(DAY 1 cont.)

I arrived in Denver in one piece and without any further security scrutiny.  In the back of my mind I had expected at least one final surprise from the Department of Homeland Security, but instead I was greeted with good old fashion Colorado hospitality.  Friendly folks with cowboys hats helped direct passengers, aircraft crew acknowledged you with a smile, even the airport terminal train chimed with greetings from Denver’s mayor.  What a nice place.  As the sun set, I jumped aboard my shuttle and was whisked away towards the silhouetted foothills of the Rockie Mountains.

(DAY 2)

I have to admit, the PDF I received from BDW just prior to leaving left me with some concerns.  For example, it contained bulleted information on things like what HTML was, and what a “Tweet” meant.  The thought that I may have signed up for a beginners course on the web engrained itself as a nagging little voice in the back of my mind.  The course was after all called “Upgrade to Digital”.

Regardless, like a true keener, I showed up to the first day of class a full hour early.  My first thought about the lecture space was that Boulder Digital Works looked more like a typical advertising agency than any school classroom I’ve ever seen.  Huge graphics covered the walls, students had personalized cubicles, post-it notes covered the walls and a large games room allowed students a temporary reprieve from brainstorming or creative studies.  Our session was held near the back of the office, er… “classroom” and included about 30 participants of all ages and disciplines within the advertising & digital world.  What kind of hardware did this skilled group use?  About 25% were deploying the latest Mac laptops, the rest PCs.  A few used smaller Netbooks that are becoming more popular these days.

As the session got underway, to my relief, this was no course for rookies.  What followed was a lively and in-depth discussion about the digital ecosystem, the real-time web, social media and experience design.  This was good stuff.

Now I always find that when listening to lengthy lecutres of any kind – it’s the key phrases and concepts that tend to resonate long after.  Those short mantras that you can work into your own practices. Here are just a few that I agreed with or that stuck out as strong fundamental concepts in digital media.

“Brand momentum – Nurture it”

“Prove it – Don’t just say it”

“Be nimble – be reactionary”

“Participation is not enough”

“You don’t kill your own ideas anymore – the web does it for you”

“Don’t create websites, create ideas – use the web to express them”

“Innovation is a basic human character”

“Social Media is Mainstream”

“Repetition? or Surprise?”

You might say “transparency” was an underlining message across all the digital topics we discussed today.  Especially in Social Media.  Matt Walsh of CPBgroup.com shared a unique inside perspective on how Dominos Pizza handled an online YouTube clip (since removed) that showed an employee, well, not making a pizza with my preferred toppings.  The clip gained a lot of attention in the media, but by using quick, honest and transparent messaging purposely placed in the same social channel that stung them, they deflated the negative momentum.  Later, lessons learned from the experience were put to good use in a new successful brand message/campaign that shows Dominos customers that they are truly listening.

All and all an excellent day.  I simply can’t wait for tomorrow.  Good night Colorado.

[Travel Tip  -  Don't sit in the back of extended cab shuttle vans, you feel every bump]

This post was written by Brad