Category: learning

Learn the future…Save yourself now

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Every now and then something piques interest in my inbox. Here’s this week’s gem.

The opportunity to “Master essential skills to build digital competencies…”. But only if you’re a Beginner with a free day. And a Union member with fifty bucks to spare instead of the usual $300…

I think I might just sign up so that I can help write the e-enabled AI for the writers of the future. e-enabled AI with poor grammar skills and the inability to write with emotion.

The Digital Transformation continues!

Long live the e-Revolution then.

 

 

 

Focus Interruptus

Interruption. Distraction. Miscommunication.

These three words seem to determine our working lives at the moment – indeed for some, even our personal lives.

With the proliferation of channels of communication and information, you’d imagine we would get better at getting our message across.

From the good old face to face meeting to the telephone call to the instant feedback loop that is WhatsApp messaging, chat and #slack, with emails in between, the reality is that we’re not.

Fractured conversations. Half thoughts and less than insightful text messages puncture our working days and nights.

Apparently after an interruption, “it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task” according to Gloria Mark, study lead at the University of California Irvine in a study released in 2015…

Instructions are fragmented. Ideas are ill-defined. In the pursuit of speed, we are sacrificing brevity for insanity.

Indeed, one blog recently talked about how every work block should be no longer than 10 minutes. Ridiculous as it sounds, that’s hardly enough time to clear your mind of any distractions, to barely scratch the surface of a particular project.

Nowadays a large part of our time is spent deciphering half-formed responses. Interpretation is often misunderstood and even misinterpreted. Context is everything. And nothing.

If everyone is as interrupted and distracted as we are, then we have a serious problem.

So let’s cut the chat and get back on message. Focus our efforts on clarity. And our brain cells on creativity.

For in the words of Bill Bernbach, “Is creativity some obscure, esoteric art form? Not on your life. It’s the most practical thing a businessman can employ.”

 

 

Thanks to https://digitalsynopsis.com/design/client-designer-whatsapp-conversations/ for the pic.

Two billboards outside Yangon, Myanmar

Now that we’re over the Chinese New Year feasting and drinking, it’s time for the year of the Dog to get started properly.

And here to get things moving are two billboards for one of Myanmar’s leading insurance companies, AMI.

Created jointly by Blak Labs Myanmar and Singapore as a public service message, the first billboard is a reminder to buckle up for a safe trip on the country’s highways.

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The second message is pretty unmistakable too. Speeding has terrible consequences for pedestrians, passengers and drivers.

SpeedobillboardGreat to see these messages finally up. Big thanks to the team in Yangon and Singapore. And thank you to our client for sharing the pics from their road trip. Nothing like two billboards outside Yangon, Myanmar to get your attention.

 

2018…it’s going to be a bit of a giggle

Here’s Mark Ritson’s take on the Big Seven in 2018. Or “BS in 2018” for short, which appeared in this week’s Marketing Week daily digest.

Here at Blak Labs HQ, we had a very serious session digesting all that Prof Ritson has to say. And we’d like to know what you think.
Better still, if you’re searching for answers for how your marketing should deliver in 2018, then please get in touch. With 5 creative partners, Blak Labs is the only Singapore creative agency that provides clients with Creative Counsel, delivered with Creative Care.  If you would like to know more, then drop us a line here

We’re 100% independent and conflict-free.

 

 

LinkedIn. Where you can meet yourself.

A few months ago, I tried to sign in to LinkedIn from my iPhone. I must’ve used the wrong email to sign in and ended up creating an entirely new account.

Here’s the result. LinkedIn introducing me to the person I know better than anyone: myself.

Of course, this is just one if the issues that we face in the age of AI and algorithms. There are many more – including thinking that machines will ever fully replace us.

Yes, machines can take the donkey work over, with our blessings. But there’s much to be said for the human touch.

Now I just need to figure out how to remove my doppelgänger. Watch this space.

Top dogs wanted. Patience rewarded.

The Blak Labs Grad Challenge is back! So fetch your 5 best pieces of work and send them to talktous@blaklabs.com before end of June 1, 2017.

If your book gets our tails wagging, then you could be the top dog that wins an 8 week internship at Singapore’s leading independent creative agency.

We can’t promise it will be a walk in the park. But hey, you gotta start somewhere!

 

 

Up for your first real brief?

The Blak Labs Grad Challenge continues in 2017. If you’re a recent NAFA Graduate, we’re throwing you a bone. The chance to win an 8 week internship in one of Singapore’s leading independent creative agencies. Fetch your 5 best pieces of work and submit them to: talktous@blaklabs.com before end of day June 1, 2017.

 

Think you’ve got the right pedigree?

It’s that time of year when the young pups from NAFA come out to play. And following the success of last year’s challenge from BlakLabs, we’ve got another internship up for grabs for the Graduating Class of 2017.

To sniff out the most talented individuals,  we at Blak Labs, are offering an 8-week placement for one top dog.

The challenge highlights the dogged mentality needed to succeed in advertising, requiring graduates to submit 5 pieces of their best work to prove they have the bite to thrive in this dog-eat-dog business.

Although aimed at NAFA graduates, this challenge is open to anyone looking for a place to sit, stay and play.

Send 5 pieces of your best work to talktous@blaklabs.com by 1st June 2017.

Would you sell your own daughter? The disturbing truth behind Blak Labs latest campaign

Blak Labs newest campaign for Hagar Singapore, part of the global humanitarian organisation Hagar International, highlights the plight of human trafficking victims.  The aim is to encourage Singaporeans to help stop this crime, while commemorating International Women’s Day this month.

The campaign features a series of four print ads and a thought-provoking online video.

HAG16_2601 Hagar ads_A2 pathRunning in media sponsored by SPH and Expat Living Magazine, the ads are based on true stories of human trafficking survivors who have recovered under Hagar’s care. Also part of the campaign, a gritty online video documents the shocking reality of a mother selling her daughter to the viewers, with an unexpected twist.

HAG16_2601 Hagar ads_A2 path“Human trafficking has devastated millions of lives across the world, but there’s always hope for recovery, and that’s what we want to achieve with this campaign. In Singapore, we’re partnering the government’s Inter-Agency Taskforce on Trafficking in Persons on various initiatives to raise public awareness, and provide victim care and support for trafficked survivors to meet their recovery and reintegration needs,” said Lynette Lim, Director of Marketing and Communications at Hagar Singapore.

“What these survivors have been through is horrific, but what’s even more amazing is how they have recovered with Hagar’s support. We are glad to be able to lend Hagar our support in this important cause,” added Charlie Blower, Managing Partner at Blak Labs.

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Now we are 6

Thoughts and thanks on Blak Labs reaching our 6th Anniversary.

Yesterday we celebrated Blak Labs’ 6th birthday with awfully chocolatey cakes, bowling and dinner.

Over 3,800 days ago when we first started, we had no idea how far we could go or how long we would last.

And when you consider the stats that say over 90% of start-ups fail, it feels good to be able to sit back, enjoy a slice of cake and a glass of good red for a minute.

We’d better make the most of those 60 seconds though. Because if we relax any longer, we run several risks.

In this economy, we have to work twice as hard to earn every penny. Clients nowadays are squeezing every drop of thinking and value out of every job to get the best result. That’s because their livelihoods, and jobs, depend on it. (As do ours.)

The second risk is this – relying on a single client, or a single market.

Fortunately, we have learned to think beyond businesses and borders; with nascent success in Myanmar.

Since we added new talent to our Yangon office and moved to a much improved home/office, business has improved significantly too.

As I write, we have one team missing our birthday celebrations to shoot a new campaign near Mandalay. Later this month, another team will be filming two success stories in Yangon.

The third risk? Believing you can do it all on your own.

We wouldn’t have made it this far without each other. A team of partners who support and challenge each other every day.p1120731

In turn, we are thankful that we have the support of several other important groups. First of all, our talented teams of creatives and project managers in Singapore and Yangon. Not to mention, the producers and photographers, retouchers and directors, printers, publications and couriers we work with.

Secondly, our clients. From those who took a chance on us all those years ago, to newer ones who choose us because of what we’ve achieved.

Finally, our families. We couldn’t do this stuff without the love and support that our loved ones provide.

So whether you’re a partner, a team member, a client or a loved one, THANK YOU for helping us reach the age of 6.

Cue the commercial message: If you’ve got a business problem or are looking to do extraordinary work (the two are closely linked), please give us a call or drop us a line at talktous@blaklabs.com

FYI, we’re not so good at bowling, better at creating new ideas.

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