The teasing is done and it’s time to get specific about the new company I’m now part of alongside founder Joseph Jaffe, veteran communicator Shel Holtz and podcasting pioneer CC Chapman.
The new company is called crayon and will be fully open for business this coming Thursday October 26 when we launch from Crayonville Island, our headquarters in Second Life that’s been under construction during the past few months.
So the first thing to tell you is that crayon is a both a real and a virtual company.
We’re real, in the sense that all of us involved are physical, real human beings based in real locations, on the US east and west coasts plus me here in Europe.
We start with an outstanding team in addition to the four of us – Gary Cohen, Aaron Greenberger, Chris Trela and Michael Denton. These names may not be familiar to you at the moment, but they soon will be.
We’re virtual, in the sense that our primary presence as a company is the three-dimensional online digital world of Second Life where we will conduct our business, our presentations, our brainstorms and our pitches.
And by the way, when we launch on Thursday, we will be the first company to be launched in Second Life.
The second thing to let you know is what crayon actually is.
We’re not an agency nor a consulting practice as is traditionally defined. What we are is whatever you want or need us to be.
I like to think of us as a true mash-up that combines the best in traditional and new thinking about marketing, advertising and PR.
We’re a solution provider. We’re an extension of your team. Consider us a new breed of partner – one that keeps everyone honest and on the right path. Our client is not the consumer: our client is the truth.
Our methodology pivots around conversation and transformation above communication. Our value proposition is designed to activate passions, enthusiasm, organic dialogue and no-strings-attached referrals and recommendations.
When Joseph approached me some three months ago to be part of this new venture, I could see immediately that here was a terrific opportunity to join forces with someone visionary who I’ve been paying attention to for a long time.
So I made my decision pretty quickly to join Joseph in creating something special that would enable us to work with marketers, advertisers and public relations professionals that will enable them to better understand the tremendous changes, challenges and opportunities in today’s complex world of fragmented attention, increasing consumer control and hardening attitudes towards traditional marketing and communication.
We think we have something compelling to offer that will enable every client to do what every business really wants – get to the future. First.
If you’d like to blog or podcast about crayon, I’d be thrilled if you would! Let me know if you need more information. Bookmark our website – www.crayonville.com – which will be live on Thursday.
And if you do want to know more about crayon before our launch, each of us is willing to talk to you at any time during the coming week. If you’d like to interview Joseph, or any one of the team, let me know directly or leave a comment here.
Looking forward to helping you get to your future first.
[Update Oct 23 @ 09:40] Joseph, Shel and CC have also posted about crayon. Theirs went up late last night my time.
I’ve been amazed by the reactions to our news plus the sheer volume of warmth coming our way from friends in the blogosphere. Thanks, everyone. You’ve set the expectation bar high indeed and we won’t let you down.
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I’ll have some of what you’re smoking Neville.
Hope all goes well.
Neville; At last, it comes out. I had a suspicion it was something like this
Can we have the next Second Thursday in Second Life at Crayon?
Congrats again!
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it took me a while to figure out this was not about crayola crayons. oh! well…
As someone who has had the pleasure of knowing Joe Jaffe on and off over the last 2 years through both the Soflow network and my Digerati group, let me welcome you! Joe, come on in, the water’s fine. Of course, as CEO of a Metaverse development company doing ALL our work bringing RL brands into SL, and living entirely by the motto “don’t sell me, play with me,” I also have to take issue (as others have here) with the notion that Crayon represents some kind of a “first.” That said, let’s touch base and talk about ways we might collaborate. I highly value what you bring to the table and look forward to seeing if there are ways IVM and Crayon can work together to inititate conversations between our clients’ brands and their core constituencies.
You can reach me @ drew@infinitevisionmedia.com
Hmmm…. Don’t know what second life is, don’t much care. I do wish you every success, you’re still the single most effective corporate communicator I’ve met or even heard of. Hope to work with you again.
All the best.
D
Neville,
I’m a bit late to the party here – but congratulations!
The annoucement of your upcoming launch made me bite the bullet and finally join Second Life, I’m hoping I’ll be able to attend on Thursday.
Best wishes.
“What we are is whatever you want or need us to be.”
I need you to be one who can get a Blogger/Google Support person on the case to fix my five-year-old, 4000-plus post blog, which I’ve been unable to publish to for going on five days due to the beta-blogger-mashup blogspot-plus-killer migration that’s going on, I guess.
THAT is who I need you to be. Then I can chime in on this development in the world of PR and Social Marketing.
Thank you.
“What we are is whatever you want or need us to be.” – Ok – brain surgeons this week, bridge designers next and i’ll have fries to go with that my burger order.
And then:
“Our client is not the consumer: our client is the truth.”
Wow – I believe, I believe, I believe you’s trying to kid me.
As David says: pass whatever dope you’re smoking over here.
Sorry Neville – absolutely don’t get it. But then marketing’s never been something I’d pretend to understand so well.
Congratulations Neville – I wish you all the best with your new venture, it sounds exciting! Might meet you in second life at the launch party…
Thanks, everyone. Quite a few questions in here which I hope to address in a separate post soon. Giff, that will include some comment about this whole ‘first’ thing. Eric Rice had a good commentary about that.
Re FIR, Stephen and Stuart, we’ve actually been pretty good at keeping show length to an hour or so. Until yesterday’s edition
David T, good to hear from you. Thanks for your warm words even if you don’t know what SL is.
Just believe, Dennis!
Tabita, thanks, and good luck to you with your new venture.
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“Our methodology pivots around conversation and transformation above communication. Our value proposition is designed to activate passions, enthusiasm, organic dialogue and no-strings-attached referrals and recommendations.”
hmmm .looks like another BS compliant startup ….
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Thanks, RV. I assume ‘BS compliant’ means ‘Best Strategy.’ In which case, I appreciate your warm words.
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This is awesome! Mucho congrats!
Belated but sincere congratulations to All Crayonites…er, crayonians…,er,crayolas, opps flapdoodle with a side order of lawsuit on that last one.
I’m happy for y’all, and wish you the best.
Love & Peace, Clarence
Congrats! I’m looking forward to this.
Lets hope that the grid stays open long enough for more than 24 consecutive hours so you can do what you do!
A bit late, but nevertheless many congrats. Sounds like an excellent topic for a presentation at a symposium, btw. Mmmm… isn’t that a coincidence: we are actually organising one in March 2007 in Ghent. And am I right in presuming you could be convinced in coming over? I’m sure by then you’ll have lots of sotries to tell already
. Good luck with Crayon!
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Hi Neville,
As I just blogged on my site, many congratulations on the exciting adventure that is Crayon.
I’ll be watching with interest, and hope we can all continue to learn from you and the team as we have so far with your respective blogs and podcasts.
Your contribution so far to social media and the development of new PR/marketing cannot be underestimated.
All the best,
sw
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Hi Neville,
Congratulations and all the best with the new venture.
Speak/meet you soon at one of the conferences.
Thanks, everyone. I know I speak on behalf of everyone at crayon in saying that your word of support mean a lot to us. Greatly appreciated.
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Congratulations on your new endeavor and approach. In the mean time I was curious if there might be interested parties in the marketing advertising space willing to listen to a marketing plan that entails pitching advertisers on social change? In other words brand association with MOTHERS LOVE. i.e. advertiser generates a public policy that brings a smile to a MOTHER by way of education modalities their children follow, love and gobble up with big smiles on their faces. One last thing, the policy lasts the duration of the child’s life.
Those who are curious will need to give me face time in NYC. Face time is the only way to pitch this one I am afraid.
Thanks and good luck
Enrique G. Cubillo
212 243 9601
Advocate for social change via marketing and advertising
Money Moves Markets & Minds, Move Wisely & Nicely
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