MIT: What We Touch Influences What We Think

I wish I could remember how many times I have found myself saying: "I wish they would do a study on that!" Wishes do come true and the Genie for this particular request is Joshua Ackerman, an assistant professor of marketing at MIT's Sloan School of Management.

According to MIT, Ackerman tested how three dimensions of touch — that of weight, texture and hardness — can unconsciously influence judgments and decisions about unrelated events, situations, and objects. The results hold implications for marketers and negotiators to job seekers and employers to everyday people who simply want to make more informed decisions.

“What we touch unconsciously influences how we think,” says Ackerman. “In situations where evaluations and decisions really matter, we need to pay attention to our physical surroundings and, in particular, how we engage these surroundings through our sense of touch.” 


The study concludes that the heavier of two of the same objects is seen to have greater importance and demands greater attention.


The study also found that "shoppers more readily understood and formed confident impressions about products with which they physically interacted."


There are several lessons to be learned from this study. Among them:

• Stationers should encourage customers to touch and hold their papers.

• Consumers should understand that a weightier paper, with a soft airy surface (Hmmmm, I wonder where I can get some of that?) will carry your message with much more gravity than lighter paper.

• Job-seekers should always print their resumes on 32-pound 100% cotton paper. Regular 20-pound paper is for the copier. Twenty-four pound is good, but 32-pound commands respect and attention.

There's another element to this story that I hadn't thought about in quite a few years. And that is how Crane's envelopes are made. You may be familiar with the way Crane stationery envelopes look and feel. They are like no other and that is on purpose. It's called Crane's Puff. Rather than pressing and compressing the envelope into shape like ordinary, skinny, unsubstantial envelopes, Crane folds its envelopes, leaving lots of air and plenty of room for your weighty messages.

It's another mark of distinction for those in the know.

Christmas In July: A Sneak Peek

I just got my Crane holiday albums, which means they are now in stores. But before you head out to get an early start on ordering your personalized holiday cards, here are some visual teasers:

The Crane Watermark All Over The Map

In the index to part of the Crane archives, there's a card that says "Map Paper." There are several requests from map-makers and printers about whether Crane papers would be appropriate for maps. But I've never seen a map on Crane paper. Until just a few days ago.

A reader sent along a map of the Baltimore and Drum Point Railroad, which was proposed to connect the big city to the small town. It was chartered in 1868, but never completed. Here's part of the map:

And here's the watermark, showing the map was printed on Crane's Bond on or after 1881:

But wait, there's more. Here's a first mortgage bond from 1888:

I'm not sure about a watermark on this document, but because it was printed by the American Banknote Company in New York, it's almost certain to be Crane's paper.

But wait, there's more. My kind reader, who has quite a collection of Baltimore and Drum Point documents sent this interesting photo:

This is definitely a Crane watermark, one I hadn't seen before. It undoubtedly is a paper made in celebration of the Centennial. A gorgeous sheet!

You all know I'm a great fan of history, and I have a habit of drilling down to the details with Google. There's a lot more to this Baltimore and Drum Point Railroad. Here's a starting point of interest:

So, to learn more on this fascinating subject, just Google Baltimore and Drum Point Railroad! You never know what you'll find.

Building a Personal Brand: The Gracious Girl Worksheet

By Mindy Lockard

Etiquette Consultant

Mannerofthemonth.com

We are honored to have you here on the Crane Insider for day two of our personal branding series.  Let’s get down to business! Today we are taking you to the University of Oregon where I worked with 80 women from the Tri Delta Sorority. Armed with my hot little gracious living branding iron—okay, more of a worksheet—I helped them understand the power of a personal brand and how to create one for their individual lives.

Starting with our Gracious Girl Personal Brand worksheet, each member creates her own Gracious Girl; a Gracious Girl that represents the brand they want to communicate…

Incorporating internal characteristics by drawing it on her exterior self. Well not really drawing on herself… here, I’ll show you mine. I’ve been told she looks like a grandma…

I’m totally confident in the fact that I’m a seasoned lady at heart!

What was so fun about this process is that the women were able to connect not only with the Gracious Girl on their inside, but how they want to show her on the outside. Just as we can see the Nike Swoosh and know it represents physical activity and fitness, our own brand communicates what we're all about to those we encounter in our lives. This exercise helped the women think through what they want their personal brand to be. To get them started, I had them write down five things that they want to be known for…

just to name a few…

Girlfriend, not a one night stand

Kind

Caring

Considerate

Engaged

Socially Responsible

Smart

Staying true to our personal brand can be uncomfortable, even hard at times—just ask the cows from yesterday—but it keeps us from wandering away or even getting lost in the social shuffle. With so many social functions and professional opportunities, college life is the perfect time for these women to practice living their brand. With a little self control (this is where it can feel uncomfortable at times) and etiquette, these women will live out a true and powerful personal brand that will help them reach their dreams.

Just because you may be out of college and not a 20-something, doesn’t mean you’re off the hook This little exercise is great for people of all ages. So if asked, “what is your personal brand?”  What qualities do you want to be known for?  Please, do tell…

The Personal Brand: Conform or Stand Out?

By Mindy Lockard

Etiquette Consultant
Mannerofthemonth.com

Sometimes, manners get us so hung up on “the fork” that we lose sight of the big picture. A picture of our total personal brand.  A picture that I have been working very hard to make clear to my 20-somethings clients.

What’s a personal brand? A personal brand is what we are known for, the way others see us. Very similar to the brands big companies are known for such as this…

or this…

or even this…

A personal brand is what we are all about.  Just as when we see the Nike Swoosh we can count on it to be related to fitness or athletics, the brand we build is directly related to the behavior others come to know and count on from us. Are we organized, are we frazzled, are we mindful with our communication, or are we the girl who passes out in the corner at every party? 

Before we tackle how to create a personal brand, let’s get down and dirty - something I only do when invited to a cattle ranch owned by our closest friends. So, saddle-up partner we’re going for a ride…

way…

way…

way out west, for a little lesson from those who live and breathe branding.

Branding is a traditional means of keeping track of cattle on and off the ranch. It helps ranchers identify their cattle among the herds when they are foraging on communal property or…

to know which neighbor to call - sometimes many miles away - when a few ladies show up unannounced.

Quite simply, the branding process is a physical identification that keeps the cattle organized, thus allowing the ranch manager to do his or her job well.

Branding is also the oldest method of cattle identification. A method of taking a hot iron and creating a mark on each cow’s behind. Does it hurt? Just a pinch a ranch manager will tell you. After calves are branded they return to their mother with little to no sign of pain.

The brand on cattle helps them conform to the herd. But our personal brand helps us get to where we want to be in life - to be remembered, to be respected, to stand out from the herd. The way we dress, the way we communicate, the words we speak, and the thank-you notes we write all communicate our personal brand. Sometimes we feel the pinch of the personal brand…especially when situations arise that don’t best suit us and require a little (or a lot) of self-control. Does the pinch hurt? A little, but it is well worth it. After all, it takes hard work and sometimes some hard lessons to create the person you want to be.

Can I get an Amen?

Which leads me to ask… Do you have a personal brand?  Join me tomorrow as I take my gracious living branding iron on the road and help 80 women from the Tri Delta Sorority to help them develop their own personal brand. I promise it won't hurt a bit.