Rumor Mill: Is IKEA Entering the Eco-Friendly Car Market?

We love a good April Fool's Day joke as much as anyone. So we're all wondering if IKEA is really about to unveil a new eco-friendly car or if it's all a big April Fool's joke. The release date is set for April 1st, after all.

Rumor Mill: Is IKEA Entering the Eco-Friendly Car Market? | Sustainability | Fast Company

Pepsi Logo Design Brief: Branding Lunacy to the Max

We previously blogged about how the new Pepsi logo reminded us of the Obama logo. What we didn't know then is how much time and money went into their new design. This article links to the leaked creative brief for the logo design. It's painful to read. Pompous and ridiculous and symbolic of what I hate about marketing. They are making way too much of this. A logo can't do everything. And it certainly isn't worth the lofty comparisons the agency makes.

Quote from the article:

The presentation, by the Arnell Group (also responsible for the botched design of the Tropicana orange juice carton) contains visual representations of and comparisons with the following: the golden ratio, the Mona Lisa, the Parthenon, the Gutenberg Bible, the earth and its magnetic fields, and the solar system/universe. None of these things have anything to do with soda.

Give me a break. Look, what we do is important, but it isn't rocket science. Our job is to help you (our client) sell more of what you make. Generally, we don't need to create the next Mona Lisa to do it.

Read more: Pepsi Logo Design Brief: Branding Lunacy to the Max | New Ideas | Fast Company

Trying to Sell a Car?

This new site aggregates real prices of cars sold so you can see exactly what people are paying for that SUV collecting dust in the driveway.

Mashable: PriceHub Flips Kelley Blue Book on its Head

Gervais + Elmo = Hilarity on 'Sesame Street' (Fun on a Friday)

"You can't control a Muppet and a fat guy," Gervais says about halfway through these outtakes of an episode scheduled to run in November. Fun on a Friday. Enjoy!

How to Delete Accounts from Any Website

A friend posted this link on Facebook that details how to delete accounts from a bunch of sites. Personally, I'd love to get rid of my Classmates account and all those annoying emails. Anyhow, I thought there were some useful tidbits in here and wanted to share.

How to Delete Accounts from Any Website - Features by PC Magazine

Fun on a Friday with the Slap Chop

"We're going to make America skinny, one slap at a time." Thanks to Steve for turning me on to the Slap Chop. Guess I haven't been watching enough t.v. cuz I hadn't seen it. Thanks to YouTube, my life is now complete. Enjoy and have a great weekend!

That's One Way to Make a Basket (Fun on a Friday)

Ouch! Surely there are easier ways to bank the ball?

Make a Referral - jump start the economy

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I'm pledging to make a referral to a business I want to help as part of a national campaign to make 1000 referrals March 9-13. What a great small business stimulus plan.

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HOW THE STIMULUS PACKAGE AFFECTS YOUR STATE

Love this little interactive map I just found on Kiplinger's (two days in a row, I know, I know!). They've taken the info available on the stimulus package and put it in a map detailing how much goes to each state and for what projects. For example, here's what Georgia is expected to get.

HOW THE STIMULUS PACKAGE AFFECTS YOUR STATE

More Focus on SMB's in New Administration

Do you all ever read Kiplinger's? I remember reading his newsletter 20+ years ago when I worked at my 2nd job out of college. I check out the online articles now and then. This caught my eye today: the Obama administration seems to be paying more attention to SMB's than the previous administration.

I also read on Kiplinger's why a recession is a good time to start a business. But I'm betting some of you already know that, right? I started my business during the last recession and it worked out pretty well for me. Lean times make us more creative, and more accountable.

Cross posted at SMB Hub.

How to Promote Your Business Blog

Our clients ask us all the time if they should have a business blog. We often answer with a qualified "yes." Most don't have time to maintain one, let alone figure out how to grow the traffic. For those of you who are actively blogging, here are some tips on how to grow traffic to your blog.

Cross posted at the SMB Hub (online meeting space for small and medium sized businesses)

Fun on a Friday -- You Dummy! (Sneak Preview Super Bowl ad)

My husband laughed so hard at this spot we had to rewind several times to catch some of the lines. He was particularly fond of "You Dummy!" shouted at the hapless cubicle dweller.

I'm one of those people who watch the Super Bowl for the ads (although now I just look them all up online the next day). CareerBuilder's taken it a step further -- and increased their buzz -- by releasing their ad ahead of time. Lots of web chatter, lots of YouTube views. Enjoy and have a great weekend!

YouTube - CareerBuilder.com Super Bowl 2009 commercial - 30 second sneak preview!

Twittering Tips for Beginners

We'll be writing more about Twitter in the weeks and months to come. We're also working on a webinar for small and medium-sized businesses on how to use Twitter (and how to tell if you need to be on Twitter). For those of you who want to check it out and don't know where to start, this blog post will give you a good overview. Twitter is both absurdly easy and maddeningly frustrating. People ask me all the time how to use it. Check out Pogue's tips, and let me know if you have questions.

Follow NTM on Twitter
Follow Sherean on Twitter

Twittering Tips for Beginners - Pogue’s Posts Blog - NYTimes.com

SMB's are the Job Creators

I just read this blog entry on the Washington Post that linked me to this fabulous site with small business stats. You can look up your site and find out how many jobs SMB's created and other small business facts. For example, small businesses were responsible for ALL of the net job gains in GA from 2004-2005.

I've read various statistics about job creation, but the one I see most often is that SMB's employ 80% of the nation's workforce. 80%! We need a larger voice in Washington -- or at least one that's commensurate with our awesome responsibility. We make up a huge part of the economy. We see the faces of our workers and go to sleep at night worrying about how we'll keep sales up so they can keep their jobs. Our employees are not nameless, faceless numbers that get cut when times are tough. (I'm not saying that Fortune 500 companies shouldn't make those cuts; just that it's more personal when we do.)

Cross Posted on the SMB Hub

The Snuggie's a Success?

My husband and I mock this product every time we see the commercial. I joke that the guy looks like a monk and that the sleeves are surely fire hazards. Chris is thinking of getting me one for my birthday. So imagine my surprise when I learned that Snuggies are flying off the shelves. Four million sold and a waiting list for more. Normally, I'd comment on their marketing strategy, or how their success reflects current trends, but today, I have only one word: huh?

Update: one of my Twitter buddies just told me she wears her robe backwards and ta-da! Instant Snuggie. Hilarious!