These are words that, as of this writing, have zero results when searched in Google.  Which means that, soon after I write this, I’ll be the first and only result for this term.  Yes, that’s cool.  But what will be cooler is when (and IF) other websites start showing up in Google for these words.

Ok, </introduction>.  Here’s the first word:

Profusound / Profusoundly (profusely + soundly)  = I’ll explain why this word is needed.  Profusely means “a lot” or “abundany.”   Soundly means “thorough” or “complete”.  However, something can be profuse, but not sound, and vice versa: sound but not profuse.  Therefore, profusoundly means being both thorough and exhaustive.

So that got me curious to see how Cheerios was attempting to use lead generation and interactivity to increase their sales.

I went to their site and, on first glance I like a lot of what they’re doing there. The first, main page has a cool little flash movie that you can zoom in and hear some people’s stories..fun interactivity. Their layout is extremely smart (on that page) in that the signup form remains accessible during the various interviews.

The site has five other sections, all of which take you away from the signup form. I would recommend this be modified so the signus form is persistent across the entire site, allowing maximum exposure. I say this, because I’m making an assumption as to the absolute goal of this “Cheerios Challenge” site: to get as many people to sign up for the Cheerios Challenge as possible. While other, simultaneous goals exist, everything hinges on the maximum amount of people signing up.

From a content perspective, they’ve done an impressive job. Lots of great, helpful information. My own perspective is that good content is great Google bait. This site is completely in flash, and therefore the content is essentially locked within the flash file. There are many benefits to flash, but, because I value free Google traffic so much, it’s always a shame when I see such great content be hidden away from Google like this. (p.s. Yes, implemented correctly, flash IS able to be indexed by Google, but there are still many reasons that text in flash comes up short.)

For example, one of the prime benefits of the Cheerios Challenge is that you can lower your cholesterol. “Lower Your Cholesterol” is a great keyword to rank for in Google, and I believe CheeriosChallenge.com could have ranked highly for that term, but only if Google was able to read the text. Unfortunately, CheeriosChallenge.com isn’t indexed at all in Google. This is probably due to the flash, but could also be due to the redirection that occurs from the homepage to the promotions page. It’s not something I can tell without looking at the backend of the site, but this really points to an important lesson, applicable to many companies.

The people behind CheeriosChallenge.com did a GREAT job with the site, and were able to rely on Cheerios boxes to drive people to the site. Therefore, I’m sure this campaign was a success. But the fact that CheeriosChallenge.com isn’t even indexed in Google points not to a failure of this campaign, but to the missing of a hidden opportunity. Many businesses survive solely by the grace of Google. Many companies use the power of their brand to drive visitors directly to a site like CheeriosChallenge.com, yet miss out on the massive potential Google love they could receive, if they only took a few steps towards Google in their plans.

That’s all for Part I of the Cheerios Challenge Analysis. I’ll be posting more on this topic in days to come.

There are two sides of a coin - or two edges of a sword - that I’d like to dispell. The one side proudly claims that all these innovations are proof of some kind of Israeli superiority when it comes to innovations; the other side seeks to drudge up various flaws in the Israelis to compensate for an envy of that supposed superiority.

I believe both sides of that coin/sword are wrong. It has nothing to do with the Israelis being a people with innovative genes, and everything to do with the Israelis as a people who had no choice but to build a culture of innovation, incentivized by innovation’s alternative: annihilation.

So, yes, at this point, innovation is deep within the Israeli culture. But it has been inspired by a painful history of constant threat. Is the ongoing threat and struggle a worthy price to pay for the pride of innovation? Can the culture of innovation continue without the constant threat of destruction? And more importantly, what can be learned from this particular instance of innovation that can be gleaned and modeled by other peoples globally?

In a sense, when there is absolutely no choice BUT to innovate, both laziness AND perfection tend to give way to effectiveness. This is an interesting aspect to this discussion. Anyone who has been to Israel might be surprised at the level of “rough edges” that exist at the highest levels of development. This shows that there are two psychological/emotional struggles when it comes to innovation: the first pair is the motivation vs laziness issue. When you MUST act, you act without question, without procrastination, without indecision. You simply act. But what might be less obvious is that, because you also have a deadline (i.e. “the enemy will be here in 3 hours” or “we have years of drinking water remaining”) you become instinctively dismissive of details that do not produce an actual result. This is the 2nd pair: effective vs perfection, or, knowing when something is good enough.

Does it hurt to sail so far alone, far from home, I don’t know (repeat)
Let’s go sailing, come with me just don’t hold on
I won’t carry you, you have your own two arms
I can be your guide but I won’t be your guard
Answer’s out there. Why you make asking so hard?
I’m not wishing for your pain I want your smile
I push you around so you’ll soften up your frown

I found life in dying faces
I saw death in fiery eyes
I felt alone in the temple
Ceremonies are for the blind
I go swimming in your ocean
I go flying in your skies
Guide my hand and lift me up
Sing through my voice in E-gle cries

All for you
All for you

Don’t want to be your lover, I just want to be your thief
Steal you away at midnight, won’t get caught by the police
You’ll answer all my questions, I will disconnect your phone
Don’t matter, where we’re going, it would barely be on roam

Don’t have to love your cell phone, your heart is in my ear drum
Promise I won’t die on you, promise I won’t suck my thumb
I won’t charge you for roaming, I’ll let you cast your net wide
Whenever you want to sleep let, I’ll give you rollover time

Don’t care about the love crimes you’ve committed in the past
Some people would have you shot, others would just have you gassed
But me I like your dark streak. Your tendency to fuck up.
You’re simply a volcano in need of a good erupt

Well I like the way you strum your guitar
You’ve worked on that style and you’ve taken it far
Oh the tone of your voice so full and controlled
For the skill you display my respect you now hold

So I put down my thoughts, take a sip from my beer
I’m looking quite forward to the words I might hear
Alas! All too soon you’ve realized my fears
You ain’t got no sadness, you’re just full of tears

And I swear that I’d like you if you’d something to say
Some glimmer of effort to communicate

Your voice sounds so good and your hands got the moves
You’re dancing around showing off your new shoes
But this ain’t a dance floor it’s not MTV
You’re on your own journey please share it with me

The soul of this song is not to compete
I’m just so damn bored by “Ooh babe, ooh baby..”
All the skill in the world is just crap to me
Next to a little bit of guts and a lot of honesty