When it comes to brand equity, nothing carries as much weight as the company name. Second to that is usually either the product name or a tagline. At my last job I was fortunate enough to participate in several tagline sessions and one naming session, where the top minds available would work together to come up a small set of words that were at once catchy, informative, memorable, and accurate.
But in coming up with these words, each group took on an inherent risk. Good or bad, the way these phrases were to be interpreted would be linked to much of the marketing success of the company involved, and through a very thoughtful process, we had never hit an unfortunate speed bump. But this isn’t always true in the marketing world, and sometimes what seems to be a brilliant name or tagline can end up having an unfortunate impact on a company’s bottom line.
I had originally intended to write about the attempted image overhaul of dishwashing products Electrasol and Jet-dry into a single product line called “Finish”. It struck me as strange that a company might attempt to abandon the equity established in the product names so quickly, and even though they are doing a pretty complete job of addressing the change-over, it still struck me that it would take a lot of time, energy and money to rebuild the strength of such recognizable names.
But then something even more unfortunate happened, and I realized it would make for a much better story.
In Denver, TV station KWGN has been named and renamed several times in the last dozen or so years. First it was known simply as “Channel 2”, but then it was bought out by Warner Brothers and became known as “WB2”. Eventually the WB backed out of the venture, and it eventually gave rise to “CW2”, which seemed fine enough, except for an ever-revolving door of logos. But within the last month, plans were revealed to launch a new name for the station. Commercials featuring the local broadcasters tried to build excitement for the name, constantly reminding (perhaps warning) viewers of a key phrase…
“The Deuce is coming”.
Yes, KWGN will now be known as "The Deuce". Now, while it’s fair that the word “Deuce” is simply another word for 2, the station probably should have investigated more heavily into the possible interpretations of the world. Some people may infer poker reference from it. Others may simply see the number two. But another popular slang usage of the word means poop, and for some people with a less mature sense of humor, that’s going to be the interpretation that sticks. Suddenly certain catch phrases that the station tries to lob into advertising takes on a very bad meaning. I’ve already seen spots promising that “The Deuce is coming”, “The Deuce is going to be hot”, and that “The Deuce is going to be huge”. Suddenly people are snickering at the simple request to “Watch The Deuce”, and while you would wish people would just grow up and get over it, there isn’t enough marketing dollars in the world to constantly evade the… Deuce storm… that will inevitably arise.
Let’s face it. Poop jokes may not be classy, but they do have a lasting quality in the minds of certain stakeholders.
The point being, renaming may seem an easy way to generate new interest and excitement for your brand, but it has to be done carefully, first considering what you could lose in the way of dropping the old name, and second with a very complete examination of what the new name can mean.
Even now as I am reconsidering my re-entry into the marketing work force in favor of continuing my education, I am forced to reevaluate the purpose and worth of this blog. While it’s something I enjoy doing, it simply may not be achieving the goals I have set forth for it, and if I am to step away from marketing as the primary drive behind this blog, I will have to consider its name and aim.
Fortunately “Jason’s Creative Strategy” is something that applies to all walks of my life, and therefore, no matter how the emphasis may evolve, the bolg may retain its name… for whatever value it may have now.
But more to come on that later.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
More acts of self-promotion
In classical thinking, it's good to have a product before you begin promotion. After all, what's the point of generating a buzz if you have nothing to offer the consumer directly? But in this day and age, the rule doesn't always hold true. In fact, for many products to see the light of day, companies have to see if it is capable of generating a buzz first.
As some people might know, I have spent the last few months not only monitoring trends in marketing and advertising, but also producing a book. It's a full length novel with a new take on vampires that I've been kicking around for years but only recently finished. As such, I'm now staring down the business end of the book, hoping to find the appropriate resources to get it to the next level... and one of those steps includes practicing my ability to talk about it.
As such, I getting infront of the microphone tomorrow for an interview on the Metro State radio show "Issue at hand". We'll be talking about my book "Forever Falling", and maybe a few other topics.
If you're curious to hear about it, you can stream the broadcast online at metradio.mscd.edu and we'll be on a 2pm MST.
Then feel free to drop a note here and let me know what you think.
Here's to shameless self-promotion, and being the buzz!
As some people might know, I have spent the last few months not only monitoring trends in marketing and advertising, but also producing a book. It's a full length novel with a new take on vampires that I've been kicking around for years but only recently finished. As such, I'm now staring down the business end of the book, hoping to find the appropriate resources to get it to the next level... and one of those steps includes practicing my ability to talk about it.
As such, I getting infront of the microphone tomorrow for an interview on the Metro State radio show "Issue at hand". We'll be talking about my book "Forever Falling", and maybe a few other topics.
If you're curious to hear about it, you can stream the broadcast online at metradio.mscd.edu and we'll be on a 2pm MST.
Then feel free to drop a note here and let me know what you think.
Here's to shameless self-promotion, and being the buzz!
Monday, March 2, 2009
The NFL, PR and some of my other favorite abbreviations
This week marked the opening for free agency in the NFL. As an avid fan, especially of the Denver Broncos, I have paid close attention as the signing period can have a major influence on the following season. For those who are less familiar, it’s an even bigger deal in Denver this year because long time coach Mike Shanahan was released and replaced by former New England Patriots offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels. Such a change in the leadership of an organization leaves many questions to be answered, and free agency is one of the earlier peeks into what a new coaching regime is going to bring to the table.
By now, some of you may be saying “Jason, this is a blog on marketing. Where are you going with this?”
Well, the answer is simple. The NFL, in the end, is a business. A franchise’s success depends largely on the revenue it can generate, and as such, the sport also faces many of the same problems businesses face. Yes, the players bloated salaries may not reflect anything of the common employee, but the basics are still the same. And if a team is not careful, it can fall victim to common business problems.
The Denver Broncos are now falling into such a problem. Last weekend, the press (which has become more and more intrusive into behind closed door dealings, as is true with any industry) got wind of story that involved the Broncos possibly trading away their quarterback, Jay Cutler. Cutler has been breaking records and was recognized for his accomplishments with an invitation to the NFL Probowl last year. Many Denverites saw him to be a continuing fixture in this team, and so the word that he may be traded came as a blow to many, including Cutler himself. The trade did not end up happening, and the level of the Broncos interest in actually going through with it remains a large matter of speculation, but the damage was done.
This is where the marketing issues came in.
The sensational idea of this story was enough to inspire the imagination of writers around the league. Rumors began to spiral out of control, and the fans (the NFL’s key stakeholders and primary target audience) were impacted. Denver fans in particular felt a large amount of anger, confusion, and disappointment in the new staff members, their confidence in the new management obviously shook. Add to that, Jay Cutler began to issue comments to the press that he still felt like the team wanted to do away with him and that he was hurt by such a ploy.
A visit out to the Denver Broncos site yielded no information from the team itself, and both Coach McDaniels and General Manager Brian Xanders only made passive statements to the press that they were not going to trade away Cutler. It is also worth mentioning that many season ticket purchases become finalized on the opening weekend of free agency. This means big business for the franchise, but having such controversy cannot possibly help the bottom line.
And here lies the key. The time of passive PR in any business is over. News agencies are equally content to publish speculation as they are facts, bloggers with wild opinions and unjustified credentials are now being quoted as “quality sources”, and still, these points of view can and will impact your bottom line if not addressed in a pro-active fashion. Everything in your organization can find its way to the public spotlight in a matter of moments. It’s the new way of the world, and from the White House’s stimulus package to small business ventures, we see that “transparency” is the key buzzword, but more than that, it is a form of public representation meant to curtail the tidal wave of speculation that can rule the airwaves now and damage a company’s credibility and profitability.
Someone once told me “Be willing to speak your own truth, or someone else will speak it for you”, and those words seem to ring true now. While I remain hopeful that my favorite team will work out its own problems, the fact is, a bad business decision of not handling the press directly will continue to haunt the team through the off-season, and perhaps beyond. Investing a little effort into a more open PR structure could have saved the team some money, and a lot of internal and external anguish.
Go Broncos. I hope.
By now, some of you may be saying “Jason, this is a blog on marketing. Where are you going with this?”
Well, the answer is simple. The NFL, in the end, is a business. A franchise’s success depends largely on the revenue it can generate, and as such, the sport also faces many of the same problems businesses face. Yes, the players bloated salaries may not reflect anything of the common employee, but the basics are still the same. And if a team is not careful, it can fall victim to common business problems.
The Denver Broncos are now falling into such a problem. Last weekend, the press (which has become more and more intrusive into behind closed door dealings, as is true with any industry) got wind of story that involved the Broncos possibly trading away their quarterback, Jay Cutler. Cutler has been breaking records and was recognized for his accomplishments with an invitation to the NFL Probowl last year. Many Denverites saw him to be a continuing fixture in this team, and so the word that he may be traded came as a blow to many, including Cutler himself. The trade did not end up happening, and the level of the Broncos interest in actually going through with it remains a large matter of speculation, but the damage was done.
This is where the marketing issues came in.
The sensational idea of this story was enough to inspire the imagination of writers around the league. Rumors began to spiral out of control, and the fans (the NFL’s key stakeholders and primary target audience) were impacted. Denver fans in particular felt a large amount of anger, confusion, and disappointment in the new staff members, their confidence in the new management obviously shook. Add to that, Jay Cutler began to issue comments to the press that he still felt like the team wanted to do away with him and that he was hurt by such a ploy.
A visit out to the Denver Broncos site yielded no information from the team itself, and both Coach McDaniels and General Manager Brian Xanders only made passive statements to the press that they were not going to trade away Cutler. It is also worth mentioning that many season ticket purchases become finalized on the opening weekend of free agency. This means big business for the franchise, but having such controversy cannot possibly help the bottom line.
And here lies the key. The time of passive PR in any business is over. News agencies are equally content to publish speculation as they are facts, bloggers with wild opinions and unjustified credentials are now being quoted as “quality sources”, and still, these points of view can and will impact your bottom line if not addressed in a pro-active fashion. Everything in your organization can find its way to the public spotlight in a matter of moments. It’s the new way of the world, and from the White House’s stimulus package to small business ventures, we see that “transparency” is the key buzzword, but more than that, it is a form of public representation meant to curtail the tidal wave of speculation that can rule the airwaves now and damage a company’s credibility and profitability.
Someone once told me “Be willing to speak your own truth, or someone else will speak it for you”, and those words seem to ring true now. While I remain hopeful that my favorite team will work out its own problems, the fact is, a bad business decision of not handling the press directly will continue to haunt the team through the off-season, and perhaps beyond. Investing a little effort into a more open PR structure could have saved the team some money, and a lot of internal and external anguish.
Go Broncos. I hope.
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