Comments on: Idiots

By: designbysoap

designbysoap — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 01:47:15 +0000

Fascinating post. Some interesting responses too.
I'm not sure you needed to publish her name and company, but it's a really good post. Thanks for putting it out there

By: Andy

Andy — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 09:04:33 +0000

I get SPAMMED by "orcacommunications' constantly; and I say SPAM in the sense that they don't give you an option to opt out of receiving their plain text emails.

I have been told by them on 2 separate occasions that they will "remove me" from their list, but then the next day... more SPAM.

I just can't believe that companies pay them money to represent them and pay them to SPAM people. I wouldn't think twice about a company or product that knowingly SPAM's me.

By: david Macnamara

david Macnamara — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 02:11:30 +0000

great article, I've been guilty of similar acts.

Hopefully those dark days are behind me.

By: Stop making sh*t products « Shakeout’s Blog

Stop making sh*t products « Shakeout’s Blog — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 15:26:24 +0000

[...] From the very insightful ideasonideas blog (seriously, read it) [...]

By: ideasonideas - Eric Karjaluoto discusses design, brands and experience » Blog Archive » How to keep bloggers from hating you

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:29:01 +0000

[...] of a thing you have to tell us about. Just move on; it’s okay. Apologize Since writing the “idiots” post, I’ve been flooded by PR agencies–seriously. It seems that many of them took my [...]

By: Sociala Gerillan

Sociala Gerillan — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 20:43:57 +0000

[...] admin - 4 December, 2008 Marybeth from Orca Communications might be an idiot. I’m not saying she is; however, her behavior is certainly in-line with the kind of idiocy that some PR firms are practicing. I know I’m going to sound like a dink here, but there’s a hard truth to face, and it’s that these groups just aren’t “getting it”. Idiots » ideasonideas - Eric Karjaluoto discusses design, brands and experience [...]

By: » How NOT to do Public Relations on the Web :: Positive Space Blog

» How NOT to do Public Relations on the Web :: Positive Space Blog — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 04:39:15 +0000

[...] the last couple of months I have read a few posts on Ideas on Ideas, in which Eric discusses the unprofessional and annoying behavior of some public relations [...]

By: Eric Karjaluoto

Eric Karjaluoto — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:11:38 +0000

Hi Adrian,

I can see where that notion comes from, but I think that it’s likely a bit of an older idea of what business is. In the past businesses had to keep a stiff upper lip, and never show signs of humanity or personality.

In my humble opinion, that was always a rather crappy idea. It’s why we started to distrust so many companies. As organizations become less human, they tend to “give a shit” less about what they do, and people often mirror this attitude. Part of why I don’t care about GE is that I don’t know any people there, nor can I identify with them. To me they’re just a machine. (This probably isn’t the case, but it is how I feel.)

Most people want to work with other humans. (I know that I certainly do.) So, we choose to “call them as we see them”. Sometimes this comes off as abrupt, and perhaps could be argued to be reckless. The fact is; I’m no “figurehead”. I’m just a person who’s a partner in a small company, and this company is largely just an idea. I find that this is a really important distinction: Corporations aren’t somehow special. The corporation is simply a construct that we subscribe to. There’s no reason that it needs to be protected or sheltered. At its best, it should be a representation of the people within it.

Our company is tiny, so perhaps that’s why I’m less concerned about saying what we think. That being said, if we do ever grow, I’d hope that our principles aren’t compromised in the process.

Cheers!

Eric

As for Howard… I only wish I had that hair. ;-)

By: Adrian

Adrian — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 00:34:28 +0000

Thanks for the plug. I say fair enough if you're aware of what you're doing--it just struck me that, as a figurehead of a company, it could be percieved as somewhat reckless to risk "ruffling feathers" unneccessarily.
Different of course if you're Howard Stern.

By: Eric Karjaluoto

Eric Karjaluoto — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 03:47:45 +0000

Hi Adrian,

Good to hear from you--it’s a nice surprise to learn that you read the posts. (I’ve always enjoyed the spirited debate we’ve had over the years, but worried that you found this off-putting.)

You’re right; my post wasn’t “gentlemanly” but I feel that’s largely beside the point.

I wasn’t angry with these people for a lack of sensitivity. Instead, I was calling them out for unethical behavior. Doing so in a different fashion may have been nicer, but not nearly as effective. This approach both sent a clear message to the people at Orca while spurring an overdue discussion regarding PR related spam.

You likely know this better than anyone: social graces are largely foreign to me. My interest is in ideas, truth and integrity (even when it’s inconvenient). I may seem uncouth at times, but this doesn’t concern me. In today’s climate we’re bombarded with disingenuous messages. I’m interested in cutting through them, even if I ruffle a couple of feathers. ;-)

Thanks for dropping by!

Eric

BTW - For other readers of the blog, I’d encourage you to visit Adrian’s site and see his work: http://www.adrianlivesley.com. Adrian and I were good friends who chose rather different paths. I’m always interested to learn what he’s up to.