Is this the coolest parking garage?

Back to Lincoln Road in Miami Beach this mroning and we ended up parking at 1111 Lincoln Road Parking Garage. What a surprise. Everything about this inspiring structure of concrete and steel cables is outstanding. It's fascinating to see how great design tends to have universal appeal. The kids we had in the car were like 'wow, this is the prettiest parking garage!'

I was super curious to find out more about the project so, later in the day, I went online to find out it was designed by the Swiss architecture firm Herzog and de Meuron, This is the same firm behind the National Stadium at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, known as the 'Bird's Nest' and London's ultra-cool Tate Modern.

If it's possible to reconceptualize something as mundane as a parking garage and create something extraordinary, it's only proof how transformational architecture and design can be.

Next time I'm in Miami, I guess I'll need to rent a Tesla Roadster...

Jimmy Wales in Sao Paulo

Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity to listen to Jimmy Wales, the brilliant mind behind one of the most powerful forces in user-generated content. His Wikipedia (which I can't live without), and its vision of the 'sum of all human knowledge' is a non-profit movement that mobilizes hundreds of thousands of people around the globe who collaborate to create the library for the age of knowledge. The story of the movement he has created is inspiring and perfectly aligned with a time in which people are empowered, more than ever, to create like never before.

The speech took place in São Paulo as part of the HSM Expo Management week and sponsored by Telefonica.

Pre-Super Bowl buzz

Doritos® is back creating pre-Super Bowl buzz with its third edition of the 'Crash The Super Bowl' campaign.  Doritos innovated two years ago with a consumer-generated format that shook the industry and started a trend.  At the time, consumers were invited to submit 30" ads.  Two spots, were chosen online and aired during the big game.  This time around Doritos is offering a $1 million prize for a creative mind that is able to produce a Doritos TV spot good enough to top a viewer poll at the next Super Bowl.  I absolutely love how my colleagues at Frito-Lay are leading the Doritos Brand.  A bold, creative and completely consumer-centric marketing approach to a very cool brand.  Awesome work.

What are people saying about your Brand on YouTube?

I loved the story that was published in USA Today the other day about a tourist who uploaded his vacation videos to YouTube and then got a call from the resort where he stayed.  Apparently, the hotel manager liked the video so much he offered the man a free return stay. It's just another wonderful example of the power of user-generated content. For us marketers, it's just another reminder that we, not only should be monitoring what people have to say online about our products and services, but it's also an interesting opportunity to open a dialogue with someone that clearly has a strong opinion (strong enough to go through the trouble of posting a comment, a complaint or a video).  

The other day I sent an e-mail to a person who posted a 30" TV spot with one of the products I had launched, congratulating her on the creative. I later found out that the video was produced by a college student as part of a university project.  She was surprised when she found out I was one of the marketing guys behind the launch so she took the opportunity to ask questions about the innovation process and marketing strategy. The student was thrilled that she ended up with information direct from the source that no one in her class had. Fascinating times for consumers who enjoy taking a more active role in influencing business behavior... fascinating times for brand managers who want to establish a closer connection.  I believe this connection should be made not only with those who have a positive opinion about our brand but mainly with those who may have had a bad experience and are feeling frustrated.  

Have you been checking what people are saying about your business?