Derek Koenig

I just recently toured Mexico after a close friend’s wedding in Mexico City; it was the trip of a lifetime.   After the wedding we flew to La Paz to explore the Sea of Cortes for 5 days.  From La Paz it’s a short trip down Baja to Cabo San Lucas.  We were lucky to have the opportunity to see both coasts; we spent the rest of the trip near the southern border with Guatemala to explore the states of the Yucatan Peninsula.  A wonderful country full of surprises, these are the 5 things that are pulling me back to explore more of Mexico.

1.) D.F.: Districto Federal is a huge and bustling metropolis; we were lucky to have local hosts tour us around the best parts of the city.  I had always heard the D.F. was a dangerous city, but don’t buy the hype! Play it smart and use common sense, you’ll be fine much like anywhere else.  You got to check out the tourist sites, that goes without saying.  Mexico City is huge, you´ll need a few days.  I stayed in the artsy and cool Condesa with a friend, and recommend checking out a small cantina called Guadalupe Reyes, the food is amazing.  Another great neighborhood to check out is Polanco; an upscale neighborhood to walk around and grab Brunch, I enjoyed huevos rancheros of course! The party in D.F. is Amazing; Mexican’s know how to do it proper.  We went out in the downtown city area a few nights and out to the Santa Fe area another.  There’s no shortage of quality clubs or restaurants to visit in D.F.

2.) La Paz and the Sea of Cortes: La Paz is located on the Eastern coast of Baja California.  We were lucky to tour the area on a yacht hopping from cove to cove fishing, water skiing, wake boarding, jet skiing, diving, etc.  The Sea of Cortes is amazingly beautiful and it’s not hard to find a place to anchor with no other boats in sight.  We were able to see whales and dolphins as well as to fish for our own dinner every night.   Nothing beats fresh fish tacos a la Clark. One of the coolest places that we stopped was Playa Balandra with wine glass shaped rock formations it’s a must see when in La Paz.  On the weekend it turns into a giant party of boaters.

3.) Playa Del Carmen: Once we arrived in the Caribbean we slept one night on the beach in Tulum, and spent the rest of our time in Playa Del Carmen relaxing on Mamitas Beach.  Want some advice? Skip Cancún, it’s not worth it.  Playa del Carmen, just south, is a destination not to be missed in Mexico.  There are great restaurants, unique hotels such as El Basico; plenty of quality nightlife, white sand beaches, and Cozumel’s world class diving and kiting are just a stone’s throw away.

One of the coolest things to do in the Yucatan is diving and snorkeling in a Cenote (Maya for Sinkhole), these are underground cave systems that stretch all over the Peninsula and connect to the Caribbean.  Just outside of Playa is Cenote Dos Ojos tucked inside a modern self-governed Mayan collective.  The Maya are an amazing people. These caves are underground worlds filled with crystal clear fresh water; it’s quite an experience exploring the systems.

4.) Campeche: In the Campeche state is an amazingly beautiful city.  I was shocked when we arrived at how much the city had to offer and how little tourism there was.  All of the houses and buildings in the city are painted in a bright colored colonial style, reminiscent of Rainbow Row in Charleston, SC.  We enjoyed dinner overlooking the main plaza with spectacular views of the cathedral.

The city is rich with history, containing both the church that held the first mass in the Americas and great tales of European pirate sieges.  These threats of attack lead to the construction of a giant fortress wall around the city.  This city is a must visit, put it on your list.

5.) Chiapas: It is the poorest state in Mexico and probably the most beautiful.  Waterfalls, Tropical Forests, mountains, and beautiful cities make it a must see.  This is Zapatista country bordering Guatemala and is a far stretch from an all inclusive resort in Cabo San Lucas.  Located in Chiapas is the famous Mayan site of Palenque.

Trust the guy who studied Andean and Mesoamerican Pre-history, Chichen Itza, Coba, Tulum are cool, but BY FAR the most interesting Mayan site in Southern Mexico is Palenque. Tucked in the jungle, the site is amazingly large, with just less than 5% excavated.  Over the years Palenque has been engulfed by lush tropical forest; the site was home to one of the richest preserved tombs in the Americas, Pakal.  Pakal’s tomb rivals the Sipán Lord tomb near Chiclayo, Peru  in terms of riches.  Palenque is the most archaeological rich and interesting site I’ve yet seen in Mesoamerica.

Another city to check out is San Cristobal de las Casas; it’s a small town tucked in the Highland pines of Chiapas.  The city is Amazing to walk around; the weather was a cool refresher from the tropical heat we encountered in Campeche, Palenque, and Agua Azul.  The ambiance and climate of the city is reminiscent of Cuzco.  We spent a few nights exploring the city and met some of the nicest most welcoming people I’ve ever encountered.

We saw a lot of other amazing places in Mexico that are too many to list on this post.  The country is huge and offers a large variety of things to do and see.  I’ll be back in future, without a doubt I have a lot more of Mexico to enjoy.  Special thanks to Otman, Nora,  Arturo, and Los Hermanos Gomez for making Mexico such a special trip.

All Images Courtesy of Me, Canon EOS.

The first time that heard of Edward Bernays was while I was reading about United Fruit’s involvement in the 1954 Guatemalan coup d’état.  At that time United Fruit had hired Bernays as a Public Relations Consultant, working in collaboration with the CIA, to propagate ideas about the democratically elected president Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán in an effort to gain public support for the overthrow of the government.  I became facinated with his involvement in so many culturally formative events and I decided to read more about Bernay’s and pick up one of his books.  I just finished reading Propaganda, which I highly recommend, and am now going to search out his book entitled Crystalizing Public Opinion. In this book, Bernays argues that propaganda is necessary in a democratic society he begins by stating, “The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country.  We are governed, our minds molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of. This is a logical result of the way in which our democratic society is organized.  Vast numbers of human beings must cooperate in this manner if they are to live together as a smoothly functioning society.”

Edward Bernays was the nephew of Sigmund Freud and is recognized as the “Father of Public Relations”. He was the most famous propagandist not only in terms of politics, but also in terms of bringing his concepts into commercial usage. Why does propaganda sound like such a bad word?  Here’s Bernays explanation in an interview:

The book gives an overview of propaganda, and how he suggests how it can be used in both business and politics.  He argues that by appealing to people’s underlying needs and emotions you can cause them to do what you want.  From supporting a revolution, to convincing people that a particular suit is in style, to altering the perceptions of social customs to cause mass acceptance of particular products, Bernays has proven this to be true.  He was even responsible for  the masses accepting an alignment between capitalism and democracy in the US, now that’s a feat.  He explains why propaganda has it’s place in society, and why we  rely on experts and trusted advisers (think about your doctor, lawyer, investment broker, or even the American Dental Association, etc), “In theory, every citizen makes up his mind on public questions and matters of private conduct.  In practice, if all men had to study for themselves the abstruse economic, political, and ethical data involved in every question, they would find it impossible to come to a conclusion without anything.  We have voluntarily agreed to let and invisible government sift the data and high-spot the outstanding issue so that our field of choice shall be narrowed to practical proportions.”

From an anthropological and marketing perspective, one of the really interesting things that Bernays explores in this book is the idea of group formation, “One of the most effective methods is the utilization of the group formation of modern society in order to spread ideas.”  That sounds like common sense, but think about that for a second…he wrote this book in 1928 and died in 1995.  How would Bernays view the use of the internet or  media and communication channels such as Facebook?  What about digital advertising which has democratized how products and services are sold?  For example, in facebook users voluntarily share their group affiliations by subscribing to fan pages and joining groups where both targeted ads and group communications (propaganda) can be broadcast.  So, it begs the question, can these groups be effectively used by a propagandist to change perspectives on issues, style, products, etc?  In the end we’re talking about playing with people’s sub-conscious needs to get them to do what we want; with this type of power democratized by the internet,  I’m left wondering if there are any ethical or moral standards in these channels and who may be the “trusted experts” that control them?  Check out this TED video with Dan Dennett on dangerous memes; a far different perspective on the propagation of ideas….he states that – “They (people spreading ideas) don’t have to have minds to have a plan.”

As we prepare to host the 2nd edition of TEDxMadrid this summer, I decided to peruse some of the new TED talks to share at the conference.  It wasn’t much of a surprise that I spent 2 hours lost in the TED archives only to come across a video of Barry Schwartz’s talk from 2005 (video is below).  I read his book, The Paradox of Choice a few years ago, it’s a great look into how less  is more in terms of happiness as we become muddled in a sea of minute decisions.  There are some great examples in the book about why we subscribe to daily patterns, something as small as brushing our teeth before we shower, and how changing those patterns can effect our level of overall happiness.  For example: if you wear a uniform to school, you don’t have to think of what to wear every morning, you just wear your uniform; the decision of what to wear was preordained and it becomes part of your daily routine.  The reasoning that Schwartz puts forward is that we tend to assemble and create these daily patterns so we don’t have to think about what to do every second of the day.  Think about it, has anyone ever screwed up your mojo?  They’re likely the cause of your habits being broken.  If our brain didn’t do this, we’d be in a constant state of decision paralysis.  Why?  He argues that with an endless amount of options, our expectations of the outcomes of the decisions we make begin to inflate on a sub-conscious level.  Once this happens, it becomes quite difficult to meet those expectations, which causes dissatisfaction.  He also points out that the opportunity cost of the other decisions we could have made contribute to a state of depression.  Great book, psychology in layman’s terms always appeals to me.  So what can we learn from this?

*Check out the video

Here are my 3 Key takeaways:

-Habitual patterns are dictated by not only by cultural aspects such as spacial organization and social norms, but also by a subconscious human need to to have some security in the minutiae of the day to day.  It seems obvious, but It’s the products that form part of our daily habitual lives that in the end must create the strongest Brand Loyalties.  Using anthropological  (ethno-archaeological) and psychological tools to understand habitual behavior can help to identify new market opportunities.

-Simple is good.  Adding more and more features to products and bundling services doesn’t always add value.  Look at companies like IKEA and RyanAir that strip away value adds to make products simpler and even less expensive.  It’s ever as important to understand what people actually need.

-Looking at Nike and Cadillac I don’t doubt that Mass Customization is the future, but not for every segment or every product.  Let’s face it, some people just don’t know what they want, aren’t knowledgeable about what product inputs make the product better than the other, nor do they have the time or will to figure it out.  The democratization of decision-making doesn’t always add value, refer to Edward Bernays’s Propoganda ca. 1928… Marketing is here to stay.

Last week I was fortunate to visit a few friends for a 5 day adventure in Lebanon.  It’s a beautiful country, the people are welcoming and kind, and the culture & history are eclectic and rich.  These are the 5 things that I will never forget about Lebanon:

Akki denne in Beirut

1.) Lebanese Food:   In case you were not aware already, Lebanese food is delicious. From Shawarma, Fattoush, Various Cheeses, Hummus, Jebnah, and Zaatar the list of delectable items is endless.  I’m going to go as far to say that the Lebanese version of fast food, Zaatarwzeit, was highly appealing to the pallet.  Lebanon’s mix of climates, proximity to the sea, and mixture of Mediterranean / Arabic culture has encouraged a diverse mixture.  One item that surprised my taste buds was  a local fruit called Akki dene, which can  also be found in Latin America under the moniker Nisperos.

2.) The Music Hall, Beirut: This venue was amazing! We had a great table at the stage and were entertained by a diverse series of global acts including the legendary Lebanese performer Tony Hanna طوني حنا as well as the famous Chehade Brothers from Palestine.  The venue is a theater that was converted into a cabaret decorated with red velvet everything.  We enjoyed dinner and some cocktails, after midnight the whole building turned into a giant in-describable musical experience.

The owner Michel Elefteriades, a.k.a Emperor Michel I, is not only an artist and producer, but a creator of cultural movement. He’s founded the nation of Nowheristan.  The Emperor states in his address to the people that, “Freedom and Justice are not only ideas, but a way of life.  In a nation where all geographical, social, political, economical, and religious frontiers will be abolished;  a nation called Nowheristan.”  I recommend to check out the website to see what it’s all about.  The national language is “Broken English”.  Below is a performance issued by the Ministry of Culture of Nowheristan featuring Jose Galvez (Flamenco Musician from Jérez) accompanied by the National Orchestra of Nowheristan.  It’s performed at the Music Hall.

Inside the Temple of Bacchus

3.) Baalbek: We took a day to visit Baalbek, an inland city known during the Roman times as Heliopolis. This site is famous for it’s gigantic Roman monuments, particularly the Temple of Bacchus and the Temple of Jupiter.  The architecture is impressive and intricately designed.  On the way we passed by the Stone of the Pregnant woman, which claims to be the largest stone in the world.  But, who knows?  Take if from the guy that studied archaeology;  It’s worth the trip from Beirut to visit the site, the architecture and history is impressive.

Downtown Beirut

4.) Beirut: During our visit in late March we were unable to visit any of the many beaches or hit the slopes to ski, so we spent most of our time exploring Beirut.  This is a must! Walk around, dine out, and party.  Beirut is an amazing city, you can still see remnants of the civil war, lots of development, and some of the best nightlife in the world.   We spent multiple days walking around the Downtown,  There is no shortage of amazing restaurants, beautiful views, or places to hit the town.   One club we checked out was b018 which was designed by architect Bernard Khoury.  The club is actually built underground over the site of mass-grave.  At a certain point the in the night, the roof opened, and everyone was dancing under the stars.  We also toured the well designed archaeological museum at the American University of Beirut (AUB), hit the bars on Gemaizeh & Sodeco, strolled the coast with views of the Raouché (Pigeons Rock), and got lost in the newly developed Downtown area;  it’s all beautiful.

Port of Byblos

5.) Byblos: This small port town  was a base of operations for the Phoenicians, infamous traders and expert navigators.  The town is quaint and has many small streets to walk around.  We walked along the coast and visited the old port.  We found a nice little terrace and enjoyed a bottle of Lebanese wine called Prieuré Ksara as the sun began to set and the Mosque called for prayer.

*all photos courtesy of Derek Koenig – Canon EOS

Part of my reasoning behind creating this site, aside from sharing what’s interesting to me “in the now”, was to learn about how all of the Digital Marketing tools actually work.  After all we only really learn by doing!  I recently asked myself, aside from Google Analytics, how can I know if I’m actually being effective from a marketing standpoint at driving traffic?  I found my answer after attending a couple of Hubspot webinars.  Hubspot is an innovative “inbound marketing” company based out of Boston that provides some great insights on how to measure and maximize website effectiveness, one way to start is with their free SEO tool: Website Grader.  I’ve posted my grade to the footer of the page, my objective is of course 100.  They also provide other tools such as Twitter Grader to measure your level of influence on twitter.  Great free tools for Digital Marketers; and anyone else curious to know how influential and effective they may be online.

Hubspot Website Grader

So what is the Website Grader and how does is work?  Well, it’s a scoring tool that grades companies websites based on website traffic, SEO, social popularity and other technical factors. Hubspot also incorporates tips on how to improve your site from a marketing perspective.  All this freemium is part of their inbound marketing strategy no doubt!  It’s worth running your page and twitter through the grinder to see where you may need to focus on making improvements.  So, what is your page grade?

Bananas: How the United Fruit Company Shaped the World -Peter Chapman

I was quite fortunate to receive this book as a gift from my brother over the holidays.  Having had lived and traveled extensively in Latin America I was unable to stop reading after the first page.  Without a doubt there are multiple renderings of United Fruit’s influence in the banana producing countries of Latin America;  Chapman takes an grandiose approach re-counting the history.  The list of characters includes Theodore Roosevelt, Edward Bernays “the father of Public Relations”, JFK, and Fidel Castro amongst many others.  He does an exemplary job developing the story, fluidly intertwining recent history, business, culture, and politics to elaborate the influence of “El Pulpo”,  at times it almost seemed like a tale of fiction.  Would you believe that United Fruit was the pioneer of CSR?  A truly enjoyable read. As always, to be taken with a grain of salt.  Have you read it? leave a comment, I’m interested in your thoughts