Mal Chia – Southern Soapbox

Despite already having twice as many computers (including smart phones) than there are people in my house, I’ve still managed to find a place for an ipad.

While it’s true that it doesn’t offer anything truly revolutionary (it is, arguably, a giant ipod touch), it is how it is packaged and the benefits of having a bigger screen that are what makes it indispensable for me.

Here’s why:

The screen is drop dead gorgeous. Nothing looks quite as good as it does on an ipad. Tweetdeck, Wired, even Keynote and Pages.

It’s a great in-between device. For those times (such as this short business trip, where I’m writing this) when you don’t necessarily need the grunt of a laptop or desktop but need something more functional than a mobile phone.

It blends the focused nature of using iphone apps with an infinitely friendlier user-interface. Anyone who’s used an iphone will feel right at home, even if you haven’t it is just so simple and intuitive to use.

Did I mention how sexy it was?

Browsing or in fact doing anything on an ipad is a more communal experience than doing it in front of a computer. Within minutes of firing up the New York Times free app, my wife and my mum were huddled around me interacting with the screen, discussing articles of interest.

The size is just right for so many occassions. On the flight back to Adelaide, for instance, it was so much easier maneuvering an ipad than a laptop with a screen large enough to properly enjoy videos and work on a couple of documents.

Transitioning from one app to another is totally seamless. Waiting at the boarding gate, I could switch from Twitter, to Safari, emailing a link to a colleague and back to watching a video someone sent me without really breaking stride.

Finally, as Craig Wilson puts it, the ipad is a total media convergence.

You’ve probably heard the old adage that everyone in an organisation from the mailroom to the boardroom is in some way or shape is a marketer, but what about sales? Is everyone also a salesperson, or in fact, do marketers also need to be salespeople?

As a marketer, I’ve always hated the generalisation that marketing equals sales – something I’ve experienced in many organisations I’ve worked at where Marketing, by default, is driven by Sales.

However, as a digital marketer in a city as stubbornly traditional as Adelaide, I’ve found that it has become really important for me to know how to sell, especially if I’m pitching an idea that isn’t just about a website. For most marketers, sales is a dirty word, but now more than ever it is important for them to know how to ‘sell’ if you’re going to get the job done.

» Read the rest of this entry «

I originally wrote this article in 2006 for Tranzfusion (now threedworld.com.au) when the Adelaide club scene was going through considerable turmoil and was losing ground to a re-emerging rock scene. It managed to stir some controversy when it was first published, and since I now have a shiny new blog to call my own, I thought it might be worth transposing this over. Some things in the article have changed, but from my (now, admittedly outsider) perspective, much has remained the same…

Something is amiss in the dance music world.

While innovation and invention have been crucial to civilisation as we know it (without it, the combustion engine, microprocessors or house music would never have been conceived and you wouldnt be reading this column), the creativity and imagination that were once its foundations has been usurped by anathema.

» Read the rest of this entry «

Every Saturday morning for the past few weeks my wife and I pack down the stroller, grab the green bags and take our son into Aelaide’s Central Markets. We start off with a strong coffee; then spend a leisurely hour or so doing our grocery shopping for the coming week amidst the colour, hustle and bustle of the market; before finishing off with a bowl of fresh, tasty noodles.

It is an activity that we really enjoy doing as a family and look forward.

Like most people, our working week is frantic as we juggle the twin demands of work and raising a young child.

When I was younger, single and not a parent, life was more or less free flowing and unstructured. However as my familial and professional obligations grew that fluidity soon descended into chaos.

Having something simple and pleasurable at the end of the week, week in, week out, that we look forward helps lend some structure and order to our lives. Instead of that empty feeling Monday morning wondering where the weekend went, I now start the week focused and content knowing that I’ve done something useful and spent quality time with the most important people in my life.