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February 8, 2010February 8, 2010

The Ads Have It

Good Super Bowl. Saints deserved to win. Brees outplayed Peyton. Mardi Gras will be long this year.

The Who put on a solid performance – although I kept thinking: 1) I hope Roger Daltrey doesn’t have a heart attack; and, 2) It’s time to leave behind the rock icons and start using current stars. (Guessing next year in Dallas, Jerry Jones will serve up an array of country acts – George Strait, Kenny Chesney and Carrie Underwood.)

Like the game, the commercials will go down as good, not great. The ad execs were as conservative as the Colts offense. No one showed the kind of risk-taking Sean Payton took with that onside kick to open the second half.

Here is my Top 10 for 2010:

10. Budweiser “Clydesdales” – I wanted to put the Super Bowl Shuffle remix here; however, any ad that includes a Bevo lookalike works for me.

9. Audi “Green Police” – Great concept that built toward a surprise ending as a car commercial.

8. Google “Paris” – This one probably didn’t make your list…but for simplicity and creativity, it was a winner (especially since my daughter spent last summer in France).

7. Kia “Sock Monkey” – Anyone willing to bring back that classic symbol of the stock market bubble deserves recognition. Really liked the robot doing the robot.

6. CBS “Letterman” – Great connection with recent NBC late night challenges. Oprah mediated as Leno took subtle swipe at his own network.

5. Denny’s “Grand Slam” – It was corny, but I liked the screaming chickens.

4. Budweiser “Bridge” – Nice take using a ‘B’ movie approach. I could hear some small town folks in west Texas saying, “Yep, we’d do that here.”

3. Tru.tv “Troy Polamalu” – Well-timed Groundhog Day premise with a shocking ending. Good follow-up to his shampoo commercials that appeared all season.

2. Snickers “Betty White” – The moment it came on, I said, “That looks like Betty White.” Turns out it was. Liked the Abe Vigoda ending. Surprised to learn he’s still alive.

1. Doritos “My Momma” – Ads with children and pets always work, especially when the kid gets in the face of mom’s date.

Finally, I hope all the pundits and folks who criticized Tim Tebow learned a lesson. Before you make negative comments, watch the ad. This turned out to be one of the better ones – and a great way to handle a difficult subject. Focus on the Family got a lot of value from its investment.

February 4, 2010February 4, 2010

Does Competition Lower Prices?

Apple and its iconic leader Steve Jobs rank near the top of any list of great innovators. Dating back to the introduction of the Macintosh on Super Bowl Sunday 1984 – and the Orwellian ad directed by Ridley Scott – continuing through the iPod, iMac and now iPad… Apple keeps churning out the hits and changing industries.

After Amazon shook the publishing world with its Kindle electronic reader, most pundits felt it was a matter of time before Apple would introduce a better device. It took two years before last week’s announcement of a “truly magical product” that comes in full color, allows Internet access, works with all 140,000 Apps – and this is just version 1.0.

Of course, there’s a ‘dark side’ of any great story… and this one impacts consumers. Kindle pricing on new releases is $10 – a tremendous savings compared to buying the hardback; however, within days of the iPads’ introduction, Macmillan said it will increase e-book prices to $13-$15.

Amazon reacted by pulling Macmillan titles: “We have expressed our strong disagreement and the seriousness of our disagreement by temporarily ceasing the sale of all Macmillan titles. Ultimately, however, we will have to capitulate and accept Macmillan’s terms.”

So going forward, Macmillan will set prices and pay Amazon a 30 percent commission. Not surprisingly, that’s the agreement Apple made with major publishers. (And you thought all of the mystery and drama only happens inside the pages!)

February 1, 2010

Grass Is Always Greener

Last week I was facilitating the quarterly check-in meeting with one of my oil and gas client’s teams. These 55 energetic folks are responsible for delivering $120 million in revenue this year. As you might imagine, they are feeling some pressure to execute efficiently. One person began her comments by saying, “Everyone needs to understand our industry is changing quickly…” The only thing I remember about the rest of her statement is it appeared she was trying to justify some of the challenges they’ve faced thus far.

My guidance was to suggest they not fall back on a “we’re different than everybody else” crutch. I mentioned the airline commission cuts of 1995 – and ultimate elimination a few years later – and how one-third of travel agents evaporated from the industry.

I asked how many of them would like to be a printer right now. No one volunteered. Then I said, “Imagine you work at Amazon. You’re sitting on top of the world with Kindle…until Steve Jobs introduces iPad. How are you feeling today?”

Evolution. Commoditization. Overcapacity. There will always be something that jumps up and disrupts the smooth road you’re walking.

I was the co-owner of a sports travel company during the commission cuts. People across the industry were screaming for a class action lawsuit. We took a different approach – gathering our leaders and asking, “What now?” It took about a year for us to discover a better path. Today, that business – which I sold to my partner – is a two-time recipient of the “Best Travel Company in North America” award.

Of course, there was a class action lawsuit regarding the commission cuts. We eventually received a check for about $1,000. Good thing that wasn’t the change we counted on for success.

January 27, 2010January 27, 2010

Quick Reflexes

Toyota instructed dealers yesterday to stop selling the Camry and seven other models due to the potential danger of accelerator pedals sticking. The company recalled more than two million vehicles – on top of the four million previously recalled because of the risk of a loose floor mat jamming accelerators.

Great move by Toyota to intervene before this issue leads to more accidents and perhaps tragedy. Engineers are working around the clock to determine the cause of the latest concern. Tough challenge for dealers who suddenly lost a significant part of their revenue stream and now have to deal with confused/angry customers. (I can only imagine how many calls their dealerships will take today with people asking, “Can I drive it or do I need to park it in my garage?”)

There is a great lesson here for all business leaders. You can’t wait until something happens to decide how you’ll react. Make contingency plans now for potential disaster later (think: weather-related disruptions; product delivery delays; bad publicity; sudden death of a key team member; etc.). While you won’t know the specific problem that will arise, you can decide how you will handle most situations.

Be sure you have in place procedures for knowing: a) Which essential employees need to be notified first; b) Who is authorized to speak for your organization and what consistent message will be delivered; c) How you will handle the inevitable media rush; d) What steps you will take to rectify the situation as quickly as possible; and e) When you will announce changes and provide status updates.

Since 1983, I have owned in succession three Toyotas and driven them a combined 350,000+ miles. They’ve been great cars – needing only minor repairs – and two of our children learned to drive on our current 2001 Camry. I’m guessing the smart folks at Toyota will figure this one out quickly… and get right back to work rebuilding trust in their highly respected brand.

December 30, 2009

Give Where You Can

And the last of the Top 10 things I learned in 2009:

We Are The World – Are you aware a billion people do not have access to clean drinking water and nearly 40,000 children die every week from lack of this basic need? Charity: Water is one of the nonprofits that provides clean and safe drinking water – with 100% of donations funding freshwater projects in developing nations. Just $20 gives a person in Africa safe drinking water for 20 years. Take a look at how Scott Harrison and his organization are saving lives.