My 20

I've been told that the average person can only maintain 20 online brand relationships at a time (I don't remember who told me this so I got no source for ya). That means that there are only 20 sites that you consistently visit to do the things you do online. Now keep in mind that this is an amorphous number, so things are coming and going.

Which brings me to the real point of this point. One brand that I've always enjoyed online is Converse. I even did a post about their CGM efforts a while back. Needless to say, I was very excited when I received an email that they had redone their site. This was always one of the floaters in my 20, so it was good they called me back.

Once again, they didn't let me down. The new site is a slick blend of branded content and e-commerce. Instead of the consumer generated media of the previous site (where users submitted videos of their interpretation of the brand), the site is profiling worldwide users one location at a time with documentary-styled videos and rounding out the videos with extras. There are, of course, the obligatory shots of the shoes but it seems like the first guy (Bubble boy) was pretty entertaining by himself.

This is a fantastic way to sell your brand, by giving a voice to your coolest customers. In this age of jaded consumerism, this is our version of Michael Jordan selling shoes.

Speaking of shoes, hit the little controller thing on the right (the one that says shop with the cart icon) and you can design your own shoe. Though a little slow, the functionality here is pretty neat. Also, there's something to be said about customization online and the availability of exactly what we want, when we want it. But that's for another post. By the way, here's my beach bum shoe design.

So do you have a 20?