MURKETING

Authors, brands, audiences, thank-yous

I think it’s safe to say that the highlight of my 20-minute appearance at SXSW Interactive on Saturday was the part where I wasn’t talking: Specifically, the questions from some audience members at the end, and conversations with others afterward.

In particular I’m still pondering a question I don’t think I managed to answer very well, from a young woman who wondered what I thought about — paraphrasing here of course — how the whole “personal brand” phenomenon has affected writing & journalism. This is a case where I think I have trouble saying anything definitive, not because I haven’t thought about it before, but rather because I think about it a lot.

I mean, let’s face it, the whole point of my being there was to promote not just a book but, in effect, myself. To say that I’m ambivalent about this process would be a wild understatement. I definitely think that many successful authors become brands (or “personalities”) of a sort, and possibly even that becoming something like a brand is almost required at this point; on the other hand, I cling to the idea that this doesn’t necessarily mean that the actual work completely takes a back seat to promotion.

I actually wanted to ask my questioner what she thought, but couldn’t start a conversation up from the stage, and didn’t have a chance to when I was off.

Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to those who turned up and said hello and asked interesting questions and said interesting things.

Actually, speaking of those who turned up…

Audience: SXSW Interactive / R. Walker.

This audience pic might be the first in a series, we’ll see. A few months ago, E brought to my attention a series by photographer Tim Davis called My Audience. I loved it — and immediately wanted to steal the idea!

To make my ripoff seem at least vaguely different — or possibly even as an homage — I thought I’d add the element of asking audience members to obscure their faces. That way I will ideally end up with a collection of images of audiences who appear to have something to hide, which I find amusing. Also: no release forms necessary.

(This may not turn out to be the first in a series, because I’m dropping a line to Davis and giving him the opportunity to say: Knock it off. Which he certainly would have the right to do.)

Anyway I was pretty pleased that everybody played along. So: thanks again.

Completely self-serving post regarding Consumed readers

Anybody in a position of power at the NYT ever look at this site? If so, I invite such persons to please take at face value the following from Edelman’s blog:

I had lunch today with Josh Spear and Aaron Dignan of Undercurrent, a digital consulting firm advising Fortune 500 companies on Generation Y. I learned that on a Sunday morning, Gen Yers are inclined to sit on their beds checking out news on a wireless basis, from the Drudge Report to Treehugger.com to Gawker to Seth Godin. The Sunday NY Times is also on their list for the Sunday magazine, for Rob Walker’s Consumed column, but also to check out Walker’s blog on NY Times.com….

That’s right! Gen Y is buying the Sunday Times specifically to read my column! Okay, maybe it’s not true — but can you prove it’s not true? (And hey Josh Spear, I now forgive you for never publishing that “wish list” thing you asked me for over the holidays.)

I’ve added a comment (not yet approved, so it’s not there as I type this) to the Edelman post clarifying that Murketing.com actually cannot be found on the Times site. Other Times Magazine contributors such as Virginia Heffernan and the Freakonomics team do blog on the Times site, but not me.

I can instead be found here, at Murketing.com. But I assume you knew that.

Now you can be a “fan” of Consumed on Facebook. Why? And what next?

I’m not exactly a power-user of Facebook. I have an account, and I have a little more than 100 “friends” there, and I do check the news feed once a day or so. But I’m not very active.

Even so, when Facebook announced the feature where brands or whatever could set up a page for “fans,” I immediately thought: I’ll make one for Murketing! But every time I pondered it, I couldn’t quite figure out what the point would be — besides naked self-promotion, of course.

But last night, I abruptly created a page for Consumed, my Times Magazine column. Should you be into this sort of thing, you can now declare yourself a “fan” of the column. It’s here.

Beyond that the page is presently rather threadbare, since I knocked it together and alerted most of my Facebook friends to its existence in approximately three minutes. (So far about 50 have declared their fandom.) Yes, I realize it’s sort of stupid to create a Facebook page and then try to come up with an after-the-fact reason for it to exist.

And here’s my primary reason for this post: Now that I have this page, what might I do there? What would be interesting, useful, or valuable to readers? Any ideas?

My secondary reason for this post is to explain — in the interest of “transparency” — why I did this. If anyone’s interested, that’s after the jump. Read more

Surely there’s some way I can pretend to be self-deprecating about this

In what is easily the shocking development of the month, I learn via the comments to my last post that I’ve been nominated for something! How cool is that?

Specifically: The Blogger’s Choice award for best marketing blog! The Blogger’s Choice site had some kind of badge I could download to post here and “brag” about the nomination. It was ugly, so I took the screenshot above instead. But clearly I’m still bragging.

So far I have one vote, from the supernice person who nominated me. (Thanks again!)

Now, you might fairly ask: Is this really a marketing blog? I don’t know. Technically speaking, I’ve made it a point to call Murketing.com a “Web site” and not a “blog” (for reasons I’ll leave aside for now, but maybe explain later if anyone cares; just don’t make assumptions). And I think my subject matter is consumer culture, which marketing is only one part of. Finally, I have a feeling most “marketing blogs” give their readers, I don’t know, useful advice, and that sort of thing.

BUT … I’m so psyched to get nominated for anything at all that I strongly encourage you to vote for me anyway. I might even do so myself.

Another slap in the face

The Creative Class blog trashed last weekend’s issue of the NYT Magazine. But I escaped the beatdown — sort of:

The whole thing would be completely inane if it didn’t include Bob Walker’s piece on “the Donald’s” new project downtown.

Bad enough there’s no link to this site. But Bob Walker? That’s harsh.

A book that needs a title

Maybe you’re wondering why there’s so little fresh material on Murketing lately, or maybe you’re just relieved. Well, here’s the reason.

I’ve been working a book for a while, and now it’s finally done and will come out circa May 2008, from Random House.

The broad subject of the book can be summarized in the subtitle: “The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are.”

As subscribers to the Journal of Murketing newsletter know, the title is still under discussion. (I’d been calling the book “I’m With The Brand,” but that’s been basically nixed.)

In the newsletter’s most recent installment I asked for feedback about four titles now under consideration. Thanks to the generosity of Random House (and some surprisingly good guesswork on my part as to how much feedback I’d get), almost all of the newsletter readers who weighed in will get an advance galley of the book next year.

Sadly I have no such incentive to offer you here — although maybe there will be other giveaways in the future, we’ll see — but I would still be very curious to hear any reactions you may have to the four titles being considered:

In all cases the subtitle, again, will likely be “The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are.” If you have opinions, suggestions, etc., please leave them in the comments. I truly value your feedback on this.

* * PLEASE NOTE: Do not email me about this. I beg you, put your comments below! Be anonymous if you want! But I’ve already given the email feedback to the publishers, so put your thoughts here where they can see them if they want. Thanks!

Back to more posting very soon.

More thanks

The above items are scores resulting from my little Where Were You? zine. Kate Bingaman-Burt won a free copy in a Murketing (Journal of) email newsletter giveaway thing, but generously reciprocated anyway, with two issues of her zine, What Did You Buy Today?

Not only that: Reader Russell F. of Analogue Books in Edinburgh/UK, despite having forked over the full $1+$1 shipping, kindly sent me a copy of Sheds, by Nigel Peake. It’s a lovely 32-page book of his drawings. (Here is Peake’s site.)

Pretty good! I figured the least I could do was thank these fine people in a public, and linky, way. Thanks!

Sadly, the 2006 edition of Where Were You? is sold out, but partly in light of the above, I’m pretty sure there will be a 2007 edition. If you want to know when it’s available, sign up here.

Via: Dada Mail

Thank you…

I am flattered to have been asked some interesting questions by some very clever people lately.

Shawn Liu, of Hear, Hear, published this Q&A recently. It was a lot of fun, and there’s a picture of my dog. Hear, Hear publishes many good interviews, and I’d particularly recommend this one with Draplin Design Co. Thanks, Shawn.

Alissa Walker, writer for Unbeige and many design publications, interviewed me right here in Savannah, with a fancy digital recorder, for Core77’s podcast. We were sitting outside, and the ambient noise is almost as entertaining as Alissa’s questions. Thanks, Alissa.

Mocketing, Murketing, Fauxhemians, Phads, and another example of my hypocrisy

As much as I love to make fun of people for making up phony words and phrases, that’s how much I love to make up phony words and phrases.

My great triumph to date in this area, in terms of recognition, is fauxhemian, recognized by Wordspy, and used as a song title by Sonic Youth. [ “Fauxhemians,” Sonic Youth, currently the theme song of the Murketing Journal e-newsletter.]

Now, today, my April 2006 use of “mocketing” (as a bit of a throwaway in a Consumed column) has been recognized by the Double-Tonged Dictionary. Imagine how proud I am. Imagine!

And yet, it’s all bittersweet.

One of my favorite coinages, “phad,” has never been endorsed by any controlling linguistic authority.

And, somewhat incredibly, neither has “murketing,” which is not only a much better word than mocketing, but also easily the most widely cited word I’ve ever made up. And yet, no Wordspy entry, or entry anywhere else.

What’s up with that?

‘Where Were You?’

Now available, my first zine since the “Letters From New Orleans” ones (which of course later became an actual book).

SFN Products: 008: Where Were You? (2006)

“Where Were You?” has nothing whatsoever to do with marketing, consumer culture, advertising, design, or anything else I write about on this site. But this is, after all, my site.

In a giveaway promotion for Journal of Murketing email subscribers a few moments ago, the three available “promo” copies were snapped up in less than 30 seconds! Doesn’t that make you want one? Even if one of the recipients admitted that he assumed any givewaway at all would go fast and replied before he even know what he was getting a free copy of? Well, doesn’t it?

It’s only a dollar, plus another dollar shipping, so that’s practically free anyway.

“Where Were You?” is a 44-page booklet, priced at $1, plus $1 shipping.* It’s an “edition” of 30 copies only. And what is it?

No longer available!

Or at least, not here. The last couple of copies will be sold only through www.robwalker.net. Click on “Spring 07” if you go there.

It’s only Tuesday

At least it is where I am. Kinda wish I was someplace else.

The reviews are in!

Now that the new year has arrived, time to check the reaction to my previously noted Jersey City calendar.

The critics spoke at the JC List discussion group, where I was stunned to see the calendar mentioned. Reviews ranged from “those pictures suck” and “this guy needs photography lessons” to “perfect … PS 1 quality work.”

Big ups to the person who actually brought up the calendar on JC List, and actually got the point (which certainly was not that these are good, sellable photographs). It’s so rare that that happens. Thank you ShopMan, whoever you are.
And what does Mr. Market have to say about the project? Number of calendars sold to people other than me: Zero!

All in all, another project that totally lived up to expectations.

JC

A number of people passed along to me the New York Magazine story about Jersey City, presumably because we moved away from Jersey City about two months ago after living there for about three years. It’s always nice not to get caught living some place that’s the subject of a “new cool place article,” but otherwise I don’t really have much to say about the story, or not here anyway.

However, it did occur to me that I might be able to take advantage of Jersey City’s, uh, trendiness. It just so happens that in the months leading up to our move, I started taking snapshots of the neighbhorhood, collecting images that I thought would make an amusing calendar — amusing to me and to E, anyway. Certainly my vision of Jersey City does not coincide with, say, the picture above, from that New York article. I have an affection for JC, but let’s just say my affection could be described as somewhat idiosyncratic, and not at all related to the degree to which it might have some stores or restaurants that are sorta kinda like things in the West Village.

I lazily had my calendar “produced” by CafePress, and it arrived in the mail a couple of weeks ago. I’m quite pleased to have this item that will remind me of where we used to live, as we go about living somewhere very different. Of course I don’t seriously think anybody else would ever want to buy it, any more than I expected any of our many delightful NYC friends to get on a PATH train. (Some of them did, but I never expected them to.) But given that interest in JC may be at all-time high, I thought I’d move it over into the “for sale” part of Cafe Press anyway. Of course you can also look at the pictures for free — and I’m guessing that for most people, that will be more than enough.

Someplace else

We’re going to be sort of busy for a few days, or maybe a week. This site is likely to be neglected during some, or all, of that time. Just so you know.

Less than a month to go…

Don’t forget to participate. Here’s something to read, or buy. Or ignore.