Willie Aames: Famous & Broke

Last night, Butch and the gang at Sonny's Cozy Tavern watched the VH1 special Famous & Broke. The show chronicles the recent struggles of actor Willie Aames.

Willie was a teen idol in the late 70's/early 80's, an actor on Eight Is Enough and Charles In Charge into the '90s.  My sisters had posters of Willie on their bedroom walls when I was kid.  We all thought Willie was on top of the world.  But, as the show reveals, Willie was troubled.  He was a lonely guy.

Cut to a more recent time.  I was doing a radio commercial for a client, and Willie Aames was one of the talent we'd hired for voice work.  He came in, delivered his lines like a pro and joined a few of us in the studio to just hang out.  He saw my friends and I having a great time, laughing & cutting up, and I think he just wanted to be part of that -- just regular guys hanging out.  He shared his personal story.  Teen idol, drugs & alcohol, failed relationships, lost soul finding God, the whole story.

After chilling with us for some time, Willie said, "Hey, guys, this was fun.  You guys are cool.  You want to go grab a burger someplace?"  For varied reasons, we all had to bow out.  I actually saw disappointment on his face.  As I drove home, I felt bad (sad for Willie), because I realized that Willie really did want to hang out with us.  He was a recovering celebrity who just yearned to be a regular guy.  I wish we had gone with Willie to grab a burger.  He was just looking for some friends -- real friends, not fake celebrity-chasing friends.

In watching Famous & Broke last night, I saw the same Willie Aames.  A guy who is good at heart, who just wants a regular life, but has trouble attaining it because everyone treats him like Willie Aames, the celebrity.  I'm glad to see that Butch's friends at Waddell & Reed have given him a break and hired him to be a Certified Financial Planner, helping those who have also struggled with money management like himself.  I'm pulling for Willie.

Willie, if the offer's still good, my friends and I would love to just have a burger with you some time.  Sorry we couldn't make it last time.

Brand perceptions are tough to break, even though not always accurate.  It's true, you can't always judge a book by its cover.

What do you think?
- Butch

Error Jordan by Nike

So, Michael Jordan's son, Marcus, is a freshman basketball player at Central Florida University (CFU).  CFU has a brand licensing contract with Adidas.  That means that the school, the coaches and the players all agreed that the players wear only Adidas shoes during games.  Apparently, all players except Marcus Jordan.

After agreeing to play at the school, knowing that they were in an Adidas contract, he's decided that he's only wearing his dad's Nike Air Jordans.  His decision to break the contract will cost the school its $2 million partnership with Adidas.

Lots of questions here:
Marcus Jordan, just a rich spoiled kid?
Why would the school/coach allow this and not just kick him off the team?
Is it a carefully orchestrated PR/merchandising move by MJ and Nike?
Should MJ/Nike step in and pick up the check for lost revenue?

Ethics and trust are a big part of brand partnerships.  How would you handle this?
- Butch


 

Butch loves TV.  Always will. When I was a kid, I loved two shows in particular:  Bewitched and The Big Valley. 

Bewitched, I'm not afraid to admit, was a big inspiration in my love of the advertising business.  Darren Stephens and his work at McMahon & Tate seemed so fun, glamorous and exciting compared to being, say, an accountant.  I grew up in a small town in western Kansas, so I knew no one who worked in advertising, but I knew I wanted to be a part of it.   

The Big Valley was a western series about a wealthy Stockton, California cattle-ranching family.  Victoria Barkley was the strong-willed family matriarch.  Her ranch was worked by her sons, Jared ("the smart one"), Nick ("the strong one") and Heath ("the outsider").  I thought they were so cool.  And, as a 12-year-old boy, I thought their sister, Audra, was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen.  I wanted to be part of their family.

30 years later, I work in advertising. I work for an agency named Barkley.  So, 30 years later, I'm also a member of the Barkley family.  I'm living my dream.  A dream that was shaped by the culture around me.

Our culture influences our dreams, shapes who we are and defines our world.  Culture inspires brands.

What part of culture has inspired you?  Pull up a chair and share a story, friend.
- Butch

Generosity and The Little Things

If you're a regular reader at Sonny's Cozy Tavern, you know that Butch likes the brand philosophy defined by Fallon's "Culture of Generosity."  People like to do things for people who do things for them.  Good brands understand that the more you give, the more you get.  Generosity inpires loyalty.

Sometimes, the simplest little thing is all you need to do to make someone's day, to change an attitude, to spark a smile.  Like this story:

At our house, we love Halloween.  We set up a full experience in our driveway for all our friends and neighbors.  We play music, project strobe lights and light up the fog machine; grill hot dogs and dispense adult beverages; and provide a warm fire, fresh water and an open bathroom for the revelers. We love to give on this night.  But it wasn't our giving that made my night.

Late in the evening, a little girl (maybe four years old) dressed like a princess and her mother made their way through the cold air to our driveway.  The princess was excited to see that we were serving hot dogs.  As I extended a perfectly-grilled dog, she looked up with a big smile -- but then stopped before she took the treat.  She reached into her goody bag and said, "I want to give you something," as she raised her hand and offered me a bag of Skittles.

She didn't have to share.  It was her treat to take home all for herself.  But, at the age of four, she already embraced the Culture of Generosity.  Her gesture was so unexpected, so genuine, and so befitting of her princess costume.  I accepted her offer and told everyone this story for the rest of the evening (and now I'm telling you).  Her simple, genuine gesture made me smile, inspired goodwill and generated positive word of mouth.

Remember the little things.  Sometimes they make a big difference.  Be a brand that embraces the Culture of Generosity.

What's your story?
- Butch

   

Love 'Em or Love To Hate 'Em

World Series opening night.  That means, The New York Yankees.  You can't hear it without thinking about the great teams of the past.  The Babe, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, Berra, Reggggie... some of the greatest players in baseball history.  Pin stripes.  The statues in the outfield of the "House that Ruth Built." 

It's an iconic American brand.  It makes old men feel young again.  It represents pride, a hard-scrabble work ethic, and a simpler time. 

Call me a bandwagoner, but I love America's teams... The Yankees, The Cowboys, The Packers.  They represent us and our culture(s).

What do you think?
- Butch

Bad Homework or Good PR Move?

Yesterday, Microsoft announced that it is pulling its sponsorship of the upcoming Family Guy Variety Show.  Microsoft execs report they chose to sponsor the show because of its target audience and creative humor, deeming it a great fit for the Microsoft brand.  But, after watching a sponsors' preview of the show, they found its content to be offensive and not at all a suitable match for their brand.  They noted that the show includes humor involving "nazis, deaf people, feminine hygiene and incest."

Okay.  So, it's exactly like a typical Family Guy episode.  Pause.

This move by Microsoft has created quite a buzz in tradional media and online social networks.  The executives at Microsoft either did a really bad job of evaluating Family Guy as a brand-appropriate sponsorship, OR it was a really well-planned marketing strategy to get more talk value than the original sponsorship would have ever garnered.

Bad or brilliant?  What do you think?
- Butch

Sunday, Bloody Hypeday

It always amazes me when marketers use popular music in completely inappropriate context.  

I remember just after 9-11 when Levi's used portions of Creedence Clearwater Revival's Fortunate Son as a patrotic backdrop for a "let's all-feel-good-about-America" TV spot selling jeans... problem is, Fortunate Son is not a patriotic, feel-good-about-America song. It's an in-your-face-America protest song written during and about the nation's angst with the Vietnam War.

Now, with NFL on NBC, we get another totally inappropriate misuse of a popular song. Showing cinematic slow-motion action of hard-hitting NFL action to hype football, NBC accompanies it with a soundtrack of U2's Sunday, Bloody Sunday. Great song, but it's about REAL PEOPLE DYING in a REAL WAR -- specifically, the clash of British Soldiers and protesters in Northern Ireland on what has been called "Bloody Sunday." To make it about football, and comparing the NFL to war is just too much.

I'm disappointed in NBC... and in U2 for allowing its song to used in this way.

Is it wrong? Is it dumb? What do you think?

- Butch