Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

More Distractions?

TV ratings for the Rio Olympics are off over 20% from the London Games just four years ago...and, without the two Simones (Biles and Manuel), Katie and Michael, would likely be even farther off pace.

Of course, there are several factors at work here, given the change in the way we consume video content. In trying to explain away the precipitous decline, NBC Sports Group Chairman Mark Lazarus said there were "more distractions than usual" this year, including the Presidential election season.

Two thoughts...

1) There's a Presidential election season every time the Summer Olympics are staged, so your point is?

2) That this one is more distracting than past elections is on your head (along with the other networks that choreographed this year's choices).

Just sayin'...

The All Too Common Refrain

It's a common refrain in marketing a regional destination.

There's always someone from one of the smaller communities (usually an elected official) that is offended by efforts to brand the destination using the largest community's name. Never mind that the research is clear that the larger community's organic name recognition will get the smaller towns noticed. They just want their town's name included.

Which, of course, will reduce the effectiveness of the brand by muddying the water.

In the case of the Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater Visitor & Convention Bureau (which simply rolls off the tongue, don't it?), the DMO is hoping to rebrand as Experience Olympia. As is typical, a city councilperson objects.

“By eliminating two out of three city names from their brand, I don’t see how that benefits the region as a whole,” he said, adding that he’d rather see an all-encompassing name, such as Experience Thurston County, Experience South Sound or Experience the Gateway to the Pacific.

And, for a local...those all sound really smart. But, a destination brand needs to capture the attention of people that don't live in the region. They are the target market. Someone like, ummm, me...

Who has no friggin' idea where Thurston County is, doesn't know what a South Sound is (Allman Brothers, maybe?)...and "Gateway to the Pacific?" That could be anywhere from Baja to Vancouver.

Olympia? I've heard of that (every student of U.S. geography has)...and, I've heard it's a pretty cool town. And, I would expect there to be several cool towns around it.

Lead with your strength...and everyone benefits. Screw around with names and phrases that only locals know...and everyone loses.

Except maybe a prideful Councilman.

 

 

Sam & Bruce

In the beginning it was Sam & Dave, the original Soul Men. Sam took the high, Dave took the low...and it was magic as they churned out hit after hit in the late '60s and early '70s.

On this Music Friday, we offer up this gem from the 25th Anniversary Concert for the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. It's Bruce, the E Street Band and Sam Moore...nailing his performance like it was still the '70s.

Enjoy...

Perpetual Engagement

The era of connecting with your target market seasonally or during your "need times" are pitifully outdated in today's always-on digital environment.

In his book "WTF (What's the Future) of Business," Brian Solis uncorked this stone cold truth: 

"Customer attention isn't a switch that toggles on and off. It is a state of perpetual engagement."

How are you maximizing this new expectation?

Analysts

A corporation can have its biggest sales quarter in history...and yet its stock drops the next day. How can that be?

Analysts thought they could have sold more.

The new DC epic, "Suicide Squad" shattered box office records over the weekend, yet it was a disappointing opening weekend.

That is for analysts who thought the movie should have done 3% better...which is mind boggling, as it took in $135 million when no other August movie opening had ever broken $100 million. And, the critics universally panned it (26% on Rotten Tomatoes).

Just who are these analysts and, more importantly, why do we listen to them?

Badfinger

On this Music Friday, we head back to the early '70s for a band that helped launch the power pop movement...but existed under a cloud of being accused of being Beatle-clones and having their greatest composition hijacked by another artist.

Hijacked may be too harsh a word, as the band actually loved Harry Nilsson...and, his version of "Without You" is probably a stronger statement than their own. But, it was one of several missteps for the band that ended in tragedy.

Besides trusting their careers to a "soulless bastard," the Beatles' shadow probably hurt as much as it helped. That Pete Ham resembled John Lennon and Joey Molland was a ringer for Paul McCartney caused some critics to dismiss the band as Beatle wanna-bes. But, the music was unmistakably masterful on their first few albums.

It's the sad, sad story of Pete Ham, Tom Evans and the first band the Beatles signed to Apple Records, Badfinger. "Behind the Music" tells of the rise and fall of the band, if you want to go deep into what someone called a "Shakespearean Tragedy."

But, for the mildly curious, this is Badfinger and the original version of "Without You."

Or, if you're not into sad songs on a summer Friday...it's "No Matter What."

The 9%

Really...how the hell did we get here?

Anybody who has read Mike McCabe's "Blue Jean Nation" knows the answer...written well before Donald Trump drove the Republican Party's candidate selection process (and, possibly, it's future viability) to its knees.

In a nutshell, it's a media that is no longer interested in the highest common denominator to advance us...but the lowest common denominator to profit from us.

And, it's about big money corrupting once honorable men and women to vote and act against what's right for their true constituents (the citizenry).

A recent mash-up of data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Federal Election Commission, Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections, The Sentencing Project and Pew Research Center (and posted today by the New York Times) shows the third leg of this terrifying chair:

9% of this country's citizens authorized the choice with which the rest of us will be saddled in November.

Nine. Think about that...and resolve to never let this happen again.

Covering Your Bases

Seen in Madison's West Towne Mall Food Court...

Got Burgers: Check.

Got Ethnic Food: Check

Got BBQ: Check

Got all the major food groups covered. What could possibly go wrong?