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Free Advice for the Occupy Wall St. Movement

2011-10-13T19:18:00.000-05:00

In early August I wrote about how the urgent settling of the debt crisis was anything but a solution and lamented about the lack of concern and action evident at the time on the part of America's youth.

I should have known if I waited a month or two America's youth would not disappoint me. In fact, the American people of all stripes (except most of the wealthy) are now rooting for, and in some cases, participating in Occupy Wall St. activity around the nation. If you can't guess, while I do not support all of the points of view of Occupy Wall St., I vigorously applaud the uprising.

The most common criticism I hear about Occupy Wall St comes from the media and political types who suggest that the movement is without a point. Republican candidates for office and the bozos on FOX News contend that the movement is made up largely of poor people, those who are underemployed as a result of their own failings, and idealistic, and perhaps radical-minded students. Later, I will offer a summary of what I think the point is. But first, some background.

Back in December of 1991, Sandy, my wife, and I sat and watched the news reports about the collapse of the Soviet Union. Sandy isn't a particularly interested party when it comes to politics or world affairs because her cynicism runs deep and wide. She asked me what I thought the news meant. I replied, "We're next."

It's taken a couple of decades, but I believe we have seen the steady decline of the American form of capitalism in the past few years. Admittedly, what we had looked good when compared with other forms like the Soviet system and other forms of Communism and Socialism. It was made to look more appealing through our political leaders and the Media who painted the Soviets and others as enemies bent on our distruction. America's leaders have always understood our passion for wearing the white hat, and how easily we will get behind a cause if we think the other guy is evil.

America has always needed an Evil Empire or foe to frame itself and keep the populace distracted. Going back to the British, this nation has always targeted a threat. Early settlers had Native Americans. There was the Soviet Empire, the Axis of Evil, Al Qaeda, and all sorts of enemies. Make no mistake, many of them did/do wish harm to us as a people, and have done their best to inflict pain, but more importantly, if one did not exist at the time, our leaders would invent someone to fear, and loathe to buttress our system and advance their capitalistic ambitions.

If we were serious about rooting out the origins Al Qaeda, why did we not go after Saudi Arabia, the home of nearly all the 911 hijackers in either diplomatic, fiscal or military terms? Simply put - oil. If we wanted to bring an end to organized terror why did we not impose penalties on Pakistan like cutting off its billions of dollars of aid for harboring bin Laden within its military community? To this day, Al Qaeda moves freely across Pakistan boarders.

Why did we invade Iraq? Two reason: to control the oil fields and to generate obscene profits for the war machine companies with financial links to our political leaders. Why did we invade Afghanistan? It wasn't to root out Al Qaeda or the Taliban. That part of the world is largely unihabitable except for a relatively small number of goat herders and nomads. The value is in the mountains. Buried there is gold, silver and literally trillions of dollars worth of titanium, exceeding any other spot in the world. Control the mountains, and you control the world's wealth and capitalistic pursuits for generations to come.

Over and over again the critics of Occupy Wall St. contend it is nothing more than the rants of jealous people who want a handout. They support this view by insisting the movement is without a central or unifying purpose or proposed actions.

As a brand strategist, I offer here my professional assistance to the leaders of Occupy Wall St. - free of charge.

While there are many issues being represented by lots of different people camped out in the parks, on the streets and marching in front of the homes of America's wealthiest citizens, I believe there are three central themes under which all Occupy Wall St. issues fit:

1. Capitalism, which started out as the ability for anyone to maintain a business and derive a profit after recovering your costs has morphed into "Seek limitless profit, without regard for the value you deliver, the impact you create on the lives of others, or the general harm (environmental, medical, social, etc.) done." The obscene salaries, exorbitant profits and manipulation of unbalanced tax laws seen on Wall St. today cannot be justified simply by saying, "If some one is willing to pay it . . ." The folks that tell you being anti-capitalism is socialism (or worse) are about to find themselves on the wrong side of the greed scale and are merely seeking to defend the perverted form capitalism has taken. Here's an analogy for you: How much fun is to watch a coach of a football team runs up a score of say, 58-0 simply because he can? Excess is not sucess. However, I contend reasonable profit still has a place.

2. Our political system has been seized by special interest groups and lobbyists. Politicians are owned lock, stock and barrel by these manipulators on behalf of business and organizational interests. Healthcare, education, employment, social security, public safety, transportation and a host of other issues are all way too expensive or unattainable to many because of these people who live in the shadows of government control the system to the benefit of their special interests. We must completely dismantle the influence of these people who make a living advancing the causes of their clients. This is will be a far harder fight than any the people of this country have ever undertaken.

3. The Founding Fathers never intended that public office should be a lifelong career. Today, people running for office not only seek to stay in office for the lucrative salaries, benefits and life of privilege not afforded average Americans, but also to capitalize on their positions with sweetheart side benefits and perks, secret investments and cushy deals even after they leave office. The quickest way to get extremely wealthy in this country is to play professional sports or get elected to public office. It's time our system is overhauled with term limits for every office, stricter limits on what a public servant can do after service, and most importantly, revised standards that see to it that the benefits of public office do not exceed that of average Americans. If we have to live within the contraints of modest interest on our investments, Social Security, private healthcare, and modest retirement packages, so to should our elected officials - ALL OF THEM. Public service is a privilege not an anointment or heirloom to be handed to family members. To all those people who say if you make it less attractive to serve, good people won't run, I say, let's find out. At present, most office holders are white men over the age of 35. That means we are represented by a segment that makes up about 6% of the population.

There you have it, Occupy Wall St. - three good focal points:
1. The distortion of profit at the expense of others;
2. The control of our entire way of life by self-serving, third-party influences;
3. The excesses of public office holders.

Here's an added tip: The powers that be are counting on, and the American public is expecting that cold weather will bring an end to what to this point has been seen at best as somewhat annoying behavior toward the richest. I urge you to take a lesson from the Viet Cong and other military victors. Begin planning your spring offensive right now while your organizational structure is at its strongest, your supporters are most enthused, your lead time to marshall resources is greatest and your opposition is most uncertain of what you are capable of doing next.

You're welcome.

Now That the Debt "Crisis" Has Passed and America's Youth Yawn On

2011-08-02T17:51:00.000-05:00

Two items related to this budget debacle:
1. Other than averting default, this act in Washington accomplished very little. A national balanced budget is the worst idea to come out of this politcal charade they called a crisis. You and I should live within our household means, but a government is not a household. To move the economy the government needs the ability to borrow. Had there been a balanced budget act during WWII we would have lost the war.

Yes, spending has to come down so we can apply cash to debt and get it more in line, but not wiped away. This is Keynesianism 101.

2. Where is the American youth voice on matters of national importance such as this, the wars we are in, and the environment? No one takes to the streets anymore and outrage is outdated. America's youth has been medicated, mollified and texted into submissiveness.

Change on an order of magnitude unseen since the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War is needed in this country and it won't come until our young people claim the cause. My generation and the one before me are too locked into our ways to put forth the courage or the creativity needed but there are individuals among all generations who will take up the cause when young people rally. Get informed, get mad, then make it right.

Of Casey Anthony, One Juror and Another Mom

2011-07-07T19:26:00.001-05:00

Step aside Lady Justice, there's a new babe (and I do mean babe) in town and the scales are clearly tilting toward the one of "hot bod" contest fame. Lady, you may be blind, but the rest of got a month's view of a whole new take on the pursuit of liberty.
If there's a person reading this that does not know the details of the Casey Anthony trial then stop reading. I have no interest in recounting the trial, the massive misdirection attempted by both sides, and successful only by the defense, or the brutality done to the child, Caylee Anthony, which led up to it.

Let's get right to the heart of the matter. Are you trying to tell me there wasn't a SINGLE person on that jury that believed she killed her own child, most likely in a torturous manner, and then threw the body in a festering swamp to be consumed into nature? Seriously? I heard an alternate juror suggest that evidence wasn't presented to convict, but that doesn't mean they considered Casey Anthony innocent. Nice copout. If just ONE of them had held out there would have been a hung jury and the prosecution would get a second bite at the apple. Instead, society now has another psychopath back on the streets and running around the bars during ladies night. Really? Not one of you figured out that this woman does not belong in society and by simply sticking to common sense we could keep her locked up until the State figured out how to convict her on the appropriate charges?

Instead, juries like this one go into deliberations to talk each other into something. It becomes an exercise in focus group strongman personalities. That in a nutshell is the fundamental problem (besides scumbag lawyers - I know that's redundant) plaguing our legal system. All it took was one person to do the right thing.

Until the court case was being broadcast live on TV, I had little knowledge of it, and had not formed an opinion about guilt or suspects. At times throughout the trial I watched live TV coverage and in some cases, cable news coverage of the days' events in late night reports. To spare the suspense, let me go on record as saying I firmly believe Casey Anthony is guilty of murder. Remember, what the twit alternate told us, being acquitted is not the same as being found innocent.

Perhap, like me, at times, you viewed the trial in the "how does this relate to me" mode. Throughout the proceedings I couldn't help but think of another young mother I met a few months ago. At the ripe old age of 21 she is the single mother of a bouncy two year old. We met through my daughter over the Christmas Holiday and I could not help but be impressed by this young woman we'll call Susan.

Susan had a child with her longtime boyfriend who then went overseas to study. Susan was left to finish her college education, work part time, and care for her son with the substantial help of her family. She loaded up on credits during her pregnancy and beyond so she could graduate early and get on with providing for and raising her son. The father of the boy has since returned to the States but he is more interested in pursuing his business career and playing at part time daddy than being a real man and claiming his responsibilities to his child and the mother. Through it all, Susan has remained upbeat, positive, nonjudgmental, and completely focused on her responsibilities and the love of her life - her little boy. When I met Susan, I instantly formed a deep admiration toward her for the commitment she shows to her child and her intent to better herself to provide for both of their futures. She has a spirit, sense of responsibility and a work ethic you won't find in many people in their early 20's. That brings us back to deadbeat, high school dropout, bimbo and waste of flesh that is Casey Anthony.

It shocks me to see the majority of American people dismayed about the outcome of the verdict. Our legal system was never intended to arrive at truth and justice. It is designed to pursue proof. Without proof one cannot be convicted. Casey Anthony will forever be acquitted of the murder of Caylee Anthony. End of case.

Our legal system has as much to do with pursuit of justice as our health and medical systems have to do with delivering care to everyone who suffers from any affliction, condition, disease, or tummy ache. Our health system is designed to provide services to those who can afford to pay and those who pose the greatest risk to the general population, be it through contagion, financial cost, social or civic burden. It is not meant to address everyone's health related needs. Similarly, our medical system is designed to provide products and services to those who can afford it at various levels. Pharmaceutical companies are not interested in curing disease, only in selling drugs to manage it. Doctors do not practice medicine as a hobby. Those who can pay more, get more. Those who can't, get less or do without. There is medical school, summer homes, and the latest model Mercedes Benz to pay off, not to mention first wives.

I find those who lament the lack of justice for Caylee Anthony in the trial to be pathetic. The only justice that child could get was never to have been born to that mother. Nothing spared her the suffering or can bring her back. Short of those things, the concept of justice is perverted.

There you have it. A child's life is snuffed out. Oops, so sorry. Casey Anthony goes on to live a life of fame and infamy, and Susan and her little boy live quiet, honorable but publicly unacknowledged lives of dignity. And life goes on while CNN and Nancy Grace seek the next headline.

A Long Time Away

2011-05-28T12:58:00.000-05:00

I haven't blogged in a while. Not motivated. Nothing of interest to say. No desire to speak to a topic. That isn't to say I haven't been busy or that life hasn't been interesting. So, I've decided to add a few snippets on a variety of topics that crossed my mind but didn't warrant going through signing in and drafting a full post on their own merit.

ON BEINGING AN ENTREPRENEUR
It seems everyone is claiming to be an entrepreneur or pursuing their "entrepreneurial spirit" these days. Being "between opportunities" or motivated by one's dissatisfaction with their employment situation is not the same as being an entrepreneur. To me, the most disturbing use of the word is when someone uses it simply to describe their self-employment. Owning one’s own business is not the same as being an entrepreneur. Businesses can be inherited, purchased, and started from scratch, but being an entrepreneur is about launching a business, product or service to solve problems other people have not been able to, with every intention of doing it again to solve another problem, maybe even before the first concern is fully up and running. Because you've owned the local Dairy Queen for the past five years after an unfulfilling career as an account, or your father finally named you president of the family roofing business does not qualify.

ON WRITING A BUSINESS BOOK
A client of mine, who is both an entrepreneur and a gifted writer, is urging me to write a book on brand strategy. He's even offered to coauthor the book with me since through his business he has acquired some degree of knowledge on the subject. He contends I am the best person in the world at explaining what branding really is, how it differs from marketing and how it relates to business planning. I take this as a supreme compliment because he has access to some of the most advanced senior management, brand management, and marketing minds on the planet.

The problem is, I just don't feel motivated to educate anyone (other than paying clients) or share my thinking beyond my current circles of influence (including this blog). His argument that I could be recognized as a leading authority in the world, and expand my business tenfold again are not compelling to me. For the record, In's & Out's, my business, was never intended to be a conventional business. It's a way to make a personal living. Unlike most conventional businesses, I have no desire to have employees, multiple offices flung around the globe, or lots of people replicating my work so that I can take a cut of the action or create a legacy that my children can inherit. It is enough for me to practice my craft. As I tried to explain it, I liken it to a piano player who gets joy out of banging the keys in the saloons of his own choosing every night. Recording and selling music, going on concert tours, giving lessons to students and posting recitals on YouTube might widen the audience and even generate greater revenue, but it doesn't satisfy the person who just loves to play the piano in a live setting. I don't require a wider audience, and the current level of rewards and recognition meet my needs.

I can one day die a contented man who didn't feel the need to leave an indelible business mark like some latter day Leo Burnett, David Ogilvy, Stephen Covey or Ray Kroc.

ON SOCCER
How does one explain waking up one morning and realizing a lifelong passion is no more? After taking a self-imposed, extended break from soccer, I went through some sort of detox. It's true. It happened to me a few months ago when it dawned on me that if I never attended another soccer game, or coached again, it was OK with me. I haven't missed the sport and I'm now in the process of giving away all the equipment that has cluttered my garage and basement family room and storage area for all these years. At the same time, this awakening has provided a sense of uncluttering in my life as well. The sport that has defined me in so many ways for so long is no longer relevant or meaningful to me, and now, like the vast majority of Americans, I am free to ignore it.

ON FATHER PFLAGER
For those of you who follow this blog, you know I am no fan of Father Pflager, the Catholic priest who has never seen a TV camera, microphone or mirror he can pass. Seems he upset Cardinal George in Chicago by not agreeing to leave his parish post of 30 years in a reassignment that would have him running the local high school. As is his practice, he ran to the media to plead his case and wound up getting himself suspended for expressing something akin to “If the Catholic Church can't support his business model any longer, he'll find another parent company.” I understand he was considering a merger with his close friend, Louis Farrakhan at the Nation of Islam, or possibly GE, or Starbucks. After all, it's all about distribution and media attention to Pflager. The Cardinal, who reminds me very much of Homer's boss on The Simpsons, buckled and reinstated Pflager temporarily. The lesson: Pflager's true colors emerged. He believes the parish he represents is his little cottage industry and his alone. The Cardinal, on the other hand demonstrated once again that the Catholic Church is all about spinning its wheels in meaningless shows of order and strength while sweeping stuff under the rug.

ON WRITING PITHY, BRIEF BLOG ENTRIES WHICH ARE MORE LIKELY TO GAIN AND HOLD A READER'S INTEREST
Can't do it.

Every Room You Enter

2011-03-11T11:41:00.002-06:00

A dear friend, former colleague and former Marine fighter pilot sent me a copy of the eulogy given at Colonel Don Conroy's funeral by his son Pat. Pat is also the author of The Great Santini which was later made into a movie about his father's career as the most famous Marine that ever lived. To read the full eulogy, go to http://www.daveenglish.com/

The eulogy is a touching and fitting piece about a giant among men, written as only a son could write it. Following the funeral, Pat wrote a thank you to many people who sent their condolences. In that note was a simple line that struck me. " . . . and there was never a room he entered that he left without making his mark."

That is the exact sentiment with which I have tried to live my life - not in an egotistical way, but rather in a contributing, purposeful way. If I'm going to be any where, I choose to be truly present and to make that presence felt.

Reading that line, said about a man who lived as did Col. Conroy, The Great Santini, reminds me I have to strive each day apply myself even more.

How is your presence felt each time you enter a room?

It's Time Notre Dame University ask WWJD?

2010-12-28T15:58:00.003-06:00

I don't recall when I first recognized I loved all things Notre Dame University, but it was while in elementary school, for sure. The greatest benefit in moving to Chesterton, IN when my wife decided we were leaving Aurora, IL, where I was perfectly content, was the knowledge that it was about forty minutes from Notre Dame following the Indiana toll road.

Repeated hints, trips to the campus, mounds of ND apparel and outright begging weren't enough to entice either of my children to consider attending the one place I longed to be a part of for most of my life.

Despite numerous visits to the South Bend campus for a wide variety of sporting events and religious services, I had never been to an ND football game until this season when my son and I watched the Fighting Irish take on Stanford. Having attended all manner of professional sports, including World Cup soccer, and Olympics, I rate that game as one of the three most memorable and exciting sporting events of my life; sharing it with my son made it priceless. Until I experienced it firsthand, there was no way for me to comprehend how special ND football is.

That's why it pains me to say I don't expect to attend another until the University faces it moral obligations and comes clean about two incidents where students were put in harm's way while the school lawyered-up, kept tight-lipped and tried to sweep the incidents under the rug. As the parent of a college student, I would not feel comfortable sending my child to Notre Dame.

In October, Declan Sullivan, a student videographer for the football team was killed when he fell from a tower during the taping of football practice. In November, Lizzy Seeberg, a student at St. Mary's, committed suicide after filing a sexual assault complaint against a member of the ND football team. Parents don't send their child off to college expecting them to die there.

In the case of Sullivan, there is no question he had no business being on a sixty-foot tower during the wind storm that was present that day. Jack Swarbrick, the Athletic Director of ND claimed it was a normal practice day and the weather was not particularly concerning. He blames the incident on a fluke gust. That is just so wrong that it borders on evil. Sullivan was texting about his fear of the weather conditions before being on the tower and shortly before he fell to his death.

When I read accounts of his texts in the local papers all I could imagine was my son in that same position and how awful it had to be to climb that tower in fear, knowing that if you protested or refused you'd be branded for shirking your duties to the team. The pressure would be unbearable for many adults, let alone a college student, in that situation.

Brian Kelly, the head football coach left practice in the hands of the assistant coaches long enough to wander over to where the tower lay fallen, and the ambulance was, to check on the condition of Sullivan while the EMTs were attending to the young man. He quickly determined there was nothing he could do, and went back to practice. I find that fact bordering on heartless. I interpret his actions as: "Yep, boys, a lad in the service of our team fell to his death a few yards away, but don't let that interfere with your preparations for the big game on Saturday. We've got a game to win, a tradition to uphold and my career to protect." I have lost all respect for Coach Kelly.

Before the Sullivan death had left the media's attention the story of Lizzy Seeberg's death and ordeal was in the news. Was she sexually assaulted? That will never be determined. In fairness to the football player she accused of groping her, we must accept that his version of what happened suggests it was consensual activity. Although he has never been named publicly, and neither the team nor the University took any action against him, he has engaged a high profile attorney who now claims his client is considering suing based on the accusations. So it appears to me neither the University or his parents have done a very good job of teaching him responsibility. If the accuser's death ruled out any possible legal action against him, why wouldn't it rule out any countersuit on his part? She is not alive to defend herself. Why does he feel a need to assume the role of victim? He, his parents and the attorney have to know he will never truly clear his name in this incident. My guess is the University will offer him a quiet, but significant cash settlement to drop his case. Sadly, based on all accounts to date, they haven't offered either the Sullivan or Seeberg families any kind of closure.

I can't embrace the University again until the day I hear that both families are fully satisfied with the Notre Dame response, and Notre Dame accepts responsibility for the poor handling of both incidents and enacts changes to their policies that ensure students safety is more than lip service on their campus. While I've always known that ND is big business, I also felt it was a Catholic epicenter in this nation. As such, it has a duty to conduct itself in a manner that puts the tenets of its faith ahead of its desire to protect its brand reputation. As Father Theodore Hesburgh, the former president of Notre Dame, was fond of saying, " . . . you do it because it's the right thing." It's a simple matter of asking what would Jesus do?

A Tribute to Little Grandpa

2010-11-05T12:21:00.003-05:00

It wasn't done intentionally, and I am not fixated on the subject of death, but this the second posting in a row that deals with the subject.

Yesterday, John Robert (Bob) Smith passed away in Florida. Some people knew him as Robert, some as John, but most called him Bob. Around our house, he was known as Little Grandpa, Sandy's father, and my father-in-law.

I'm not sure exactly when we started calling him Little Grandpa, but I clearly remember it was as a result of our children, who at a very young age used that term when they were trying to distinguish between their two grandpas in a conversation. My dad, because he was taller and heavier was called Big Grandpa. The terms just stuck.

Sandy and the kids just got back from a long weekend to visit Bob (as I called him) because there was concern expressed among Sandy's sisters about his declining health. We hadn't seen him in a couple of years, since he moved from Illinois to Florida, and we wanted the kids to see him again in as close to the way they prefer to remember him, as possible. Three days after their return, he was gone.

Although we were warned that he suffered from dementia, only had moments of lucid behavior and also was frail physically, the kids and Sandy enjoyed their time with him. He joked, reminisced, watched old family movies, and seemed to be in decent health. In many ways, it was like the old times with him. True, he had to ask who Sandy was when he first saw her, but he clearly recognized the kids, and called them each by name as they first approached him. He even inquired a few times about me and my work. It appears Bob was an example of a condition about which I have often heard - a person who has suffered an extended illness sometimes appears to have a nearly complete recovery just days and hours before they pass.

Bob moved to Florida at the request of his ex-wife, my mother-in-law. She offered to care for him when it was clear a few years ago that his health was failing and he could no longer live on his own. We wanted him near us, but Sandy did not feel it her place to argue with her mom over his care. Aronka daily picked Bob up at the nursing home where he spent his nights and those times when his health took more severe turns for the worst. Most days she would take Bob to her home and tend to his needs, feed him and generally help him maintain as close to normal a lifestyle as he could muster. We do not have a close relationship with Sandy's mother for reasons that separate lots of mothers and daughters, but we admire, and are eternally grateful for what she did in caring for Bob.

Before his health began to decline, which happened suddenly, Bob spent years providing daycare for our two children. This was especially significant when you factor in that Sandy trusted NO ONE with our children. Bob was the sole exception. Although both children adored and were adored by Little Grandpa, Tate especially considered him to be a third parent. Little Grandpa never tired of getting down on the floor with the kids to participate in any activity that amused them or occupied their time. The kids were always the first to tire of an activity and move on to something else. While I tried to steer my kids activities so as not to get too bored myself, he always let them take the lead and never hesitated to follow - sometimes it was coloring, or piling blocks to knock down, and sometimes it was merely shredding paper. He participated as enthralled as they were. I'd never witnessed an adult before who was so comfortable being childlike. I know I didn't have the patience to be that way myself.

The rituals Bob shared with the kids were too numerous to list. Everyday, as Tate arrived home from preschool and grammar school, Little Grandpa would be hiding behind the bushes at the side of the garage with just a rifle barrel visible. That was Tate's signal to run to the backyard, dump his backpack and pick from the arsenal of weapons Little Grandpa would stash under the row of arborvitaes. Then, fairly armed, they would engage in a spirited round of pretend battles.

Most days, Bob would take the kids down to the neighborhood park only a couple of blocks from our house. It was there that he taught Tate to love fishing, and where they spent countless hours talking or just sitting silently hooking their share of catch and release fish from the stocked pond.

As president of the homeowners association it wasn't unusual for the private security firm or the police to call me at my place of business when a serious incident occurred in our neighborhood of over 1000 homes. I just wasn't prepared when they called to tell me my father-in-law, who was in his late sixties and my six year-old were being detained for climbing a massive earth mound and throwing rocks at the construction site at the end of the block. Bob yelled "Run!" and started to take off himself when he first saw the authorities approaching, but Tate didn't get it, so Bob decided to stand and face the music with his co-conspiritor.

Ah, the stories; I could go on forever.

Instead, we will have to be content with the memories this man left us. The wisdom and calm he taught us, the level of commitment he demostrated to our family, the generosity and kindness of soul he shared, and the lifelong impact he made on us. Truly, he had a greater hand in molding our children than anyone other than Sandy and myself. He may have been known as Little Grandpa but he proved to be the biggest man I knew and he will be missed.

When I'm Dead and Cold, Just Chill

2010-10-18T16:19:00.001-05:00

This past weekend I attended the funeral of an old friend and colleague.

David Ray Pierce was a gifted Creative Director/graphic designer for over thirty years. I never knew him to lose his temper, raise his voice, or lose his composure. No matter how complex the challenge, how tight the deadline or bizarre the behavior of the client, once we reviewed the strategic platform he would summarize the assignment and address me using his pet expression saying, "We'll get back to you, boss man."

Of the hundreds of talented creative directors, graphic designers and art directors with whom I've worked, I never enjoyed working with anyone more than "Piercey," as we called him.

When my daughter checked in from college last night and asked how the services went, I couldn't help but remind her of my own final wishes. If I have my way there will be no memorial service, Mass, eulogy, "celebration of life," obituary, funeral or burial. In other words, when it's my time, I want the quickest, least expensive and tidiest disposition possible. I've suggested to my family there is a place in the next town over that does cremations. No need for an urn. Just have them put me in the oversized Baggie Zip-lock pouch they supply.

As far as I am concerned, my wife and kids can dump my ashes on the front lawn. Or, if they feel the need for something more symbolic, the next time they are in my hometown of Rochester, NY they can toss my remains off the Memorial Bridge which spans the Genesee River.

At the immortal age of sixteen I had summer employment along the steep banks of the Genesee at a Catholic cemetery. Within minutes of a graveside funeral service, a crew of laborers to which I belonged would descend on the grave and remove all the flowers so the guys responsible for burying the body could get to work. We’d pitchfork the arrangements into the back of a dump truck and haul the load to the edge of the cemetery property where a bulldozer would push it down a mountainous embankment to form a makeshift landfill. Additionally, Genesee Beer, now known simply as Jenny, was made within eyesight of the bridge. It was long thought the beer company used water from the river to make its beer. It pleases me to think my ashes might both rest on the landfill I helped to create in my youth, and also find their way into one of America’s iconic brews. Now that is double symbolism!

Death has become big business and it disturbs me that even in death, the “man” wants to get into my pockets. From the florist, which the story above illustrates is a colossal waste of money, to the plot, urn, casket, mortician, caterer, etc.; it’s all about finding ways to rake in the cash.

My immediate family is encouraged to do whatever the minimum is that they need to find some closure or acceptance for themselves. Beyond that, I say DO NOTHING! I consider the act of paying respects to someone with whom you have not kept in recent contact, or seen within the last six months to be insincere at least, and hypocritical at best. The people that matter to me I talk to, see, or email regularly. As close as we might have once considered ourselves, I do not consider you a current friend unless we've kept in touch as described. In the event you are ever invited to a memorial service of any kind for me, you are now officially off the hook - please do not attend. If you ever have a need to mourn my passing or reflect on our relationship after I’ve gone, feel free to stop by the Memorial Bridge and have an icy cold Jenny.

Teaching This Old Dog New Tricks

2010-09-27T15:33:00.000-05:00

Like most everyone else in this economy, I've found I have to broaden my horizons and constantly seek new ways to deliver value to my customers. Sometime last year, when a client was considering launching a new marketing initiative and asked my advice, I asked what evidence they had that suggested the tactic was appropriate or even necessary. The client had done an excellent job of researching the market potential, customer need, design, and introduction of a new product it launched earlier this year. Now, the client was considering investing a sizable sum of money in marketing activity to follow up the launch but hadn't asked customers some critical questions to inform what comes next.

The client asked me to advise them on strategy for the marketing. My first question was, “Why are you doing this?” It came down to the client’s gut sense that a major marketing push was needed to move beyond the launch effort.

I encouraged the client to consider asking their customers, prospects and those people who chose to go with another competitor how they felt about the company’s new product, sales process and marketplace offerings. To be clear, I wasn’t proposing a customer satisfaction survey. Instead, I advised my customer contact people on their customer and prospect lists and seek their consent to be interviewed by me. Working with the client I designed a list of eight questions meant to start a conversation of about fifteen minutes.

I didn't consider it necessary to get answers to each of the questions and let the respondent take the discussion in any direction that suited them. I was attempting to gain insight into the client’s marketplace position.

The results were spectacular. We learned there were a few previously undiscovered, highly significant, common threads of importance to all customers. In the end, we came away with not only a narrowly focused positioning for marketing materials, but a number of company and sales behaviors that could affect likely purchase decisions.

I’ve never considered myself a researcher before. And I certainly don’t consider myself a reporter, but as a journalist friend of mine said, “Getting to the real story takes experience, polished listening skills, and the ability to deviate from your story outline to find real meaning.” Through my years of professional experience I’ve developed those skills.

Shortly after this first client experience, another client asked me to weigh in on their intention to create materials for their distributors and dealer network. Again, I asked, “Why?” The answer was the same. The VP of Sales had a “gut” feeling that something was needed and settled on a Power Point presentation to be delivered on a thumb drive. Fearing that this could be a complete waste of effort, which might never be used in front of a client, I asked for permission to talk to distributor reps and dealers. In the end, we determined the piece would not get used, but we also gained some invaluable insight as to what the company was doing well and what the sales force needed to reach more customers. As a result, the customer came back and asked me to do a similar set of interviews among its end-user customers. This information led to a reorganization of the customer service area, retraining of customer service reps, the addition of a national sales manager role to serve an entirely new, and vast market segment, and a new
approach to the VP of Sales entire sales process.

This past summer I conducted eight such surveys for various clients and found them to be valuable new tools. As I stated earlier, these aren’t customer satisfaction surveys. Instead, I am probing for information that will reveal customer motives, marketplace positioning, and the level of understanding customers have regarding my customers’ offerings. Since the responses are used in aggregate, without individual attribution, and the client does not have access to my raw data or forms, the level of candor is very high. The process uncovers some real gems – some not so flattering comments, and some successful elements which are real revelations to clients. I deliver both the good and bad news. What clients value most is learning things they didn’t previously know about their customers and the perceptions of their business. They also appreciate that they can proceed with a list of action steps in which they can have real confidence.

Along the way I’ve uncovered a little “cottage” service that generates new revenue sources, complements my core offerings and taught me old dogs can learn new tricks.

What's it Worth to Have Blago's Head on a Plate?

2010-08-18T17:24:00.002-05:00

The verdict is in. The jury agreed on only one of 24 counts against former IL governor Rod Blagojevich. The jury just couldn't wade through all the information the government presented and draw a conclusion on the more serious counts. Blago faces up to five years on what amounts to the same charge of lying to the FBI, that sent Martha Stewart to jail.

The Adams father and son clowns that Blago has as lawyers proudly proclaimed they presented no defense during the trial, but looked ridculous in the post trial media interviews as the ranted, raved and taunted the federal prosecutor to build public sentiment against a retrial on the hung-jury counts. They characterized the prosecutor as "a nut" and suggested he is a master at getting indictments against innocent people.

Did I miss something? Hey Bozos - your client lost! He's now a convicted felon! He is almost certainly going to prison. He will lose his law license. He still has to deal with the retrial where it's likely he faces a retooled prosecution, more focused on certain counts, and almost as certainly, he is headed for more convictions and years added to his sentence unless the government offers him a plea deal.

The Adams' and Blago each took a turn before the cameras and microphones to express their indignation and blast the case that was brought by the government. They pointed out that while children are being shot dead on a daily basis in the streets of Chicago, police officers are being killed on almost a weekly basis, the money would be better spent on law enforcement rather than what they claim is the vindictive pursuit of a former governor by an overzealous goverment attorney.

Now that Blago's campaign war chest is depleted and the cost of his defense will be paid by tax payers, his team made the case that those tens of millions of dollars are a burden the public shouldn't have to bear.
Let me put it in simple terms: There should be no limit to what the people of Illinois, and other citizens of this country are willing to pay to regain the integrity of public office and insist that the holders of those offices, whether elected or appointed, understand there is no rock under which they can hide and expect to profit by pocketing the people's money. If my math is correct three of past five governors of the state of Illinois will have done prison time when Blago faces the music. Dan Walker and George Ryan both got caught with their hand in someone else's cookie jar.

Some people speculate that the jury failed to reach a verdict on the remaining counts because the crass and self serving manner in which Blago performed on the taped conversations is what many people see as the way the game of public office is played. Blago was merely doing standard horse trading as they see it. Even more reason to go after him again.

The good new is the federal prosecutor in this case seems single-minded in his commitment to see Blago face time for every criminal act for which he has been charged. As many a criminal can attest, the government seldom gives up in cases like this. I for one say, "Let the retrial begin!" Moreover, public servants everywhere who abuse their office should recognize their time is coming.

WikiLeaks Crosses the Line and Sacrifices Lives for Profit

2010-08-13T13:15:00.000-05:00

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would one day be siding with Sarah Palin on an issue, given our polar opposite views of many matters of the environment and politics. But at least this once we seem to agree on this issue of military and national security.

A couple of weeks ago, WikiLeaks began publishing about 76,000 secret files regarding covert operations related to the war in Afghanistan that came into its possession. Management at WikiLeaks refuses to name its source, but the US government has detained an intelligence analyst named Bradley Manning who it suspects as the source. I have deliberately chosen not to visit WikiLeaks web site and check out the documents so as to avoid contributing even slightly to the profit they hope to gain from their acts of treason. Other mainstream media has reported that there is indeed a great deal of sensitive information that has been released.

The founder and editor of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, announced during a speech to a London group that he will authorize the release of another 15,000 documents. Like the first batch, these files contain sensitive information including the names of individuals working in clandestine operations and details of plans and events related to the war. Where WikiLeaks has taken the time to black out names and specifics, there is enough surrounding information to put at risk not only our military, but also numerous individuals who work with our troops.

Sarah Palin made a public appeal to Assange and his organization not to release any more files. I couldn't agree more. In fact, I'll go one better and suggest that by his actions, Assange has not only proven to be aiding and abetting the enemy as Palin suggests, but he should now be considered an enemy of the state, and treated like any other enemy combatant. It is one thing to claim the rights of a free press, and quite another to reveal sensitive military information that risks the lives of our military fighting forces, and those persons assisting them in protecting ours and Mr. Assange's freedoms. We are at war, and timing is everything. If wrongdoing exists it should be exposed and consequences should follow. This is not the time to do that.

In what I view as an act of cowardice, Assange chose to deliver his address via Skype, from an undisclosed hiding place because he allegedly fears the US will try to arrest him, or worse, that some shadowy powers will try to have him killed.

What's next? Will we learn that he has taken up residence in a sublet cave somewhere in the mountains of Pakistan? In my eyes, Assange has now clearly declared his allegiance to our enemies in the war, and deserves their same fate.

Want to uncover wrongdoing of this or any other government as part of your journalistic obligation, I'm all for it. Put other lives at risk, and compromise our military efforts while we're actively engaged in war just to sell more ad space, and extend your fifteen minutes of fame, then I say, face the consequences of any common traitor.

I wonder how WikiLeaks would feel if the government made public a list of its employees and they were open to the backlash they deserve for choosing to work somewhere that puts its business objectives ahead of our national interests and security. Americans, it's time express your outrage and boycott WikiLeaks and any firm or organization that supports it. Sarah, on this one, I think you and I are closer than not.

The Red Bulls Sign Thierry Henry

2010-07-15T13:20:00.001-05:00

Thierry Henry, the outstanding French soccer player has joined Red Bulls of MLS. With his signing the league now has its first legitimate European soccer superstar. Henry may be "over the hill" at 33, but he possessed ball skill and scoring abilities unmatched by all but a few players in history. As a World Cup champion, a European champion, and the most prolific scorer in the history of Arsenal, of England's Premiere Division, he brings credibility and ballet-like moves to a league whose players have less in common with world class soccer than donkeys on ice skates.

As the Red Bulls sit today, they don't have the caliber of players who can complement Henry's grace, precision and creativity on a soccer field. It will take two or three more signings to put Henry in an environment where he won't be expected to single-handedly deliver victories. The LA Galaxy proved that pairing a former world class name with the best player in America, Landon Donovan wasn't sufficient to win games.

As I wrote extensively prior to his LA Galaxy signing, Beckham, while a competent player - like Henry, also past his prime, would not create the groundswell the league was desperate to create. He merely bolstered his own celebrity and that of his Hollywood craving wife. Days before it was revealed that she was resurrecting the Spice Girls for a failed "world tour," I facetiously wrote that his presence would have the same effect on American soccer as hers would on the music scene if she announced the rebirth of the Spice Girls. That prophesy has proven to be more than accurate. The Beckham's presence in America has sold a lot #23 jerseys, but not as many as before he abandoned his LA commitment for a European team where he could face stiffer competition in his attempt to win a spot on England's disastrously performing World Cup team. As I predicted, Beckham drew massive numbers of curiosity seekers when he first toured MLS cities, but that quickly faded. Even his return to England's team for the World Cup went bust due to an injury that kept him in street clothes on the bench.

Moreover, I questioned the sense of plopping one world-class player on the field among a team of second rate players. Beckham may be one of the greatest passers who ever played, but if you have players around him who don't know where to be, and lack the skills to receive his perfectly placed passes, and can't finish with a shot on goal, his brilliance is for naught. The LA Galaxy's woeful record during the Beckham years proves my point.

Make no mistake, Henry can still play circles around many of the best players in the world, but even the great Pele, who is better comparison to Henry's coming to America than Beckham, had to have a supporting cast his equal. The fabled New York Cosmos surrounded Pele with some of the best players of his era. Henry will dazzle crowds, and bewilder opposing defenders and goalkeepers. At some point, without other great players around him to help carry the load, he will be contained by heavy-footed donkeys going "roller derby" on him throughout a game.
Like the Statue of Liberty, Henry is gift from France that serves as a symbol of what this country can be, at least from a soccer perspective. Fittingly, he will wear a jersey that promotes the energy drink Red Bull. Henry may well be the elixir to energize that franchise, but like Beckham, he cannot carry the league. He will however, take over the merchandising crown worn by Beckham. Moms and Dads everywhere will be pestered to buy a Henry/Red Bull Jersey to replace that relic Beckham jersey, much like the player which is now irrelevant.

LaBron James Signing Signals the Collapse of the NBA

2010-07-09T15:20:00.000-05:00

Everything I detest about the NBA was manifested in the obscene media circus that took place around the signing of free agent LaBron James. Mark this date and time. Every condition necessary for the collapse of the NBA is in place, and moving full steam ahead. No, it won't be tomorrow, or next week, or even next year, but the NBA is doomed.

Three National Basketball Association free agent "all-stars," Chris Bosh (Admittedly, I don't follow the NBA and had never heard his name until this week when he was mentioned as an also-ran, supporting player in the LaBron James derby), Dwayne Wade, and his majesty King James have conspired to join forces and bring an NBA championship to Miami. Good for them. Why go through the formality of the season, just send them the league trophy now. If that spares the nation of another NBA season of games, I am all for it. In the end, professional basketball is all about ridiculous sums of money, tattoos, gangster lean, badass attitude, groupies, and fame.

James, like his new teammate Wade has determined that winning a league championship is the pinnacle of life. Wade went so far as to say he turned down a chance to play in Chicago and be near his children, but had to "take the emotion out of it." Get the message kids? To Dwayne Wade, his children are mere emotions. The consequences of a booty call gone sour. Business comes first. After all, making tens of millions a year can only go so far. Only a fool would walk away from a bigger payday. And a man (I use the term loosely) can walk away from his kids for the riches of South Beach. It seems a bit hypocritical of him considering the battle he went through with his ex-wife during a recent divorce. But it is so much clearer now why he chose to accept the divorce now and leave the incidental matter of child custody to the judge to settle "sometime in the future."

To me, James going to Miami is a blessing. At least we Chicagoland don't have to deal with constant media watch I am certain his presence in Miami will create. The NBA is comprised of gangster and hoods who to their credit found a way out of the ghetto through basketball, but that does not make them people I want in my living room.

The Real Worth of Landon Donovan's Stunning US Goal in the 2010 World Cup

2010-06-25T14:42:00.000-05:00

Landon Donovan scored an extra-time winning goal for the US against Algeria to bring the American team back from the brink of despair and elimination. Some have called the goal the most important in the history of US soccer. I agree, but for reasons beynd the obvious advancement of the team into the second round of this year's World Cup.

Although I have often criticized Donovan over the years, I am prepared to admit I am wrong about his development and leadership. Moreover, the manner in which he scored this goal is equally as important as the goal itself.

Donovan made himself available to the Tim Howard, the US goalie as soon as Howard made a save against a threatening Algerian attempt on goal. Even with time dwindling, Donovan didn't panic, he didn't heave the ball upfield as most American players are wont to do. He used his speed, ball possession skills and vision to launch a counterattack, something that most youth coaches in this country don't teach often, or well enough.

From the moment little kids step on the soccer field, some coach, parent or other misinformed adult begins to shout "pass!" Soccer in America has resembled pinball rather than the strategic game of skills and movement it is meant to be.

With Donovan's goal, young (and older) players have an example to emulate which encourages possessing the ball, taking on opponents, and distributing the ball only when it makes tactical sense. Perhaps the greatest example Donovan set was the continuation of his run after passing to Jozy Altidore who took the original shot at the Algerian goal. When the keeper allowed the ball to rebound away, Donovan was there to calmly collect it in stride and confidently tuck it into the back of the net. His effort was not a fluke, nor merely a matter of being fortunate to be in the right place at the right time. If you watch his run from the outset, you will see that he never slowed, nor did he hesitate to take up a position in front of the net that gave him a chance for a rebound, and an open lane to the goal.

If he never scores another goal for the US, Donovan has secured his place as the most accomplished player to ever don a uniform for this country. The manner of play in which he scored this particular goal is a model for every player who seeks to elevate their game to the level of world class.

On the Record Regarding the US World Cup Team

2010-06-16T13:35:00.000-05:00

Just so I don't appear to be a complete "Monday morning quarterback" let me go on record right now saying I hope Desmond Clarke does not see any further action for the US in the World Cup. He is the weak link. While most of the people who I consider to be most knowledgable about soccer tell me Michael Bradley is the real deal, I believe his lack of creativity and attack-mindedness are severe liabilities. I hope he proves me dead wrong. Findley is not capable of playing in a forward position at this point in his career, much more seasoning and should be replaced before Friday's game. Coach Bob Bradley is not likely to do any of these things, least of which is to bench his son. There, I'm on the record.

World Cup Soccer Starts Five Days Late

2010-06-16T13:08:00.000-05:00

FINALLY! A World Cup match worth watching. In one of the few matches of this year's tournament that wasn't played by two teams trying not to lose, Spain threw everything it had at Switzerland through a relentless attack that nearly wore out the field on the flanks. The Swiss would bend but not break, demonstrating brilliant defense. As I predicted before the WC got under way, Switzerland is a team that must be taken seriously.
I thoroughly enjoyed this 1-0 victory by the Swiss despite predicting Spain as the eventual winner of the WC. I stand by my prediction. Spain's somewhat selfish play, especially in the first half, squandered numerous scoring opportunities. With so many stars on the roster, each wanting to put their stamp on the game, shots were taken that were often less than the best alternative. I believe the coaches will address this, and Spain will be one of the two teams to advance from Group H. Unless the wheels fall off, Switzerland will be the other team simply because Chile and Honduras lack the balance of attack and defense shown by Spain and Switzerland.
This game was especially satisfying to watch because I turned off the volume and watched the game without the din of the vuvuzelas, which I consider an embarrassment to all concerned, while also avoiding the less than insightful commentary of the announcers. When I saw Mike Tirico and Alexis Lalas were the in-studio analysis team, I was freed up to finish my morning paper before the start of the second half.
The World Cup has now shown the potential we all knew it had to present entertaining and intelligent soccer. Now that everyone has their first game out of the way, and they are jockeying for one of the two available spots in each group that moves on to the single elimination round, every team will need to play to win, or at minimum, save face. FINALLY, the real World Cup is under way!

BP and the Gulf Oil "Spill"

2010-06-03T18:39:00.001-05:00

I've held off writing about the BP Gulf Oil Spill simply because there is so much being said about it, and my highest concern is not out of professional interest related to the BP brand, but rather the ecological disaster that will be with us for at least decades.

I am prepared to give BP some very valuable and expensive PR and image advice as a public service. Forget about your damn image. Fix the real problems, solve the crisis, and to hell with you image management. More on this later.

As vain as it sounds, I am breaking my silence because two regular readers indicated they were eager to see my reaction to the BP/Gulf oil spill. First let me say, I am disgusted that BP and parts of the media continue to use words like "incident" and spill in describing this. An incident is a temporary, limited, or periodic occurrence, out of the ordinary that generally does not have long-term repercussions. A spill is what happens when you lift your glass of milk too fast and some sloshes out. Neither of those terms applies to the obscene events that continue, largely unabated, along the southern and now eastern shores of the United States. If they were to cap the well this moment the obscenity will continue in the form of devastation to our environment, loss of livelihood, damage to the food source, and economic impact that is truly immeasurable and likely to be felt for decades, if not generations to come.

Although I'd like to see the government take a more visible role in all of this, I have no way of knowing if they are controlling the situation, or what pressures they are putting on BP behind the scenes. I suspect they are making life at BP a living hell. At least I hope they are.
Do we need to continue offshore drilling? Unfortunately, yes. Can we afford as a nation and a responsible society to do it under the conditions and regulations that exist today? Absolutely not. Some areas are just too precious and represent too great a risk to the public well-being. In other words, stay out of Alaska. And probably Florida's waters, etc., etc.

Prior to this disaster I would not have thought it took a rocket scientist to figure out that when you punch a hole in the crust of Earth, literally miles under water, from miles away, you have to figure something terribly wrong could happen, and design a number of back-up plans for "what if . . .” Clearly, that wasn't done. Moreover, it appears BP took as many shortcuts as possible and ran a variety of unsavory risks in the manner by which they set up and operated this site. I've read that the techniques they used in this well are not uncommon among other members of the industry. These companies know its risky, and not necessarily the best methods, but they are committed to keeping costs down and shareholder value up. If ever there was a case for Congress to step in and completely revamp an industry, this is it.

Now to matter of the BP brand. The jackasses working in the PR effort to protect BP's image should be ashamed of themselves. Proof that some people will do anything for money. Lots of it. Don't be swayed by their feeble defense that as professionals, they have an obligation to offer BP their services. They were not sworn to some PR version of physician's Hippocratic Oath. For the record, they might want to refer to a particular portion of that oath that reads: "First, do no harm."

This is a brand that does not deserve to be saved. See, a brand isn't about image. It's about behaviors. BP's behaviors have been deplorable. Instead of running costly full-page newspaper ads to tell America BP takes full responsibility and is going to deal with this to find a solution - FIND THE DAMN SOLUTION! Stop the media circus they are conducting, try being truly open with the American people, fire Cheney's PR person who you brought in to wave her magic wand over it all, (Can you believe they actually hired this twit?), begin offering some protection from the toxins to the thousands of workers you brought in to start cleaning up (despite BP's efforts to portray it as simply picking up litter, this is very dangerous work).

BP is about to prove once again, what I have been saying for my entire career: A brand is the property of the intended audience, not the company trying to advance it. A brand exists only in the minds of the stakeholders, not in the hands of the corporate wonks or shareholders. When BP chose to engage in risky behaviors for the benefit of its stakeholders, it made everyone on this planet a stakeholder. I believe, in response to one of the greatest corporate foul-ups in history, BP is about to see a "stakeholder" revolt unlike anything previously known to man.

I have no sympathy for those local BP dealers who claim their sales off by as much as 40% and the consumer outrage is misdirected at them. If for years you have gladly profited off the good will and clout of the BP brand, then you have to be prepared to accept the negative fallout you rightfully share in the disaster. You collectively chose as dealers not to hold your supplier to higher standards and failed to ask the right questions about procedures that might have prevented this.

The BP brand is dead. They corporate wonks that run the place will quickly set out to replace the name or sell off the assets as soon as the federal government lets them out of the headlock that is meant to keep them focused on cleanup. Don't be surprised to see the Amoco name resurrected. Is this a good move? I don't think so, but naming isn't BP's problem so until real changs are made in behaviors there, what they call the brand will make little difference.

Despite how angry the public gets and how costly this becomes to BP it is predicted they have more than enough insurance and assets to weather this. Sad, isn't it? BP might be a far smaller company when this is all over, but even that is unlikely. No, BP has protected itself well financially and you shouldn't expect they will shrink out of existance. That is not to say they might not, slink out of existance. Expect to see them drop a few tens of millions on image enhancement and a major rebranding effort. I do expect the BP name to go away in this country. People who cite how Exxon was able to continue after the Exxon Valdez disaster are comparing apples to oranges in the percieved relative magnitude of the situations, the long-term damage, the mood of the public for corporate irresponsibility today versus then, and the ability of social media to generate ire that wasn't possible during the Exxon era. I expect those BP PR wheels are already turning and some of my former colleagues are sopping up enough buckets of money to affort their own homes in the Hamptons alongside those of their clients.

If you get a chance, check out @BPGlobalPR on twitter. This person, identifying them self as Leroy Stick knows more about branding than most of us who claim to practice it for a living - probably because he/she has a clear moral compass, good judgment, sound reasoning and compassion for people and our Planet ahead of profits. Hey, come to think of it, BP, isn't that what a brand should be based on?

Living Without the Brands You Used To Love

2010-03-25T12:01:00.000-05:00

Manufacturers, especially in the food and beverage area have long been consumed with "case counts," - the movement of inventory, rather than brand loyalty. This trend has evolved over the past decade and is so prevalent that most brand managers today are more accountant than marketing person. In the "old days" brand managers were largely marketing and promotions people.

In an effort to reverse the decline in soft drink sales being experienced industry-wide as a result of consumer trends toward healthier lifestyles, soft drink manufacturers have begun significantly raising prices. Just last year, in the Chicagoland area, consumers could walk into any major supermarket chain and benefit from pricing wars to buy four or five twelve packs of Coca-Cola or Pepsi products for under $10. Today, on sale, consumers are getting three 12-packs for ten to twelve dollars. In some cases, supermarkets are offering three 12-packs for nine dollars with a qualifying minimum purchase of ten dollars.

Even more of a threat to sales and margins is the shift in power away from the manufacturer to the retailer.
Costco, with its more than 400 stores drew a line in the sand and stopped offering Coca-Cola products because the beverage company refused to offer the warehouse club pricing that is consistent with the store's below-market strategy. Costco represents a significant portion of Coke's business. Coke, on the other hand, is less than half of one percent of Costco's $70 Billion annual sales.

Costco didn't run the risk of alienating its customers by ceasing to carry Coke because its customer base knows that Costco carries items on an irregular basis depending on pricing and packaging values. The standoff was recently settled when Coca-Cola backed down. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

I don't know if it's still true today, but years ago around McDonald's corporate headquarters, they bragged that if Coke lost the fast food giant's business the soft drink company would fall from number one in fountain sales in America to number four. Today, McDonald's is offering "buy any beverage for a buck" promotions. That may sound like a good deal but as recently as last year, McDonald's offered the same size product for as low as seventy-nine cents depending on the market and owner/operator participation. I doubt much of any of that increased margin is finding its way to Coke's Atlanta headquarters.

Walgreens is in the midst of a major makeover of its stores from the "drug store and sundry" model of old to compete with supermarkets and convenience stores. You'll be able to buy cold beer and a number of other previously unavailable products at every Walgreen store. Many of the things you used to buy at your corner drug store won't be sold there anymore as merchants slim down the variety and product offerings to focus on the most profitable margin items.

The shift in marketplace power is dramatic. As consumers preferences continue to change, retailers adjust their offerings to meet customer needs, sales goals and profit margins, you can expect some longtime, iconic brands to fade in prominence faster than ever, be acquired and merged, and in some cases, disappear altogether.

To Blog Or Not To Blog

2010-03-07T22:05:00.000-06:00

At dinner last night a couple said they are considering a blog to help promote their book about teaching sibling children about breast feeding. http://www.amazon.com/Mommy-Breastfeeds-My-Baby-Brother/dp/0981653804 I mentioned that another friend of mine sent me a link to an article from Inc. Magazine written by Joel Spolsky. www.inc.com/magazine/20100301/lets-take-this-offline.html Mr. Spolsky began a blog (Joel on Software) over ten years ago, even before starting his successful company, Fog Creek Software. His site grew to over a million unique visitors a month, making it one of the oldest and most successful blogs in existence. He used this recent Inc. article to announce that he no longer has the time or the interest in continuing his blog.

The reason my friend sent the article to me was, as he said, "You could have written this."

You see, I don't blog for feedback, to grow my business, or to one day generate revenue from my writing. I blog because something inside me wants to be expressed. I consider blogging to be like my piano playing - meant for no one's satisfaction but my own. I never play for others. The fact that someone might happen by my front door and hear me playing is of no importance. Much like the words I write, the notes I play are meant to express and release something, not communicate, inform or entertain another. Self absorbed? Perhaps. I look at it differently. I do not excel at writing anymore than I do music, but I feel refreshed, energized and better suited to tackle the issues where I am expected to excel: parenting, marriage, friendship and good citizenry after doing either endeavor.

I write and play what moves me. Like the notes on the piano as they sail into the abyss of sound, once the words move from my mind to my keyboard, it doesn't matter if they are lost forever in the black hole that is the Internet. However, when I write, I always attempt to assume the reader's position, not the writers. Good storytelling whether oral, musical, or written is always about audience. It must provoke the thought "I see me." That is the fundamental tenet of branding as well. So, you see, music and writing are merely tools for sharpening my branding storytelling instrument as listener. I save them here to revisit and evaluate my storytelling, not to share them with the world. Having them on the Internet provides a forum where certain standards of engagement are expected. Otherwise, I'd merely save them in Word.

To me, writing is like branding. It must always be about them, and never about me/us. Blogs that promote a company or product are doomed. Blogs, like successful brands must address something bigger than themselves. On that point Mr. Spolsky and I are in complete agreement.

Back to my dinner friends . . .

Rather than express my views about my music and blogging, I shared with them the advice from Mr. Spolsky's article. A blog won't help them sell more books. Sharing their insights on subjects larger than their book topic might gain significant numbers of followers, but a blog meant to sell books will fail. As Mr. Spolsky rightly points out, "Do you know anyone who gained a single customer from a blog?" I don't.

Earlier in the week, the husband of this same couple sent me a note telling me how much he enjoyed my blog writing and offered a couple of good suggestions about the appearance of it. During our dinner, he went further and suggested I disable the ability for readers to comment since no one has added even a single comment. As he put it, "No one wants to be the first, so no one comments. With no comments, it appears no one else is reading the blog. Besides, as much as I agreed with and enjoyed what you wrote I didn't feel compelled to write 'Yes, I agree,' or comment myself."

My blog only has 6 followers including my daughter, her ex-boyfriend (Sorry Ben if that stings - I know the wound is still fresh), a couple of past clients, a friend, and a woman who found my site but remains unknown to me. I do get email feedback from other people from time to time who wish to express their own views privately. As much as I appreciate their correspondence, I have to admit feeling a little guilty since I view this blog as more a journal than a public forum.

Blogs that want feedback and comments make succinct comments and ask questions. My blog is comprised of long form essays that make stands. As the name states, I am all about brands that stand and for that to be, one must declare where they stand.

Toyota Recall Advice

2010-02-24T19:03:00.000-06:00

Like every other brand expert in the world, I have to chime in regarding the Toyota recall. Since so much has been written and said about the depth of Toyota's problems and what it will take to repair the damage, I will keep my remarks short.

Issue #1: HEY, TOYOTA start making SAFER, more reliable, and better cars. The proof is, you haven't been doing that despite all your apologies and claims "We're really concerned."

Issue #1: HEY, TOYOTA, stop TALKING (ads) about what a great car you make and how dedicated your people are and START doing it! The fact that you INCREASED your ad spending underscores your insincerity, and your belief that you can buy your way out of the problem. When will corporate America (and Japan) learn that throwing millions of dollars into your ad agencies bank account DOES NOT improve the situation. Of course, the ad agencies will argue they are part of the solution. Go to a carpenter and ask them how they solve problems and they'll use a hammer. A brand is not advertising or marketing. Your ad agency is in the process of underscoring it and your future sales will confirm it.

Issue #3: HEY, TOYOTA, at what point do you come to the realization that you sell more because what you sell is better than the next guy instead of you sell more because you sell more. The worst thing you could hope to be is what you were - a bloated, arrogant, customer disregarding, mass producer of autos.

Issue #4: Every single car you build represents a person, a future owner, and their loved ones, not a machine. Start building cars as if your child were riding in it instead of buidling it as if your child was profiting from it.

What If Haiti Is Never Rebuilt?

2010-01-24T12:44:00.000-06:00

The media coverage of vast devastation and human suffering in Haiti has conveyed a sense of urgency seldom seen before. The outpouring of support included an unprecedented TV special simultaneously picked up by numerous networks and cable outlets that generated more than fifty million dollars. Americans also used texting to automatically generate contributions at a level never before seen.

As horrific as the tragedy has been in the island nation, it is already slipping from people's concerns as the "news fatigue" factor kicks in. Anytime there is a disaster of great magnitude caused by nature, people of this country are quick to respond. Likewise, there is also always a rumbling from some people about "helping our own" rather than giving to others beyond any I have seen before.

Perhaps because of the magnitude of the destruction in Haiti, or the massive fundraising that has occurred, there seems to me to be a significantly higher level of opposition to Haiti relief than I've noticed during other disasters. There may be racial and socio-economic factors at play, but I think most of the resistance to long-term aid to Haiti is driven by a different motive.

It is one thing to provide immediate assistance to those in need of medical attention, food, water, and temporary shelter. It is quite another to suggest that America has a duty to help rebuild Haiti.

The people of Haiti have lived at the lowest level of poverty in the Western Hemisphere for decades as the bottom of the barrel definition of "Third World" conditions. Those conditions existed because the people of Haiti have done nothing to correct their leaders. Haiti has no economy to rebuild. It lacks the structure of a society, or the cultural mores to promote the general good. There is no agriculture, manufacturing, service industry or tourism in Haiti. Haiti has long been a nation of deadbeats run by a handful of thieves.

If America were to rebuild Haiti what would be built? No farms or factories of any significance were destroyed. In essence, aside from a few poorly constructed office buildings, schools, hospitals and hotels, the only building of significance that was destroyed was the palace. Most of the structures that were destroyed were poorly constructed housing and shanties. Because the people of Haiti have allowed themselves to be ruled by corrupt and self-serving people there were no meaningful building standards, or worthy infrastructure. You didn't hear about the public water treatment center, or the bridge and highway system being wiped out because they didn't exist in any meaningful form. In many ways, Haiti has been culturally bankrupt and lacks the collective will to live otherwise. The Dominican Republic, while not a perfect state, has used self-determination and market forces to create a far better society for its people on the same island.

People who suggest that by building modern, safe homes, hospitals, schools, workplaces and roads in haiti will somehow keep anti-American influences such as Muslim radicals, and South American communists from gaining a foothold I ask, so why weren't those forces successful prior to the disaster?

I agree we should provide all the medical assistance, first aid and humanitarian provisions needed by the people of Haiti. If Haiti is to be rebuilt, let the people of Haiti do it, or invite outside private enterprise to determine what can economically flourish there. If the land is too barren to support agriculture, the people too poorly educated to support commerce, and the political will too low to take back their destiny, I do not think it is America's place to rebuild that nation's housing, roads, and economy. Until the people of Haiti are willing to work toward their own future, it is wrong for the U.S. to assume we can create a better place there.

Radio is all about "Right Size" These Days.

2009-12-28T15:32:00.000-06:00

I listen to a lot of news/talk radio. It might say something about my politics that I have never listened more than a sentence to two of Rush Limbaugh, or any of the other right wing ranters In a spirit of equality, I've never listened to Air America, either. Politics bore me except when presented on National Public Radio. Mostly, I prefer listening to hosts and callers who exchange views on topics of the hour. My greatest pet peeve about talk radio are the relentless traffic and weather updates. Is it really necessary to tell me every ten minutes "on the sevens" or "eights?" Well it is if your real motive is to create properties for advertisers to sponsor.

Radio executives bemoan the fact that listeners tend to flip the dial every few minutes. Maybe they'd be less inclined to do that if the station didn't repeat itself every ten minutes. It might also help if traffic, weather and sports were presented in a more meaningful manner than merely rattling off a couple of key statistics. the format of talk radio today doesn't give thoughtful hosts the opportunity to delve into topics because about the time they present their point of view, it's time for traffic again.

There is a noticeable trend in Chicago stations to which I listen. Other than an occasional exception, the commerials promote free "trials" for wight loss products, ranging from "smoothies" to pills and meal packages as well as medically related topics. Have unsightly vericous veins? Suffer from some newly identified nervous disorder? Feel bugs crawling under your skin? There's a trial product available for that. Howver, you must call within the next ten minutes. "If the lines are busy, keep trying." Want to find ways to get rich from real estate, gold or silver? Yes, Virginia, there are "free" programs available to help you find the path to wealth. The only break from these seemingly relentless "get well, get rich" ads are the pleas to donate your car, RV, or boat (on trailer only) to one alleged charity or another. I am particularly aware of the jingle from the folks who spell cars and kids with "K's" and offer a "free" weekend getaway for your donation. Does it surprise anyone that the company behind this effort is being investigated by various attorneys general and good business practice watchdogs? Is there anyone left in America after the Cash for Clunckers program with an old used car that doesn't know these charities typically consign the cars to a third party who pays them a flat fee of a couple hundred dollars regardless of the condition or value of the car? In the case of the "K" people, it's not even that significant.

It seems commercial radio, at least the stations I hear on the Chicago dial, have become vehicles for snake oil sales, and assorted scams. Like most listeners, legitimate advertisers have gone elsewhere. It almost makes you want to hear more frequent traffic reports.

The Real Legacy of David Beckham to Soccer in America

2009-12-28T14:51:00.000-06:00

The Real Legacy of David Beckham in America

By: Jim Paglia
Just before the public announcement was made that David Beckham was coming to America to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy of MLS, I predicted his impact as a guest columnist in Soccer America and my views were reprinted by a reporter for the New York Times. Much of what I wrote has come to pass:
He proved he still has world-class skills;
He only enhanced his already astonishing celebrity and has expanded his endorsement across a wide variety of products sold in the US;
His first visit to each MLS city drew phenomenal record crowds;
Future visits didn’t draw anywhere near as well;
He was largely, singlehandedly responsible for the huge increases in MLS merchandise sales;
The Galaxy record is no better as a result of his presence;
His soccer camps got a big boost;
Aside from publicity, his impact on the professional game in this country is the equivalent of his wife Victoria announcing she was reuniting the Spice Girls. (I had no way of knowing that only days after this story first appeared, she did indeed announce the Spice Girls were launching a limited engagement world tour in selected cities. Apparently, they selected the wrong cities, because the tour was cut short due to lack of ticket sales.)

However, despite what appears at first glance to be my rather “spot on” assessment his impact to the game in America, I must admit I really couldn’t anticipate what I now believe will be his greatest legacy to the sport in this country.

Beckham has reinforced the notion among some self-serving coaches, administrators, parents and at times, players that it’s perfectly alright to walk out on your team and your commitment if a better offer comes along.

It’s well documented that I am not a fan of MLS, but the embarrassment caused to that league by the Beckham debacle is of little concern to me. It should have been no surprise to Beckham or anyone else that the caliber of play in MLS is well below the standards at which he has played most of his life. He had to be aware he wasn’t going to gain international match readiness playing against the likes of the Columbus Crew.

For all the obvious good his presence has done to promote interest in the sport among young players, I worry that Beckham’s greatest legacy will serve to demonstrate to generations of players who follow that individual self-interests outweigh commitment to a team and a club.

Before I go any further, let me be clear that I am a big fan of David Beckham, the player. He has been, and remains today, one of the most gifted set-piece players, and passers in the game. I’m thrilled to see him back in uniform for England. I even enjoy watching him play for AC Milan.

But I can’t help but wonder how many coaches, parents and players see his example as license to expand the already epidemic proportions of “hopping.” Coaches recruiting players to advance their own careers, parents living vicariously through their young children and praying for an unrealistic NCAA Division I scholarship, and players just looking for free snazzy warm-ups and gear, or a trip to Disney World; all conditions that are polluting the game. Sadly, Beckhams’s example, and ultimate legacy may be further opening the floodgates of this mentality.

Soccer: Where Are All the Children Going?

2009-12-28T14:47:00.000-06:00

People know soccer is one of the most popular youth sports in America. But it might surprise you to learn it is also one of the fastest declining youth sports. Every adult connected in any capacity with the sport should be concerned. Research conducted by a variety of bodies including the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association suggests that while soccer does the best job of attracting young children among all sports, it loses them at an alarming rate after the age of eight or nine. The decline continues through the age of about twelve or thirteen. Beyond that age, the number of players modestly increases again through high school.
It’s widely accepted the falloff is largely related to the way soccer clubs are structured and parents and society influence the equation. The theory goes like this: Up to the age of eight or so, kids play mostly for fun. At about eight or nine years of age kids are told by coaches and parents they have promise, or they do not. Teams that were once defined by friendships and carpooling convenience are now being reorganized by skill level and training programs. Among some soccer administrators, the expression that is widely used, but never to a player’s or parent’s face is, “You are either good, or you suck.” Players and their families are aware of this through the Premier, A, B, C, and Recreational designation of teams. The concept of “playing up an age group” is introduced.

For every child that is encouraged to strive for greater advancement in the sport, there is at least one child who is given signs that even at the ripe old age of eight, they just do not have what it will take to be a standout player. Players are separated from friends, and assigned to teams for the less gifted. The theory suggests that children are being discouraged and thus leave the sport.

While I do not argue with this theory, I think it is one part of a complex, multi-faceted problem. I contend that what soccer is facing is not unique to the sport. Retailers and fast food restaurants have been dealing with the dilemma for years. McDonald’s invented the term “tweens” to describe customers between the ages of nine and twelve whose motives changed when they outgrew the Ronald McDonald® experience.

Briefly, McDonald’s learned a love of Ronald, and a commitment to visiting the restaurants is directly motivated by a child’s sense of fun and imagination. When a child reaches eight or nine years old, their influences and motives change. There is a desire to break with habits and interests that defined them as a “little kid.” Peer recognition and the element of “being cool” become much larger influences. Ask any parent of a child who used to love a visit to McDonald’s, and they can pretty much pinpoint this age as the one where their child was no longer interested in visiting the Playland®, or ordering a Happy Meal®. Try as they might, McDonald’s could not convince tweens that there was anything cool about Ronald.

People who study consumer habits recognize unique patterns and influences in this target market. What do most nine-year-olds want to be? Teenagers. What do most twelve year-olds want to be? You guessed it, sixteen - for the range of freedoms associated with driving.

The experts also agree that once a young consumer goes away, it extremely more costly to regain their allegiance than it might have been to hold their interest. The experts also agree that once lost, a large percentage of consumers will NEVER return.

The way children from nine to twelve define fun is radically different from their earlier years, yet coaches, administrators, and parents often fail to recognize this in relation to soccer. Not only is “fun” different for tweens, but also a host of other factors influences their interest in the game.

It’s true, the same age drop off happens in other sports. So why are the numbers leaving so much more dramatic in soccer? It’s the GIRLS, silly! No other mixed gender sport has such a high percentage of girls. 52% of all soccer players in this country are females. Eight and nine are also the ages when girls and boys take even more pronounced separate directions in the way they socialize, are influenced by their peers, and are affected by media and other societal factors.

A message from a Marine

2009-12-11T18:12:00.000-06:00

I did not write the following, cannot vouch for its authenticity, but thought it was a very powerful message worth sharing with as many people as possible so I copied it and pasted it here. As you ramp up your Holiday celebrations, take a moment, reflect, and remember these men and women in a meaningful way. God Bless our troops.

Subject: [Fwd: Enhanced understanding of Afghanistan - Though the eyes of a Marine]

Not Pulitzer prize material but much better than those that win the "P".

Subject: Enhanced understanding of Afghanistan - Though the eyes of a Marine

You'd have to be there in order to write it this well. Interesting reading.. Writing dated Nov 25, 09.

From a Recon Marine in Afghanistan.

From the Sand Pit. It's freezing here. I'm sitting on hard, cold dirt between rocks and shrubs at the base of the Hindu Kush Mountains, along the Dar 'yoi Pomir River, watching a hole that leads to a tunnel that
leads to a cave. Stake out, my friend, and no pizza delivery for thousands of miles.

I also glance at the area around my ass every ten to fifteen seconds to avoid another scorpion sting. I've actually given up battling the chiggers and sand fleas, but them scorpions give a jolt like a cattle prod. Hurts like a bastard. The antidote tastes like transmission fluid, but God bless the Marine Corps for the five vials of it in my pack.

The one truth the Taliban cannot escape is that, believe it or not, they are human beings, which means they have to eat food and drink water. That requires couriers and that's where an old bounty hunter like me comes in handy. I track the couriers, locate the tunnel entrances and storage facilities, type the info into the handheld, shoot the coordinates up to the satellite link that tells the air commanders where to drop the
hardware. We bash some heads for a while, then I track and record the new movement.

It's all about intelligence. We haven't even brought in the snipers yet. These scurrying rats have no idea what they're in for. We are but days away from cutting off supply lines and allowing the eradication to begin.

I dream of bin Laden waking up to find me standing over him with my boot on his throat as I spit into his face and plunge my nickel-plated Bowie knife through his frontal lobe. But you know me, I'm a romantic. I've
said it before and I'll say it again: This country blows, man. It's noteven a country. There are no roads, there's no infrastructure, there's no government. This is an inhospitable, rock pit shit hole ruled by eleventh century warring tribes. There are no jobs here like we know jobs.

Afghanistan offers two ways for a man to support his family: join the opium trade or join the army. That's it. Those are your options. Oh, I forgot, you can also live in a refugee camp and eat plum-sweetened, crushed beetle paste and squirt mud like a goose with stomach flu, if that's your idea of a party. But the smell alone of those 'tent cities of the walking dead' is enough to hurl you into the poppy fields to cheerfully scrape bulbs for eighteen hours a day.

I've been living with these Tajiks and Uzbeks, and Turkmen and even a couple of Pushtuns, for over a month-and-a-half now, and this much I can say for sure: These guys, all of 'em, are Huns... actual, living Huns. They LIVE to fight. It's what they do. It's ALL they do. They have no respect for anything, not for their families, nor for each other, nor for themselves. They claw at one another as a way of life. They play polo with dead calves and force their five-year-old sons into human cockfights to defend the family honor. Huns, roaming packs of savage, heartless beasts who feed on each other's barbarism. Cavemen with AK-47's. Then again, maybe I'm just cranky.

I'm freezing my ass off on this stupid hill because my lap warmer is running out of juice, and I can't recharge it until the sun comes up in a few hours. Oh yeah! You like to write letters, right? Do me a favor, Bizarre. Write a letter to CNN and tell Wolf and Anderson and that awful, sneering, pompous Aaron Brown to stop calling the Taliban 'smart.' They are not smart. I suggest CNN invest in a dictionary because the word they are looking for is 'cunning'. The Taliban are cunning, like jackals and hyenas and wolverines. They are sneaky and ruthless, and when confronted, cowardly. They are hateful, malevolent parasites who create nothing and destroy everything else. Smart. Pfft. Yeah, they're real smart.

They've spent their entire lives reading only one book (and not a very good one, as books go) and consider hygiene and indoor plumbing to be products of the devil. They're still figuring out how to work a Bic lighter. Talking to a Taliban warrior about improving his quality of life is like trying to teach an ape how to hold a pen; eventually he just gets frustrated and sticks you in the eye with it.

OK, enough. Snuffle will be up soon, so I have to get back to my hole. Covering my tracks in the snow takes a lot of practice, but I'm good at it. Please, I tell you and my fellow Americans to turn off the TV sets and move on with your lives. The story line you are getting from CNN and other news agencies is utter bullshit and designed not to deliver truth but rather to keep you glued to the screen through the commercials. We've got this one under control. The worst thing you guys can do right now is sit around analyzing what we're doing over here, because you have no idea what we're doing, and really, you don't want to know. We are your military, and we are doing what you sent us here to do.

You wanna help? Buy Bonds, America..

Saucy Jack
Recon Marine in Afghanistan
Semper Fi

"Freedom is not free... but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share."

Dockers Khakis Helps Men Be Men

2009-12-09T13:54:00.001-06:00

Please!!! The best Dockers' ad agency could do was suggest there were times when men wore the pants? Yes, I recognize this was done with tongue in cheek, and yes, I recognize the web ad has buttons for men's and women's shopping. But seriously, when do the ad geniuses give up trying to merely gain attention and start selling something again?
Did the executives at Dockers think this was clever? Did they expect America would be swept up in the "playfulness" of the campaign? Would America flock to stores to buy their khakis to salute the progress society has made in advancing issues of gender equality? These same folks who approved this really lowered the bar on a brand that once fueled American society's shift to casual Fridays and ultimately the entire "business casual" office attire movement. With all the unique brand attributes Dockers has to tout, and defining itself as the "soft" khaki, I doubt that term was ever meant to reflect their skill at crafting ads. I expect this campaign to die the quick and merciless death it deserves.

Starbucks by any other name

2009-12-02T16:25:00.000-06:00

Starbucks has begun opening coffee shops under different names. Each location has a different identity and and as I understand it different decor. The company is trying to appear to be a small local business in each community. The idea that Starbucks can reinvent itself as a collection of local coffee shop is plain dumb. The early sales results are confirming this. The new stores put in existing locations are generating significantly lower sales than the original Starbucks.

Be who you are. Starbucks is willing to pretend it is whatever they think the customer will buy. Naming each new location for the street on which it is located, but running it just like they do every other Starbucks is about as disingenuous as a company can get. At this rate, Dunkin Donuts, McDonald's, and even the local coffee house need only to stay the course, and wait for Starbucks to self- destruct. How long might that take? Ask Blockbuster Videos, KB Toys, Krispy Kreme, Wickes, and Sharper Image stores. Admittedly, all these major brands faced widely different and profound marketplace challenges before their demise, but in the end they all share one trait - they failed to be true to who they were while still innovating.

Starbucks is caught up in an expansion death spiral for the sake of their stock price. It’s a nonsensical grip that has many successful companies around the neck. How is it possible that every company can expect double digit growth forever? When did the definition of corporate success morph into share price above all else? When did profit through budget management succumb to growth at any price? Where is it written that companies can't have up AND down sales years and still be successful? Must every week be a 52-week sales and stock price high? Adding more stores to disguise declining year-over-year, same-store sales is what executives do at big companies to protect their bonuses, and stock options.

Starbucks stopped innovating and started replicating. Expansion trumped innovation. “More customers” does not always mean more business. One of the best exercises in the world is asking yourself, "If I didn't add a new customer for an extended period of time, what would it take for my existing customers to continue to do business with me at a rate and margin that would sustain me?" AND then, do that! It makes sense that which is authentic and encourages existing customers to do more business with you will also be an ingredient necessary to attract new customers.

Could Starbucks be a successful company if it focused on being a better company rather than a bigger company? I think so. Starbucks could be turned around but it is very doubtful it will be because the leadership is locked in to a compensation plan that is driven by a "case count" mentality rather than raving, satisfied customers.

American Idol Runner-up Adam Lambert Stages a Huge Error in Judgment

2009-11-25T22:14:00.000-06:00

Adam Lambert, who I think is a rare and gifted talent really blew it during his performance at the American Music Awards and fell as flat as I predict his recently released album will. His stage antics proved to be a misguided attempt at gaining attention for his political and social views as well as his sexual orientation rather than his singing.

As part of my marriage vows it seems I am required to watch American Idol with my wife or risk her scorn. If either of us are not at home on a night the show airs, Tivo takes over, and we watch it together the first chance we get. From the first time I heard his voice in auditions, I picked him to be in the top three. Lambert can sing. He's also got charm, polish and character - something the other contestants in the '09 edition didn't exhibit as well. As the show progressed from week to week, he appeared to be a man against children in terms of his talent. He is one of my three all-time favorite contestants.

As a brand strategist, I desperately hope he seeks better career counsel. Let's start with the recently released album. There really isn't a single song on it that does his voice or personality justice. This was an album that was produced for middle of the road. It's as if Baskin Robbins produced it and decided to offer 31 Flavors of vanilla.

At the American Music Awards, Lamberts risqué behavior including simulating sex, and kissing one of his male band members really distracted from and cheapened his performance. I guess, if he is to be believed and his behavior was a "spur of the moment" response, then he isn't as mature as one would hope. I doubt this was anything but a calculated attempt to "steal" the buzz from the show for the following morning's TV news.

Lambert defended his actions by claiming he believes in artistic expression. What he did had nothing to do with artistry. It was all about expressing his sexual orientation and an attempt to advance his "bad boy" image. In the process, I think he did a disservice to gays everywhere who fought hard to win the level of public and commercial acceptance he now enjoys.

His claim that people didn't complain when Madonna did it is shallow and weak. It seems that Lambert is attempting to follow in Lady Gaga's footsteps, someone he has professed to admire, for audacious her behavior. The difference is Lady Gaga isn't half the talent he is; she's just a stage act. Lambert can sing, and shouldn't dilute his gift with distracting behavior. Is he afraid to let his singing speak for itself? The first rule of branding is authenticity. Be yourself, Adam. The second rule of branding is consistency. Lambert can't bounce from portraying someone who is dedicated to honing his craft, to someone who is swept up in his "if it feels good, I do it" persona and expect to find long term following.

This inappropriate stage behavior and a weak first recording suggest his leap into stardom has been more of a misstep and may require a "do-over." Lambert has so much talent, stage presence and star potential, one can only hope he gets his head screwed on straight (not the best choice of words) and invests as much effort in taking his talent to the limits as he does his sexuality.

Giving Up on an Idea Doesn't Mean Giving Up.

2009-10-27T18:33:00.002-05:00

The greatest lessons I've learned in life come from knowing when it is time to quit. Too often we stay with things because we can't accept loss, we are locked into a faulty belief, assigned an inappropriate value to something, or can't disown a misguided commitment. Sway - The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori Brafman and Rom Brafman explains this better than anything I have ever read.

To me, knowing when something isn't working is the true measure of wisdom. As I tell myself all the time, the only true wrong decision I make is when I fail to make the next decision that might improve upon or correct a past decision.

Baseball Past the First Week of October Should Be Outlawed

2009-10-20T15:35:00.000-05:00

Other than a few obsessed sportscasters, the occupants of your neighborhood nursing home, and the fans in the cities involved, who the heck cares about the MLB playoffs? Not me. In fact, in the future, call me if/when the Cubs make it to the World Series. Otherwise, I think the entire baseball season is WAY too long and would require way too much of an investment of time to follow for a season, so I don't get into it all.

I hate preseason games. It's the equivolent of asking patrons to attend dress rehearsals for a musical where the performers speak, but don't sing their parts since the performace doesn't count for anything except stage direction and practice. My interest in the baseball season can be defined this way: Opening Day, a game or two each season at Wrigley Field, and on then to the Bears.

Some years I have a lukewarm interest in the World Series. This isn't one of those years.

Great Brands Know Their Constraints

2009-10-17T17:28:00.001-05:00

Constraints are the essence of branding. Nothing can be all things to all people. In fact, powerful branding is the ability to define your target audience as narrowly as possible. That is not to say appeal to fewest people, but rather, define your appeal by its most significant impact. Keeping in mind at all times, that being well known is not the same as having brand loyalty.

Constraint knows where the edges are, but it does not mean restraints. Rather than that which holds one back, constraints define the boundaries of choice.

An example I use often, because it was an assignment in which I was involved, is the March of Dimes (MOD). Given that the mission of MOD at the time was to overcome birth defects and infant mortality, some might say that every parent, grandparent, and elected official, tax payer, and medial professional and educator is a target of MOD since they all are affected by the health of children. While its true various elements of the population have a significant stake, and we would all likely benefit from them hearing the message, that doesn't make them all a target of MOD. When I spoke on behalf of MOD at various functions, over a couple of decades, I used to start by telling the audience that babies are not the target of MOD, but rather the by-product of MOD. Branding is about behaviors. Babies are not responsible for their behaviors, so why pretend they are your target? This would infuriate various members of the MOD staff because they built their reputation over the years on showing either sickly and deformed children, or healthy, bouncy babies, and reporting on the numbers of babies that fell into each category. Healthy babies represented a goal for MOD, but not a target.

The target of MOD is women who choose to have healthy babies. If women practiced better prenatal care, we could cut in half the number of children who are born this country with birth defects. The last time I checked the US was ranked around 25th in terms of infant mortality. So, it appears education is as important in the MOD mission as is medical research and scientific breakthroughs. And who is the only person that can successfully have a healthy baby? The Mother!

Yes, men have a role in making a baby, but they don't "have" babies. 50% of the births in this country are unplanned. It is safe to assume those pregnancies were not initiated by women who chose to have a healthy baby given what we know today about the importance of preconception life style behaviors, and prenatal care. Likewise, a good portion of the female population is outside of childbearing years, or incapable of having a baby for any number of reasons. That reduces the target population further still.

In other words, MOD's target audience is limited to women who choose to have healthy babies. In tailoring messages to other influencers (fathers, coworker, employers, elect officials, etc., it is critical that MOD frame them through the experience of the mother's education: "Dad's don't smoke or drink around expectant mothers. It my influence them to engage in behavior that is not healthy for the baby they want." That's a targeted message.

The constraints represented in knowing whom their target audience really is (in the case of MOD, women who choose to have a healthy baby), and how to express the brand through the perspective of that limited audience, is key to making a brand successful.

More on what to do about youth violence

2009-10-09T00:45:00.001-05:00

On September 28 I wrote about the murder of Derrion Albert, the high school student who was beaten to death in the streets of Chicago by fellow students who disliked him because he was from another neighborhood.

I predicted within a week another murder would move him from the headlines. Actually, there have been two student violence incidents since Albert's. In the mean time, President Obama sent Attorney General Eric Holder, and Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan to Chicago to address the issue.

Sadly, all they did was make more speeches, rattle off a list of what they consider to be the White House's actions to address youth crime, and drop off a check for $500,000, allegedly to be used to improve security at the school Albert attended. The Chicago School District promptly announced that they had already spent more than that amount providing additional bus service to that high school in the two weeks since Abert's death, implying the money wouldn't be buying any new security, but being applied to the bus bill.

And of course, Jesse Jackson jumps in front of the cameras to call out the National Guard. Michael Phlager, the catholic priest/neighborhood media darling did his usual chest beating and mock outrage while issuing some inane challenge against the perpetrators by stating "if you come after our children, you come after us," or some such nonsense. Everybody is jockeying for camera time but no one has a meaningful solution. ministers and neighborhood leaders seem more interested in where they can get another grant to advance one of their current (read: nonperforming) programs.

I touched on a couple of ideas I think can help to bring this epidemic under control in my Sept 28 post, but it seems it's time to elaborate.

40% of the children in Illinois have no adult male living in their household. 35% of all children born in Illinois have no father listed on their birth certificate. When will we as a society recognize that without strong male role models in the life of each and every child, their chances of success are significantly reduced?

In addition to more after school and peer group activities others have proposed, here are the five things I believe could be done immediately to reduce the incidence of violence among America's youth:

1. We as a society must use every means available (economic, interpersonal, political, etc.) to impress upon women that having children with multiple men, who do not take daily responsibility for helping to raise their children is no longer acceptable. New consequences need to be imposed. We must change social services, laws and cultural standards to impress upon these women that society will no longer bear the costs of their bearing children they are not equipped to raise.

2. Men who do not participate on a daily basis in the lives of their children must be made to feel the full weight of society's wrath. I will leave fathers' rights to others to discuss; my issue is fathers' responsibilities. If a man chooses not to provide support for his children, I say throw the book at 'em. If for whatever reason a man cannot be present on a daily basis, they should be prepared for another to do it. If that means their standing as a father is somehow diminished, that is the price one pays for not meeting their responsibility. If on the other hand, fathers take an active, daily role in their childrens' lives we should find new ways to recognize these successes. Nothing accelrates change like positive reinforcement and peer/public recognition.

3. In households without a daily male role model, children are left to learn men's role in society from television, movies and music. Media does not properly demonstrate to children how responsible men behave. We must restore honor and prestige to the process of being a responsible and engaged father. Let's establish a new standard. As a society, we must insist that EVERY child be raised under the influence of a mother figure and a father figure. The days of moms raising children without the assistance of a male role model must end. If mom isn't capable of finding a responsible man in her life, at least give the children a chance to find one through social services, the YMCA, churches, or other community resources. The days of children living without access to a responsible male, if none lives in their household, must end.

4. Parents and other concerned adults in each community must self-organize to provide daily and frequent parent patrols around their schools, and in their neighborhoods. A national program called Watch D.O.G.S. enlists dads, father figures and other concerned males to spend a day in school. A schedule is designed for every day of the school year, and dads take turns volunteering. Watch D.O.G.S. is especially successful in elementary and middle schools. They are not there as a security force, or do they carry specific roles. The only authority they have is to serve as positive male role models for all the children with whom they come in contact throughout the day. In some cases, they help out with math, or reading. In other cases, they just walk the halls and monitor and have lunch with the students. Truancy, school violence, and incidents of bullying all improve dramatically in schools where Watch D.O.G.S. has been allowed to flourish. It doesn't take a formal program like Watch D.O.G.S. to see improvement, just the presence of a few men in school to help set better examples.

5. Until men are willing to accept the daily responsibility for the children they bring into this world, then the privilege of molding those children should be taken on by others. Neighborhoods can organize on a grassroots level to see that every child in the community has a personal father figure, or responsible male role model, or mentor. This isn't rocket science folks. You match the kids up with men of character who are willing to give some time and attention. It is almost unthinkable that a child would be raised without a mother figure in their life, so why don't we assign the same significance to a father figure? Yes, I know there are issues of safety and screening that have to be addressed, but the sooner a child has a responsible man in their life, the more likely they are to feel the influences every child should.

A study done by Gallop and ABC News in the late 90's sought to find common denominators among the criminals in the prison systems across the country. Only one factor proved to be almost universal, and was cited by more than 85% of all the inmates interviewed. What the criminal element of our society has in common isn't race, poverty, lack of education, or the influence of drugs and alcohol -- it is father absence, or fatherlessness.

The bozos lining their own pockets in Chicago's city hall, and the politicians in Washington, DC wring their hands, call for more police, tougher laws and more funding, but the real issue is men just need to be better men on a one-to-one basis with children, and women should demand this for every child. Admittedly, many of the young men who committed the savage beating of Albert are beyond hope and a scourage to society, but there are plenty of children that can be still be saved, and they are watching the adult reaction carefully. Do nothing new, and we signal the same path awaits more fatherless children.

A WGN Radio Listener Weighs In

2009-10-01T14:50:00.000-05:00

Maybe I'm dating myself by acknowledging I have been a regular listener to WGN Radio for many years. The truth is, when at my desk, the station was on for long stretches of the day. Radio helps me concentrate. Sometimes, talk radio serves as white noise, sometimes I find I'm drawn into the interviews and discussions. However, lately, many of the WGN on-air personalities rely heavily on the front page of the Chicago Tribune for their topics. If I read the paper myself in the morning, I don't need WGN to read it to me again throughout the day, or to bring the writers from the paper on the air to summarize the story for me. The news is the news and I get that, but why not give me a different perspective rather than repeat someone else's?

Over the past few months, management of the station has made a number of changes that I assume are an attempt to capture a larger market share, and remain relevant. Audience favorite Spike O'Dell retired as the morning personality and was replaced with John Williams. Long-time mid-morning duo Kathy and Judy were asked to leave earlier this year. These two moves set off a parade of on-air auditions, and a series of changes at the station. John Williams was moved again, and now works from 9am-Noon. Garry Meier, who was once among the most popular (and some would say abrasive) characters on Chicago radio came out of an extended, self-imposed hiatus after failing to reach a contract agreement with his former employer. Greg Jarrett was brought in to fill the early morning slot.

Ironically, one of the few time slots that have remained stable is the one held by Steve Cochran from 4-7:00PM. In recent years, Steve has earned a reputation as the station's "bad boy." He openly questions management decisions on the air, and speaks often about how he gets hauled in the boss' office to be reprimanded for his behavior.

Here's where I come out on the changes:

I've stopped listening to WGN in the early morning. I find Jarrett's style to be pompous, arrogant, and self- absorbed. I tried to listen for a while, and was willing to overlook his constant references to California, and his West Coast contacts. I was even willing to put up with his conservative political blustering. Almost from day one, he tried to ingratiate himself to the audience by rooting for Chicago's teams, and acting tuned into politics, and the culture. It struck me as completely insincere, since he has virtually no history with the city, or knowledge on any of those topics. Admittedly, the station runs Cubs and Blackhawks games, so he had an obligation to get on those bandwagons, but the rest of the time he's trying so hard to appear "with it" and "someone I should want to know," he reminds me of the high school misfit who follows the cool crowd around campus and jumps into every conversation with a "me too" story in the hopes he'll be liked. His "commanding voice," which is great for radio, suffers from his attitude, which reminds me of that pompous dimwit character played by Ted Knight on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.

I have yet to hear Jarrett conduct an interview where he actually asks a question seeking any insight. In an attempt to show his command of a topic, he typically asks questions in the form of lengthy comments that generally allow for nothing more than a "yes" or "no" from the person being interviewed.

I always considered Andrea Darlus to be a credible news person, but it seems the station has encouraged her to be what I characterize as "bubbly and improvisational." I liked her better when she was more measured. Her new giddiness wears thin. Likewise, Leslie Keiling, the traffic reporter, has been given a wider berth to interact with Jarrett on the show. I liked her better when she just reported, and commented less. I admit, my morning alternative, WBBM is pure business radio, and I'm not crazy about it, but it beats "plastic" Jarrett and his harem.

Before leaving the topic of traffic, why do we need it every 8 minutes all day? Keiling's reports citing travel times on the local expressways is so formulaic, and changes so seldom that I can usually give it from memory. "If you're traveling inbound on the Edens, it 17 minutes to the junction . . ." Why not skip all that, and just give us deviations from the usual patterns and reports of accidents? I believe the frequent traffic and weather updates are nothing more than a device to create specific ad unit sales. I find the frequency gets in the way of meaningful interviews and discussions.

John Williams was never a favorite of mine, but I tolerated him the way you might a kind, but out-of-touch uncle at Thanksgiving dinner. Since the change to midmorning, I think he's found a second wind. He's showing more insight, asking probing questions of his guests, and is generally more entertaining than I found him to be in other day parts. The key differences between Jarrett and Williams are Williams understands no one is seeking for him to replace Walter Cronkite as the most trusted authority in America. He has learned people don't dial in to listen to him; they dial in because he is interested in what they think and have to say. Equally as significant, he doesn't take himself too seriously. Williams is a bright spot in a spotty line-up.

Garry Meier's delivery still sounds to me like his shorts are pulled up too high, but he adds an element of humor and irreverence the station can use. He's at his best when he's going after Greg Jarrett and Mayor Daley, and at his weakest when his sidekick "Elton Jim" interjects. Meier's sidekick lacks the quick thinking patter a sidekick should have. Again, I am reminded of the high school misfit who desperately wants to be part of the crowd so he constantly kisses up to the big man on campus while permitting them to also make him the brunt of most jokes, and accepts the bullying just to be part of the crowd.

Where did the station get this new "house announcer?" Is she someone's girlfriend, or Sam Zell's daughter? I can think of no other way she got on the air. I'm sure she's a terrific person, but the sound of her voice is fingernails on a chalk board to me. The first time I heard her I though it was bit someone was running. Her inflection, modulation, tone, and pace are ALL wrong. She talks too fast, places emphasis on the wrong words and syllables and is just plain annoying. I've begun keeping track of the products and services she hawks so as to remember not to buy them. Note to management: This is WGN Radio, not a Columbia School of Broadcasting class. Hearing that annoying voice frequently throughout the day is a factor in why I no longer consider myself a regular WGN listener.

Finally, realizing my comments have been mostly negative and somewhat harsh, I saved my greatest compliments for last. Steve Cochran's show is the only one I try to catch as often as possible. Again, the stations too frequent traffic and weather reports hurt his delivery, but Steve keeps his content fresher, his interviews more lively, and his topics more diverse. Steve's strength is interacting with and engaging the listeners.

Radio isn't rocket science. Just put someone on the air who is entertaining, knowledgeable on a variety of topics, and interested enough in me that I'd like to be sharing a private dinner with them.

Beating Chicago's Youth to Death

2009-09-28T19:52:00.000-05:00

The local media, and as a result of the posting of a murder video on the Internet, I suspect much of the country, is abuzz about the death of another young man in Chicago. Derrion Albert was beaten with boards and kicked to death by a group of depraived fellow students. I guess the school uniforms everyone was wearing weren't as affective as school administrators hoped in keeping the peace. For the record, I have not seen, nor will I watch the video. Seeing a screen capture photo in print, splashed across the local papers, was sickening enough. That will teach the victim to refuse gang affiliation. But what will it teach others?

If you're in one of the gangs, you'll think twice about seeking a way out. If you are a young person trying to resist gangs, you realize that there really isn't any place you are safe. Derrion Albert was clubbed and kicked to death in the street, by his school. You'll also realize that the Chicago Police first responders are a little slow to step in when they are so greatly outnumbered by a blood thirsty mob. You realize that all the prayer vigils are street theater, and praying is an obscenity when subsitituted for meaningful action. All the passion and chanting about "We're taking back our communities!" and "The violence must stop!" is vulgar exhibitionism for the media. The clergy, politicians, so-called community leaders who take to the streets with bullhorns as well as the media people who cover it are supreme hypocrites. The kids already know better than to trust any of them.

What do the mothers of violence victims learn? They are as helpless as they have always told themselves they are. Next week, Derrion Albert will be replaced in the news by another murder or two and then their mothers will talk about what a good child she raised, and how she could never have imagined this happening to her baby, despite the culture of violence that is all around on a daily basis. The fathers? They threw their children away shortly after conceiving the hopeless bastards, so they belong back under the rock where they reside. What does the community learn? The beat goes on. The ministers and the newscasters have fodder for Sunday's sermon and the next talk show segment. In both case, it should help revenues.

The solution isn't more speeches, more pulpit pounding, or pleas for standing up to the violence. Men, who fathered these trouble makers, or other men from the community have to step in, using whatever means necessary, to forge one-to-one relationships with these young men. Admittedly, it won't be done with a Coke and smile. It will take extraordinary effort, using unorthodox methods.

Maybe it's too late for the current generation of animals that prey on one another. But somewhere, there is a boy and perhaps a girl who is still a step away from the gang influence and can be influenced by a caring, engaged, and fully present father figure.

That's it folks. Education, jobs, housing and all the other conditions that affect young people, lack the power of one good man in the life of a child. I've met lots of poor people, lots of underemployed, lots of uneducated, and even a couple of homeless people who who turned out to be rather remarkable people because there was a man in their life on a daily basis.

At what point do we recognize that lack of responsible fathers is the root problem? The rampant butchering of young people in the streets of Chicago is a direct result of irresponsible parenting -- women who lack character and self esteem as they crank out babies without the ability or resources to raise children, and fathers whose lost interest in the mother and the consequences of their actions the minute the sex was over. Many of these women have babies fathered by different men. Many of these men have fathered children by numerous women. As a society, we have to begin to get in the faces of men and women who inflict this reckless behavior on us.

40% of all children in Illinois live in a household with a male figure living there. 35% of ALL children born in Illinois have no father listed on their birth certificate. Who teaches young men how to be a man? Who teaches young people how men act responsibily toward women? Everytime I hear a women claim that she is both mother and father to her children I want to vomit. You may be a success as your child's mother, but you are a miserable failure at being their father. Until, and if we one day have a fully androgenous society, males and females have markedly different influences. Without their mother, or a woman of equal influence in their lives, my children would be at signficant disadvantage in the world. I can see evidence that I make an equal and entirely different impact in their lives. Every child deserves, and I would go so far as to say, requires a male and a female roll model in their life.

Same-sex relationships are the business of the participants. But suggesting that having "two mothers" or "two fathers" somehow compensates for the lack of a male and a female roll model sounds cute, but is dangerously flawed in communities as unstable as Chicago's ghetto.

Until women stop having babies they can't raise without a man, until men of the community claim young people as a personal life-long responsibility, and the community as a whole are shamed enough, the slaughter will remain constant. Doubt it? Ask yourself how long the public will express its rage over Albert's death. Then ask yourself if there is any end in sight to the slaughter in Chicago streets and elsewhere.

5-Hour Energy

2009-09-20T19:41:00.000-05:00

It isn't often that I see an add I admire, but 5-Hour Energy has one. How refreshing to see an ad that skips the hype, the breathless announcer, phoney actor portrayed situations, to give us straight talk. This ad tells me what's in the product (all natural ingedients, even using a mug to depict the amount of caffinne in one bottle, which they claim is equal to a cup of coffee), and what's not in the product.

I love the fact that they urge you to try a half bottle of the product, to see how it affects you, and urge you to decide then, if the product is right for you.

I am not presenting this post as an endorsement of the product. However, I can say I used 5-Hour Energy, pretty much the way the maker suggested. Last winter, I was outside Dayton, Ohio conducting a client workshop on brand strategy. Because the client wanted to conserve time for their people, we consolidated two days of content into one long day. The session started at 7:30 am and wrapped up around 6:15 PM. I was on my feet and presenting/facilitating almost without stop for the entire time. At the end of the session, I was exhausted. I still faced a more than four-hour drive back home to get a few hours sleep before rising again at 4:00 am to catch an early flight out of O'Hare to be with another client. Even with the time zone benefit of picking up and hour, I didn't have much time to rest.

Winter darkness had descended and snow started to fall as I got to the parking lot. Although I'd never tried the product before, I decided to see if 5-Hour Energy really worked. Wanting to be extra careful, and not being a regular coffee drinker, I chose to take a sip that amounted to a little less than half the bottle. Within the first hour of the drive, the snow was coming fast and furious. But I found I was feeling refreshed and alert. I wasn't experiencing the "buzz" I was expecting from the caffeine -- just a natural sharpness. I didn't even need another sip.

Despite a pretty awful winter storm, my little five-speed sports car held the road well, and I got home safe and sound. I went straight to bed and found I had no trouble getting right to sleep. I awoke fairly exhausted, but on time, to learn the storm, which dropped over a foot of snow on Indiana, had subsided. Illinois (and O'Hare) were untouched by the storm so my flight got out on time, with me aboard.

It's important that I remain on top of my game when conducting workshops, speaking engagements, and facilitating events for clients. I can't afford to be distracted, or even slightly out of sorts. If 5-Hour Energy had even the slightest negative effect on me, that would have been the first and last time I used it. Now, I carry a bottle of 5-Hour Energy with me to all my speaking engagements, presentations, and workshops. In the past eight months, I have used it one other time in the middle of a two-day seminar that called for me to do two ten-hour sessions. Again, I took a small sip, and felt no side effects.

I tell you of my personal experience not to promote the product, but rather to reinforce the manufacturer's decision to encourage people to learn what they are taking, and to take it with caution so they can gauge their own tolerance and the usefulness of the product.

Responsible advertising works. I applaud the makers of 5-Hour Energy for taking such a responsible approach and avoiding the current trend in advertising to over promise, be overly clever, or go for some quirky gimmick to attempt to attain work-of-mouth.

Remember Clara Peller and "Where's the beef?" It had everyone talking in the 80's about Wendy's ads and created a phenomenon of its own. The next pertinent questions should have been "Where's the Wendy's?" The ad campaign got the nation talking, but did little to boost sales relative to the increased ad budget, simply because Wendy's real estate strategy was to build stores in less than desirable locations. As clever as the campaign was, people weren't willing to go out of their way to find a Wendy's. At one point, JC Penny's considered acquiring Wendy's as part of its diversification strategy. The retail giant walked away after taking a look at Wendy's books, seeing the campaign created a lot of PR, but not nearly the level of sales people were claiming.

Kudos to the makers of 5-Hour Energy and the advertising people involved for having faith in their product and the ability of the buying public to decide.

Taking My Daughter to College

2009-08-26T18:20:00.003-05:00

We spent a couple of glorious days together moving Kailey into her dorm room at Indiana University. Even after moving in bags and bags of clothing, half the possessions in her overcrowded bedroom at home, a variety of new appliances, and an assortment of decorator items, we found we'd overlooked a few things (a toothbrush, personal hygiene items, drinking cups/glasses, extension cords/surge protectors, coaxial cable, etc) and had to make trips to the local hardware store, and Target. But we didn't forget to pack essentials like a week's supply of microwavable macaroni and cheese, the microwave itself, a new HD TV, too many pairs of shoes to wear in a month of Sundays, at least a dozen headbands, and a full array of Audrey Hepburn wall posters. You get the idea -- an 18 year-old did all her own packing.

We had a ball unpacking, assembling, sorting, storing, and moving things around. Adding to the excitement was dinner with the family of her childhood best friend who I haven't seen in a long time, and were there themselves moving into another dorm on campus.

With Kailey's move complete, parting was tense and difficult. Although this wasn't the first time she's been away from home, it certainly felt like the most permanent. My little girl is going out into the world to make her own way. This wasn't as scary as sending her to intern in Washington, DC by herself as we did earlier this summer, but it was every bit as emotional for both of us. I suspect it was hardest for Mom who stayed behind to see that Tate got off to his high school classes and tend to the dogs.

Although we shared a long hug, and "I Love Yous,"neither of us was eager to look the other in the eye because we both knew we'd start crying. After I went for the door and she hurried back to the elevator, I forced myself to call out to her again. I wanted to be sure I looked her in the eye so she could see the love that will always be there for her. And as we have done countless times, I whispered "love you more, love you most."

Although no one would be the wiser if I didn't reveal this, I got slightly off route two times during the ride home. I was still struggling with the shell-shock of letting go and traveling in a bit of an emotional fog.

When I got home, everyone else was out. So after getting the car somewhat back to normal, and unpacking my suitcase, I took a shower. The glass enclosure was foggy, I couldn't see well because my glasses were off, and all of sudden I heard that sweet, familiar voice say "Hi, Daddy!" as she bounded into the bathroom.

At once, my heart soared! My little girl was home! What a pleasant and unexpected surprise! For that brief second, I wasn't even concerned about the logic of it all, or the fact that I had left Kailey 250 miles away just hours earlier. I didn't care how or why she was home, I was just thrilled to have her back! I had never noticed before how similar mother and daughter's voices are. Sandy, my wife, had come home from errands and it was she that was welcoming me. As pleased as I was to see her after a couple of days apart, I felt again like crying when the realization hit me that my sweet child is far away, and life as I have known and treasured it most, with both children under foot, is forever changed. Change is good. Life goes on. But dad is still a little sad.

Christopher Sullivan makes even ugly MLS soccer seem intelligent

2009-08-18T23:36:00.006-05:00

Loath as I am to watch MLS soccer, it is my habit to check out whatever is on Fox Soccer Channel at all hours of my viewing day. I happened on a game between DC United and Houston Dynamo last week while flipping channels and I had my finger on the channel changer just as I heard Christopher Sullivan's voice doing the color commentary. The game was a dreadful affair lacking skill, creativity, and style from either side. And yet, I stayed with it because I love the unique perspective Sullivan, a former professional player, and member of the US National Team brings to his commentary.

I've heard other former (and some active) players who lack the polish and perspective I think Sullivan brings. His delivery is measured, understated, and at times, melodic. Because of some questionable audio work during the broadcast, the commentators were often drowned out by the stadium announcer and the crowd. I actually found myself straining to hear what Sullivan had to say. Let me tell you, with all to few exceptions, that has not been the case with other soccer announcers in this country. Honestly, if I know a game is also being broadcast in Spanish, I prefer to tune that channel even though I don't speak the language simply because most English speaking announcers tend to be more distracting than contributing. Sullivan reports what he sees in a cadence that lends a rhythm to the game without distracting the viewer. Rather than just report the game, he brings you into its unique character. Too many other former players try to provide a player's perspective, but merely report the run of play.

Sullivan is an astute student of the game. His analysis blends team tactics, individual tactics, and a coach's sideline perspective. He has an amazing command of soccer history, players around the globe, and the fine points that comprise each player's game. Like the sport itself when it is played well, he keeps his commentary fluid, concise, relevant and insightful. He knows how to assess a team's game plan quickly, and at times, his ability to predict what a team is trying to do and when it will happen is uncanny.

I think a key to his success is he doesn't watch the game the way many fans and coaches in this country do. The norm is "ball watching," focus on offensive build up, or one's own team's execution. Coaches and knowledgeable fans watch three parallel aspects of the game at once: our own team's execution of the game plan, the individual and collective execution of what we believe to be the opponent's game plan, and the combined overall dynamics of the game with emphasis on individual match-ups that offer opportunistic advantages. In some cases, it is clear to me, coaches are so busy watching their own team's performance, they can't even tell you the sequence of events or key factors in an opponent's attack. This is especially true at the high school and college level, but I believe Bob Bradley, coach of the US National Team suffers from this at times as well. He's earned the nickname, "Bunker Bob" for a reason. As an aside, I was watching a game being coached by a protege' of mine, and at half time she passed by on the way back to her bench and asked if I had any observations. I took the occasion to ask her if she was aware that all three first half goals were scored on exactly the same play by two players who alternated positions, assists and goal scoring? It was clear to me that they saw a weakness and deliberately, repeatedly exploited it. It was equally clear that the coach and her defense hadn't adjusted to pick up the play after the first or second goal. I was very proud of her that she adjusted, and each time the opponent tried it after the break, it failed. Her team pretty much shut down the opponent altogether through her astute adjustments throughout the second half.

But back to Sullivan -- he has such a thinking man's soccer mind. He would make a formidable coach. If you caught the telecast of the Marathon (Honduras) and DC United game this evening you saw exactly what I am referring to in his ability to predict what Marathon needed to do to gain the advantage over DC United. As the game progressed he accurately predicted where the American team would be most vulnerable. Unfortuntely for the right back and central defenders who had a hellish night for DC United, Sullivan was laser accurate. Again, this game was a dull and lifeless affair, as evidenced by the meager crowd in attendance, until the Marathon coach took exactly the steps Sullivan had been suggesting early in the second half. A generally sloppy and unispired game was made almost bearable by Sullivan's analysis.

I know there are people who dislike Sullivan's work because of his European influences, or sometimes quirky pharsing, but rather enjoy those trademark aspects. There are very few people with whom I like to sit and watch a game because I prefer to analyze the play in my head rather than socialize and speculate as is done at most American sporting events. However, Sullivan is one person I'd love to sit with and compare observations during a match.

The Next True American Revolution

2009-08-15T08:58:00.004-05:00

Watching the healthcare debacle that is playing out in this country embarrasses me as an American. If the rest of the world wasn't convinced before that this nation has lost its greatness, this episode may complete the picture. America is more divided today than any other time in its history other than the Civil War. Healthcare is just the latest example.

Lies and distortions are flying from both sides. Politicians desperate to protect their personal interests dance the dance of the insincere. Big Pharma, the Insurance Industry, and healthcare providers have both sides of the aisle in Washington right where they want them -- in their back pockets.

No meaningful reform will come as a result of the political "two-stepping" being done by all parties. The Democrats will claim victory if anything makes it to the President's desk for his signature regardless of how meager the change. Republicans will claim they saved the nation, future generations, and your grandmother from being snuffed out by government agents while she slept in the nursing home, if they can deny the Democrats in the slightest way. From what I've read of the actual legislation, it isn't the profound improvement some people claim, nor is it the evil face of Socialism some of the far right suggest. Frankly, much of if it is bureaucratic, bean counting and vanilla.

In the end, both sides are more interested in the 2010 election cycle than advancing the country. As such, Big Pharma, Insurance and the hospital/medical community needed only to disrupt and delay to get what what they want - to maintain the "status quo" as much as possible. Significant, and controversial legislation has a little chance of passage after January 1. The campaign season will take precedence with no candidate wanting to risk their neck being caught on the wrong side of a vote. So after the first of the year, all parties agree to "play nice" and keep hot topics in limbo until after November. Yet another reason, the entire election process in this country needs to be revamped. We'll wait eleven months for anything of value on any topic to happen. Elections, and the money tied to them, not public service, now command every heartbeat of elected officials.

History would tell us, that with notable exceptions like Germany in World War II, revolution is usually instigated by the "have nots." Given the climate in this country, I expect it will be the conservative middle to upper class that will seek to fight to protect what they consider theirs, in less than the peaceful terms we as a nation like to pretend to be our way of handling domestic disputes in these enlightened times.

At some point in my life, I anticipate I will witness a real, bloody revolution, in the form of a civil war in this country. Maybe that's not all bad. Maybe that's what every good democracy needs from time to time to clean out the cobwebs, and earn its freedom. We are certainly proving that under the veil of peaceful discourse, corruption, self-interest and profiteering have the upper hand. The foreign enemies of America who would like to see us destroyed may need not try to disrupt our way of life. Coupled with an unstable economy that is far from correcting itself, as some "wishers upon a star" would have you believe, left to our own devices, we appear to be doing it to ourselves.

Today, the real soccer season begins.

2009-08-15T08:53:00.001-05:00

The English Premier League (EPL) starts. YIPPIE! Coupled with Series A (the Italian League) and a little assist from Tivo that means I can watch worldclass soccer all day, everyday from now through next summer (the World Cup Finals in Sout Africa). My dance card is complete.

The Most Astonishing Month in US Soccer History.

2009-07-27T15:34:00.006-05:00

Since you are reading this, I'll assume you are not media challenged, and have regular access to news sources. Ergo, it seems safe to assume you may have seen a rash of publicity about various soccer contests, or perhaps you are among the hundreds of thousands of spectators who attended international or national team games in the US this month, or pehaps you are among the millions in this country who witnessed these contests on television.

Most of this soccer enthusiasm is a result of two tournaments happening almost simultaneously around the country -- The CONCACAF Gold Cup, a regional title of little significance (not to be confused with CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying), and the World Football Challenge (WFC).

CONCACAF is an acronym for the region of North and Central America nations as designated by soccer's international governing body (FIFA). The World Football Challenge is an inflated title given to a "friendly"tournament among four prominent foreign teams touring the US as part of their preseason schedules.

As a tune-up to the WFC, Chelsea FC played a friendly on July 18 against the Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion team Seattle Sounders in front of more than 65,000 spectators. In addition, Chelsea FC who won the WFC played four matches before a combined attendance of 275,000 people ( an average of 68,700).

When playing each other, the remaining WFC participants: Club America (Mexico), AC Milan and Inter Milan (both of Italy) drew impressive numbers for their matches.

The Gold Cup showcased 12 teams playing in pool play through four groups with the winners advancing to a "knock out" round. The "knock out" round featured teams from Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico, and the USA. Only Costa Rica used a team comprised of its best players. The US and Mexico excluded most of their best players from their rosters and fielded teams comprised of players with limited national team experience. Essentially, they competed with players trying to earn an opportunity to make the team.

Despite using largely unknown players, the semi-final games played as a double-header in Chicago, drew impressive crowds. To be clear, the reported attendance at game time for the US v. Honduras was 20,000. The second game of the evening between Costa Rica and Mexico had an announced crowd of over 55,000. While far from "near sellout" of Soldier Field as announced by the promoters, this was an impressive turnout driven largely by the huge Mexican population in Chicago and the Midwest. Note that the first game, with the host nation, drew less than half the evenings attendance.

The Gold Cup Championship game was played at Giants Stadium and sold out with over 82,000 spectators. Again, Mexico's participation was a key factor in this turnout. The outcome of the game, a 5-0 humbling of the US by Mexico, two teams usually well matched, is an indication of how lightly the US took this competition.

In the two tournaments, with four world famous club teams, playing the first games of their preseason training schedules, and a number of North and Central America nations playing less than their best players, drew very impressive numbers.

So what does this mean for soccer in this country? Hard to say.

This past week, MLS announced its attendance is down about 7% from last year, and this includes the spectacular numbers from the previously mentioned expansion team, Seattle Sounders who are averaging over 30,000 spectators per game. Take the Sounders out of the equation and MLS reported attendance is down double digits. This is especially troubling when you factor in the numerous media reports over time that MLS tends to inflate the attendance figures it reports.

MLS blames much of its decline on the economy. If that's true, some equal measure of the success of the two tournaments might also be attributable to the economy in that fewer people are taking vacations and attending these tournaments was a form of "staycations."

I suspect the tremendous numbers in attendance associated with these two tournaments is due largely to reputations of the international clubs and national teams who participated and is a trend toward visiting teams of fame, and will not translate into increased attendance for US leagues.

As an example, a week before the Seattle v. Chelsea game, the Sounders played Houston in a MLS league game that drew more than 32,000 people (about Seattle's season average). However, three days after the Chelsea game, Seattle played the same Houston team again in a U.S. Open Cup game that drew fewer than 5000 spectators.

The fledgling Women's Professional Soccer League (WPS) announces crowds somewhere in the neighborhood of 5000 spectators per match and as the season progresses, the numbers are getting worse, not better. WPS did a good job of sprinkling many of the best women players in the world and the US among its teams. It also put together a solid business plan, and works hard at forming relationships in the community. However, the caliber of play still leaves a great deal to be desired. They may be some of the best women players in the world, but they are not yet the best teams in the world.

What this says to me is, with the exception of a few superstars like David Beckham, the soccer paying public makes its decisions based on the reputation of the team, an opportunity to see foreign national team, and the anticipated caliber of play. As I was the first to predict in a national print publication, seeing David Beckham was a novelty that wore off after one or two times, and did not translate into improved attendance for anyone when he wasn't scheduled to appear.

With the proliferation of national and international competitions coming to this country, and the ever increasing television coverage of games from the overseas professional leagues, the US spectator is becoming more knowledgeable about the game, and more discerning. This could be a double edge sword for leagues in this country. By comparison, the US professional game in general still falls far short in terms of skill, and caliber of play of that of the best men's team in the world. Given the chance to occasionally see two world-class teams play is something Americans will pay to see, but that doesn't mean they will pay to see just anyone play.

Yes, Americans will pay to see the top six teams of England's Premiere League play from time to time, but who wants to see teams at the bottom of that table, or some second division team? If my instincts are correct, the floodgates are about to open as promoters of every stripe begin enticing foreign teams of varying skill and reputation to play in the US. The diluting of product will likely result in the abrupt end of what has started as a very promising trend. But trends do not make habits.

It is the rare opportunity and the high caliber of play that combine to contribute to the outstanding attendance at Gold Cup and WFC games. Sustaining that precise balance is the key to continued success, but even then, I do not see it translating into packed stadiums for US leagues. In those rare cases when powerhouse teams like those in the WFC, and others such as Barcelona FC, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, et al, are involved, the crowds will come out. In other words, don't confuse passion for great soccer with passion for any soccer.

Quiznos

2009-07-17T14:57:00.002-05:00

I stopped in our neighborhood Quiznos for the first time in many months. I noticed three things:
1. Their Torpedo product is essentially half the width of their previous sandwich and appears to be a total of three or four thinly sliced pieces of meat. 2. The width of their regular sandwiches has also been downsized by at least 30 %. 3. Prices have climbed by about 10% from what I remember.

A fellow operating the register, who I guessed was the franchisee was chatting with one of the food workers about all the attention the new Jimmy Johns was getting down the road. "They'll be back. Sure, everybody is checking them out, but once they realize that quantity isn't quality they'll come back." I watched the eyes of the worker and all I could read was "I wonder if JJ's is hiring?"

The handful of people in Quiznos, in the middle of the noon hour, confirmed he is feeling the competitive pressure. Just for the heck of it, I went down the street and saw the Jimmy John parking lot jammed. But out of curiosity, I went a block further to the Subway and found their parking lot as full, and the line of customers waiting to be served as they usually are. Directly across the street from JJ's is a Taco Bell that completed a major remodeling within the month. Looks like a brand new place. Some of the other adjacent fast food places were spruced up, with newly stripped parking lots, extra clean windows and fresh landscaping.

The Jimmy Johns has a prime location in the middle of "fast food" row, right next to McDonald's. Subway is just a short distance further past McDonald's. Quiznos is in the opposite direction from the major intersection, sits back from the road somewhat obscured by a bank that sits closer to the road, in a strip mall of "mom and pop" retailers. Although it has been in this location for more than a year, I give it less than a year before it goes under. Downsized product + rising prices + robust competition = poorer value. Note to Quiznos: location, location, location. Can't wait till Monday when I get to try Jimmy Johns for lunch.

Starbucks update

2009-07-17T14:51:00.002-05:00

I posted the previous blog yesterday. Today, I read that Starbucks is testing a new concept in one of their stores by not using the Starbucks name. I may not have this name exactly correct, but it's something 5th St. Coffee and Tea. The point is, they are playing with their concept. I find it amazing that the Starbucks brand has never talked about coffee. In fact, their positioning has always focused on being a person's third destination (1.Home 2. work/school 3. Starbucks) which would position them ahead of Church and play as dedicated destinations. It will be fun to see how this plays out.

The Decline of Starbucks

2009-07-16T15:34:00.004-05:00

I'll try to keep this short and sweet rather attempt to detail the long and illustrious history of Starbucks that has been so well documented elsewhere.

A client made the observation the other day that he considered Starbucks to be a model brand because it established a value proposition and market leadership position while completely avoiding the typical trappings of retail competitive pricing.

This led to an interesting conversation since I couldn't have disagreed more with my client's position. Undeniably, Starbucks is a brilliant brand. I often use examples of Starbucks to illustrate points in my various workshops and speaking engagements. My usual references emphasis the various facets of its unique positioning, powerful brand, and the enormous growth the company achieved without having relied on consumer advertising, which most people consider a cornerstone of brand building. But I will leave that aspect of my opinions for another time.

While I am a fan (but not a customer) of Starbucks, I believe its market strategy has its flaws. To suggest that Starbucks avoided pricing as a cornerstone of its brand positioning ignores the recent and rather rapid decline of the company stock over the past couple of years. Dunkin' Donuts, and McDonald's have landed severe body blows to Starbucks in the battle for premium coffee supremacy by being "more affordable" and a better value than the industry leader. The situation grew so severe that the company founder came out of retirement to replace the CEO and rescue the enterprise.

In designing and adopting a positioning centered on self indulgence, meant to justify premium prices (some would say highly overpriced), the company has absolutely declared a brand centered around price.

My client argued that the current economy and consumer belt-tightening have more to do with Starbucks' decline, and while there might be some truth to that, if we were just talking about a sales decline, I might agree. But I believe market share has definitely, and perhaps permanently shifted to the lower cost alternatives. If the Starbucks' value proposition was genuinely based on something other than premium pricing, the decline in sales and market share would not have been so rapid or so severe. At no time did Starbucks' customers, or the public fail to recognize this was an expensive/overpriced cup of Joe. In flush times, people were more accepting, but make no mistake, the rub was always there.

Starbucks greatest challenge is ahead. Once this economy shows signs of recovery how will it explain what I believe will be a continued decline in its business? Once people have altered their behaviors, it is very hard to win them back. Starbucks is yet another example in the marketplace of how consumer behaviors, based on little more than instant self-gratification will erode.

One of my favorite expressions (I think it comes from Tom Peters) is: "Every condition necessary for your best customer to leave you is in place and moving full steam ahead." The challenge of any management team is to forestall that exit by adapting while still keeping the brand authentic, relevant and consistent.

The National Museum of Health and Medicine

2009-06-30T20:45:00.004-05:00

This is my favorite museum in the world. I doubt you've ever been there. It's inconveniently located at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, DC. While it is a public museum, you are still required to show a photo ID at the guard gate to get on the base. Then, you have to wind your way through a maze of stately buildings to find the museum tucked away on the ground floor of the Armed Forces Institute for Pathology.

As part of an effort by Congress to trim military costs, and consolidate resources, Walter Reed is closing. More accurately, portions of it are moving and other portions are being what I call "decommissioned." In other words, put out of business.

A couple of years ago I was invited to assist the museum in formulating a strategy to keep it open. That was the beginning of my love affair with NMHM. First a little history . . .

NMHM was founded during the Civil War for the express purposes of collecting body parts and studying battlefield injury for military medicine. NHHM is one of only two facilities in the world that serve all the branches of the US military. They have millions and millions of relics and artifacts including the bullet that killed President Lincoln. Currently on display, you can walk through a field hospital that housed the most seriously wounded of our fighting men and women in Iraq.

NMHM is more than a museum. It's a working lab. It's had a role in the development of every prosthetic device used by the military from an old tree limb to modern day bionics. NMHM had a significant role in the development of body armor, which is saving thousands of lives on the battle field today, and it even has direct video hook-ups, to offer guidance in medical procedures to the field hospitals where some of our bravest and most seriously wounded military personnel are treated.

Working with NMHM has been a humbling and emmensely satisfying experience. Yes, I've been paid at times to provide my expertise, but I consider it a patriotic duty to stay involved, and as such, have volunteered my time, when necessary, to participate in a museum strategy session and voice my views regarding the museum.

When making the case for keeping the museum as it is, rather than breaking up the collection and distributing it to other parties, I make two points:

1. Every American should appreciate the solemn obligation we have to the valiant people who served our country and are now laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. Those heroes gave the ultimate sacrifice for their nation and our freedom. Equally as important, those people whose remains are represented in the collection of relics and artifacts at the NMHM gave the "ultimate sacrifice" twice. Not only did they die in service to their country, their remains have been given over for scientific, historic and research purposes so that others may be spared the same fate, and in other cases, so the injured are spared undo suffering and hardship.

2. We lost 54,000 Americans during 14 years of the Vietnam War. If one compares the seriousness of injuries between that conflict and what is happening in Iraq and Afghanistan, the death toll would be significantly higher in the current conflicts were it not for the advances, such as body armor, developed or advanced by the people connected to NMHM. Simply put, more of our brave fighting men and women are surviving the most serious injuries because NMHM exists.

Within the next year or so decisions will be made in Washington as to where NMHM will move, who will control it, and what shape its future will take. I can only hope that the powers that be see the importance of NMHM and its immense potential.

Rather than being housed at a single, out of the way location, NMHM has the potential to expand its mission by expanding and forging alliances with a wide variety of medical and technological entities, to form satellite facilities, traveling exhibits, and forward thinking agreements to access loaned elements of the collection. It is critical that the main public facility be located in or around Washington, DC. A national treasure of the significance of NMHM deserves to be showcased in our nation's capital, and not relegated to some obscure military base without convenient public transportation, or adequate recognition. We owe the great patriots whose remains are part of the NMHM collection nothing less.

Visit the web site linked above to see for yourself.

Upheaval in the House

2009-06-28T22:29:00.004-05:00

Please, June, hurry up and get over. You'd think the graduation of your oldest child would lend itself to a month of bliss and fond memories. This has been both the longest and most stressful month in memory. Sure, my daughter had a lovely graduation, dear family and friends came in to share the occasion with us, and all, but that event triggered a series of other events like a line of dominoes, each tumbling into the next to the point where I am numb from the weight of change.

My little girl no sooner got her diploma than she was off to DC to begin her internship. Her mom spent the first few days with her to get her settled and acclimate her to the transit system and the routes from the dorm where she is staying to the office. I arrived a few days later and combined a couple of days of work with a visit.

Then I headed back home to find my son about to leave with his cousin to visit with his aunt who owns a resort in Upstate NY. My daughter popped in for a brief visit over the weekend but spent most of her time at her boyfriend's belated graduation party. Now she's back in DC ready for work in the morning. My wife is working and away for three days.

The dynamics of the house and family have really changed with everyone coming and going. Unsettled seems to be the word of the month. July can't get here soon enough.

LeBron James Dilutes His Brand

2009-06-03T09:40:00.003-05:00

I admit it right up front, I am not an NBA fan and I would not consider paying to attend a game.

To this "non fan" the product offered by the NBA seems dominated by characters with whom I cannot connect. Tattoo covered bodies, "ghetto sheik" attitudes, and under-educated, over-paid man-children are not elements with which I can identify. In the end, all branding is about creating an "I see me" bond with the intended audience.

A prime example of everything I find distasteful in the NBA is personified in Cleveland Cavs star LeBron James. I admit he has become one of the biggest names in the league, and I am told, is considered by many to be the best player in the league, which no doubt has added immeasurably to his own brand advancement. Brands can sometimes be fragile things. Speaking strictly from a brand perspective, I believe he severely devalued his brand by refusing to shake hands with his opponents after losing in the league playoffs, which resulted in a firestorm of negative publicity.

Depending on which side of the argument you stand, he either advanced or detracted from the NBA brand value as well. There are those people who believe the league works hard to both embrace and control its "ghetto sheik" reputation because it draws urban crowds, and suburban "wannabes." Every "monster jam" is now followed by a demonstration of "monster" antics. The snarling, chest thumping, and primal screams by players get more and more theatrical and detract from the sport for me. I would never consider bringing my teenagers to an NBA game. There are exposed to enough ill-mannered examples in life without me appearing to endorse that kind of behavior.

Finally, Mr. James' actions reminded me of something someone else said, "Sports do not create character as much as reveal it." Perhaps Mr. James' actions will serve as reminder to all of us to examine our own behaviors and recognize examples where our own best character can come forth.

The Two Most Important Lists

2009-05-19T17:56:00.000-05:00

I read an interesting piece the other day by Alan M. Webber, blogging on Harvard Business Publishing. He poses a challenge to create arguably the only two lists you'll ever need at work to keep you balanced and your priorities straight:

Things That Keep Me Up At Night.
Reasons I Get Up In The Morning.

Here's what I came up with:

First, the TTKMUAN:
As my son says, "Dad, we eat what you kill. Get out there and kill something!" Hard to find enough "meat" in this economy. How will the bills get paid?

On average, a person can expect to live 75 years. Reflecting on how much of my life has past without distinction, or accomplishment, I wonder if this last third will have any significance. Am I becoming obsolete? Are my most useful years behind me? Do I now merely take my place among those people whose voices diminish with age, and gracefully abandon any thought of having an impact in the world?

As my daughter leaves home, goes out into the world to find her place, will she be safe? Have her mother and I prepared her properly for what awaits? How will the dynamics of the family be altered with her gone?

As my son enters manhood, have I been enough of a role model for him? Will he keep the loving, thoughtful and inquisitive nature I love in him so much, or will he begin to resemble the grumpy, worrisome old man I have become?

How was I behaving today so as to diminish the twinkle in the eyes of my children? I've defined myself through fatherhood for so many years, and taken such daily joy from it that I find myself denying there can be anything beyond this pinnacle.

Finally, I question how I can reinvent myself constantly.

Seriously, I think this stuff.

The RIGUITM:
Unquestionably, the admiration I have for my wife of 20 years who has weathered everything life throws at us and remains the unswerving force in both our marriage and our family. Her job sometimes has her rising in the wee hours of the morning, driving to a bus stop ten miles from home to then take an hour and a half bus ride to the airport where she will hop on a flight to the west coast. She turns right around and is back in the house about 16 hours after she left, only to repeat the schedule later that second day. This pattern repeats four times a month. Never once have I heard her say "I think I'll just call in sick and stay in bed this morning." When her schedule calls for her to leave in the late afternoon and spend the night away from home, I can sense the hardship it is for to leave the family at a time when we are all gathering from our daily pursuits.

Regardless of the time I went to bed, and the fact that both my high school age children are capable of getting themselves up and out in the morning, I feel compelled to kiss them goodbye, wish them a good day, see them out the door and watch them board the school bus that stops in front of our house. Some mornings their mom is home and she gets them going, and I oversleep, only to carry that disappointment with me all day.

With a "yappy," hyperactive dog, and a noisy overhead garage door to announce my arrival, I know that whatever time of day I enter the house, whoever is there will drop what they are doing to welcome me as I come through the door. It's a habit instilled in the children by their mother, and one I find extremely gratifying. Regardless of what has happened to any of us during the day, the reception is always the same warm hug and kiss. Even the dogs have learned to race to the door and await their turn in line for pat on the head.

It's an oddly short and narrow list isn't it? I don't lose sleep over business matters. As much as I enjoy my work, and passionately try to bring real value to my clients, it is not how I define myself. As many nonprofit roles as I've had, I don't lose sleep worrying about how to better the world through the various causes, nor do I view my work or avocations as reasons to get up in the morning.

I found this to be a fun exercise. Try it for yourself.

Fr. Pflager: The Upsidedown Flagger

2009-05-07T17:04:00.000-05:00

I want to make two points right at the start:
1. I believe Fr. Pflager has every right to fly his flag upside down. Let's not pretend the flag is exempt from use as a political statement. People wrap themselves in flags, burn flags and have demonstrated with it from its introduction. Why shouldn't he be afforded the same rights? While I fully respect their service and contribution, Veterans who are complaining that he is somehow insulting their effort have no greater claim to the flag than does any other American.
2. Children are being killed at an alarming rate, and if instead of bullets, it it was as a result of being hit with swine flu darts, the nation would be enraged and taking action.

I've dealt with Fr. Pflager and I have no respect for him. He is a showboat, self-serving, a media grandstander, and often seems more interested in getting his Pompadour on TV than leading meaningful action. Frankly, if any other pastor, or a more generally respected individual had hoisted their flag in this manner, I doubt there would be the level of outrage expressed by those who are opposed to his action. As usual, he shows his indignation, and bellows about injustice in America, but he has the equation as upside down as his flag.

He hangs the flag upside down, but offers no solution. He intends to keep the flag inverted until? Well, on his rounds of the radio stations today, he kind of stumbled through a vague response that didn't really answer the question. When asked exactly what action he'd like to see taken he blubbers and mutters some gibberish about "America protecting its children."
Why doesn't Fr. Pflager use his enormous community influence to identify real methods of ridding his community of drugs and gangs, which are the real causes of the violence?
Why is Fr. Pflager so reluctant to challenge the two real causes of despair in his community -- lack of personal responsibility and parental influence?
Father absence is the greatest social crisis we face in America, and it is no more evident than in Fr. Pflagers neighborhood. Why doesn't he instigate a campaign for men of his community to "man up" and take the responsibility they should for their children which includes discipline kids, teaching character and serving as good role models?
Why doesn't Fr. Pflager take responsibility for seeing that every child in his neighborhood is claimed and guarded by an adult male. Think of it as a "house by house" campaign to rid the neighborhood of any influence that tolerates illegal drugs, guns, gangs and violence. He doesn't do it, because he knows the majority of his community won't actively support it.

You see, while Fr. Pflager talks about kids dying all over America, the killings are essentially confined to the urban areas where fatherlessness, and father absence run at about 80-90%. In the state of IL as a whole, 35% of children are born without a father listed on their birth certificate. 40% of ALL children in the state of IL have no adult male in their household. These numbers skew most heavily toward the urban areas and speak to a lack of responsibility by the people in the very communities Fr. Pflager contends need America to wake up.

Want to stop the killing in your community Fr. Pflager? Teach adults not to make babies for which they are not willing to be active, daily parents. Teach parents to actively raise their children with high moral standards by setting a daily example for them. That would be real. Instead, Fr. Pflager would rather tilt the image upside down and blame "them" instead of us.

MLB - America's Tainted Pastime

2009-05-07T15:22:00.000-05:00

Manny Ramirez of the LA Dodgers can add his name to the Baseball Hall of Shame. MLB and its brand reputation are fast approaching a point a no return. MLB = performance enhancing drugs (PED).

Can we all finally admit illegal drug use is as prevalent and ingrained in baseball (and maybe all of professional sports) as fighting is in hockey. Baseball and the players union will pat themselves on the back for testing for and "exposing" violations, but they will not do what is needed to seriously curtail drug use. The window of opportunity to characterize PED as a brief, ugly phase in the past is no longer credible. Front office people tsk-tsk, on-field managers hang their heads, and the commissioner's office cranks out statistics on how limited PED use is, and how vigilant they are in ferreting out the offenders. And still, the game is dirty.

The fact that MLB and the clean players have circled the wagons and allowed the union to protect offenders to the extent they have, means everyone in the game must now be considered suspect. Ramirez gets a 50 game suspension. So, while he forfeits around 8 million dollars of his mega contract this year, he's still eligible for the playoffs and a slew of related incentive clauses should the Dodgers qualify for postseason play. Ramirez will hardly miss the eight mil. At this point, he's got more money than he could ever spend. Fining a guy like him isn't a deterrent and far from the greatest damage being done.

At this point, no right-thinking brand can align with individual players as endorsers. Too many heroes have been unmasked. Even those players have submitted to and passed every conceivable drug test is a risk to consider as future endorsers. You can't have it both ways. Singing the praises of your teammate when the team is winning and then trying to distance yourself from a guy who is exposed as a PED user who occupies an adjoining locker only results in the old adage that people are judged by the friends they keep.

A faltering economy and the disenchantment fans feel toward players and the game may be creating the "perfect storm." Attendance, particularly in the "high roller" seats in the newer stadiums, is down. It's still spring, so it's not unusual to see lots of empty seats in MLB ballparks, but I contend the purity of the game, which has always had a mystical hold over fans, has been compromised so badly that those feeling the pinch of the economy most severely will find other ways entertain themselves and their children.

Talk to any group of young teen boys and you'll see the mystical fascination for the game, rabid support for individual players that once was a hallmark of baseball fans no longer exists. A generation exposed to graft and corruption in traditional sports has taken its pursuit of fantasy elsewhere.

Communicating Isn't Connecting: Disney Knows Christmas

2009-05-05T17:15:00.000-05:00

Once and for all, let me clear this up. I am not anti-marketing. A good part of how I make my living has to do with marketing. The distinction I make is marketing is a means of expressing a brand, but not the BRAND itself, or even the core of "branding." Branding is the master, marketing is but one many servants. Sales process, product development, organizational development, distribution channels, and a host of other disciplines are no less significant in defining and advancing a brand.

Marketing is all about communicating. Branding is all about connecting. People sometimes confuse the two. Building a brand is done by defining, clarifying, and refining behaviors, practices and policy that reinforces the experience you want with your target audience.

So why is it that people are so quick to hang the full weight of their brand on the hook called marketing? It has a lot to do with the people in marketing who are quick to promise that a spiffy new logo, name change, or revamped collateral materials will establish a brand. Why? Because those are the things they have to sell. As the old saying goes, "to a carpenter with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail." In a sense, marketing people are house painters. They promise you a "like new" home through a splash of paint. Marketing(painting) is a repeatable deliverable that generates revenue for the marketing people. Their income depends on their ability to get cleints to "repaint" frequently.

One of my favorite examples of true branding at work is the way Disney decorates its theme park in Orlando for the Christmas season. If you've ever been there during the Christmas season you know the entire place is transformed into a winter wonderland with garland, Holiday lights, Christmas trees, and poinsettias everywhere. It truly is a spectacular sight.

Twice, I was staying at the park during the change over from "fall" decorations to Christmas displays. Both years, my family and I went to bed late in the evening and woke to find the entire park including every tree, light, plant, fake snowfall, and candy cane was installed while we slept!

Can you image the logistical challenges associated with a task of this magnitude? Why does Disney do it all in one night rather than spread it over a couple of days? The simple answer is Disney's core value is Imagination. To be true to that value, the company insists that every decision be made with the intent of supporting the imagination of the park guests. If a child goes to bed at night and wakes the next morning to step ladders, crates, and workers installing decorations, how would that support imagination? On the other hand, how cool is it that a child can go to sleep after an exciting day in the park and wake the next morning to find that everywhere they look, it's Christmas!

That branding at work, boys and girls.

Taken to the mat for the last time

2009-04-23T15:39:00.000-05:00

The other night, after a tiring day, I found myself sitting in front of the TV in my bedroom. My son came in and plopped on the bed. He almost immediately began pleading with me to give him a back massage, since he'd spent most of the afternoon in weight training for his high school soccer team.

I'm one of those people who loves getting, but never giving massages. But he knows if he begs long enough I'll usually relent. Reluctantly, and somewhat resentfully, I approached the bed.

Instead of the relaxing massage he anticipated I launched into a version of bed wrestling we used to call "Doggie/Kittie Fight." Throughout his and his sister's lives we've had a family tradition of piling on the bed and roughhousing. It usually starts when one team or the other (boys are the doggies, girls are the kitties) screams "Doggie/Kittie Fight" at the top of their lungs to signal a challenge. Everyone in the house drops what they're doing and piles on top of one another on the bed.

Sometimes the purpose of the game is for one team to "pin" the other. Sometimes, we merely see who can sprawl and bounce on the other until they "tap out." It always involves a lot rolling around, climbing over each other, and "house rules." As an example, once a "kitty" can break free and voluntarily leaves the bed, they cannot be dragged back. Usually, leaving the bed was merely a ruse to circle around and attack from a more advantageous point. You get the idea.

It has been sometime since we did this, and as you can imagine, my eighteen year old daughter no longer has any interest whatsoever in this type of behavior. Mom is now considerably shorter and easily overpowered by our fifteen year-old son. Once and a while over recent years, my son and I would do a little "Mano-e-Mano" wrestling on the bed, but even that seemed to been outgrown and relegated alongside Doggie/Kittie fights to the parental fond memory bin.

But to my surprise, there was still some old fight left in the doggies.

When the dust settled, the real dogs in our house had both fled the room in panic and were now in highly agitated states in the family room, the bedding was stripped clear. both of us were winded, complaining of various aches and pains inflicted by the other, fully exhausted and completely overjoyed and relieved that were able to go at it full tilt and not seriously hurt one another.

It wasn't until the next morning that it dawned on me that for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is my son has suddenly grown bigger and stronger than me, that this was very likely the last time we would be able to go at this way without one of us (me) needing medical attention. The Top Dog is dead. Long live the top dog. Long live Doggie/Kittie fights.

"It ain't music if the lyrics don't sing."

2009-04-23T14:29:00.000-05:00

My friend Donna is in Chicago and called me from her cell phone the other day. "Hey Jim, how bizare is this? I just got a call from a guy who asked for you. His name is John Brown"

Now, while that is a fairly common name, I know only one John Brown. But why would he try to reach me through Donna? Of course -- Donna was once married to Steve, whose sister and I worked together in NY a lifetime ago with (wait for it . . .) John Brown!

Thirty years since I last saw the first (and one of the best) copywriters I've known, and instantly, I recalled his face and the line for which I will always remember him: "It ain't music if the lyrics don't sing."

It was my first job in advertising and as the rawest of assistant account executives, I was being paid $8750 a year. The company parking lot had reserved spaces where ranking individuals had an engraved nameplate neatly hung on the hedge row at their spot. There sat the Porsches, BMWs, and Jags of agency management. I wasn't assigned a spot when I first joined the agency. My aged, rotted-out mustard yellow and rust brown Ford Maverick resembled a discolored cow, and got towed once from the lot because someone thought it was an abandoned car. Nonetheless, John Brown treated me with no less respect (and at times, more) than he exhibited toward the agency president.

John taught me how valuable words are. His ability to craft a phrase and his respect for the English language was a profound lesson I took from my three years at that firm. I couldn't wait to call him back and dialed the number as quickly as I hung up with Donna.

"John Brown," echoed in my receiver and I smiled thinking to myself, his voice hasn't changed a bit in all these years.

"John Brown, huh?" was all I could think to say before he interrupted me.

"Fuck you, you fucking asshole." Yep. he left no doubt, this was the same John Brown.

"Just answer me one question, and don't lie -- How's your sex life?" As the host for our regularly scheduled porn film luncheons in the agency conference room, and as the keeper of the extensive library from which the videos were shown, I guess I could anticipate a comment like this from John. Was it more than coincidence that John called me within hours of the announcement of Marilyn Chambers passing? Her work made up a large portion of his collection.

Forty minutes later, we'd geven each other a snapshot of our life, and career, the comings and goings of many of our mutual contacts, the girls from the office we both pursued (unsuccessfully), and the state of the world.

As a junior person at the agency, my reputation was that of greenhorn. The agency president once called me into his office to tell me I was being promoted at a management position at the request of the client, but against his better judgement. he summed up my skills as that of "street fighter in the company of ballroom dancers." With a fair measure of satisfaction, I've used that expression to describe myself many times over the years.

"I think you have been elevated to your level of incompetence. I expect I'll have the privilege of proving my point, and calling you back into the office within the next year and firing your ass." Without a hint of insincerity in his voice, that was as close to congratulating me as the boss would come. I couldn't blame him. He was forced to promote me and remove one of his best friends, who by the way, was a very accomplished dancer both literally and figuratively.

He summed up my rapid rise at the agency this way: "See, you wouldn't be promoted this fast if the client didn't think you were the best account executive they'd ever seen. What neither you or they appreciate is that now you will be charged with getting others to perform better than you did."

I'll never forget what he said next. "You'll be charged with taking the client and the account somewhere they don't even know they need to go, and can't see from where they are at any moment in time." That message of the universal truth of management's (and an adviser's) role stuck with me.

A couple of years later, when I moved to Chicago to manage McDonald's national PR business, and I'll admit, in all the positions I've held since, those words of wisdom traveled with me.

"You were young back then, but I liked you and just wanted to see how your life turned out," was how John summed up his reason for reaching out to me. "You proved that you didn't have to be the smartest, the best educated, or the most experienced to succeed. You merely had to be willing to work harder than the rest." John seemed almost as pleased with my life as I've been.

After agreeing to stay in touch, we hung up.

Throughout the rest of the day I couldn't help but marvel at the trail each of leaves in life and how connected I remain to the people and the lessons learned in those early days of my career. I've seldom taken a job because of the company, the position, or the salary. Even as a young boy, I sought out people for whom I just knew could teach me things, and then I found a way to work for them. Being exposed to people like John Brown, who I consider a modern day poet, has been the real secret to any success I enjoy.

Toyota Venza and its meaningless message

2009-04-22T14:21:00.000-05:00

Recently, I went on a Twitter rant about the ads that Toyota is running for its Venza model. The voiceover explains that "You are more than one thing, and so is Venza." I find the whole premise baffling. As a current, and longtime Toyota driver, I feel I have the right to react to their messages. Given the current desparate state of affairs that the US auto makers put themselves in, and the government's pleading for consumers to spend, I want to know "business as usual" days within the auto industry are over before I go wading back into the market.

Through this ilconceived campaign is Toyota suggesting that I am defined by different usage occasions? I go to work, I drive at night to social events, I shop. Do they believe these different driving destinations and purposes define me? So in the morning the Venza is reliable work transportation, and during the lunch hour it's a good drive-thru vehicle, and at night it presents me as a "sporty guy" when I pull up in front of my favorite hangout? I don't get it.

Is there some other meaning I've missed?

For Toyota's purposes, I want them to accept I AM ONE THING. I am the driver of an automobile. I do not define myself through shallow things like the model of car I drive. A car provides transportation. Admittedly, some car features lend themselves to certain lifestyles and pursuts. it wouldn't be practical to use a convertible if I intended to use the vehicle for a housepainting business, nor would it seem wise to buy a large SUV for a simple one-mile commute from home to office. But if Toyota can't say anything more meaningful through the tens (hundreds?) of millions of dollars it is spending on this ad campaign then they no longer deserve my business.

It's too bad Toyota decided that appealing to my appreciation of its well-made, dependable and economic to operate cars can no longer be told in a compelling manner. Instead they revert to some bogus, customer ego-stroking gobbligook.

The marketing department and the agency should be ashamed of themselves.

When a mentor passes

2009-04-07T11:17:00.001-05:00

This is my first entry into this blog. I think it fitting that I dedicate it a mentor and friend who passed recently. I expect to cover a wide range of topics on which I have some pretty pointed views, but today's entry is all about paying respect to one of the forces that helped me shape my opinions and life views . . .

Maybe it can be said of many other things as well, but my first client in the ad business remains one of my favorite. Rich Guon, a McDonald's Owner/Operator in Rochester, NY was only a few years older than me, but seemed generations wiser. He took me under his wing when I first entered the ad business as an assistant account executive. He was my client, but also my mentor and advocate. Along with Dick Weaver, another McDonald's O/O, he got me promoted at the agency well before my bosses or I thought I was ready, and eventually recommended me to McDonald's corporate in Chicago where I handled national PR at their agency.

The odd part is I had no education, training or background in either the ad business or fast food when I met Rich. Without his and Dick Weaver's guidance I wouldn't have lasted a year in the job. They were great teachers.

Rich passed on Saturday while attending a Ronald McDonald's House ceremony at which he was being honored. At 62, he still had much to offer the world. He was extremely community minded, and demonstrated it through numerous activities he was responsible for intiating. He taught me that regardless of how much power or control you had in a situation, it was important not to appear to be wielding it. His approach was to be clear and decisive, but rarely imposing. Over the years, I've shared an expression with my colleagues, employees, clients, and fellow volunteers that he first said to me: "As important as we might think our work is, it ain't a cure for cancer." It was Rich's way of saying not to take oneself too seriously. His other frequent comment was "It ain't brain surgery." Like Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald's, Rich believed in keeping things simple.

Throughout my career I've made choices in jobs, clients, and nonprofit roles not so much based on the work, compensation, company reputation, opportunity for advancement or mission as much as the person for whom I would be working. Rich was my favorite McDonald's person and working with him was a part of the job I relished most.

It was Rich who taught me an important insight about myself. I like to start things -- big things, and see them gain traction. But I don't enjoy maintaining things. That's why Rich urged me to set my sights high, take on audacious tasks, and always have a clear exit strategy. Leaving a role and organization in far better condition than you found it was something he taught me was of primary importance. Kind of how he left the world.