Posts Tagged ‘Custom Content’
My Imagination Internship
6 Jan 2010
by admin
As an editorial intern at Imagination, my skills are put to the test each and every day with a wide variety of writing assignments. Whether it’s writing stories for nationally published material for some of our clients or simple blog posts or tweets, each time I walk through the doors of this place, there’s something new and different on my plate.
My Internship Experience
You all know the theory that interns at some companies don’t truly get a ‘hands-on’ or a resume building experience, right? That couldn’t be farther from the truth at Imagination. My experiences have already led me to include Imagination on my resume as well as have the ability to show future employers the work I was doing here through my clips.
I have a friend who interned over the summer for a newspaper publication. He had one piece of work to show for it at the end of the program. I had one piece of work to show within the first two weeks of my internship at Imagination. Although I’m a journalism person at heart, my writing here has not only helped Imagination, but it furthered the knowledge I need to succeed in any writing industry.
The Imagination Difference
It truly is a great place to work and if you are even remotely thinking of entering in the field of custom media publishing, give Imagination a chance. I’m extremely thankful for the experience I’ve gotten here thus far and only look forward to the new projects that are in store for me.
To get a better idea of how the internship is from someone besides me, watch our video on the program. We, as interns, put it together to give all those interested a better idea of what work we actually do here and what kind of place Imagination is. After watching, feel free to apply, you may find it as rewarding as I did…
by Michael Van Der Harst, Editoral Intern
Seeing new things in plain sight
17 Feb 2009
by Andy Schultz
In his book, Moneyball, Michael Lewis explores hidden value in the world of baseball by profiling the methodologies of Oakland General Manager Billy Beane. Spinning off the statistical analyses promoted or inspired by the iconoclastic analyst Bill James, Beane puts together winning baseball teams using no-name players with strong defensive skills and high on-base percentages.
In this week’s New York Times Magazine, Lewis is at it again but this time focusing on the use of the same kind of analysis applied to basketball. The article is a profile of the Houston Rockets’ forward, Shane Battier, who, as his general manager puts it, is “a marginal NBA athlete,” with shooting, assists, rebounding and steals statistics ranking at the bottom of the league.
Yet, he is one of the most high-impact players in the game because of his nearly invisible guarding and defensive skills. When Battier is on the court, he helps his team win by forcing the best players in the game to play their worst games. He plays clean and smart, knowing his opponent’s tendencies and playing them into situations where they shoot poorly. Battier’s prevention of points has the same net effect as if he were putting them on his team’s side of the board.
Traditional evaluation of basketball and baseball players means missing opportunities to look inside the game and draw out extra value and fresh insights from what is really happening. We often miss these plain-sight qualities because we are conditioned to focus on the obvious—home runs, points scored, etc.
You knew it was coming—the analogy to business. How much of our current trouble is the result of stubborn adherence to traditional ways of assigning value? What new measures of the game of business might we use instead to make better decisions and create greater long-term value, growth and stability?
In our custom content business we look not only at revenue and profit but the efficiency of each client. We are bound by the scarce resources of time and a finite team of talented writers, editors, designers, and managers. Looking behind the obvious, we’ve discovered that certain clients, while generating strong revenue, consume a disproportionately high share of resources. At the same time, there are other clients whose consumption of resources is disproportionately lower—the sign of efficiency and desirability, and the opportunity for growth.
Thinking deeply about what is really happening in business means going beyond the obvious. And not only in terms of how one analyzes performance, but how one plays the game. To secure a new client, what unique value can you provide to solve a need and generate a “multiplier effect” of subsequent positive impacts?
Who is the Shane Battier in your organization? Who is overlooked and undervalued because he or she isn’t flashy, and yet without their contributions, the organization would be weaker and less effective? Are you using the right measures to evaluate your human capital?
Everything still comes down to results. Where are the hidden efficiencies and talents in your business that, if understood and cultivated, can help you improve and win?
Youtube: providing opportunity beyond funny videos
20 Oct 2008
by Riley Bandy
Marketers sometimes neglect to see beyond the funny videos and recognize Youtube as a platform to create and place relevant content to connect with their target audiences. Many simply write the site off as a video collection of funny random occurrences and spunky viral phenomenon.
Bank of America has taken advantage of Youtube to boldly position themselves as a helpful partner to the consumer with their tactful and relevant custom Youtube channel.
While utilizing the traditionally popular Youtube style of providing more humorous approaches at managing a budget and saving cash, they also provide more serious and helpful videos as well as the Dow Jones industrial average and links to other financial websites.
So although companies are becoming thrifty with their marketing dollars with the struggling economy, and especially with the newer opportunities of web 2.0, it is nice to see a strong branded use of Youtube by a company in tough economic times. Although they may have not been savvy about the idea in 2006 when the site launched, what a perfect channel of communication for the current financial times.
