Shameless Self Promotion
June 21, 2010
The internet has ruined everything.
I'm not talking about access to movie downloads being able to order a pizza online, high five for that information superhighway. However the impersonal access to people via email and social media has made interaction a lost art. I can lament about how people don't talk anymore because of the internet, but hell, due to my bouts of social awkwardness if given the choice to hide in a dumpster or engage in small talk i would be promptly looking for a stick to prop the dumpster lid open so the scent of molded meat byproducts would be slightly more bearable.
The ability to reach multiple people with the click of a key has created a more brazen self promoter unafraid to peddle his wares to the faceless masses that had the unfortunate circumstance of being lumped in on a wayward email list that he happened to intercept.
Creativity, resourcefulness and drive have become casualties of mass emailings, facebook groups and twitter blasts most of them un-warranted, unsolicited and unwanted.
No one to my knowledge has ever been discovered through the sending of their art blindly through social media. Its impersonal and for lack of better words bad form.
In marketing you need to target your audience and build a personal connection.
When Mike Cherman wanted to get a job in design he didn't randomly contact every design firm with a copy and paste cover letter.
He found out who he wanted to work for and created a campaign targeted in visually harassing that company to hire him. That company happened to be Staple Design.
Cherman found the walking route between Jeff Staple's apartment and his office space and literally plastered the walls between the 2 points with his promotional posters. As fast as the city could take them down, he put them right back up again making it impossible for Jeff not to notice his aggressively assholish campaign.
So how'd it end up? Well it ended up with Mike getting arrested. It also ended up with Mike getting an interview at Staple design so it balances out his day in central booking.
Effort and innovation are always appreciated, in the product and the process. Creativity does not stop with the end product. Don't end up in someone's trash folder.
This is truly remarkable, hats off to Mike for this awesome idea and it's execution.
A bit easier to pull off as a graphic designer than say a musician, but still proves that originality pays off.