Conversation Agent - Valeria Maltoni

A Conversation of Olympic Proportions

Is 2012 the official date for the end of the world? It would seem that way. I was tempted again to title this post: it's not about the logo. As the one designed for the Olympic Games in London has ruffled quite a few feathers. Cam Beck has a nice take on marketing largesse at ChaosScenario. Invest your money on training world class athletes instead of paying $800,000 for a logo, he says. I think we can all agree on one thing this logo accomplished: it's making people talk. Talk is good, it can polarize *and* it can change lives.... Read more →

Exhibit A: Dommert Phillips on Design of Story -- Part One

Alice Dommert founded Dommert Phillips in Old City Philadelphia with Andrew Phillips in 1998. The firm provides exhibition development and design, architectural design and interpretive and architectural planning to organizations, institutions and individuals. I have known Alice for a number of years and have been absolutely fascinated by the work she and her company do. When we think of exhibits, we usually think of museums. Yet, in my work with a technology start up, the exhibit was the best solution we could find as a narrative tool. I reached out to Alice so she could share what she learned about... Read more →

12 Views to a Brand: BrandingWire Wants to Take Yours to the Next Level

That is a big title, I know. It announces something of a promise of Web 2.0 -- collaboration in stead of competition, and virtual teams in addition to office mates. Twelve experienced professionals with one goal in mind: taking your brand to the next level. The offering is quite simple: every month, we will focus on one business that needs assistance to take its brand(s) to a new destination. Whether that be growing the company in size, recognition, or business model, this team has committed branding creativity to get you there. Our first BrandingWire collaboration was this initiative -- we... Read more →

Design of Experience, the Sgt. Pepper Kind

Friday June 1 was the fortieth anniversary of the release of album number eight by one of the most memorable music bands of all times -- The Beatles. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was an amazing experiment. Some called it art. The Philadelphia Inquirer Associate Editor John Timpane, one of my favorite writers and thinkers, shared his thoughts in an article for the Sunday paper. The album, he writes, has been dissected, glorified and blamed, called a con job, a turning point, a pot-fest, a triumph. I had to listen to it several times at new stages of my... Read more →

Made in Italy: Festa della Repubblica

I usually don't post on Saturdays -- today is an exception. I did a Google search and saw this image for Festa della Repubblica so I took a few moments to reflect upon what made in Italy means to me. I'm proud to be Italian. Maybe patriotism is something the world only sees when the soccer team (oops, I should say football) wins the World Cup and the flags come out. Yes, many of them are still made of wool and get washed an ironed by the wonderful mothers of a country used to be seen as the underdog. Creativity... Read more →

What's Your Story?

We see the world as we are. Many have said it before me. The perception that colors how we take in information and how we approach decisions also depends on the circumstances in which we find ourselves at the moment. Our attention and the attention of our readers is always divided -- part of us may be in search of that word or phrase that inspires; part of us wants proof. Is what we're doing the right thing? Only we decide. Yet our availability to advice and connections depends on our frame of mind. And so does our readers'. That... Read more →