Archive for the ‘Linley Barden’ Category

Who gives a scrap

Monday, June 28th, 2010

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Linley Barden


What is it: A compost service which collects leftover food from grocery stores, restaurants and coffee shops and turns it into organic soil conditioner. The gardens of Utah Valley are dining out!

Why is it cool: Next time you don’t eat everything on your plate, you can tell mum it’s ok the man will come collect it and trees will grow from it. It might not totally defeat her “just think of all the starving children in Africa” but it makes headway on doing something good for the world and innovative thinking. Also it holds up the golden virtues of  “waste not want not” and “making something out of nothing” – all cool too.

Where to find it: here!

Submitted by: Linley Barden

Viral vodka

Monday, June 28th, 2010

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What is it: An article describing how Pyotr Smirnov, the originator of Smirnoff (French-twist added to the name by his exiled son) Vodka, may well have pioneered ‘guerrilla-marketing’ in the 1800s by rounding up men from various parts of the country and inviting them back to his house. Allowing the vodka to flow (and handing out some cash) they returned to their neighbourhoods to “order meat soups and demand Smirnov vodka.”  It worked a treat.

Why is it cool: A “serf made good” story is always a crowd-pleaser. It’s cool because it reaffirms that some ideas are winners regardless of which century they are used (like word-of-mouth!). Some behaviours and motivations transcend era or origin.

Where to find it: here!

Submitted by: Linley Barden

Seed bomb

Friday, April 30th, 2010

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Oh, sorry, I thought you said 'sex bomb'

What is it: Old coin-op candy machines are being converted for use selling seed bombs – mixtures of clay, compost and seeds that can be thrown anonymously into derelict urban sites to (at least, temporarily) reclaim and transform them.

Why is it cool: There’s something poetic about obsolete candy machines (that are essentially trash) being repurposed to sell disposable “bombs” that can be “thrown away” …to bring growth and renewal.

Where to find it: here!

Submitted by: Linley Barden

Getting off the policing bandwagon

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

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Best of the Month, Linley Barden

Groove Armada

What is it: Rather than restricting song sharing in order to sell more tracks, Grove Armanda teamed up with Barcadi and offers incentives to those who spread their music the furthest. Fans can have the first track free of new album and can access the second track once they’ve shared the first with 20 friends. The third MP3 can be heard when the first has been shared 200 times, and the fourth when 2,000 ‘friends’ have hear the first track.

Why is it cool: If you can’t beat them …use them! This is a great WoM spin to bypass something that has been a threat to profits and using it to create a relationship with consumers and drive greater demand. It’s thinking outside the box and rather than controlling ‘uncontrollable’ forces, it’s understanding behavior and using it to advantage.

Where to find it: here!

Submitted by: Linley Barden