New Year (Re)solutions

If you start listening to everyone, then you have probably heard various things about 2012. The world is going to come to an end, there will be a double-dip recession, a bigger eurozone crisis and basically everything is going to get worse.

My question to you then is, if everything is going to collapse, then what are you waiting for? You've been waiting all this time for things to get better, to get the right chance, for the economy to settle and every other excuse. Well, all these things won't happen. Find your way and start doing what you love. Don't just think about it, do it. This is your chance.

Forget about a list of resolutions for this year. Choose one thing, focus and do it. Once you've done it and you've reached your goal, then maybe move to another one (if there's any more time left). If you want to share your troubles then send me an email on harry [at] minimoko [dot] com.

Happy New Year everyone and all our wishes for your new beginnings!

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

It's About The Experience

You're not selling products and services. You're selling experiences. Whatever it is that you are selling, your customers are looking to buy something in order to change some part of their lives.

You might be promising to make their work lives easier, their dry cleaning faster, their food tastier or their diet healthier. What matters is what experience they get by buying from you. You need to identify how your product or service will make them feel, and deliver on that.

On my recent project CPU Wars, some people thought I was creating a new card game with CPUs. I wasn't. What I created is something that geeks can use in their downtime to have some fun and share a laugh. It's not for card gamers and it's not necessarily for gamers. It's a fun experience only for geeks.

Find the experience and always deliver on it. If you make it enjoyable, people will follow and bring their friends.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Getting Ready For The New Year

Just a few days left in 2011 and everyone's getting ready for the new year. It's very likely that for christmas you received a device on which you can use the kindle app from Amazon. Whatever device you have (smartphone, tablet, computer or an actual Kindle reader) here is a book you need to download right now: The Flinch by Julien Smith.

The cost to you is 0 (brought to us kindly by the Domino Project) but the effect will be great. Spend the next few days you have off to read this book and get ready to fight in the new year.

Here is one of my favourite extracts from the book:
"Straight-A student. Straight to college. Straight to work. Straight up the corporate ladder. Straight to the suburbs.
Damn, you've been scared straight."

For the New Year, read this book and anything else that will inspire you. Get ready to fight, don't flinch and start! If you need help we will be here. We will continue writing and you can always reach us on hello@minimoko.com.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

We Wish You a Simple Christmas!

2011 has been a great experience and we've learned a lot of things. We've increased our audience, formed new collaborations, changed the way we communicate, never stopped posting to our blog and generally had a very nice journey.

We are really looking forward to 2012 and we hope you will be with us for the new journey.

HAVE A SIMPLE CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY!! Ho-ho-ho

P.S. We will be following the UK bank holidays so we won't be posting on Monday 26th and Tuesday 27th

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Love at First Sight

Your heart starts beating faster, you start sweating, your pupils dillate, you feel a bit euphoric. Love is in the air and you want to give in. The expectation has been built and when you finally meet, you fall in love.

I'm not talking about love between people, but love for a product or service. This is what a brand does. It sets the stage, it builds the expectation and when you finally meet you have to give in. You want this euphoria to last forever, you know how better your life will get. You give in and you buy, and everything becomes better.

Build your product so it delivers what it promises, and build a brand so people can fall in love with it.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

You'll Get Used To It

About a year ago I was in the market for a new car (exciting times). I decided to test drive a few different makes and models before deciding on which one to get.

So I made my way to a very popular dealership to test drive one of their best selling models (I won't mention which one it is as this is not a "flaming" post). We all got in the car, started driving the car and everything went well. As I was driving on the motorway I started approaching a red signal. I stopped waited patiently and when the time came I engaged the gear to start. That's when I started going in reverse! What's happening I shouted inside my head! The kind car salesman that insisted to come with us on the test drive told me that I should be more careful as the reverse gear is right next to the first and there is no lock mechanism. We finished the test drive, returned the car and the salesman didn't hear from us again.

The next day I was describing the incident to a friend that owns the same car. Her reply? "Oh yes, well you get used to that. It's only the first few times and then you'll get the hang of it."

By now you might be wondering how this is even possible. Why would someone do this? Yes I understand that you can get used to such an annoyance, but why have it in the first place? Instead, when you design something, do everything you can to make the experience intuitive and easy. Simplify it until you can use it without even having a manual.

Apple did it with the phone, tablet and computer, so there's no excuse when it comes to simplifying the use of a gearbox.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Look Inside

When someone wants to start a new business or build a new product, the usual thing to do is market research. Look into what people need, if there is a good market and generally what the problems are.

For a change I suggest you do something different. Look at what problems you are facing that you can resolve. Build a product that you need or you would take your wallet out and buy. That's what I did in my latest personal project CPU Wars and it has proven to be a great success. I combined my love for games and computing, and built a card game that I would buy without a second thought.

This not only provides you an immediate market (with 7 billion people, you can bet there are more people like you), but it also gives you one of the most important elements of a successful brand, Passion. Take a look inside and you will be surprised at what you might find.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Support Your Decision

To much upheaval this week HP announced its new brand image. I won't repost anything about it here since a quick search will yield hundreds of results. Here's just one of them.

I won't also comment on if the design of the logo is appropriate or not. What I will comment on is HP's undecisiveness when it comes to using their new logo. I'm sure it took months to create the new image and according to roumors HP is not sure whether the new logo will be used on all its products.

If you make such an important change then have the courage and power to support it no matter what. Decisions need to be made and if you believe they add value to your brand then you need to support it no matter what.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Credibility

Trust is the most important building block for your brand. To be credible, people need to trust you. If they trust you they will continue coming back for your products and services.

That's what sets big brands apart from the rest. They have built credibility around their promise and when someone is faced with a choice they will go with the brand that they know and trust.

In order to build credibility you can do the following:

• Deliver on your promise. You've decided what you stand for, now you need to deliver on that promise.
• Follow up. Whether it's a compliment, a complaint or a question, always follow up.
• Provide an amazing and unique experience. Go the extra mile to give your customers an experience they will never forget and start talking about.
• Show your credentials. Feature testimonials, press mentions, awards so that people can find out about them.
• Be open and share your knowledge. Start a blog, newsletter or any other way to share your knowledge.

Do the above and you will be credible and trustworthy.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

It's the Most Commercial Time of the Year

Either now or in the past we've all gone through this period thinking how much is enough and how we can find a good balance. My advice would be to always simplify and focus on what's important.

When it comes to gifts, focus on the most important part of the gift which is who you are giving it to and how you can make it more personal. It's not about the cost (spend what you can afford), it's about creating a stronger bond with the person you are giving it to. Do something that is personal and even better something that you can enjoy together.

For decorations, less is more. You can easily get carried away and create a Christmas Decoration Monster. The essentials will do and some xmas accents in your everyday decor will be more than enough.

For your lunches and dinners, why exactly do you need that much? For some reason we have got into a mentality that during Christmas we need to double our quantities and calorie intakes. Instead, put that energy into making the best of the things you have planned.

I've been applying these practices for the past couple of years and they have really helped me. I hope they do the same for you.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis