For those who poo-poo Pinterest, take a gander at this

Is it just my imagination or is Pinterest growing faster than Facebook?

Um...no. In terms of size and growth rate, Pinterest is still smaller than an undersized tick on the back of an old Black Bear. It just may seem that way from all the press coverage and buzz.

Still, Pinterest is flexing it’s digital muscle without even lifting a finger. Mashable shows Pinterest’s ability to be a strong tool to drive traffic to retail websites, through a short article and cool infographics.

When I first played with Pinterest I thought of it nothing more than digital masturbation and an endless time waste. I think I may have said something similar when Facebook first appeared on the scene (“Why would anyone care about what other people are doing right now?) and quite possibly Twitter (“Why would anyone care about what other people are doing right now in only 140 characters or less?).

I’ll never poo-poo another internet sensation. In fact, I’m a believer in Pinterest.

Clearly, it has relevance to commerce.

Being an almost entirely visual medium, it plays globally. And brings a new dimension to PG-rated voyeurism.

And It's proven to be a giant when it comes to community building.

Stop poo-pooing and start Pinning.

JoePa, one more time

Joe Paterno gets laid to rest today. To acknowledge the complexity of a story about a man whose life was defined by 80 years of amazing accomplishments but clouded by two months of devastating humiliation, I'm re-posting Monday's thoughts on JoePa and the community that has ebbed and flowed in his support since the Sandusky allegations were revealed. Just click here.

JoePa: When a loss is a gain

In football, there are times when a coach instructs an offensive player—usually the quarterback—to go backwards, that is, take a loss in yardage. The ballcarrier might run through his own end zone to record a safety to protect a large lead while the clock runs out, or run backwards a couple of yards towards the middle of the field to give a kicker a better angle for a field goal.

After 46 years as the Head Coach of Penn State University football team, Joe Paterno knew when it was time to take a loss on the football field. But unfortunately he couldn’t transfer that know-how into real life situations, and ultimately it cost him everything: His job, his dignity, and most likely, his life. Because it’s obvious now that his job was his life. He just couldn’t live without being the coach.

In the months since the horrible allegations against Jerry Sandusky were dug up and then blown up, the dynamics of the community surrounding Coach Paterno and Penn State has ebbed and flowed, starting big and strong but shrinking as more details were revealed. And now, with his death, the community can’t help but grow again.

Even the people who felt anger and disgust for Coach Paterno and his program when the Sandusky story developed, while still repulsed, couldn’t help but feel tremendous sadness for Coach Paterno and the amazing things he accomplished. Not only did he wind up as the all-time leader in coaching wins, bowl appearance and bowl wins, Penn State was time and again rated #1 in graduation rates for their football players.

So now many of the same commentators who skewered Coach Paterno just weeks ago are spending at least a little time admitting that the larger picture paints him as a pretty incredible guy. In light of everything he accomplished, it’s hard to be angry now that he’s gone.

Crowds of his supporters lay flowers and memorabilia at his statue and stare at the bronzed feet of the coach they loved, trying to figure out exactly how they feel about him.

Unfortunately, those people might still be cheering him and he might still be Coach if he realized a long time ago what it took his death to prove: that a community may be strongest when it has something to overcome. It’s a powerful lesson for anyone in the business of building one.

The one thing every brand has to do every day.

Create Belief.

Chipotle fans have it.

Apple fans have it.

Obama supporters had it in 2008.

Cubs/Packers/Red Wings/etc fans have it.

All great brands have it. It’s the single solitary most powerful reason why people are brand loyal.

And when you have it, you have gold.

Belief why the most loyal supporters are called fans.

Short, of course, for fanatics.

It comes from great service, product design, taste, philosophy. A series of experiences that a person has with a brand that embeds in that person an unwavering belief bordering on love.

That love is so deep, brands could probably slack for a while and still maintain it. But they won that love by never slacking. So it’ll never happen.

Belief is the rock solid foundation of community. It’s as true for every modern religion as it is for Harley Davidson and Four Seasons Hotels.

How do you earn belief? Stay tuned.

Beefy Fan-Antics

How is fan-dom formed? So many ways.

Some people pass it down in the genes.

Some marry into it.

Some find it along the way.

For any brand with true fans, there’s no one way. My grandpa made me a baseball fan, but he rooted for the Cubs and Sox, and I gravitated to the North side. My son got it from me. I have a nephew who got it by living in Wrigleyville, but we’re all diehard Cubs fans.

Many many many of those diehard Cubs fans gathered over the weekend at the annual Cubs Convention. A larger group of more optimistic yet skeptical fans, you’ll never find.

It was reported in various media sources, cynically by the Chicago Sun-Times, analytically by the New York Times, and respectfully by WGN. None of that was surprising.

These fanatics make me think of another group of fanatics: Chipotle lovers.

Chipotle has done a phenomenal job of creating a brand with a distinct POV and personality, which, combined with good quality, inexpensive food, has created a loyal gathering and, dare I say, a community. Check out the pictures on their Fan-Antics page.

You’ll see pictures of babies in Chipotle gear, brides and grooms feasting on burritos, and those from the elderly set as well. All indications, if you follow the sports model, that Chipotle has truly created a community of loyal devotees.

Somebody tell Theo. Maybe be can get them to sponsor the new scoreboard.

The simple, old school secret behind Pinterest

Pinterest is white hot. Everyone is Pinterest-ing, covering pinboards with pictures of chicken parmesan, Reese Witherspoon’s hairstyles, and cats kissing rabbits.

Jewelry, home décor, vacation photos…pure fluff, right? Digital masturbation.

Think again. What some would call a massive waste of time was just given $26 million by venture capital firm Andreessen-Horowitz to play with.

But it’s not a fun little site just for playing around. To start with, here are some interesting thoughts on how to use Pinterest for small businesses.

Most important, Pinterest is becoming a great example of a successful self-curating community. So of course, everyone is speculating about the reasons for Pinterest’s massive success. The best combination of clear and complete came from Elad Gil.

But I’ll boil it down even further. Here’s why:

Spirograph, Play-Doh, Silly Putty.

These classic toys are just three examples of how folks enjoyably occupied their time back in the pre-internet days. Doesn’t get much more analog than that, but they were pretty revelatory when they came out.

Ridiculously successful, each one shared three basic qualities:

It’s fun, it’s easy to use, and it looks cool.

So is Pinterest.

Will Pinterest have the same longevity? Only time will tell. But Google, Youtube, and Facebook also share those three qualities, and their futures look pretty good.

Hillary and Ron, sitting in a tree…

From the world of digital political organizing comes Americans Elect. Their ultimate goal is to get a third option on the ballots for the 2012 Presidential election.

They are not, as it may sound, advocating a third party. Rather, they’re trying to create a second nominating process. “A content-neutral platform for political expression in American politics," according to their Chief Operating Officer.

It’s a wonderful example of a community trying to organize itself, and their timing couldn’t be better, given the current morass known as the Republican primaries, and the dire straits in Washington, where the approval rating, according to former Republican Mike Huckabee, is “just barely above a pedophile.”

Clarence Page, in the Chicago tribune yesterday, opined that a successful Americans Elect effort could lead to a Ron Paul-Hillary Clinton ticket. That might shake things up a bit, don’t you think?

And while many of us wish the dissension and rancor could just go away, and this would be a beautiful way to start turning things upside down in US politics, the best thing about Americans Elect is what’s best about all communities that organize from within: they are created, motivated, and guided by the people, and they do the peoples’ will.

Could there be anything more American?

The curious case of kickers and communities

Do you like to cook? What if you cooked your whole life and finally made it onto Top Chef Masters. But instead of getting to cook with all your fellow chefs, you have to stand off to the side while your mates whip up their crispy bacon-roasted quail with cornbread-chorizo stuffing-type dishes and finally, a few seconds before the show’s over, you’re asked to come in and make a dessert that decides the entire competition. While 90,000 foodies scream at you.

Do you fancy politics? Imagine you’re a Presidential advisor who’s forced to watch a three-hour debate from the wings (which sounds bad enough) and at the end comes in to make a statement for your candidate that determines whether your side emerges victorious. Oh, there are 87,000 political fanatics there, from both sides of the aisle. Screaming, of course.

Things like that happened all over the country yesterday, on the football field, where those curious creatures called placekickers were trusted to resolve what 3-4 hours of relentless hand-to-hand combat couldn’t. In game after game, the outcome of the contest was placed on the feet of the kicker, who, as usual, was left alone on the sidelines, except for tv cameras in his face, until his moment of truth.

Why don’t people hang out with him as he’s contemplating the final kick? Why do they make him feel like a condemned prisoner instead of a trusted teammate? I don’t get it.

The best kind of coaching helps an athlete--professional, corporate, or otherwise—be completely comfortable in any situation by talking to her, giving him distractions, forcing her to be able to complete the task while pressure swirls. Create a community, put that person in the middle, and let the chips fall as a team.

If I were on any of those teams yesterday, I would’ve chatted up the kicker for the entire time he was waiting for his shot, distracting him from the situation and allowing him to forget about everything except for the one thing he knows how to do exceptionally well.

That’s what a community can do.

The first awesome top ten list of 2012

Top ten things that have probably happened so far in 2012

1. Seth Godin wrote a bestselling book and it’s already been translated into 12 languages
2. Jay Cutler looked at the scoreboard in Minnesota and thought “How much longer?!?!?”
3. Mitt Romney ate a piece of pie and and thought “How much longer?!?!?”
4. Someone went to see Sherlock Holmes (but not many)
5. Someone showed up at the Health Club who hasn’t been there for 5 months
6. People mourned a Chimpanzee
7. I broke a resolution
8. Someone Googled “Hangover Cure.”
9. Lady Gaga watched Evita, Dick Tracy, and Desperately Seeking Susan to try to get some new ideas
10. 248 people are not sure sure if getting engaged last night was such a good idea now that its light out and the band isn't playing "Wonderful Tonight."

Happy New Year and hope you get put on a lot of (good) lists in 2012

Let’s hear it for Winter’s warmth

Yup, you heard me right.

Sure, the snow and cold and sometimes cruelly raging winter winds can make tears freeze and cheeks crack.

But it also makes you more appreciative of a warm fire. The warming house for ice skaters. Seat warmers in your car, hand warmers for winter dog walks.

And warm people.

Is it my imagination, or are people just a little bit warmer in the winter? A little more likely to help someone carry groceries, shovel snow, give you a warm bagel instead of an old one at New York Bagels and Bialy (the only place for great bagels in Chicago).

Hot toddies and hot chocolate are nice, but warm people are even better. Because warm people are more likely to come together. And any time people come together, something good can happen. A great idea. A solution to a tough challenge. The inkling of a community.

Let’s hear it for Winter’s cold. Without it, we wouldn’t have Winter’s warmth.