an amusing manner).
Khaled decides to buy 3 for his children and then tells me to observe how to bargain.

Khaled:  How Much
Street Vendor: 10 Yuan each

Khaled: I'll take these 3 for 10 Yuan
Street Vendor: 10 Yuan each?
Khaed: No 10 Yuan for all 3
Street Vendor:  %**&£$$!!

At which point Khaled walks away.  Inevitably the vendor chases after him and Khaled returns reluctantly.

Street Vendor: OK I'll sell you 3 for 20 Yuan
Khaled:  No I'll tell you what I'm going to pay and the price is going down. 6 Yuan for all 3.

Khaled then walks again - he virtually runs along the pier.  Of course the vendor chases after him and sells him 3 at just 2 Yuan each.

We stroll on further and Khaled explains the golden rule. 

"You have to be prepared to walk away at any point in the negotiation.  He knew I wanted them, but he also knew that only I had the choice to walk away - so the onus was on him.   Effectively he ended up bartering with himself."

As we returned along the walkway we re-passed the street vendor who was selling some more toys at 10 Yuan.  

Quick as a flash Khaled sat down beside him and started offering the 3 he had just bought at the knock-down price of 5 Yuan each.  Fortunately for Khaled's kids (and the hapless vendor) our car turned up to whisk him away to the airport. But not before he got a round of applause from an assembled crowd of Chinese celebrating his trading skills.

I suddenly had a renewed respect (and no little sympathy) for my colleagues in simply-experience who every quarter have to re-negotiate contracts with Tetra Pak.

Marc

Out of work but full of ideas

Have you recently been made redundant or know someone who has? Perhaps take a cue from this woman in Connecticut - check out the excerpt from today's New York Post 's "Weird But True" section:

_______________________________________________________________________________________

An unemployed Connecticut woman is giving new meaning to a "job wanted" ad.

Pasha Stocking, of East Hampton, has rented a billboard along Interstate 95 in Bridgeport, telling motorists. "Hire Me!" It directs people to her Web site, www.hirepasha.com.

The 37-year-old single mom was laid off in June and wants a job in marketing or design.

The billboard company says similar ads cost about $7,000 a month.

________________________________________________________________________________________

That's one way to get some attention. Even more unusual was what I witnessed on a recent subway commute into Manhattan - a young, twenty-something passing his resume around to fellow train passengers. He actually had a few takers; perhaps his efforts will indeed open some doors for him (and not just subway doors).

-Kelly

Gerry strikes again

Loved this thought-piece from Gerry McGovern.

Gerry's point is that we should stop stressing about the details on intranet sites until we've made them work right.  I think his views are a little extreme but as a provocation it's well worth considering.

I think that the concerns of internal communicators seem to oscillate between being 'strategic' and running great channels.  Most of the media on the subject doesn't seem to spend much time in the middle ground - i.e no one is going to get your strategic messages if your tools are rubbish.  However making a fetish out of running the perfect newsletter or website or ignoring the mechanics in order to spend your life worrying about beardy-stroking 'big issues' doesn't really make sense.

Liam