Two West Idea Space Articles

Vertical Navigation - Blech

Matt Cloud — 1/11/2010 9:45:00 PM

This article (http://bit.ly/7avxaO) goes fairly deep into the writer's case against the archaic vertical-navigation design of websites and explains how to maximize real-estate. It stems from comments regarding poorly designed alcohol websites in this article http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/12/07/the-unusable-and-superficial-world-of-beer-and-alcohol-websites/

Pepsi is giving away millions each month to fund refreshing ideas that change the world.

Matt Bramlette — 1/7/2010 9:45:00 PM

Instead of spending 33 million dollars on an ad to run during the Super Bowl, Pepsi is spending it's money on philanthropy by letting fans decide where to spend the grants. Cause marketing in effect.

End Your Digital Life...If You Want

Ryan McNeil — 12/10/2009 8:45:00 PM

Borrowing it's name from the Samurai suicide ritual aimed at restoring honor to a warrior, Seppukoo offers a service to assist you in ritual digital suicide to liberate your digital identity from the marketers that collect your information. The site will end your digital life (on Facebook) in grand fashion, restoring your honor.

It's no surprise that sites like Seppukoo spring up to provide sub-cultures online. The irony is that they are themselves, a social network and their mere...

A Plea to All Creatives: Stop Going to Work

Gavin Johnston — 10/27/2009 1:15:00 PM

That's right, fresh ideas don't come from staring at a white board, they come from interacting with the world. "What makes you happy? When do you feel most inspired? What is it that generates new ideas and fruitful energy in your life? Find those things. Nurture them. Respect them. Being someplace, like in the office, for appearances sake is futile." We're in the business of thinking and creating -- sometimes we need to be creative about our work environment as well.

The 5x5 Strategy to Measure ROI of Social Media

Ryan McNeil — 10/20/2009 6:15:00 PM

Matt O'Brien of MintSocial lays out his 5x5 strategy for measuring the ROI of social media. His perspective focuses heavily on lead generation, which is one very important function of Social Media. However, it's important to remember that social media tactics can be used to gather intelligence, foster engagement, generate awareness and among many functions. The key is to define a strategy that fits the specific goals of the organization or brand.

Communities in Health & Wellness

Ryan McNeil — 10/19/2009 5:30:00 PM

During The Brand Show interview with Matt O'Brien and Bryan Eisenberg at BOLO 2009, we had excellent discussions about how the medical/healthcare space is especially compelling for maintaining a social media presence.

Genius or Crazy?

Chloe Bos — 10/19/2009 5:30:00 PM

This new retailer makes buying products a scavenger hunt. You might even have to hunt down food to complete your transaction. I love the idea and would buy things just to 'play the game!'

Optical Illusions Show How We See

Matt Bramlette — 10/16/2009 6:45:00 PM

This demonstration shows us that things are always what we think they are. This fun, first-hand look at your own versatile sense of sight reveals how evolution tints your perception of what's really out there.

Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street

Gavin Johnston — 10/6/2009 12:45:00 PM

I suppose taking cultural value into account is no guarantee that someone will not fall asleep at the switch, either, but at least a few folks are finding anthropological approaches -- and ethnographic methodologies -- of interest and value to understanding little things like the global financial tangle. Karen Ho has just published "Liquidated: an ethnography of Wall Street," and it looks worth a read.

Kudos to Gillian Tett for her review of the book in the Financial Times. This book...

GE's Augmented Reality

Ryan McNeil — 9/25/2009 7:15:00 PM

GE's Smartgrid is a site dedicated demonstrating how GE is harnessing the power of alternative energy. To assist in the illustration, they have created this Augmented Reality site which is impressive both as an interactive and design tool.