Comments on: Elementary marketing http://cultureby.com/2006/10/elementary_mark.html This Blog Sits At the Intersection of Anthropology and Economics Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:43:22 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Kevin Dugan http://cultureby.com/2006/10/elementary_mark.html/comment-page-1#comment-3797 Kevin Dugan Tue, 07 Nov 2006 22:35:48 +0000 http://localhost/wp_culture/?p=594#comment-3797 We were conditioned like Pavlovian dogs early on in life when the ice cream man used to coast through neighborhoods. The truck played a tune that would cause most every kid to scramble indoors to get cash and make it back out before the tune was out of earshot. Good times. We were conditioned like Pavlovian dogs early on in life when the ice cream man used to coast through neighborhoods. The truck played a tune that would cause most every kid to scramble indoors to get cash and make it back out before the tune was out of earshot.

Good times.

]]> By: Peter http://cultureby.com/2006/10/elementary_mark.html/comment-page-1#comment-3796 Peter Tue, 31 Oct 2006 18:31:21 +0000 http://localhost/wp_culture/?p=594#comment-3796 I once consulted to an internet start-up which rented an open-plan floor several storeys up in a new, anonymous office building in central London (UK). Within a few days of moving in, a very entrepreneurial young guy started arriving each mid-morning and mid-afternoon with a large wooden tray strung from his neck, filled with sandwiches he'd made that morning at home. He had no horn, but would enter the (un-manned) door to the floor from the lift and shout "Sandwich guy here!" He soon had a roaring trade, and people would end-up talking together about their work as they were served. Soon, management noticed, and decided that he was a waste of staff time, and a security risk. Who knew what hi-tech plans he could steal while selling everyone sandwiches with a heavy tray around his neck! So, they banned him. Result -- unhappy entrepreneur, hungry employees, and much less interaction among employees. Of course, the start-up is now bust! I once consulted to an internet start-up which rented an open-plan floor several storeys up in a new, anonymous office building in central London (UK). Within a few days of moving in, a very entrepreneurial young guy started arriving each mid-morning and mid-afternoon with a large wooden tray strung from his neck, filled with sandwiches he’d made that morning at home. He had no horn, but would enter the (un-manned) door to the floor from the lift and shout “Sandwich guy here!” He soon had a roaring trade, and people would end-up talking together about their work as they were served.

Soon, management noticed, and decided that he was a waste of staff time, and a security risk. Who knew what hi-tech plans he could steal while selling everyone sandwiches with a heavy tray around his neck! So, they banned him. Result — unhappy entrepreneur, hungry employees, and much less interaction among employees.

Of course, the start-up is now bust!

]]> By: Steve Portigal http://cultureby.com/2006/10/elementary_mark.html/comment-page-1#comment-3795 Steve Portigal Tue, 31 Oct 2006 18:27:29 +0000 http://localhost/wp_culture/?p=594#comment-3795 I'm reminded of the horn language in India - where the traffic seems to be utterly random but eventually patterns emerge out of the chaos, rules for cooperation that don't resemble our rules but still work, somewhat reasonably well. And the horn serves to tell other cars not "get out of the way, jerk!" but "I'm near you so be careful." Certainly we saw more of the cooperative honking in Bangalore (Bengalaru?) than in the super metropolis of Mumbai... And lots of bumper stickers that have combinations of the words "sound" "horn" "ok" in various sizes and fonts that colorfully indicate that the drive of that vehicle welcomes such communication from fellow travelers. I’m reminded of the horn language in India – where the traffic seems to be utterly random but eventually patterns emerge out of the chaos, rules for cooperation that don’t resemble our rules but still work, somewhat reasonably well. And the horn serves to tell other cars not “get out of the way, jerk!” but “I’m near you so be careful.” Certainly we saw more of the cooperative honking in Bangalore (Bengalaru?) than in the super metropolis of Mumbai…

And lots of bumper stickers that have combinations of the words “sound” “horn” “ok” in various sizes and fonts that colorfully indicate that the drive of that vehicle welcomes such communication from fellow travelers.

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