A Wider Net

Update - Webcast went swimmingly. I will update this when the archive is posted. Thanks to all that participated!

Our latest webcast:

Crunching the Numbers: Maximizing Marketing Value During a Downturn

From the registration page:

At the beginning of 2008, it became apparent that a recession was coming our way. In the face of financially troubling times, companies tend to scale back on major marketing efforts to try to save some money. The net result is that these companies usually end up in worse financial shape.

During times of economic stress is the worst time to scale back on your marketing efforts. In fact, a downturn gives companies a golden opportunity to develop deeper relationships with their customers and partners through relationship marketing.

Tune in on September 30, 2008 to hear this exciting panel discussion featuring industry experts.

You will learn:

How to build communities and reach people through activities like webcasts and social media.
How B2B marketers can do more with less and be more efficient at turning marketing investments into revenue.
How to plan, implement and measure word of mouth campaigns.
How face-to-face events are more important than ever.

Link: http://www.cramereventmedia.com/webcastseries/

By now you may know I’m a big fan of surface computing, multi-touch interfaces, and specifically, Microsoft Surface. Below is a video of Surface being used on MSNBC to map out election coverage.

As much as I love Surface, this doesn’t look like a good use of the technology. CNN has a multi-touch wall that is better suited for live television than the coffee-table format of Surface. With Surface, the camera has to constantly switch from a front to an overhead shot, which seems awkward. They use Surface’s unique object recognition to change the content on the display to correspond with labeled tiles placed on the surface by the host. This is cool and interesting, but seeing that interaction doesn’t help us as viewers.

See for yourself. I still believe Surface is an outstanding product for retail, exhibits, and corporate demo environments. But this seems a little bit of a force-feed by Microsoft.

Found on Engadget.