If it's been said already...

...it may still merit saying!

So much has been said about doing email introductions properly ... and so much of it feels like common sense. So the only amazing thing is that people continue to do it so badly. And perhaps one of the worst parts of this phenomena is that the people making the poorly-formed requests tend to blame the person asked for not responding, when the responsibility really falls on them to make the entire process effective.

How can we eliminate this ill will and save lots of people time? It's hard to top these posts by the prolific VC, Mark Suster...so I'll just underscore some of these points with my own twist in the hopes that this in some small way reduces some frustration and wasted time for all in the future.

(1) Make it Forwardable: This is my ongoing mantra and listed as Suster's #4 here. I've lost count of how many long email threads I have with friends or contacts sussing out how well I know someone, how I suggest reaching out to them, etc, only to end in, "Thanks!" The expectation is then for me to package up all the thinking (and whatever attachments) were embedded in the previous emails to create a version that is digestable by the prospective intro. Making me realize my friend etc. is absolutely clueless or zero in the empathic category.

(2) Short Does Not Equal Focused: Point #1 above does presuppose that the person packaging up the request understands what is useful for someone getting the intro.  Which is why it's helpful to also read the "Short" and "Focused" top 2 points in Suster's post.

But don't be tempted to think "short" necessarily translates into "focused." Today I got a hugely general intro from someone I know saying I "should meet" this other person because they are doing something vaguely pertaining to what I'm currently working on. Worse, the reply from the person being introduced only mentioned wanting to "network" to raise money. No elaboration on or links to what his project is and even worse: no mention of why I specifically am someone he wants to meet. Does he know anything about me, or can he identify whetherwe have something in common, etc. that would make "networking" a truly valuable endeavor?

(3) Do The Work. In the examples above, a common theme is that it's on me to either package things up or devise a useful connecting point. Why me? If you are asking for an intro, you should have done your research on me (or whoever you want me to introduce you to), and laid out some specifics on exactly why an introduction would be valuable. As in, make it clear on what your ask is and what tangible next step you propose: Coffee? Meeting at an event? A brief answer to a question or two?

However, if your goal is to simply want to "get connected" and "network," I encourage you to rethink your definition of networking in an era where time is becoming one of the rarest commodities.

This Koolaid is Tasty

Last month I had the privilege of joining WebFWD, the new accelerator from Mozilla. When I first learned of the opportunity, Mozilla was to me one thing: "makers of Firefox."

Boy did I have a lot to learn (and still do). At this point, while my brain is still somewhat fresh with the "business" (as in, non-open source) way of thinking, I've identified some key areas that many businesses seek to excel at...and what Mozilla has been building on for years already:

Engagement
Coming from the non-open source side of business, I've been involved in a lot of efforts focused on both employee and customer engagement. In technology, both are key: creating and transferring knowledge require a high degree of information sharing and engagement, both among the developers and the consumers of the software.

At Schwab, we developed a number of programs to engage our IT employees: contests, rewards, events, newsletters, feedback loops, "fun budgets" - any trick short of bribery our HR was ok with, we did it. We monitored, we measured the results, we reported back to senior management.

Flash to the world of Open Source...where, in shock, I learn things like:

• More than 1,000 volunteers contribute code to Firefox, accounting for roughly 40% of its code. Yes, volunteers: as in, voluntarily.
• 400,000 people contribute to Mozilla through its project tracking system Bugzilla

So um yes, these are volunteers, people. Unlike the highly-paid IT professionals we had to cajole with "fun budgets," these people willingly give of their time and their talents. There's no better engagement than that which is not engineered. It's internalized. It sticks.

Social Enterprise
When I was at Haas, the Global Social Venture competition was just starting and the "triple bottom line" was emerging as a paradigm for businesses to deliver value on social as well as commercial fronts. This is becoming pretty pervasive today, thanks in part to social media adding an unprecedented level of transparency to consumer decision making, allowing them to select - and switch - vendors using simple scorecards, and spread the word prolifically. Social good is a huge brand asset

When I encountered this huge phenomenon of Open Source volunteerism, I had to know ...why? Why would these talented professionals give their long-developed skills over for free to an open project? I'm learning that, while there are many reasons, the primary ones are the desire of dedicated people wishing to make things better: for themselves through better tools that solve their problems, and for others through increased competition. This results in a different kind of economy: one predicated less on transacting money for labor, and more on exchanging goodwill and knowledge to improve things. It's allowed social enterprise to extend beyond fair labor practices and health products and into the world of technology. It's very cool.
 
Community
If you've had even one baby toe dipped in the realm of social media over the past 5ish years (and really, who hasn't?), you'll know that "community" is a huge deal. It's the way brands and firms engage (that word again) with their customers. It's Facebook groups. It's Twitter followers. It's Google+ Circles. It's something else next week. But it's important, because it's a way for organizations to draw in and retain customers and influence.

It's so important that brands paid big bucks to firms like the company I consulted with prior to joining Mozilla to create programs to get people to simply click "Like" on Facebook. 

Then I join Mozilla where I learn things like:

• SUMO, Mozilla’s community-powered support site, helps an average of 10,000 Firefox users per week.
• Students from more than 600 institutions in 57 countries spread Firefox as Mozilla Campus Representatives

This is community of the best kind: galvanized around a mission that extends beyond their individual needs, and not dependent on any one person or leader and as such, is highly sustainable and durable.

Globalization
At Schwab we had another initiative: decentralize its workforce (which at the time was concentrated in San Francisco which was perceived as cost-prohibitive), and develop best practices and infrastructure to support this. Remote working policies and technology had to be developed, deployed and broadly adopted. It posed a fundamental shift in how people worked together. Schwab of course is not alone in this endeavor.

At Mozilla, the organization is already global at its core. A few data points that underscore this nicely:

• Firefox is available in more than 75 languages (covering more than 97% of the world’s online population)
• Firefox is used in every country in the world
• Almost every non-English version of Firefox is localized by community volunteers
• More than 50% of global Firefox users use non-English versions 

 ...and you can read the Mozilla Manifesto in 33 languages. But what really drove this home for me was the crazy corners of the earth I hear Mozillians operate from (most recent being Hanoi). Often in their own homes, leveraging the video and real-time conferencing technologies used by volunteers, staffers and community members alike. What many corporations are trying to build are merely the stuff daily Mozilla life is made of, as well as that of many other open source projects (check out GitHub, which supports over 1 million people sharing code around the world).

 

Small wonder, then, that Mozilla Chair Mitchell Baker recently encouraged Mozillians confronting an increasingly competitive browser market (thanks largely to Mozilla itself) to "be more Mozilla then ever." Whether they know it or not, it's what most companies want, too.

Must I?

When I was about 4, I received a gift from a generous relative. Upon opening it, I was cajoled to respond. Complying, I stared directly into her eager, inquiring face and flatly declared:

"I don't like it."

...and to this day, her crestfallen response is indelibly marked in my memory.

But as adults, we've developed the super-ego to ensure we adhere to social mores. As such, we often find ourselves in situations where we are forced to effuse.

Two common settings for this cruelty include:

1) Admiring friends' offspring. When this pertains to homo sapiens, I can buy in. People warrant respect. And infants all the more: I can totally get behind the awe of procreation.

However, my line is crossed when I am obliged to ooh and aah over a canine or feline. How much excitement can one be expected muster over a yelping, unhygienic slobbering animal unable to dialogue? Over what period of time is such feigned enthusiasm sustainable? Inhumane expectations.

2) Staff meetings. These are undoubtedly the most egregious examples of enforced enthusiasm*; particularly when they are kicked off by asking all participants to share with the group just what it is they love -- the most -- about Company A. The ensuing applause most often invariably owes to the fact that the employee has finished, rather than reflecting what s/he has actually shared.

But, being the solutions-oriented businessperson I am, I felt it was important end on a positive and constructive note:

Ways To Avoid Coercive Engagement (drawing off of real-life experience)

• Never use campy parables ... unless good. Really good.
• Don't regift the giveaways. If you must, do not disclose.
• Contain all meetings to 1.5 hours - max. If you have the choice of longer meeting with food, or shorter meeting without food, go without food.
• Make sure your schwag is dogfood you would eat, too.

* You can further reference the gem by Mike Judge at the bottom of this post for a lucid depiction of why this is just so wrong.

The usury thing

Usury...banks....usury....banks. I was bitterly reminded of this sad association when I logged into my B of A account last week to see I was fined $35 for running a $4 in deficit when I preempted my automatic deposit by 1 day.

I was reminded of this - twice - by U.S. mail.

Kudos, then, to the SF Public Library which blew up any stereotype of governmental rigidity when, upon receiving my DVD 1 week late (the case of which I'd returned on time but unfortunately without the actual DVD which was securely in my player at home), simply proferred a benign shoulder shrug and made no attempt to fine.

Government or bank? I'm leaning left.

I'm a far happier camper being held hostage by the gvt than by B of A

Some people are like insurance companies

So astoudingly egregious, you keep groping for an alternative explanation.

The jury will have to decide whether...the insurer accepted the application in bad faith, conducted a secret investigation and continued to collect premiums until Hailey’s bills were high [and then rescinded the policy].

I'm finding despicable to be less endearing than I used to

Two steps forward....

And that would be which humans, being resourceful in exactly what way?

I was quite aware that the trip down from my mountaintop customer service experience today was inevitable...but it felt so soon....and the descent, so far...

I know it's possible to order prescriptions online...have them sent to you...the whole internet thing and all....I've done it. And yet today, I knew, in the deepest recesses of my profoundly intuitive self that I would have to - for some cosmic reason as yet unknown to me - make a live visit to the Kaiser Pharmacy for my first transaction.

Entering the pharmacological SuperStore (Costco meets Epcot) was in itself awe-inspiring: a wing for Member Services (that came later), a cafeteria, health kiosks, a bakery (I'm sure they're serving a preventative form of sugar) all left my head spinning. When I managed to find my way to the pharmacy, I was confronted with Grand Central Station-like billboards advertising whose prescriptions were ready (felt a bit un-HIPAA-ish to me but perhaps data transmitted in open-air is less regulated).

In any case, all went somewhat as hoped - prescription received by doc, filled, waiting - until the Moment of Truth came: payment.

CONEXIS, the administrator (= money gatherer) of the COBRA insurance coverage on behalf of my former employer, had no issue taking my $800+ in cash I paid to continue coverage and updating its website to say I was now in "covered" status.

But they missed a little detail: they didn't tell my insurance provider. Which, I learned to my astonishment, was no vagary but actually standard 'practice': the customer service rep admitted that his whole raison d'etre is fielding calls from people trying to fill their first prescription or make their first doctor's visit (you know, get health services), only to get denied service because....

...patients are supposed to manually tell the provider that CONEXIS says we're covered and...

I'm clinging to the assumption that the ".org" means that CONEXIS makes absolutely NOTHING on these transactions.

I believe you.

Forgiveness

Easter is just 'round the corner, so let's hear it for the virtues Jesus came to instill. Today: I hereby forgive AT&T!

Yes, in a turn as dramatic as Sally Field changing personalities, this beloved telecom bane of my existence has shown a radically different face and, as such, garnered my forgiveness.

So wha'happend? I had to pinch myself today when I, with trepidation, walked into the store where I first purchased my iPhone last summer (part 2 came later). I was hoping that the retail staff would be willing to deviate from any policy requiring proof of purchase and take subjective pity on the fact that my car charger wasn't working.

What then transpired was none other than awe-inducing: boom-ba-da-ding, the floorperson pulled up a record of my purchase within seconds, and the return was not only seamlessly executed, but even upgraded (or, as I like to say, Upgrayedd-ed) to a better model.

As long as "this" AT&T is talkin', I'm forgiving.

It's ba-ack...

Actually, attempts to pull me into the ponzi-scheme-o'-the-day haven't really subsided; I just chose to refrain from posting all of them that have poured in since I first posted on this lamentable practice in June '07...

But today's email forced my hand; I must vent...

To: (impersonal dist list here)

Hey there!
I would be remiss if I didn't let ya'll know about the special MonaVie has going through the end of March. They are waiving the normal $39 start up enrollment fee, so now you can buy MonaVie at wholesale prices. The beauty of this promo is that there is no purchase commitment, no hidden fees, just access to the lowest possible price on the product for one year! It has certainly kept me busier than usual. Good thing I'm drinking it to keep my energy levels up! Rock on acai berry!

So if you are interested, let me know and I can give you further info...just wanted to be sure I let everyone in on a good deal! No pressure....
Here's to your health!
Blessings,

My burning ontological question: does the fact that something is wholesale make it intrinsically better?

The rhetorical question is: will MonaVie's salesforce, in its need to stay amped to promote the beverage, be sufficient as a consumer base for the product? Let's lift a glass to derivative, self-referential economics!

"Don't assume"

I often reflect on these simple yet sage words from my college comrade John when I find myself judging someone's character prematurely.

That said, sometimes assumptions can work to our advantage.

Other times, they can go awry....

Now available: "If You Can't Lick 'Em...Lick 'Em" by Ted Nugent

Dear Amazon.com Customer,

We've noticed that customers who have purchased or rated Bob Seger - Greatest Hits by Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band have also purchased If You Can't Lick 'Em...Lick 'Em by Ted Nugent. For this reason, you might like to know that If You Can't Lick 'Em...Lick 'Em is now available.

...viva la direct marketing! And of course, the Motor City Madman.

It's a word thing

"Someone got access to [CheckFree's] account credentials and was able to long in," Wade said. "There was no breach in our system."

Maybe Wade thinks "access" is not a "breach" so long as it's done knowingly?

...or that "breach" only involves violence?

...or that "system" only involves software?

...or...?

I'm trying, Wade, but these clarifications aren't making me feel better.

Stu Sutcliffe...Pete Best...

...and HUBERT CHANG!

Stu and Pete were "5th Beatles"....and Hubert: the "3rd Googler"??? Be sure to watch the video - freaking hysterical!

Geeks marketing to geeks

Maybe it works?

I love press releases

“We are pleased that given our longstanding relationship, Warren Buffett, arguably the world’s most admired and successful investor, has decided to make such a significant investment in Goldman Sachs,” Mr. Blankfein said.... Mr. Buffett, also in the statement, called Goldman Sachs an exceptional institution.

The thing that makes Buffett so admirable is that he adheres to that timeless market adage:

• Buy low.



• Sell high.

Ergo, I don't doubt Buffett's statement for a second; in a market transaction just about anything can be exceptional depending on the price. I can also see why Blankfein used a word like "pleased" vs. an effusive word such as "exceptional."

Sometimes I actually encourage denial

Not only is it so much more alluring than reality....but I'm finding that in certain cases, it may yield positively for society!

1) "Sen. Barack Obama has widened his lead over Sen. John McCain, according to CNN's latest "poll of polls." - yeah, while this may not be the case in November, this is TRUE as of 9:18 a.m. EDT, Fri September 19, 2008 so I'm sucking the marrow out of it and snuggling it close as long as I can so I can be in my happy place if only for just a little while longer.

As promised, the following two cases of denial may actually yield some real, positive societal results:

2) “I’ve got to be honest with you,” Christopher Gruber, a vice president who oversees admissions at Davidson College, told me. “I’m not spending a ton of time navigating those student-driven sites. It’s too much to manage. My sense is that the traditional big players, like Princeton Review, are the major sources for online information too, in part because those are the names that parents still recognize.

Don't stop believin', Christopher. We won't go into the fact that parents aren't the only market segment, and they're certainly not the ...future...one...

3) "“SVG support is something that we have been evaluating for some time,” Microsoft said in a statement. “We recognize the demand for vector graphics from Web developers, and realize this is a high-priority demand.”

As Matt said...

“We recognize the demand for vector graphics from Web developers, and realize this is a high-priority demand…” but we just don’t care.

...and thank Someone for that: perhaps MSFT's resistance to creating usable products will, in fact, finally be met by justice, and Apple in fact wasn't so wrong to exclude IE in its MobileMe strategy???

Microsoft's IE market share drops again

September 3, 2008 (Computerworld) Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer lost nearly a full percentage point in market share during August, the browser's biggest drop in three months, a Web metrics firm said today.

IE's rivals -- Mozilla Corp.'s Firefox, Apple Inc.'s Safari and Opera Software ASA's Opera -- all extended their shares at IE's expense last month...

....IE's August drop was the second largest for the year, lower only than May's 1.1-percentage-point fall.

"I can't really explain what happened," admitted Vince Vizzaccaro, Net Applications' executive vice president of marketing. "Perhaps there was some relationship with the launch of IE8 Beta 2. If users are looking at IE8, maybe they're looking at other browsers at the same time, trying to decide which one to use."

Vince, I know you're a marketing guy and have to say that - and that's great! Don't stop believin' either!

Sometimes price just doesn't matter

Lends new meaning to the economic term "elasticity of demand"...

studliness is timeless

I think Chuck Schwab is just one of the biggest studs ever....from a business perspective.

Are we going to party like it's 1999?

A few weeks ago I posted a question on LinkedIn asking how the current Web 2.0 "bubble" is different than the first one. Many respondents feel the lessons learned 7ish years ago won't be repeated and took issue with me calling our current market activity a "bubble."

I won't argue....I'll simply instruct them to go* here and see if they still disagree!



* ok, maybe not "go" but you know what I mean

Ok, let's think about this some more...

Maybe I shouldn't be so harsh with my friend. I mean, with web 2.0-social networking-ubiquitous ad placement monetization-etc., and our concurrent poverty of attention and time, isn't every relationship and interaction becoming something to be "leveraged" and capitalized - in the truest sense of the word? If you click on my page or download my friend's song, me and my friend and many other middle-people can make money...and it's so scalable!

Sort of makes the Mary Kay's of yesteryear look tame (pink cars and all).

Who *are* my friends?

Or - maybe the nature of friendship is changing? A few days ago I had a girlfriend I hadn't heard from in nearly 5 years email me out of the blue...she's not a real emailer...and it was such a pleasant surprise that she just wanted to see how I was doing. Oh, yes, she did also want to "share" with me about a new business she is in and how exciting that is...

I admit, my response - "sounds great but - is it multi-level marketing?" - may not have been the most tactful one. I told her how tired I was to receive "check in" notes from my friends really wanting to sell me skin care or travel products....sure enough, it was the former behind her "let's get in touch" email. I explained I was beholden to another one of my 8? girlfriends selling that line she was starting...but would still love to hear from her. She said she'd try over the weekend. It's now 9:43pm Sunday (past midnight in her time zone) and I'm trying to stay positive.

Because it's really all so exciting!!

Hazards of agro-technology

From February 2005:

Miguel Altieri,  an agroecology expert from UC Berkeley,
has written some noteworthy pieces on the inappropriateness of applying
western/advanced agricultural approaches in developing countries, as
well as the inherently political and often ineffective nature of
agro-technology in any context:

We're losing 33 percent of our crops to pests before harvest, despite the fact that we are putting about 1 billion pounds of pesticides into the U.S. environment every year. That percentage is exactly the same as what was being lost in 1942 [before large-scale use of pesticides]. Exactly the same. Thus, the pesticide technology has failed. And the same actors that brought us the failed chemical-pesticide revolution are now bringing us what is going to be the failed biotechnology
revolution.

Full article


...and his latest book available from FoodFirst