Strands of Genius: Rethinking What We're Selling, Why Voice Notes Are The Best, Why Is Amazon Making Itself Worse?
plus: beeeeeeeees!
WRITING FROM | Beersheba Springs, TN
WORKING ON | finishing talks for a client summit in Palm Springs
LOOKING AHEAD
April 3-9 | Beersheba Springs, TN
April 9-11 | Dallas, TX
April 11-26 | Beersheba Springs, TN
April 26-28 | Palm Springs, CA
April 28-May 5 | Los Angeles, CA
May 5- June 9 | Seattle, WA
:: WHAT’S NEW & WEEKLY GRATITUDE ::
Last week was incredibly exciting, y’all. I got to participate in a honeybee relocation!!! I want to tell you all about it. But we also have friends visiting us, so you’ll have to wait until next week. (Or scroll down for a link to my Instagram highlights and get a sneak peek of what went down!)
We also had our first ever pickle ball game, in honor of our friend Jason’s birthday. (HBD, Jace!) It was a delight, and now we understand why everyone is so into this game!
Sending you warm wishes for the week ahead!
This week, we’re especially thankful for:
Phil, our bee rescuer who was an absolute dream, warm weather, tennis courts, friend hikes, new nicknames, the collaborative game Pandemic, Mario Party, YamSlam, back porch conversations, Rachel&Mike, Scott&Ivan, Alex&Collin, Marissa, Jason&Nicole, Emmie&Chase&Bones, marmite sausage cheddar rolls, & YOU.
:: THE LINKS ::
IT’S TIME TO RETHINK WHAT WE’RE SELLING
It’s not just philosophers trying to understand ‘the good life’ — but all of us advertisers as well. As Lisa Merrick-Lawless and Ally Kingston point out, “As architects of desire, the advertising industry shapes our cultural understanding of a life worth wanting. Every time we step on a bus or open a social media app, the invisible hand of our industry is there to build demand for new products and services that might make life better. And with up to 10,000 ads floating into our consciousness every day, how can we resist?” But what happens when the planet we live on can’t keep up with the production required for Wall Street’s endless growth? Merrick-Lawless and Kingston continue with a plea to create a new Vision of the good life: “As advertisers, it’s our gift, and our responsibility, to craft a new story about what a good life looks like. One that can correspond with the desire for connectedness people feel deep down, instead of counteracting it. And one that can live in alignment with our living systems, instead of depleting them.” (The Drum)
ALSO RELATED: WHAT IF CLIMATE CHANGE MEANT NOT DOOM — BUT ABUNDANCE?
WHY VOICE NOTES ARE THE BEST
Ok fine, the article is actually titled “Why all your friends are sending you voice notes’ but since I’m in the business of selling ideas, I took liberty to adjust their headline. Also because: hi, it’s me. I’m the self-described Queen of Voice Notes. I’m not great with brevity, I have lots to say, and nuance is important! On top of all that, I strongly dislike phone calls. They’re interruptive and assumptive but voice notes let you have an asynchronous voice conversation. You get the benefits of a phone call, without having to actually interrupt someone’s day or schedule a phone call. Shirin Ghaffary dives into the science of voice notes, why they’re an international equalizer, and likely here to stay. (Vox)
WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE AMAZON IS MAKING ITSELF WORSE
Navigating Amazon these days is just… an unfortunate experience for all of us. It’s clunky and ugly and the filters don’t work as well as they should. The reviews are all fake, or at least 42% of the reviews are fake, and that number jumps to 62% if you’re looking just within the electronics category. “Let’s say you’re a regular Amazon shopper in need of a spatula. You might start your journey by typing the word “spatula” into the search box with a qualifier or two (“silicone,” “fish,” “magenta”). In response, Amazon will produce a very large list presented in a large paginated grid or, on a phone, a bottomless scroll. You have, it is implied, thousands of options within immediate reach; Amazon presents them to you in a particular but mostly unexplained order. (Of the 81 clickable, buyable products on my first page of search results for “spatula” — product listings, banners, and recommendation modules — 29, or more than a third, were some form of ad.)
Many products will be described in SEO-ese: “Silicone Spatula Turner, VOVOLY 3-Pack Spatula Set for Nonstick Cookware, BPA Free Rubber Spatulas, Heat Resistant Kitchen Utensil, No Scratch or Melting, Ideal for Egg, Cookie, Crepe, Burger, Pancake.” Most, maybe all, will be eligible for Prime.” It sounds like a shit experience, but as John Herrman writes, what if it’s exactly what Amazon has planned? Ugh. But after reading this article, I can’t help but think it’s true. (Intelligencer)
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:: BEEEEEEEEEEES! ::
This is me, in a bee suit, carrying a bag with hundreds of honey bees. How did we get here you might ask?!
I had planned to tell you all about it today, but instead I’m spending time with some friends who are visiting from Atlanta. So stay tuned for next week’s edition — or head on over to my Instagram highlights and for a sneak peek of how the whole thing went down.
If we can ever be of help to you, even outside of a formal engagement, please don’t hesitate to let us know.
rockON,
faris & rosie & ashley | your friends over at geniussteals.co
@faris is always tweeting
@rosieyakob hangs out on instagram
@ashley also writes for deaf, tattooed & employed
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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.
Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based in Tennessee where our company is registered, our admin extraordinaire is based in Playa del Carmen, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.
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