FreeThink: May 2005

FreeThink: a blog published by Maxwell PR

Can Nextel phones help you score points with Agent Hotpants?

What would it take for you to be a daredevil and lie down in front of a steam roller?

Or, what do you think Spiderman would look like if he suddenly lost his powers?

Jen Scott wasn't the only Maxwell PR team member to visit New York this year. I recently returned from Albany, N.Y. where I worked with the local Nextel Partners office to launch the company's first Nextel Go Game.

The Go Game is one of the most fun and exciting ways to spend a couple of hours adventuring around a city. Armed with a Nextel phone and healthy doses of creativity, daring and humor, the Nextel Go Game turned teams of customers and partners loose on downtown Albany to discover hidden clues and perform imaginative stunts to win the game. Using the Nextel i860 camera phone and the BlackBerry 7520, teams had access to some of the latest wireless services and data applications to help them through their series of tasks.

In addition to the stunts pictured above where teams were asked to be a daredevil or recreate a super hero having a bad day, groups performed a seance in a coffee shop to get a game clue and used their best pick-up line on Agent Hotpants in order to compete in a hula-hoop contest. I'm not making this up. It sounds crazy but everything in this fast-paced two hour game is focused on teams working together and fostering creativity.

If your company or organization is considering ways for employees to get out and have fun and build essential skills, I highly recommend The Go Game. Stay tuned as more Nextel Go Games are run in Nextel Partners markets across the country.
--Bruce Kehe, bruce@maxwellpr.com

posted on May 26, 2005

Savoring Sweets with Saveur

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of hosting Camas Davis, Saveur Magazine's travel editor, during her culinary tour of Portland and Astoria. Saveur is the food magazine of choice around the Maxwell office and we were ecstatic when Camas responded to our offer to show her Astoria's booming cuisine scene. Her itinerary included three days in Astoria and one day in Portland.

In addition to our recommendations in Astoria, we helped Camas identify places to visit in Portland. One of the stops on her tour was Moonstruck Chocolate. I accompanied Camas on her tour of the artisan chocolate producer's North Portland factory. If you haven't heard of Moonstruck, you are definitely in the dark. Oprah recently featured Moonstruck on her 'favorites' show and the local chocolatier was also included in this year's Academy Awards goodie bags.

Our tour was amazing! Everything in the factory is done by hand, including all of the packaging. You wouldn't believe the time and effort put into each chocolate bar and truffle. I was surrounded by chocolate and it took a lot of self control to keep from diving into one of the hundred or so trays the chocolate was stored on. If you haven't had the opportunity to try Moonstruck I recommend you get on it! If you are daring, try the Chile Variado. This dark chocolate bar laced with Chile peppers is like nothing you've ever tried before.

As for Camas, she really enjoyed her visit to Portland and Astoria and we are excited for her return trip this August. In her short time here she was able to meet with a handful of chefs and food industry experts that are making Oregon one of the top culinary destinations in the country.
--Josh Beyer, josh@maxwellpr.com

posted on May 24, 2005

Youth. Potential. Realized.

Vicky and I had the opportunity to see this year's student-developed performance at the Center for Self Enhancement last night. What a show! Written and performed by 40 past and present Self Enhancement Inc kids, the show featured music, dancing, drama, and spoken word. Each act highlighted how important SEI has been in these kids' development.

Standouts among the evening's talent were the Brazzle sisters, twins Shara and Terese, who composed the choir's music, and Omari "DeGroove" DeGruy, who served as our narrator for the night. We talked to the twins after the show and learned that they are SEI graduates who have since gone on to graduate from college and are pursuing careers in music. From what we experienced, they are going to be huge in no time.

Vicky became quite enamored with DeGroove's spoken word poetry throughout the performance, and rushed out when the lights came up to meet him. We couldn't locate him in the crowded lobby so instead we gushed to SEI founder Tony Hopson about how talented he is. Of course, he agreed.

If you missed this year's performance, you missed a chance to see some of North/Northeast Portland's most talented kids--and an opportunity to experience what it's like to be a kid in this dynamic and changing neighborhood.
--Jen Scott

Shara and Terese Brazzle dazzled us.

posted on May 20, 2005

Reuse, Recycle and Rebuild

Have you ever seen people building a structure out of mud? I hadn't either until I got an advance peek at the almost-completed ReBuilding Center yesterday. "Cob" -- made from sand, clay and straw that would otherwise go into the waste stream -- is featured in a portion of The ReBuilding Center in Portland, which is doubling its square footage with two new warehouses made completely from donated materials that might have otherwise gone to the local landfill.

It's so cool! You must see it for yourself.

Illuminated by natural light streaming in from the collection of used windows, the new facility houses an amazing collection of used sinks, light fixtures, windows, doors, cabinets, lumber, hardware and plumbing materials donated by locals. You can purchase any of these items for a tiny fraction of the price of similar new materials -- and do your part to divert 9 million pounds a year from the landfill.

The Center accepts used building and remodeling materials year-round. Donations can be dropped off at 3625 N Mississippi Ave., Monday through Friday 9am to 6 pm and Sunday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, 503-331-1877. The ReBuilding Center will also pick up larger, pre-approved loads, call 503-445-1520 for details.

- Vicky Hastings

Jon Bell from the Portland Tribune toured the facility for an article he is writing. Shane Endicott and Jennifer Jako share The ReBuilding Center's story with him. Click here to read the article.

posted on May 19, 2005

The Tao of WOM

I had the privilege of attending the first ever Word of Mouth Marketing Association conference in March. It was a dizzying two days of new ideas and case studies as we marketers struggled to wrap our heads around this new phenomenon called Word of Mouth, or WOM for short. I left feeling inspired and described the experience to my colleagues as "having found religion." It was a gathering of the faithful, committed to exploring this new path of marketing enlightenment.

I found religion, but like many of the faithful am finding it difficult to put my new faith into practice. The Association itself is leading the charge to define WOM and create ethical standards, while we conference attendees have gone off into the world to see if we could apply what we had learned. It's been challenging given that no one has agreed yet on a definition of WOM. Try explaining an exciting new WOM customer program to a client who just wants to know how much it will cost and the ROI.

Even the conference's keynote speakers are struggling with this new phenomenon. Al Rosen attempts to clear up the "Five Misconceptions of Buzz Marketing" in a recent blog entry, and admits "If you're confused about the terminology of word-of-mouth marketing, I have a little confession to make: sometimes I get confused about it myself." Thank you Mr. Rosen. I'm glad we are all learning this together. I guess that makes this less of a "religion" (no dogma or holy leader as of yet) and more of a "spiritual journey." Whatever it is, it's not a fad and we at Maxwell PR Studio are proud to be creating innovative programs that help our clients build communities.
--Jen Scott

posted on May 18, 2005

	This spirited, open forum by Maxwell PR staff members, studio mates and colleagues features people who are, in our opinion, doing the right things to get people talking. You'll see us rave about organizations building communities and rant about those who are missing obvious opportunities. We sprinkle in a little marketing and PR rhetoric from time to time for extra vigor and enthusiasm, and will share observations and insight based on our own experience honing our craft every day.

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