Showing posts with label Brand Experience. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brand Experience. Show all posts
Saturday, June 27, 2015
Foodservice Marketing Keynote Speaker on McDonald's Restaurants Recovery
It's kind of Deja Vu all over again for McDonald's. As a marketing and leadership speaker to foodservice groups, I regularly commented on the great job McDonald's did about ten years ago to turn the business around. In 2003, the Golden Arches had suffered its first ever quarterly loss..
Many of the problems they had then have come back to haunt them including Brand Relevance, Menu overload, aggressive competition. Wonder what I'll be saying in a few years about this turnaround effort.
More clips at Foodservice Marketing Speaker at my IrishmanSpeaks website
Thursday, February 05, 2009
Ticketmaster: Held Up Without A Gun
The Bruce Springsteen song title Held up without a gun just about represents the awful, pathetic brand experience from ticketmaster (I wouldn't bother with a capital 'T') when selling tickets to the great rocker's concerts.
When it comes to screwing every last cent out of valued customers, ticketmaster must be top of the heap. The company's ludicrous service and billing charges have long been a bane to ticket buyers but the way the company handled Bruce Springsteen ticket sales this week is appalling.
What is even more appalling is consumers really do not have a choice when purchasing tickets.
Springsteen Chicago tickets went on sale at 10.00am Monday morning. I hit buy tickets at 10.00 on the button and get ‘processing order – one minute’ which goes to ‘three minutes’ to ‘four minutes.’ At about 10.05, ON the ticketmaster website I am offered scalped tickets by a tickmaster subsidiary TicketsNow which claims hands off relationship with ticketmaster. The site claims “Tickets listed on TicketsNow come from licensed brokers, as well as individual sellers.”
I am sure this is correct, but what kind of system provides hundreds of higher priced tickets – purchased supposedly on a hands off basis – within such a short period of time?
TicketsNow was offering hundreds of tickets within five minutes and as I write this today, it has 1,411 tickets for sale for the Chicago concert alone. That is about 7% of the United Center capacity. If you are really interested in seeing The Boss, you can buy 8 good tickets for $6,756 at this site. The good news is that this is the total price as the figure includes a service charge of $108.45 PER ticket. Service charge! $108.45! PER TICKET! The bad news is those tickets were originally listed at $95 on the ticketmaster website.
I do believe TicketsNow is technically operating on a ‘hands off’ basis. ClickitNow, another online scalper had over 800 tickets for sale by 10.30 Monday morning. Where do these companies get these tickets so fast?
In one sense it is a tribute to the entrepreneurial culture that this country so badly needs right now. The profit margins in this business are enormous and the investment in time and infrastructure is well worth the effort. I can even appreciate why ticketmaster wonders why it loses out on the increased premium, but its system stinks. When it comes to awful, bad taste in the mouth brand experience ticketmaster is top of the dung heap.
And the great news is the next time I want to purchase tickets for Springsteen who provides an astonishing BRAND EXPERIENCE, I have to go to ticketmaster.
Even a humorous, inspirational, motivational, business, keynote speaker like me has difficulty in finding a bright spot in that.
Enough of the wailing! As The Boss might sing, It’s hard to be a Saint in the City but we were Born to Run, so I’m Waitin’ on a Sunny Day to get my Springsteen tickets.
In the meantime, I’m going to beat the living daylights out of the recession, work harder, work smarter and fulfill my BRAND PROMISE of E4: Energize, Educate, Entertain AND Easy to work with. Phone me today at 630 718 1643 if you are looking for a speaker to ROCK your next event.
Have a Top o’ the Morning day.
When it comes to screwing every last cent out of valued customers, ticketmaster must be top of the heap. The company's ludicrous service and billing charges have long been a bane to ticket buyers but the way the company handled Bruce Springsteen ticket sales this week is appalling.
What is even more appalling is consumers really do not have a choice when purchasing tickets.
Springsteen Chicago tickets went on sale at 10.00am Monday morning. I hit buy tickets at 10.00 on the button and get ‘processing order – one minute’ which goes to ‘three minutes’ to ‘four minutes.’ At about 10.05, ON the ticketmaster website I am offered scalped tickets by a tickmaster subsidiary TicketsNow which claims hands off relationship with ticketmaster. The site claims “Tickets listed on TicketsNow come from licensed brokers, as well as individual sellers.”
I am sure this is correct, but what kind of system provides hundreds of higher priced tickets – purchased supposedly on a hands off basis – within such a short period of time?
TicketsNow was offering hundreds of tickets within five minutes and as I write this today, it has 1,411 tickets for sale for the Chicago concert alone. That is about 7% of the United Center capacity. If you are really interested in seeing The Boss, you can buy 8 good tickets for $6,756 at this site. The good news is that this is the total price as the figure includes a service charge of $108.45 PER ticket. Service charge! $108.45! PER TICKET! The bad news is those tickets were originally listed at $95 on the ticketmaster website.
I do believe TicketsNow is technically operating on a ‘hands off’ basis. ClickitNow, another online scalper had over 800 tickets for sale by 10.30 Monday morning. Where do these companies get these tickets so fast?
In one sense it is a tribute to the entrepreneurial culture that this country so badly needs right now. The profit margins in this business are enormous and the investment in time and infrastructure is well worth the effort. I can even appreciate why ticketmaster wonders why it loses out on the increased premium, but its system stinks. When it comes to awful, bad taste in the mouth brand experience ticketmaster is top of the dung heap.
And the great news is the next time I want to purchase tickets for Springsteen who provides an astonishing BRAND EXPERIENCE, I have to go to ticketmaster.
Even a humorous, inspirational, motivational, business, keynote speaker like me has difficulty in finding a bright spot in that.
Enough of the wailing! As The Boss might sing, It’s hard to be a Saint in the City but we were Born to Run, so I’m Waitin’ on a Sunny Day to get my Springsteen tickets.
In the meantime, I’m going to beat the living daylights out of the recession, work harder, work smarter and fulfill my BRAND PROMISE of E4: Energize, Educate, Entertain AND Easy to work with. Phone me today at 630 718 1643 if you are looking for a speaker to ROCK your next event.
Have a Top o’ the Morning day.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Praise the Lord - The Pint is Safe
As a keynote speaker and business humorist, I quite often speak on Change and how business must adapt to change. However, some things should not be changed. Never. Ever. Not even after that. One of those is the “pint,” as in the pint measure of Guinness.
As part of European Union membership, Ireland adopted the metric system some years ago. State roads have switched to kilometers and weights are now in kilos. The imperial measure of lbs. and ounces has gone the way of Rod Blagojevich. Today, you buy your soft drinks and petrol (OK gas) in liters, everything except, praise the Lord, the pint of Guinness.
Yes, in a milestone announcement, the Brussels bureaucrats have said the “pint” is safe and no self respecting Irishman will be forced to ask for a ‘half liter of Guinness barman.’ For those of you who wonder why this evokes such an emotional response from all right thinking Irishmen and Irishwomen I offer you the following excerpt on the Brand Experience from my book Why Ireland Never Invaded America. Enjoy, preferably with a beautiful, smooth pint of Guinness at your fingertips.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Sitting at the bar, Jake scanned the interior of the
pub. Walls were covered with framed photographs
of sporting occasions; many were sports Jake had
difficulty comprehending. Sports jerseys bearing the
logo, “Jack McCarthy’s Bar,” bedecked the far wall.
“Finbarr, a person could die of thirst here. How
long does it take to pour a pint of Guinness?”
“Jake, you are a heathen. Do you not know that
Guinness is a religious experience, man? It is also a
cultural experience and a work of art. You cannot,
Jake, you cannot rush a work of art, no matter how
much you want to. Can you imagine how da Vinci
would have felt, when painting the Mona Lisa, like, if
he got a phone call from his patron to say, ‘Hey, Leo,
is da painting of me missus ready yet?’ He wouldn’t
have been too impressed, me lad, not too impressed
at all. It’s the same with this black magic we are
waiting on. Guinness isn’t just a product. It is an
experience, and that, me boyo, is what you should be
offering your customers with your products—an
experience. You’ve got to give them a reason to
purchase beyond just the core product.”
Two pints of Guinness appeared in front of the
cousins. Jake moved to lift his pint and was gently
chided by Finbarr.
“Take it easy, man. Just look at that work of art in
front of you. Appreciate it. Don’t drink it yet, it hasn’t
settled. Look. Look and wonder at the way those tiny
orphan bubbles are moving through the glass,
seeking rest in some Guinness wonderland. When
those bubbles finally cease, when those brown clouds
finally settle, when you have a clean black beautiful
pint in front of you, that—Jake, that, is when you
raise the magical brew to those parched lips of yours.”
“Jeez, you’re making this like a sacred
experience.”
“And is it not?” said Finbarr, his voice rising in
mock horror. “You know, we have numerous
Guinness connoisseurs who come in here every
night, not for the drink mind, but just to be able to
watch—and wonder—and wait, as their pint of
Guinness settles.”
“Yeah, right. Of course, to appreciate that a few
times a night, they have to drink the pint.”
“That’s right. That’s right. But that’s only an afterthought,
a side benefit, like. I reckon those guys
would rather watch the pint settle than look at
Pamela Anderson.”
“They’re obviously perverts, Finbarr. Now do you
Why Ireland Never Invaded America
mind if I take my first drink?”
“Knock it back, Jake. You deserve it. But when
doing it, remember, that it’s more than the product
you are consuming.”
Jake sipped at the creamy pint and wiped his
upper lip in appreciation.
“It’s like mother’s milk, isn’t it, Jake?”
“Yeah, it’s good stuff. Guinness must be one of
the best known brands in the world, Finbarr.”
“That’s right. That’s right. You know you can
debate until the cows come home how Guinness
developed the image and loyalty it has today, but
whatever it is, Guinness and a small number of other
brands have a unique magic which ensures that their
consumer pull—brand loyalty if you like—is much
greater than it logically should be. A kind of ‘je ne
sais quoi’ if you will.”
“Ooh, that’s pretty posh.”
“Shut up and drink your pint. I’m trying to be
serious here. You can’t put a value on that brand
magic. It’s what Harley-Davidson has got and it’s
what Starbucks has got. Jake, if you could ever
develop a sense of magic around your brand, that is
when you will start to make some real money,
because consumers will be buying your product—
not for its core, but for something intangible.”
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Makes you thirsty, doesn't it?
As part of European Union membership, Ireland adopted the metric system some years ago. State roads have switched to kilometers and weights are now in kilos. The imperial measure of lbs. and ounces has gone the way of Rod Blagojevich. Today, you buy your soft drinks and petrol (OK gas) in liters, everything except, praise the Lord, the pint of Guinness.
Yes, in a milestone announcement, the Brussels bureaucrats have said the “pint” is safe and no self respecting Irishman will be forced to ask for a ‘half liter of Guinness barman.’ For those of you who wonder why this evokes such an emotional response from all right thinking Irishmen and Irishwomen I offer you the following excerpt on the Brand Experience from my book Why Ireland Never Invaded America. Enjoy, preferably with a beautiful, smooth pint of Guinness at your fingertips.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Sitting at the bar, Jake scanned the interior of the
pub. Walls were covered with framed photographs
of sporting occasions; many were sports Jake had
difficulty comprehending. Sports jerseys bearing the
logo, “Jack McCarthy’s Bar,” bedecked the far wall.
“Finbarr, a person could die of thirst here. How
long does it take to pour a pint of Guinness?”
“Jake, you are a heathen. Do you not know that
Guinness is a religious experience, man? It is also a
cultural experience and a work of art. You cannot,
Jake, you cannot rush a work of art, no matter how
much you want to. Can you imagine how da Vinci
would have felt, when painting the Mona Lisa, like, if
he got a phone call from his patron to say, ‘Hey, Leo,
is da painting of me missus ready yet?’ He wouldn’t
have been too impressed, me lad, not too impressed
at all. It’s the same with this black magic we are
waiting on. Guinness isn’t just a product. It is an
experience, and that, me boyo, is what you should be
offering your customers with your products—an
experience. You’ve got to give them a reason to
purchase beyond just the core product.”
Two pints of Guinness appeared in front of the
cousins. Jake moved to lift his pint and was gently
chided by Finbarr.
“Take it easy, man. Just look at that work of art in
front of you. Appreciate it. Don’t drink it yet, it hasn’t
settled. Look. Look and wonder at the way those tiny
orphan bubbles are moving through the glass,
seeking rest in some Guinness wonderland. When
those bubbles finally cease, when those brown clouds
finally settle, when you have a clean black beautiful
pint in front of you, that—Jake, that, is when you
raise the magical brew to those parched lips of yours.”
“Jeez, you’re making this like a sacred
experience.”
“And is it not?” said Finbarr, his voice rising in
mock horror. “You know, we have numerous
Guinness connoisseurs who come in here every
night, not for the drink mind, but just to be able to
watch—and wonder—and wait, as their pint of
Guinness settles.”
“Yeah, right. Of course, to appreciate that a few
times a night, they have to drink the pint.”
“That’s right. That’s right. But that’s only an afterthought,
a side benefit, like. I reckon those guys
would rather watch the pint settle than look at
Pamela Anderson.”
“They’re obviously perverts, Finbarr. Now do you
Why Ireland Never Invaded America
mind if I take my first drink?”
“Knock it back, Jake. You deserve it. But when
doing it, remember, that it’s more than the product
you are consuming.”
Jake sipped at the creamy pint and wiped his
upper lip in appreciation.
“It’s like mother’s milk, isn’t it, Jake?”
“Yeah, it’s good stuff. Guinness must be one of
the best known brands in the world, Finbarr.”
“That’s right. That’s right. You know you can
debate until the cows come home how Guinness
developed the image and loyalty it has today, but
whatever it is, Guinness and a small number of other
brands have a unique magic which ensures that their
consumer pull—brand loyalty if you like—is much
greater than it logically should be. A kind of ‘je ne
sais quoi’ if you will.”
“Ooh, that’s pretty posh.”
“Shut up and drink your pint. I’m trying to be
serious here. You can’t put a value on that brand
magic. It’s what Harley-Davidson has got and it’s
what Starbucks has got. Jake, if you could ever
develop a sense of magic around your brand, that is
when you will start to make some real money,
because consumers will be buying your product—
not for its core, but for something intangible.”
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Makes you thirsty, doesn't it?
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