TO SUCCEED IN PR, YOU MUST PUT YOURSELF IN THE EYE OF THE FIRE
Had a Fortune 1000 executive in town last night who is negotiating with 5W to see if he will do business with us. In any case, the individual asked me and my staff to take him out in NYC to see trendsetters as the brand is consistently examining outlets to be relevant. I think there aren’t enough companies who understand the need to be on site and examine these things and these people first hand.
Last night was 5 hours with 5W (and I won’t name specifics so competitors get any ideas)…
We started dinner at 9 PM and as we walked in, Jay-Z walked out of dinner… Literally brushed on the shoulder of my visiting executive. (Won’t name specifics so competitors get ideas… but in every city know what time dinner is relevant, know where to go, where to sit at the restaurant – which sometimes requires over-tipping)… and as important as the food is, see what the ambiance is, what the dress is, etc…
The restaurant owner of this establishment told me they don’t like food reviewers, because the week this place opened every famous food reviewer (mostly older people) came in and loved the food, the service and décor… but couldn’t believe all these people who came in dressed in jeans and sneakers. As I say often, the world has changed… and many don’t get that…. Be relevant for the age and demographic you are trying to reach…. Dinner is a social occasion with people jumping between tables and trading business cards if done right…
Then went to a hotel bar where literally the first person sitting in front of us with his feet on a couch was Russell Simmons. The venue was filled with high level managers, models and 2 club owners. The manner in which people interact of course depends on where they are – Bars in every single city are different. (and pool will never go out of style, although I don’t play…)… Again it’s a case of knowing where to go and watching behavior…
Late nite, attended a DJ’s birthday party (DJ’s are increasingly relevant – They attract celebrities and the like). They create trends as they are pseudo-psychologists – a good DJ needs to understand crowd moods and behavior (If a song doesn’t get people excited, people leave…. And venues won’t pay them to stay)…
I have increasingly been spending time simply watching people – Still try and go once a month for a half day to NYC’s outer boroughs to watch people shop, I spend at least 3 hours a month in apparel stores – H & M, Old Navy, the Ipod Store… and whenever I travel internationally or domestically I want to speak with cab drivers (who always bring a unique perspective), and see shoppers – every city is different and trends start in many places.
Recently heard a speech from one of the world’s leading fashion designers who said he still spends a day a week in a mall in America watching people shop – How do they behave, what do they buy?
Reminds me of when President George Bush had no clue how a supermarket checkout worked – an event New York Times reporter Andrew Rosenthal turned into a chiding front page story about Bush’s lack of familiarity with the details of ordinary life in America:
Today, for instance, [Bush] emerged from 11 years in Washington’s choicest executive mansions to confront the modern supermarket.
Visiting the exhibition hall of the National Grocers Association convention here, Mr. Bush lingered at the mock-up of a checkout lane. He signed his name on an electronic pad used to detect check forgeries.
“If some guy came in and spelled George Bush differently, could you catch it?” the President asked. “Yes,” he was told, and he shook his head in wonder.
Then he grabbed a quart of milk, a light bulb and a bag of candy and ran them over an electronic scanner. The look of wonder flickered across his face again as he saw the item and price registered on the cash register screen.
“This is for checking out?” asked Mr. Bush. “I just took a tour through the exhibits here,” he told the grocers later. “Amazed by some of the technology.”
Bush obviously was clueless about life for every day Americans and it hurt him at the time tremendously – Brands can also be easily fooled – If they don’t understand the market, they can’t win…. And I’d argue to you marketing and PR are increasingly welding much much closer to each other…
(and the final key to success, despite being out till 2:30 AM yesterday I was at my desk today by 9:15 AM)… Back to work.
Ronn Torossian
August 10th, 2007 at 11:04 pm
But you were still up at 6am to write this? Your blog makes me want to go pop a Vicodin. Although, I do find your insights wickedly spot on and original (I won’t go into details so your competitors get any ideas) :}