WEEKLY REVIEW  |  January 12, 2018

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TECH

The coolest gadgets that debuted at CES 2018

Check out the coolest, most bizarre, and instantly memorable products from CES 2018, including the robot that’s your housekeeper/security/personal assistant, an autonomous passenger drone, and a Jumbotron for your house.

MARKETING

Now trending: marketing effectiveness

The 2018 marketing trend is effectiveness. With advertiser revenue growth expected to slow or decline, marketers have gone all-in on marketing effectiveness in order to accurately track and understand their return on investment. Players like Diageo, Samsung, and Direct Line Group are just some of the brands creating dedicated marketing effectiveness units in-house, with more to follow.

3 resolutions for thriving marketers

Mike Sands, CEO of Signal, points to three main resolutions for being a better marketer in 2018—and they’re essentially how to better person, too. Firstly, actually listen to your customers so you can understand them. Secondly, stop wasting your time on acquiring bad customers and only scout quality ones. Finally, sharing is caring: data sharing can still give you a competitive edge.

Not so gender neutral

150-year-old British department store John Lewis unveiled a gender-neutral line of children’s clothing, and it’s getting lots of attention.

DESIGN

“Gimme a high six!”

Ever have trouble squeezing a lemon or reaching your guitar strings when playing the solo on “Sweet Child O’ Mine”? You’re in luck. A Royal College of Art graduate created a motorized, controllable extra digit out of a 3D-printed flexible plastic filament. Third Thumb is controlled by your feet and is meant for anyone who dreams of extending their natural abilities.

10 design exhibitions not to miss in 2018

From Copenhagen’s Louisiana Museum of Modern Art to the National Art Center in Tokyo, travel the world this year in search of the best architecture and design exhibitions. See a Stella McCartney–designed jumpsuit at Victoria and Albert Museum’s first-ever international gallery in Shenzhen’s Design Society, or celebrate Italian architect Renzo Piano at London’s Royal Academy of Arts.

INFLUENCERS

Social Media Pioneer: Clara Shih

If you’ve got a question about social media, you should probably ask Clara Shih. Shih is the founder and CEO of Hearsay Systems, a social media engagement solution for the financial services industry, but also a New York Times best-selling author (The Facebook Era), one of Fortune’s “Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs” and Fast Company’s “Most Influential People in Technology,” and sits on the board of directors at Starbucks. #girlpower

EVENTS

Recharge on MLK Jr. Day at a silent disco yoga class held on Baker Beach by the founder of Outdoor Yoga SF. Laugh off your worries at the Resistance is Fertile comedy show held in the Mission’s Rite Spot Cafe. Let the feasting begin! Berkeley’s Restaurant Week kicks off January 18 with discounts and deals at participating spots, including Gather, La Marcha Tapas Bar, and Easy Creole. Catch Garry Knox Bennett’s The Object at Hand, an exhibition featuring retro-made furniture, at Transmission Gallery before it closes January 20. Learn to fly a drone at San Carlos’ Hiller Aviation Museum.

AND JUST FOR FUN

The weirdest gadgets from CES

While everyone got excited about robot dogs and autonomous vehicles at CES, there are some innovations that made us scratch our heads. Things like a skin scanner from Neutrogena, stripper robots, wearables tracking your UV exposure, and a suitcase that follows you around had us asking, “But why?”


“The time is always right to do what is right.”

Martin Luther King Jr.