Archive for November, 2007
Facebook going Ads?
I have been reading a lot of blog posts recently, about the controversial launch of an advertising platform on Facebook. One of those posts was commented by a man who, very wisely, was explaining that people don’t want to be bothered by advertising anymore and will eventually find ways to get rid of it. We zap during TV commercials, or turn off the volume. We don’t look at printed ads in our favourite magazines.
And I thought this is a very important point, which inspired me a comment that I am reposting here.
Advertising as we have known it is less and less effective and sooner or later, it will not be worth the price companies are paying for them, because us consumers find ways to avoid them.
I work in marketing. I understand what companies see in Facebook, they think that if, instead of randomly advertising to people who do not care about their products, they are going to be more sucessfull because they will be targeting better. Like pet food companies won’t talk to me anymore because I have no pet, and make-up companies will talk to me because I am interested in the subject.
Except it is not that simple: there are times when I am open to receiving that kind of information, and times where I want to be left alone with my friends, like on Facebook. Also there are companies I don’t want to hear about, whatever new fancy make-up product they have.
That is why I love Seth Godin”s theory about permission marketing so much. The message to the industry is: stop bothering people and interrupting their life again and again, you’re just upsetting them, they don’t want to hear you. Instead, offer intersting product that people will want to hear about (which is a totally different starting point!) and will want to talk about with their friends, the buzz will do the advertising work without disturbing your potential consumers. And everybody will be happy.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 3 so far )What do we get paid for?
Yesterday I was at a birthday party given for one of my best girlfriends. And I was chatting with one of the other girls’ husband about work.
The guy is a consultant in the IT field, and he was telling me that the company encourages them to work from home and telecommute. But then on the days they do that, they have a small pay-cut, because they enjoy a higher quality of life as they can stay home.
Very interesting. I always thought we were paid for:
1/ the time we spend working for our company
2/ the skills we have that the company needs to use
Acting this way, this company says “if working for us is not hard and uncomfortable, then it is worth less money”.
I think this is unacceptable.
What do you think?
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 1 so far )I won a cool book :-)
A while ago I came across Michelle Goodman’s blog, The Anti 9-to-5 Guide. This is also the title of a book she wrote, which aim is to help women figure out what to do with their careers, especially if they want to “think outside the cube”. And God knows I want to.
In one of her blog posts, she asked for readers to tell her about their worst meeting ever, which I did. This is how I won her book. Yeah, poor me was the uncontested winner.
I received this book on Friday and am very excited about it. I need some time to figure out a few things before I tell you about it, but I think this might be the book I needed to make a move towards a new career.
In the meantime, you can go there and read about my worst meeting ever: unfortunately this is no fiction!
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 1 so far )Not that ambitious.
Six months ago, I started a new job. I had been laid off at the end of March but within 5 weeks, had found another permanent job that matched my requirements: interesting content, short commute (30 minutes maximum), reasonable working hours, good salary and benefits.
Now last week, my boss and I had a small meeting during wich he told me that management was very happy about my work and truly believed I could do even more for the company. Which is why they would like me to go back to evening school and get a master degree – for which the company would be paying.
Everyboyd I’ve been talking to about this is soooo excited – except I am not. Not at all.
Five years ago I would have killed for such an apportunity, because I was then a youg executive assistant frustrated with the lack of responsibilities and dying to prove what she was worth. But then I got occasions to show what I was capable of, and now I think I am at the right level on the corporate ladder, and I don’t need to prove anything. What I want now, is my job to be done at 5PM so I can leave the office and start living my life.
Because, see, I consider my job primarily as a way for paying my bills. I enjoy that there is some intellectual challenge involved but honestly, if I won the lottery, I wouldn’t go to work anymore. For me real life starts after 5PM, when I have time for seeing my friends or family, for reading and writing, and for doing some copywriting gigs in the hope that I can be my own boss and make a living of my writing one day.
I don’t dream about my boss position, because that would mean working longer hours and travelling – which I don’t want to do at all. And my resume as it is now, is perfect for the kind of job that I have and want to keep.
So, while I am giving this master’s proposition a second and even a third thought, I can’t help but wandering: why should I give up all of my free time during one year to get a degree I don’t need, that would qualify me for positions I don’t want?
Plus, as there is always a counterpart, I’d have to sign an agreement about paying back for those very expensive studies if I leave the company within 2 years – and I hate to be tied by money.
And on the other hand, how am I going to explain this to my bosses?
Because I know where this all comes from: I am young, I am single and I am child-free: this has to mean I am ambitious and willing to dedicate myself to my career. As explained in today’s article on The Anti 9-to-5 Guide blog, this is the number one myth about single women at work: they have nothing else important in their lives, no important people, no important pursuits.
Maybe it is time for companies to realise that, single or not, man or woman, not all of us are ambitious about their careers, because – I swear – there are other important things in life.
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