A very special thanks to Garr Reynolds for featuring this TED presentation today. I would love to have Benjamin Zander as an instructor, or a mentor. This morning, during coffee, when I usually catch up on the things that have already happened, I spent the 20 minutes or so learning about the things that MIGHT happen. I was so inspired by how he worked with his student to break apart music for Cello and actually begin to look at the parts, and place between the notes, and the connections between not only the pieces and the parts and the spaces, but connections those things have to each other AND to the audience. Benjamin also included the connection to the artist, a 15 year old talent named Nicholi, and inspired him to change his interaction with the music as well.

I am sure you will all take away a different nugget or two of wisdom, or inspiration or whatever… but I am so fully inspired to look at those parts of the whole, the spaces between the notes, and see if I can not add a different sense of beauty, of perspective, or of interpretation with the new work I am doing (more on that later).

I also hope to bring you a review of Benjamin’s book, The Art of Possibility. I am still reading Guy Kawasaki’s new tome Reality Check and will move on to Zander’s book after that. Special thanks to Guy and his people over at Penguin Group who sent me an extra copy of Reality Check for our readers. Tell me what inspired you about the Zander presentation from TED in the comments, and I’ll send Guy’s book to one of you.

With the economy going south, pink slips raising their ugly heads, and the weather turning cold on the Left Coast, sometimes its the small things that really warm you inside, like keeping cash in your pocket and listening to some of the brighter minds in the changing landscape of that pre-internets invention known as television.

On November 13th, in San Francisco, NewTeeVee Live will feature such luminaries as Reed Hasting, CEO of Netflix, whose recent announcement that NetFlix will offer video delivery to my TiVo has me ready to renew my NetFlix membership after a two year absence, as well as Jason Kilar of Hulu fame, and who to me represents all the things great about the internet delivery of television style programming.

NewTeeVee Live will sure to be a major stop on the “events for the in-crowd” tour for video entrepreneurs and influencers and may also be a great place for you to bring some resumes or reels in case the downturn of the economy has you on the hunt for a better gig. And the good folks over at GigaOm are offering a $200 discount to our readers to join me at the event. Follow this link to register for the event on November 13th. And then DM me on twitter so I can look forward to meeting you in the City By The Bay.

And a special shout out to the great folks at Marketing Alchemists who have arranged for us to blog from the event in case you are stuck in Philly, reminiscing about The WIn, but wishing you were at NewTeeVee Live. We will bring you updates and insights from the event so be sure to check in with us on the 13th.

I have the great privilege of moderating a panel at >play Conference 2008 at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley on November 15th. The panel is called “Brands that Break Through” and it is about how large brands are using the social media and web 2.0 landscape to engage with their consumers. Panelists include execs from Universal McCann, Del Monte Foods, OMD, Ruder Finn, Gingerworks and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. In a nutshell, we’ve got some amazing heavy-hitters here.

Part of this gig is preparing questions for the guests that will stimulate a lively and informed discussion. I have some that I have been working on, but I’m curious to know if you have thoughts - what would YOU ask them if you had them all in a room? As part of the marketing team here at MediaTrust, I’m always looking for new ways to connect with brands and customers that may be interested in what we do. I know that many of you are in that same boat. So, let’s hear your thoughts!

Slide:ology - Quite possibly the best book ever written on presentation design.

I met Nancy Duarte many years ago. We were both working for agencies that supported Apple. I was at Web Associates as a strategic account manager, and Nancy was at the company that has her name above the door - Duarte Design. We took a few meetings together, explored ways that our companies could work together, and even had dinner with her family at their home. More recently I stopped by her office to chat about emerging media, and her new way of building teams and planning the future of her business. She had mentioned that she wanted to be sure that everything was ready before her agency was moved into a more visible market role. Kinda cryptic, right?

About a year or so later Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth began to make the world stop and take notice about the issue of Global Warming. We also noticed the work of Duarte Design for the first time on a global scale. Nancy’s team worked with Al Gore on the presentation deck he used, the one that won him a couple of Academy Awards as well as The Nobel Prize. And with that, the world of presentation design changed overnight.

And then Nancy wrote the book. Slide:ology is without a doubt the best book written about presentation design. In fact, it is so much more than that. Sure, she talks about the “tools” and the “techniques” as do many authors in this space. She also talks about the passion, and the art and the truth and all those other things that make a presentation great! Her book examines not only the “hows”, but the “whys” through a series of case studies and first hand knowledge from working with some of the most compelling presenters in the world.

As I mentioned in my video piece - just go buy it. If you read this blog, at some point in your career you will be required to make a presentation deck. This book will show you how to do it well. As for me, I am a month or so away from beginning to re-examine how we present at MediaTrust and I can’t wait to tear our slide deck apart and utilize the things I have learned from Slide:ology.

Here are the links I promised - Click here to go to the blog post about Nancy’s work with Guy Kawasaki, and click here to purchase the book from Amazon. Enjoy the read. Trust me, you will become excited about presentations again, especially your own.

What is Microsoft thinking with there recent ad campaigns? First, they brought in Jerry Seinfeld, who is a pretty clearly documented Apple fan. Besides not being funny, the ads show out of touch Microsoft is with it’s user base:

What is it are they trying to sell in this ad? There is no mention of Vista. It is a minute and a half of banter with a tagline about computers being moist like cake. Are you kidding?

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, they released this:

It’s four and a half minutes that aren’t funny, and more than anything, show how out of touch Microsoft is with it’s customers. We all know that, but why come right out and say that in an ad?

Over the last couple of weeks I have formed a theory. I believe that they knew these ads would get talked about - not necessarily because they were clever or well-done, but more because they were pointless and awful. They’ve succeeded. In the last two weeks I’ve read and talked more about Microsoft or Vista then I have since it was released. I know the old saying that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, but does it hold true in this case?

Now, Seinfeld has been kicked to the curb after only two ads and Microsoft seems to be starting fresh with their Apple rip-off “I’m a PC.”

What do you think? Has Microsoft’s marketing team lost their mind or is there something more to this?

By: Christopher Smith & Scott Parent

SHOW ME THE MONEY! SHOW ME THE MONEY!

Ok.. now that we got that out of the way… yes, affiliate marketing is about making money. We all work to make money to provide for the things that are required in life, and to acquire the things that we desire, whether it is a flat screen TV, a trip to Portugal, or a nice dinner out with friends. Let’s also be clear about another thing: we are just like you. We have seen the same things you’ve seen in this industry. We are not satisfied. It’s time for a change.

Before we lay out our plan for change we need to establish a few things. Many hours have been spent crafting sentences, deleting whole paragraphs (similar to balling up a sheet of paper and tossing across the room) and sitting in a hotel room in Boston recounting the previous few days. You see, we have recently attended the Affiliate Summit East in Boston and everything we thought we knew about this industry was tossed into Boston Harbor like our forefathers did decades before as if the Queen of England wanted to tax the sales of Wu-Yi Tea.

We have been to many conferences in our combined careers. The string of 3-6 letter acronyms synonymously representing technology, entertainment, consumer products, music, big pharma, porn, and yes, an occasional educational event. Our frequent flyer miles pinpoint the destinations - Austin, SF, NYC, LA, Chicago, Vegas, St. Louis, Memphis, Cleveland and of course, Boston. How fitting is it that the place that hosted one of the most notable boat parties in history was also host to our company’s boat party that ignited this manifesto.

We should also point out that we work for a company that is firmly rooted in the industry that is struggling with it’s identity, it’s soul, and for reasons to wake up every day and go out and kick some ass. Who we work for doesn’t really matter, because you can swap out one company name for the next and we believe you won’t even notice a difference. What is important is that we work in marketing. As part of our job we speak with, and listen to, hundreds of people every year about what is wanted, what is missing, what would be nice, and what needs to change in the affiliate marketing industry. As part of our job we tick and tie numbers, we graph out trends and project long tail, groundswell, and shark jumps. We believe that we’ve identified quite possibly the most important thing that needs to be recognized, acknowledged and understood in our industry.

We want credibility for the work we do every day. We want to stop lying to each other and to ourselves. We want to hold our head up high when someone asks us what we do for a living. We want to be able to say “hello”.

In order to understand what is driving this “statement” or “manifesto,” you need to understand a bit more background. When we entered this industry we were told that “all affiliates care about is revenue.” Revenue and T-shirts. From what we’ve been told ad-nauseam, potential customers don’t care what we say as long as they hear something about higher revenue, faster payouts, and exclusive deals. These things should be looked upon not as differentiators, these things should be look upon as commodities, as common and expected as out-of-date magazines in the doctors office, the crying child on an oversold airplane, or a dail-tone when you pick up a phone. This takes us back to the point we want to make.

We all want to belong. And it’s not just about money. It’s about community. It’s about validation. It’s about respect.

At no other conference have we ever had more people remember who we were. We’ve had people in the affilaite marketing industry cross the street to extend their hand and say “hello - I remember you from ad:tech SF last year” or “hey - you bought me a drink at eTail in Chicago and if you are free I would love to return the favor.” We know what you’re thinking right now; they are friendly because they are getting ready to sell us something, ply us for information or switch their draft beer order to a dirty Kettle when we insist on buying drinks. But you are wrong. We are looking for our group. We are acknowledging our own. We are reaching out and saying “hello” because we want to. Because we need to.

Now, please do not confuse this with thinking that we are saying we need friends. We all have plenty of friends. Most of our friends aren’t in this business. But we are connectors. We are deal makers. We are believers in each other or we wouldn’t be doing what we are doing.

HELP ME, HELP YOU.

Here is what we are proposing - If you want to differentiate yourself as a performance marketing network, you need to provide more personal attention to your customers. They can’t be looked at solely as a pipeline to revenue. Ask yourself, when was the last time you looked at the revenue numbers and picked up the phone and called that under-performing affiliate and offered some assistance? When is the last time you spoke to an advertiser and worked with them to make their offer unique and engaging? We spend such a large amount of time asking where the money is, but we spend very little time really trying to differentiate ourselves with relevant content and real innovation. This industry is extremely dependent on both the publisher and the advertiser, yet we rarely put the two together in the same room and the same conversation. Why? Advertisers understand their product or service better than anyone. Publishers know what their audiences want. Why not collaborate and give your campaign the best possible chance for success?

Affiliates have a wealth of knowledge about the industry, based on both their successes and failures. They are, in fact, the best teachers for success. Yet, when was the last time our industry invited them to participate in a conversation about the future of the space, where this industry should be going, and how to provide that change? When was the last time a group of publishers sat down together and discussed how they work without fear of “stealing” each others’ methods? There needs to be a better level of trust, collaboration, and cohesiveness if this industry is going to continue to grow and establish more credibility. We need a better sense of true community - one where we are willing to engage in dialogue that is helpful to each other.

So there you have it. In a nutshell, we believe that the affiliate marketing industry wants to belong, wants community and wants to be a functional group. Did anyone else see what we saw in Boston? Has anyone else felt the need or desire to change this sense of mistrust and dysfunction? Let’s make a pact to make a real effort. We can do it better. We can do it with more integrity, community, and transparency.

So in the words of Jerry Maguire - who’s coming with us?

Over the past couple of years we have been bringing you insights and updates from a variety of events including New Media Expo, Affiliate Summit, ad:tech, and of course SXSW. We have spoke with many of the thought leaders in social media, brand design, advertising and technology. Well, it’s time that we step out from behind the camera and up onto that stage. Scott Parent, MediaTrust’s VP of Emerging Media, and our resident expert in social media and social influence marketing, will be presenting a discussion surrounding a look at the social media strategies for the enterprise. As you know by being a viewer here, social media has had a tremendous impact in C2C and B2C interactions, but many think the Holy Grail is the efficacy of social media in the B2B marketspace.

Scott will be joined by Christopher Smith on this panel, and they will share with you strategies for success including brand management, channel development, meaningful interactions and impact on revenue with social media for the enterprise.

You will need to vote for this panel here. You will also need to sign up to vote, but that is a pretty simple process, and one that would be greatly appreciated. Voting ends August 29th, so please vote early, and tell your friends to vote as well.

Today was the first day of the New Media Expo and it’s been incredibly productive. We interviewed the Founder of the New Media Expo, Tim Bourquin, yesterday. Then today we shot interviews with Gary Vaynerchuk of Wine Library TV, Michael Geoghagen of the Disneyland Podcast, and Suzanne Norman of Emma. We also talked with some interesting companies including mDialog and Podcast Tuneup.

It will take us some time after the Expo to edit and produce the final interviews, but be sure to look for them here on Relevantly Speaking in the coming weeks.

It occurred to me the other day that many of you may not understand the relationship of how MediaTrust, RS, and Advaliant go together. I thought I’d take a minute to introduce the family and tell you about our new little brother, the Advaliant Blog.

MediaTrust is the parent company of Relevantly Speaking. This blog/podcast started out as an experiment to see if we could create a legitimate voice in the digital marketing space. Our mission was that we would write and talk about nearly anything relating to doing business in a changing digital world. With the steady growth of our audience each month, you’re telling us that we’ve succeeded!

Advaliant is our pay-for-performance platform. If you’re interested in affiliate marketing - either as an advertiser or an affiliate, then Advaliant is the place for you to be. Over the next couple months we’ll be redesigning that website, but for now, feel free to hang out in our comfortable well-worn home.

The newest member of our family is the Advaliant Blog. Before we launched last Friday, a few of you had asked me what the difference would be between that new blog and RS. I think its fairly obvious now - Advaliant is all about pay-for-performance marketing and RS is the kitchen sink of digital business.

What can I expect on the Advaliant Blog? Well, I’m glad you asked! First, we’ll be writing about trends and happenings we see going on in the affiliate industry (as you see here from Mike Carney). Second, we want the blog to be a place where newbies can come and take the intimidation out of getting started with affiliate marketing. So, to that end, we’ll be offering tips and tricks. You can see Richard Okolo’s excellent advice HERE. Finally, since it is OUR blog, we’ll be pimping our own stuff. For example, did you know we have an insane series of contests going on? For August we’re blowing our several prize packages of the Ultimate Gaming System!

In a nutshell, Advaliant’s here to make money. That is the name of the game in the pay-for-performance space. We think we can help you make money too. Along the way we’ll show you how to do it efficiently and ethically - ’cause that’s how we roll.

Stop in and say hello!

At MediaTrust I am the “social media guy.” There are still factions of my company that don’t get what it is I do exactly. Social media is not an exact science and trying to explain it to someone that doesn’t understand services like Facebook or Twitter is going to have a hard time wrapping their mind around the value of things like podcasts and blogs. This applies to pretty much every company doing business today. For the past few years, I have been banging the drum on the importance of having a corporate blog strategy to everyone I meet. Yesterday Idris Mootee wrote a post that pretty much EXACTLY sums up what I have been trying to impress on people. He lists four key points that are key to your success:

1. You need credibility

2. You need to have a distinct perspective

3. Timeliness of relevant content

4. Balancing the corporate legal and strategic risks of posting vs. not posting

Check out his blog for more detail on each, but these are the bullet points. A successful blog has to have genuine intent. It has to be real, and it has to offer something other than the “me too” bandwagon-jumping I see too many companies fall prey to.

One final nugget of information I’d offer is don’t expect to make money off your corporate blog directly. I know, your business has enough cost centers, it doesn’t need another one, right? Wrong! If you follow the tips above and you put real effort forth, the amount of positive traction you will gain for your brand will be well worth it. Customers want to feel a connection to the companies they do business with. Offering a genuine perspective and a mechanism for your customers to provide feedback will be worth it’s weight in gold.