what i do
March 30th, 2009 • posts i've written
I’m always searching for a jargon-free sentence to use when someone asks, “what do you do?” This is the best I’ve come up with so far. What do you think?
15 Responses (add your comment)
-
-
Sounds like a good answer to me
-
Brian,
If the goal is to be short and mantra-esque, there’s simply no room for process. First of all, no one aspires to process. Second of all, the process is pretty much doing whatever’s necessary to carry out the end goal. It’s never the same thing twice.
Bud’s got it right.
-
the first line about “giant global brands…” has a the right idea….but the phrasing comes across heavy handed. like “POW” look how intense my job is. there has to be a more palatable way to say that.
the last line about internet is good.
-
I love it, but I do think it’s inside baseball. It’s only when you realize how very out of touch many large corps are about who they’re trying to connect with can you fully grasp this pearl of wisdom. Do your clients understand this or it is something you explain to them? Or is this just something to tell people you meet casually?
-
Perhaps you help giant global brands look at themselves (and their potential) through the lens of the internet.
Is helping them *remember* the only value you add? I agree that no one aspires to process, but I’m not sure that many aspire to just remember either.
A great exercise to go through, I had trouble with this in a role for a long time.
-
Sam,
I think it would be arrogant of me to say one of my clients was never aggressive, opinionated, brilliant, scrappy, etc. They are all leaders in their industries, I simply try to get them to relive their earlier years and strive to earn customers by being themselves.
And when I describe what I do to other people, I hardly aspire to impress them.
-
I liked it at first glance, but then I thought: if you worked with someone like Nike or Adidas or Apple or Microsoft etc etc, are they really small on the internet? I like what Sam says: maybe you can say you help big brands look at themselves through the eyes of the internet? i.e one small fish in a sea of brands…or something!!
-
I like it! It’s very true.
@Anjali: Even those brands are relatively small on the internet. There’s always a bigger fish. (:
-
When I read it, my brain got quiet.
And I remembered when I was a small, a kid in a small town in Ontario.
I read it elsewhere (Mike Arauz’s site) then came here instantly.
I say bullseye.
For me the only test of these statements is this:
Is the listener moving toward me afterward (curiosity, trust), or away from me (boredom, disinterest)Boo yah unto thee, Mr Caddell.
-
Pretty much on the same page w/ most of the other comments. It’s headed in the right direction but a little too heavy-handed. I do similar stuff and like to describe it in terms of relevance. That I help some of today’s most relevant brands communicate effectively online.
I like it, but perhaps more about the process. I know it needs to be short and mantra-esque but perhaps more about how or why. I like that you acknowledge the internet being massive.
Thoughts?