Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Quick...Freeze Me Up a Couple Doubles

As summer begins to beat its annual retreat in the Northern Hemisphere, there are just a few weeks left to hop on one of the newest party trends...alcoholic popsicles.

From our friends at Iconoculture: When times get tough (recession, war, global warming), consumers seek comfort in nostalgia. Anything that taps into happy childhood memories has more appeal these days.

And what is a better memory than popsicles on a summer's day? Hopsicles (Beer on a Stick) are big in Virginia. Margarita pops are rockin' Jackson MS. And an ice-pop cookbook has recipes for frozen mojitos, mai tais and martinis.

I'm working on a set of Buffalo Trace popsicles for this weekend. If successful...my next post may come somewhere later on in September.

Getting Sucked Down the Drain

As a child, the swimming pool drain was akin to the monster lurking in the basement. The urban legends at my pool cautioned all who heard it to avoid getting too close to the drain after a dive off the board, lest you end up like little Mikey McGuire (there was no such incident).

When I became a pool lifeguard in my teens, I worked to curb my fear of the drain. And, in time (and after having to clean the drain after losing a game of rock-paper-scissors with another guard), I got this irrational fear under control.

Now there's news of the tragic death of a 14-year old girl that was sucked into the drain at a hotel pool in Tunisia. And, my heart aches for her family.

While you might think this is one in a gazillion, 170 people have been caught in pool drains in the U.S. since 1990. 27 died. One little girl was disemboweled.

I'm rethinking my thoughts on getting too close to the drain.

Measuring Social Media

All new media choices are subjected to strenuous ROI criticism. Social Media is up now.

While nobody questions Coke as it expends the GNP of a third world country in sponsoring the Olympics (can they really prove increased sales?), any other expenditure of marketing dollars is increasingly scrutinized with critical eyes.

A great take from the 1to1 Newsletter from LaSandra Brill, Manager of Web & Social Media Marketing at Cisco:

"Social media is a type of word-of-mouth marketing. So the best way to measure is to look at share of voice online.

For example, we did a push for a tournament for an online game that we created, and we got more than 35 press and blog hits about it. The amount that we would've had to pay for banner ads or email campaigns to get that same coverage of the promotion would've been high. That's where you can really see the cost benefits and the ROI."

What would we have spent for the same number of eyes? Interesting thought...

Hey Barack...Over Here!

The Travel Industry Association of America has launched an ad campaign targeting the campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain. It challenges both to answer the needs and opportunities of the travel industry, which neither camp has so far done.

Click here to see the first salvo. More ads to follow.

And tune in Thursday to see how Barack responds....

Or doesn't.

A Whole Lotta Love?

Damn. China can throw an extravaganza. The closing ceremonies of the 29th Olympiad were simply stunning.

And then, there was Jimmy Page, playing before a worldwide audience in the tens of millions with Leona Lewis belting out "Whole Lotta Love" as London's invitation to the 2012 Games.

Way, way down inside, I'm gonna give you my love,
I'm gonna give you every inch of my love,
Gonna give you my love.
Yeah! All right! Let's go!

Now, I know some lyrics might get lost in the translation...but, hell, I understood this one in Middle School.

Thinkin' that's not exactly the Zeppelin song that would be the most appropriate to invite the world when in Beijing's Bird Nest.

Beats "The Lemon Song," though, I guess...

Have You Ever Stayed in a Hotel?

I ask that a lot to the imaginary designers I talk to when I see things that make no sense in the rooms in which I stay across North America. Rooms in which finding an electrical outlet takes minutes...not seconds. Rooms in which the bathroom designs could only be authored by somebody that has never actually used said room.

Like this one. Great hotel. Great service. Stupid bathroom design.

Exactly why (outside of that it appears efficient) would you stack bath towels over the toilet? The hand reaches out for a towel with which to dry off...and one or more tumble off the wall into said toilet.

Just dumb.

Hoteliers? A pre-requisite for any room designer should be that they actually have used a room before. Better yet...ask your best customers to review the plans for the idiotic design features that those of us that live on the road see every day.

Smart, Smart, Smart!

Word from our friends at Springwise is that the Hilton Diagonal Mar in Barcelona has set aside 40 of its 433 rooms this summer for anyone who'd like to take a "siesta." For EUR 75, customers get a barbecue lunch and a guest room from 1–5 PM, plus access to the hotel's gym and rooftop pool.

If hotel management is smart enough to employ a late afternoon crew that can refresh rooms between 5 and 7...what a cool concept. As Springwise notes, "it's definitely a more creative approach to boosting occupancy than simply slashing room rates."

Strike Now!

A Destination Marketing pro that was one of my mentors exited the Motorcoach market in the late '90s, identifying that, for her destination, there was a higher ROI in Amateur Sports. DMOs in her state followed suit until virtually nobody was courting the market. Then, a few years ago, she re-entered the market, saying it would be shame to forfeit all that low hanging fruit.

Seth Godin's post this weekend speaks to the same mindset.

The second half of August is notoriously non-productive in America.

Does that give you any ideas?

It should.

Truth in Advertising

Just back from a spectacular weekend, helping great friends mark a milestone anniversary at their home on the Lake Michigan shore. Great food, friends and conversation, a celebratory bonfire on the beach...and, of course, major league fireworks over the lake.

In the light of day Sunday morning, I spied the boxes that held the ordinance that was exploded over the Lake the night before (and effectively shut down the posers at the parties on either side of us).

I don't care what you call yours...but "Big Bad Ass Shells" pretty much says it all.

Thanks guys...and congratulations on the years, as well as making a life decision that includes such an idyllic spot on terra firma.

Austin: Binge Drinking Capital of America?

For decades, the University of Wisconsin-Madison has been ranked as the top party school in the nation. Lucky for me, the time I spent in Buckyland was after the rate of my alcohol consumption had slowed due to adulthood.

So, as Forbes recently rated Austin TX as the the Hardest Drinking City in America, I must admit that I arched an eyebrow. Both eyebrows, in fact, when I read that Madison didn't even make the top 5 (Milwaukee, San Francisco, Providence and Chicago round out the list).

But then I realized that this is an apples to kumquat comparison. Madison has one of the hardest drinking student bodies in the land. Austin has the hardest drinking population with over 20% of residents admitting to binge drinking.

The question then is, do UW-Madison students get smarter about binge drinking after being so proficient at it? Or do UW graduates just move to Austin and Milwaukee?

David at AdFreak asks a deeper question. Which of these destinations will use the ranking to lure future visitors?