Super Bowl traditions – Are you looking more forward to the game or the ads?

Posted on February 2, 2010 by markkolier

Already the Tim Tebow anti-abortion ad has gotten the pre-game buzz.   Will it hurt his future prospects as a pitchman?   I highly doubt it.  Go Daddy.com will feature Danica Patrick once again (fully clothed in case you are wondering).   Bridgestone will have an entry as well Volkswagen.  All spots for the game are ‘sold-out’ as of February 1st.    It escapes me how spending $ 2,500,000 for a 30 second spot can possibly have a positive ROI.  Oh that’s right it’s branding so we need to lengthen the curve. 

The game will draw 100,000,000 plus viewers.  In the last 20 years, Anheuser-Busch has spent more than $300 million on Super Bowl commercials, Pepsi $254 million and GM just over $80 million, according to TNS.   What really surprised me is that the Pro Bowl played Sunday night had its best viewership since 2000 drawing 12.3 million viewers.  A game that the players don’t want to play in – you would think people would have something (anything!) better to do.  The Grammy’s drew twice the viewership and was an infinitely better show (I am guessing since I watched the Grammy’s and did not watch a minute of the Pro Bowl).   

And what of the game itself this coming Sunday?  Kickoff at 6:40PM and The Who performing at halftime.  But little is noted about the game itself.  The New Orleans Saints have an opportunity to both win their first Super Bowl and continue to help resurrect a fallen city.  The Indianapolis Colts led by 4-time Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning are hoping to validate a decision to give up the pursuit of a perfect season.  Only a Super Bowl win will accomplish that.  

For me – it’s about the food (chicken wings and chili) and drinks.  Our family and friends spend time together many of whom watch normally no more than half the game, (although in recent years the games have been really good).   

So I like both the ads and the game but as a sports enthusiast I prefer the game.  How about you?

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The non-glamour of Business travel

Posted on January 29, 2010 by markkolier

It’s 11PM and I’m sitting in seat 4D (First class) on a Delta/Northwest (why can’t they make up their mind already?) flight to Ft. Myers, FL.   I am to attend a 1 ½ day conference with other marketing agency folks via the DMA’s Winter Executive Briefing.   Sounds good right?   Only I shouldn’t be here.   In First Class that is – or on this particular flight. 

You see I left my house at 7AM this morning and it is now 9PM the same night.  It was snowing when I left (‘snow showers’ turned into 4 inches at my house I am told).  A harrowing ride down the parkway made making the 9:49AM flight no sure thing.  But I arrived at the airport at 8:50AM and breezed through security in about 8 minutes (I was really pleasantly surprised).   The flight was supposedly delayed 20 minutes which did not seem too bad in view of the weather as it was still snowing at LaGuardia.  And then it went straight downhill. 

No less than three separate times the plane left the gate only to return for one reason or another.  Finally after 3 hours they allowed us to get off the plane (the passenger bill of rights in action perhaps?) and we were immediately told once entering the gate area that the flight was in fact cancelled.  Good thing I paid the $ 25 upgrade to an exit row seat in coach.  My M.O. is to fly as cheap as possible.  I got what I paid for apparently. 

Since I have access to the Delta Sky Miles club I immediately walked in there where I learned that the next direct flight to Ft. Myers was at 8:30PM.   But somehow the desk attendant was able to get me in First Class (I did not ask but gladly accepted).  After a short flirt with flying to Detroit then to Ft. Myers that would had me arrive an hour earlier that became a moot point when it ‘disappeared’ according to the desk attendant.  Flying another airline through Philadelphia got me in 2+ hours earlier but that airline was experiencing delays as well and I declined that option.  Little did I know that the 8:30 did would be ‘delayed’ until 9:15.  We actually boarded at 9:30 and then proceeded to sit at the gate until 11PM because the pilots were flying in from another city.  Apparently La Guardia was using only one runway.  A fact that was not reported  until 11PM.   Airline communications with passengers (i.e. CUSTOMERS) sucks wildly. 

So I have spent more than 14 hours at the airport and finally (I hope) am going to get somewhere.  I well realize that many people have much more horrific travel stories than this one.  I have never slept in an airport although I have been delayed overnight more than once but always managed to get out to a hotel or head back home.  The food choices at the Delta/Northwest terminal at LaGuardia are awful.   Unless you like to eat at Chili’s, Burger King or Sbarro.  Eating that stuff twice in one day is not a path to feeling good or good health in general. 

Hard to believe that the best experience of the day was getting through security in 8 minutes.  If this journey is its own reward the rest of the trip will have to be better.   I wonder how?

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I love the Tennis Channel – the future is here

Posted on January 27, 2010 by markkolier

I’ve been playing tennis a very long time.   Competitively to a degree (tournaments, rankings – mine was pretty low).   As I’ve gotten older I don’t play as much, as well, or as much singles as I once did.   I still can play a little I like to think.  A good friend of mine who is as passionate about tennis as am I (perhaps more so), kept bugging me to subscribe to the Tennis Channel since it was offered by my cable provider – Cablevision and he was a subscriber already. 

 It was not all that much.  $ 6.00/month.   My wife is frequently agitated by the cable bill as we have several televisions and cable boxes associated.  So we cut back on the service for one of the TV’s making the Tennis Channel no more of an outlay than before. 

The Tennis Channel is indeed way cool.  More than 75% of the time when I pass through the channel there is actually – Tennis.  Some match from some time – usually a good one, is on and I invariably stop and watch.  Even if I know the outcome!  I do not do that for any other sport.  Like I noted – I really like tennis. 

There are occasional programs on the Tennis Channel that do not feature people playing tennis.  But even then they have some relevance to the game and that’s why I am watching that channel in the first place. 

The point is – there is a somewhat limited audience that would actually pay to have a network offer programming as does the Tennis Channel.  The Golf Channel tries but for whatever reason does not do it quite as well.  And I also like to play golf and have actually watched the Golf Channel and would actually rather play golf than tennis if I could.  The Tennis Channel gets it right.  Geeky enough that only true Tennis fans could appreciate Nastase-Pohman at the 1975 U.S. Open at Forest Hills.  

It can be done.   Narrow appeal yet dedicated audience.  Give them what they want and they will seek you out.    Give it a try.

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Who should be the next President of the Direct Marketing Association?

Posted on January 23, 2010 by markkolier

I’ve already asked the question is the DMA still relevant after attending the annual conference in San Diego this past October.   But with the abrupt resignation of John Greco this week those thoughts have come to mind again. 

When I went to AdTech in New York City in November I happened to see Mr. Greco walking head bowed through the busy exhibit hall full of high energy, YOUNG people excited about marketing.  This was what the DMA was supposed to have been.  I have even heard the DMA at one point considered buying AdTech and making that show a DMA event.   Great idea but it never got done. 

On the few occasions I happened to meet Mr. Greco I found him to be engaging, thoughtful and seemingly interested.   At $ 800,000 plus total compensation that should come as no surprise.  And running the DMA over the past 5 years has been far from a picnic.  A paralyzing recession forced a total reevaluation of DMA expenditures at the same time DMA revenues from conferences were reduced significantly. 

Yet Eugene Raitt and his fellow DMA Board of Directors have a tough task in finding the ‘right’ person.  Exactly what kind of person should that be?   If the primary source of DMA revenue is the annual conference (and conferences in general) something has to be done about making attending the conference an exciting and more informative event.  

But wait, there’s more!  Representing member companies and anticipating legislative issues remain key aspects for the.  While now past-President Greco did an acceptable job of combating do-not-mail legislation, it always felt to me like the DMA was on the defensive.  

I say it’s high time that the DMA looks to bring in a leader who has exhibited vision in keeping up with the rapid changes in direct and digital marketing – maybe even someone from a DMA member company? 

There is still time for the DMA to change course and move forward instead of backing up.  The departure of John Greco presents a unique opportunity and there may not be another one.  Let’s hope the DMA Board of Directors gets it right this time.  The very survival of the Association may be at stake.

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Twitter could have been a big help to the poor people of Haiti

Posted on January 19, 2010 by markkolier

But it’s not Twitter’s fault.  Haiti has a population in which many people live on $ 10.00 per week – or less.  So having a mobile device is out of the question.   And how sad that is considering that the lack of infrastructure makes land line phone calling difficult if not impossible at times.   Haiti by all counts is the poorest country in the western hemisphere.   It’s difficult to fathom how technology infrastructure in much Africa is far ahead of Haiti.   Many westerners refer to a large part of Africa as the third world.   Where does that leave Haiti?  

When the bombings in Mumbai occurred in 2008 the first reports of the incidents were made on Twitter.  Agile and fast, tweets offer citizen journalism in its finest and condensed form.   The catastrophe in Haiti is still unfolding and there are amazing stories of survivors still being pulled out nearly a week after the earthquake.   I cannot help thinking that if people had mobile devices and could tweet their situations help could have been directed to those in need in a much more efficient fashion.  

GPS on mobile devices also would offer tracking abilities but a broadcast tweet on Twitter would have enabled MANY people to better understand individual situations and arrange help.  We all want to help and aside from donating funds, working on sending food to Haiti there is little more that we can do. 

The power of Twitter sadly was not and will not be realized in Haiti.   Having a bunch of followers is often seen as preaching to the choir.   Yet the opportunity to rally people to help on a one to one basis in a time of need is something Twitter can do better than just about any other platform.  

Certainly Haiti has had and will have much bigger issues than connecting its population via mobile devices.   Yet how many more lives might have been saved had the injured been able to call out for help to their followers?  

Am I off-base here?

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Marketing investing versus marketing spending

Posted on January 15, 2010 by markkolier

You see it all the time.  Measured media spend for a company is a common term.   Or ‘spending is to be…’.   I don’t understand why these dollars are not referred to as investments.  

When you go out to dinner with your spouse, family or friends that can be seen as spending perhaps although it could be argued that your investing in your relationships.   However that is probably too semantic and since you could have grown your own food, gone to the market, or chosen several less expensive alternatives to eating out in a restaurant spending is likely the best term to define going out to dinner. 

Buying shares of companies through the stock market is always seen as an investment.   It is speculative to say the least and far from a sure thing.  But the object is to increase the value of your investment.  There is of course no guarantee. 

Would you agree that you invest in your health by going to see your doctor?   Again there is no guarantee.  But my guess is you rarely look at paying the doctor as an investment. 

Yet when it comes to advertising and marketing agencies it seems that the word investing is nowhere to be found.  Maybe it was John Wanamaker that got things started off on that angle – ‘Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted the trouble is I don’t know which half.’    Big help he was. 

The smaller the business the more it seems that any allocated marketing dollars are deemed to be spending that the business wishes it did not have to outlay.  Larger companies often have a better understanding of the value of investing marketing dollars but when budgets are slashed (a common term during the recession) what they are slashing is spending.   I venture a guess that not one company that reduced its marketing budget described it as reducing their marketing investment.   It doesn’t quite sound the same does it? 

Now that the recession seems to be waning wouldn’t it be great if the term marketing investment became part of the lexicon?   Most marketing agencies are filled with dedicated and accomplished professionals.   No less professional than lawyers, investment advisors and yes stock brokers.   People are comfortable using the term investment when it comes to the latter.   Marketing agencies and their affiliated partners should be solely focused on helping their clients maximize their marketing investment.   How about clients start referring to it that way?

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Radio Shack – it isn’t the Love Shack

Posted on January 12, 2010 by markkolier

225px-Radioshackstoreradioshack080509thmRadio Shack has been around for as long as I can remember – when I looked it up they were founded in 1921.  For many years any promotion done by RS had a tag ‘a Tandy company’ – like that was supposed to mean something to me.  

The name was changed to Radio Shack Corporation and is publicly traded on the NYSE under RSH.   Headquartered in Fort Worth, TX there are over 4,500 company-owned stores plus kiosks and service centers and well over 1,000 dealer outlets.  The 2008 yearly sales were $ 4.81 billion. 

Their media budget as of 2008 was $ 215 million and is under review as of today.  The creative agency Butler, Shine, Stern and Partners unveiled a new branding campaign in April of 2009 which included a new nickname – “The Shack”. 

Here’s my issue – upon those 2 or 3 occasions a year I go into Radio Shack they almost never have what I am looking for.  Just in the past couple of months I went searching for a cable for my home computer that they did not sell, and prior to that I went to pick an adapter for my headphones to use on airplanes and they did not have that either.  This boggles my mind.  Prior to going to the store I did visit the website but the experience was far from intuitive and it was easier for me to just visit the store in town.

When it comes to needing cables, adapters or anything electronic-related Radio Shack should ALWAYS have what I want in stock.  It’s not as if I am looking for some rare or unusual item.  It’s a big store and the sole salesperson (the last few times I was in the store there was only one person minding it) seemed surprised that they did not carry what I was looking for. 

So Radio Shack can do all the cool branding stuff (Our Friends call us THE SHACK) they want and entertain new media agencies but if they cannot deliver on the simplest of concepts like have what the customer need and wants, I don’t feel it matters much. 

It’s too bad because I always have enjoyed going into Radio Shack since they have lots of interesting products and the sales staff always seemed to be tech geeks and knowledgeable about their products. 

It’s far from a little ol’ place where we can get together.

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A quick fix is not the tonic

Posted on January 8, 2010 by markkolier

I just read a story that was posted on line this afternoon of January 8, 2010

U.S. Job Losses in December Dim Hopes for Quick Upswing

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/09/business/economy/09jobs.html?hp

Were you hoping for a quick upswing?   Is that what everyone really wants?   There are a so many people who continue to suffer the effects of the Great Recession of ’08-’09.   And what I (along with just about everyone) would like to see an increase in available jobs.   But I am far from certain that seeing a huge spike in jobs at the end of this (or next) month would A) signal that things are turning rosy or B) be the catalyst to coming years of prosperity for a majority of Americans.  

While I am optimistic that the worst is over and that better days are ahead in no way do I feel that a return to the ways of the recent past (fast bucks and conspicuous consumption) will benefit hard working Americans.  I like to think that we have all learned some very important lessons over the past few years but it is a known fact that history seems to repeat itself and I am very concerned that any short term job, income, and home sale spikes might lead people to believe the good times are ready to roll once again. 

Don’t get me wrong, I hope that his could possibly happen but I also know that hope is not a strategy.  If slow and steady wins the race, be wary of getting too high when there is better than expected news and don’t wallow when the news is not as good as ‘experts’ hoped. 

Small businesses will lead the overall recovery.  Until small businesses feel good about hiring new employees and entrepreneurs feel confident enough to start new businesses (often this happens as a result of a recession) any steps forward will likely be followed by a few steps back.   And that’s not a bad thing as far as I see.  A steady, sustainable recovery will be a calming influence for me and when I see allusions to desiring quick fixes and shots in the arm I get a queasy feeling in my stomach that a sequel to a bad movie is in production. 

I’m no economist yet it should not take one to figure out that a recovery with the foundation of a wet paper towel is precarious to say the least.  Hopefully we’re all a little smarter and a little more wary of things that appear too good to be true. 

We’re in it for the long haul aren’t we?

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Do I really need to like my doctor?

Posted on January 5, 2010 by markkolier

I have lived in the same town now for 18 years and thus have acquired a number of local providers that offer goods and services.   One of them is my doctor’s offices.  However as I have noted in previous posts I have had the bad luck that every doctor I have had contact with over the past 18 years is no longer with the practice.  Is my loyalty to the doctor or the practice? 

Well in my case the doctor’s office is less than 2 minutes from my house.  That’s very convenient to say the least.   And all my records are with this practice which is also convenient.   I met one of the new doctors on my last visit a couple of months ago and he mentioned that I had not been in for a physical in 2 years – something that I know I needed to address.  Part of it was due to the fact that the doctor that performed my prior physical was no longer with the practice. 

So now I am faced with the prospect of having a physical with a doctor I hardly know and who (aside from my charts and records) hardly knows me.  My one meeting with the doctor was rather brief and he displayed little (ok zero) personality.  Yes I needed a physical complete with all the fun and games associated with what happens to a man once he turns 50.  

I don’t know anyone that actually enjoys going to the doctor and certainly don’t know anyone that enjoys having a physical.   Might it be easier or better if I actually had a cordial if not friendly relationship with the   doctor?   Maybe so but what I think is more important is that I have a terrific doctor – one that will be thorough, direct and have some understanding of what is my day to day lifestyle.  

I wonder if liking your doctor might compromise the doctor-patient relationship.   If there is a warm relationship between doctor and patient is it possible that the doctor might hold back on some of the inevitable scolding that seems to exist between doctors and patients?    Isn’t that part of the deal?  That the doctor will tell you to lose weight, eat and drink less, work less, yet exercise more?   Would you be inclined to listen more to your doctor if you liked him or her?   I sure hope not and it would be a bad thing if that were the case. 

I don’t need to like my doctor and maybe that’s a good thing.

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Avatar is a must see in 3D

Posted on December 31, 2009 by markkolier

250px-NeytiriI did not see it in 2D to compare however.  And I am not sure why anyone one would see it in 2D when the experience is designed for 3D.  My 20 year old son and I took it in yesterday afternoon in a packed theater.   Creator/Director James Cameron is noted for taking big chances and at times coming up with big winners (Titanic being the last big winner).   Avatar is a big winner not only at the box office, but also in helping usher in a new genre.

I had heard that the story was not terrific.   For me I found it to be a classic story but well done.  Yes there were a few holes here and there but the visual feast and overall spectacle far outweighed any complaints about the story.   The virtual world created by Cameron was fascinating in both its concept and depiction.  The Avatars were incredibly real and for computer generated images I have never seen renderings that made me totally unaware that what I was watching was a virtual environment and not real live action manipulated or rotoscoped.   I admit that I actually felt Neytiri was kind of hot truth be told.  The entire experience was truly remarkable.  The score by James Horner was terrific as well (his work always is).  

The 3D aspect was cool and wearing the glasses (much better than the old cardboard blue and red glasses) was not a big deal and for much of the movie I was unaware I was even wearing them.  I will say that the 3D effects were pretty cool but I anticipated an even more immersive experience.  Probably my own fault yet I did walk out of the theater thinking that every movie from now on should be in 3D (nor was that the Cameron’s intent or mission).   

I recently read that by 2012 30% of the TV’s sold will be 3D enabled.   That’s a substantial prediction and number and I am not convinced the public will adopt 3D TV as quickly as the prognosticators are saying.  

Several 3D trailers were shown in advance of the feature and some of them reminded me of the older more hokey 3D effects like having a school piranha ‘swim’ by you sort of like a ride at Disney.   That was not cool and I won’t be in any rush to watch 3D movies that employ hackneyed 3D tricks.  But ‘Avatar’ is game changing (no pun intended).    And while both my son (who absolutely loved it) and I hope there won’t be a sequel what are the chances of that happening? 

A healthy and happy 2010 to all.     I am hoping for more comments on my blog for 2010 so please fire away!

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