Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Blog and Podcast - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Yves Behar is a world-leading designer. At TED, he's talking during the How Do We Create? session (this year,the TED Conference is based around the theme of "Big Questions"). In discussing his design process, where he thinks creativity comes from, and where companies are at in their own creativity, this...

There is tons of hype and interest around the TED Conference. While this is my first time attending, having watched almost every one of the talks over at TED Talks for the past little whiles makes everything I see live seem so familiar. That being said, in just one day...

Fact: if people can figure out a way to make more money, they will. And, it doesn't matter if it's online, offline or otherwise. Bloggers love to engage in flame wars, and why should Bloggers who have a focus on Marketing, Advertising, Communications or Public Relations be any different? There...

There are a couple of thoughts rattling around my noggin' today. For perspective, I'm currently bouncing around on a United flight from Halifax to Chicago (lots of turbulence). The flight was severely delayed, so I have no idea if I can make my flights from Chicago to San Francisco, and...

As part of my commitment to IAB Canada - Interactive Advertising Bureau (full disclosure: I sit on the Board of Directors), I will be teaching my full-day seminar on Social Media Marketing on the following dates across Canada again this year: - Montreal, Quebec -  March 12, 2008. - Ottawa,...

Welcome to episode #92 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. Whoa. I really thought this was going to be a quick fifteen-minute episode, but it turned into one very long rant about how technology is actually making marketing much easier. You'll have to take a listen...

If you're in or around the Greater Toronto Area this weekend, and are looking for some Social Media, Web 2.0 and/or Podcasting inspiration, please make sure to head over to Ryerson University and attend the always-free and self-organizing unconference glory that is PodCamp Toronto. All you have to do is...

Have you checked out iBand? They're the latest musical sensation to sweep YouTube (almost 1.5 million views). The trio have hacked two Apple iPhones and a Nintendo DS. The results are awesome. It also proves that creative people can (and will) do things with your brands, products or services that you...

On January 26th of this year I had a Blog posting titled, Social Media Journey, that told a very cool story about how the rock band Journey had discovered their new lead singer, Arnel Pineda, through YouTube. It is a great example of Social Media in action. The band managed...

If people like Avinash Kaushik are all excited over the notion of Web Analytics 2.0 and getting beyond the "what are they doing" and into cool metrics like sessions, downloads, actions and other telling ways of seeing who's doing what online, then the individual's presence is bound to be next....

According to Wikiquote, the saying, "common sense is not so common" is attributed to the French Writer and Philosopher, François-Marie Arouet (also known as Voltaire). I find myself thinking about that quote a lot lately. I also catch myself picking up the book Purple Cow by Seth Godin frequently to...

It has to be one of the best episodes of Seinfeld ever (granted, I'd probably say that about every episode), but there is the one where our friend, George Costanza, gives up on (pretty much) everything and decides to do the exact opposite of what he normally does. The punchline...

How many times do you have that "need to smack myself in the head" feeling for not having thought of an idea? Well, here we go again. I'm pretty excited to be heading out to Monterey, California next week to attend my first TED Conference. For those not in the...

Welcome to episode #91 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. This episode hit me like a ton of bricks. Lots of great conversation points and all sorts of insightful audio comments. Without hesitation, this one could have been a three-hour plus episode (I kid you not)....

On February 12th, 2008 (about four days ago) I posted a video to YouTube called, Apple Macbook Air Sony Vaio Parody. I did three things after that: I wrote this Blog posting called, Apple Macbook Air Sony Vaio Parody - My First YouTube Attempt, posted a tweet on twitter and...

I love the publishing business. I started my career as a Journalist and quickly became the Publisher of three magazines. To this day, I love walking into magazine stores. The sad reality is that there is simply less and less for me to buy. Grabbing a copy of Fast Company...

As Valentine's Day comes to a close, it felt like the right time to focus on passion. With all of these channels to be connected to - from Blogs to twitter - I'm constantly amazed by what people are passionate about. Admittedly, there are plenty of times where I shake...

How are your New Year's resolutions coming along? We tend to talk about those a lot all through January, and then never mention them again from February on (I think we all know why). The main resolution I made was to read more books. After dissolving the Montreal Business Book...

I've been Blogging about my Sony Vaio ultra-portable laptop for a long time. I'm also extremely tempted to grab a new Apple MacBook Air. As I contemplate my purchase, I thought I would demo what my Sony Vaio can do, while at the same time making it a parody of...

Welcome to episode #90 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. I had the distinct please of finally meeting Jim Sterne in person. He was in town to give a keynote for the Web Analytics Association and eMetrics Breakfast Meeting Series in Montreal. We had a chance...

There was a lively discussion last night over dinner here in Calgary. I met up with Doug Walker (World Rock Paper Scissors Society, Webwalker Blog, Shill Podcast) and the always awesome, Lisa Walker (Hill And Knowlton). We were discussing how a companies' biggest barrier to entry in the Social Media...

With all of the excitement surrounding online social networks like Facebook, MySpace and Bebo, a couple of chinks in the armour are already appearing. Most recently, Mark Zuckerberg appeared on 60 Minutes and said that advertising is the main revenue stream that he foresees for Facebook's success (you can watch...

It is now becoming a well-known event and gathering in Canadian cities like Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa, and it has now made its way to Montreal. On February 19th, 2008 at Lolita Lounge (96 Sherbrooke Street West - corner Saint-Urbain) Third Tuesday Montreal kicks-off. "3e mardi |Third Tuesday Montreal is...

Long-time followers of the Six Pixels of Separation Blog know about our tireless efforts to continually pound into and each and every Marketer's skull the importance of managing your brand online. Chris Anderson (author of The Long Tail and Editor at Wired Magazine) said it best: "your brand isn't what...

In the midst of one of the craziest months we've had at Twist Image (and I mean that in the best possible way), Joseph Jaffe - author or Life After The 30-Second Spot and Join The Conversation and Blogger/Podcaster over at Jaffe Juice - called and asked if I would...

Um, this makes me laugh. No clue why. And, I'm not the only one. ... and it seems highly viral as of late. Maybe there is no real formula to making a video viral other than capturing the imagination (and even that might be the imagination of a five year-old...

By the looks of this news item from eMarketer: Heard The Latest About Podcasting? it seems like Consumer adoption to audio Podcasts is definitely on the rise. The news is based on the recently issued eMarketer report, Podcast Audience: Seeking Riches In Niches, and the numbers are looking good. According...

Welcome to episode #89 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. I got some good ranting going on here about whether or not Bloggers (and other Social Media types) really do own the brand? I think we should be celebrated and embraced by corporations, but I worry...

Everybody has multiple customer service complaints. It's human nature to tell and share a story once you feel that you have been wronged. In a Social Media world - where sharing that story with the world is only a Blog post away - the stakes (for most companies) have been...

A little Friday fun and further evidence how great content finds its way to the Web, and is able to have a shelf-life well beyond the slated broadcasting time doled out by the big (and traditional) television networks. When videos like this get traction online it makes the concerns over...