Five Must-Read Posts from Last Week

number5While I have been tied up with the impending launch of The Perfect Gift for a Man (the #ManWeek book I have been putting together with Mark Pollard and large doses of help from Ashley Ringrose), I have still managed to read a bunch of good thinking over the last week. Here are five posts that will change your life – maybe:

  1. The Big Yahu himself, Alan Jones, reminds us to let our users show us the money … that your customers will find the optimal use of your product (even if you think it does something else). Take a look at xtranormal – there’s opportunity there for smart content marketers.
  2. This will probably end up as a post in its own right, but Adrian Ho has a fantastic wrap-up of the recent Planningness conference, and shares videos, examples, presentations and his insights around what NO LONGER works in planning and some of the potential solutions. You really MUST read this one.
  3. If you are involved in social media, then no doubt you are already a regular reader of Chris Brogan’s excellent blog. You will also know that this post on ways to be human from a distance is a perfect explanation of what you need to do to start showcasing the person behind your brand.
  4. I have loved books and CDs – not just for their intrinsic interest but also for the way they broadcast (to a small audience) our sense of identity. Mark Earls suggests that this aspect of social identification may be what’s holding back wider adoption of eBook readers.
  5. They say that the one constant thing in life is change. Think about what has happened in your life, in your industry and across the world in the last 5, 10 or 15 years. Why are we then, so surprised or so resistant to change? Drew McLellan shares an excellent revamped video on the Did You Know theme with some amazing facts and figures.