Friday Think/g: Hello! Is it me (the Swede) you’re looking for?

Hi, all.

Hope you had a good week.

Welcome to Friday Thing/k – a brand storytelling canvas where I’d like to share with you smart, creative, inspiring, engaging, cool, and innovative content marketing ideas that take my digital marketing breath away once a week.

Everyone has a story to tell. Every single human being. Whether these stories are from the old and wise (alternatively, less wise) or via newborn babies just joining us.

To use, and twist, the famous Latin philosophical proposition by René Descartes: I think, therefore I am, a storyteller.

It can be a funny story, boring, sad, with a happy end, pointless, without any words, through your eyes or from your absence. It can be the story of your life or death. It can also be the story of your country, especially if you’re Swedish and have a smartphone.

In a world-first campaign, the Swedish Tourist Association set up a hotline to connect callers from around the world with a random Swede. This Swede will tell you anything you want to know about Sweden.

I mean, a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. Like, where to holiday and learn about things like the northern lights, hiking, suicide rates, gay rights, darkness and, generally, how great Sweden is. The Swedish Tourist Association even locked in its own phone number, the first country to do so!

Swedes who are interested in taking the calls download an app to their smartphones, and can receive a call from anyone who decides to call this number: +46 771 793 336.

The Swedish Number campaign celebrates the 250th anniversary of Sweden becoming the first country to abolish censorship.

Check it out and make a call:

A few words that I must say about Sweden:

I admire the Swedish nation, with ABBA and Ikea only making up a small portion of that admiration as I’m inspired by the Swedish digital creative culture.

The early digitals among us might remember the amazing, cutting edge creativity that came out of agencies like Farar (aka the Time bandits; merged to Isobar in 2010), and the digital strategy leadership taught in the Hyper Island Master Classes programs.

And of course, it’s the homeland of Spotify.

Before you click away, whenever we prepare our CV’s (boss, don’t worry, it’s not a hint), we’re also telling a story.

Check this guy’s resume — the CV medium is his message and it’s brilliant.

See you next Friday.

As always, feedback is more than welcome, and needed so please leave comments below. Additionally, if you have anything/k in mind, I would love to discover it.

Just call me Joe.