I would guess it is a combo of the first two, and maybe a sprinkle of the last.

I have been impressed with American Express since you guys launched the Open Network with them. It is clear they are very much ahead of the curve in the market in their thinking and how they are willing to engage with the social web.

Was most of this contrived from FM and Digitas, or was Amex leadership and their marketing team involved in this effort? I only ask because it is pretty odd to see such innovation coming from a company that has been known to be conservative and risk adverse.

Either you have really great sales people at FM, or their agency is really a thought leader, or the client is willing to take risks and has figured out how to traverse the Amex ivory towers of red-tape land.

I would guess it is a combo of the first two, and maybe a sprinkle of the last.

Do you see other brands and marketers removing their risk cloaks and being willing to try out skinny dipping in the cold water of the web? I am not talking about them being willing to go into social media for customer service, or being okay having a Facebook fan page, or even a twitter account, I am talking about willing to really be exposed and listening to the market. Is this real? Or is this an oddity that will take years, if not decades to move into the planning and marketing teams of the Global 200 brands.