Michael Leis

David Berkowitz posted the question today on AdAge with “Agencies Will Be Tempted by IPad’s Sizzle, Not Strategy,” and as you’ll see in the article, laments Apple basically creating a new semi-category of electronic device and ad platform, in turn making marketers lives somewhat worse. I feel like every time a new technology product starts [...]

This past week I had the pleasure of being invited by Dennis Schleicher to visit Sears and host a discussion on visual and narrative techniques found in dramatic storytelling, and how they apply to system organization, social media and user experience.

Moving into its third or fourth year as a Web design / marketing mantra, it seems the people marching to the drumbeat of “Death to Microsites,” has had a confluence with Facebook surpassing 300 milion registered users. To a chorus of rousing applause, more and more large brands are discontinuing the practice of creating microsites [...]

It’s fairly prevalent now to find larger brands ready to jump headlong into a sweeping social media strategy.  “We get it!” or “We know our customers are there!” It feels a lot like when athletes in interviews (or reality TV contestants) say things like, “We gotta step it up.” or “Take it to the next [...]

Looking at the major players in social media, contrast in color and user experience controls creates meaning for the creator and the browser. How much is too much, and how can brands take these lessons back to their own Web strategy?

Social media today is really quite crude. Much like Bell’s first phone experiment it’s tedious and cumbersome. But also like those early phone models, they’re incredibly important to understand now as part of your brand strategy.

There’s nothing worse than the sinking feeling when someone with a large following blasts your brand. But it’s not a crisis, it’s an opportunity: to demonstrate that the brand is human, engaged, and helpful. Here are a few guideposts I’ve developed to turn the tide when your brand gets slammed:

As print magazine readership fades, Facebook applications are becoming the place where people are indulging their flights of fancy and building stronger ties with friends.

The more people I talk to about social media, the more I hear similar responses about MySpace. People are actively using Facebook to connect with family and friends they have in real life. But over on Myspace, they’re not “friends” with anyone. They accept friend requests, but don’t really communicate with people there.