Archives for 2012

Faded Old Photos

Papa Peters

This is a Shared Inspiration from Ken Peters.

People from all walks of life go to work each day, do the best they can, then go to sleep and start over again in the morning – all the while hoping that what they’re doing has meaning.

Finding that meaning isn’t always easy.

Through the years, the American dream has been recast in the die of celebrity.

Contrary to what television teaches, life isn?t a talent competition, and Warhol?s proverbial 15 minutes aren?t an entitlement.

Merit isn?t measured in notoriety or fame. Value comes from hard work, and integrity. Life takes effort ? effort that sometimes goes unnoticed.

On my bookshelf rests a relic that reminds me of this every day ? a battered and beaten carbide headlamp that once lit my grandfather?s way in the coal mines of Ohio. It represents a work ethic you don?t find much anymore.

For me, it?s a reminder that a life of meaning doesn?t require celebrity.

My grandfather never achieved fame. He never cured a disease or created a stirring work of art. His name never appeared in lights. He never solved great mysteries or made amazing discoveries. You won?t find his pithy quips quoted for posterity on Twitter.

In fact, his was one of those anonymous faces you might ponder in faded old photographs and wonder, ?Who was that guy??

Who ?That Guy? Was

My grandfather was born in 1913, to an Ohio family of modest means. He came of age during the Great Depression and the Dustbowl, in what author Timothy Egan dubbed ?the worst hard times.?

Not much is known about his early life. Part of his young adulthood was spent tramping the Midwest, working in the circus, and doing the kinds of odd jobs available to someone with only an eighth grade education. By 1937 he?d made his way back to Ohio, and into coal mining.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor he enlisted and shipped to the pacific with the U.S. Army 37TH Infantry Division.

There he saw action during campaigns at Bougainville, in the Solomon Islands, and Luzon, in the Philippines ? enduring brutal jungle warfare where the malaria and conditions were as deadly as the enemy. He participated in two amphibious assaults, was awarded the Bronze Star, and attained the rank of Staff Sergeant.

Upon his honorable discharge in 1945 he returned to mining, where he would spend the next 15 years working for the Hanna Coal Company of Ohio.

Why he resigned himself to a life of labor in the mines rather than seek greater opportunity through government programs for returning veterans can only be speculated. Perhaps the lingering pall of the Depression, and a limited education made the familiar seem secure for a man with a growing family.

Through those years he and my grandmother raised three children, including my mother. Eventually, the family moved to Michigan in 1960, where he worked in a machine shop until retirement in the early 1970?s.

An Ornery Man

By the time I was born they tell me he?d become an ornery old man. Downright mean, in fact.

Understandably, early poverty, war, and years of arduous labor could cause a man to develop emotional armor, but I never saw that side of him.

As a child, I was his ?little buddy,? and toward me his manner was always gentle and kind. Heaven knows he often had reason to be angry with me, but he never was.

Decades of inhaling coal dust eventually took a toll in 1994. Pneumoconiosis, or Black Lung, rendered him weak and emaciated, while emphysema tethered him to an oxygen tank. That once strong soldier who stormed beaches under a barrage of enemy fire had become a thin, pale shadow of a man.

Nearing the end, he wanted to see me. He was in Michigan, and I was at college in Arizona, immersed in finals. I planned to visit after the semester, but his condition unexpectedly deteriorated and he died.

Not being there is the biggest regret of my life.

Whatever my grandfather?s aspirations might have been, he was an utterly common man whose life and accomplishments are barely a footnote in history. Yet, that ordinary life had extraordinary meaning that proffers an enduring legacy to all.

Through the years there was purpose without prestige, and fortitude without fame. In such quality of character is found the most authentic measure of a meaningful life.

Fittingly, perhaps, in a metaphorical sense, records from the Hanna Coal Co. cataloging his employment note that, ?All work was underground.?

This post is dedicated to my grandfather ? and everyone toiling in their own mine to make a life of meaning.

This is for people from all walks of life, doing their best each day, hoping that what they?re doing matters and that they?re creating a legacy.

It does, and they are, even if to the world they merely end up as nameless faces in faded old photos…

About Ken: Ken Peters is the co-founding partner and creative director at Nocturnal Designs, a brand amplification consultancy. You can follow Ken on Twitter @brand_BIG.

Introducing Help Me Be Inspired

Hi guys,

First, I just want to say thank you for subscribing to my blog – I sincerely appreciate it, and always look forward to reading your thoughts and takeaways at the end of the posts.

Today, I’m kind of excited to share a new “project” that I’d love for you to check out –?Help Me Be Inspired.

A complete break from the norm of social media, marketing, business, etc, Help Me Be Inspired looks to step back from the rush and madness of today’s always-on world, and remember to pause, breathe, and live.

A collection of inspiring quotes, stories, people and redemption, the goal is simple – to take back some of our time and stop and savour the world around us.

I’d love for you to check it out, and if you’re feeling inspired by what you find and what lies ahead, feel free to share with others.

I also want to hear about what inspires you – your story, or your inspiration (person, place, event, etc). You can find out more about inspiring us here.

Thanks for reading, and here’s to being inspired together!

How to Counter Fake Social Media Reviews

According to leading business analysts Gartner, as many as 10-15% of social media reviews will be fake by 2014.

Instead of honest customer reviews, praise and feedback on sites like Yelp and Google Places, we’ll have professionally-paid for reviews, either from a company trying to damage a competitor, or raise their own profile by posting multiple glowing reviews.

The report does mention that this will probably be more in the Enterprise market, but what’s to stop smaller businesses hiring interns and specialist agencies to post a review for them?

Mind you, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised at this analysis – as social business continues to take a stronger grip in the mainstream consumer business world, it’s perhaps stranger to ask why these percentages aren’t already in place now (maybe they are).

The good news is, there are steps that can be taken to protect your reputation as a business, as well as stay on the right side of the law when it comes to this newer form of peer and customer recommendation.

Make Social Media Reviews Socially Accountable

On this blog, you’ll see I use the Livefyre comment system. Now, currently I have it set to accept guest comments – however, by a flick of the switch in my admin area, I can change that up and only allow readers to comment after logging in via the likes of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.

So, when it comes to posting reviews on the likes of Yelp, Google Places and elsewhere, make it the same process.

If you want to leave a review, you have to log in with your Facebook profile, or LinkedIn account. This immediately adds accountability to the process – your name and business is inextricably tied to your review. This makes it far easier to see which is a valid review, and which belongs to a fake.

For instance, let’s say Joe Smith left a crappy review on Yelp for Acme Restaurant, Toronto. The owners of the restaurant can see the review, and then check Joe’s profile on Facebook.

If it’s a valid one, they can then ask Joe to come in with his receipt and they’ll refund the cost of the meal. What, Joe doesn’t have a receipt because he was never there?

Gotcha – that takes us on to the second part of the process.

Build a Digital Ethics Agreement

In the last couple of years, social media has attracted the interest of organizations like the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) in the U.S., the ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) in the U.K., and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner in Canada.

These organizations are forcing the hands of advertisers and marketers in social media to be above board when it comes to how they’re targeting consumers in the space and, in the case of the Privacy Commissioner, making Facebook change their privacy terms when it comes to sharing information about its users.

So, there are already governing procedures under way and ongoing when it comes to making sure the medium isn’t being used in questionable ways.

The problem is, they’re splintered. The FTC has no real jurisdiction outside of the U.S, and vice versa with the U.K. and Canadian equivalents (although they can work with each other in cross-border cases).

So, technically, a Canadian business could operate around U.S. consumers and (unless picked up) be outwith the legalities of that country. This is where the fake social media reviewers (solo or agency) would win.

However, the Internet is one big global community when it comes to e-commerce. I don’t care if I need to buy a British import CD from Japan to complete my Canadian music collection using Bitcoin – it’s a global market and I’ll use whatever means I need to.

Now, while this may be too simple in actuality over theory, if there was a global Digital Ethics Committee that handled stuff like online reviews, social marketing, etc, and created a governing law that applied to online transactions and subsequent reviews – well wouldn’t that help counter the fake reviews?

The businesses that are caught paying for fake reviews are banned from review sites for X amount of years, with a disclaimer on their Yelp or Places page that advises visitors why there’s no official presence.

By naming and shaming (as well as the obligatory fine and damages paid), consumers can see which companies live by their product and which live by their producing of lies.

As Consumers, We Need Protecting

It may be that these two suggestions are too simple for such a legal minefield. And, despite the Internet’s global reach, the arms of it at a country and cultural level are still too disparate for the simple approach to work.

For now, anyways.

But as we move into a more socially-led and active world, and the stakes continue to rise as to those businesses that will succeed versus those that will flounder, the playground needs to take a stand now.

While social sign-ins may not be the answer (although it’s a lot easier to spot a fake Facebook or LinkedIn account than it is to filter a bogus email), and cross-border integration into a single unit might be a ways off, it’s important we start to think of solutions today.

Otherwise, that tomorrow of 2014 will come a lot quicker than we think, and it’s more than just our reputations at stake – it’s our very future business success.