Reflections of a Zen Tech Warrior

Alicia weilds a wind-up flashlight.
Alicia wields a wind-up flashlight.

I’ve been interning at the IPG Emerging Media Lab for the past few months.  Little did I know that in addition to my killer subject line (Your Tech Savvy Intern), my resume pegged me as a Zen Tech Warrior.  (This was before I had read the Lab’s 2009 Digital Trends and learned what a “Zen Tech Warrior” was).

Here are 4 things that this Zen Tech Warrior learned at the Lab:

CSR is where it’s at.
While helping the Lab’s Social Media Practice Lead, Raquel Krouse, with research for her Social Media Hearts Your Brand webinar, I learned about some of the initiatives that brands are taking to help the people in the world around them.  I also learned that customers are also pretty into it.  Contact us for the specifics.

The medium is still the message.
But the content is really heating up.  I don’t know which story is more intriguing, the new platforms that content is being delivered on or  the way that the journalism game is changing.  Zen Tech Warriors want to take it with them and the Kindle, Touch and mobile phones travel well.  OLED screens are going to take this to a whole new level.

We gotta green up the supply chain.
There is a lot of potential in new media….to get green.  I did an informal survey of the 400 companies listed across the Mobile, Gaming, Media and Video, DOOH, Telematics and Social Networking landscapes.  There were less than a handful of companies that mentioned their green, sustainability or CSR initiatives on their Home page or About Us pages.  All signs point to legislation mandating these efforts sooner rather than later.  Let’s step up our green efforts in new media.

Brands are listening.
I’ve had the privilege of sitting in on a few meetings with brands and with vendors.  One consistent theme that is driving excitement is crowdsourcing.  Brands are designing their campaigns so that they have an easier time engaging with their customers and also giving customers a way to engage with each other.  Brands influence culture and customers influence brands.  Let’s create the world that we want to live in.