I shot some short video interviews with some of the software and service folks that attended the Door64.com Tech Fair yesterday, you’ll see several of them before this post. It was a packed event with over 900 people set up by Matt Genovese, founder of Door64, a community of over 5,000 high tech professionals. Thanks Matt!

Here’s a great AAStatesman article covering the event.

Matt has grown Door64.com’s community so quickly from the ground up, it’s a great example of how social media, personal networks and executing well to fill a need.

I had a great time chatting with so many people doing great things. I hope you enjoy the videos too.

I didn’t get video time with Nik of Turn2Live.com, Bridget or Travis of Werkadoo.com, Cari of ExSquared.com, Cesar of Common Sense or Lisa of SmartBear.com. Guys, if you’d like to send me a link or have lunch and make a 30-second video to share, I’d love to share it. They all looked like they have a great things happening, check them out.

Prashant Kadam of Mopac Studios a design firm gave me a quick overview of his company. They do branding design, 3D, Flash, ecommerce and marketing presentations.

My designer friends are gonna hate me for that comment. Sorry guys.

Check out Crowdspring, a marketplace for simple logos and other design work. Most of them going for well under $500 bucks. Some designs are certainly crap, but some aren’t so bad. Yes, you may get what you pay for, but a very small business/startup may also get something pretty reasonable to tide them over until they need more complete/custom design work.

First product production outsourcing to other countries hits America… not long after, simple open markets in customer service and technology/coding transform businesses, (not always in a good way) now its visual design. Many differences in levels of quality exist… (especially in customer service) but it’s certainly a trend that’s hitting many industries and disciplines.

I think my career value is in “communication” with other humans… it evolves in format, medium and technology, but it also stays the same. Marketing, branding, UX, product management, social media… yes they depend on technology, but they are really about communication. That isn’t changing. (yet I hope!
How is/will your company (and you) planning for this type of open market? Is it a serious threat or something that won’t ever hit you?

[tag]visual design, branding, logo design, offshoring [/tag]

I just realized this blog, Seven87.com has been ranked on the Ad Age Power 150 for Marketing Blogs! Of course the Power 150 isn’t limited to 150 for some reason, as I’m currently in the 500′s, but it’s nice to see that I’m even on the list! Thanks to Ad Age and Todd Andrlik.

See the full list here.

Of course, to me the list is a great way to find new blogs and people that are putting out some effort and great ideas.

Came across a few old/new logo comparisons, here and here. Not sure why, but I always enjoy reading through those type of evaluation/comparisons. I agree with many of the conclusions posted… Sometimes you have to wonder about the meetings where some of the changes were discussed and approved.

A logo/identity change is a HUGE thing for a company, at least it should be considered with some gravity and broad input. Some of these seem to be changed for the sake of change, just to show that the team did something this quarter. Some really kill parts of their brand that were VERY successful and a core part of their differientiation.

I love the discussion/speculation about what Microsoft’s Silverlight logo is here, scan for what people thing the blue “Blobby Ball of Nebulousness™” thing looks like… it’s hilarious.

Have you been a part of a less-than-considered logo/identity change? What happened?

I just found Shoutlet.com, a company that looks like they have packaged “web 2.o” and sell it as a package. Now, many of my friends chuckle at that concept, (I did too) but it is an interesting way to manage perception.

Senior company management see the buzz around web 2.o and say “we should be doing that” regardless of it’s real value to the company. Nevermnding that fact, if you want to sell your services, giving executives an easy way to check that off their list is a good idea. You could say the same thing about “branding” really… most non-specialists can’t define in past “the logo” but know they need someone that can talk about it for an hour.
What is Shoutlet?
Shoutlet is the world’s first Web 2.0 marketing tool built for companies to use the latest social media technology to communicate to their core audience.

What is a shout?
A “shout” is a Podcast, Email (HTML or Text), RSS Feed, or Mobile Phone Text Message (SMS). Shouts can be created, distributed, and tracked using Shoutlet’s online interface.

I look forward to seeing how well this company does…

Some good data from MediaPost on the awareness and use of blogs, RSS, message boards and other community activity. Good news for consumers and, of course, those of us who help with social media and community strategy!

How familiar are the Inc. 500 with various social media?

42% are familiar with social networking.
38% are familiar with message boards.
36% are familiar with blogging.

Finally, 66% of those surveyed said social media was either “very important” or “somewhat important” to their marketing strategy.

Additionally, a survey from KnowledgeStorm shows that more than 80% of business and IT professionals worldwide read blogs.

Other key findings:

53% of respondents say blogs impact their work-related purchases.
53% of respondents read blogs weekly for business information.
57% of respondents read blogs weekly for tech information.
59% of respondents are “somewhat” to “very” familiar with RSS feeds.
31% of respondents subscribe to RSS feeds.

Of course they also make the KEY point that I talk about all the time… “The ultimate goal of SMM is to establish a voice and two-way communication, turning marketing into a soft sell, rather than a hard one.” Righto!

Is your company working to contribute to the conversations your customers are already having about you?

From Alan Thys on the FutureLab.net blog comes a great slideshare of the “new media” world. By “new media” he doesn’t mean the new technologies, but new conversational pathways and changes in how marketing and business strategy isn’t yet aligned with humans.

Two of my favorite slides are:

and

and here is the full presentation:

Via Todd And.

When I’m about to meet someone for a client meeting, interview or other business meeting, I usually do a little homework by checking their LinkedIn profile or Googling them. I just look for commonality in people we know, companies or industries we may have worked for, etc. It often makes for a richer conversation…

But Scott Karp goes into some interesting stories of people obsessed with controlling the results of Google searches on their name.

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I’ve got a good amount of competition on “Charlie Nichols” at Google, but I take three of the top 10 results on the first page of results. This blog’s main page, my LinkedIn Profile and some Boxes and Arrows comments I’ve made.

I also am on a smattering of other results pages, but there are links to other Charlie’s… including an article announcing my death, (won’t my wife be surprised?!), a movie/TV director’s profiles, a musician and a Star Trek character.

I just hope that people who Google me realize I’m still alive, blogging and can probably help with their online customer experience… but not their warp core. I’ve given that up.

You may have heard of the anonymous video of Apple’s old “1984″ ad that was edited into an anti-Clinton and pro-Obama clip. The creator has come out and is speaking about the powershift in politics to ordinary people that can create and share media.

Political analysts alternatively hailed or criticized it as a turning point in the development of the unregulated world of guerrilla political marketing after it recorded nearly 1.5 million views.

“There are thousands of other people who could have made this ad, and I guarantee that more ads like it — by people of all political persuasions — will follow. This shows that the future of American politics rests in the hands of ordinary citizens,” de Vellis wrote, adding: “This ad was not the first citizen ad, and it will not be the last. The game has changed.”

The same “decentralization” of media is true with business… product review sites, ratings, blogs, podcasts and videos, all built by customers can be a huge positive or negative impact on your brand and sales. Hundreds of thousands of customers and prospects can see negative or positive messages about your service, product quality and support. For most, (like Clinton) this shift is going to be painful before it’s positive.

I think it deserves a renewed focus on your customer experience. Are you ready for a user-generated video about your product or service?