The Difference Between Stealing and Allowing Something to Influence You is Called Artistry
August 30th, 2007 by Alec McNayrPosted in Content, Online, Our Work |
In higher education, there is a professional organization called CASE, which stands for “Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.” But everyone knows that, when you go to a CASE conference and look at everyone’s ideas and print materials, it really stands for “Copy And Steal Everything.”
About five years ago, someone at a university thought it would be a good idea to use a clever flash animation to get alumni to donate. It may or may not have been popular, but it looked good. Flashy, even (pun intended). There was a massive wave of copy-cats. Every university had to have a “flash giving piece.” It didn’t matter what the results were — you just wanted to keep up.
- University of Michigan
- Appalachian State
- University of Iowa
- View the rest at Tiger Hawk
In online media, there is rampant stealing. Everyone takes ideas from someone else. But they do so without really thinking through the strategy of such a plan. I am guilty of this. I did a “flash video” for my university (no wait, I did two… no, three), but it only yielded a couple of gifts. All that work for almost no result.
As you branch out into creating an idea — be it a viral video or an episodic series — be sure that you’re not stealing for stealing’s sake. Let other ideas influence you — flow over you — as you think about your own creativity and your own strategic goals.
You can always come back to these concepts:
- Who am I speaking to?
- What am I saying?
- How will the world be changed after I have spoken?
And as Bob recently sent me, don’t forget to dance.
