Facebook, MySpace and the trillion other social networking sites were designed by 20-year olds for 20-year olds. Sure there are plenty of kids under 20 and adults in their 30’s and 40’s on the sites, but the gist of social networking was for kids to have their own "place" to network.

I first signed up on Facebook way back in 2007. After looking it over, I decided I already have all the "friends" I need and certainly don’t want to run into old high school or college buddies that all of a sudden want to be my "friend." So I stopped visiting the site.

For those that know me, I don’t answer the phone at home, don’t have a Blackberry so I don’t text or respond to email and barely use 100 minutes a month on my i-Phone. So when my CFO brought up Facebook the other day I was shocked. And then when my SAP report guru was teaching me about reports, I learned that he was passionate about Facebook as well.

That was it. It was time to step into the social networking club feet first. Jason helped me set up Kemon USA, a group for everyone involved with Kemon including salons, hairdressers, coaches, consumers and so on.

Then we set up Kemon Days as an event and that was very cool as well. We added photos, comments and fun stuff. Finally we ended the session by downloading the Kemon Nights video into You Tube and linked it back to Facebook (which you can now watch on Facebook). All this took about an hour.

I now have more "friends" than the past 2 years. People are already part of the group and the event. Kemon gurus from LA and San Diego didn’t waste any time. A couple BE’s chatted me up that they were thrilled.

Now I’m not sure how long my excitement will last. I found out about walls, threads, pokes, chatting and all the stuff you must keep up with to stay relevant. Who has time for all that? But in the meantime, I must share some great photos of fellow Facebook "friends!"

Now I’m not making this up, these photos are right on the web for anyone to see. Here’s another one:

And one more for the fun of it:

At the end of the day, it’s one great diversion. But one thing is for certain: it is amazing how many people love this stuff even if you are over 50.

Happy Friday!

Americans donate to charity 3X more than the French, 7X more than the Germans and 14X more than the Italians (no wonder Mix is so tight). On average, we give away 3-4% of our income. The majority of our giving goes to the Church while education is second.

Why we give more has always been an American tradition. We especially love to give to those that are in need. Scientists have confirmed that like laughing, giving releases endorphins (stronger than morphine) into the blood system creating a euphoric feeling.

As a 5-Star investor with the American Cancer Society, our talent not only feels good about their contributions in both time and dollars, but knowing that ACS is the foundation for people with cancer and people looking for a cure. We have raised over $1,300,000 over the past 8 years.

But with thousands of organizations asking for money, how does one decide? I never give to those people at traffic lights with a bucket looking for a quick buck. Perhaps it’s because I don’t like the paper flower or none of my endorphins are released.

One person I know buys lunch at Burger King for the person behind him. I’ve done that at Starbucks. Now we have no idea if the person receiving the gesture is in need, but we feel good doing it.

When people call the home at night looking for donations, the phone slams down. No good feelings there! I think we look for sincerity and need when making a decision to give.

With 2009 in full swing, most non-profit organizations are cutting back big time. People aren’t giving to the arts as much for example so there will be fewer exhibits. If you aren’t working, do you care?

How will 2009 affect your giving this year? And here’s the thing, if you can’t give money, at least you can give time. One of my friends worked at a soup kitchen in Detroit and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Next up: Shampoo and conditioner that releases endorphins.

Happy Wednesday!

Detroit might be falling off the face of the map but at least we have a few things going for us. One of those things is Paczki’s (pronounced POONCH-key).

These hot and delicious jelly-filled doughnuts are made in Hamtramck, a community near downtown. Today is the official Paczki Day in which bakery’s make zillions of them and people line up outside (it is 8 degrees) to wait to buy them by the dozen.

These fat-laden bombs come in typical jelly flavors such as strawberry, raspberry, lemon, and blueberry. They also come in vanilla and chocolate custard. But don’t worry about calories; the average Paczki is only 480 calories and 30+ grams of fat. No wonder people eat 2-3 of them! But hey, Lent is around the corner.

We’re happy when we splurge especially when it comes to eating. Although I have purchased Paczki’s, I have never indulged.

Our CFO splurges on chocolate chip cookies. I swear that he can eat a dozen giant cookies in the manner of a couple hours. And he wants more!

Do Paczki’s sound good to you? When you do splurge, what is it? Years ago, one of my splurges was every Friday, I would go to McDonald’s a get two cheeseburgers and fries. Yummy!

So if we can’t be happy because of the economy, stock market or weather, at least we can be happy eating. Now who has the Pepto?

Happy Tuesday!

Now that we know all of our consumption over the past 20 years was irresponsible and we must pay for our awful behavior, The Detroit News ran a column yesterday about what we will and won’t give up.

Of the six or so people interviewed, virtually everyone mentioned salon services. They were split: some thought of salon services as a need and no way were they going to give up their manicures and hair cuts. Others thought of salon services as a want and they opted to forego them.

More than ever, differentiating between needs and wants is critical to marketers, retailers, producers and companies such as TNG.

First, we must decide if we need the product to begin with. Let’s take a bottle of wine. To those that don’t drink wine, it is irrelevant. But let’s say you have had a glass a day for the past ten years. Most will say that wine is a need.

Second, once identified as a need, what is the price we are willing to pay? If the average bottle of wine was $10-$15 in the past, what is the price you need to pay now? Wine in the range of $2.99-$4.99 a bottle is all the rage. Hence, consumption still occurs but at a far drastic reduction in price paid.

Eating out was also mentioned. During the "crazy" years, people would have a cocktail then order their meal. Again, people interviewed were split. The current trend is to have a cocktail at home first and then go to the restaurant. If alcohol is ordered, it is minimal and items like appetizers and desserts are eliminated. Again, the need is met but the consumption is drastically cut.

Retailers like Abercrombie must be wondering about teenager allowances. Need or want? Companies such as Altria (makers of Marlboro) have no worries as cigarettes are more of a need than ever. But what about coffee? We love our coffee and it is a need. But where do we draw the line? If not Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts? Or Speedway? Or at home in a thermal mug?

Movies are doing well- a great value for the entertainment dollar. But do we need $4 Cokes and $5 tubs of popcorn?

We are lucky that people still need to go to salons to get their hair cut. We need to focus better on making salon services and products needs vs. wants. For instance, a $20 bottle of shampoo or conditioner today is a want. A $2.99 bottle of Ginger Lily Farms is a need.

I remember selling Essie polish for a buck a bottle. Today it’s four bucks a bottle. How many bottles does anyone need at that price? If Essie was $2.99 a bottle, would people need or want it?

Perhaps the biggest question of all is what businesses do consumers need and/or want? For those that don’t meet the right criteria, their future is doomed. And for this, I always go back to one of the Gallup customer engagement questions: "Can you imagine a world without (name of company)?"

I think the Big 3 and a whole lot others are wondering this very question.

Happy Monday!

Americans spent more than $42 Million last weekend watching the premier of Friday the 13th. It was the biggest weekend opening for a horror film ever.

I remember my first horror film, The House on the Haunted Hill. A group of friends decided to rent out this haunted house for fun and what fun they had. I can’t remember how many times I had to close my eyes when I knew a scary scene was going to appear. (the music is responsible for this and always gives us the heads up). But I wonder why we choose to go to horror films and know we are going to close our eyes during the most gruesome scenes?

I loved the Exorcist best. The scene with Linda Blair on her bed and watching her head turn in a 360 degree was scary indeed. And the Omen was chilling. The scene with Damon when we found the 666 in his head underneath his hair was riveting. How about the first couple of Saws? I mean, who would have thought the guy in the first one wasn’t dead? Talk about creepy.

But do we really need to see horror films to be scared today? In these times, comedy typically rules. Of course we know that ages 12-24 are the most likely to frequent horror films so they have little inkling of what it is like in the real world.

One thing for certain is that movies tend to shadow our mood and our inner desire to be entertained. The same is true for music and to some extent, TV shows. Witness the popularity of LOST and 24.

Movies also allow us to fantasize and escape for a couple hours while we devour popcorn, Diet Coke and Twizzlers. With the way things are going today, fantasy is good. People are still spending plenty of money on entertainment.

Short of playing movies in salons (which is illegal), how can we bring an entertainment value to customers that get hair, nail and spa services? To get the business growing again, we must get more people into salons because if we don’t, Jason will have the last laugh.

Happy Friday (or is it)!

The economy sucks for one reason: Over supply.

OK, the economy sucks for more than one reason. But this one rules.

We have no reason to buy anything except groceries, gas and other essentials (Third World countries don’t even buy toilet paper-can you imagine?).

We love to have a reason to buy! Here is what Obama and the politicians need to think about: Prodding companies to develop products that people must have.

Remember Cabbage Patch dolls? Furbies? Beanie Babies? And even Wii? The company creates the demand and then purposely undersupply it. It drives us nuts on one hand but on the other hand, it makes our creative juices flow on how we can secure the item. We will actually stand in line for hours upon hours if we know we can get the item we want. How crazy is that?

Here is another example. The radio and newspaper talks about the newest phone that takes photos, does email and the sort (before the Blackberry). Everyone rushes to the phone stores to buy the phone. You walk into the store hoping they have it in stock. The salesperson comes up to you and asks if you need help. You frantically scream out I got to have this blah-blah phone and I have to have it now.

The salesperson calmly says the last customer came in and put a deposit on our last one. You reply back that you must have one more somewhere. The salesperson states that I can check my warehouse or another store. You beg him to. So he goes into the backroom and you are watching for him like a tiger pouncing on its prey and hoping against all odds he is carrying a box with him when he comes out. When he does, you are the happiest and when the salesperson asks cash or charge, you don’t even care how much the damn phone costs. In fact, you would pay a premium for it.

I recall when OPI first did its seasonal collections. They would make so many, alert everyone of the first sale date and once they were gone, they were gone. We sold out in days. People begged for more. There were no more. Hence, people bought multiple units so they would not run out. It was mayhem and we loved every minute of it.

Today, you can buy as many South Beach collections as you want pretty much anytime you want to buy them. There is no shortage of them and consequently, there aren’t people frantically looking to buy them.

It’s time to take oversupply out of the economy. People love to pay a premium for something that is hard to get (how about sporting and concert tickets?).

Today’s choices are too many. Let’s limit the choices, limit the supply and drive the economy forward.

Now, who has Jimmy Buffett tickets at DTE for sale?

Happy Friday!

You got to love phrases like "social proof." This reminds me when I was in high school and college. The teacher or professor would highlight phrases along with their meanings. We would have to memorize these phrases and their meanings to take the tests. Afterwards, if anyone asked us about the phrases and the meanings we would look at them like they came from Mars.

We don’t remember phrases and their meanings. We don’t remember jokes for the same reason. But we do understand them when explained to us and then we have that "ah-ha" moment when our actions match the terms. I love those "ah-ha" moments.

Social Proof provides many "ah-ha" moments. If you want to Google Social Proof, go ahead. Or you can click on the hyperlink I provided you. If you have never clicked on a hyperlink, most likely you won’t this time. But if you have and if you know others that have, then it is social proof that it is OK to do it.

Have you ever wondered what makes a restaurant, night club, movie or new product "hot?" Most restaurants, night clubs, movies and new products fail miserably. But we all know the restaurant that people wait in line for because one or more of their friends told them you must go. The same holds true for night clubs, movies and new products. Again, this is Social Proof in action.

Fact is, most of us want to be told what is "hot" versus being the early adopters (Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point). This is why launching something new is so difficult. The flip side is also difficult. When early adopters tell others not to go to a restaurant, night club, movie or buy a certain product, people listen and don’t. More Social Proof.

Kemon is a perfect example of Social Proof. When we launched this brand last year, we targeted early adopters. Hairdressers loved the color, the products, the story and consequently, told other hairdressers. Now people are calling us to buy it. Social Proof at its best.

The question is how can we use Social Proof to influence consumers to buy more of our products and services?

Happy Thursday! 

You got to love the English language. We have words such as "your" and "you’re" that people constantly use incorrectly. We have words such as "and" that match up with symbols such as "&". And then we have words such as "reciprocity" that are so complex and singular in usage, you never hear them.

Reciprocity is one of those words that truly influence the decisions we make with people, businesses, and the way we conduct ourselves. For us, reciprocity is expected. But through improper manners, childhood upbringing, or other factors, some people don’t get it.

In its simplest manner, we want something in exchange when we give something to someone else. In each of the examples below, imagine if reciprocity did not happen.

You go to Starbucks. You give them $4 and they give you a latte. You tell the barista "thanks" and the barista replies back "you’re welcome."

You take your girlfriend or spouse out to dinner. You open her car door and she says "thanks." When you get to the restaurant, you open the door and she says "thanks." While you wait at your table, you go to the bar and order drinks. You reciprocate to the bartender by leaving a tip. When the server brings candies or cookies along with the check at the end of the meal, you tell the server "thanks" most likely by giving a larger tip. 

For a birthday, you buy a gift and when the person opens it, the person says "thanks." When you go to someone’s house for dinner, you invite them to your house for dinner.

When our customers call and place an order, we thank them. When they receive our online survey afterwards, we thank them again. We also thank our customers by giving them our trademark Tootsie Roll Pop.

How about this one. You are on a busy road and someone is exiting a shopping center and needs to make a right hand turn in front of you. You stop and let them in. You expect the driver to reciprocate to you by waving back. If they don’t, you curse the driver and vow never to do it again. When the driver does wave back, you smile and feel good about it.

Today more than ever, we need to reciprocate. Winners do it consistently. And consistently is the them of tomorrow’s blog. Think about ways you can reciprocate that you now take for granted. At the end, it’s the small touches that make the difference.

Happy Wednesday!

Who comes up with names like “blog?” And why do we spend time reading blogs? Instead of reading this one, you could be actually working, taking a restroom break, reading something else online, reading a magazine, watching a TV show on your phone or taking a quiet break.

Another question is why do some blogs attract a lot of responses while others don’t? When we talk about favorite movies or snacks in a vending machine, we love to chime in. But when it comes to business or practical issues, we like to stay on the sidelines. I wonder.

Today I thought I would try something different: A blog within a blog. Who knows, it might get all my readers off the sideline or quit reading this altogether! Enjoy.

Gary L. blogged: “I’ll comment on anything. I don’t understand all the fuss on most things and am pretty simple minded. I like humor and wonder why people can’t adopt to the way it is and enjoy life.”

Daniel blogged: “I barely have time to get all my work done let alone read or comment about a blog. I’m up to 2AM doing reports and searching the web for new products and preparing spreadsheet after spreadsheet. It’s no wonder I have had the flu for a week.”

Jane P. blogged: “I like to comment on everything. That’s what makes blogs so much fun!”

Ted R. blogged: “Cruising is fun but I can’t wait to spend time on my own boat. I love being on the boat by myself with a little wine, jazz in the background and no one bothering me. Is it May yet?”

Tony Cuccio blogged: “F___ this, I’m still trying to figure out what the fuss about Windows is. I have them cleaned once a year. And besides, why blog when you can be at the track?”

Tom T. blogged: “We are tracking 3 times orders vs. shipments; 40% calls to sales; and our flow for the month is at or above target which means we are tracking at close to 102% of budget.”

Mark L. blogged: “It sucks being sick. I’ve never been sick before and now I know the feeling.”

Dawn K. blogged: “I am so excited about SAP. Never in my wildest dream did I think it would involve me working 6 days a week 12 hours a day and still not being caught up. This is so much fun I can’t stand it.”

The BUB blogged: “Honey, I know what you are thinking and I know what you are doing and I’m just letting you know not to blog about me or else!”

Max Sortino blogged: “Let me tell you what is going on right now in the industry and the world: Nothing but nothing. It’s been that way and is going to be that way. Thank God for the Hampton’s, hot water, cable TV and Diet Coke.”

A-Rod blogged: “Hey, I was young, stupid and didn’t know better. I just got a contract for $170 million and I needed to perform. A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.”

Jodi B. blogged: “I love, love, love Kemon. I’ve never been more excited about anything in my whole life. Do you need some Kemon?”

Happy Tuesday!

We were born with five senses. Research has dictated that sight accounts for more than 50% of the five senses we use (see previous blog). But when it comes to food, I’m not quite so sure.

Let’s take French Fries for instance. First, they must be hot, crispy and fresh out of the fryer (hey, if you are going to splurge, there must be rules). So smell has a big bearing here because hot crispy fries smell good. Sight is also important because we like large portions of fries when we indulge and the way they are served counts too (I love them in paper cones).

I can’t say I’m a purist when it comes to devouring fries. I must dip into ketchup so the hot crispiness of the fry attracts the cool sweetness of the ketchup that combined makes the taste sense explode (much like sushi with soy and wasabi).

But hands-down (no pun intended), my favorite sense is touch when it comes to eating fries. Sure Miss Manners and others before her invented forks and knives. But really, we eat fries with our hands. Communal plates don’t come with tongs either. We dig in and start with one. Then comes the two-some and then we indulge with three at once. And we must lick off the salt and excess ketchup off our fingers in-between while maintaining a steady pace so others don’t eat more than you.

I think we love to eat with our fingers because of our heritage. Isn’t that why chicken fingers, pizza, nachos, chips & salsa, hot dogs and burgers are perennial favorites? No wonder everyone hates veggies-who eats broccoli with their fingers (although corn on the cob is a favorite)?

We love bagels and doughnuts for this reason. Can you imagine using your fingers to eat cereal with skim milk? Even I have to resort to using a spoon.

We look cookies and brownies; ice cream cones and snack bars for this reason. I think pie is no longer popular because you need to use a fork.

So forget the utensils and be happy. No wonder McDonald’s sales are on a tear (even they tried salads you can eat using your fingers!). Hey, one more reason to make sure your nails look good…..

Happy Monday!