Our chosen charity, One Laptop Per Child, has focused a good portion of their efforts on Rwanda, both because it represents a worst-case-scenario and because its president has embraced the program to a degree unmatched by other heads of state. Because of this concentrated effort, OLPC is hoping to see an effect that stretches beyond the schoolhouse and into the economy at large.
“The President wants to make Rwanda a technology and services hub — another tall order considering that just 7% of the country’s 11 million people currently have electricity. And that, curiously enough, is where the laptops come in. He and OLPC proponents hope the computers will both teach the students the language of technology and offer them a way to chase down simple information they lack but which kids in rich nations take for granted. According to the government’s vision, the laptop will be the engine for the spread of electricity and Internet across the country…”
We’re proud to be a part of such a noble effort. If you’d like to join in, you can contribute by visiting the OLPC donation page.
Our founders spent some time at the recent Internet Retailers Conference and Exhibition in Chicago, and a good portion of that time was spent in the company of our bestest friends at Volusion. Here you’ll see Volusion’s video recap of the event and starting at about 1:22 you can see Dane and Kevin (from left to right) talking about the future of eCommerce. Their answer is pretty lengthy just because it would be rude to say, “The future of eCommerce is Brand Labs,” before throwing some gang signs and walking off camera (which was the original plan).
Our recently adopted charity, One Laptop Per Child, has just announced that they intend to debut an early-stage prototype of the XO-3 laptop at CES 2011. This prototype touchscreen tablet will likely have a glass screen for testing in less harsh environments, on their way to the ultimate goal of an all-plastic, nearly indestructible final product with a dual-mode display, appropriate for use in direct sunlight or indoor environments.
The new tablet looks pretty damn sweet, but we’re still in love with our little XO-1.5. On the other hand, if the OLPC folks are able to hit their target cost of $75 as opposed to the $199 for the current model, we’ll be able to change the name of our charitable effort to “One Laptop Per Child Every Three Days”. Not quite as catchy, but we don’t think the kids will mind.
We’ve been having a bit of a bird problem in the ol’ Brand Labs offices lately. Maybe it’s because we’re on the edge of a local park or maybe it’s because of our new side business – a combination worm farm/sunflower seed processing facility. Either way, it’s like Trafalgar Square up in here these days.
Today was no different, except for two things. First, we actually managed to coax the bird in question out a window before he escaped back into the ceiling. Second, the little fella was captured, mid-flight, by our quick-fingered staff photographer, Ashleigh Altemann.
We’d say that we’re going to miss our little feathered friend if it weren’t for the fact that we’re pretty sure he’ll be back in the ceiling before the end of the day. More updates as events warrant…
LessConf is a conference with talks ranging from startups to design to marketing to business. It’s a casual two-day event in Atlanta, Georgia with awesome speakers here to inspire you.
That sounds good. We’re in. As a matter of fact, our president, Kevin Harman will be attending both days of the conference.
So, if you see a guy that looks just like this, feel free to come right on up and say hi. He’ll happily answer your questions about Volusion, eCommerce, online marketing or the proper way to serve Corona.
We’ve been very lucky here at Brand Labs over the last several years. We’ve managed to grow our business by several hundred percent since the Great Recession began. We’ve added hundreds of new clients and a couple dozen employees while our neighbors here in Michigan have seen some very dark times… and Michigan isn’t alone. It’s been rough for everyone and even though we like to believe that most of our success has been due to hard work and skill, we’ve seen enough clever, industrious people who have fallen on hard times for us to comfortably dismiss the idea that we’ve also been amazingly fortunate. For that good fortune, we are grateful.
If we may paraphrase the immortal Stan Lee: With great gratitude comes great responsibility. With that in mind, we’ve chosen to launch our first ongoing philanthropic effort: Brand Labs’ One Laptop Per Child Per Week program. Through this program, we will be donating one OLPC XO laptop every week. These laptops are given to children all over the globe (and right here in the States) to encourage education and connectivity in communities that are lacking in both.
We’re proud of this effort and we’ll mention it every single chance we get, and not because we want you to think we’re super awesome. We’re going to keep mentioning it because we’d like to encourage all of our customers and friends to consider giving to this very worthy cause… or the worthy cause of their choice.
Over the past decade, the world has proven two things to us. First, it can be a very cruel place. Second (and more importantly), mankind has a seemingly boundless capacity for giving, both from the heart and from the wallet.
We’ve taken a small step toward becoming the kind of corporate neighbor we intend to be. We’d be delighted if you’d like to join in…
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again… we absolutely refuse to choose a favorite customer. We love all of our clients equally and wholeheartedly.
… but are you seeing that thing to the left here? Look at that frigging thing! It’s so completely coated with tasty goo that we honestly believe that its makers invented brand new kinds of sugary deliciousness in their pursuit of the most decadent treat in the history of the human race. And who sent us this over-the-top, diabetes-inducing, gut-expansion device? Why, it was Chad at Garden Gates, of course. Here’s the kicker: this was just one of seven tasty delights that he had overnighted to our offices out of gratitude for a job well (and quickly) done. If we may quote from one of Chad’s enclosed gift cards:
“There is nothing better in life than a slice of sweet cake… except The Garden Gates’ new pimpin’ website updates”
Just to be completely clear, The Garden Gates sells wonderful decorative items for the home and garden. To the best of our knowledge, they do no actual pimping.
Anyhoo… back to our original point. We refuse to choose a favorite customer. Period. But, if were going to, this is the type of thing that the competitors would be up against.
In 2010 a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit. The unit promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Rochester, Michigan underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as salespeople for a boutique eCommerce agency. If you have a Volusion problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them (perhaps by calling 877-837-4792), maybe you can hire the B-Team.
Kevin Harman (our fearless leader) has packed up his shiny new iPad and his tattered passport in preparation for his trip to Toronto and the Search Marketing Expo (April 8-9).
He’ll be attending conferences, shamelessly networking and handing out business cards like there’s no tomorrow. If you see him and you want to learn a heck of a lot about Volusion marketing services, please be sure to introduce yourself.
… the rest of us, on the other hand, will be back here in Michigan, holding down the fort. We sure as heck won’t be sneaking out early just because the boss is out of town. No way. Not us.
Today we received a mysterious package. It was preceded by an email from one of our best customers, The Garden Gates. The email contained a riddle. It said:
Purple Green and ?
You don’t want the baby
It will make you fat
Now, we’re northerners, so it took all of our collected brainpower to figure out that the answer was a King Cake. Of course we took great pride in simply answering the riddle, not expecting to receive an edible answer delivered to our doorstep mere hours later… which, in the end, is exactly what happened.
In a box addressed to The Bad Ass Brand Labs Crew, was a traditional New Orleans King Cake (from Randazzo’s) and a note that said, “If you’re gonna roll with us… you need some Mardi Gras in ur belly. Thanks for making us the best!” Our thanks go out to Chad and the folks at The Garden Gates. You’ll be hearing from our cardiologists as soon as we rebound from our sugar comas.
… by the way, Christopher Antoin, one of the newest members of the crew, was the lucky recipient of the plastic baby Jesus (traditionally tucked into the cake), obligating him to bring in the next cake, so he’s not quite as grateful as the rest of us, but he’s new, so screw him.
Today we received a mysterious package. It was preceded by an email from one of our best customers, 
