Voices - Episode 8: Artie Isaac

In this episode of Voices, I speak with Artie Isaac - marketing strategist, founder of Young Isaac, and professor at The Ohio State University and Columbus College of Art and Design.  Among other things, Mr. Isaac teaches MBA students at The Ohio State University how to be more creative.

According to Artie Isaac, creativity is about living a better life, having a more fulfilling job, connecting more deeply with friends and family, achieving flow, being more mindful, and embracing the present moment.  Isaac claims that all of us have the ability to be more creative by making an effort to enhance our creative potential - much like exercise can improve your physical health.  It is work, but there are clear, positive results.

Some of the thoughts Artie Isaac shares in the podcast are his reasons for blogging, how he named his site, what inspires him, how he utilizes technology to increase day to day productivity, the 3 types of days and how to approach them, why he lives in Ohio, and what people can do to be more creative.

Thanks to Artie for being kind enough to take the time to participate in the podcast, for being open enough to share his wisdom, and for being brilliant enough to inspire others to achieve greatness.  It was a pleasure to meet him.

Listen and enjoy!

Net Cotton Content / On Life and Marketing, Creativity and Ethics

If I Was In Charge of Verizon…

If I was in charge of Verizon, the first thing I would do would be to take the large group of people, known collectively on TV as “the network,” - seen following around the “can you hear me now?” guy in the commercials - and reassign them to work in Customer Service.  In fact I would make the core focus of the company customer service. I would make going to the Verizon Store something you love to do - not loathe to do.

Note to Verizon.  I can hear you.  Great job on the network thing.  Now that we have established that fact, let me hear you be nice, thoughtful, and helpful.  Make me feel like bypassing the iPhone and AT&T (who could also benefit from this) or Sprint, or whomever, was the right choice because you actually care about your customers.

From the billing process, to telephone help desk, to the in store service and sales experience, there is huge opportunity for you to improve what you do, while setting a new industry standard for excellence.  Be the first to own this space and make service the cornerstone for your future growth.  Can you hear me now?

What would you do first if you were in charge of Verizon?

The Physics of Marketing - Kepler’s Laws

German mathematician Johannes Kepler lived from 1571 - 1630.  He is described by many as the central figure in the scientific revolution for his work in astronomy and physics - two disciplines that were considered to be very different from one another in his time.  An independent thinker, he was very influential on shifting world views from the ancient to the modern.  To give context to the time in which he lived, I will mention that his mother was actually imprisoned for witchcraft for 14 months - accused of making another woman ill by collaborating with a demon to poison her with an evil brew. (No, I don’t know if his mom invented Jaeger)   Keppler was a true believer in the scientific method, and one who looked for patterns in everything.  He initially believed that planets orbited the sun in circular motions - basing his ideas on Geometry.  In attempting to verify this theory, he learned that his entire philosophy was flawed.  However, what he did do is to establish how all the planets in our solar system, and any object that orbits another, actually moves.

Kepler’s Laws:

1. Planetary orbits are elliptical with the Sun at one focus.
2. A planet sweeps out equal areas in equal times as it orbits the sun
3. The orbital periods scale with ellipse size, such that the period squared is proportional to the semi-major axis length cubed.

So…

What does this mean to modern marketing?

For me, I am noodling how to apply the theories themselves to Marketing.  I may lean on a physicist out there to get the ball rolling with respect to how these laws can specifically be applied.  Perhaps something along the lines of consumer behavior, seasonal patterns of demand, distribution, the product life cycle or speed to market?  I will continue to think on that one.  Feel free to jump in and start the discussion.

Certainly, there is much for Marketing professionals to learn from Kepler the man and the way in which he made his discoveries.  He was eternally curious about the truth.  He constructed hypotheses, tested, measured, analyzed, modified, and repeated.  He was well versed in mathematics and used geometry as the basis for his initial hypotheses.  At some point, he realized that his model was flawed.  He needed to change his view.  Some of his assumptions just did not make sense.  Rather than deny that fact, Kepler embraced the unknown.  He sought out the truth.  He took risks rather than trying to continuing on in the safety of the familiar.  The end result was a breakthrough.  Is this not the same way we should approach things like product development, direct sales, or customer service?

What do you think?  What is your hypothesis?  Is there something to be learned from Kepler’s Laws?  What is it and why is it important?  Tell us.  I promise, no witch trials.

Johannes Kepler - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia