Pow! Right Between The Eyes! Andy Nulman's Blog About Surprise

What I Learned This Week: What To Pack For An Ego Trip

December is upon us, and with it, thoughts of many turn to vacations.

With that in mind, I hope you don't mind if I take you on a trip.

An ego trip.

But worry not, there is indeed a lesson in this voyage of vanity.

Over my 35-year career, I've been interviewed.  A lot.  By everyone from elementary school students to Craig Ferguson on CBS's Late Late Show.

But over the past couple of years, I've found that I've become somewhat boring during these Q & A sessions.  Maybe it's because I had more to lose (running and selling Airborne Mobile and taking over at Just For Laughs), but I found that my recent responses were over-thought. Rather than being myself and "going for it," I developed an interview "persona," one quite different from me, and who only came out when the microphones did.

No more.  

Over the past couple of months, I've thrown all caution to the wind.  

I've gone in open, not unprepared, but definitely unrehearsed and unguarded.  

Maybe even unhinged.

I said what's in my heart, what's off the top of my head and what's on the tip of my tongue.

The result? 

I'm having fun again.  More importantly, I think I'm becoming a better salesman, and--dare I say--more inspirational.

When people care enough to query you about something, they don't just want answers to their questions; they want answers to bigger issues.  They want direction.  They want enlightenment. They want guidance.

Cliches and response-by-rote they can get anywhere.  But to be a great interviewee, one has to take a risk, open up and speak from the heart.

So the following two Vimeo videos (from Actionable Books--which actually came with a Warning!--and The National Angel Investment Summit) as well as this Monster.ca weblink aren't necessarily pretty.

They're raw, disjointed, and often crude.

But they're real.

And they're me.

And judging by the reaction they are getting--and I am getting--they're working.

Not everyone can be funny.  Or outrageous.  Or provocative.

But by being real, everyone can be themselves.

And there's no better interview subject than one's real self.

Enjoy.  

I hope ;)

 

(P.S. One caveat--I wasn't really "ripped" in the National Angel Summit talk below, but I did want to shake up what seemed to be a very staid room.  And I needed an excuse for the wine on stage, so...)

 

Using My Network Next Week--Are YOU The One?

One of my resolutions for the New Year (the Jewish one and the common calendar) was to be less of a self-promoting whore...but this I can't resist:

Ever since they started publishing books, I've been a rabid, avid fan of both Seth Godin and Jeffrey Gitomer.

After seeing them on stage, I've been a disciple of Google's Avinash Kaushik and experiential marketing expert Max Lenderman (and I saw him years ago at a Bell Mobility conference we were both speaking at).

And Mitch Joel?  What can I say about this guy--a former colleage, a profound friend, and someone who's accomplishments leave me in awe (and may I admit, somewhat envious...but don't worry, I'll get over it).

So, the fact that I'm speaking on the same bill as them next week, on September 30th, is kinda cool...and deserves this blog post.

The event is The Art of Marketing, put together by Scott Kavanaugh and his hard-working team at The Art Of Productions.  Over and above the top-flight talent (well, the other five guys), the day is first-rate and delivered with class...which is why I don't mind recommending it without reserve.

And in an effort to put the previous post to the test, and validate the "go-to" power of MY network, Scott has allowed me to lay down a discount of $50.  Wanna use it and be the one person I can count on?  Click here, or go to The Art of Marketing's registration page and when it asks you for a promo code, use the very unsubtle, very whorish self-promoting code NULMAN.

So, the question remains, what will I do to hold my own amongst those giants of the marketing world?

Well if you can't beat 'em with brilliance, wow 'em with wardrobe.

I'm working on my outfit as you read this...and will build on that foundation shortly after.

Hope to see you there.

Speaking For Myself, And...

So, I'm going to speak at another conference.

Andy Sernovitz' Supergenius Word of Mouth Marketing Conference on December 16 in Chicago, to be exact.

Ho hum.  A speaking gig.  So what else is new, right?

Well, the reason why I'm going is.

At first, when Andy asked, I had to say no...too busy, too much to do, a TV network to launch, too close to Christmas, too cold in Chicago.  Too many excuses.

But then, I took a look at the all-important "who else is coming."

And that's why I'm going.

Many times, jeez MOST times, I'll bolt a conference as soon as I'm off stage.  This is not ego speaking, but reality.  As I said before, too much to do, etc.  What I try to do is balance is what I can learn sticking around vs. what I can accomplish by leaving.  Leaving usually wins.

But given the task ahead of me--launching TXT-TV--Airborne Mobile's four-years-in-the-making, big hairy project of 2010--and seeing who else is speaking here, the day is a major-league learning opportunity.  Case studies from mega-brands like Coke, Starbucks, Domino's and Maker's Mark bourbon.  Numerous social networking experts. Live "Will It Blend" demos from Blendtec's George Wright.  Timely, too, given the aforementioned network launch. (And any time I can hang with fellow speakers Mitch Joel and Saul Colt, and my Chicago-based buddy Jim Fannin, well...)

As oft-mentioned here and in my Pow! book, Sernovitz is the world-wide maestro of word-of-mouth.  Since I changed my "vote" from no to yes, he's been peppering me and all the other speakers with ways for us to promote said conference via word-of-mouth methods like live interviews, special discounts (see photo below) and bribery, like the blatantly-promotional (and ostentatiously-colored) t-shirt he's getting yours truly and others to wear and blog about (see photo below again).

So consider me playing along in promoting the conference. 

And consider yourself promoted to.

But frankly, you're secondary. 

This time, for perhaps the first time, I'm doing it for me.

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...Spoken For

A few weeks ago, I spent a most enjoyable Saturday afternoon at my alma mater McGill University being grilled...uh, interviewed by professor Karl Moore. 

I had a blast.  I learned a lot...about me, and about the intelligence of the audience (it was primarily composed of parents of students who were in town for homecoming week.

It's coming to YouTube soon, but the school just sent me this link to preview it.

If you got an extra minute or 51...enjoy!

A Prestigious Homecoming...I Hope

Despite my rather infamous last appearance at a McGill University event, or perhaps BECAUSE of it, I've actually been invited back to my ol' alma mater as part of this year's prestigious Homecoming line-up.  I don't believe it either, but I guess what's below confirms that it's real.

Yup, on Saturday, October 17th, I'll be interviewed by the eminent marketing prof Karl Moore in the Classes Without Quizzes CEO Speakers Series.  Admission is free (so I promise you that you'll at least get more than you'll pay for), but you gotta reserve tix here. (And since I'll be speaking at such a scholarly event, I had better stop using words like "Yup" and "gotta.")

Don't know where I'll be going with all this, but I had an interesting chat with Prof. Moore earlier this week.  Renowned as one of the world's top business thinkers, I know Karl more as an on-ice opponent (and occasional teammate) from our Executive Hockey League.  Our brief dialogue went something like this:

KARL:Uh Andy, I checked the time of our event for homecoming, and it's 90 minutes long!

ANDY: So?

KARL: I usually interview people for about half an hour, then open up the floor to questions for 30 minutes.  I don't know what I'll do with an hour-and-a-half.

ANDY: Chill Karl.  It's showbiz.  I usually need 30 minutes just to clear my throat.

KARL: What are you talking about?

Uh oh.  A culture clash indeed.  Can't wait.  Hope to see you there.

捕虜! 目間で右! (Pow! Goes Japanese)

What you see above you is the Japanese translation of Pow! Right Between The Eyes!...which is gonna be very necessary later this year when my Pow! book makes its debut in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Yup, just got confirmation that the publishing conglomerate Hankyu Books (publishers of the renowned Town Guide Series and of course, the best-selling Yuga Yamato Memorial Book) have picked up the translation rights for Pow! in Japan, and are fast-tracking a release later this year.  Hmmm...I wonder how they'll translate "Holy Jeez!" into Japanese...

This is the second time a project of mine has been purchased by a Japanese entity (although I'm getting slightly less than Garner and I got when we sold Airborne to Cybird Enterprises), so all I can say now is

Thank You, Hankyu!

or, to be more polite,

Domo Origato, Hankyu!

or, better still,

Hankyu ありがとう!

Pirations and Bullshit Slides

A couple of cool self-sightings this past week.  Please suffer my self-indulgence:

1)  First is from the Mitch Joel-edited special Digital Edition of Marketing Magazine (trained as a rock journalist and one-time publisher of a music mag, Mitch does a magnificent job; digital marketing's gain is the publishing industry's loss, trust me), a nice, tight and enjoyable inetrview jaunt with Matt Semansky.

2)  Second is the fallout from a speech I gave at a gathering of Angel Investors on Thursday.  Much thanks to Flow Ventures' Raymond Luk for getting the facts right. (And if you dig Ray's take on the story, you can read the entire experience as I first recalled it three years ago right here.)

Pow! Finds Its Voice--Available Now on Audible.com

Well, this was indeed a Surprise, and a good one. 

An email from golden-throated Peter Ganim tells me that the release sked of the Pow! audiobook version has been pushed up and is actually now available at Audible.com.  See below:

Peter did a superb job of capturing the feel of the book (and does a mean impression of Russian chess master Garry Kasparov).  You can get a free sample of his work--and mine!--by clicking here. 

Better still, you can actually buy and download it while there.

Okay, so who wants the movie rights?

Pimp My Wikipedia Entry!

Given the current brouhaha over the banning of Scientologists from applying their obviously impartial editing skills to Wikipedia entries, I took a peek at my own to ensure no funny business from no nasty Scientology member.

The end result?  Well, I wish L. Ron Hubbard himself had applied his considerable creative writing skills to give me a makeover.  Jeez, after all I've said and done, you'd figure there'd be something more entertaining than this (and that would mention this blog, and the Pow! book and what have you):

So, here's a challenge for all you FOPs out there--Pimp My Wikipedia Entry!

What to say?  How to say it?  Aw...just Surprise me.

Go crazy...

Sweet End to the Day

Just back from a dinner appointment, and the Google Alerts have picked up two whup-ass reviews of the Pow! book:

Jeremy Epstein's Never Stop Marketing Blog and a hysterical take by Jeff Brainard over at the very off-beat Catch Your Limit (which is part of the Post-to-Post blog tour set up by Paul Williams).

A fine digestif indeed.  Happy you liked it, guys.

Airborne Re-born

A little awkward in the pic department, but a great article on Airborne Mobile in today's Financial Post.

That's my biz partner Garner Bornstein on the right, and our great friend and investor Chris Arsenault of iNovia Capital sandwiched between us.  Not a bad way to start a long weekend...

Pow! Gets Stylin' With WWD...and Other Memorable Appearances

Been a good week to be a media whore.  Lotsa action and reaction to Pow! as a concept and as a book.

To start, while some may fancy an article in Time Magazine or the Wall Street Journal, THIS business author got his mega-thrill fix by being featured in a piece on Pow vs. Wow Surprise Marketing by Valerie Seckler in the bible of style itself, Woman's Wear Daily.  What's more, as you see  below, the article was aggregated on the Conde Nast Portfolio site's front page.  You can read the whole thing by clicking here.

 

Then, we head on over to Customer Management IQ for an interview with publisher Blake Landau.  I go into it expecting a snoozer, but the bubbly, adorable and effervescent Blake (just look at that sweet smile!) renders the process a blast.  The end result can be read by clicking this link.

Finally, it's onto the left coast to Vancouver's Brad Brooks and his eponyomously-named show on CKNW 980.  This was a marathon, but one that passed like a 100-yard dash thanks to the way he was prepared (must be that producer of his!) and his obvious enthusiasm about Surprise and its effect on business today.  Best of all, he actually read the book...or seemed to have read it.  You decide by listening to our chat by clicking on the MP3 logo atop the page this link takes ya to.

More to come, I hope. Really flabbergasted about all the support...

Wear This Blog--Pow! Jeans Have Arrived

This is more than kinda cool.  As promised, Parasuco Denim Legend, proud outfitters of yours truly, this blog and my Pow! book, have officially released the Pow! Jean onto the market. The tight-fitting, well-creased blue-black denim is available all over, including Parasuco's stunning SoHo concept store on Spring Street in NYC (and on their way to winners of the 200 Blogger Challenge).

Gotta hand it to Sal Parasuco and company; they're not just putting out the jeans above, they're walking the Pow! talk with stunts like ice-melting hot styles at Fashion Week and projects like a Parasuco Hotel. Guess they read the book...

Self Improvement

Last summer, when I sat down to write Pow!, one of my main goals was to give the book a wider audience than just “marketing types.”  Not that there’s anything wrong with a good marketing book (just ask Seth Godin, or Jack Trout, or Andy Sernovitz, or…), but I always felt that the lessons of harnessing and exploiting Surprise had wider, more interpersonal, more universal applications.

So, cut to the Barnes and Noble store in The Grove, L.A.’s elegant “theme town” shopping center.  Killing some time there before last week’s taping of The Late Late Show, I popped into the store to sign some books.

Yuri, an incredibly helpful associate there (that's him with me at right), pulled one (!) out of the “Marketing” section of the store, but couldn’t locate all the others that were still listed in inventory.

“Must be some kind of mix-up,” he shrugged, as I dejectedly made my way towards the door.  And then, talk about a Pow! Moment—there, on a coveted table position at the front of the store was the book, next to classics like “Getting Things Done,” “Good To Great,” “Made To Stick” and “F.I.S.H!”

Best of all, the sign on the table didn’t say “Marketing” or “Business”...but “Improve Yourself.”

I'll take that.

Malcolm Gladwell vs. Me: Pow! Video #5--The Ultimate Business Book Smackdown

Saved the best, and perhaps the most outrageous Pow! video for last--a head-to-head (quite literally, actually) confrontation between me and Malcolm Gladwell. 

Yup, my little ol' Pow! book goes up against  big bad Outliers in perhaps the toughest arena of them all--an MBA Classroom.  It's me against him...click to see who's the last man standing:

The Best Biz Book? Maybe Not...But Perhaps The Most ENTERTAINING

Been doing a lot of interviews for Pow! (including this video/radio hybrid with Kurt Schemers on TradersNation.com) and one thing I always say in 'em is that while I don't think I'll ever be bestowed with the honor of "Best Business Book of All-Time," I think I qualify for the sobriquet of "MOST ENTERTAINING Business Book of All-Time."  Which is why I get photos like these from readers and veteran bloggers like Mark Leslie:

Gladwell, Godin, Pink and the Heaths may sell more books, but I doubt highly that their readers get so insanely and eboulliantly intereactive with their covers.  Thanks Mike...but ya gotta open it to REALLY feel the Pow!

Rogue Books--Pow! Travels The World and Attacks

One of the best part of writing the Pow! book is the feedback I get from readers...particularly the more visual elements of this feedback.  Cases in point:

All the way from the docks in Hobart, Tasmania (!!!) comes this pic of Michael Eury, who conceives and delivers training workshops in presentation skills and learning design.

You can catch Michael's blog (and a review of Pow!) by clicking these words.  Meanwhile, somewhat closer to home in Maryland, mobile advertising pioneer Paul Palmieri shows what happens when you order Pow! in multiples--like wild animals or teenagers, they're vicious when traveling in packs.  Time to call my lawyer...just in case.

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Andy Meets Andy...Kinda

As a long-time Andy Warhol admirer and collector, I found this is kinda cool.  This is how the Warhol Foundation treated Airborne Mobile's recent announcement of bringing the pop art maestro's imagery to mobile devices:

200 Free Pow! Books UPDATE #8--More Winners

And the hits just keep on coming!  Four more winners in the Pow! 200 Blogger Book Giveaway, with four more to come.  But for the moment:

Warren Sukernek of Twittermaven, Phil Gerbyshak, the "Make It Great Guy" and Katie Konrath of Get Fresh Minds have all won a pair of limited edition Pow! jeans, signed by designer Sal Parasuco.

Meanwhile the ever gracious Grace Boyle (who works for Lijit.com but blogs at Small Hands, Big Ideas) has taken home one of the biggies--she gets the services of super book agent Bill Gladstone in her quest (I hope!) to hit the bookshelves.  Enjoy the ride, Grace!

More winners announced as they contact me.  Until then, enjoy the blogs of the four above.

200 Free Pow! Books UPDATE #7--First Prize Redeemed

Well, the books are flowing from 800 CEO-Read, and the first of nine Pow! prizes has been claimed:

Chris Wilson of The Marketing Fresh Peel has won himself one of two Tim Barnard original artworks from the book itself.

He chose the one that kicks off Chapter 3 and features Sir Richard Branson, amongst others.

More to come.  Meanwhile, check out Chris's blog by clicking here.

AH-OOOOOOO! Pow! Video #4--The Musical

The Pow! Video Series continues over at 800 CEO-Read.

This one kinda speaks--well, sings actually--for itself.

Four down...one more to go!

(By the way, the band members really are as young as they look; the kids range in age from 13 to 15.  Crazy talented...)

Attention Paid...The Hype Begins

At long last, my Pow! book comes out this month, and with it the usual--or as you'll soon see, the unusual--onslaught of reviews, interviews and hyperbole.

So if this month's Surprise Central postings are permeated with an inordinate amount of inward attention and wonderment at the whirlwind of activity, I am asking you kindly and in advance to bear with me, as this is my first big kick at the can, and I'm trying to enjoy the ride. 

So, that said, let the dance begin!

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First up this week is a guest appearance with old friend Ian Halperin on his IanUndercover.com site (that's him at right) Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. eastern.  A New York Times best-selling author and award-winning, rabble-rousing investigative journalist (and believe me, he knows how to rouse rabble), Ian grew up around the corner from me, but is now an international renaissance man of pop culture.  As we say back home, "Not bad for a St. Laurent boy!"

What started out as a live chat--the types he's already done with people like showbiz columnist Ted Casablanca and American Idol phenom Sanjaya--has now burgeoned into a full-blown net-cam talk-show, which I'll be doing from the comforts of my home office.  Given the fact that I'll be prepping for an early Wednesday morning colonoscopy, this could be VERY interesting viewing.  Check it out tomorrow night by clicking here.

Also on the interview sked this week is a chat with Beth Negus Viveiros of Chief Marketer Magazine.  I trust she'll be a little easier on me than Ian will...

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If you haven't had enough of me here, you can find more of me in a guest appearance on the very colorful "Step Into The Spotlight" blog from the even more colorful mono-monikered Tsufit.

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Coming up a little later on (May to be exact) is an appearance with Paul Williams in his Idea Sandbox Virtual Book Tour. Other books skedded this year include The 100 Best Business Books of All Time by Jack Covert and Todd Satterson, All You Need Is A Good Idea! by Jay Heyman and The Designful Company by Marty Neumeier. 

Past participants in this "tour" include Seth Godin (with "Meatball Sundae") and Dan Roam (with "Back of The Napkin"), and lemme tell you, I'll be happy with a portion of the sales and attention heaped upon those two authors and their work.

Oh, the concept of a "Virtual Book Tour" is that I visit prestigious and powerful blogs instead of bookstores, so again, done from the comfort of my home office (but no scheduled colonoscopies in May, thankfully). Interested in being part of it?  Visit Paul's Idea Sandbox blog right here.

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Finally for today, another review.  From a most unlikely source, namely "Professional Builder Magazine."  (Hey, I'll take 'em from where I get 'em!)  It's not as obtuse as it sounds; the preamble reads:

"Experts say the downturn is the best time to take stock of your marketing programs, your media choices and even your mission statement. Three soon-to-be-released books address how to build an organization that will make a difference in the marketplace."

Well, here's the review in its entirety:

When Oprah Winfrey announced "Everybody gets a car!" to an amazed studio audience, that was surprise marketing. And when Steve Jobs unveils Apple's latest innovation at MacWorld Expo, it's the surprise element that captures attention.

Such is the secret to marketing success, suggests author Andy Nulman, a popular public speaker who has created two companies. The book is full of engaging cartoons and anecdotes that breathe life into his theories, and forewords are presented not by marketing gurus but by Craig Ferguson and John Cleese. (Surprise!)

Shameless Plug Time: Hunting Fortune on CBC Newsworld

Been a good year so far at Airborne.  We raised some money, launched a brand new business, have three product launches in the pipe, and over this weekend, Garner and I will be featured on CBC Newsworld's business show "Fortune Hunters."

You can catch our story on Saturday at 6:30 and 11:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m.

...or watch it on the site right now (we close it, use the scroll bar to head towards the final third of the show).

 

Pow! Selected by 800 CEO-Read's Jack Covert!

When I was a boy...okay maybe not that young, but as a voracious reader of business books, I would turn to the recommendations at 800 CEO-Read to help me cut through the clutter. 

Re-titled "Jack Covert Selects" (after the President and founder of the very specialized professional site/service), it's the place that turned me onto  everything from Seth Godin's Purple Cow back in 2003 (and where I purchased a copy in a milk carton, if memory serves correctly), and Mark Stevens' "Your Marketing Sucks" all the way to both "Unstuck" and "Made To Stick."  It's where I was introduced to Marcus Buckingham, Dan Pink, Alex Wipperwurth and Jeffrey Gitomer.

So here's the point--imagine how I felt when Pow! was honored this week as one of this month's "Jack Covert Selects."  Lemme tell you, it's like the kid who grew up watching his idols play ball or hockey...and then gets to play beside them in the same stadium. 

I can live with quotes like:

"Andy Nulman, the king of Surprise, has succeeded in writing a book full of ideas that every organization can find value in. 

"[He] has the tools, knowledge and experience to show business owners, marketers, and organizations how to create practical and effective communication."

Or:

"The first chapter of the book lays out why Surprise is crucial to creating good marketing, and then you're off on an eight-chapter ride spanning everything related to it. 

"Each chapter ends with a clever summary of the important takeaways, leaving readers eager to move onto the next lesson."

Whew!  You can read the whole review by clicking here.

Or you can have it read to you by calling my Dad.

The Gift That Keeps On Giving--A Great Review of Pow!

Well, the vacation lasted two days...but for really good reason.

Don't know what you woke up to under your tree today, but this was what was under mine--a review of the upcoming Pow! book from the folks over at Publisher's Weekly, THE source of news and info for the book industry.

I can live with gift quotes like:

"...astute insight about how companies can create a bigger bang for their buck"

"...colorful and enlightening...will engage business readers looking for innovative ways to win without breaking the bank"

Here's the review in its entirety:

"In the midst of a recession, Nulman offers a way for marketers, advertisers and entrepreneurs to capture consumer attention by harnessing the power of surprise marketing.

"Starting with entertaining forewords by comedian John Cleese and talk show host Craig Ferguson, who both understand the necessity of shock and timing in getting laughs, Nulman proceeds to offer (and amuse) with astute insight about how companies can create a bigger bang for their buck by imparting the unexpected in their marketing.

"Using case studies of ad campaigns, the author describes what successful shocking marketing is (Oprah declaring, 'Everybody gets a car,' to her studio audience, which sent her Web site's traffic up 800%) and is not (St. Louis using the ubiquitous arch in an ad campaign to portray the city as 'surprising').

Drawing on 15 years of experience as the CEO of the Just for Laughs Festival, the author emphasizes that the element of surprise is pertinent for anyone trying to sell a product or gain attention for a cause or event. This colorful and enlightening book will engage business readers looking for innovative ways to win without breaking the bank."

Now, if Santa would be kind enough to pre-order a few million copies for next year...

Keep Them Votes A-Coming!

After about a week, votes for the author photo to be included in my upcoming Pow! book seem to be leaning towards a split personality.  The video below (also found at the home of business books, 800 CEO Read) explains the concept, and the votes so far are:

Photo #1:    36%
Photo #2:    19%
Photo #3:    45%

I'll keep the voting open until the end of the year, and crown a winner on Jan. 1, 2009.  Until then, here's another look.

Pow! The TV Series Strikes Again

The love continues over at 800 CEO-Read, the business book site that's premiering the five videos that Scott Brooks and I are doing to promote my oft-mentioned (and hopefully never forgotten) Pow! book.  Millions of thanks again to Kate Mytty, Dylan Schleicher and Aaron Schliecher.

This one treads into dangerous territory by examining the relationship between authors and their author photos.  Even better, it allows you to vote on one of three author photos I took with the madman named Stéphane Najman (that's him and me below, as well as a shot of one of the 100 or so times I had my make-up fixed).  The mugshot that gets the most votes gets to be my official jacket flap photo when Wiley releases the book in February.

You can also see the first in the series by clicking HERE. 

Enjoy, and please...send to a friend!  Or two. Or two dozen.

 

See Me, Feel Me, Touch Me, Clothe Me...

The latest from the journey of the Pow! book:

http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2008/11/prweb1670194.htm

Another industry first!

Holy Jeez! My First Review!

I can live with this:

"Nulman's radical new methods are bound to POW through traditional marketing and leave their mark."

Check out the rest HERE.

Here's a Fine Incentive

The front pages of Incentive Magazine go Pow!

Check it out by clicking INCENTIVE.

P.S.  That's NOT my picture on top!

Best After-Speech Compliment Ever

Not that I deserved it (Pow! speech still being polished and refined to my liking and standards), but I'll take this from a wide-eyed, idealistic 20-something after last week's Art of Sales conference in Vancouver, who said:

"How can I be you?"

(P.S. My answer:  "Get a sex change, wear flatter shoes and put some grey in your hair.")

Pow! The TV Series

Well, close.

The people at 800-CEO-Read, the specialized homestead for business books on the Web, have been very kind to me and to my upcoming Pow! book, and have offered me five months of "behind the scenes/making of a business book" Guest Post promo on the company's influential Daily Blog.

But in true Pow! fashion, the company's dynamic duo of Aaron and Dylan Schleicher and faithful sidekick Kate Mytty threw me a challenge by saying: "Given the nature of your book, we expect it to be different from what anybody else has done."

Here we go again.

Well, the end result starts today, as 800-CEO-Read has posted the first of five Pow! Right Between The Eyes! videos.  Each one focuses on a specific topic, and although kinda tongue-in-cheek, each has a serious underlying theme (hey, it still is a business book after all...).  They're all homemade, written by yours truly and directed my Airborne Mobile's madly creative Scott Brooks (who designed the look of this here blog as well).

The first is about the pressure to have a gimmick to sell business books these days.  So why are you still here?  Click THIS and check out Video #1 right now. 

Talking At You in November

Okay shameless plug time.

A couple of important speaking gigs for yours truly throughout November, starting with another appearance at the Sports Business Journal's Media and Technology Conference on the 19th and 20th, where I'll be talking about the integration of mobile content with sports.  Other folks spouting wisdom there include the legendary sportscaster Jim Nantz, the acerbic President and CEO of Major League Baseball Advanced Media Bob Bowman, and the newly-installed COO of the NHL (a longtime Airborne Mobile client), John Collins. 

The last time I did this event, I went for a jog along the waterfront before my scheduled appearance time, got lost in the gorgeous fall day, and ended up having to appear on stage in my drenched shorts, sweatshirt and Under Armour skull cap.  As goofy as I looked, I must've said something right, because the Sports Business Journal had this to say:

"Call him crazy at your own risk."

Hmmm...wonder what I should wear this time?

Moving right along, a couple of weeks later, on Friday the 28th, I'll be in Vancouver as part of The Art of Sales, alongside best-selling authors like Jeffrey Gitomer, the King of Negotiators Herb Cohen, Frances Cole Jones and Neil Rackham in the prestigious, 2000-seat Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts.

Scott Kavanagh and his crew have put together a great PDF about the event, which is well worth looking at even if you can't make it there.  Feast your eyes upon it by clicking here.

I'll have the laptop and Berry with me at both gigs, so check in for posts here and Twitter tweets there.

Appreciating the Appreciation

Two mentions over the holiday weekend filled the Blackberry with email and kept the servers humming. 

One saw Pow! cited by the omnipotent Mitch Joel as one of his "Five Blogs That Move The Needle" (and as complimentary as that was, even more so was seeing the other four I was grouped with). Click here to check out the entire post...and the other four.

The other was 12 years in the making, but a truly great Surprise.  In 1996, when I was still CEO of the Just For Laughs Festival, I invited cartoonist Lynn Johnston to the event.  We had great success with animators like Chuck Jones, Joseph Barbera (the second half of Hanna-Barbera) and Jay Ward (of Rocky & Bullwinkle fame), and since her comic strip "For Better or For Worse" was the most popular in North America, we figured she'd be a natural progression for our up-close-and-personal talk/Q&A sessions at the Gesu Theater.

Well, we were right.  Crowds jammed the place in droves, and bestowed upon the quite flabbergasted Ms. Johnston with the type of treatment usually reserved for our mega-star Gala hosts of the era, like David Schwimmer, John Candy, Lily Tomlin or Kelsey Grammer.

Given the fact that I was producing a Showtime TV show for the event the night of her performances, I missed seeing her live, but couldn't miss her radiant aura when we met at the Delta Hotel later that evening.  In appreciation for her Festival experience, she gave me a signed original strip, which hangs above the desk where I compose most Pow! posts.

But that's not all.  It appears that Lynn's appreciation lasts long, as I witnessed on Sunday, with the panel at right...part of her "Farewell" wrap-up strip, which you can see in its entirety here.   

Free Show (See Me, Hear Me...But Don't Touch Me)

Had a blast on Friday taping (is that the right Web 2.0 word?) and performing my first-ever Webinar.  The invitation came from the folks over at RetailTouchpoints, who caught my performance earlier this year at the Shop.org conference. 

In essence, it's the same presentation done there--One Hand In Their Pocket, about how retailers can benefit from mobile in their marketing--but done with six months of experience behind it. 

Frankly, I thought it was gonna be a dud; basically me talking over some PowerPoint slides, but on delivering it, I realized how (sorry for the ego, but it's true) good the slides were, and how pertinent and important the message is.  Also, being "live" made each stumble a point to goof and improv on, so I had a lot of fun in the process.  Best of all, if you boo me, throw things or fall asleep, I won't have a clue.

All this to say that it would be well worth your while--it's FREE--to check out the Customer Engagerment in general, and me in particular.

The Event takes place:      Wednesday, August 6. 
I'm on at:                             3:45 p.m. eastern
Sign up now:                        By clicking HERE.

(And a personal shout-out to Amanda Ferrente, thanks for the experience, but as of yesterday, you still haven't update the website!)

Listening To Me (For A Change)

One of the beauties of having "Chief Marketing Officer" amongst your titles is the fact that some people that would otherwise ignore you actually listen to you.

Case in point is Chief Marketer, which published this interview about mobile marketing...perfect timing for a relaunched, reborn Airborne Mobile.

You can read it by clicking here...or by clicking above, which I suspect many of you have already done.

Looking Back With Virgin Eyes

Another Father's Day postscript if I may...

I have to say, although somewhat biased but not much, that my sons are brilliant.  My 17-year-old, Hayes, designs furniture for the future, while my 20-year-old, designs much of the future itself. 

One of these days, I'll share pix of Hayes' industrial-influenced residential creations with you, but today, I wanna show you Aidan's new work, a blog called (no relation to Madonna or Richard Branson):

Like A Virgin

The concept is simple, but amazingly sticky and profound--in essence, Aidan visits the first post of famous and favorite blogs and rates them.  Like seeing old high school pictures of today's superstars, the flashbacks are sometimes tell-tale, often polar-opposite to the present, but always fascinating nonetheless.

He came up with the idea while battling a little writer's block trying to compose a first post for another new blog (called "The Projectionist") he was putting together with a friend.  He figured seeing what other first posts were like would give him the inspiration needed...but I don't think he counted on THIS MUCH inspiration. 

Today he goes big and dredges up the first post of Mark Cuban.  Check it out, and suggest your favorite blog (but don't try this one; I was honored to be his debut debut post yesterday).

The Answer

This is the Pow! of the day around Surprise Central...well, for me at least.

Seems that I have become a Trivial Pursuit question.

Now one can take that two ways, but I'm seeing this glass half full. 

Apparently, one of Airborne's hard working staff stumbled upon it while playing the '80s Edition of the game with her parents recently.  While she didn't remember the question verbatim, it went something like:

"What was the name of the event
made famous by Andy Nulman?"

Obviously, I'm trying to track down the card for posterity's (and framing's) sake.  Once I find it, I'll post it here as well.

My next quest:  "I'll take 'Loud Guys Obsessed With Surprise' for $100, Alex."

Changing The World Once Cellphone at a Time

On the road, and trying to change the world, once again...

As you read this, I'll be busy hosting a highly-focused, boutique conference in Toronto, namely Strategy Magazine's Mobile Marketing Workshop.  As a pioneer in the field, my company Airborne Mobile has been at the forefront of mobile media since the year 2000, but these days, with major brands and ad agencies starting (and that's the operative word: STARTING) to understand the value of this most direct and personal  channel as a marketing tool, the stakes are a lot higher than the act of downloading wallpapers and ringtones.

One of the inherent early problems has been the lackluster nature of most mobile campaigns.  While the industry is now (as I like to say) "learning to crawl before it can limp," there is a definite need for some Pow! to engage the customer and ensure that mobile marketing is embraced and not eschewed.  The future starts now.

Well, let's see what the day brings...

Me? Opinionated?

Had the honor of writing the page 4 op-ed piece in Billboard last week for its annual Mobile Issue (must've said something right, because the mag also put the piece on the front page of its website).  That's it below.  Next goal: taking the Matt Demons--Airborne's in-house punk band--to the top of the Billboard charts.  But I digress... 

Almost as cool was the publication (finally!) of an interview I did way back in December with the political site Apathy is Boring.  Hopefully, the interview wasn't...

And Speaking About Speaking...

...remember the notorious appearance at the McGill Cultural conference I have referred to often within these here posts?

Well, now you can watch the whole thing.  I'm up second, after Moya Balfour.  The CPAC network captured the event in its entirety.  Catch it by clicking HERE...if you dare.

Don't say I didn't warn ya...

Sucks In The Title

Antony Bruno is a man of his word.

The Executive Director of Billboard's Digital/Mobile Conferences took a gamble last fall with a free-form, no-holds-barred panel at the semi-annual CTIA convention (a mainstay for us folks at Airborne).  The result was a blast (see re-cap here), and I wondered aloud if he--and his parent company--would have the guts to continue this type of programming.

Well, link away to the agenda of next month's Billboard Mobile Entertainment Live! event and see that the hits just keep on coming.  Well, at least on the panel discussion that I'm moderating at the event later this month.

The panel is called "Creative Conundrum: What Sucks and How Do We Fix It?"  and its objective is not just to speak aloud all the things we folks in the mobile media industry say in the privacy of hallways and on the phones, but to make the poor drones in the audience pick up their eyes from their laptops and Blackberries and pay attention for a change.

Joining me will be:

Russ Cox of Turner Broadcasting/The Cartoon Network
Jeremiah Zimm of MTV
Rob McDermott, manager of Linkin Park
and former Fox Mobile President Lucy Hood

All have been instructed to yell, scream, interrupt and make their points loudly.  This ain't no kiss-ass, agree-with-everyone-to-be-polite benign industry panel.

The bar has been set high, and I hope we pull it off.  But at least the inspiration is there at the start--when was the last time you went to an industry conference session with the word "Sucks" in the title,  not just in the evaluation?

This Boss Works For YOU

Well, this is indeed a pleasant Surprise to close the week. 

The story I wrote for Lawrence Kirsch's collaborative Springsteen fan book "For You Bruce," highlighting our backstage meeting 27 years ago, was excerpted and appears on RollingStone.com.  Check it out below of by clicking here. 

Not only does this heighten my excitement for Sunday's show here (my 11th time seeing Bruce), but for the gathering of worldwide fans and contributors at La Brasserie Brunoise, a restaurant just outside the Bell Center, for a pre-show pre-party...because anyone who's ever seen The Boss can tell you, the show IS the party.

Walking The Talk

Last week, I told you about a speech I gave at McGill University for its marketing students.  I wasn't gonna tell you about another McGill-related speech I gave the day before, but seeing the reaction it garnered--and how my ramblings fit the theme of this blog--I guess I should come clean.

The event was called "Are We American?", a look at Canadian Culture in North America.  Given my Just For Laughs heritage, I was conveniently placed in the Humour section with three others, and figured that this was one of those polite panel discussions where we would be asked questions and banter about happy things happily.

Well, less than a week from speak-day, I received an email with these instructions:

"For your formal remarks, however, please remember to speak into the microphone on the podium.  As this is not primarily an academic conference, your presentation need not be overly formal."

Uh, "Formal"?  "Presentation?"  Sorry folks, too busy, too late.  So, given the topic of the conference, instead of a dry, podium-delivered platitude, I decided to live up to the standards set by Surprise Central, channel my inner American, and rant. 

And rant I did.  About how "you get what you pay for," and since I wasn't getting remunerated, I wasn't putting out.  About how sick I am about being the polite Canadian, and being quiet all the time.  About how I wasn't just going to ignore the other speakers, but use my Blackberry during their presentations.  All this while sporting a "Proud Republican" t-shirt I had bought in Chicago on Super Tuesday.

Well, the room was indeed shocked.  And of course, being filled with Canadians, they politely applauded after being yelled at and insulted for five minutes.  The end result?  Perhaps it's best expressed by blogger Jenni Campbell, who said:

"Andy Nulman’s contribution to the panel was either profoundly subtle in its lampooning of Canadian’s perceptions of Americans, or in-your-face obnoxious. He got up when it was his turn to speak and announced that, because he wasn’t being paid to speak at the conference, he was going to shrug off the polite Canadian act and behave how an American would were he to be asked to give a talk and participate in a discussion without the appropriate remuneration...

"One reason why I found Nulman’s schtick to be so painfully funny upon reflection was because I spent most of it thinking what a jerk he was and how very uncivil and un-Canadian he was being."

Heh heh heh.  As George W. himself would've said, "Mission Accomplished."

The Art Of...Surprise

And speaking about speaking (see yesterday's post), how's this for a cool, high-powered gig?

I've just been added to the bill of The Art Of Sales, a full-day event to be held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre's  elegant John Bassett Theatre, on May 12.

The line-up is packed with some of my biz book idols, including:

• The world's Chief Executive Salesman, Jeffrey Gitomer (of Little Red Book of Selling fame)
• David Allen, who teaches the world how to Get Things Done and
• Herb Cohen, the long-time maestro of negotiation
• not to mention Sharon Drew Morgen and Dr. J.P. Pawliw-Fry (that's all of us below).

I've spoken at many such a large-scale, full-day session, but what makes The Art Of's take on them so unique is that the company highlights a specific theme, and niche-markets to those most interested in, and who will take home more from, the subject at hand.

For example, other events set to go include The Art of Golf (featuring coaches of the top PGA money-winners), The Art of Cooking and The Art of Management, with more to come (hey guys, how about "The Art of Surprise"?  I know a good closing speaker.  Uh, just asking...)

This is the spirit of Web 2.0 and the Long Tail brought to the brick-and-mortar (or shall I say "wood-paneling and soft-seat") conference game; a well-focused, no-fat approach.

One of the driving forces within The Art Of is a bright,  well-experienced entrepreneur named Scott Kavanagh, who promises not just to entertain his audience, but educate them.  Which brings me to a conversation I had over dinner in Chicago two weeks ago with my buddy Jim Fannin, one of the greats of the speaking world. Despite his success at empowering thousands all over the globe (including championship athletes like Alex Rodriguez and Grant Hill), Jim insists he is NOT a motivator, but an educator.  Or, as he put it:

"It's the difference between telling someone
'you can do it!',
and actually teaching someone
'HOW you can do it'."

So go get 'em, Scott and company.  Teach 'em how you guys do it.  And thanks for the honor of allowing me to share the stage with such a prestigious group.

(By the way, if you wanna go, call The Art of Sales at 1-866-992-7863.  Mention my name and get a discounted rate.  Mention Herb Cohen's name and negotiate an even BETTER one!)

Buying Into It

Well, I'm back from the incredibly-run Shop.org conference in Orlando, and the buzz on Airborne's new retail mobile marketing initiative has been, to say the least, positive. 

The conference blog encapsulated my keynote quite completely, as did Giselle Abramovich at MobileMarketer, while Andy Sernovitz (that's he and I below) went one step further with his videoblog.  And this update just in: Simon Rodrigue of HomeDepot passes on these kind words.

Meanwhile, the guy who seemed to get it most was (no Surprise here) Mitch Joel...not only because he had me to deal with in shopping centers and restaurants for three days, but because of his ever-expanding, acutely-astute marketing savvy.

Next up, we take this show on the road to Chicago, for the annual Retail Advertising Conference, on Feb. 6. 

This could be the start of something big...

(UPDATE:  Already seems to be.  Got sent this late-breaking story about Google's reaction to Mobile Marketing by both Mitch Joel and Barry Welford.  Thanks guys!)

 

Mobile Motor Mouth

As you read this, I am heading towards Orlando on behalf of Airborne to the Shop.org Innovation conference , where I'll be hosting two roundtables as well as giving a keynote address debunking the myths and revealing the opportunities of  marketing via mobile phones. 

(Don't wanna sound pompous, but since this was the root of what we pioneered eight years ago for the likes of Disney, HBO and continue to do today for the NHL , Family Guy and Maxim, I think I'm pretty well-qualified not just to yammer about the subject...but to be listened to.)

The guest list the the event reads like the who's who of retail, and the hometown will also be represented by the ubiquitous Mitch Joel (my plane seatmate) and Pinny Gniwisch of Ice.com.  Another highlight is that after a year of conversing via email and phone, I finally get facetime with my namesake and kindred spirit, word-of-mouth marketing guru Andy Sernovitz, who's also keynotin' (see below).

Will be in touch later this week to let you know how it goes...

My Old School

Steely Dan once sang "I'm never going back to my old school."

Earlier this week, I did.

Here's the result.

The moral of the story: Steely Dan should've gone to Gardenview.

Delivering On My Promises

It's good to have friends, particularly if they're in the Tax department or in the media.

Rick Spence, a long-time member of the People I Dig list (see left), is a member of the latter, and was kind enough to give credence to the relatively nascent (well, to the general public at least) discipline of Surprise marketing in today's National Post.  You can check our Rick's column by clicking these blue letters.

Nicely written and well appreciated...but I DO have just one minor correction/addendum, if I may.  To close the story, Rick wrote:

Does he practice surprise marketing as Airborne's chief marketing officer? "We'll be doing it next year with some of our marketing and promotion incentives," Nulman promises.

Well...to be frank, Surprise marketing is what GOT Airborne to where it is.  Examples are many, including the oft-told tale of the Donald Trump Dollar Bill Toss and the Free Beer panel discussion, not to mention our infamous Maxim parties (no links folks, sorry!). 

Indeed there's more to come, but there was a lot that went, too.

Okay, so now that THAT's cleared up, why not pay Rick a visit at his entrepreneurial blog.  Tell his server I sent ya.

Pow! Goes Legit

I read it every two weeks, cite it quite often, but here's an article from the uber-respected Marketing Magazine I won't be quoting from any time soon...due to redundancy issues:

(To read the entire rant in a more eye-friendly manner, click here.)

Big shout out for Danny Kucharsky for corralling all my wildly-spouted words (jeez, that Suzanne Somers story still comes up after all these years).  And Dan Ward, your book gets yet another plug!  Jeez!

On a serious note, when the concept of Pow! Marketing is treated with such prominence in such a prestigious and widely-accepted journal, you know we're onto something here at Surprise Central.   

Today, Marketing Magazine.  Tomorrow, a major publishing house!