Tracksuit CEO

by Daniel Hope

Craig Newmark is speaking today right here on my very own University of Texas campus. That’s pretty exciting and I’m glad that he agreed to come back to Austin after his last harrowing experience in Austin at SXSW Interactive a few years ago — Craigslist fans mobbed him even while he was trying to go to the restroom.  Newmark is here because UT is inviting philanthropic leaders to “discuss how their personal values, beliefs and experiences shape the mission and method of their giving”. I sincerely hope his talk is inspiring and insightful but I know what the Q&A session is going to be all about…

Bank Robber Hires Decoys on Craigslist, fools cops

I’m sure you’ve heard about the armored truck robber who maced an armed guard and fled through a crowd of guys dressed exactly like him. The robber had hired the guys on Craigslist and requested that they arrive wearing a yellow vest, safety goggles, a blue shirt, and a respirator mask. He then made his getaway in a nearby ravine on an inner tube which police later found. Authorities say he was probably picked up by accomplices in a speed boat. Given these bizarre circumstances I think a submarine (yellow, of course) would have been more appropriate.  Thanks to Matt Gierhart for sharing this bit Web 2.0 intrigue with me

In my role of consultant to companies and individuals who want to take advantage of Social Networks, Blogs and other Web 2.0 vehicles, I encourage them to find ways of inter-mingling online and offline events. If you’re going to have a seminar then, at the very least, make some of the information you’re giving available on your website, blog or wiki. In the case of the Craigslist Bandit he took an online event and used it to his offline advantage.

If marketers and advertisers would begin thinking more like this infamous Craigslist Bandit, we would find the Social Networks an even more exciting place than it is now. And besides, why should the bad guys have all the fun.