Stickiness is Good

How did urban myths and legends come to be?  What is it that is so compelling for ideas to "stick"?  How do you make your ideas "sticky"?  In a homage to Malcom Gladwell's, "The Tipping Point", Dan and Chip Heath illustrate the concept of "stickiness" through the SUCCESS model.

I highly recommend you read the book, "Made to Stick".  More details and resources are available at www.madetostick.com

SUCCESS

S-imple
Simplicity isn’t about dumbing down, it’s about prioritizing.  (Southwest will be THE low-fare airline.)  What’s the core of
your message?  Can you communicate it with an analogy or high-concept pitch?

U-nexpected
To get attention, violate a schema. (The Nordie who ironed a shirt…)  To hold attention, use curiosity gaps. (What are Saturn’s rings made of?)  Before your message can stick, your audience has to want it.

C-oncrete
To be concrete, use sensory language.  (Think Aesop’s fables.) Paint a mental picture.  (“A man on the moon…”)   Remember the Velcro theory of memory - try to hook into multiple types of memory.

C-redible
Ideas can get credibility from outside (authorities or anti-authorities) or from within, using human-scale statistics or vivid details.  Let people “try before they buy.” (Where’s the Beef?)

E-motional
People care about people, not numbers.  (Remember Rokia.)  Don’t forget the WIIFY (What’s In It For You).  But identity appeals can often trump self-interest.  (“Don’t Mess With Texas” spoke to Bubba’s identity.)

S-tories
Stories drive action through simulation (what to do) and inspiration (the motivation to do it).  Think Jared.  Springboard stories (See Denning’s World Bank tale) help people see how an existing problem might change.

A Green AP: Good for Productivity, Good for the Environment

This is a great piece from Mary Schaefers e-AP newsletter;

Here are a few tactics you can try that are good both for the environment and a more efficient AP function
• 1) Before you hit that print button, ask, "Do I really need a copy?"
• 2) Pay electronically if at all possible.
• 3) Encourage electronic invoicing-it makes AP more efficient.
• 4) Sign up for a service that converts the faxes to e- mail.
• 5) Automate wherever possible.

thanks Mary!!

3 Reasons Why Workplace Technophobia is Unacceptable Today

Technology is everywhere, from your microwave to your car to your office. You don't even know you're using it most of the time. Computers are almost an essential in our lives. For those who think they shouldn't be using a computer or are resisting just because they can, or think it's not for them, I urge you to think about;

1. Your kids safety.
If you have kids you wouldn't let them roam around at night after 11pm where they could meet complete strangers. If you're not watching them they're on facebook doing exactly that now. And the wrong type of strangers are out there. You must get a handle on what's going on. Watch their use and understand the online vulnerabilities, your kids safety is at stake.

2. Your job security.
The person sitting next to you at work might have better tech skills than you. In these economic times if your company is pulling out the chopping block those with better tech skills are preferred. Remember it's technology that makes the work place more efficient and unfortunately replaces what people do. If you resist technology, your job is on the line.

3. Software is easier than ever to use.
Yes, 10 years ago software was not that easy to use. But have you gone online lately? Web applications are so much easier to navigate. Over the last few years design and usability have become key ingredients in technology products. We can partly thank apple for that. Software is just easier and simpler to use.

Yes you can! 4 year olds are learning how to use software, and so can you. I urge you to use this as a motivator and embrace computers and technology. There's a lot riding on it.