“The parental control was pre-installed on my new computer.” Said my friend happily, feeling relieved from facing the potential challenges that might have occurred if he were to install it himself! “You don’t have to install it anymore.”
I was rather supervised, why on earth, Dell would have pre-installed the parental control software on their laptops. I tried to justify such a move, but it was very odd. As a 30-year-old man with no kids, what good is parental control software to me? Is Dell actively focusing families to that extent that decided to put me out of their target market and force me to uninstall another freeware? It just doesn’t make sense. Why would they do that? I sank into these contemplations to figure out what Dell was trying to accomplish.
The phone rang. It was my friend again. “Hey dude! What is the password for this parental control?” he said. “I don’t know. Usually the default password is all zeros.” I said confidently. “No, it doesn’t work” he shouted.
“Hmmmm...” I thought for a second. “I don’t know your password. But I know who might know that password.” I said.
“Customer Service?” he asked.
“No, your son! I think he has installed the whole thing to block you from surfing porn!” I laughed.
To his demise, I was correct. In the world of tech savvy kids, parents have a lot to catch up and the kids are enjoying their natural upper hand.
Aug 6, 2009
Feb 1, 2009
What will happen to the cows?!
Well,
I cannot get the image of those poor cows, pigs and chickens out of my head. They were fighting hard for the last second of their lives before the cruel man-made machine - or sometimes the man himself!- cut their throats and spill their blood. It was horrifying.
But, at the same time, we should ask what would happen if we start compete with the same cows over veggies?! What would the landscape look like in the long-run? Can the cows survive without us? What incentive would people have to keep them and feed them and not to kill them to eat them?
Something does not sound right!
I cannot get the image of those poor cows, pigs and chickens out of my head. They were fighting hard for the last second of their lives before the cruel man-made machine - or sometimes the man himself!- cut their throats and spill their blood. It was horrifying.
But, at the same time, we should ask what would happen if we start compete with the same cows over veggies?! What would the landscape look like in the long-run? Can the cows survive without us? What incentive would people have to keep them and feed them and not to kill them to eat them?
Something does not sound right!
Sexual PETA and Super Bowl
It costs over 3 million dollars to air a 30-second commercial in super bowl. However, PETA, animal right activists, took advantage of the super bowl exposure and yet did not pay that 3 million dollars. How did they do it?
They made an ad which was too sexual for TV and purposefully got banned from the super bowl and yet, as you can guess, people swarmed to their website to see it!
Interesting enough, once you watch the 30-second sexy commercial, the 2nd commercial, which I suspect was the original one,
will be played instantly with a much stronger and convincing message.
To watch the commercial click here
Reza Sabernia
They made an ad which was too sexual for TV and purposefully got banned from the super bowl and yet, as you can guess, people swarmed to their website to see it!
Interesting enough, once you watch the 30-second sexy commercial, the 2nd commercial, which I suspect was the original one,
will be played instantly with a much stronger and convincing message.
To watch the commercial click here
Reza Sabernia
Jan 7, 2009
Short-termism
Do you jab at the elevator button? You are not alone. Every day, instead of taking stairs to my office on the 2nd floor, I take the elevator to observe how people jab at the already-lit elevator button. To me, this is the sign that our species have reached our limit for human productivity.
Busy with our immediate goals, we are completely oblivious how miserably we are stuck inside a short-termism trap. Instead of democracy, we exported this short-termism to the rest of the world. We start a war for the same reasons that we want to end it immediately. In EU, we enticed a budding market into bankruptcy with exporting our financial benchmarks! In the Middle East, to satisfy our own voters, our elected presidents, choose short-term turmoil over long-term solution to a nearly-one-century-old problem. Even corporate America is not immune. Many companies train their salespeople to deceive potential customers and lure them into long-term contracts. These are all manifestation of a society that sacrifices a long-term goal for a short-term gain.
Reza Sabernia
Busy with our immediate goals, we are completely oblivious how miserably we are stuck inside a short-termism trap. Instead of democracy, we exported this short-termism to the rest of the world. We start a war for the same reasons that we want to end it immediately. In EU, we enticed a budding market into bankruptcy with exporting our financial benchmarks! In the Middle East, to satisfy our own voters, our elected presidents, choose short-term turmoil over long-term solution to a nearly-one-century-old problem. Even corporate America is not immune. Many companies train their salespeople to deceive potential customers and lure them into long-term contracts. These are all manifestation of a society that sacrifices a long-term goal for a short-term gain.
Reza Sabernia
Dec 27, 2008
To: Georgio Armani
Your Two-Step View:
1. Based on Harvard-recommended marketing textbooks, you must only focus on your target market.
2. Your target market is the rich minority since no one else can afford what you have to offer.
Your Conclusion: Ignore everyone but the rich.
Your Action: Skin the rabbits and make expensive fur coats.
***
The Missing Step:
3. In the post-Twitter world, everyone, regardless of his socio-economic class, can “afford” your reputation.
A Better Conclusion: Don’t ignore anyone.
Possible Action: Hold your promises, even those made to the not-target market: Let the rabbits live.
Till then, no matter how irresistible your Boxing Day sale is, I choose not be a member of your target market.
Reza Sabernia
1. Based on Harvard-recommended marketing textbooks, you must only focus on your target market.
2. Your target market is the rich minority since no one else can afford what you have to offer.
Your Conclusion: Ignore everyone but the rich.
Your Action: Skin the rabbits and make expensive fur coats.
***
The Missing Step:
3. In the post-Twitter world, everyone, regardless of his socio-economic class, can “afford” your reputation.
A Better Conclusion: Don’t ignore anyone.
Possible Action: Hold your promises, even those made to the not-target market: Let the rabbits live.
Till then, no matter how irresistible your Boxing Day sale is, I choose not be a member of your target market.
Reza Sabernia
Dec 22, 2008
Don't Become You.Com (119 words)
How do you portray yourself when communicating with others using online social media e.g. Twitter and Facebook? Are you just simply you? Or do you transform yourself to an engineered entity? In virtual world, some people attach a corporation to their identity, believing this lends them credibility and professionalism. Does it work?
Personally, when online, I’d rather to communicate with a real person with whom I share certain interests. I, also, avoid those whose identity is stranded in the organizations and communities they are involved with. To me, social media are for deep and meaningful connections. If you have never experienced such connections, well, that is too unfortunate since you are missing out very early in the game.
Reza Sabernia
Personally, when online, I’d rather to communicate with a real person with whom I share certain interests. I, also, avoid those whose identity is stranded in the organizations and communities they are involved with. To me, social media are for deep and meaningful connections. If you have never experienced such connections, well, that is too unfortunate since you are missing out very early in the game.
Reza Sabernia
Dec 15, 2008
Your Virtual Persona Won't Cut It...
Have you ever wondered how many of your virtual friends can be your BBQ buddies? They are on your Yahoo’s friend list. You spend a few hours to chat with them every day and overtime you may share a secret or two with them. You also have seen a few of their photos on Facebook. They send you incessant tweets on Twitter. Why not physically hang around with them? At the end of the day, John is funny in the chatrooms and Janet sends very thoughtful tweets. Does that make John good for parties and Janet suitable for an intellectual conversation?
I can safely say that not that many people are willing to meet their online buddies unless there are very strong shared interests. The reason for this reluctance is the nature of the Internet itself. As a medium, it has enabled us – and others - to impersonate, intentionally or subconsciously. While our social persona acts as a mask to cover our weaknesses and insecurities, the virtual persona is the potion we always needed to transform ourselves into our role models. In the chatrooms you can be Elvis flirting with other women; In your blog, you can be an investment banker fighting over proposed economic plans.
What does that have to with reputation? I don’t think someone who establishes a solid reputation in the virtual world can easily carry it outside of the Internet. Well, some Internet pioneers did it during the Internet bubble. Some are still trying this using the hype for social networking. But at the end of the day, the people in the brick-and-mortar world, who are comfortable with dealing with you based on your “real” persona, will think twice to build a relationship solely based on your virtual reputation. Your virtual reputation might get you to their doors, but as soon as you knock, it will become obsolete and you need to present your “real” you. That means for building a holistic reputation, whether as an individual or business, one needs to simultaneously fight two battles: real and virtual.
Reza Sabernia
I can safely say that not that many people are willing to meet their online buddies unless there are very strong shared interests. The reason for this reluctance is the nature of the Internet itself. As a medium, it has enabled us – and others - to impersonate, intentionally or subconsciously. While our social persona acts as a mask to cover our weaknesses and insecurities, the virtual persona is the potion we always needed to transform ourselves into our role models. In the chatrooms you can be Elvis flirting with other women; In your blog, you can be an investment banker fighting over proposed economic plans.
What does that have to with reputation? I don’t think someone who establishes a solid reputation in the virtual world can easily carry it outside of the Internet. Well, some Internet pioneers did it during the Internet bubble. Some are still trying this using the hype for social networking. But at the end of the day, the people in the brick-and-mortar world, who are comfortable with dealing with you based on your “real” persona, will think twice to build a relationship solely based on your virtual reputation. Your virtual reputation might get you to their doors, but as soon as you knock, it will become obsolete and you need to present your “real” you. That means for building a holistic reputation, whether as an individual or business, one needs to simultaneously fight two battles: real and virtual.
Reza Sabernia
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