Yikes – what are the GM knuckleheads thinking with this latest debacle regarding Saab?!

Seems to me they should be more worried about designing great automobiles, building the highest quality cars and trucks, selling more vehicles, increasing their stock value and repaying US taxpayers. Saab sold approximately 340 vehicles last month, GM sold 187,000.

Seriously, does anyone think the Chinese don’t already have better technology than whatever they could benchmark from GM?

How about GM work on leadership, reducing unproductivity, creating brilliant marketing/ advertising, and truly empowering executives/managers to make better decisions.

Leave Saab alone you big bully! Give them a chance to reorganize, like we gave you.

If the allegations are true then I submit he is no “gentlemen” and has broken the first principle of consumer branding … trust. And therefore there must be consequences, I propose a boycott of him and his sponsors.

Tiger Boycott Pledge

1. I will not watch, read, discuss or listen to any media reports capitalizing on his failures or successes

2. I will abstain from any of the products or services he represents or endorses e.g. PGA Tour, Nike, EA Sports, Tag Hauser, American Express, etc…

The only way he and his sponsors will earn back my respect is consistently making better decisions.

Ted Stacy

charles barkley

I admit to be a golf-aholic, but this new Golf Channel show, “The Haney Project” is just flat-out great entertainment and branding for Hank Haney and Charles Barkley. Even my 18-year old “I hate golf” daughter is engaged and eagerly awaits the next episode.

Hank Haney, one of the worlds best teachers, tries to fix arguably one of the worst swings in the world. And between all the practice and friendly teacher-pupil banter we get a glimpse of the real Charles Barkley ~ a fun loving, golf addict just like the rest of us.

It’s real, it’s funny, it’s golf. But more importantly there are great life and branding lessons:

• Humility. Admit there is a problem, it took Charles 10 years!
• Ego. Don’t let it get in the way of resolving the situation
• Ask for help. Seek professional advice
• Practice – Practice – Practice. Listening, work ethic, passion and perseverance

There’s no doubt in my mind that Hank Haney and Charles Barkley will be successful. It’s too bad the folks at AIG can’t learn these valuable lessons.

What do you think?

Speaking with a potential client this morning he mentioned having less budget and getting more from what he has. Sound familiar? Here are a few simple rules to follow:

1. Having a budget is important. It focuses your internal team and your marketing partners, e.g. advertising agency and suppliers, on fiscal stewardship. If your agency is not including this as a metric then you should find an agency that does.
2. Trust. Tell your marketing partner what the budget is and ask for their recommendations. Clients are usually very hesitant to provide accurate numbers and this undermines the relationship.
3. Contingency Planning. Have a reserve for unexpected projects or opportunities. I always recommend clients stash 25% of their initial marketing budgets. Everyone feels more comfortable knowing there is “money in the bank”.
4. Strategic Planning. Knowing what the budget is gives everyone a realistic framework of priorities and expectations. Funding is the ultimate priority system and sharpens idea generation.
5. Push for Big Ideas. They cost time and money to execute but it is always better to start with a Big Idea and do what you can within an existing budget.

What are the rules you follow?

There is nothing like taking a trip to Costco for a branding junkee like myself! While waiting for prescriptions to be filled for our youngest daughter due to four extracted wisdom teeth, I had the time to shop and browse at a fairly leisurely pace yesterday. (Not the typically weekend mad dash.) I remain amazed at the number of brand titans being distributed e.g. Adidas, Sony, Calvin Klein, Coke, Pepsi, Tylenol, Tide, Folgers, Dell, etc… and wondered how the current economic climate was effecting Costco and it’s brand alliances.

The stock is near 52 week lows with the analysts predicting an uptick based on its industry-leading business model and number of returning members. So you would surmise the current branding strategy and alliances are working fairly well. So why do my spider senses detect Costco’s private label brand, “Kirkland”, gobbling up greater shelf-space than ever before?

Private Label v. Premium Brand. This is an ongoing and very contentious battle between big box retailers and consumer goods manufacturers and I’m curious if private label percentage of sales have increased significantly over the last 6 months during this economic upheavel?

Branding Questions:

• What is Costco and other retailers private label strategy going forward?
• Kirkland product advertising strategy? Typically private label products do not invest in traditional advertising to keep costs to a minimum. They usually stick to tried and true “shelf space” is king model, even though I did spot an ad for Kirkland laundry detergent in this week’s coupon book. The only Kirkland product featured!
• How do private label v. premium brand products compare – wouldn’t you love to see Consumer Reports do a side-by-side comparison between Tide v. Kirkland?

That’s enough for today. Let me know what you think.