CK's Blog

Letterman Owns Hilton--and rightly owns the convo.

As I was sitting home doing work and blogging on a Friday night (woe is me), I'm so glad I did. Did anyone catch Letterman's interview with Paris Hilton last night?

One of his finest moments. No kidding. She wanted to talk her new perfume and clothing line and he would have none of it. Zip. Zero.

Nope, not until she talked "that prison thing." He was relentless.

And I'm tellin' you, it was the only decent interview with her and shows how empty (spineless?) the other so-called "news" interviews media have been. Heck, if more talk shows were this bold, we might even have fewer irresponsible celebs. (hey, a girl can hope).

Some say it was mean and that Paris is boycotting the show. But I say Letterman proves that we can get better and bolder as we get older and his ratings will rightly soar. He kept pushing her to talk about the experience, how she's changed and she just said 'It's in the past and I've talked about it. I want to talk other things." His response? "But this is where you and I are different, it's the only thing I want to talk about."

One man cried "I love you Paris!" and Letterman quipped, "Is that one of the guys you met in prison?" He didn't miss a single step. 'Twas the best marketing he could do for his show because he went where everyone wanted to go, but hasn't. And he put his audience first.

net net: It wasn't about Paris (ick!), it was about Dave. He's always be amazing, but it was bold, authentic and, as Reich said in the comments, more like the classic 12:30am Letterman than the safer 11:30pm slot. I like Leno, but this served to differentiate Dave (again).

I'm looking for a video of it to show you fine folks but I can't find one yet. Tell you what, first person who can locate it gets some of my yummy, ooey-gooey chocolate-chip cookies, k? (they've been praised by several bloggers who've won them before.) UPDATE: My pal Clay Parker Jones gets the winnings this go 'round!

My hope? That every politician is made to go on Letterman and receives the same "it's not your agenda, it's my talk show" treatment. I'll load the video as soon as I find it...or as soon as one of you can find it for me ;-). Thanks to Clay Parker Jones, here's the clip (right @8.5 minutes). RSS readers go here.

This blogosphere's going to hell in a handbasket

Who the heck lets Tangerine Toad blog at The Daily Fix? Rumor has it he starts up there Monday (rumor indeed has become reality). David Reich has moved from debating licensing tooth and nail and is now taking on academia (readers, when I nagged him to "get a darn blog already!", I did not know this firecracker side of him. I swear.). The "other David", David Berkowitz, is berating us for too many memes and other abuses (next he'll be blaming us for Global Warming).

And Mack has a wish-list that includes hearing me on a panel. Mack, thanks for the support, but the last thing this world needs is anymore of my yapping. Especially when I'm hooked up to a mic.

Matt Dickman's gone all hip and is not only featuring Bob Dylan but some kinda new "mood lighting" going on in his most recent "Buzz Fridays" video briefing. Meanwhile, Paul has gone seriously unhip by posting a public apology/promise.

And our alien friend Luc has gone all literal and recruited actual aliens for his blog (Luc, please tell the alien to return the hip Paul, he's missed).

Mark Goren is posting about a better balance and give + take in our lives, is Dr. Phil next? It's gotten so bad that even Cam Beck, in a moving piece, is telling us that the public distrusts marketing and marketers. Since Cam said it, will you folks now believe me about how essential trust is? Jeez.

All the while, we've got the MidEast's banner boy for blogging, Arun Rajagopol, who, having gotten ink for the Age of Conversation's 103 authors in every single Oman paper has now landed a 6-Page FEATURE in a major Dubai newspaper. Look at him over there donning the "cool tech celeb" look. I suspect by 26 (he's all of a 24 year-old whippersnapper) we'll see him on the cover of Fortune.

Arun, can you stop making us all look so darn lazy?

Greg Verdino--and a very savvy video (well done, in fact hot girls do sell products well)--has convinced me to actually, um, watch ads on purpose--and a pic of he, me and a stuffed animal (!) are featured in that Dubai article.

Yup, just when I had all but assured my corporate father that "this blogging stuff" is actually good for business development he's treated to a pic of me holding a Curious George doll in a major media outlet.

Hell in a handbasket, I tell ya.

At least Sean Howard has discontinued his nudity campaign. Though it was for a worthy cause. If I've missed any other marketing mischief of late please let me know in the comments. I'd hate to present an incomplete report.

Disclaimer: For those reading this blog that might not know my snappy, jokin' style, I'm being serious. (Though all of these people are dear colleagues and friends of mine and the links I've provided are well worth checking out ;-).

Free speech ain't free...and apparently, now it's really creepy

Just innocently minding my own business reading through some brainy blogs and I'm hit with this blunder of a business model--as David Reich explains on his blog:

"There's a new pudding that makes my stomach a bit queasy.  It's called Pudding Media and The New York Times wrote about it yesterday.  The company, based in Silicon Valley, just introduced a web phone service that will allow people unlimited free calling.  But there's a catch, which is what makes me nervous.

In exchange for free phone calls, Pudding will listen in on your conversation to see what you're talking about.  Voice recognition software will pick up on key words or phrases and then send you ads, by email or directly to your computer screen, based on what you've been talking about."

Please tell me this will go away. Or mocked immensely and then go away (so that unlike Britney, it doesn't come back).

According to the company's CEO "Pudding Media had considered the privacy question carefully. The company is not keeping recordings or logs of the content of any phone calls, he said, so advertisements only relate to current calls, not past ones, and will only arrive during the call itself."

So you bother me DURING my call? When I'm actually trying to have the conversation?

The CEO also thinks that young people, the group his company is focusing on with the call service, "are less concerned with maintaining privacy than older people are."

Whether or not young people want privacy isn't the issue--an arrogant assumption, btw--the issue is that you're a grown-up preying upon them in the name of "targeted advertising."

And that's really creepy.

I've said it oh so many times before, but here goes once more: Marketers, just focus on creating, innovating and maintaining exemplary products, services and experiences. You'll be amazed how your markets will gladly give you their time, money and loyalty without your needing to waste precious ad dollars stalking them.

They might even call you.

PS: The way this company validates this model? They pass the buck with this gem, "Pudding Media executives said that scanning the words used in phone calls was not substantially different from what Google does with e-mail." Gotta love it when a new company defends themselves by using another company's pesky practices...instead of promoting itself on its own merits.

Replacing beef with beefcake...brilliant or just beautiful?

I love these PETA print ads (and these actresses) and today the organization launches its newest campaign featuring Alicia Silverstone baring all in efforts to get you to stop eating meat.

No, you don't get to have sex with Alicia (sorry folks) but you do, according to her, "feel better, look better and your skin glows." So it's a play on vanity. I mean, who doesn't want their skin to glow?

Here's the kicker: the campaign airs in steak-loving Houston of all places.

(Good luck, PETA, Houston's likely hit their "guilt quota" with all our gripes on oil.)

The spot is below or just go here.

QUESTION: Does baring it all encourage, persuade or nudge you to say no to the burgers? In addition to beautiful women, are these ads brilliant...meaning, do they achieve their objective?

Curious am I.

As for me? I do eat meat, I do not wear fur (but do have leather handbags) and I don't take NYC horse-drawn carriage rides (those horses look so very sad). But again, I do eat meat (fish, too) and will continue to do so until more non-meat food tastes good and stops trying to emulate meat food (Why make bacon with soy? Or veggie burgers? Stop trying to replace the old, it only makes us miss the old. Try innovating all new--that tastes really good and is really easy to make.)

That said, I do love salads. But I'm not sure if my skin glows. Sigh.

Here's the Alicia spot (RSS readers go here)--btw, nice touch on adding a free veggie starter kit. But the challenge isn't getting people to start a vegan lifestyle, it's making meat-free stick. I do predict it will help Alicia's career, but that's not PETA's objective. Oh, and thanks to PETA for making my blog extra sexy today ;-).

Alicia Silverstone’s Sexy Veggie PSA
Order a FREE vegetarian starter kit at GoVeg.com

Phoebe was right: Rules first. Tools (a distant!) second.

Do you remember that episode of Friends where Phoebe, in her zany way, was teaching Joey, in his gullible way, how to play the guitar? She wouldn't let him actually touch or, heaven forbid (!), even look at a guitar.

Nope, he first had to get into the "zone" of being a guitar player. It was silly as, naturally, Joey needed to practice in order to hone his skills.

But when it comes to social media, Phoebe's a girl after my own heart. Her zany ways make a heck of a lot of sense.

I'm telling clients to learn and look and then...and only then...go ahead and touch. See, when I'm teaching a client or a colleague about social media we start with the basics. And the basics are two-pronged. First, I need to show them what blogs, Wikis, social networks and podcasts actually are. But then I need to stop and explain that these are merely tools that drive a trend.

And trends trump tools every time.

Yup, every single time.

What's more? Those trends come with some pretty hefty rules of the road.

So no touchie until we know and respect the rules. Because I'm not about to be at fault for someone contaminating this medium (I hope they're not touching when my back is turned).

And there is so much to learn that they needn't touch for a while. Just look and learn and digest. Ya know, get into that "zone." Because it's a pretty steep learning curve migrating away from top-down, company-in-control, managed messaging practices.

So it's rules first, tools a distant (!) second.

PS: Many times the client need not even launch a blog. I'm not at all of the mind that every company needs a blog (only if it adds value, not more noise). But all companies need to listen...and there aren't better tools for listening than the ones we have here.

I do not understand this whole "un" thingie (psst: clients don't either)

I've seen several companies and conferences refer to themselves as "unagencies" and "unconferences." And I just gotta ask, why in the Web 2.0 World, with all we've learned on basic marketing principles--from the Web 1.0 World--are we creating categories that only mean the opposite of the other?

That isn't innovative.

Especially when these new offerings, businesses and business models have so much more value than just being the opposite, or the "un" (antithesis?), of the other. Being the opposite places the focus on the competitor not the innovator. It makes the client scrutinize whether or not you really are the opposite, and how very opposite you really are...and how much of a risk that really is to them.

I'd rather they be focused on benefits not differences (if your difference is meaningful than that benefit will shine through). And while I've heard clients say "I've hired an interactive agency," or "I've hired an SEO agency," I've not heard them say "I've hired an unagency." (Though I admit I'd love to hear it as it would give me a giggle)

When we're the opposite of something then, sure, we give our clients a base to start from...but then it gets murky. They think, "Well an agency does creative, or media planning, or direct marketing...so this outfit, I guess, doesn't. I know what they don't do but, wait, what is it that they actually do?"

I assure you both types of companies do marketing, they may just use different models and media.  And I certainly assure you this, both are judged on the very same criteria: to get the client exposure so as to get more customers so as to up the bottom line.

Unless I've lost touch and all of a sudden clients want un-revenues.

Take me, I have a set of competencies that I've built a (small) business around. I'm often told, "You're not like other consultants." OK, cool, I'm different (notice the client is saying that, not me). But I don't refer to myself as an un-consultant. I've just always referred to myself as a marketing specialist (and sometimes, a marketing hippie).

Now take Red Bull, innovators of the "high-energy drink" category. They specifically wanted to avoid the "cola" category, but they didn't go with the "UnCola" because when 7UP used that it fell flat (especially since 7UP is, in fact, a carbonated cola). If I don't want cola? Then I'm likely gonna head for a Poland Spring (the premium water category) or grape juice (the fruit juice category).

But I'm never, ever, gonna say, or think in my most private of thoughts, "I feel like an uncola". Nope, I'm going to be much more specific than that. And opposite isn't specific. It's just the opposite of something that is specific.

A book without paper isn't an unbook...it's an eBook (and a book on tape is an audiobook). A website that is dynamic and two-way isn't an un-site.

It's a blog.

My point is that if you're going to forge brave new frontiers and create new categories, then get more creative--and far more meaningful--than just un-something. Why? Because you're better than just being the opposite of another, unworthy you're not ;-).

PS: Oh, and the unconferences I've attended? Delightful as they were, they were still a conference...as people still congregated at a certain designation for a common purpose to confer about a specified subject matter...it was just that the format was revamped. And I still had to pay to get into it. So opposite it truly was not.

Manhattan + Marketers + Martinis = MeetUp

My colleague, fellow marketing blogger and dear friend Toby Bloomberg is coming to town next week (up from Atlanta) so that means a meetup--and a martini--is in order. Now I've done two meetups with Toby before (one time in D.C., the other time in NYC) and I will say that each time is better. Plus the third time's a charm.

And we already have C.B. Whittemore, David Reich, David Berkowitz and Greg Verdino joining us.

Update: I understand Ann Handley--coming in from Boston!--will be joining us, too. And yet another update: And Tangerine Toad is stopping by...and Kofi Annan, too!

So there will be toads, lizards (see below) and some of the smartest and most fun marketing bloggers present. So come join us for a martini. Or two.

Where: Cafe Iguana (yes there is a lizard outside but he's not real), 240 West 54th Street between Broadway & 8th Avenue.    212.765.5454       .

When: Thursday, September 20th.

What time: We'll start at 6:30pm. Not sure when we'll end. (life's better left a mystery, eh?)

What to wear: No dress code. And you needn't wear a dress (nor need you be female)...you can go trendy, sexy, sporty, hippie, breezy or just plain casual.

What to do? Drop me a comment or email me if you think you can stop by. Or surprise us. Like I said, life's better left a mystery.

The world loses a model marketer with a BIG heart

I'm saddened to learn that Anita Roddick passed today, at the too young age of 64. I will say that what she did in those 64 years is nothing short of magnificent.

She was "green" ahead of her time and immensely giving.

We need more like her.

And for so many she's provided a model that is now her legacy.

According to Body Shop's Chairman:

"Anita was not only our founder but she was also the heart and passion of The Body Shop and with her we achieved so much, whether on animal rights, human rights, Community Trade, or through the founding of organizations like Children on the Edge.

It is no exaggeration to say that she changed the world of business with her campaigns for social and environmental responsibility.

But for everyone who knew Anita, it was about much more than that: you couldn't help but be inspired by her love of life, her vision of the world and her passion for changing it.

Anita leaves us with an enduring legacy which will long guide the affairs of The Body Shop. Our heartfelt condolences are with the Roddick family at this sad time."

Rest in peace, Anita. Thank you for giving business a conscience, and for making the world a better place...and for your strength and grace being such a personal inspiration.

Article here.

Bio here.

Reich hits 100 (in posts that is, in years he's only like 90)

So my pal David Reich a man who first scoffed at "all my blogging as a waste of time," and then finally launched his own wildly popular blog, has hit his 100th post (woo-hoo!).

And in return he asked me to guest blog for his 100th post.

Um, that's lame.

If I write your 100th post then it's not YOUR 100th post. So David and I compromised and we've written a post together. It's over at his blog.

Go give him a big hug for hittin' 100...alternatively, you can give me a big hug for kickin' his butt into the blogosphere in the first place. (It's a better place with him in it.)

PS: Even at 100, David dances far better than Britney.

So next July 13th I'm gonna wake up and suddenly want to be harassed again?

When I (joyfully!) signed onto the national Do NOT Call Registry I was thinking that I was guarding my phone number against telemarketers.

Forever.

I come to find out today that the sign-up was only good for five years. (Swear I remember being told otherwise...CNN reporters don't remember being told this either.)

To me, opt out means opt OUT...until I want to opt back IN. Be that time one year, five years or, in this case, infinity x that many years.

Not sure who thought that I'd want calls again in 60 months. And I bet I don't even get an email reminding me in June that expiration is quickly approaching.

Yes folks, even though we're not pesky marketers the word "marketer" is quite evident in the word "telemarketer." So it's no small wonder that many innocent consumers associate us with them.

If anybody sees any petitions on getting Do Not Call to get its act together, please inform me. They do have a "file a complaint" feature but that's about all I've found.

Perhaps it's only me and this 5-year hiatus from being harassed makes sense. But I really want them to lose my number.

For how long? For as long as forever takes.

PS: Is there a way for me to opt OUT of pop-up ads, banners on my screen that say "to keep viewing this ad click here," and all those incredibly annoying magazine "blow-ins" asking me to sign-up when I've been a darn subscriber for over a decade? I'll happily take a break from any/all of these for five years.

Monkeys, martinis and how males are different from females

I had the pleasure of meeting up with Greg Verdino, David Berkowitz and Curious George last night. You see, in promoting the Age of Conversation book, Steve Woodruff dreamed up a mascot (that's where George comes in) and a worldwide tour.

According to Steve, "A short while back, I contacted the 103 authors of the Age of Conversation book about the possibility of a worldwide tour, by a famous figure. The goal is for this mascot to visit every one of the authors on their “home turf,” completing a global circuit within one year’s time or less."

Why meet over martinis? Well, in the course of the "tour," Greg Verdino needed to hand-off George to me and then I needed to give him to David Berkowitz. Instead of mailing him around New York we figured...why not make a party out of it? And George was game.

Whatever did we do? Took pics with George, drank dirty martinis at one of my favorite vodka rooms, discussed marketing, life, upcoming weddings (congrats David!), took more pics with George, discussed the Age of Conversation book, chatted God and drank more martinis.

What's a monkey meetup without wild NYC wildlife stories? Being that George is a monkey, we shared our own wild stories of NYC wildlife:

• About 8 years ago, while walking home from work, a very large owl, perched atop a 35-story building, fell to its demise--all but one foot in front of me. It nearly scared me to death and I'm like, "What is that majestic creature doing in NYC?!" Apparently, owls are more common than you think and live above large buildings. Then, in the natural course of events, they die and fall. Sad, but true.
  
• David Berkowitz had a real occurrence with a real monkey. Yep, he was scratched across the cheek by one while minding his own business just walking through NYC streets (the monkey was sitting on his owner's shoulder, then reached out and swatted David). As city dwellers, we do expect to get bumped and bruised by people running into us, but not by monkeys.
• Greg had a pigeon poop on him (Greg: please get a better story soon, k?).

Why wasn't David Reich at the party? Unfortunately fellow New Yorker David Reich--whom George is being handed-off to next--couldn't join us as he was at an event where he was saving his town from evil politicians. Denzel Washington, whom is also from David's town, was scheduled to make an appearance. David, having given it some thought I concur Denzel is a supreme weapon to rid the land of evil politicians...so please send him to D.C. next.

And finally, how, praytel, are males different than females? Well, besides the obvious, females take a lot of pics in order to post a FEW good ones...males, curious as it is, take a lot of pics and then upload EVERY single one of them to their Flickr accounts.  Um, thanks guys ;-).

BIG thanks: I want to thank Steve Woodruff for giving us this great promotion. And I want to once again thank Gavin Heaton and Drew McLellan for spearheading the Age of Conversation book. It's a great read, written by 103 "in the know" marketers with all proceeds going to charity.

So buy the book and then I'll buy you a (dirty) martini, too.

Pics: At the very top we have George and his drink of choice, followed by David and me, then Greg and me and the last shot, which is my fave, of David drinking with George.

I'd be a sour apple, too

Background here.

And to think I came this close to getting an iPhone two weeks ago...as a gift no less! (no, not a gift so I'd post about it). But I passed it up for the time being as I'm just not sure how much I'll use it and I have a long-standing beef with AT&T (and they become your carrier if you want the iPhone).

If you haven't used one yet they're just as cool as they look and it had me mesmerized for hours. It's genius in its look, feel and apps.

That said, I didn't even think to make a call from it ;-).

But I feel sooo badly for all those people I saw standing in line for the iPhone's premiere here at the NYC store. Sure, I can see a price drop to be more competitive with other offerings.

But in 6 months. Not 3. Wait, has it even been 3 months yet? Isn't it more like 2 months?

And $200 is a significant (!) drop in price. Ouch.

Due to its trove of enthusiasts, Apple needs to step far more lightly when it comes to caring for its early adopters and loyalists. Why? Because Apple is just not like other brands.

Or, maybe now it is.

Sorta kinda relevant: Whilst in San Francisco a few weeks back I went to the Apple Store. And you know what I couldn't understand? In their "theater area" there were a lot of people in seats talking apps back and forth but no one at the podium (they didn't have tutorial sessions scheduled for several hours). Ya know, like an Open Mike (Open Mac?) for users when tutorials aren't being held.

I asked a couple of the people why they didn't go up to the podium and share with the crowd what they were sharing with the people sitting adjacent to them. Just seems natural being it's The Share Economy. Plus, giving your enthusiasts a voice only makes them voice their love for you and your product even more.

The crowd thought it a great idea since they do that anyhow sitting in their seats. So I asked one of the store employees why they didn't let the users teach one another between sessions (surely users have new things to teach us, no?). He was very affable and said, "Huh, I don't know the answer to that question." So it sorta kinda killed the "Apple Store Experience" for me. Guess I like hearing from customers more than employees at the genius bar.

Update (couple hours later): Thanks to Neil for alerting me to this Open Letter from Steve Jobs...I understand they're going to give iPhone customers a $100 "store credit" but, with all honesty to readers, I'm running out the door and read it quickly so if it's a "rebate" then I agree with that. If, however, it's a store credit for future purchases, I don't agree with it (and I'm not sure how much one can get for $100 at the Apple Store, I would think it's a great way to get us to buy another iPod/etc.). I'll check back and read the fine print better; for now I just wanted to publish the link. And notice how Jobs hits on 'trust' in the letter...yep, trust is paramount (and it ain't worth losing over a few months of waiting to rollout, IMO).

Stompin' the (prison) yard: cool idea or cruel treatment?

Being on the "outside" we don't give much thought to what happens inside the big house. It's understandable since what we seek is peace of mind that criminals are behind bars not out in the open. But when you have a lot of inmates--high-security inmates incarcerated for such crimes as murder and rape--you best be keeping order. Especially since inmates are there not just for punishment but for rehabilitation.

Otherwise the environment is more conducive for many more bad things, like forming gangs and infighting.

But what if inmates were given a way to work together to create something....something that expended energy and put them outside in the fresh air instead of in the stuffy indoors, stuffed into small cells? That's what this maximum security Filipino prison is doing. They're making their inmates work together on choreographed dances to familiar tunes. For five hours a day.

And thanks to YouTube (and a social media savvy Warden), they've been a hit--I'm sure you've at least seen their rendition of "Thriller" (if not it's below). They also do Queen's Radio GaGa, the VillagePeople's YMCA and one from the movie SisterAct--which marks the first time I've seen inmates dressed like nuns.

According to CNN: "We don't have dumbbells here. We don't have weights. We have dancing," prison overseer Byron Garcia said. And dance they do. Every able-bodied prisoner -- about 1,500 of them -- must dance. If they refuse, they lose certain privileges, mostly conjugal visits. Sometimes, the dancing occupies up to five hours a day. Garcia rejects claims he's abusing the prisoners' rights by forcing them to dance so many hours a day.

He says it gives them a renewed sense of worth and confidence, breaking them of their violent ways. He is convinced his prison is a model for prison authorities everywhere, an example of how to crack the plague of violent prison gangs.

'These men learned they can dance and still be men,' he says. 'It makes them work together, it makes them exercise and they learn self-esteem. They no longer feel like lowly criminals." A smile breaks his face. 'Now,' he says, 'they feel like celebrity criminals.'"

The prison boss says there has not been a violent incident in nearly a year and a half and inmates are no longer hostile (I would think they're just too worn out). But there is also talk of inhumane treatment and the prisoners being forced to dance too much.

I'm not sure if this is brilliant or cruel. I am sure that this Warden is seeking some level of fame, being he uploads all these videos to YouTube. Watching these segments it appears some prisoners enjoy it and the others...well they look like an army getting their groove on. And unless we were to conduct some of the same strategies in our own prisons and could get data on reduction of inner-jail crime and recidivism rates, we just can't know for sure how smart or cruel this strategy is.

But at more than 4.5 million downloads and a lot of press, it's sure been a hit. And placed this prison on the map. I wonder if the founders of YouTube ever imagined this use of their video platform. Or if Michael Jackson ever thought his moves would make it this far.

I'm guessing not ;-).

Below is the "Thriller" piece, it's a bit long at over 4 minutes (RSS and email subscribers go here). Also, here's a 6-minute segment by ABCNews in which you get to meet the lead transvestite and hear from reporters who find all this dancing quite disturbing.

Lose the "cool," keep the carpet (and take care of your brand).

NOTE: Agency name intentionally omitted from this post. I've much respect for the work of this company (though I can no longer say the same for their own marketing savvy).

In recent weeks, my colleague and I visited the headquarters of a highly reputable, long-standing, top-tier agency. I'll do my best to recreate the "experience" here.

We enter a multi-million dollar skyscraper located on an upscale New York City avenue next to several famed NYC landmarks. Folks, we're talking money. In fact, the amount of money to rent a walk-in closet in this building for a year would buy a nice vacation home + small ranch + ivy-league education for a large family.

Our first stop is to go through security. This serves two purposes: we need clearance and we need to be directed to which of the dozen elevators will take us to the agency. We leave the luxurious, art-filled atrium, ride up the elevator to our destination and step off the elevator into a cavernous, cold, under-construction office space.

The thing is, the agency's headquarters wasn't under construction.

It was intentional.

They had removed their carpet to reveal uneven, porous concrete floors. And they had ripped-up their ceilings to create a "raw", exposed look (but did so with vinyl or something which doesn't look authentic, it looks like an expensive way to look inexpensive). The lobby area of the agency was two-floors high and the only color was white.

There was this odd bar with no one at it (being it was a headquarters for a global agency, not a night club). And there was a huge planter.

Without plants.

In fact the only sign of life was the delightful receptionist who explained that they're trying to look like the edgy downtown agencies. My question to her..."Why?" (Btw, there is a problem when your receptionist admits you're "trying to look more like the cool downtown agencies.")

It didn't come off as cool, it came off cold. In August. And when I think of this  particular agency I think uptown upscale, not downtown dirt cheap.

I've been in many of the smaller shops they're working to emulate and I assure you they are not housed in skyscrapers nor do they have security stations (you just walk in off the street). They're lucky to boast one elevator (not twelve). And the reason that most have exposed pipes? It's not to look cool, it's that they make a realistic choice between redesigning their space and making payroll.

Most peculiar of all?

There was an itty-bitty waiting area for clients. Multi-million dollar clients, mind you, forced to squeeze onto a small couch and a chair (unless they want to wait at the unmanned bar?). If I were a multi-million dollar client looking for an Agency of Record I would seriously wonder...how can they figure out my brand...when they've failed so miserably at their own?

Here's the reality: this behemoth's strength is that they're a behemoth. They're mature with decades upon decades of experience and results. They've worked themselves ragged to climb to the top rung only to (intentionally!) downgrade their perception to a category that pits them against smaller shops (who serve smaller clients).

Again I ask...why?

Here's the biggest hypocrisy: this agency can't afford to take on the smaller clients of many of those edgier shops. It's a fallacy to think they would even entertain the same RFPs (in large part because of their high office overhead). Even odder is that they could have rented an edgier office space downtown more cheaply than gutting this one.

I'm always amazed when it's not the competition that hurts the brand but the very people in charge of protecting it. The lesson? When striving to look relevant, cool and edgy it's best not to wind up looking really foolish. Go back to branding 101 and focus on who you truly are...as that's what makes you truly great.

And for cryin' aloud, keep the carpet.

Toying with customers: promotions for puppets

Back story here and here.

I've no problem rewarding loyal customers with free goodies. In fact, I love giving stuff to customers--and Customer Advisory Boards--who give us their time, attention,feedback and loyalty. Pre-releasing products, or giving out product samples, to a targeted set of top customers/enthusiasts is a great reward...but only when we're truly rewarding them.

That's why I like the Sci-Fi Channel blogger relations program. It rewarded top sci-fi bloggers (i.e. customers)--who ALREADY blogged about their programs--by bringing them on-site to their studios for a week to meet Sci-Fi show writers and stars. After all, a show is nothing without its fans so that reward made a ton of sense...and offered further value to the bloggers' audiences because the bloggers could share their experiences--in their own words--with their readers. Yep, that program was truly relevant and rewarding (and long overdue).

Now, do we marketers hope that when we reward our customers we'll keep those customers? Absolutely. Do we hope they'll give us feedback so that we can optimize our products in the near and far terms? Absolutely. Do we hope those treasured customers...who treasure us...will spread the word to their colleagues, family and friends? Absolutely.

So should we provide them with "here's messaging points for you to use when you help spread the word about this product"? Absolutely NOT.

Why praytel? Because then we've gone from reward to to manipulation. That's not caring for customers and fostering brand evangelism. That's using your customers to be your talking-point puppets. WOM and evangelism flow naturally, these acts can't be forced.

And toying with them is no way to treat valued customers.

Net/net: One cannot create brand evangelists or manufacture WOM. Companies can only encourage evangelism by providing exemplary products, services, programs and experiences--and delivering on these fronts consistently.

So if you're gonna give then give. After all, you're already getting their time, attention, feedback and business. Alas, so many want shortcuts (and puppets).

Shout: This post was inspired by David Berkowitz who gave me an email heads-up on this program. Btw, David actually nudged me into blogging in the first place, not sure if you folks know that. Actually, I'm not sure if David knows that. So blame him if you don't like my blog so much (but if you like it feel free to tell me ;-).