This is a must-see interview on how the affiliate marketing game is “changing” in 2008 with Larry Joseloff, VP Content, Shop.org from the Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition 2008 in Chicago.

Is this the truth or just illusion?

It is hard to get concensus on that. In my eyes affilites are “meta-thinkers” who are often dissatisfied with the status quo. Affiliates are all about finding “digital independence” and they do this by naturally pushing the envelope. Tactics vary but the internal make-up, the essence, is often the same. Quick and nimble meta-thinkers and creative system gamers.

What is Success?

Some say success is consistency of purpose, but if you consistently never achieve your purpose I am not so sure that is success. I can only define it for me. Success is how I choose to define it and for me success is independence. It is the ability to control my own destiny. I wish I could boil it down better, but I cannot. I can point you to people like Gary Vee who, like myself, believe that it is important to understand how to “keep score”.

Much To Do About Nothing

I received a nomination to be on the Formation Advisory Board (FAB) of the Performance Marketing Alliance. I have tentatively accepted. This means I will have to expend social capital and take some risk. At this stage in the game I feel any formal organization would be a step up over the current vacuum. It is worth the calculated risk to try.

The need in the performance marketing industry to adopt an organizational structure has been talked about for years, and I would know- I am a fossil at age thirty-eight. I have seen this over and over and watched attempts come and go. I have been a part of some failures e.g. AU. Perhaps Affiliate Union was partly successful as it did produce an excellent working document for contracts.

My Own Adventures over a Decade

I am such a relic they named an award after me - someone apparently thought I was dead because they don’t name stuff after you unless you are. This should not surprising given some of the adventures I have had. I have been shot, went botnet hunting with living legends like paperghost, built and played nightmarish ARGs and infilterated operations that make the “adware” problem on par with a comparison of chicken pox to the plague . I have even had the opportunity to make controversial films, explored new digital worlds and had the privilege of speaking at huge conferences. They even give me awards and I dropped out of college- how neat is that?

I have busted some pretty nasty operations too and got to travel to some interesting destinations. I have worked with FTC, FBI, DHS, and if you want to give it a three letter acronym it is possible I have been there and done that.

My relationship with performance marketing has been an almost surreal adventure and I wouldn’t trade it for another. I love the people, the creative aspects and I love the adventure and the risk.

For the most part, I was usually able to choose my own destiny, and that was a big part of the satisfaction. I started like most people- knowing very little and armed with scant resources. I am a meta-thinker and an envelope pusher. I am slow out of the gate, but once I get going- I can move at light speed and hit hard. I am not afraid to fail, nor am I afraid to succeed. I move one step at a time and with deliberation. I don’t fight unless I have too, but I never run from one either.

Keep Perspective Straight

For the record I don’t like what adware has become. However, I will defend to the death people’s right to download what they want and to have the liberty to make the choice- as long as they have a choice. Commissions lose out to liberty any day in my book. Still there are bigger worries so I keep things in perspective. You might pay attention to the giants (MFST) moving into the space, or understand what Google Checkout really means. The answers are out there- information is free, insights are not.

With issues such as the New York “affiliate tax” the need for something like the Performance Marketing Alliance is now. I know everyone wants transparency, openness and fairness but get over it. There is nothing to be transparent about at this stage in the game and to imply otherwise is not only premature but questionable behavior. Think for yourself- you are not a lemming- you are meta-thinkers. Many already are thinking for themselves and that is great.

There has been an attempt at stirring controversy because industry go-getters are trying to put some order into a “so-called industry”. I use “so-called” because industry means organization. Brad Waller who, for the record, was running an affiliate program before Amazon. Brook Schaaf a very respected manager, and Lisa Riolo a respected consultant. I have known all of these people for years, broke bread with them in person and frankly you cannot ask for better people. Others have been invited and the general concensus is let’s get everyone’s voice, big or small, in on the picture. Can you do that? Can you stop talking, complaining and speculating long enough to put together one sheet of coherent “wants” on a piece of paper? This is Web 2.0- use the damn medium to your advantage.

Don’t Like It- Get Your Own

For those who are so concerned with conspiracy theories I suggest you start your own movement. Of course you will find that starting these movements are not easy, and if you stand any chance of success you will have to get people with experience, ability and the social and political capital on board. Truth be told- some people wield more power than others. That power is often earned. You can also just ignore things. It is not compulsory and this is not socialism. Freedom is a cornerstone of Performance Marketing- defining your own path through creative, innovative and hard work by choice.

You are responsible for the contracts you accept and the conditions under which you work. You and only you.

Global Thinking & Good News

As an aside I want to add that in my early discussion I want to see a global alliance. This is even trickier which means Ambassadors will be needed too. Long have U.S.-centric organizations ignored the U.K. or what is going on in other c0untries. I have a video at the end to put that in perspective. I like to think global. I don’t see boundaries and lines. I see one world. I often learn a lot from those who live in other countries when I remember to shut up and listen first. That was a hard lesson for me because I sometimes like to hear myself talk. I have learned it is best to be quiet and get facts from many sources. Without facts I cannot make the best decision.

We already know about global economics. Performance marketers live and die on the razor’s edge of risk although they will need to evolve in order to stay alive in the next years. The good news is that new horizons, like ARGs, digital video, podcasts, and virtual worlds when combined with shifting distribution models and JIT inventory, and Print-On-Demand are going to open up brand new opportunities for the daring and the bold. Brian Clark was just too early with his revolution predictions.

Not What You Lose- What Could You Gain?

In terms of an organization I would ask people to put aside fear and worry for a moment (because it serves no real purpose) and do as I advise my self above- shut up and listen. Instead think about what you want.

What would you want if you could get it?

For example a group that could wield enough mass to get health insurance would be a great thing. Having been very sick recently I know just how important it is to have health insurance .

Instead of thinking of what someone is trying to “strip away”- think about what you might be getting. Representation? The ability to define some basic parameters so those outside the idiosyncratic world of performance marketing would have a clue as too what you do.

Put aside the “adware” worries and Illuminati theories for now. Yes- stop worrying about parasitic software because the vast majority of people do not even understand how it operates or know how to do an appropriate technical dive or audit. In fact most affiliates fail to understand that from a biological perspective- they are ecosystem parasites. Not all parasites are bad. For example some parasites live in the digestive tracts of animals and perform useful functions. Step back for a moment and look at the web of relationships and think for yourself.

Because if you are going to speak out about something at least do your homework or people who actually do know are going to take you to task. Remember this is a business environment. You have choice. Don’t like operations?
You can leave.
You can even file a lawsuit.
You can do nothing.
You can do many things.

You can speak where you choose and write what you wish. You have to accept the consequences of course, but isn’t it great that you can?

Shift Happens

The forces are already aligning to make an organization happen, and I think it can happen, although it is still in the nebulous stage- this means people are talking and trying to get some bare basic organization. This is so nebulous that people have not even accepted their FAB post. I do not think it will be perfect and I do not know if it will even last, but the inflection point is here. The time is now. Historically I have a good sense for these things. I am not better than any other person and I started just the same. One person who wanted to choose their destiny.

Start out with simple goals and worry about the complex matters later. An alliance is not a “boss” nor a “police force”. It is a group of professionals, working in unison, to serve a group. How can an organization serve you? What are the problems that need to be overcome now and in the future?

Are you even asking the right questions? Are you demanding and striving for something better? Shut up and listen then produce something worth reading or hearing. Put your dreams on paper and see what happens. Fear is the mind killer…success means risk.

Shift Happens…Participate or watch…because you choose your own destiny.

” I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t even have tried to build Zoomii without Amazon EC2 and Amazon S3; it would have looked too expensive, too daunting. And, of course, Zoomii couldn’t exist without access to a dataset like that. It looks like Amazon is growing a good business with its web services, but it’s providing far more value than it captures–you changed the equation for a lot startups and other projects.”

As Cyndy Aleo-Carreira of Profy points out- rather than blog about how cool Zoomii is why not just buy them instead? Zoomii is an excellent example of revenue sharing and the type of innovation that underscores the changes going on in affiliate marketing as people know it. The changes are going to come faster and faster.

Sam Harrelson points out with an apt historical metaphor around the Ides of March (and on my birthday- thank you Professor Harrelson) about how the Assyrians failed to build better chariots and how this mistake cost them their post as a super power in the ancient near east. In Sam’s words:

“Or you could head over to the Oriental Institute at Univ of Chicago and ponder how, much like the consultants, false confidence in their own superiority (instead of developing better chariots) cost the Assyrian empire it’s position as a super power in the ancient near east. Both would accomplish the same thing.”

For those wondering what Sam and my babble about Snowcrash, science fiction as business metaphor, and virtual worlds have been about, let me put it very simply: Virtual worlds, web services and creative marketing are just some of the building blocks that go with building a better chariot.

One of the best places to learn about chariot building for the future is in the hallowed halls of history. Why? Because history tends to repeat itself. We are entering an era of quantum computing and artificial intelligence. We don’t have much history to go on, but we can use our fluid intelligence to solve these problems and cross-pollinate ideas from other disciplines e.g. Drexler’s, Engines of Creation (free).

Have you checked up on your chariots lately?

Are you prepared for the changes that are coming?

Is your mining operation set-up to strike gold or pyrite?

I just received an e-mail from Rebecca Madigan, from AffiliateClassroom.com, about the Performance Marketing Alliance and I urge people to get involved with this project. I plan on it and I am pleased to see names like Brook Schaaf, Lisa Riolo, and other veterans getting the ball rolling. Let me know how I can help.

The e-mail:

“We’re on our way! After talking to over 40 industry leaders, there is overwhelming support to start a performance marketing professional association, with the strategic objective of bringing visibility and credibility to the performance marketing industry.

We have a lot to do yet to get this started. There is a fine balance between gathering enough input and support from the industry, and getting traction by taking action. While we continue to solicit feedback from a broad base of performance marketing professionals, we’re also moving forward with the nomination of a formation advisory board, and a call for volunteers for working groups who will develop organizational and policy recommendations that the advisory board will approve.

To communicate our efforts and track our progress, we’ve started a website: www.performancemarketingalliance.com. There are links to interest surveys on this site, so please forward this URL on to all your performance marketing friends and colleagues. We will need the support of as much of the affiliate community as we can muster, and we’ll be successful by meeting the needs of the industry and individual members. “

Lessons From the Past- Affiliate Union

Now I get to show my age- almost forty. The Affiliate Union (circa 2000) was a good idea, with great grassroots representation. Unfortunately it became bogged down in politics and hassles over certification. I strongly urge you to visit this post from a couple of years ago as I muse about the Affiliate Union at the turn of the century. Carsten Cumbrowski, Fraser Edwards and Brian Clark provide some good dialogue in the resulting comments. You can also find the Draft of September 11, 2000 (Status: Approved) in the post above.

The primary goal was contract reform because affiliate contracts were horribly lopsided and affiliates, many amateur or new business people like myself, were new to the “contract thing”. I didn’t know what was a good contract or a bad contract. Having something like the Affiliate Union got me up to speed fast.

The biggest hurdle was perhaps the name, but that was the name selected by democratic vote. Some merchants interpreted it as “a labor union” and not a union between affiliate and merchant. Thus I love the name “performance marketing alliance”. It is long overdue for the disparate parties in affiliate marketing to come together as an alliance and work towards mutually beneficial goals.

I know the parties can get together, since I chaired the New York Summit on Adware and trust me things cannot get much more hostile than that meeting- I do not hesitate to add that The Code of Conduct and other outcomes were the products of the networks- not this mediator. Hopefully this time around, almost eight years later, with real industry maturity, we will see something work. I do offer up the Affiliate Union contract draft not only as a lesson in online politics, and the process but also because there is some good material in the working draft. Get involved. It is your industry. This goes for networks, merchants, agencies and of course- affiliates and publishers.

Bootstrapped in late April, 2000, the “Affiliate Union” is ongoing series of planning discussions between Affiliates and Merchants United : Welcome to Affiliate Union affiliates, merchants and affiliate technology providers aimed at developing both a “certification standard” for affiliate merchants and the organization to implement those standards. It is a completely volunteer online organization in the spirit of early Internet “open standards committees.” This effort needs the participation and support of merchants — especially those merchants who run well-thought-out legitimate programs. After all, much of the mud churned up by the more abusive affiliate merchants gets splattered on their faces.

This effort needs the participation and support of affiliate directories. They have heard many of these horror stories first hand and are more like affiliates than merchants anyway. They will need to be the first line of education to the affiliates on these efforts — the ones saying, “Don’t sign up for any program that doesn’t run the emblem.” Or maybe they should be saying we won’t even list them if they don’t.

This effort needs the participation and support of affiliate solution providers. Every single affiliate network makes their merchants adhere to terms of service — some even provide template “affiliate agreements” to their merchants. They will be an important part of bringing these standards back to the merchants and, at the same time, they can provide the group with insight from the collected experiences of hundreds of merchants.

And, of course, this effort needs the participation of affiliates — lots of affiliates. The kinds of horror stories that affiliates tell each other in discussion groups now have a use: they give us the real world examples to wrestle with when planning the criteria. From each horror story we can derive a new certification criteria.

Jeff Molander thinks so in his latest piece and I must disagree, although I think drop shipping holds promise. The walls of affiliate marketing are not “crumbling”, but the boundaries are shifting. This shift is happening for several reasons and I will note a few:

• Retailers have mastered trench affiliate tactics. Affiliates tend to be early adopters, merchants lag behind.
• Quality Web and search real estate is more concentrated and therefore turf wars (i.e. keyword bidding) break out.
• Age-old “run and gun” SEO tactics will continue to falter as personalized search and social media grow.

IS SEO D.O.A.?

No. Search Engine Optimization is not dead, but as I have said for years, it is not a good hinge pin to build your business around. It is important to master rules of good architecture and reap the benefits of natural SEO. By natural I mean not contrived, but the type of growth and organic linking you receive from putting out quality. There are now more avenues for distribution of content than ever before. A few include:

• Video
• RSS
• Social Networks
• PDF
• Other types of media

What Should Affiliates Do?

What they do best. Zero in and master a niche, and master them quickly. Micro-production is one area Brian Clark explored years ago. Let me show you a prime example of how far we have come since 2004. Etsy.com has buyers waiting and sellers producing intricate and interesting items you cannot find elsewhere.

Think of it as an online marketplace for buying & selling all things handmade. Their mission is to enable people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers. As far as I know there is not an “affiliate” option but I think that might be a matter of time.

Show Me An Example

I mentioned sometime ago about my discussions with the Second Life citizens who embraced the Steam Punk aesthetic in the world of Caledon. I acknowledge that Second Life has myriad problems (See: Exclusive with Timeless Prototype), however it is still excellent for networking, fast prototyping, and a good place to pan for emerging trends. Second Life is all about niche and fringe. The future of healthy web profits are in niche and fringe too. Here you cannot compete as easily on price or dominate a market. Small is good. Small means fast. This calls for operations that can turn on a dime and affiliates can not only turn on a dime, they can work with less than a dime.

Wikipedia has this to say about Steam Punk:

“Steampunk is a subgenre of fantasy and speculative fiction which came into prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. The term denotes works set in an era or world where steam power is still widely used—usually the 19th century, and often set in Victorian era England—but with prominent elements of either science fiction or fantasy, such as fictional technological inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or real technological developments like the computer occurring at an earlier date. Other examples of steampunk contain alternate history-style presentations of “the path not taken” of such technology as dirigibles or analog computers; these frequently are presented in an idealized light, or a presumption of functionality.

In general, the category includes any recent science fiction that takes place in a recognizable historical period (sometimes an alternate-history version of an actual historical period) where the Industrial Revolution has already begun but electricity is not yet widespread, with an emphasis on steam- or spring-propelled gadgets. The most common historical steampunk settings are the Victorian and Edwardian eras, though some in this “Victorian steampunk” category can go as early as the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. ”

There is even a Western genre and Steam Punk communities are starting to take seed.

Try to find Steam Punk at your local WalMart and I doubt you will have any luck, but Etsy has dozens of unique and exquisite Steam Punk items. Steam Punk is an emerging trend and mapping it out on Google Trends we can see an increase in press and a sudden spike in search activity. The search activity tells me people are looking for Steam Punk items. Doing a little keyword research I would imagine it is around literature and fashion, I know this from exploring Steam Punk communities in other virtual worlds.

Is Anyone Micro Producing?

You bet. I didn’t get much time to spend with her at the last Affiliate Summit, but I think JGoode is a great example. Her penguins, art illustrations, t-shirts, and greeting cards are excellent examples of owning one’s own brand, producing quality, and knitting it together with niche. Look at her operation and learn.

What’s next? If I were her I would probably come up with some Steam Punk themed penguins or perhaps find a subject matter expert on Steam Punk to work and/or collaborate with and start approaching some communities and hit the niche head on. (I know just the person…)

Affiliate marketing is not dead. The walls are not crumbling and the world is not going to explode- yet. The terrain is changing and in the long run it will change in favor of the small operation who can find, dominate and serve a niche. The long tail is real. Just like the penguin Todd Crawford is holding on my shoulder from MyPenguinTravels. I must not have been paying attention.

Often I forget to give thanks to those around me. The people who inspire in little and big ways. I decided I wanted to support “wholesome things” and I wanted to support Sam. I remember the April Fool’s joke…yet I look around at the numbers of people, the comments, the feeds, the critical thinking by some and I know, just as Jim knew it was time for him to step aside, Sam is on that path too. ReveNews is demanding…so what is in the future? I don’t know. I am not here to set the path, as a minority stakeholder, I am here to give thanks right now- where it is due, and Sam has proven to be the right stuff.

Going Gold

As a Gold Sponsor of an event I found intriguing in the “metaverse”, and rather appropriate, I guess I am allowed to “sell” whatever I wish. I am not sure what would you call it other than selling “thanks” or giving thanks for a few select people I know astronomy and education, outer space and creativity mean more than currency…see below:

Sam Describes Himself

Sam Harrelson is an online (primarily affiliate) marketing consultant. Sam is based out of the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. With a wide academic background including studies in Ancient Near Eastern Archaelogy, String Theory and Divinity School, Sam views the online marketing world through a wide lens and focuses on the industry’s ability to reach individuals, form communities and create social networks.

Instead of “consumers,” Sam sees individuals as producers of content and investigates how developing technologies and applications furthers the ability of people to participate in marketing efforts rather than just consume. Sam has over six years in the affiliate marketing industry with experience as a publisher, email marketer, website owner, Director of Business Development, Senior Vice President, and advertiser along with previously writing articles for the Digital Moses Confidential and ReveNews.

How I Describe Sam
Sam Harrelson: I met Sam years ago, and for those of you caught the Stainless Steel Rat podcast, you can understand why I have an affinity for someone who pushes me onward to think and try new things. The Podcast explains how we met, and lots of other strange snippets, and along the way we have had some interesting adventures- from desert camp-outs to Ubuntu, from very long podcasts and my penchant for monkey phone calls- I am often a slow student. I appreciate your tenure at ReveNews Sam, and while saddened you won’t be there- i know you will be everywhere and where to find you. Thank you. I do not think you are a marketer or an affiliate- I think you are a teacher.

* he didn’t say consumers, did I teach anything?

You are Welcome Here and Thank You

It is rare we take the time out to tell these people their impact, let alone thank them. I should know better, but I still take people for granted. Probably because I am too busy realizing just how little I know, or perhaps that is human nature or how I am wired. This Convention in Second Life Cyberspace is a celebration of creativity, of pure creation, space and more. I hope to have photos and machinima up as it goes- If I can get some help from the geeks out there. Others can go in world to watch it built, or you can go on the official dates and explore.

I hope you visit the Convention…and Sam is one of the four people (detailed on my personal site) I have had the Gold Sponsorship dedicated to- for his pursuit of knowledge and willingness to share- TO TEACH and EXPLORE. Visit their sites, or read their feeds, if they have them, or a tip or a sponsorship. Contribute or start something- anything - to call attention to those that make a difference in your life…the only caveat would be my father (listed later)- if you can’t key at 80 wpm in Morse code…well…avoid him. Avoid him anyway. He likes watching the stars in quiet. Shoot for the stars Sam!

Fourth Annual Satellite Convention
4th Annual Satellite Exhibition
This year’s exhibition 22nd to 23rd March 2008

The exhibition seeks to demonstrate the various autonomous, moving, scripted projects that Second Life residents have created.

Visit In World You Need the Second Life client.

Check out Photos from The Grid Live: on past events…

Hosted by: Timeless Prototype
Jim Herbst + Alliance Navy

Gold Sponsor: Wayne Porter (AKA) Corwin Chevalier:

Goal: Wishes to recognize significant teachers in his life.

Last year’s: Convention and SLDevelopers

Link to ongoing event, dates, pictures, and other gold sponsor dedications.

Thank you again, Sam. Stay in Beta.

Questions? You can try me on Twitter

I have spent the last few days, off the grid, recuperating from the “controversial” Affiliate Summit” in Las Vegas. Ironically, I found no controversy over the issues. Overall I think any critical marketer finds spam, “spyware” and the like- a real problem. Sometimes, depending on the point of view of the observer, many organisms are lumped into the category of “parasite”. It is a matter of one’s Point of View.

I have spent the last several years of my life chasing, investigating and trying to puzzle out WHO are the parasites? It seemed crystal clear to me years ago and I pursued their elimination without really asking- What if…What if they served as a system feedback loop? Maybe I should read more ecology? Who are these people?

Jason on Recession

Jason Calacanis provided some deeper insights to spur my thinking in his blog:

“The current price of Google’s stock is probably the last historic chance to get in on what will be a juggernaut–recession or no recession. Google’s management team is very content with their net worth I’m sure, and given my (limited) interactions with senior Google folks I get the sense that they care much more about their legacy, the thrill of solving big problems, and the quality of their products and organization than they do about short term stock prices.

People who win big in life are typically not driven by financial gain, they are driven by an internal spark that makes them want to win, compete, and solve problems with a community of like minded people. That’s the exact description of the people who “work” at Google (and Apple).”

Note the text in bold. Jason is, based on my own interactions- correct e.g. Google, Genetech, and NEC (who represent the largest homogeneous market the world has ever seen- China) are investing in genetics e.g. 23andme.com.

“23andMe, Inc. is a privately-held company dedicated to helping individuals understand their own genetic information using recent advances in DNA analysis technologies and web-based interactive tools. 23andMe enables individuals to gain deeper insights into personal ancestry, genealogy and inherited traits. 23andMe was founded in April 2006 by Linda Avey and Anne Wojcicki.”

He goes on to make some more observations that are relevant and if it is along my line of thinking- symbiotic relationships are everywhere. Which leads me to thinking which aspects are healthy for the ecosystem and which detract? What is the potential for abuse if power is clustered in one node?

Dunbar’s Number

You will hear this nebulous number much more often. Therefore come to back to community scale and Dunbar’s number-(or to some a misunderstanding of his ideas). I had it pegged at around 100 or so and far less in high immersion environments, Dunbar around 150 MAX, and Allen points to Ross Mayfield’s context to determine said number.

The Nature of Parasites & Ecosystems

Although parasites are often omitted in depictions of food webs, they usually occupy the top position. Parasites can function like keystone species, reducing the dominance of superior competitors and allowing competing species to co-exist.

Diversity is Important

Let me drive it home- “reducing the dominance of superior competitors and allowing competing species to co-exist“. Imagine an Internet with little diversity?

A Scientific Study
Where Disease May Mean Good Health—The Role of Parasites in Natural Ecosystems

ScienceDaily (Jul. 13, 2006) — Scientists have discovered that parasites are surprisingly important in food webs and their findings appear in a report published this week in the Early Edition of the on-line version of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Scientists with the University of California, Santa Barbara, the U.S. Geological Survey, and Princeton University contributed….

Positive Role of Parasites?

This leads me to my current state of thought on e-commerce…

• What are the real roles of parasites in the system?
• Who are these parasites?
• From who do they feed?
• If all were eliminated what would be the long and short term effects?
• How could we apply theories in ecosystems to marketing, SEO, affiliate marketing, “social media” (misnomer in my opinion), text ads, etc?

I think the negative connotations of parasites sit on the surface, but perhaps, as marketers, as people, a species in evolution- we need to pause…and Think Big. What if Google ceased to be Google as we know it? The press and pundits are having a field day with CIA and Google theories. See this speculative video…and we think it is just about the Web? I want to believe in Google and I deeply value democracy.

Dangers of Playing in Ecosystems

I wonder what the recently departed, (02.2008): Josh Lederberg, whose pioneering work laid foundation stones for modern genetics and biotechnology, disarmament, genetic engineering, space biology, and artificial intelligence would say? Would he think genetic engineering is great or would he have the foresight to see the dangers of genetic engineering gone wrong?

I really don’t have the answers, but I think there are parallels and I don’t want to be trapped in a Tragedy of the Commons- a social trap where we think short-term for immediate gain rather than long term for the good of all. I believe in “Don’t be Evil”, but it almost rings like Noam Chomsky’s critique of the slogan-”Support the Troops”. What does it mean? I prefer “Support the Troops- Bring them Home” or to others “Support the Troops- Equip Them Properly, or “Don’t Be Evil and let Diversity Thrive.”

“Think Big” said Sam Harrelson in a previous post…I searched on those two words to help me Think Big, I read about it Wikipedia. In the end I picked up a book and began reading: When The Sleeper Wakes, by H.G. Wells. First Edition, first run 1899. You won’t find many of those around…and I am still reading.

Let’s think beyond ourselves for a moment and how we can balance a world, technology, population, food, the web, and our role- no matter how small it may seem and come up with either viable debate or solutions.

*Keystone Species: A keystone species is one that has a disproportionate effect on its environment relative to its abundance^, affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem and help in determine the types and numbers of various others species in a community- Paine, R.T. (1995). “A Conversation on Refining the Concept of Keystone Species”. Conservation Biology 9 (4): 962-964

Addendum: (cough) Minor edits made to placate those who do not appreciate Appalachian dialect. e.g. grammar.

I came across Steli Efti, Supercool Principal and this take on our education system and to be bold and let go. Action taken- RSS feed assimilated. Twitter reciprocation. Steli is now marketing his message to me, and I let him in.

Then another post called:

Our Education System Is Broken!

All around the world there where no systems of public education till the beginning of the 19th century. They all came into being to meet the needs of industrialism. And what did they try to teach beyond reading and writing?

1. Repeating is more important then thinking
2. You have to obey and not to question a higher authority
3. To be present is more important then what you do with your presence
4. There is a learning hierarchy - some things are more important then other things
5 Learning has a start and a ending
6. Knowledge is more important than imagination
7. You have to avoid mistakes in life
8. There is only one right way for everything
9. What you believe is irrelevant only what you know counts

Cut Throat Business

I can identify with nine problems above. I often wish I had completed my degree and think about it, but I was bored. I decided to define what I wanted to learn. It wasn’t easy. My school report card is laughable too and reads like someone had randomly picked courses. Religious Studies 350, Philosophy 320, Marketing 200, Speech 101. Speech 101. Hierarchy in learning. I didn’t need Speech 101 and grades were immaterial to me. Dean’s list one term, academic probation the next.

I remember a group project in college where we had to work together and then our team was drilled. Our objective was to present our mastery of knowledge on the subject, and we were to be ranked by overall and individual performance. I had it down cold. I knew every question presented yet held back, because I wanted a team win, often trying to help others along so we had more balance.

After the class the professor called me aside and said “You are bright Wayne, but you will never make it anywhere in business. You are getting a B on this, not because you didn’t know the material. I know you do, but you won’t get anywhere in business if you aren’t willing to power ahead and crush the competition.”. He even took off points for having scuffed shoes.

The same for English 101. I received a C- on my first paper and told to stop reading so much science fiction. He said I had no future in writing. Looking back I realize he was a journalist, an editor. I will admit my writing mechanics are not that great. I often do not clearly communicate ideas I have. However, my various careers have been defined by writing. I am pretty sure he never saw the Internet coming. I did and that is why I left college, and made plenty of mistakes self-learning.

Thinking NextGen

If you want to think NextGen, if you don’t want to be defined but wish to define, if you want to adapt your business then you need to let go and unlearn. That is the next iteration of Revenews. That is the next iteration for affiliate marketing for marketing in general. I challenge bloggers in the sphere to look at the nine above and write their own interpretations of what we might better model.

Here are mine:

1. Think ahead and try not to repeat.
2. Ask questions about why you do what you do.
3. Your presence is more important than just showing up.
4. You should define what it is important for you to learn.
5. Learning is a process that does not stop.
6. Imagination leads us to find new knowledge.
7. Mistakes teach us more than successes, and we will make them, just try not to repeat them.
8. There are many ways to do everything or solve a problem.
9. What you believe in is more important than what you know.

Social Collisions

I wonder how an educator happened upon my twitter stream and followed? If you think about it from a marketing perspective I did something or knew someone that influenced him to click the button “Follow”. He invited me in and I was marketing to him. It was not an advertisement, he signed on for something more.

Was it thoughts on immersive education or maybe how I use science fiction for metaverse character modeling, Second Life memorials, or does our digital self die when our physical self is gone? I don’t know what got his attention, but I intend to find out. I will learn from him, he will learn from me. Social networks must be loose enough to let in new participants. In addition we must understand that reading the same blogs on marketing, advertising or SEO will lead to group think and a lack of new ideas. Same for educators. They might think about reading marketing blogs on NextGen marketing, because that is what good educators do. They market ideas, and influence students to believe in them and pick up and form knowledge along the way.

Robert Scoble twittered recently and I starred it…

“no problem if we don’t know each other. We have lots of time to find out more about each other.”

Yes. This is micro persuasion in action, this is a micro transaction- we just don’t know how to measure it yet.

ADDENDUM- Found Out More

“Last night at the blogger dinner we held for Hugh Macleod a guy, Steli Efti, came up to me and said it was his first day in the United States and said he appreciated being allowed to come to our dinner. I asked him what he was doing and learned that he had come to Silicon Valley to learn about the valley, and to try to build his dream: a new kind of online school, calls it a SuperCool School. He bought a one-way ticket to San Francisco, sold all his stuff and is just trying to learn and meet people and make something happen here. ”

“I did something or knew someone that influenced him to click the button “Follow”. He invited me in and I was marketing to him. It was not an advertisement, he signed on for something more.”

We are not just marketing or socializing, we are forming “Bridges”.