Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

With a Little Help From My Friends

It was a song for Ringo.

Lennon and McCartney owned most of the tracks on Beatles albums. George had his tracks. And, Ringo needed one for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band...so Paul and John wrote this one as Ringo's turn on the LP.

But, when Joe Cocker made it his, that's when the brilliance of the song came home. Rearranged in a slower meter with different chords, Cocker turned the song into a soul anthem...and the rest is history.

Joe's backing band for the studio version that preceded his famous Woodstock performance included Jimmy Page on guitar, B.J. Wilson on drums and  Madeline Ball on backing vocals. Not bad for a first outing, eh? 

Well, as the new administration's budget marches forward with draconian cuts to Arts programs, Artists For The Arts and Americans for the Arts released a music video to, not just protest but, demonstrate what's at stake.

On, this Music Friday, don't just watch and listen to this sensational rendition. Contact your Federal legislators. Tell them, in no uncertain terms, that cutting arts funding doesn't make America Great Again.

It makes America stupid.

 

And, thanks to my friend George Tzougros of the Wisconsin Arts Board for the catch.

 

 

STFU

Today is the National Day of Silence in Bali. Honestly. No one speaks. All day. Really.

Called Nyepi, this Hindu celebration calls for a day of silence and is intended as a time for self-reflection. There is to be no work, entertainment or travel (flights do not take off or land, cars are not permitted on the streets) and the TV station even shuts down (sounds like heaven 'eh?).

Which one would think would be a challenge for the travel and hospitality sector. But, for sophisticated travelers who want to immerse themselves in an ancient culture that has managed to preserve such fascinating rituals, this is the reason to visit in what is normally considered a shoulder season there.

From the CNBC story: "It's fascinating that an island of 4.5 million people can shut down for 24 hours," Marian Carroll, director of public relations at Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay told CNBC, adding that it should be on every visitor's bucket list. "It takes a huge amount of coordination and discipline. Only the Balinese could pull it off!"

True 'dat. Could you imagine Americans shutting their pie holes for an hour, much less a day?

Though we certainly should.

Let the Room Tax Pay for It

Those of us in the Destination Marketing sphere are no strangers to witnessing the "logic" that some electeds use to divert Room Tax to uses that have nothing to do with the original reason for the tax: to increase visitation to the community, thus enhancing the economy and Quality of Life.

If they don’t think an expense will pass muster with the electorate, they look to Room Tax as as convenient way to pay the bill. In one Texas community, politicians know full well that citizens wouldn’t stand for plowing a million dollars a year into a city park, so they use Room Tax, because they know residents don’t pay attention to that fund.

So, it’s no surprise that a County Commissioner in Palm Beach County is contemplating a maneuver to use Room Tax to pay for the extra security costs required to guard the President when he spends time at his Florida getaway. His rationale: the press corps covering the President stay in hotels.

Can you say “that's a reach?”

Never mind that this should be covered by the Federal government (as it is presently, by some accounts, pissing through enough to cover half the budget of the soon to be gutted National Endowment for the Arts to provide security for a First Lady who chooses to live in New York City). But, under what logic should visitors to a community be expected to pay for the President’s getaways in Florida?

Oh yeah…because residents wouldn’t stand for it. Even those who voted for him.

Chuck Berry

What else can be said that hasn't. 

From his induction in first class of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame:

"While no individual can be said to have invented rock and roll, Chuck Berry comes the closest of any single figure to being the one who put all the essential pieces together. It was his particular genius to graft country & western guitar licks onto a rhythm & blues chassis in his very first single, "Maybellene."

We could go there...but everyone does. So, on this Music Friday, we give you "Nadine."

And, yeah...that's a tuxedoed Keith Richards in the backing band.

It's a Brand New Name

For those watching the evolution of Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) over the past year, this probably comes as no surprise. But, come July, the association will officially change its name to Destinations International.

One of the reasons that the International Association of Convention & Visitors Bureaus (IACVB) changed its name 12 years ago was because most people outside of the industry had no idea what the association did because so few knew what a CVB was. When boiled down to its purest form, CVBs market their destinations. Thus, Destination Marketing Association International made much more sense.

But, as the world of Destination Marketing has become so much more than simply marketing, DMAI (as a name) has become somewhat limiting. Today’s DMO also helps manage, lead, collaborate, educate, choreograph, develop and advocate for their communities.

Destinations International encompasses all that and more.

Kudos to (the soon to be former) DMAI and their brand partner Miles Media. The official roll out in Montreal this July should be fun to watch.

 

The Few who Feed the World

If you don't follow Mike Rowe, you should. In his most recent Facebook post, someone commented that he is becoming this era's Paul Harvey. And, I can't deny that he very well could be.

Yesterday, he posted up in celebration of National Agriculture Day. It is so worth your read and listen.

Good day.

Worth the Brand Hit?

As Austin takes a deep breath after hosting the world at SXSW, political leaders will need to take a serious look at the brand hit the city took this year in the wake of shooing away Uber and Lyft.

Last year, Austin politicos proposed a policy that would require sharing economy transportation drivers to be fingerprinted. Uber and Lyft warned that, if implemented, they would decamp. And, when the measure passed, they made good on the threat.

So, getting around Austin this past week wasn’t nearly as easy (or as cool) as it was last year. Sure there were local ridesharing start-ups but, according to a writer for the Federalist, “Every festival-goer I spoke to this year, including founders of Silicon Valley startups, expressed dismay at the local ridesharing options and the absence of Uber and Lyft. They all reported rideshares that charged them but never showed up, charged outrageous fees for short rides or apps that continually crashed, requiring them to delete and re-download.”

In a world where image and consumer reviews are everything, what will this do to Austin’s image as a hotbed of innovation and creativity? SXSW isn’t just an event…it’s where the biggest tech brands and the international media descend for 10 days. And, if the cool kids can’t score a ride with a cool service, what does that say about how cool a city is?

I get that there are still significant public safety and tax implications with the sharing economy…and that Uber, in particular, has been a playground bully throughout the past few years. But, in the face of the international black-eye Austin just received, government needs to realize that blocking the sharing economy and passing bathroom bills hurt more than the bottom line.

These missteps cause potential investors to look elsewhere.

The Governor Punches Back

For those outside of the State of Florida, this blog's recent preoccupation with the political machinations there may be wearisome. But, as we offered in last week's Z-News, it's a marvelous case study in real time on how both sides attempt to make their point regarding Destination Marketing.

Governor Rick Scott punches back this week with a Statewide TV ad that lays out why he's fighting his own Party over the proposed gutting of Visit Florida and Enterprise Florida.

It will prove interesting to see whether rationality and logic can prevail over ideology and envy.

Stay tuned.

The Yin and Yang

Our friend Lee Tasseff (Destination Mansfield-Richland County) was one of the readers of this blog that took up our invitation yesterday to request a song for today's Music Friday. And, he suggested two.

Given the world in which we live, the lyric of the Barry McGuire's 1965 counter-culture hit "Eve of Destruction" rings as true 50+ years later as it did then. 

But, quick to note that since it is a party party weekend, he suggested we also offer R.E.M,'s "Shiny Happy People," featuring the B-52's Kate Pierson, so as not to completely bum people out. 

Smartly played, Lee. Thanks and enjoy yours.

They're Coming for You

There's a kind of pecking order for my musings. My Twitter feed is a series of often infrequent, random one-offs about whatever crosses my mind.

My blog, repurposed most weekdays through Facebook, is a slightly more focused screed, often addressing issues in Destination Marketing...but just as easily veering off to topics on life, air travel and music.

The Z-News is a mostly monthly opportunity for me to go long on topics exclusive to the Destination Marketing world, along with links to industry news about the people who power our world and a link to the most comprehensive DMO job board on the planet.

If you're in the DMO space and aren't a subscriber, you really should be...if for nothing else the links.

My Z-News Commentary from yesterday encapsulates my response to what's been happening in Florida...and is starting to spread across the country: The demonification of Destination Marketing. And, it requires an immediate response from all of us in the industry.

And, yes...we'll be far less heavy in this blog tomorrow, as it will be another Music Friday.

Request lines are open.