The information superhighway is the conduit through which the world operates these days. Since the invention of the computer, we have incorporated technology more and more into the daily operations of our businesses, our education, and now the very fabric of that which makes us human: our social relationships. The rise of Facebook as the titan of social media in the digital world was swift and powerful. So much so that in the 7 years (yes, the Facebook website was launched only 7 years ago from a Harvard dorm room,) it has gained 600,000,000 users, averages 138.9 million unique monthly visitors as estimated by Quantcast, and according to Social Media Today in April 2010, an estimated 41.6% of the United States population has a Facebook account. So what is left to do for the company that was started by a college student and within 6 years became the 3^rd largest Internet-based company in the U.S.? Read more…

There is an experiential form of relativity at work when one travels. It is observable not only in the scientific sense of our perception of time and space, but also in a cultural sense, and as a function of that, in the sense of marketing. It has been said that all human history since the agricultural revolution could be written as a history of marketing, and in many ways I think this is true. Almost every organization of human effort since that age has been aimed at the production, distribution, or acquisition of goods and services, and while we have certainly come a long way since the days of simple bartering, the essence of this exchange is still the same. The producers seek to create better products with greater efficiency, the distributors seek to facilitate the delivery of those products to market in the most profitable manner they can devise, and the consumers seek to get the best products at the best prices with as little effort as possible required from their part of the deal. The way humanity has performed these tasks throughout the ages has changed in a wide range of superficial ways, but for the most part, I think the market has taken little notice. It requires a sudden contrast to bring the necessary focus shift to view. When this happens though, it can be a revealing and instructive experience to those of us whose business it is to think about such things. Read more…