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Scamming the scammers

We all hate junk mail, and it seems like it will never stop jamming up our Inboxes. Whether it’s elixirs for male enlargement, vacations to nowhere, or the infamous Nigerian bank scam, we all wish someone would do something to end the madness.  Well somebody, actually somebodies are doing something about it. They’re called Scambaiters and they are a group of anyonymous web citizens dedicated to making the lives of those junk mailers a living hell. Instead of falling for the ploy, they bait the scammers into believing there is money in it for them, but send the scammer on a “safari” which sees them in different countries (most of them politically unstable), without money and without resources to rescue themselves from it. The idea behind it is, to keep the scammers incapacitated and away from their computers for as long as possible and as humilating as possible. Their methods, some may see as crossing the line, but as the Scambaiters will remind you, these people are professional criminals.  Check out their recent bait conquests here.

Branding a branding company

If you are a business owner working on the development and growth of your own company it can be a challenge no matter what industry you are in. This can range from generating more sales, creating or finessing your marketing plan, sourcing manufacturing or creating a new brand for your business. It is your business, your baby, you want to make the right decision and you often question what the right decision or direction is. And, at the end of the day, it’s your bottom line that is affected so you’ll want to make a good decision.

So when Industrial Brand Creative choose to re-brand we knew it was going to be an interesting journey.

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Continue reading "Branding a branding company"

Posted by Matt SamyciaWood on November 14, 2008. | No Comment

Partner for good times and bad

I was recently asked to submit an article about partnerships for the Small Business section of Business in Vancouver magazine. The article, called Is a partnership the right choice for your business to weather these stormy times?, found in the Small Business section of this month’s issue is reprinted below:

As the economy sags many business owners are starting to think pretty radically about what they can do to preserve and prosper. Some are look for ways to reduce spending or downsize. Others might consider merging with a competitor. And still some wonder about taking on a partner to share the burden. But is a partner the right choice for you? This choice comes at the cost of giving up ownership of the company you worked so hard to build, so be very careful, do your homework and protect yourself.

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Continue reading "Partner for good times and bad"

Posted by Mark Busse on November 14, 2008. | No Comment

CAPIC: How to sell your work as a Photographer

I was recently honoured to be invited to sit on an expert panel at a CAPIC event for their Portfolio Series called Your Body of Work: Launching a Creative Vision for your Photography. The event was about how image makers such as photographers and illustrators can best promote themselves using portfolios, websites and marketing initiatives.

The panel was made up of me, Anya Lewise and Cathy Mullaly from Canada Wide, John Edmonds from Grey Vancouver, Tim Hoffpauir from DDB and Chris Peacock from Cossette—all experienced in choosing and working with photographers. We were all asked to consider some key questions which we then later discussed in an open forum, sort of townhall meeting style. The questions plus my notes and thoughts are reproduced here now:

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Continue reading "CAPIC: How to sell your work as a Photographer"

Posted by Mark Busse on November 7, 2008. | No Comment