CapsuleBlog

Do you have your holiday cards done?

Congratulations to those of you who already have your holiday cards and letters done. But, if you are like me, another holiday season will pass by without a Christmas family photo taken or a year-in-review letter written.

But, let's be honest. The photos, if they are very lucky, will make it to your fridge for a month or so. The letters will get a quick once over and tossed into your junk drawer.

Of course, if I received cards that were as intriguing as this one, I might keep them for the mantle. The first thing that comes to my mind. OMG! She's passed away. Enjoy these at the Gallery of Unusual Christmas Cards. Link.

Size can't keep her down.

With a recent visit to our local Minneapolis-St. Paul airport, I thought perhaps it may be interesting to talk about the Airbus A380 (aka: the world's largest commercial airliner). Two years late and several billion dollars over budget, Airbus is finally ready to start producing the 165 units airlines have pre-ordered.

To promote their new product, the French company is flying its first unit around the world. Going from France to Minneapolis, the jumbo jet will make its way to Los Angeles and end up in Sydney, Australia. I found these eery videos on Youtube of the take off and landing. If this is a marketing ploy, the sparks coming off the rear of the fuselage don't do it much justice.

Sparks on take off
Cross winds at landing

A "Beast" of a Company

We all may be Photoshop professionals over here, but I assure you this is for real. It's just too good to not post.

At the close of the market on Monday, November 26 Google stock was valued at $666.

How appropriate to have Google associated with the Number of the Beast.

Actors and Actresses playing caterers?!!

The Writers Guild of America strike, that began on November 4th, continues to evolve. It is not all picketing with signs and walking around in circles anymore; the WGA is too creative for that and so are their supporters. Why not have some fun while they wait for resolution? According to the New York Times, strikers have remained in the limelight by networking, getting loads of celebrity attention, taping YouTube videos and organizing theme days during the strike.

YouTube reports 60% of all videos watched online in the United States, since the WGA are making videos now they should be getting more coverage and support. A nationwide poll by Pepperdine University found that 63% of Americans already side with the writers. That's great public relations.

Now, what about this business of actors and actresses playing caterers? Well, along with more than half of Americans being on the WGA's side, so are celebrities. To show their support to the strikers, "The longshoremen's union sent turkey baskets (not quite celebrities), Justine Bateman brought tacos, Jay Leno chipped in doughnuts, Jimmy Kimmel contributed burritos and Eva Longoria handed out slices of pizza!"

Yesterday, the union and the studios met for contract negotiations and lets all hope for agreement on bigger cuts of the proceeds from Internet reruns and DVD sales so we can all happily go back to watching our favorite shows!

For more information on the fun the WGA are having read the New York Times article. New York Times

Capsule wishes you a GREEN holiday season.

Thanksgiving weekend has come to an end. That means a couple of things: you've already finished your Christmas shopping by 8 o'clock the morning of Black Friday, the elastic waistband pants have been put back in the closet until Christmas, and it's time to set up the holiday decorations.

In case you've been living under a rock this year, you might have noticed that there's a big push for sustainable and eco-friendly products and services. This year's Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center is sporting LED lights powered by solar panels-- so 2007. Aside from consuming less energy, LED's (Light Emitting Diodes) contain fewer chemicals and never get hot. Good news if you've ever had that Christmas tree go up in flames before. They may cost more, but their lifetime is about 100,000 hours (that'll last you a couple holiday seasons).

Check out the following sites for deals on LED lights:
Christmaslights.com
Environmentallights.com

Happy Holidays!

Strategic Messaging

After a few relevant posts, I thought I'd lighten it up a little bit. My reaction to this visual prompt would probably make me go all Michael Douglas in "Falling Down", or it might make me laugh till I pee-but just a little. Regardless, it did make me think about the strategy and dumb-luck behind message placement. Where it goes, the eyes it falls on and the situation those eyes are in can make or break a message.

It's a book! It's a newspaper! It's a blog! It's a toaster oven*?

Well, the first three are true.

Remember way back to the late 90's/early 2000's when the Rocket eBook launched...and crash landed shortly thereafter? Well, it's been a couple years and Amazon is taking another stab at it, with their product called the Kindle. For only $400, the Kindle sports an eInk display, some keys that moderately resemble tic-tacs, WiFi access, and a memory card slot for super-mega storage. No wires necessary; users transfer books online through Amazon, accessed wirelessly via a common cell phone signal. It may not be a looker like the iPod, but it gets the job done.

Will devices like the Kindle ever replace the 500+ history of the written word? There's an extensive article in the current issue of Newsweek discussing the issue, also available online here.

*Future models may include heating elements.

Talk about a brand experience

BMW has taken pride in producing what it calls "the ultimate driving machine." That's all well and good, but can their simple slogan persuade me to take out a second mortgage to buy said machine? Well, if there was any doubt in my mind it would be squashed by BMW Welt-- welcome to the World of BMW.

Aside from looks and performance, what else drives the sales of automobiles? Recent trends lead me to believe it's all about the brand experience. A couple years ago fellow German automaker, Volkswagen, built a "transparent factory" outside Dresden for perspective customers of their luxury sedan, the Phaeton. These customers could view the production of their potential cars through glass walls; giving them a chance to bond and experience the care that goes into their car firsthand.

BMW Welt opened last month right next to the company's headquarters in Munich. Aside from the striking architecture, the building houses its products and displays the technologies its employees are exploring for future models. Not only can customers pick up their new cars at BMW Welt, but the company hosts concerts and social events at the location to further increase the presence of the BMW brand in the lives of current and potential customers.

The website is rather comprehensive, with a schedule of events and details of how to pick up your new ride. Definitely worth checking out...

What Hell May Look Like

Imagine if your wall resembled your desktop. For some of us, it would be quite organized. For others, including myself, it would be a nightmare. A German company, Wir Gestalten designed this, I think. Of course, I have not studied German in 14 years.

It's interesting to imagine our virtual world moving into our physical space. Perhaps Monday I'll come to work dressed as my Yahoo Avatar.
Link.

Warm and Gooey

This is genius. A food company called Podravka released its latest annual report titled, “Well Done.” Which is in itself witty on a few levels: a job well done, well done as in food temperature and so on. But what makes this, in my humble opinion; the coolest annual report ever created is that when you receive the book all the pages are blank- until you bake your book. That’s right kids; you have to bake it to reveal the text. 100 degrees at 25 minutes will get you all the juicy information.