YAIC 2010

Creativity, Meet Money. Good, Now Let’s Talk Business.

The investment maze can be difficult to navigate, especially since the explosion in options available. In today’s digitalized world, what are the most effective and efficient methods of finding investments? Are funding models fundamentally changing or simply diverging? How has the Internet created novel methods of funding via micro-sites? Will micro-funding affect traditional models of investing? Will the traditional models ever understand and fully support creative projects or are the two mutually exclusive? Success stories and warning signs. How to create a defendable business idea of an idea vs. a product.

Creatives Connecting With Consumers

New technology has resulted in the disaggregation of distribution chains, markets and communication channels. Is social media the savior of creative business? How does DIY marketing measure up to traditional models? Sidestepping gatekeepers is possible but how do we maximize our reach when communicating directly with consumers? What is the smartest mix of traditional and non-traditional communication? How to stand out of the clutter and penetrate the white noise. Examples of companies who lead the way. How to match your brand and product to a marketing strategy. Learning from the past, keeping the best memories, and then leaving it behind in a cloud of dust.

Hands Off My Cookie: Copyrighting Creative Content

What do the boundaries look like today and how will they change in next years? How have people been burned in the past and what can we learn from them? What role does international law play and how does it apply to singular countries? How to thread the fine line between spreading work and stealing work. Is copyright a lost case or will technology create new forms of distribution?

Creative Web Business: The Innovative Internet

iTunes, Amazon, eBay – you’ve all heard these names. Conglomerates existing only online. How to take the leap from innovative idea to successful business execution. Finding your niche and then expanding your market. How to stand out amongst the crowd and sneeze your wow factor. How to effectively sell online – exploring models and finding the best fit for your business. How creative products and online distribution are friends, not foes.

Ahead of the Game: Ethical Business is Smart Business

The digital environment, although invisible, is not immaterial and has consequences affecting the physical realm. What are the burning ethical issues facing the creative industries today? Does being good result in smart business? In today’s results-driven world, how can global business models incorporate sustainability? Can we find an equilibrium where ethical business means profit instead of sacrifice? When does the behavioral change towards better business practice become natural and automatic? How do we push ethical business from something people “have to do” to something they “want to do?” What makes a genuinely sustainable business? Is the ethical movement real or simply a PR ploy?