Yes, you do benefit from social media – part 1

According to some companies and heads of marketing, social media is a nice to have, but a non essential. They’re still playing the “yes but where’s the proof it generates sales?” game. So I’ve put together what I think is the case for social media as part of your marketing mix. The Penguin and Panda changes to Google have made social important to SEO Penguin, Panda and Social SEO Since Google updates Penguin and Panda, social media interactions... Read More

Is your marketing too clingy?

Don’t be a clingy company. Once you get a customer, it can be hard to let go. But what’s the difference between holding onto a customer and being way too clingy? Read on!   Awkward Email Unsubscribe Guess what? Customers (potential and actual) will occasionally sign up for your email newsletter and then decide it isn’t for them. Don’t make their unsubscribe process hard. Don’t ask them to enter passwords when you know full well they... Read More

5 Ways your website is driving people nutty

Having proved that yes, you do need a website, now let’s look at the ways your website could be driving people nutty and therefore not converting them into customers. Blocking Content When someone is reading on your site and getting to know what you do, stop blocking them with pop up prompts or floating social media that makes it hard to read. It’s like being at a concert, wanting to get into the action and then having some 6 foot 5 behemoth stand... Read More

Marketing Myth Busting

Marketing isn’t some magic witchery found on the high of a mountain once you say the secret code to the gatekeeper. It’s actually a form of communication that combines branded storytelling, creativity, sales and product education in such a way as to attract customers. Let’s get rid of a few marketing myths that keep popping up so that you can make your marketing practical and useful. Ready? Let’s go! People don’t buy gibberish You don’t... Read More

Yes, you do need a website

You would think the whole “do I really need a website?” question would have been put to rest a long time ago. However, in recent months I have come across opposite sides of the argument questioning whether a website is necessary. One end of the see-saw was a freelancer who’d used WordPress a few years ago, his search stopped working for some reason and he didn’t have the time or brain space how to work out how to fix it. The other end... Read More

That eBook Experiment? I failed

You might remember I set myself the goal of gaining 1000 followers by January 31st 2013 in order to give myself that push towards writing my very first eBook. The idea was to really put the pressure on myself to get the task done, considering it kept popping up sporadically on the TO DO LIST like some kind of goofy Meer Cat but progressing no further. Well, I failed. I got to 990 followers at January 31st. I sat there for a little while considering... Read More

Writing without pants: The life of a creative copywriter

My bum is in the wind, feeling a bit of an early chill as it wisps past. The butterflies in my stomach are playing shuttlecock with my breakfast Berocca and I can’t quite decide if it’s Jimi Hendrix or the Gossip who will get me through the day. Yes folks, I am a modern day adventurer. I’m jacked into the internet tighter than a ‘Snog, Marry, Avoid’ casualty is into her spandex. I wear to great clumping robot arms on each wrist to stop my... Read More

Roadtesting: No B.S Trust Based Marketing

Taking the opportunity to catch up with some reading during my holidays, I tackled No B.S Trust Based Marketing. I was seeking something that could help the countless startups I have worked with, some information and guidance on how to foster trust with consumers quicker. What started out as promising very rapidly deteriorated into a complete an utter waste of my time. Here’s how:   Customers are Irrational “I bought the entire book... Read More

Going Mobile!

Things are getting super mobile in the world of Unashamedly Creative of late. It’s pretty amazing to see the explosion of content and usage of mobile Apps as more and more people change over to smart phones. Currently, I have 3 projects now on mobile with another to come (which I will talk about closer to release). Check them out!   Gomi: A new client of mine, Gomi, is a great little App that allows you to keep your local streets clean and... Read More

The Dumbest Mistakes a Startup Can Make

Having worked with the likes of successful startups Space Heroes Universe, Pozible and Open Shed, as well as keeping my finger on the Australian and overseas startup scenes, I’ve noticed a couple of really (and I mean face palm central here) mistakes startups can make. Want to know what the dumbest mistakes startups can make so you can avoid them? Great! Let’s do this thing. 1.       Not Taking Content Seriously This is pretty much the... Read More

69 Ways to Keep Your Sanity When Marketing

It was my birthday the other day and I realised I have been in marketing for over 17 years. In that time, I have seen a heck of a lot of things change. So it made me wonder how I have managed to stay sane, keep with the times and metamorphosis into a strategic freelance marketer. 69 Ways to Keep Your Sanity When Marketing is a result of that pondering. The various forms of advice help keep me going in the right direction. I hope you enjoy it and... Read More

Roadtesting: Maverick Startup

I picked up the Maverick Startup by Yanik Silver as it seemed to have a bit more substance than the usual “go team go!” style startup book. Startup is a difficult subject because in reality, there isn’t a road to fame and fortune, a bunch of stencils you need to fill in for guaranteed success or even consensus in the approach you can take to be a success. Startup is in essence the ultimate bootstrapping challenge. And as you are bootstrapping... Read More

Retail Survival Guide: The real reason why online kicks butt

Bricks and mortar retail- hitting a brick wall? The reality is you can still walk into a bricks and mortar store, stand around for ages whilst the staff have a giggle fest, once they finally notice you are there they can’t answer any questions and then you find out the model you want is 3 weeks away, can’t be delivered to your house and doesn’t have extended warranty. As soon as after care is needed, no one is picking up the phone,... Read More

Retail Survival Guide: Myths and Misconceptions

We’re hearing a lot in Australia currently about how retail is suffering and having a bad time of it. So how can you as a retailer, small or large, help yourself to survive? Consider this your retail survival guide! Myths and Misconceptions First of all, dealing with this problem effectively needs to start with a little bit of myth busting. Ready? It’s not cheap imports via internet shopping that is causing you problems. Price isn’t always... Read More

Using Twitter as Your Blog’s Loud Hailer

So you’ve planned out your blog, checked a few blogging lessons and you’ve got a hankering to get it out into the world. Great! Meet your new best friend, Twitter. Look, Facebook is OK but if you want more than your mates reading your stuff, Twitter should be your main social media. With Twitter, you end up with the following reach: Your followers, Under specific topic headings via tags, The followers of your followers, Via trending topics, As... Read More

6 Roadblocks That Cost You Customers

Imagine if you had a long deserved holiday planned and you had to travel in the car for a couple of hours to get there. Now imagine if little things beyond your control started making the drive longer, unpredictable and stressful. You’d end up starting your holiday with a poor first impression that may even affect the whole vacation. The same applies to your online experience. Customers are travelling to your site to enjoy your product. That journey... Read More

9 Things Your Product Cannot Be

No, I am not talking about whether your moose nostril hair trimmer will fly, I am talking generally about the 9 Things Your Product Cannot Be in terms of what will survive in an increasingly competitive market and survive as a startup. Are you ready? Your Product Cannot Be… For everyone Seth Godin says “a product for everyone is a product for no one” and it’s true. You need to know who your fine little wedge in the market is and speak... Read More

Roadtesting: Word of Mouth Marketing

You’d have to be living under a rock somewhere not to know the power of word of mouth marketing. Trouble is it’s such a hard thing to cultivate it often ends up in the marketing too hard basket. So in an effort to check out if there is a magic formula, I picked up Andy Sernovitz’s Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking. Here is what I got from it. People trust opinions from people who haven’t let them down previously.... Read More

Copywriting No-No List

Being a creative Sydney copywriter, I do dig around in cyberspace a lot checking out how people go about their writing. Sometimes I stumble across things that make me cringe, wonder what the heck the person was thinking or shake my head in bemusement. If you don’t want someone like me or your customers having the same reaction to what you write, avoid the copywriting no-no list! 1. Writing to ‘match’ your competitors. Find your own... Read More

The Results of the TaskRunners Survey

Thank you to everyone who who took the time to respond to the very first survey by new collaborative consumption business, TaskRunners. For those of you who don’t know, TaskRunners aims to carve out opportunities for free time and extra cash by sharing tasks across neighbourhoods and communities. This exciting little client of mine is run by soon-to-be-mumma on a mission Cheryl Leong who is throwing her all behind hooking up people with assistance... Read More

Pozible Crowdfunding for Startup

Last night I crashed an intimate evening of people discussing how to use crowdfunding for startup with Pozible Co-founder Alan Crabbe.   Why crowdfunding and startup? Crowdfunding is a great way to measure early adoption of your product and/or to financially support your goals in a way that can also be used to demonstrate popularity with Angels, funding bodies and more. But how do you use it to its best advantage?   The platform is a tool: The... Read More

Clients in the News

It’s always super rewarding to see Unashamedly Creative clients kick goals but September has been especially awesome for TaskRunners, Open Shed and  Space Heroes.   Cheryl from TaskRunners at the Breakfast Point Fair TaskRunners First Public Appearance I met Cheryl from TaskRunners 3 months ago when she was still working her full time job and just about ready to make the leap into the dizzying world of startup. Since then, Cheryl and I have... Read More

Bill Tai at SydStart 2012

Bill Tai was someone I was definitely looking forward to at SydStart and he didn’t disappoint. There is just something nice about understated honesty and you have to respect a guy who compares business to the thrill and adrenalin of kite surfing. According to Bill, a startup business is like a wave- you can only ever be in front, behind or on the wave itself.  Too early and even the best idea will just end up not quite getting to shore, too late... Read More

Be your own strategic freelance marketer

It’s easy for me to stand up on the roof and shout “look at me, I’m a creative Sydney copywriter and strategic freelance marketer!” but what would be the point if I didn’t take my own medicine and try to write a lot and market myself? When you become a freelancer your clients don’t just turn up at your door asking to hire you. Even the super popular ones are rocking it through making themselves known to people on a regular basis. You... Read More

Pinterest 201: Pinning to Get Noticed

There’s content flying all around Pinterest at the moment and there is a lot of talk about how it can benefit your creative pursuits or marketing. But how can you make that happen? Well, check the Pinterest basics first  and then jump on board for this edition, Pinning to Get Noticed. Think about how it can work for you Planning any kind of social media is a better way to go than to just dive right in and Pinterest is no exception. For some businesses... Read More

Pinterest 101

Already making a huge splash in the market, Pinterest is proving extremely popular with people- especially women. So how do you make the most out of Pinterest for your business? Consider this your 101 on starting Pinterest on the right foot. The basics: Registration: If you are going to use an existing social media login for your Pinterest registration, Twitter is the better choice when compared to Facebook. Facebook only links Pinterest to your... Read More

TaskRunners becomes Unashamedly Creative!

The latest startup as part of the Australian collaborative consumption movement, TaskRunners Australia, has joined the Unashamedly Creative portfolio! Since the collaborative consumption (or collcon as it is affectionately known) hit Australian shores in earnest, over 60 new businesses have sprouted around the country. The latest, TaskRunners, is about bringing people together to lighten the domestic burden, help small business operators and give... Read More

Roadtesting: The Mesh by Lisa Ganksy

Considering the rise of collaborative consumption in Australia, it was time to take a look at the Mesh by Lisa Gansky. Here is what I gained from reading it. Trust: Anything to do with community, trust is fundamental. Trust is a social currency too and the best way to build it is through hyper-social activity. The more social people feel, the more likely they are to connect and the more connection they make, the more trust will follow. The more trust,... Read More

Customers are People First

In this day and age, where we know that people have access to Google, review sites, social media and word of mouth in order to make an informed purchase decision, it still boggles the mind that some companies and products insist on treating their intended customers like idiots. It might be oddly comforting to think everyone fits into one cookie cutter design, or that we truly are “sheeple” that have no clue what we are buying but attitudes like... Read More

The A to Z of Aussie Freelance Resources

If you freelance and you are in Australia, here are a few things that’ll probably make your life easier. If you have any to suggest, by all means send them through! Couple of notes: I have tried to be accurate with URL and description, however if I have got something wrong somewhere, do let me know this too! Any mistakes are not intentional. This list has been done voluntarily. I’ve tried to keep it relevant and helpful to Australia but not include... Read More

Roadtesting: The 4 Steps to the Epiphany

Part textbook with worksheets, part case study and all customer development model book, the 4 Steps to the Epiphany does read like homework, but it is the homework that a lot of businesses fail to do that could increase their chances of success. Here is a book trying to educate people away from failure using a very common sense idea- develop for the customer. The 4 Steps to the Epiphany refutes the notion that start-ups should “fail fast” (the... Read More

Open Shed gets a makeover!

The gang held a wee bit of a working bee and spruced up some of the Open Shed features recently. The aim is to make your Open Shed experience a member friendly and community orientated one, so they’ve done a lot of work around making things easier to use and more flexible for your needs. Here are the major changes in no particular order. Makeover Time Whilst Open Shed is still the collaborative consumption site you know and love, it’s had... Read More

Always Start From Scratch

When you are invited to do some else’s marketing or copywriting, it can be tempting to take a look at what has gone before and go from there. But the trouble with this approach is you don’t give yourself or the product in question the opportunity to take advantage of a fresh eye. Here are the top 4 reasons why you should always start from scratch. 1) Fresh Eyes Are Invaluable When a group of people have been working on something for a while,... Read More

Guest Post: Social Media 101 (mark II)

Social Media 101 (mark II)   This is Part Two of a Two-Part Blog Series by the Queen of Social at Sarah Allen Consulting on how freelancers can use social media marketing to get results. If you missed Part One or would like a refresher, click here. Howdy freelancers.   You’ve had a few weeks now to digest Part One on Social Media 101 for Freelancers, which was all about the importance of seeing social media as a conversation, finding... Read More

Roadtesting: Purple Cow by Seth Godin

There are a lot of books written on marketing and now with blogs, it can be a situation of truly wondering if you are going to get some real advice, or just “marketing wash” to sell the book or blog itself. Some advice is so dated it sounds like a “comes with free steak knives” style ad in your head. Other stuff is just pure SEO work that values ranking over content. Snore! But once in a while there is a marketer who truly knows what they... Read More

Social Media Expert Schmexpert

Admittedly, I have a tongue like cactus at time and can be a little quick to fire the opinion gun. And I can be a little stubborn at times when it comes to letting go of an opinion once formed. This is why I have sat on this particular topic before putting pen to paper for nigh on two years now. But enough mulling over, it has to be done. It must be said. I seriously cannot stand people who call themselves “social media experts”. Harsh? Maybe.... Read More

Acing Email Marketing Campaigns

As a creative copywriter, I have been asked to make suggestions and generally improve overall performance of email marketing campaigns for more than a decade. Consider these tips your guide to help make your email newsletters and/or campaigns sparkle! Choose Responses over Clicks One of the most common dilemmas my client’s come to me with is that their click through rate has gone down. This is worrying sure, because one of the metrics we are trained... Read More

Just Don’t Move: Pt 3

I often talk about empowered customers and how we all have so much choice, flexibility and options these days. It isn’t until you move and you deal with utility companies however that you realise how screwed in certain departments you are. Here is my third and final part of the series entitled “Just Don’t Move”   We’re rolling out a National Broadband Network…Unless you live in Waverley- iiNet is my provider and have... Read More

Just Don’t Move: Pt2

I often talk about empowered customers and how we all have so much choice, flexibility and options these days. It isn’t until you move and you deal with utility companies however that you realise how screwed in certain departments you are. Here is my second part of the series entitled “Just Don’t Move” Second Hurdle: Entering the Gas Company Wasteland- We have a very old airy house and one gas appliance- a gas heater. Considering... Read More

Just Don’t Move: Pt 1

I often talk about empowered customers and how we all have so much choice, flexibility and options these days. It isn’t until you move and you deal with utility companies however that you realise how screwed in certain departments you are. Here is my first part of the series entitled “Just Don’t Move” First Hurdle: My Electricity Company Thinks I am a Shapeshifter- I notified the electricity (Energy Australia) of our new address... Read More

Just Don’t Move- Intro

I often talk about empowered customers and how we all have so much choice, flexibility and options these days. It isn’t until you move and you deal with utility companies however that you realise how screwed in certain departments you are. After dealing with my recent move from Redfern to Waverley I have told my partner I never ever want to move again. They’ll need one hell of a big shoe horn and a crate full of tranquilisers to get me out... Read More

Roadtesting: Juicing the Orange

The funniest reaction I have had to reading this book is someone half jokingly asking “Do you really need a book for that?” Not sure if they have a 50% leaning to me being somewhat dim enough not to know how to make orange juice (I can…well, I could if I wanted to, honest!) or commenting on why creativity is needed so desperately in marketing, but here it is, “Juicing the Orange”.   Obviously what attracted me was the idea of creativity... Read More

Do you follow brainmates?

Are you a Product Manager? Do you follow the brainmates community? Then they need to hear from you! As a member of the brainmates Product Management community, brainmates are inviting you to help improve the quality of their offerings via the brainmates Customer Satisfaction Survey. It is their aim to create a brainmates experience that really works for you- from training through to consulting, content and eMuse, events and more- based on your feedback.... Read More

Case Study: Barossa Real Estate

Background: Situated in the heart of Australia’s leading wine region at Tanunda, Barossa Real Estate was an established business within the Barossa Valley, South Australia. Surviving on a placeholder web page and working in the highly competitive and ever changing game of real estate, Barossa Real Estate (BRE) needed both copy and web solutions to differentiate their business from others in the area. Objective: • Go beyond providing information... Read More

Help Open Shed Out!

I have a client in the collaborative consumption space called Open Shed. If you haven’t heard of collaborative consumption before, it is about taking an item sharing it with another person- check out here for details. This great little start-up needs help from people like you! Yes you- ordinary community minded people who share their time, belongings and spirit with each other! Open Shed offer people the ability to list their own stuff so others... Read More

Updated: Some Pretty Cool Stuff

The internet has become a pretty cool playground! Whether you are creative, into business or chasing a new way to crack a project, there are some definitely head turning newbie’s out there. Here are a few of my current favourites. Note: I have taken them from the angle of how they help creative people and businesses because that is what interests me. Most of these do however have much further reaching applications. Plan Big: PlanBig has been around... Read More

Crush it- I freakin’ love it!

I did the super uber nerdy reader thing in January and went to one of those “50 Books You Have to Read” for business people. What can I say, I was a little tired of re-reading my current collection and really don’t like snuggling up with a good blog before I go to bed. From that list, beyond the Richard Branson books I already had (being a card carrying Fanson, you know I had to have them!) I chose an unremarkable number of books- 6 to be exact.... Read More

The Empowered Consumer

We hear a lot these days about how we as consumers are the mercy of big corporations, are being dealt a rough hand by paying over inflated prices or are being mislead by advertising more than ever. I have to say, what utter hogwash! It appears to me consumers (and we are all consumers in one way shape or form) are more empowered than we have ever been. Here’s how: We can shop however we want, whenever we want Australia really has come into its own... Read More

A Fab Feb eMuse from brainmates!

Welcome to the Fabulous February edition of eMuse! We’ve got exciting news about a new partnership, we look at the minimum viable product with Adrienne, Nick dons his spacesuit for some sci-fi inspired innovation, Nat implores us not to forget the buyer and the brainmates get set to get conversational in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne with Product Talks. Read on to find out more!In this issue: brainmates and Ryma: Delivering Product Management... Read More

A Game Plan for 2012

Tucking into another busy year? Here are a couple of tips to help you start with a level playing field through planning out your game plan for the year. Start the Game Right Imagine the new year ahead like a chess board and get ready to start the game. Think of the white pieces are the things you can control and the black pieces are the competitors and things that crop up outside your planning and control. To identify your white pieces: List out... Read More

So simple it has to work…

I recently finished reading The Secrets of Word of Mouth Marketing by George Silverman (have put up some pieces from it previously and still have another 5 pages of notes I may share, depending). Each time I pick up a book of this kind, it’s great to find some kernel of wisdom that really rings the bell. Here is that bell ringer for me. I wrote down a heading (like the studious little freak I am) of “Six Steps to Harnessing Word of Mouth” with... Read More

Jaws: Taking a Bite Out of the Competition

Holidays mean sitting back and relaxing, so here I am, late at night watching Jaws. Yes, great viewing for a seaside holiday right? Anyway, that, combined with currently reading 3 books at once, one single message seems to becoming clearer and clearer… people enjoy a slow reveal and anticipation much more than being beaten over the head with a message over and over again. Am I stating the blindingly obvious? You would think so. I know my writing... Read More

More Word of Mouth Goodness

The Secret of Word of Mouth, 2nd edition, by George Silverman More word of mouthly goodness… (if you have missed the first instalment, check here ) Getting the Right Attention… Getting Attention is important for the right reasons and using the right methods. In order to get this right, think about the following: What does your product improve? The faster you deliver a positive experience, the more loyal your consumer will become Focus... Read More

The Secrets of Word of Mouth Marketing Pt1

The Secrets of Word of Mouth Marketing, 2nd edition, by George Silverman Admittedly, I am only half way through this book so I hope it doesn’t end with a big fizz. However, I have already grabbed some great points from it I would like to share. Well, actually I am half way through and made about 10 pages worth of notes, so if I leave it too long it may overwhelm me with the sheer amount to write up, but I digress… Here is what I have found... Read More

Retail and the Multi-Channel, Mobile Australian Consumer

By far the biggest impact on retail seen in the last twelve months has been the maturation and genuine arrival of mobile commerce in Australia. And of course when you get a room of 100 clever, on the ball Product Managers in one room together, brainmates Product Bash 2011 was dominated by the influence of mobile commerce on the retail experience. Our panel of Mark Rowland, Co-founder of online shoe retailer Style Tread, Andrew Rechtman, Product Director... Read More

How to Stay Afloat in a Competitive Retail World

As brainmates continue our exploration of the discussion coming from Product Bash 2011, our panel of Mark Rowland, Co-founder of online shoe retailer Style Tread, Andrew Rechtman, Product Director of PayPal Australia and Daniel Roberts, Head of Online for the Woolworths non-food businesses Dan Murphy’s, Big W and Dick Smith, shared their thoughts on “The Internet Super Mall and the Future of Retail”  in relation to how to stay afloat in... Read More

Road Testing

If it is at all possible to claim you can “collaboratively consume” an idea, this is what I am kicking off now with my book, DVD and whatever the heck floats past road tests. After being an avid follower of the journey of Lisa from Open Shed and Co-founder Lisa’s blog I realised just how important it is to share the finds you make as you traverse the Internet. Reading Lisa’s overview of books, videos and ideas has helped inspire me basically... Read More

December eMuse

Welcome to the December eMuse for 2011! This edition we wrap up our remainder of Product Bash 2011 articles, uncover the results of a retail survey in our latest whitepaper, check out the Agile Conference, think about the year that was 2011 and push forward to training in 2012. Hold onto your pencils Product Managers, it’s a big one! In this issue: Product Bash 2011 – Continued Retail Survey: A fresh perspective from brainmates Agile... Read More

Product Bash 2011: The Future of Retail and Burning Audience Questions

At Product Bash 2011, brainmates asked their panel of Mark Rowland, Co-founder of online shoe retailer Style Tread, Andrew Rechtman, Product Director of PayPal Australia and Daniel Roberts, Head of Online for the Woolworths non-food businesses Dan Murphy’s, Big W and Dick Smith, to put on their best gypsy garb and take a deep longing gaze into the retail product manager’s crystal ball to give their perspective on the future of retail in relation... Read More

Why Do Australians Pay High Prices in Retail?

There is no secret that even as Australia experiences a strong dollar against the US currency, our prices seem extremely high, especially when compared to what we can choose to pay if we shop online from overseas. So why is this the case and how can local retailers manage to compete? The Product Bash panel of Mark Rowland, Co-founder of online shoe retailer Style Tread, Andrew Rechtman, Product Director of PayPal Australia and Daniel Roberts, Head... Read More

Make the customer the centre of your retail experiences

brainmates saw 100 passionate and hungry Product Managers join us at the beautiful Gaffa Gallery in Sydney on the 10th of November, 2011 for the end of year wrap up, Product Bash. This year we tackled the affect of the growth of mobile and online commerce on more traditional forms of retail under the topic heading “The Internet Super Mall and the Future of Retail.” We were very pleased to have join us Mark Rowland, Co-founder of online shoe retailer Style... Read More

Don’t wait for help, create help yourself

I’ve been examining why my head has an issue with the #occupy movement. It’s really hard for me as I agree we need to fix the inequality in the system yet feel so sceptical and puzzled by this movement. I have almost felt a traitor to my beliefs and the beliefs of my family. But then it hit me last night why it bugs me. It reinforces the concept of entitlement. It kind of smacks to me as though “we can do what we like for ourselves and don’t... Read More

Ten minutes with brainmates Natalie Yan Chatonsky

What lead you to first get into Product Management? My first exposure to launching new products was when I was in business development at Yahoo. When I first started working at Yahoo in the late 90’s (prior to the dot com boom), it was my job to recruit offline big brand retailers to build their first online store through an Yahoo! Australia & New Zealand’s shopping mall. My role was to go out there and talk to retailers about how e-tailing... Read More

Seriously sales girl, calm the $X#@ down!

I am completely and utterly allergic to “in ya face” sales techniques. In order not to increase my own blood pressure or worse still, be court ordered to pay for some poor unsuspecting retail shop assist’s counselling for Post Meeting-Angry-Bek Syndrome, I have given myself the following limitations: I have completely abandoned shopping at major department stores due to an overwhelming desire to head butt staff who seem to not watch what I... Read More

When in doubt, K.I.S.S.

Days at Lavalife taught me two things I will carry with me forever. One is if you are sure about something, sink your teeth into it, build a business case and don’t be afraid of the whole hierarchy thing if you really believe in what you are saying. Number two is something that helps pretty much everything you do, including number one- the K.I.S.S. Theory- “keep it simple, stupid”. Probably the most underrated and simply thing you could learn,... Read More

Crank it up, Aus start up style!

People who occasionally travel past my website may have seen a distinct change in content in the last couple of weeks. This is because like any good business, I am growing to meet the needs of my client base. I realized there is a new wave of business coming to Australia- and that wave is a drastically different one to what we have known before. It is the world of the ethical digital start up. Nope, I haven’t swallowed a bunch of buzz words, I am... Read More

Case Study: The East Village Hotel Website Build

Background: In an ever increasing environment of competition in the functions, hotel and restaurant arenas, The East Village Hotel were seeking low cost devices to showcase their hotel to the general public and offer a way for each market to obtain the information they needed in a timely fashion. The website was hard to navigate, unable to be updated easily and had no way of capturing who was requesting information. Objective: To provide the hotel... Read More

brainmates- 7th anniversary eMuse!

Oh how we’ve grown! In this edition of brainmates’ eMuse we celebrate our 7th birthday as product managment consulting and training organisation. That’s right, brainmates has been providing Product Management solutions to outstanding clients from media, financial services, bio-medical, education, government and retailer for 7 fantastic years. During that time we’ve been collaborating with the Australian and global Product Management community... Read More

7 Years of brainmates with Nick Coster

What led you to first get into Product Management? I didn’t initially think of it as Product Management at the time. This first Product Manager role was for a dial up Internet Service Provider and the objective was to try and remove any barriers for customers to engage with the product in an attempt to reduce call centre costs. It began as a cost rationalisation role but then evolved into a Product Development role. I was tasked with looking at... Read More

7 Years of brainmates with Adrienne Tan

What led you to first get into Product Management? My first role after University was at On Australia. On Australia was a joint venture between Microsoft and Telstra, one of the first Internet Service Providers in Australia. On Australia was essentially in start up mode and I was fortunate to be able to help define the (now BigPond) product. It seemed natural to move into Product Management. After my role at On Australia as the Billing and Credit... Read More

Welcome to the June edition of brainmates eMuse!

In this edition we want to share the highlights of ProductCamp Sydney 2011 that the brainmates team and other volunteers helped organise earlier this month. Here we saw over 50 passionate Product Manager’s shoulder to shoulder at the third product ‘unconference‘ of its kind in Australia. Many well designed and helpful explorations of key Product Management topics were tabled and considering the inspiring nature of the event, this... Read More

How to leave a store when fighting the urge to beat someone to death with your newly purchased shoes

Have you ever had one of those days where you have had a pretty great start until you make the seemingly stupid decision to shop somewhere you are clearly not wanted at lunch time? Where you wake up to an early start and begin the day feeling energised and happy and are being uber productive and then someone really takes the fire hose to your good mood for reasons you cannot fathom? When even a polite questioning about store policy or product warrant... Read More

Customers are a part of the mix

As a Product Manager according to the Product Bash Panel you are the person who “defines a problem and then how to solve it” before “choosing who to present the results to”. An area where many marketers, communicators and sales people find difficult or at the very least precarious is that of the customer, so how do you get the customer right? Let’s explore this age old conundrum the way a good Product Manager would. It should come as no... Read More