Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

If This is Too Hard...Maybe You Should Just Stop

Over the weekend I received a customer satisfaction survey from a company with whom I do a lot of business.

Because I like this company, I agreed to participate. I filled out an unusually long registration form to participate, clicked "go"...and was greeted with a message that, to complete registration to fill out their survey, I'd have to click on a link in an e-mail I would be receiving.

Sometime within the next 6 Hours.

Let's unpack this: Company desires my time. I agree to provide that time. Company tells me to come back later, assuming my interest won't waver (bad assumption).

This is not a small company for which technology should not be an issue. If they haven't (in 2019) been able to master to simplest of opt-in strategies that take a minute (if not seconds)...maybe they should just accept that this whole internet thing is too complicated and just go home.

Really.

Winners and Losers

That's what the news is all about anymore. Who wins? Who loses?

And, the Mexican government's decision to disband its Destination Marketing program? The loser is Mexico.

Who wins? Puerto Rico...as I explained to Skift's Hannah Sampson.

The Loss of Brilliance

Without a doubt, one of the most brilliant product launches and success stories of the last decade was Dollar Shave Club.

With an irreverent video and ad campaign, two guys who met at a party and expressed their mutual frustration at the cost of razor blades (honestly, how boring must that party have been?) created a disruptive company that five years later sold for $1 billion. Yeah...pretty freakin' brilliant.

But, the brilliance has dimmed and faded. It has been marginalized by a corporate need to maximize profit at every turn. Not that such a goal is bad. But, for the consumer, it's frustrating.

Let's break it down. I love their razors...but they were showing up in my mailbox too often. I don't typically need 4 razors a month. When I'm home, I tend not to shave. When I'm on the road with clients, I do. So, I had racked up 12 razors...and they just kept coming, month after month after month.

So, I took a break. And, in the time it took to go through those 12 razors, the company sold to Unilever...and now, it wasn't the Dollar Shave Club anymore. It was the $40 Dollars for Razors, Shave Butter, Butt Wipes, Shampoo, Body Wash and Toothpaste Club.

Which is FINE. And I wish them WELL. Really.

But, I keep getting "Come Back" e-mails that offer no path to rejoining the Club I loved unless I agree to the butt wipes and the toothpaste.

Worst? Their $9 for all that stuff starter offer I got today? Fine. Send me a bunch of crap I'll throw away. 4 razors for $9 is still a deal.

But, to get that deal, they'll be sending me the $40 batch of unwanted extras...on March 26. Exactly two weeks from now. And now, I'm paying more for the razors I crave than suffering with the price of store bought.

Dollar Shave Club? You had me at Hello. You lost me when you decided you weren't the Dollar Shave Club.

But, this isn't "goodbye." This is "not now." Show me a path to just buy your razors...and maybe, in time, I'll consider your butt wipes.

Just a thought...

 

On Destination Leadership

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to guest on a travel industry podcast hosted by Nicole Mahoney called Destination on the Left. Beyond the honor of being asked to riff about the state of our industry, the conversation with Nicole was a blast.

But it's a great reminder about paying it forward. Not unlike the daisy chain that Tom Martin recounts in his book, "The Invisible Sale," that ultimately resulted in a great friendship (and inclusion in his book), this opportunity had a similar genesis. 

A few months ago, Saint Paul's Adam Johnson was the featured guest and he mentioned me in one of his stories about how the DMO there is rockin' it. Nicole made a subtle note to add me to her list of future guests, which spans all facets of the travel sector (not just DMOs). And, I'm guessing some of the protagonists of some of the stories I told will be getting a call from Nicole down the line. Just paying it forward.

If you want to listen in to my thoughts on the evolution of Destination Marketing (or any of her amazing 100+ episodes online), click HERE. 

And, thanks again, Nicole. It was an honor and a pleasure!

The Impossible Slider

I outgrew my affection for White Castle sliders in my early 30s (somewhat simultaneous to my not still being on the streets at bar time, I believe). But, I must admit, when I'm in a destination that boasts the home of the slider (my home State of Wisconsin only features one, two hours away), I'll swing through the drive-thru for a trip down my culinary memory lane.

That White Castle was the first burger chain to embrace the Impossible Burger nationwide, it was just a matter of time before I'd have the chance to taste test the new with the classic, side by side. And, that opportunity finally presented itself.

The results? Pretty damn close to the original, if not slightly better. It's definitely thicker. They are cooked to order, so they are always hot off the grill and not reheated (just know that, if you're in a hurry, you should choose the original).

White Castle is a guilty pleasure no more. And, good on them for making the first move.

Our Values Can't Be for Sale

A little over a year ago, Delta Airlines rescinded its group discounts to members of the NRA. According to CEO Ed Bastain, the moves were not a political statement in the aftermath of the Parkland shootings. Instead, he said it was in response to divisive comments made by the NRA in the aftermath of that horrific tragedy.

Shortly after Delta announced that it was cutting ties with the NRA, the Georgia legislature axed an exemption that would cost the airline $40 million in taxes. Bastian responded that Delta's brand “is worth so much more.” He went on to say that the company’s “values are not for sale.”

Wow. As with yesterday's post, doing the right thing by brands can often solidify the promise for their best customers. While some said they would boycott the airline, Bastain said the negative press was brief and that Georgia ultimately reinstated the tax exemptions when the furor abated.

Interesting article that goes deeper from The Points Guy.

 

 

We're Not as Noble as Hoped

A few years ago, a handful of Panera Bread locations shifted to a "pay what you can" model to test a concept that would encourage patrons to pay a little more, knowing that they'd be paving the way for area homeless and poor to get a meal.

Kudos to the company for attempting such a bold experiement...and for allowing the financial hemorrhaging to go on for six years.

But, later this week, the Boston location (the last one of the test stores) will shut its doors.

Guess we just can't withstand the temptation to get something for nothing...

Really?

His self-defense has a pinch of logic to it...but that doesn't excuse the insane lack of judgment and sensitivity from the Tourism Minister from Uganda.

The other day, Godfrey Kiwanda thought he had hatched a winner. The new tourism campaign would feature "curvy" women. "We decided to use the unique beauty, the curves... (as a) product to be marketed along with what we already have as a country, ranging from nature, the language and food, to make it a tourist attraction," he explained. So, he's supporting a curvy beauty pageant to find the new "face" of tourism.

Today, women throughout the country are demanding his resignation. Kiwanda has countered that no one seems to object to skinny beauty pageants or male bodybuilding events and, besides, a woman is managing the curvy pageant.

Nice try...but, no cigars for you.

@kakatshozi said it best: "In Uganda, curvy women are now tourist ‘products’ as if zoo animals. On a scale of 1-10, how stupid is your tourism minister?" 

 

Of course, in the comments section of one of the stories, someone else suggested the brilliance of the campaign and called for Kiwanda to become Uganda's next President.

 

Really.

Tom Rivera

In every State, there is that one individual that drove the industry and the Destination Marketing sector to the heights they today enjoy.

In Illinois, that person is Tom Rivera. With no disrespect to the scores of other industry luminaries that had a profound impact on that State's sensational run as one of the shining stars in this country's tourism landscape, it was always Tom that paved the path.

Strategic, charismatic and always calm in the face of conflict, Tom was one of my mentors in this business. By observing the subtle way he plied his trade, I learned what it meant to be a DMO pro.

Thus, it was so cool to see him finally (and, may I say, a decade late) honored at the Illinois Governor's Conference Monday night with the Excellence in Tourism Award.

I join my peers in the Land of Lincoln in expressing my undying admiration and thanks to the man who has always been the Rock God of Illinois Tourism.

Photo Credit: This "Charlie's Angels" shot is from our friend Kim Bless (left).

As the Caution Lights Flash More Incessantly

Among the top 14 international long-haul destinations around the world, only one (Turkey) performed worse than the U.S. from 2015-2017. Tourism Economics President Adam Sacks avoided the over-used phrase "perfect storm" as he coined an even better one: "a triad of factors" impacting America's lackluster performance.

"The global economy is slowing, most currencies have weakened against the dollar and U.S. policy and rhetoric have damaged sentiment. We see the latter two to be the prevailing factors over the past two years," he added. And, digging deeper into the country-by-country results really highlights how negative perceptions toward the U.S. are evident in significant travel declines from the Middle East, China and Germany. Indeed, growth in inbound travel from China completely stalled in 2018, after averaging an annual growth rate of over 20% for the past decade. 

The article from Forbes is here. The Executive Summary is here.

Hang on, babies...