Ben Bennett: Content and Dreaming I Have Been

Mac App Review 2009

Alright, I think it time to update the Mac suggestions that I slung out there last year as we are closing up the year of our Lord 2009. Here is a list of what I am STILL using and others that have been added.

• Drive Genius 2. Get it, love it, will keep you running smooth.
• (Added) BusyCal. Got this tool to sync my Apple Calendar to my Gmail account that updates my Android phone. LOVE IT! I update any of the three and all are automatically synced.
• MS Office 2008 works great. Cheaper too!
• (Added) iWorks 09. Useful, but Office dominates my use other than Keynote. I likes me some Keynote.
• (Added) Evernote. What a great tool for organization and notes. Web tool, iPhone app and Android app available.
• (Upgraded) Adobe Creative Suite CS 4 Design Premium.
• Check out Coda for the web programmers that prefer coding to WYSIWYG editing. (Thanks ChimChim237 for the recommend.)
• TextMate is cool.
• (Added) iArchiver is great for opening rar files.
• Time Capsule. Great for storage and WiFi too.
• Candy Bar is a fun tool. (Not using too much anymore)
• (Added) img2icns for creating great desktop icons.
• Art Directors Tool Kit is a great tool. Very helpful.
• 1 Password is an essential web tool.
• Safari good, FireFox best. NOTE: Safari has neat trick for pulling those FLV files down to convert with Quicktime to add to the ole iPod. Just saying...
• (Added) Tweetie for all my Twitter account management needs.
• Flip4Mac is needed.
• LOVE the Dashboard feature in Leopard.
• MacCleanse is very cool.
• (Added) Screen Grab plugin for FireFox. Really best of class tool for grabbing images of full web pages.
• Mac Disk Utility. Know it, use it.
• eFax. Best bet for faxing.
• Visual Thesaurus. Great for getting through those content development projects.
• Got cheap 20" Cinena Display on ebay that works well as second screen. Keep Entourage, MSN and Twhirl over there and use the main screen for dev and design. Have to buy converter from apple store, but is still cheaper way than buying new screen of same size.

haven't upgraded to Snow Leopard, as I don't want to deal with the downtime and also wanting to see if more bugs end up shaking out before jumping into that pool. Hope this adds some value to all you Macophiles out there!

(If there are any apps that I am missing or just have to try, please suggest them to me via email at info@29e.com)

Clients Don't Care

In dealing with a few projects recently, it has emboldened my initial belief of business. Client's Don't Care. This isn't particularly a negative. Sometimes they do care, and that can be a bad thing. Here is my thinking.

In running a consulting business, agency or web shop you cannot rely or have just one singular client that pays all the bills. If you have one great, but let's get real now. You lose that client, you board up the windows and turn off the lights, right? The trick then is to balance a few or several clients to make sure you cover your monthly or annual nut, so to speak. In this balance is where it can get hectic or difficult to deal with as most have learned in this business is that everyone moves at once. It is rarely a project that ends and one begins and so on. Usually it is three projects this week, two next and four after that. Then they overlap as the weeks progress into months and you can now see the quandary most agencies face.

You can apologize to a client only for so long before things change. Either you get the project done or they find other people to do so. This is my "Client's Don't Care" factor. The measure that I weigh my agency with as if I were the client.

Client's don't care if you are sick for a week.

Client's don't care if your car broke down.

Client's don't care that your great grandmother that you haven't seen since you were four years old and just showed up for the week and you'll never see her again.

The most important one to never, ever forget is:  Client's Don't Care that you have three other projects going on and are trying to make a deadline.

Client's want THEIR project done. This is what they pay you for. This is why you're in business. Happy clients mean a good thriving business.

Client's really do care, and most times are very, very forgiving. But why test them. Just Get Stuff Done (GSD).

Been Too Long

I have to apologize for not keeping up on this thing. I have been twittering more often than not. Micro blogging has taken a hold of the masses and makes me curious to the future of the blog itself. Working up a quick post here now... more to come.

You Know You've Made It When...

There are certain milestones we place in our lives, business plans and sometimes dreams that let us know "We've made it!" For some it is monetary, others it is specific goals and some it is just to make it through to the end... alive. My Sister-in-law sent us this photo of a cake that was made for one of her customers (by that famous cake making company on the Food Channel). The customer's wife had to order it 9 months in advance to get it done.

It speaks volumes of the brand loyalty that the customer must have conveyed to his wife about my Sister-in-law's product (boutique guitar effects pedals). I enjoyed seeing the picture as I know the years of toiling that it has taken him to get to this point, and what it takes on a day to day basis to survive. Her pedals are used by rock legends to garage bands across the globe. The company remains a small business, built on nothing but a solid product and a cult following.

Kudos Dev... Great job. (Oh... and happy birthday Todd.)

Who We Want To Be, Not Who We Are

In discussing marketing efforts with a client recently, I mentioned to them what I believe to be a valid point. More so today than ever. In making purchases, the trend being (and has been for a very long time, with some exceptions) is that people make purchases based more on who they would like to be or envision themselves being than who they really are. We buy things that progress or propel us into things, places or people we desire to be. A vacation destination, fitness clubs, food choices, cars we drive, coffee we drink, a sport we play, clubs we frequent and even our choice of movie theaters (if there are more than one in per local).

I know, "Duh!" But this is lost on a lot of businesses. For most customers there is an innate desire to just improve. Ourselves, our situations, our lifestyle. Marketing assists this world view more than anything. If your product or service does this, are you effectively communicating it to your customer base? Tell the story that brings them into what they envision for themselves and watch the results.

It's Not About Just Passion, But Owenership

One thing that I learned in music school was song songwriting. In the "Craft" of songwriting a common misnomer of the writer is the emotional impact or the reaction of the listener to your song. It has to be understood fully by the writer that though the song might very well be inspired by a highly emotive situation, feeling or moment in time for you, it might not translate that way to the listener. This is a common roadblock for those that write songs that are very impacting to them, but falls flat when released to the masses. This becomes disheartening for the writer and sometimes quashes a good spirit outright.

In the business world I am finding this thematically appearing time and again. I see people that are blazingly passionate about what they are doing. Be it their business, their product, their non-profit or movement. No matter what it is, they cannot understand why more people have not attached themselves to what it is that is exciting them.

In looking deeper, I notice that the first disconnect comes when the passionate person or organization does not realize that though they have spent weeks, months, even years developing and laboring to bring that passion into fruition, the people they are wanting to attach to their thing are getting it for the first time, or do not have the history with it that they do. Though it took umpteen years to develop, this is the new persons first touch. Their first impression. Or maybe they have seen it many times (can you say the law of seven?), but are just now adopting it into their world view.

The second disconnect I see is in ownership. Not in giving up what you developed, perfected and presented to the world. But allowing for your thing to grow, flex or simply breath fresh air that is given by other people being involved. This is the hardest thing that the passionate people have accepting. It cannot be a rigid 'My way or the highway' attitude any longer. Like in creating a song, you put everything you have into it. You paint the picture of the moment, but the great songwriter allows for modifications to the story. Allows for the listener to paint his emotions, speak about his moment or situational experience into the song, thus making it partially his own. This is why when a great songs comes on the radio, we pause and listen. We are taken back to that feeling, that moment or situation every time. Because we own a part of it.

If your business, product or cause will allow others to paint in their feelings, emotions and situations into the picture, it will help them to own a piece of it. And at that point you will be a multi-platinum, award winning passionate person.

Pushing Forward

Something that I am noticing, be it with my own clients or postings I see on twitter by others in my profession is reassuring. In the past few months, most businesses have been shell shocked or in a wait and see mode. I have even heard a few say "We're waiting to see what the market does." This attitude thankfully (for us and them) is changing. Has the "market" changed? Other than yesterday's rally, not so much. Why then the move forward for companies?

Throughout this whole "Economic Downturn" or "Recession" many have not known what to do or how to turn things around. This includes Bernanke, Congress and even the President. The top economists in the world aren't sure what to do. Most media sound bites lead or end with, "if this works" or "should this work" as a precursor to the unspoken "I don't know" that also allows for plausible deniability if it should all fail.

Entrepreneurs, small businesses and true corporate leaders do know. In times like these, there is vast opportunity. In times like these, you have to just ignore the surroundings and do what you do the best. In times like these, you move forward. You're either progressing or you are regressing. You cannot wait, because if your competition, regardless of the economic situations, is pushing forward until times get better, they will most assuredly be ahead of you in the game.

Back On Mac (1 Year later)

It has been over a year now since I have migrated back to Mac with a Macbook Pro. I am still in love with it, I do have to admit. I only had one minor issue in an odd hard drive sound. Took it to the genius bar and they ended up plugging in a new hard drive with only a days worth of down time and no loss of data or apps. Got to love that!

In that, this is some of what I suggest through a years worth of trial and error. List is not in any particular order.

• Drive Genius 2. Get it, love it, will keep you running smooth.
• MS Office 2008 works great. Cheaper too!
• Adobe Creative Suite CS 3 works fine, not too many bugs.
• Check out Coda for the web programmers that prefer coding to WYSIWYG editing. (Thanks ChimChim237 for the recommend.)
• TextMate is cool.
• Time Capsule. Great for storage and WiFi too.
• Candy Bar is a fun tool.
• Art Directors Tool Kit is a great tool. Very helpful.
• 1 Password is an essential web tool.
• Safari good, FireFox best.
• TweetDeck or Twhirl, you decide. I am currently using Twhirl to tweet.
• Flip4Mac is needed.
• LOVE the Dashboard feature in Leopard.
• MacCleanse is very cool.
• Sirius Mac 2 is wonderful for listening to my Sirius Radio on the MBP. (It was a recomendation on the Apple site.)
• PocketSync Manager for syncing my Blackberry Curve.
• Mac Disk Utility. Know it, use it.
• eFax. Best bet for faxing.
• Visual Thesaurus. Great for getting through those content development projects.
• Got cheap 20" Cinena Display on ebay that works well as second screen. Keep Entourage, MSN and Twhirl over there and use the main screen for dev and design. Have to buy converter from apple store, but is still cheaper way than buying new screen of same size.

This is just a list I could think of off hand. No going back, as PC/Win is just too much of a mess and way too heavy of an operating system IMHO.

Seth's 3000th

Known to many a marketer, Seth Godin has posted his 3000th post (in a row). This really is an accomplishment as anyone who blogs knows. The most amazing is that he has kept a solid focus throughout. He did not vary off message, rant down a rabbit trail or bounce from topic to topic. He kept his core message and expounded upon it day after day.

Kudos Seth... Congrats!

Obama's Reality Check

In watching the past couple weeks, it seems that Obama's wave of popularity might eventually crest. Eventually meaning very soon. The wave that carried him through the elections and into his inauguration is being stymied by the persistent upheaval of the US economy. The other aspect that will force his popularity to wane is the unrealistic expectations that are placed upon him by the American public that put him into office.

Obama is most likely a good man, but a man none the less. What we are going through is a cycle. (See R. H. Migliore's article in the Tulsa World on this.) Though Obama is painting a picture that this is "the end of the world unless something happens" and his is the best and only plan to go with is ridiculous. If anything we have learned in the past decade is that rushing to "fix" what's wrong has not lead to the proper solutions. Regardless of your political views, and whether it be Afghanistan, Iraq to the TARP funding that ended with no oversight and no one who rapidly approved the bill is able to tell us where the money actually went. Taking time to protect the taxpayers investment into our nation and economy is not a fruitless endeavor and should be of the utmost concern.

Obama is correct, this is not a time for "business as usual" attitude in Washington. Both sides have been jockeying for what they believe. Facts are facts and there is pork placed in this bill that has no place to be there. Now is not the time for this.

Obama should also be taking a more stoic position in his media interviews as a President. He should not be relying on catch phrases and public jabs to the opposing party, as well as the speeches that brought him to where he is to carry him forward. Change was his promise and this is a change that is needed. The media can and will dote on his words and how he chooses them carefully and the 30 different diluted meanings that may or may not have been purposed by the President. But only actions will bring the resolution that the American public desperatly desires. Actions, not words may and should be his legacy. That he was a great leader and decisive with proper actions, not that he was a great speaker.

America is watching, and our attention spans, none the less our patience is not as long as it used to be in terms of historic events and challenges that we face.