Good Ideas In Storytelling was awesome, don’t let the tardiness of this post suggest otherwise.
PSFK’s Good Idea Salon brought together a talented group of panelists and an equally amazing audience, with the panel feeling more like a passionate conversation between interested friends than a panel. DDB’s Brett Macfarlane moderated, well, more like tried to get a few words in, as he was joined by Author Douglas Coupland, David Allison of Braun/Allison and Giant Ant Media’s Leah Nelson.
Brief Tangent
First, I’ve got to be honest, I was expecting a different Douglas Coupland. I had heard about the quirky requests and detailed planning that go into scheduling his public appearances and thought I would see a shy and introspective creative genius in an awkward standoff with the audience. I was incredibly wrong. Coupland and the Audience warmed to each other as an early monologue showed his excitement for how technology is shaping his art as well as the bigger effects it’s having on politics and society.
While early indications where that Coupland would dominate the conversation, both David Allison and Leah Nelson enthusiastically shaped the discussion with their unique points of view as an Advertising Veteran and Award Winning Film Maker respectively. The conversation was broken down into 3 main questions and while the three offered numerous insights, there were a few that i found most interesting.
Storytelling as the Storyteller
Coupland started things of by talking about his interest in what he calls “Fractal Stories”, referring to how as one views a story as smaller and smaller pieces, more and more pieces become apparent. He referred to recent phenomenons such as Susan Boyle, the #iranelection and Micheal Jackson as examples of stories that are much different in speed, scope and depth, than ever before.
The staple change agents of greater connectivity and falling barriers to entry have led to new interpretations of fame, success and what is good. As Coupland said, “The only constant is that the next big thing is going to come out of left field.”
Noise and Filters
The discussion then turned to the panelists thoughts on all the noise created by the unprecedented access we have to each other. Allison brought up the increasing importance that we will put on filters, describing his fantasy as a “personal journalist, who recommends the best things specifically to me” His thoughts seemed to focus on the idea of a service or application that could recommend things based on his inputs of like and dislikes.
Leah posed the idea that we already have filtering systems through the popularity of link sharing, stumbling, blogging and tweeting. More importantly, she noted, the crowd is increasingly becoming the filter, with users of social media tools sharing, liking and re-tweeting quality information so it can rise to the top. She said something to the effect of “Stories used to be filtered by 10 guys in an office building in New York, now they’re filtered by the millions of people connected on the internet. Which is better? I like to think the million people model. ”
I happen to completely agree with her here. The crowd is the filter and it’s smarter than those 10 guys.
The Distribution of Storytelling
So here’s where my memory get’s a little fuzzy, though I do recall one really interesting topic that the panel latched on to. The question was something like this, “What new ways are storytellers being compensated for their work”
Both David and Leah immediately started talking about the non monetary compensation that drives much of today content creation. The general consensus was that, in many cases, the audience is the compensation. Leah noted the impact that receiving immediate and unfiltered feedback on her work, specifically noting Sleeping With MySpace (Her and partner Jay Grandin sent a message to their MySpace following saying something like “we’re traveling to Europe, anyone have a couch we can crash on?”) The immediate gratification of knowing someone liked your work can be a huge motivating factor.
Brands and storytelling
Rounding out the discussion was the topic of brands in storytelling. The panelists listed a variety of brands, though the one that stuck in my mind as an excellent example was Obama and his presidential campaign. Some great discussion on his use of story and social media can be found here.
The conversation moved to how technology has changed the way brands communicate, focusing on trust, authenticity and honesty in messaging. David noted “I just don’t think Betty Crocker would cut it today” with Coupland chiming in “ya, Martha Stewart is the new Betty Crocker”
Again my memory is fuzzy on the details, so I’ll add a few personal thoughts on the subject. I think its an important point, consumers are demanding more access to real people and real stories while wanting less of the traditional one way messaging that has been the staple brand storytelling for most of it’s recent existence. One member of the audience summed up the discussion perfectly when he asked, “So what would you prefer, a Brand to be entertaining or honest?” The resounding answer, from the panel and the audience, was Honest.
Wrapping it Up
So there we have it, a vague recollection of a great conversation hosted by Good Idea’s Salon Vancouver. Kudo’s to Brett and Matt for organizing the event. If you where there, and have something to add please do so, I’ll update the post and add as many thoughts as I can.
In the meantime, you can check out David Allison’s thoughts on the event. You can also check out my post on the last event PSFK’s Good Ideas in Media or visit the Good Ideas Salon blog for some more Good Ideas.
Photo Cred: Duncan Joseph Photography
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