Tag: ideas

Nothing ventured, nothing gained

Posted on by Kyle

I ran across this post in Google Reader and I was about to re-share it, but I think the link warrants its own post…

The basic premise revolves around ad/creative/media agencies adapting to the changing landscape of communication (most unsuccessfully). I’ve seen a lot of these types of posts recently (either due to New Year’s resolutions or the economy), but this particular post really stood out to me.

Basically, I think you can take two approaches to radical shifts in the way the world works: think/discuss/worry about it or jump right in—just try something, learn what does and doesn’t work and go from there.

Wait for it…

With the wait and see approach, you probably won’t fail (immediately); you continue doing what you’ve done so well, maybe jump in when the time is right and if your timing is good, you’ll continue doing well. On the flip-side, you could jump in too late (or not at all) and when the balance shifts, you’ll be left in the dust.

Just Do It

With the latter, jump right it approach, the odds are you’re more likely to fail than succeed, but you’re likely to learn a lot more in the process. Your assumptions will change. You’ll have a clearer picture of what your audience actually wants. You could make money offering consulting services to the Waiters : )

In the projects I’ve been involved in recently, I’ve been better served by diving in—I tend to procrastinate, so the time I normally spend thinking about what I need to do (aka putting it off) is better spent just working on the problem and iterating as needed.

Which camp are you in?

Throwing out an idea

Posted on by Kyle

For a while now, I’ve been thinking I should throw some of the random product/service/whatever ideas that pop into my head on the blog… things that I think are viable from a business and/or usage standpoint, but things I probably don’t have the time/skills/resources to implement.

Todays seems like as good a day as any to start, so here’s the idea: Create an iPhone app that allows you to order pizza online.

If it were an independent app, maybe it could allow you to select the nearest pizza purveyor and order your favorite pie. The app could also keep track of special offers and coupons which might also serve as a revenue stream (i.e. pizza co’s might pay a small percentage as a finder’s fee.) Come to think of it, this might work as a standalone website, too.

If the app were developed by a specific brand—say, Domino’s—you could incorporate a mobile pizza tracker, 1-click ordering for your favorite toppings, etc.

This idea was sparked by this post via Peter’s shared items

All Kinds of Awesome

Posted on by Kyle

Here’s some of the stuff that’s caught my eye recently that may be worth your time, too:

The Price is Right (Isn’t It?) Why shouldn’t made-for-web productions should have budget as big as their televised counterparts? This article aims to lay the groundwork putting a fair price on your digital blood, sweat and tears.

Springwise – This is a recent addition to the Review category in my RSS feed. Basically, it’s a steady stream of new business ideas—some new interesting, some stuff that’s been in the market for a while. Kind of a Trend Hunter with a business focus. Worth a look.

dev.mobi recently relaunched as mobiForge. I hadn’t really spent a lot of time exploring this site before the refresh; there’s a ton of content available. They have resources for developers, designers, marketers and more. It looks like a great resource for anyone who’s involved in the mobile space.

And if your mindset is more design thinking/trend hunting/cool data, mobiForge has a sister site, mobiThinking. The content’s not as deep as the main site, but it’s worth an add to the ‘ol feedreader.

Wecome to the social (media) revolt – the gist: by its very nature, the web is in a constant state of change and its always been about making connections, so why is social media seen as a new, groundbreaking idea?

I have to agree with Joshua’s angle; the fundamentals haven’t changed, but the tools we all use to connect/socialize/etc. are getting easier and easier for non-geeks to use, which allows more people to participate and brings the “social” bit of social media to the fore.

A simple idea that provided hours of entertainment this summer is popping up again: John McCain Is Your Jalopy and Sarah Palin Is Your New Bicycle’s Flat Tire. I think the web will be a little less entertaining once the elections are over.