Round Up time! Kick off your week with some quick hitting news…

Numbers into Words

Brand awareness, sales and marketing all rely on good, clear storytelling. Generally speaking, writers abhor math – many of us became writers to avoid doing the math.

But a new reality is taking root: one where the ability to turn numbers into words is a highly coveted skill. Like water into wine and straw into gold!

Twitter has an active job board and – as TechCrunch noted today – they are looking for a “data editor”. Effectively, Twitter wants someone who is adept at culling through massive spreadsheets and data outputs to find good stories.

Good marketers have been doing this for years, but now that BIG DATA is such a BIG DEAL – the idea is mainstream and applicable to companies, small and large.

Hey, have you heard? Our cable is busted.

So, this isn’t “news” by any means.

We’ve written about it here and here, but ‘cable cutting’ seems to be a pervasive water cooler topic today. Wired is running a four-part series on the topic and there have been a smattering of headlines about Apple TV, new products and – around here – the asinine battle between Charter Cable and Knology.

All together now…

We just mentioned BIG DATA. And cable cutting is a mark of the empowered consumer. So how do these two topics dovetail?

A new book is heralding a not-so-far-off future where consumers are opting-out of data collection apps, skipping ads and are increasingly more selective with online relationships. Hell, you could argue that day is already here.

David “Doc” Searls’ book “The Intention Economy: When Customers Take Charge” argues for a ubiquitous platform where consumers are able to share select data with vendors, given the requirements of each engagement. Food for thought. #projectvrm