This week, Hirsch Leatherwood has been reflecting on the pace and interconnectivity of modern work life. Now that we all carry our jobs in our pockets, the private and professional lives of many Americans have blended together. We also followed the looming extinction of the business card (and potential rise of implanted contact info), the sale of Amazon Care, and a story from Norway about Tesla owners on hunger strike. Read on below:
š”ON OUR MINDS: Everything, everywhere, all of the time
Time is money, as they say, and our days and dollars are increasingly spent on our phones. So it was only a matter of time before your local dentist, plumber, and political candidate slid into your texts. In a world where everyone's constantly engaged with one another, the standards of our language and the boundaries between work and home are blurring in confusing ways.
Case in point: Google Docs just added a new feature that lets users insert emojis inline with text, in a move that represents the ongoing trend of less formal ways to communicate for work. Google is just one of the many companies that have embraced the shift in short, concise communication. With professionals of all ages using emojis to boost their perception, emojis have (apparently) become a work-appropriate tool to virtually communicate warmth and kindness.Ā
This has many ramifications on many kinds of business relationships: employers and employees, providers and clients, really any dynamic that involves frequent contact and collaboration. Whether via Slack or text, stakeholders expect to be able to reach you and get a responseāquickly.Ā
The workplace is still adapting. It was reported earlier this week that Shopify attentively monitors its employees behavior on Slack. Staff wasnāt exactly happy about it. On one hand, companies have every right to expect a certain standard from their employees. However, businesses may need to reevaluate their standards and boundariesāfrom emojis to midnight messages.
š BRAND WIN OF THE WEEK: Amazon
Though Amazon is selling off their Amazon Care arm,Ā they still have big ambitions in the healthcare industry. Their intent to buy One Medical suggests a well-executed pivot, and stories like this Forbes article suggest that theyāre doing a good job communicating their intentions, capabilities, and grand ambitions in the space.Ā
Their direction towards the primary care space sets them up to be a major player in the retail healthcare space. Only time will tell if thereās room for two tech giants to disrupt the healthcare industry.Ā Ā
š” ON OUR RADAR
New York Governor Kathy Hochul is backing a real estate project that may reshape Manhattan and the future of office culture. As organizations continue to debate work-from-home policies and return plans, Hochul and some ambitious developers want to clone Hudson Yards around Penn Station. A massive undertaking like this isnāt just a real estate enterpriseāitās a communications challenge. As Gov. Hochul rolls toward November, sheāll need to sell this ambitious project to a wide range of stakeholders.
Brands and business leaders want to be a part of the most topical conversations of the day, but even the savviest among them can fall into a common comms problem: jargon. In his newsletter this week, the Atlanticās Charlie Warzel called out ābusiness-dude lorem ipsumā - the constant mention of innovation and evolution that drifts from abstraction into nonsense. Anyone who wants to be current and substantive will enjoy this read.Ā
Norwegian Tesla owners went on a hunger strike to protest the various issues they have with their electric vehicles. They hoped the fact that Norway owns more Teslas per capita than any other country would garner the attention of Tesla Founder and CEO Elon Musk. In typical fashion, Musk has responded over Twitter.Ā
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Indeed's CMO Jessica Jensen believes viewing marketing as a cost center is passƩ. Marketers must make the linear connection between KPIs and revenue or client acquisition. KPIs that are more common, like brand awareness, brand consideration, and new ones like "UAC" (unaided consideration), the percentage of respondents aware of your brand without being assisted, are the metrics she believes will move the needle in business.
Twitter has announced a new feature that allows users to send tweets to a chosen group of followers. āThe Twitter Circleā can consist of 150 selected followers. Twitter seems to be following the trend of small circle features similar to āClose Friendsā on Instagram and āPrivate Storiesā on Snapchat. Hereās an older article that explains why social media platforms tend to copy one another.
Business cards may be a thing of the past. But are implanted chips the future? Apparently Boingoās technology chief Derek Peterson has his contact details physically embedded on his hand so new colleagues can download his number via phone as if they were using Apple Pay. Alex Harring reports for the Wall Street Journal on the cybernetic future of professional networking.
At the MTV VMA awards, Johnny Depp made a surprise cameo to deliver an awkward monologue through the virtual head of a floating astronaut. It seems that celebrities whoāve battled through a gauntlet of serious misconduct allegations are able to entice a crowd with a redemption arc. The VMAs are an example of how award shows can distract the public from problematic histories.
Carving a new identity can be tricky, and RadioShack's newly risque marketing strategy is quite the deviation from its image of yore. The racy Twitter posts and venture into the cryptocurrency arena have independent dealers choosing sides. One has already severed their relationship with RadioShack; others remain due to their personal stake in the brand and hope for the future.
TikTok is blowing up the āwork hard, play hardā ethos of Wall Street. With some employees creating content that captures glamorous perks like boat cruises and food cart lunches, others shed light on tough working conditions like all-nighters.
š„QUICK HITS:Ā
In case you missed these stories this week.
Peloton is now available on Amazon.Ā
Half of Americans donāt get NFTS ā honestly, fair.
For our New York based readers - see why Blank Street Coffee is suddenly everywhere.
Weāll see you here next week! š
HL
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The fine print: This weekās newsletter is brought to you by Nichelle Nichols inspiring final voyage.