Memories....

Hey if you have a few minutes this weekend this is TOTALLY worth a look.  For some, an insight into how things use to be, and a reminder of the "glory days" for others.

Click here for the memories.

Family Day Fun

Hope everyone had fun on the Family Day weekend.  For most of us, the weather was nice and warm, and that meant a chance to get outside and play around for the first time in a while.  Here is a bit of the fun we had.

We also got a chance to take in a Moose Jaw Warrior game, and then head out for pizza at the world famous "Houston Pizza".  Houston Pizza is known far and wide for having some of the best pizza on the prairies and they didn't disappoint.  Thick, meaty, great sauce, outstanding crust....it was everything it was suppose to be and more.  The decor was nice, and the service was fast, friendly and warm.

But, the restaurant dropped the ball on one thing.  The music they played over the house system.  It was too loud and upbeat.  Essentially, they were rocking a Hot CHR station pumping out the hits.  So picture a restaurant full of families (and in some case retired folks, this is after all Moose Jaw) wanting to relive the fun the family day weekend, shouting over hip-hop.

Wrong music.  Wrong volume.

It's an example of how having just one thing out of place can color an experience and make it less than it might have been.

Imagine this story in the context of our radio stations and portals.

The Next Great Olympic Sport

I've watched, played in, and loved sports all my life.  But this is awesome.  Click here for the next generation of sport.

The King of Content

Last night I hosted an event put on by our local Humane Society.  It was called "Kisses for Kritters with a Tribute to the King".  The tribute, was provided by a very talented guy named Rory Allen.

It was really fun to watch Rory perform.  He's a terrific singer, he picks great material, and above all, he "gets" his audience. 

Here is what I mean.  He understands why these folks came to his show, and he delivers on their expectations.  They came to relive all the familiar songs of Elvis, so he sings them.  They came to remember the sex appeal of Elvis, so he dresses the part, walks through the crowd, holds the hands of the ladies, and sings love songs while looking into their eyes.  They came for memories, so he shares stories about the songs and movies of Elvis.  They came to laugh, so he tells funny, self deprecating things about himself.  They came to support the cause of the Humane Society, so he talks about his pets.  They came to relax, so he doesn't take himself too seriously.

As I sat and watched last night, I couldn't think of one thing he was missing.  He crafted his content with his audience in mind and totally played to their expectations.

That's what great media is all about.

As I write this, we are into hour thirty six of the Super Bowl pre-game show.  The only longer things on television are election nights and Grammy acceptance speeches.  And the only things more talked about than the game, are the commercials.

We can learn a little something from these.

It's quite likely that advertisers, and the agencies that make these commercials, have lost sight of the goal of selling stuff for the client.   They have become so focused on being clever and entertaining, they are missing the need to motivate consumers into action.
 
I wonder if we don't suffer from a similar loss of focus sometimes.

As we create content for our medias, is it about our audience and our stated goal of serving them with local stories and information, or are we parroting pop culture and talking about the things that interest us? 

Further, are we busying ourselves with processes and procedures, that keep us behind our computers and desks, when we should be out gathering content for presentation back to the audience?

Anyway....go Broncos!!

A Pep Talk

If you're reading this now it means you survived Blue Monday this past week.  Some real smart guys gave it that name because it's a Monday in the middle of winter where we have less sunlight than we need, Christmas is over, spring is a long way off....yadda, yadda, yadda.  Simply put, more of us are in the dumps that usual.  Blue Monday.

Watch this every Monday morning.  Your Blue Mondays will be a little less blue.

CLICK HERE

I was reminded just a day or two ago by my friend Jim that I haven't blogged in a couple of years.  I don't know how, and I don't know why, but it just sort of slipped away.  I told Jim how much I enjoyed blogging and said that I'd start again.  So here goes.  Don't expect anything earth shaking or game changing.  Just the opinions and perspectives of a guy who's been blessed to be in media for a long time. 

We just got back from a family vacation to Disneyland last night, and something cool happened on the first leg home from LA to Calgary.  A guy named Gregg Saretsky was on the flight.  He's the CEO of West Jet. 

He did a few interesting things.  West Jet has "Plus Seats" that give you a little extra leg room and wider seats.  He didn't sit in one of those.  He was in row six.  He did the pre-flight announcements, worked the refreshment cart handing out drinks and snacks, picked up the empty cups on approach, took visitors and questions during the flight, and was there to say goodbye with the rest of the flight crew when we all got off the plane. 

He didn't need to do any of this.  He could have just sat quietly, done his email, and been another guy in a jacket and tie heading home.  But he didn't do that.  He walked the walk.  He lead from the front.  

In a way, this is exactly what you would expect from the West Jet culture isn't it?