Josh Dilworth

Totem

At Jones-Dilworth we talk a lot about what our (admittedly evolving) concept of the “agency of the future” really means.

From some as-yet-unpublished draft copy for our website, which I promise will go live someday:

We think that the agency of the future is laser-focused on a specific business opportunity and market segment, one in which it can be truly expert. We think that the agency of the future chooses clients very carefully, based on ethical factors as much as financial ones. We think that the agency of the future is data-driven, and analytical to the core.

We think that the agency of the future possesses wholly new skill sets, marked by an interdisciplinary approach and an unusually intellectual working environment. We think that the agency of the future is fundamentally part of the communities with which its clients wish to communicate.

We think that the agency of the future is noticeably absent the jargon and posturing you’ve come to expect from marketing-kind.

We think that the agency of the future is far more show than tell. We think that the agency of the future is relationship-based and people-driven. The agency of the future is definitely not scalable.

Over time, we’ll see about the rest, and we’ll continue to report back on how the adventure is proceeding. Learn the rules in order to forget them. Rinse and repeat.

One tangible example of how these cool-sounding but completely untethered concepts actually implement operationally is the development of Totem, our very first software product, which we hope that you all will, in due time, use (at least, the marketers and PR folk among you).

I’m not going to say any more just yet about the project itself — we’re still a few weeks away from getting the alpha out the door. But I’m very proud of the fact that we’ve even gotten this far, and I think it’s a testament to the model we’re pursuing. I think that the agency of the future must actively participate in the creation of new technologies, for three reasons:

1. It keeps us sharp, and makes us practice what we preach (we are treating Totem like any other client)
2. It gives us a fundamentally more real understanding of our clients’ shoes, and their challenges (big and small, near and long term)
3. It holds the promise of repeatable, technology-driven revenue (a diverse stream, we think, is key to both longevity and fidelity of service)

I would love it if you would take the time to check out our very rough splash page here — it doesn’t even have a header/title, and at least a few things will change before we start taking invites. 

Feedback is very, very appreciated. 

More to come!

UPDATE: To be clear, I’m just looking for visual/vibe feedback — all the copy is placeholder. 

Quote of the Day

“I realize that some of you may have come in hopes of hearing tips on how to become a professional writer. I say to you, If you really want to hurt your parents, and you don’t have the nerve to be a homosexual, the least you can do is go into the arts. But do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites, standing for absolutely nothing. All they do is show you’ve been to college.”

— Kurt Vonnegut

Very Thankful

And…exhale. SXSW 2010 has officially come to an end so I wanted to take a moment and reflect on this year’s show. It’s easier to have a little perspective out here in Yountville, CA where I write this –- good food and wine always seem to do the trick.

First and foremost, I am humbled by our clients’ achievements. WolframAlpha won the SXSW Web Awards for Technical Achievement and Best of Show, while Siri won the Microsoft Bizspark Accelerator for Innovative Web Technology.

Twine was acquired at the very start of SXSW by Evri, escalating excitement for Nova and Sanjay’s new project, LiveMatrix. The SXSW debuts of LugIron, Bandwidth.com’s Free Phonebooth, Lasso, Superglued, Challengepost and knowmore left our team especially proud of the JDI client roster and the agency we are building together.

And lest I forget one of the absolute highlights, the first annual Data Cluster meetup that we helped organize — sponsored by Rackspace, Infochimps, knowmore, Wolfram Alpha, and Factual — was a great opportunity to get together and geek out over beers, open data, and the Semantic Web. It’s an event we in fact hope to replicate in top tech cities around the globe, with the help of local organizers.

More importantly, though, this year represented an imporant shift to me personally. Over the years, SXSW has become more and more a gathering of true friends — much moreso than colleagues, or close collaborators. As I looked around our dinner table on Tuesday evening, feelings of gratitude pervaded. I realized what an honor it is to be a part of a real family of talented, ambitious, and exceedingly intelligent individuals who together no doubt will leave the world a better place than we found it.

Cote, Lauren Sell and I failed to record our annual swag video – that’s one regret that will have to be rectified sooner rather than later.

How Conceptual Metaphors are Stunting Web Innovation

From a guest post last week by Venkatesh Rao:

Consider these terms: page, scroll, file, folder, trash can, bookmark, inbox, email, desktop, library, archive and index. They are all part of the document metaphor, a superset of the “desktop” metaphor. Some elements, such as scroll, desktop and library pre-date the printing press, but all are based on some sort of “marks on paper-like material” reference.

It’s an important point — the tyranny of conceptual metaphors (and in particular, Gutenberg’s shadow) can be quite limiting.

Disclosure: Xerox is a client.