Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Staycations? It's Not Funny Anymore.

Yeah, I know that DMO Executives have gotten lots of media mileage over the past few months, touting their efforts to encourage locals to enjoy "staycations" because of high fuel prices.

Of course, I'm happy for them...but, they're just encouraging the behavior.

Our friend Dave Bratton (Destination Analysts) points us to the brand new version of his State of the American Traveler study...which reveals that 24% of Americans now admit to taking a Staycation over the past 12 months.

OK...you can stop now.

Pythons on YouTube

Snakes on a Plane...Ticks on a Plane. How 'bout (Monty) Pythons on YouTube?

Our friend Maura Gast (with whom we just shared the stage at Albuquerque's Town Hall Meeting to discuss the future of the Q's downtown) suggested that this just might be the most inspired utilization of YouTube ever.

You gotta be a fan of Monty Python to get the joke...but The British Emporium (a shop in Grapevine TX) has recently posted an homage to the Python using residents and local landmarks to recreate the iconic British television show. It's all to promote this weekend's Monty Python Madness Charity Festival ("a celebration of all things Python").

Well done, lads (and lasses)...well done.

The Great American Lager

Hey Budweiser...

Not that anybody watches the All-Star Game (only 12 million Americans)...but isn't there just the slightest bit of brand incongruency of taking a lead advertising position and stressing that you are "The Great American Lager" over and over, less than 48 hours after selling the company to a Belgian conglomerate? Couldn't you have, like, delayed the deal until after the game? Or brought back the Lizards in the interim?

I guess $52 billion in your pocket means you don't have to care about your brand anymore. But one would think that InBev should have known better...

Now THAT'S Regionalism

Facing sharp airline service cutbacks and a sagging U.S. economy that threatens travel to the islands,  the Caribbean Tourism Organization last week voted to launch a $60 million advertising campaign to market the region as a single destination.

So Smart...and so amazing that the tourism leaders of 32 distinct brands could agree that the resonant message to most travelers would be the overarching concept of the Caribbean.

It's also another not so subtle reminder that American policy leaders should ask themselves a simple question. If these nations can figure this out...why can't the only industrialized country without a tourism marketing budget?

Bigger is Better

As much as many would like to believe otherwise, size DOES matter.

Especially when you're Barack Obama. A 21,000 seat convention center hall for my upcoming coronation? Not big enough.

You got anything bigger? Like a Stadium?

Sure you do. I'll take that...

And, so it will be, as the final night of the Democratic National Convention will be at Invesco Field...with over three times the number of screaming fans.

What an insanely smart move on so many levels, as reported by the New York Times. But most importantly, it will make McCain look small...or like a copycat if he asks for the Metrodome.

Where's My Jetpack goes even farther in his analysis.

Obama's Team is so Smart.

Dot Whatever

ICANN recently approved an overriding policy that will allow hundreds (if not thousands) of TLDs.

For the uninitiated, TLDs aren't like STDs. TLD stands for Top Level Domains. Or, in another language, domain "suffixes"...like .com, .org, .net..and the troubled .travel.

Now, it appears that anybody (with cash) can register a TLD. So, according to an AP article by Anick Jesdanun, "new names could cover locations such as '.nyc' and '.berlin' or industries such as '.bank.' The hefty application fees could curb a rush for individual vanity names, though larger companies might claim brands like '.disney.'"

An interesting strategy, to be sure. But let's not forget that search and .com are the default actions for virtually every web user. And, despite its availability for a number of years, most consumers still don't automatically think to add .travel to the name of a destination to reach the website of that area's DMO.

Gas Prices Impacting Prostitution

From our friend Cole Carley (Fargo-Moorhead CVB)...gas prices are cutting into even the most basic of male urges. That's right, Nevada's Shady Ladies Ranch is experiencing slower than normal business since gas prices went intergalactic...and is now offering gas cards to increase business.

As Cole said, "they’re not going to take economic problems lying down."

Or, with gas cards....maybe they are.

Ad Tells Teens to "Go Fer It"

JCPenney flirted with being relevant this week when an ad surfaced on YouTube that appeared to condone teen sex.

The retailer is now saying they never approved the ad that has garnered over 100,000 YouTube views and a Cannes award. Whatever. As a commenter on Gawker suggests, "JCPenney ought to be thanking their lucky stars they got a tiny dollop of relevancy.”

At issue is the spot that celebrates the hours of practice it takes to be able to get your clothes back on in under 18 seconds (the time it ostensibly takes from the moment you hear your parents stir until they make it to the basement where you are "just watching TV."

Thanks to Steve Hall at AdRants for the catch.

Quote of the Week

"If I had shown a fat woman and her husband by her side ... I don't think this controversy would have come up."

So said Roberto Gaudelli, the man behind a new advertising campaign for Hidaldo, Mexico that superimposed historic monuments on the apparently nude figure of Mexican soap opera star Iran Castillo. Officials from the National Institute of Anthropology and History cried foul, saying the ad violated the dignity of the historic sites.

And, like Australia's "Where the Bloody Hell Are You" campaign, grabbed a bunch of earned media coverage...

Southwest Throws #$*!% Down!

We mentioned Southwest Airline's response to American's ham-handed first bag fee last week...but hadn't yet seen the ad they ran in the Wall Street Journal. Our friend Maura Gast of the Irving CVB forwarded this priceless throwdown (at left...click for larger view).

Perfectly Southwest.