0:00:00.000,0:00:03.000
I have spent the past few years

0:00:03.000,0:00:05.000
putting myself into situations

0:00:05.000,0:00:07.000
that are usually very difficult

0:00:07.000,0:00:10.000
and at the same time somewhat dangerous.

0:00:11.000,0:00:13.000
I went to prison --

0:00:13.000,0:00:15.000
difficult.

0:00:15.000,0:00:18.000
I worked in a coal mine --

0:00:18.000,0:00:20.000
dangerous.

0:00:20.000,0:00:22.000
I filmed in war zones --

0:00:22.000,0:00:24.000
difficult and dangerous.

0:00:24.000,0:00:28.000
And I spent 30 days eating nothing but this --

0:00:28.000,0:00:30.000
fun in the beginning,

0:00:30.000,0:00:33.000
little difficult in the middle, very dangerous in the end.

0:00:34.000,0:00:36.000
In fact, most of my career,

0:00:36.000,0:00:38.000
I've been immersing myself

0:00:38.000,0:00:41.000
into seemingly horrible situations

0:00:41.000,0:00:43.000
for the whole goal of trying

0:00:43.000,0:00:45.000
to examine societal issues

0:00:45.000,0:00:48.000
in a way that make them engaging, that make them interesting,

0:00:48.000,0:00:50.000
that hopefully break them down in a way

0:00:50.000,0:00:53.000
that make them entertaining and accessible to an audience.

0:00:53.000,0:00:55.000
So when I knew I was coming here

0:00:55.000,0:00:58.000
to do a TED Talk that was going to look at the world of branding and sponsorship,

0:00:58.000,0:01:00.000
I knew I would want to do something a little different.

0:01:00.000,0:01:03.000
So as some of you may or may not have heard,

0:01:03.000,0:01:06.000
a couple weeks ago, I took out an ad on eBay.

0:01:06.000,0:01:09.000
I sent out some Facebook messages,

0:01:09.000,0:01:11.000
some Twitter messages,

0:01:11.000,0:01:13.000
and I gave people the opportunity to buy the naming rights

0:01:13.000,0:01:15.000
to my 2011 TED Talk.

0:01:15.000,0:01:17.000
(Laughter)

0:01:17.000,0:01:20.000
That's right, some lucky individual, corporation,

0:01:20.000,0:01:22.000
for-profit or non-profit,

0:01:22.000,0:01:24.000
was going to get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity --

0:01:24.000,0:01:26.000
because I'm sure Chris Anderson will never let it happen again --

0:01:26.000,0:01:28.000
(Laughter)

0:01:28.000,0:01:30.000
to buy the naming rights

0:01:30.000,0:01:32.000
to the talk you're watching right now,

0:01:32.000,0:01:35.000
that at the time didn't have a title, didn't really have a lot of content

0:01:35.000,0:01:37.000
and didn't really give much hint

0:01:37.000,0:01:40.000
as to what the subject matter would actually be.

0:01:40.000,0:01:42.000
So what you were getting was this:

0:01:42.000,0:01:44.000
Your name here presents:

0:01:44.000,0:01:47.000
My TED Talk that you have no idea what the subject is

0:01:47.000,0:01:50.000
and, depending on the content, could ultimately blow up in your face,

0:01:50.000,0:01:53.000
especially if I make you or your company look stupid for doing it.

0:01:53.000,0:01:55.000
But that being said,

0:01:55.000,0:01:57.000
it's a very good media opportunity.

0:01:57.000,0:02:03.000
(Laughter)

0:02:03.000,0:02:06.000
You know how many people watch these TED Talks?

0:02:06.000,0:02:08.000
It's a lot.

0:02:09.000,0:02:11.000
That's just a working title, by the way.

0:02:11.000,0:02:13.000
(Laughter)

0:02:13.000,0:02:16.000
So even with that caveat,

0:02:16.000,0:02:18.000
I knew that someone would buy the naming rights.

0:02:18.000,0:02:20.000
Now if you'd have asked me that a year ago,

0:02:20.000,0:02:22.000
I wouldn't have been able to tell you that with any certainty.

0:02:22.000,0:02:24.000
But in the new project that I'm working on, my new film,

0:02:24.000,0:02:27.000
we examine the world of marketing, advertising.

0:02:27.000,0:02:29.000
And as I said earlier,

0:02:29.000,0:02:32.000
I put myself in some pretty horrible situations over the years,

0:02:32.000,0:02:35.000
but nothing could prepare me, nothing could ready me,

0:02:35.000,0:02:38.000
for anything as difficult

0:02:38.000,0:02:40.000
or as dangerous

0:02:40.000,0:02:43.000
as going into the rooms with these guys.

0:02:44.000,0:02:47.000
(Laughter)

0:02:47.000,0:02:50.000
You see, I had this idea for a movie.

0:02:50.000,0:02:52.000
(Video) Morgan Spurlock: What I want to do is make a film

0:02:52.000,0:02:55.000
all about product placement, marketing and advertising,

0:02:55.000,0:02:57.000
where the entire film is funded

0:02:57.000,0:02:59.000
by product placement, marketing and advertising.

0:02:59.000,0:03:02.000
So the movie will be called "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold."

0:03:02.000,0:03:04.000
So what happens in "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold,"

0:03:04.000,0:03:07.000
is that everything from top to bottom, from start to finish,

0:03:07.000,0:03:09.000
is branded from beginning to end --

0:03:09.000,0:03:11.000
from the above-the-title sponsor that you'll see in the movie,

0:03:11.000,0:03:13.000
which is brand X.

0:03:13.000,0:03:15.000
Now this brand, the Qualcomm Stadium,

0:03:15.000,0:03:17.000
the Staples Center ...

0:03:17.000,0:03:20.000
these people will be married to the film in perpetuity -- forever.

0:03:20.000,0:03:22.000
And so the film explores this whole idea -- (Michael Kassan: It's redundant.)

0:03:22.000,0:03:25.000
It's what? (MK: It's redundant.) In perpetuity, forever?

0:03:25.000,0:03:27.000
I'm a redundant person. (MK: I'm just saying.)

0:03:27.000,0:03:29.000
That was more for emphasis.

0:03:29.000,0:03:31.000
It was, "In perpetuity. Forever."

0:03:31.000,0:03:33.000
But not only are we going to have the brand X title sponsor,

0:03:33.000,0:03:35.000
but we're going to make sure we sell out every category we can in the film.

0:03:35.000,0:03:38.000
So maybe we sell a shoe and it becomes the greatest shoe you ever wore ...

0:03:38.000,0:03:41.000
the greatest car you ever drove from "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold,"

0:03:41.000,0:03:44.000
the greatest drink you've ever had, courtesy of "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold."

0:03:44.000,0:03:46.000
Xavier Kochhar: So the idea is,

0:03:46.000,0:03:48.000
beyond just showing that brands are a part of your life,

0:03:48.000,0:03:51.000
but actually get them to finance the film? (MS: Get them to finance the film.)

0:03:51.000,0:03:53.000
MS: And actually we show the whole process of how does it work.

0:03:53.000,0:03:55.000
The goal of this whole film is transparency.

0:03:55.000,0:03:57.000
You're going to see the whole thing take place in this movie.

0:03:57.000,0:03:59.000
So that's the whole concept,

0:03:59.000,0:04:01.000
the whole film, start to finish.

0:04:01.000,0:04:03.000
And I would love for CEG to help make it happen.

0:04:03.000,0:04:05.000
Robert Friedman: You know it's funny,

0:04:05.000,0:04:07.000
because when I first hear it,

0:04:07.000,0:04:09.000
it is the ultimate respect

0:04:09.000,0:04:11.000
for an audience.

0:04:11.000,0:04:13.000
Guy: I don't know how receptive

0:04:13.000,0:04:15.000
people are going to be to it, though.

0:04:15.000,0:04:17.000
XK: Do you have a perspective --

0:04:17.000,0:04:19.000
I don't want to use "angle" because that has a negative connotation --

0:04:19.000,0:04:22.000
but do you know how this is going to play out? (MS: No idea.)

0:04:22.000,0:04:25.000
David Cohn: How much money does it take to do this?

0:04:25.000,0:04:28.000
MS: 1.5 million. (DC: Okay.)

0:04:28.000,0:04:30.000
John Kamen: I think that you're going to have a hard time meeting with them,

0:04:30.000,0:04:32.000
but I think it's certainly worth pursuing

0:04:32.000,0:04:35.000
a couple big, really obvious brands.

0:04:35.000,0:04:37.000
XK: Who knows, maybe by the time your film comes out,

0:04:37.000,0:04:39.000
we look like a bunch of blithering idiots.

0:04:39.000,0:04:42.000
MS: What do you think the response is going to be?

0:04:42.000,0:04:44.000
Stuart Ruderfer: The responses mostly will be "no."

0:04:44.000,0:04:46.000
MS: But is it a tough sell because of the film

0:04:46.000,0:04:48.000
or a tough sell because of me?

0:04:48.000,0:04:50.000
JK: Both.

0:04:50.000,0:04:53.000
MS: ... Meaning not so optimistic.

0:04:53.000,0:04:55.000
So, sir, can you help me? I need help.

0:04:55.000,0:04:57.000
MK: I can help you.

0:04:57.000,0:04:59.000
MS: Okay. (MK: Good.)

0:04:59.000,0:05:01.000
Awesome.

0:05:01.000,0:05:03.000
MK: We've gotta figure out which brands.

0:05:03.000,0:05:06.000
MS: Yeah. (MK: That's the challenge.)

0:05:06.000,0:05:08.000
When you look at the people you deal with ..

0:05:08.000,0:05:10.000
MK: We've got some places we can go. (MS: Okay.)

0:05:10.000,0:05:12.000
Turn the camera off.

0:05:12.000,0:05:14.000
MS: I thought "Turn the camera off"

0:05:14.000,0:05:16.000
meant, "Let's have an off-the-record conversation."

0:05:16.000,0:05:18.000
Turns out it really means,

0:05:18.000,0:05:21.000
"We want nothing to do with your movie."

0:05:21.000,0:05:24.000
MS: And just like that, one by one,

0:05:24.000,0:05:27.000
all of these companies suddenly disappeared.

0:05:27.000,0:05:29.000
None of them wanted anything to do with this movie.

0:05:29.000,0:05:31.000
I was amazed.

0:05:31.000,0:05:33.000
They wanted absolutely nothing to do with this project.

0:05:33.000,0:05:35.000
And I was blown away, because I thought the whole concept, the idea of advertising,

0:05:35.000,0:05:38.000
was to get your product out in front of as many people as possible,

0:05:38.000,0:05:40.000
to get as many people to see it as possible.

0:05:40.000,0:05:42.000
Especially in today's world,

0:05:42.000,0:05:44.000
this intersection of new media and old media

0:05:44.000,0:05:46.000
and the fractured media landscape,

0:05:46.000,0:05:48.000
isn't the idea to get

0:05:48.000,0:05:51.000
that new buzz-worthy delivery vehicle

0:05:51.000,0:05:53.000
that's going to get that message to the masses?

0:05:53.000,0:05:56.000
No, that's what I thought.

0:05:56.000,0:05:58.000
But the problem was, you see,

0:05:58.000,0:06:01.000
my idea had one fatal flaw,

0:06:01.000,0:06:04.000
and that flaw was this.

0:06:05.000,0:06:07.000
Actually no, that was not the flaw whatsoever.

0:06:07.000,0:06:09.000
That wouldn't have been a problem at all.

0:06:09.000,0:06:11.000
This would have been fine.

0:06:11.000,0:06:13.000
But what this image represents was the problem.

0:06:13.000,0:06:15.000
See, when you do a Google image search for transparency,

0:06:15.000,0:06:17.000
this is ---

0:06:17.000,0:06:19.000
(Laughter)

0:06:19.000,0:06:22.000
(Applause)

0:06:22.000,0:06:25.000
This is one of the first images that comes up.

0:06:25.000,0:06:28.000
So I like the way you roll, Sergey Brin. No.

0:06:28.000,0:06:32.000
(Laughter)

0:06:32.000,0:06:35.000
This is was the problem: transparency --

0:06:35.000,0:06:37.000
free from pretense or deceit;

0:06:37.000,0:06:39.000
easily detected or seen through;

0:06:39.000,0:06:41.000
readily understood;

0:06:41.000,0:06:44.000
characterized by visibility or accessibility of information,

0:06:44.000,0:06:46.000
especially concerning business practices --

0:06:46.000,0:06:49.000
that last line being probably the biggest problem.

0:06:49.000,0:06:52.000
You see, we hear a lot about transparency these days.

0:06:52.000,0:06:54.000
Our politicians say it, our president says it,

0:06:54.000,0:06:56.000
even our CEO's say it.

0:06:56.000,0:06:58.000
But suddenly when it comes down to becoming a reality,

0:06:58.000,0:07:00.000
something suddenly changes.

0:07:00.000,0:07:03.000
But why? Well, transparency is scary --

0:07:03.000,0:07:05.000
(Roar)

0:07:05.000,0:07:08.000
like that odd, still-screaming bear.

0:07:08.000,0:07:10.000
(Laughter)

0:07:10.000,0:07:12.000
It's unpredictable --

0:07:12.000,0:07:14.000
(Music)

0:07:14.000,0:07:16.000
(Laughter)

0:07:16.000,0:07:19.000
like this odd country road.

0:07:19.000,0:07:22.000
And it's also very risky.

0:07:23.000,0:07:26.000
(Laughter)

0:07:26.000,0:07:28.000
What else is risky?

0:07:28.000,0:07:31.000
Eating an entire bowl of Cool Whip.

0:07:31.000,0:07:36.000
(Laughter)

0:07:36.000,0:07:39.000
That's very risky.

0:07:40.000,0:07:42.000
Now when I started talking to companies

0:07:42.000,0:07:44.000
and telling them that we wanted to tell this story,

0:07:44.000,0:07:46.000
and they said, "No, we want you to tell a story.

0:07:46.000,0:07:48.000
We want you to tell a story,

0:07:48.000,0:07:51.000
but we just want to tell our story."

0:07:51.000,0:07:53.000
See, when I was a kid

0:07:53.000,0:07:55.000
and my father would catch me in some sort of a lie --

0:07:55.000,0:07:58.000
and there he is giving me the look he often gave me --

0:07:58.000,0:08:02.000
he would say, "Son, there's three sides to every story.

0:08:02.000,0:08:05.000
There's your story,

0:08:05.000,0:08:07.000
there's my story

0:08:07.000,0:08:09.000
and there's the real story."

0:08:09.000,0:08:12.000
Now you see, with this film, we wanted to tell the real story.

0:08:12.000,0:08:14.000
But with only one company, one agency willing to help me --

0:08:14.000,0:08:18.000
and that's only because I knew John Bond and Richard Kirshenbaum for years --

0:08:18.000,0:08:20.000
I realized that I would have to go on my own,

0:08:20.000,0:08:22.000
I'd have to cut out the middleman

0:08:22.000,0:08:25.000
and go to the companies myself with all of my team.

0:08:25.000,0:08:27.000
So what you suddenly started to realize --

0:08:27.000,0:08:29.000
or what I started to realize --

0:08:29.000,0:08:31.000
is that when you started having conversations with these companies,

0:08:31.000,0:08:34.000
the idea of understanding your brand is a universal problem.

0:08:34.000,0:08:36.000
(Video) MS: I have friends who make great big, giant Hollywood films,

0:08:36.000,0:08:39.000
and I have friends who make little independent films like I make.

0:08:39.000,0:08:41.000
And the friends of mine who make big, giant Hollywood movies

0:08:41.000,0:08:43.000
say the reason their films are so successful

0:08:43.000,0:08:45.000
is because of the brand partners that they have.

0:08:45.000,0:08:47.000
And then my friends who make small independent films

0:08:47.000,0:08:49.000
say, "Well, how are we supposed to compete

0:08:49.000,0:08:51.000
with these big, giant Hollywood movies?"

0:08:51.000,0:08:53.000
And the movie is called

0:08:53.000,0:08:55.000
"The Greatest Movie Ever Sold."

0:08:55.000,0:08:58.000
So how specifically will we see Ban in the film?

0:08:58.000,0:09:01.000
Any time I'm ready to go, any time I open up my medicine cabinet,

0:09:01.000,0:09:03.000
you will see Ban deodorant.

0:09:03.000,0:09:06.000
While anytime I do an interview with someone,

0:09:06.000,0:09:09.000
I can say, "Are you fresh enough for this interview?

0:09:09.000,0:09:11.000
Are you ready? You look a little nervous.

0:09:11.000,0:09:13.000
I want to help you calm down.

0:09:13.000,0:09:15.000
So maybe you should put some one before the interview."

0:09:15.000,0:09:17.000
So we'll offer one of these fabulous scents.

0:09:17.000,0:09:19.000
Whether it's a "Floral Fusion" or a "Paradise Winds,"

0:09:19.000,0:09:21.000
they'll have their chance.

0:09:21.000,0:09:24.000
We will have them geared for both male or female --

0:09:24.000,0:09:27.000
solid, roll-on or stick, whatever it may be.

0:09:27.000,0:09:29.000
That's the two-cent tour.

0:09:29.000,0:09:31.000
So now I can answer any of your questions

0:09:31.000,0:09:33.000
and give you the five-cent tour.

0:09:33.000,0:09:35.000
Karen Frank: We are a smaller brand.

0:09:35.000,0:09:37.000
Much like you talked about being a smaller movie,

0:09:37.000,0:09:39.000
we're very much a challenger brand.

0:09:39.000,0:09:41.000
So we don't have the budgets that other brands have.

0:09:41.000,0:09:43.000
So doing things like this -- you know,

0:09:43.000,0:09:45.000
remind people about Ban --

0:09:45.000,0:09:47.000
is kind of why were interested in it.

0:09:47.000,0:09:49.000
MS: What are the words that you would use to describe Ban?

0:09:49.000,0:09:52.000
Ban is blank.

0:09:52.000,0:09:55.000
KF: That's a great question.

0:09:55.000,0:10:00.000
(Laughter)

0:10:00.000,0:10:02.000
Woman: Superior technology.

0:10:02.000,0:10:04.000
MS: Technology's not the way you want to describe something

0:10:04.000,0:10:06.000
somebody's putting in their armpit.

0:10:06.000,0:10:08.000
Man: We talk about bold, fresh.

0:10:08.000,0:10:11.000
I think "fresh" is a great word that really spins this category into the positive,

0:10:11.000,0:10:13.000
versus "fights odor and wetness."

0:10:13.000,0:10:15.000
It keeps you fresh.

0:10:15.000,0:10:17.000
How do we keep you fresher longer -- better freshness,

0:10:17.000,0:10:19.000
more freshness, three times fresher.

0:10:19.000,0:10:22.000
Things like that that are more of that positive benefit.

0:10:23.000,0:10:26.000
MS: And that's a multi-million dollar corporation.

0:10:26.000,0:10:28.000
What about me? What about a regular guy?

0:10:28.000,0:10:30.000
I need to go talk to the man on the street,

0:10:30.000,0:10:32.000
the people who are like me, the regular Joes.

0:10:32.000,0:10:34.000
They need to tell me about my brand.

0:10:34.000,0:10:37.000
(Video) MS: How would you guys describe your brand?

0:10:38.000,0:10:41.000
Man: Um, my brand?

0:10:41.000,0:10:43.000
I don't know.

0:10:43.000,0:10:45.000
I like really nice clothes.

0:10:45.000,0:10:47.000
Woman: 80's revival

0:10:47.000,0:10:49.000
meets skater-punk,

0:10:49.000,0:10:51.000
unless it's laundry day.

0:10:51.000,0:10:53.000
MS: All right, what is brand Gerry?

0:10:53.000,0:10:55.000
Gerry: Unique. (MS: Unique.)

0:10:55.000,0:10:57.000
Man: I guess what kind of genre, style I am

0:10:57.000,0:11:00.000
would be like dark glamor.

0:11:00.000,0:11:02.000
I like a lot of black colors,

0:11:02.000,0:11:04.000
a lot of grays and stuff like that.

0:11:04.000,0:11:06.000
But usually I have an accessory,

0:11:06.000,0:11:08.000
like sunglasses,

0:11:08.000,0:11:10.000
or I like crystal and things like that too.

0:11:10.000,0:11:12.000
Woman: If Dan were a brand,

0:11:12.000,0:11:16.000
he might be a classic convertible

0:11:16.000,0:11:18.000
Mercedes Benz.

0:11:18.000,0:11:20.000
Man 2: The brand that I am

0:11:20.000,0:11:22.000
is, I would call it casual fly.

0:11:22.000,0:11:24.000
Woman 2: Part hippie, part yogi,

0:11:24.000,0:11:26.000
part Brooklyn girl -- I don't know.

0:11:26.000,0:11:28.000
Man 3: I'm the pet guy.

0:11:28.000,0:11:30.000
I sell pet toys all over the country, all over the world.

0:11:30.000,0:11:32.000
So I guess that's my brand.

0:11:32.000,0:11:35.000
In my warped little industry, that's my brand.

0:11:35.000,0:11:38.000
Man 4: My brand is FedEx because I deliver the goods.

0:11:38.000,0:11:40.000
Man 5: Failed writer-alcoholic brand.

0:11:40.000,0:11:42.000
Is that something?

0:11:42.000,0:11:46.000
Lawyer: I'm a lawyer brand.

0:11:48.000,0:11:50.000
Tom: I'm Tom.

0:11:51.000,0:11:54.000
MS: Well we can't all be brand Tom, but I do often find myself

0:11:54.000,0:11:57.000
at the intersection of dark glamor and casual fly.

0:11:57.000,0:11:59.000
(Laughter)

0:11:59.000,0:12:01.000
And what I realized is I needed an expert.

0:12:01.000,0:12:03.000
I needed somebody who could get inside my head,

0:12:03.000,0:12:05.000
somebody who could really help me understand

0:12:05.000,0:12:07.000
what they call your "brand personality."

0:12:07.000,0:12:09.000
And so I found a company called Olson Zaltman in Pittsburg.

0:12:09.000,0:12:12.000
They've helped companies like Nestle, Febreze, Hallmark

0:12:12.000,0:12:14.000
discover that brand personality.

0:12:14.000,0:12:17.000
If they could do it for them, surely they could do it for me.

0:12:17.000,0:12:19.000
(Video) Abigail: You brought your pictures, right?

0:12:19.000,0:12:21.000
MS: I did. The very first picture

0:12:21.000,0:12:23.000
is a picture of my family.

0:12:23.000,0:12:26.000
A: So tell me a little bit how it relates to your thoughts and feelings about who you are.

0:12:26.000,0:12:28.000
MS: These are the people who shape the way I look at the world.

0:12:28.000,0:12:30.000
A: Tell me about this world.

0:12:30.000,0:12:33.000
MS: This world? I think your world is the world that you live in --

0:12:33.000,0:12:36.000
like people who are around you, your friends, your family,

0:12:36.000,0:12:38.000
the way you live your life, the job you do.

0:12:38.000,0:12:40.000
All those things stemmed and started from one place,

0:12:40.000,0:12:43.000
and for me they stemmed and started with my family in West Virginia.

0:12:43.000,0:12:45.000
A: What's the next one you want to talk about?

0:12:45.000,0:12:47.000
MS: The next one: This was the best day ever.

0:12:47.000,0:12:49.000
A: How does this relate to your thoughts and feelings about who you are?

0:12:49.000,0:12:51.000
MS: It's like, who do I want to be?

0:12:51.000,0:12:53.000
I like things that are different.

0:12:53.000,0:12:55.000
I like things that are weird. I like weird things.

0:12:55.000,0:12:57.000
A: Tell me about the "why" phase -- what does that do for us?

0:12:57.000,0:12:59.000
What is the machete? What pupa stage are you in now?

0:12:59.000,0:13:02.000
Why is it important to reboot? What does the red represent?

0:13:02.000,0:13:04.000
Tell me a little bit about that part.

0:13:04.000,0:13:07.000
... A little more about you that is not who you are.

0:13:07.000,0:13:09.000
What are some other metamorphoses that you've had?

0:13:09.000,0:13:11.000
... Doesn't have to be fear. What kind of roller coaster are you on?

0:13:11.000,0:13:13.000
MS: EEEEEE! (A: Thank you.) No, thank you.

0:13:13.000,0:13:15.000
A: Thanks for you patience. (MS: Great job.)

0:13:15.000,0:13:17.000
A: Yeah. (MS: Thanks a lot.) All right.

0:13:17.000,0:13:19.000
MS: Yeah, I don't know what's going to come of this.

0:13:19.000,0:13:22.000
There was a whole lot of crazy going on in there.

0:13:22.000,0:13:24.000
Lindsay Zaltman: The first thing we saw was this idea

0:13:24.000,0:13:26.000
that you had two distinct, but complementary

0:13:26.000,0:13:29.000
sides to your brand personality --

0:13:29.000,0:13:32.000
the Morgan Spurlock brand is a mindful/play brand.

0:13:32.000,0:13:34.000
Those are juxtaposed very nicely together.

0:13:34.000,0:13:36.000
And I think there's almost a paradox with those.

0:13:36.000,0:13:38.000
And I think some companies

0:13:38.000,0:13:41.000
will just focus on one of their strengths or the other

0:13:41.000,0:13:43.000
instead of focusing on both.

0:13:43.000,0:13:46.000
Most companies tend to -- and it's human nature --

0:13:46.000,0:13:48.000
to avoid things that they're not sure of,

0:13:48.000,0:13:50.000
avoid fear, those elements,

0:13:50.000,0:13:52.000
and you really embrace those,

0:13:52.000,0:13:55.000
and you actually turn them into positives for you, and it's a neat thing to see.

0:13:55.000,0:13:57.000
What other brands are like that?

0:13:57.000,0:13:59.000
The first on here is the classic, Apple.

0:13:59.000,0:14:02.000
And you can see here too, Target, Wii,

0:14:02.000,0:14:05.000
Mini from the Mini Coopers, and JetBlue.

0:14:05.000,0:14:07.000
Now there's playful brands and mindful brands,

0:14:07.000,0:14:09.000
those things that have come and gone,

0:14:09.000,0:14:12.000
but a playful, mindful brand is a pretty powerful thing.

0:14:12.000,0:14:14.000
MS: A playful, mindful brand. What is your brand?

0:14:14.000,0:14:17.000
If somebody asked you to describe your brand identity, your brand personality,

0:14:17.000,0:14:19.000
what would you be?

0:14:19.000,0:14:22.000
Are you an up attribute? Are you something that gets the blood flowing?

0:14:22.000,0:14:24.000
Or are you more of a down attribute?

0:14:24.000,0:14:27.000
Are you something that's a little more calm, reserved, conservative?

0:14:27.000,0:14:30.000
Up attributes are things like being playful,

0:14:30.000,0:14:33.000
being fresh like the Fresh Prince,

0:14:33.000,0:14:35.000
contemporary, adventurous,

0:14:35.000,0:14:37.000
edgy or daring like Errol Flynn,

0:14:37.000,0:14:40.000
nimble or agile, profane, domineering,

0:14:40.000,0:14:42.000
magical or mystical like Gandalf.

0:14:42.000,0:14:44.000
Or are you more of a down attribute?

0:14:44.000,0:14:46.000
Are you mindful, sophisticated like 007?

0:14:46.000,0:14:49.000
Are you established, traditional, nurturing, protective,

0:14:49.000,0:14:51.000
empathetic like the Oprah?

0:14:51.000,0:14:53.000
Are you reliable, stable, familiar,

0:14:53.000,0:14:55.000
safe, secure, sacred,

0:14:55.000,0:14:57.000
contemplative or wise

0:14:57.000,0:14:59.000
like the Dalai Lama or Yoda?

0:14:59.000,0:15:02.000
Over the course of this film,

0:15:02.000,0:15:04.000
we had 500-plus companies

0:15:04.000,0:15:06.000
who were up and down companies

0:15:06.000,0:15:08.000
saying, "no," they didn't want any part of this project.

0:15:08.000,0:15:11.000
They wanted nothing to do with this film, mainly because they would have no control,

0:15:11.000,0:15:13.000
they would have no control over the final product.

0:15:13.000,0:15:15.000
But we did get 17 brand partners

0:15:15.000,0:15:17.000
who were willing to relinquish that control,

0:15:17.000,0:15:19.000
who wanted to be in business

0:15:19.000,0:15:22.000
with someone as mindful and as playful as myself

0:15:22.000,0:15:24.000
and who ultimately empowered us to tell stories

0:15:24.000,0:15:27.000
that normally we wouldn't be able to tell --

0:15:27.000,0:15:30.000
stories that an advertiser would normally never get behind.

0:15:30.000,0:15:33.000
They enabled us to tell the story about neuromarketing,

0:15:33.000,0:15:35.000
as we got into telling the story in this film

0:15:35.000,0:15:37.000
about how now they're using MRI's

0:15:37.000,0:15:39.000
to target the desire centers of your brain

0:15:39.000,0:15:42.000
for both commercials as well as movie marketing.

0:15:42.000,0:15:45.000
We went to San Paulo where they have banned outdoor advertising.

0:15:45.000,0:15:47.000
In the entire city for the past five years,

0:15:47.000,0:15:50.000
there's no billboards, there's no posters, there's no fliers, nothing.

0:15:50.000,0:15:52.000
(Applause)

0:15:52.000,0:15:54.000
And we went to school districts

0:15:54.000,0:15:56.000
where now companies are making their way

0:15:56.000,0:15:59.000
into cash-strapped schools all across America.

0:15:59.000,0:16:02.000
What's incredible for me is the projects that I've gotten the most feedback out of,

0:16:02.000,0:16:04.000
or I've had the most success in,

0:16:04.000,0:16:06.000
are ones where I've interacted with things directly.

0:16:06.000,0:16:08.000
And that's what these brands did.

0:16:08.000,0:16:10.000
They cut out the middleman, they cut out their agencies

0:16:10.000,0:16:12.000
and said, "Maybe these agencies

0:16:12.000,0:16:14.000
don't have my best interest in mind.

0:16:14.000,0:16:16.000
I'm going to deal directly with the artist.

0:16:16.000,0:16:18.000
I'm going to work with him to create something different,

0:16:18.000,0:16:20.000
something that's going to get people thinking,

0:16:20.000,0:16:22.000
that's going to challenge the way we look at the world."

0:16:22.000,0:16:24.000
And how has that been for them? Has it been successful?

0:16:24.000,0:16:27.000
Well, since the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, let's take a look.

0:16:27.000,0:16:30.000
According to Burrelles, the movie premiered in January,

0:16:30.000,0:16:32.000
and since then -- and this isn't even the whole thing --

0:16:32.000,0:16:35.000
we've had 900 million media impressions for this film.

0:16:35.000,0:16:37.000
That's literally covering just like a two and a half-week period.

0:16:37.000,0:16:39.000
That's only online -- no print, no TV.

0:16:39.000,0:16:41.000
The film hasn't even been distributed yet.

0:16:41.000,0:16:43.000
It's not even online. It's not even streaming.

0:16:43.000,0:16:46.000
It's not even been out into other foreign countries yet.

0:16:46.000,0:16:48.000
So ultimately,

0:16:48.000,0:16:51.000
this film has already started to gain a lot of momentum.

0:16:51.000,0:16:54.000
And not bad for a project that almost every ad agency we talked to

0:16:54.000,0:16:56.000
advised their clients not to take part.

0:16:56.000,0:16:58.000
What I always believe

0:16:58.000,0:17:00.000
is that if you take chances, if you take risks,

0:17:00.000,0:17:03.000
that in those risks will come opportunity.

0:17:03.000,0:17:05.000
I believe that when you push people away from that,

0:17:05.000,0:17:07.000
you're pushing them more towards failure.

0:17:07.000,0:17:10.000
I believe that when you train your employees to be risk averse,

0:17:10.000,0:17:12.000
then you're preparing your whole company

0:17:12.000,0:17:14.000
to be reward challenged.

0:17:14.000,0:17:16.000
I feel like that what has to happen moving forward

0:17:16.000,0:17:19.000
is we need to encourage people to take risks.

0:17:19.000,0:17:21.000
We need to encourage people to not be afraid

0:17:21.000,0:17:23.000
of opportunities that may scare them.

0:17:23.000,0:17:25.000
Ultimately, moving forward,

0:17:25.000,0:17:27.000
I think we have to embrace fear.

0:17:27.000,0:17:29.000
We've got to put that bear in a cage.

0:17:29.000,0:17:36.000
(Laughter)

0:17:36.000,0:17:39.000
Embrace fear. Embrace risk.

0:17:39.000,0:17:42.000
One big spoonful at a time, we have to embrace risk.

0:17:42.000,0:17:46.000
And ultimately, we have to embrace transparency.

0:17:46.000,0:17:48.000
Today, more than ever,

0:17:48.000,0:17:50.000
a little honesty is going to go a long way.

0:17:50.000,0:17:53.000
And that being said, through honesty and transparency,

0:17:53.000,0:17:56.000
my entire talk, "Embrace Transparency,"

0:17:56.000,0:17:58.000
has been brought to you

0:17:58.000,0:18:01.000
by my good friends at EMC,

0:18:01.000,0:18:03.000
who for $7,100

0:18:03.000,0:18:05.000
bought the naming rights on eBay.

0:18:05.000,0:18:14.000
(Applause)

0:18:14.000,0:18:17.000
EMC: Turning big data

0:18:17.000,0:18:19.000
into big opportunity

0:18:19.000,0:18:21.000
for organizations all over the world.

0:18:21.000,0:18:24.000
EMC presents: "Embrace Transparency."

0:18:24.000,0:18:26.000
Thank you very much, guys.

0:18:26.000,0:18:39.000
(Applause)

0:18:39.000,0:18:42.000
June Cohen: So, Morgan,

0:18:42.000,0:18:44.000
in the name of transparency,

0:18:44.000,0:18:46.000
what exactly happened to that $7,100?

0:18:46.000,0:18:49.000
MS: That is a fantastic question.

0:18:49.000,0:18:52.000
I have in my pocket a check

0:18:52.000,0:18:54.000
made out to the parent organization to the TED organization,

0:18:54.000,0:18:56.000
the Sapling Foundation --

0:18:56.000,0:18:58.000
a check for $7,100

0:18:58.000,0:19:01.000
to be applied toward my attendance for next year's TED.

0:19:01.000,0:19:03.000
(Laughter)

0:19:03.000,0:19:06.000
(Applause)