I arrived there in torrential rain and entered a premises that lacked personality, that lacked anything. No pictures, no branding, no product displays…nothing.
There was a display on the wall with Certificates of Incorporation and some certs confirming a legal change from one company name to another.
I was politely ushered into a room and three people joined the meeting.
The new product was produced and placed centre stage on the board room table. The bland, quite generic packaging was the first thing I noticed.
Where was the product made, what’s special about it, what has the journey been, what is the wow, what is the “story“?
I probed, I dug deep and I asked this crew why they developed this product, why it was in front of me on the table and why they brought it to market?
I was hoping to discover a unique (I hate that word) insight, I was hoping to hear some personal story, I wanted something that would help us to bring this “thing” to life in a genuine and authentic way that would connect with their target audience.
What I got was very profound – “it’s just a product that we think we can make money from”
We watched as the ‘leave‘ campaigners for Brexit celebrated their unexpected “win” – there was cockiness, arrogance and a big dose of “F##k You Europe” that was delivered with a huge lack of finesse and zero respect.
We heard the speeches in Europe and we listened to the laughing by the Brexiteers and we then heard European officials reacting to this with their own dose of bitterness and recrimination.
“If you want out, get out now”
On the ground non-UK residents working and living in the UK feel unwelcome in a place that many considered was their home and this hasn’t been helped by yobs who claim they “want them out“. Of course, not everyone is like this.
Stopping immigration was a big emotive message by the ‘leave‘ campaign and this effectively was directed at anyone living and working in the UK who is not from there and those who might consider living there in the future – a big penny dropped with young people from the UK that their ‘explore the world‘ ambitions have now been shackled by the consequences of the referendum.
Scotland are regretting their lack of independence and are passionately making noises about staying in Europe. Northern Ireland wants the same and it is clear that London certainly wants the same. Those from the UK living across Europe are wondering what their position is as they walk along their sandy beaches every day in Spain and beyond and contemplating how much further their income will drop due to currency changes.
When the results were analysed and the exit polls were conducted it was clear that the working class and the poor communities in the UK felt left behind and abandoned by politicians and big business and a way of registering this anger was by voting for a change and against the establishment.
Companies were dictating to their employees how they wanted them to vote (Nissan in Sunderland was a prime example) and once again this was an opportunity to deliver a big “F##k You” …I work for you but don’t you dare tell me what to do!! (the same happened in Ireland during the recent General Elections – is there a big trend?)
It now seems that many were quite unclear about what they were voting for and many of the ‘selling points‘ that were presented by the leave campaign were proven false and this has left a very poor taste in people’s mouths.
Sterling has weakened and stock markets have shuddered with colossal amounts being wiped off company values everywhere, which in turn will affect pension funds. Companies who operate in the UK are reconsidering their positions and already we are hearing that plans to expand have been cancelled. The big, bold and brave Richard Branson is claiming that he has cancelled a project in the UK that would have resulted in 1,000 jobs – not good!
The Irish aren’t happy because we do lots of business with the UK – will Europe allow small little Ireland special flexibility to deal with the UK? If they are in the angry mood that we are currently witnessing they are more likely to give the UK a kicking than a special deal. We are worried and angry about their questionable decision.
At a time when the UK needs strong leadership and stability we are seeing resignations, backstabbing and jockeying for position by those only too willing to enjoy the spoils of power as a result of this debacle.
The young, the old, people from the UK, Europeans working and living there, the Scots, Northern Ireland, the expats on sunny beaches, the Irish and the Europeans – everyone is angry!
At this time it is more important than ever that we stay calm, that we show respect, that our decision making and key next steps are all made with cool, clear heads.
Tony Blair in an article in the Daily Telegraph delivers a special message and a stark warning:
“Our nation is in peril. To allow us to come safely through this we need to be adult in our politics, to proceed with calm, maturity and without bitterness; because our future as a nation in the world and as the UK itself is at stake.”
He is right!
A second referendum might be a very good idea to ensure that this huge change of direction has been properly thought out and made with all of the information and a clear understanding of the consequences, which will be felt for a long time.
The EU also needs to take a good, long hard look in the mirror and figure out why a key partner and an important and influential global force such as the UK has decided to walk away – please listen and learn from this!
The EU must also be adult in their politics and act with “calm, maturity and without bitterness”
All parties in this complex mess need to do what is best and not what is motivated by anger and the quest for…
I was working on a proposal for a prospect and I wanted to find out more about the people behind the business.
Who started the business, who is involved now, what are they like, what is their background, what is their journey that brought them to today, is this a passion or just a way to make money?
I looked for the “about us” section on their website and like so many other websites these days I got nothing other than some generic “blurb” about what they do, which was just a variation of their homepage.
Who you are. your “story”, is an essential part of your brand. If I don’t see it here I may never bother trying to find out more.
I hate that – go on tell me about you and what makes you special.
I always get a little suspicious when people don’t. Is there something to hide? Do you not want people to know who is behind this enterprise?
The “about us” section of your website is one of the most important parts of the site. For me it is the “trust” section and the part of the site that convinces me why I should be comfortable dealing with you and explains why you are different to every other provider who offers similar products and services.
Go on, take the time today and fill out the “about us” section properly.
Share your genuine story with us, let that passion and authenticity for what you do shine through and please tell us about you and your fabulous team and the journey that brought you to today.
It was a busy day and I just finished a great social media session with a client. As per usual it went on longer than planned as we really got deep into the strategy and explored exactly how far we could change the public perception of their company by using social media in a clever way.
Jonathan was the only one left in the office and he told me that the presentation for the prospect we were meeting the following day was done. I asked him to press print on two copies as it would save me a little job the following day.
While I was tidying up the meeting room I spotted Jonathan at the binder and he was binding up the presentations for me.
“There’s no need to do that”
“Not a bother, what else would I be doing” he answered.
That wasn’t true – it was a gorgeous evening and he had a family to get home to.
Jonathan is our Creative Director, our head of design and without a word he jumped in to do this tiny thing for me.
At Fuzion we talk about having a Win Happy ethos. Helping and supporting each other is a big part of this.
What he did for me wasn’t a tiny thing, it was a huge thing – thanks Jonathan!
The organisation/body were looking for a provider:”to develop and implement a tailored work programme to address the skills, enterprise and capability gaps of rural nascent female entrepreneurs”
Any scheme that encourages entrepreneurship is a great thing but specifically creating an initiative that only people who have certain “physical attributes” seems to be unfair and in my opinion reeks of inequality.
I had a really great, inspirational day at the Dublin Chamber, Momentum Summit, which was held at the Aviva Stadium last Friday.
This was the second year of this full day event, which featured a really nice mix of speakers, master classes and good, old fashioned networking during the many coffee breaks, lunch and drinks reception.
We had top class panelists from a variety of businesses big and small around topics such as “Differentiation“, “Scaling” and “Online Opportunities“, we had a fantastic speaker Jamil Qureshi who spoke about the importance of your Mindset and your Purpose and lastly we had a “Competitive Edge” sporting panel, which included Paul O’Connell (who incorrectly predicted an Ulster win!), Henry Shefflin and Jack McCaffrey.
This easy and relaxed Friday was superb and as Dublin Chamber of Commerce President, Derry Gray eloquently suggested at the beginning of the day, it was “time for you to think and quietly reflect“, which I certainly did.
The two young entrepreneurs, Elaine Lavery and Hannah O’Reilly who co-founded Improper Butter spoke really well about their exciting start-up journey and I think they gave me and many others cause for reflection!
Privately while I listened to the story of these two young entrepreneurs I wondered about my life, my career and the things that I have achieved along the way. I have worked in fabulous companies, I opened, closed and sold many different businesses and now I am dedicating most of my energy to Fuzion, which I love.
That voice in my head started: “Should I have done more with my career, have I achieved what I wanted to, have I been a success, do I have the same energy that I had when I was the same age as these young entrepreneurs and I am ready for new exciting opportunities when they come along?”
Has it passed me and my generation by, I wondered and is it now up to a new generation to do these new things?
These thoughts were bothering me a little as I ate my lunch and the guy alongside me said loudly what I had been thinking. Some of the others I chatted to during the rest of the day were also saying the same.
While we were so clearly impressed by these young entrepreneurs we were at the same time feeling that our time had come and gone.
I hopped in the car and faced rush hour traffic (Luas strikers adding an extra layer of volume – thank you strikers and SIPTU!) as well as a trip to Cork to get to a long awaited comeback gig by Cork band, Rubyhorse.
Those thoughts about the “Momentum” of youth lingered with me on this longer than usual journey.
Eventually I got home, fed the dog and headed to the White Horse. Brendan my son and his buddy Alan were at the gig as well as Alan’s dad Harry – I was chatting with Harry as we watched our two boys, who are now in their late twenties. Both are part of this younger, carefree generation, both with exciting careers. Brendan is flying as a music and advert director and Alan is a writer who is just back after participating in a documentary project in Columbia of all places!
The boys are about to start work on a short film together based on the storyline from the music video that Brendan did for Gavin James “For You”.
We were chatting about this generation and how different they were to ours – at least that is what we feel. How many fathers and mothers have had this conversation about their children?
Harry told me about a young lad, who was a neighbour of his when he was growing up. This lad packed up school really early. As early as the age of 12 he used head to Croke Park from Cork on the train for big matches selling merchandise. At 17 he bought his first pub.
Harry met him recently and he is now working for someone else, happily punching out a weeks wage – we try things and some of these things fail. If enough things fail we retrench, we lose that will to try again and maybe that entrepreneurial spirit gets knocked out of us.
That question was back in my head – Do we lose that ‘Momentum’ as we get older?
The gig kicked off..
This gig is a really significant part of this blog post as there is a very special story behind it so bear with me just a little bit longer!
These guys came from my school in Cork – they formed a band and dreamed big!
The superb lead singer, Dave Farrell (he was born to be a lead singer!) was once sent home from school for declaring he wanted to be a rock star! It was like that at that time – get a solid job was what we were all encouraged to do.
Dave and his band of merry men followed their dreams and their success came in the United States where a few years of hard work and great songs resulted in them hitting the Top 20 with appearances on the top TV shows such as The Letterman and the Conal O’Brien show.
In an interview with the Irish Emigrant in 2003 Dave spoke about the differences between Ireland and the U.S., which he summed up in one comment “Here, you have loads of freedom and opportunities. America grants you the opportunity to pursue a dream“. Things have changed in Ireland..
Unfortunately through a combination of burnout, geography and young families these special, very talented school friends called it a day on Rubyhorse and settled in to ‘ordinary’ lives in different parts of the world.
Through a quirk of circumstances (a charity reunion last year) these older and wiser guys are now back with a vengeance and a very privileged audience were treated to a proper Rubyhorse gig full of old classics and some sparking new material from a new album that will come later this year. (Well done Dave, Joe and Deccie and a few new faces!)
After a superb gig and a few beers I walked home and thought – We are older, we have experienced the highs and lows that life throws us but we still have it and we are going to “Sparkle” just like this new generation.
It’s all about our Mindset and Purpose!
If we want it …we have Momentum
Check out “Sparkle” the track that broke Rubyhorse in the U.S.
What is the right thing to do when someone mentions you or your business/organisation in a complimentary, “nice” manner on Twitter?
Let’s take a simple example:
“Well done to @FuzionPRIreland for helping us above and beyond with our product launch” … a nice tweet by a client (it does happen!) that makes us look good in front of their followers and anyone who might spot the tweet.
Take a second before answering and forget about Twitter and think about what you would do in the real world if this happened?
Would you ignore the person who complimented you? Nope!
Would you thank the person who gave you the compliment? Probably
Would you like as many people as possible to know that a client was happy to go “public” with their satisfaction about your service? Probably
Now let’s look at Twitter and the do’s and don’ts in this scenario and consider how the ‘tweeter’ feels in each case.
Don’t ..
Ignore the positive tweet – “I said something nice and Fuzion didn’t even acknowledge me. I’m sorry I tweeted them!”
Or
Retweet the positive tweet adding no comment – “Fuzion never acknowledged me but just retweeted the nice thing I said to make themselves look good”
(From my experience this is what most people do)
Do …
Thank the person/organisation who tweeted Fuzion by replying to their tweet “thank you so much for the kind words, it’s great to work with great people” – this way you have acknowledged them publicly and now all your followers will see a tweet that had some positive element at its source
And
Retweet their tweet but this time add a comment that both acknowledges the tweeter but also shows you are not being self serving: “It’s great to work with special people” – this way everyone sees that you are nice but also they get to see the original ‘complimentary‘ tweet
There you go … That’s my “nice” twitter tip!
You can tweet me at @GregCantyFuzion and thank me and see what happens!!
Boarding our Ryanair flight from Liverpool to Cork I uttered the words I have uttered many times before to Brendan, my son “I hate Ryanair”
He took me up on it straight away “give it a rest,they are really good now, way different to before”
Sure enough the process felt different, the APP made it easy to manage our booking and the stampede for seats that used happen before when the boarding gate opened just wasn’t there now.
“Why do you still hate them” he asked?
I explained that I hated that Michael O’Leary had such a disdain for customers and customer service and this was the cornerstone of the brand. I hated how it made me feel when I used the airline and swore that I would even avoid destinations if they were the airline to take you there.
This time the Liverpool v Borussia Dortmund match dictated the destination and Ryanair was the best way to get back to Cork.
We are handed a magazine as we board… It’s not a magazine but a catalogue of things to buy – there is nowhere to put it except by my feet as there is no pocket on the back of the seat. The back of the seat instead carries safety information and an advert for cosmetics that can be purchased on board.
I look down the gaudy big yellow bus, the heat is on full blast and everyone is fidgeting with their air vents. The people around me grumble about the stifling heat while the pleasant hostess passes by quickly wanting to know who wants to buy scratch cards (I presume some people like to buy them but for the life of me I can’t imagine why – I feel for her, it must be a part of the job she hates!).
I’m looking forward to getting off in Cork and for this flight being over but first I’ll finish this blog post about brands and how they make you feel.
I guess Ryanair have improved a lot but yeah …I still hate them but not as much as before.
Sunday of the bank holiday weekend and I knuckled down.
I had to clear down emails, work on copy for the new Fuzion brochure and work on new training materials for an updated social media course.
A dark cloud appeared over my head as I was in no mood for this work and everything was a grind for me.
The cloud got darker and darker and eventually I had to call a day on my work as we had planned to pop over to friends for the evening.
I was in poor form as we walked over to our buddies as I felt my “day off” had been ruined.
And then it came to me – I love what I do but I had been treating the work I had to do as a series of ‘chores‘ and not ‘challenges‘ because of my poor frame of mind and as a result my day and mood were ruined.
Every email was full of potential opportunity, the work on our brochure was a chance to really capture who we are and showcase why we are a special agency and the work on my new social media course notes was a way to explore new features and how to apply them.
I had wasted my day ..
If your work is a series of chores try changing your mindset and turn them into challenges.
If they are still chores despite the change of mindset then it’s time to change what you do!
I’m sitting on a plane heading to the UK with Brendan my son for a huge Liverpool FC match versus Borussia Dortmund. How he managed to get tickets for such a match I have no idea but then again he has always managed to do things like this with his interesting network of friends and connections.
He is absolutely buzzing as he has just won another role directing a major advert for a huge international brand. After the Budweiser, Conor McGregor “Dream Big” advert this kind of work was going to come.
His enthusiasm is infectious and I listen to his plans, how he wants to shoot the advert, who he wants to cast in it and I watch him as he quickly and seamlessly sketches out the storyboard for the advert on his notebook.
He was chatting to me about the costume girl for the advert and he has opted for Sarah who was the costume girl in one of his fantastic music videos. The problem with Sarah is that she hasn’t done commercial work before but the great thing about Sarah is that she is raw, beautiful, authentic, pure and a gorgeous fresh face that Brendan knows will deliver something very special.
Adverts are big business and the process is expensive so you need people who know what they are doing so using an unknown, unproven person is a risk so the safe thing to do is to hire someone who has done it before.
He has told me she is already proving to be a star as she has gone away and researched the role so she can immerse herself in it and she has even unearthed material that will help the overall project.
Sometimes being safe is risky and if you want something special, something that will make a real difference then take a leap of faith and go with that unproven star who could just bring you some magic.
I arrived there in torrential rain and entered a premises that lacked personality, that lacked anything. No pictures, no branding, no product displays…nothing.
Greg Canty Fuzion Blog 