Category Archives: Blogging

29May / 2007

Planning from the ground up

Lately I’ve been thinking of giving this blog a bit more direction, even if it’s just for my own personal fulfilment. Whilst I’m more than happy just to ramble on about communications and stuff I feel there are just too many, albeit interesting blogs that do just that. I still think blogging is a great way to develop/record your thoughts, opinions and arguments, so I’m not giving it up, I’m just going to make my posts a bit more focused on what I’m interested and what I believe in.

The blog has sort of evolved and gone in that direction anyway, but I’ve compromised and dipped in and out of things a bit. ‘Punk Planning’ was one thought that stemmed from a number of frustrations such as trying to get into planning from account service 3 years ago, people believing that agencies outside of London can’t compete and finally the air of pretension and self importance that seems to engulf certain parts of the industry. However, I’ve been beaten to it by Charles Frith who has started a cracking blog. A coincidence? A source of inspiration? Either way I’m not too disappointed to have missed out as I think I have got something I’m probably more comfortable with.

Planning from the ground up. This isn’t ground breaking or original I know, but I don’t feel the need to develop a new theory and label it. I’m a massive believer in the school of thought that suggests the most interesting things in culture and society grows from the ground up and not the top down. With scarcity and solidarity being the two key components of cultural developments or the cause and effect if you like. I think I’m drawn to this for a number of reasons. It’s quite down to earth and fits in with my background, beliefs and interests. It challenges without being too anti establishment. I’m also enjoying doing and reading ethnographic studies more and more. And finally it’s a consistent theme that arises in a lot of the good things I’ve been reading over the last few months.

Posted in Blogging, Comms thinking type stuff, culture, Ground up thinking, Planning

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22Feb / 2007

Punk planning

I feel like my first few posts have been a bit anti-establishment. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m reading Mark Earl’s Herd, or if this is generally what happens when you start a blog. I find it quite therapeutic. It allows you to get things off your chest.

I’m sort of seeing Earl’s book as a bit of a kick up the backside or re-awakening of brands. It’s about getting back in touch with human nature and trying to adopt the characteristics and approaches of social movements. Marketers seem to have got wrapped up in consumerism and board room talk. I think that we’ve forgotten the simple reasons why we interact, influence and simply find things interesting?

Posted in Blogging, Comms thinking type stuff, Herd, Interestingness, Mark Earls, Planning, Punk Planning

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05Feb / 2007

Community culture

How timely, just as I start my blog, worrying about whether the world needs another planner with an opinion, Russell Davies feels the heat of an ‘expert’. In ‘community’ lingo, he got flamed.

Although Russell doesn’t reference the culprit, you can find the blog here. I saw it posted a couple of months ago, whilst on Brandrepublic.com. For those that haven’t been on the forum it’s really bizarre. It’s like a breeding ground for jumped up advertising know it alls, so if I was Russell I wouldn’t take it to heart. Take a look; it will make you smile at least.

It’s not the specific personal attack, but the community culture thing that fascinates me. The way that they mutate over time and develop distinctive personalities. It amazes me how they can connect and influence people that would never otherwise meet, and I don’t just mean by location.

Take the Russell example. A successful, award-winning planner is upset by the comments of someone who is probably fresh out of University and has that nothing worthwhile to say. As a result he stops posting for a bit. Then think of the knock on effect. I don’t know the exact number but I’d imagine a lot of people not only view Russell’s blog everyday but also reference it and use it as a source of inspiration.

I always use forums and blogs as a starting point to get a general view of the brand and audience I’m working with. The views are often so polarised and exaggerated, but that’s the point. People aren’t held back by what other people might think and this can at least point you in a good direction. If you look harder enough you can find some gems although you do have to wade through a lot of crap. In the past it has been invaluable, particularly when working in gaming, football and even higher education. I wouldn’t base an entire idea on the evidence gained in a forum, but it’s an interesting starting point for any planner.

Posted in Blogging, Communications, Communities, culture, Planning

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01Feb / 2007

Another blog by a bloody planner!

I’ve been toying with the idea of creating a blog for some time. What has put me off? Well mainly the fact that there are so many fantastic ones out there already. Take the likes of Russell Davies and Faris Yakob. These guys are almost professional bloggers on the subject of planning. So what have I got to offer the Plannersphere? Who knows, lets see what happens.

Arguably a blog is a bit of a fashion accessory for today’s modern planner, but I could spend all day reading the thoughts and comments of the industry’s most intelligent people. As a young planner I’ve certainly learnt a lot more as a result.

This post asks whether blogging is killing planning. I personally think it is great for the community, but for the time being I’m going to use it as a personal tool -a bit of a virtual scrapbook full of things that I find interesting. If you do as well that’s great.

I see a blog as an opportunity to think about things outside of everyday planning responsibilities, may be even a kind of CV that has a more personal feel to it. At the very least it is a place where I can store all the opinions, thoughts and bits of inspiration in one place. I’d hate to imagine how many planning blogs there are on the web. Never mind, here’s another.

Posted in Blogging, Comms thinking type stuff, Planning, Taxonomy of planners

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