Music is part of my personal brand.  I’ve written about it before. But for the last six months I’ve created quite a significant illustration of that particular personal brand trait.

As a little joke/hat-tip to my friend, Terry Starbucker, I started tweeting about what was rolling off of my iPod.  Some times it was in the middle of the day.  Some times it was after lunch.  But after a few weeks, I realized most of my melodic tweets took place first thing in the morning.

Why?

Music DRIVES me.  I don’t care if it’s the classic William Tell Overture or a smooth George Michael track, or even the mind-bending, screaming Velvet Revolver; music is never far from my ears.  It’s part of my brand.

So, virtually every morning, from early September 2009, to this morning, I have turned on my iPod and the first song (sometimes the second or third - ’cause who wants to get going to The Wiggles or Raffi?) that rolls off the virtual turntable becomes my “Get-Going groove of the day.”

Music moves me.  And strange enough, I’ve found many of YOU have responded as well. Countless times, I’ve been asked to provide play-lists of my grooves.  I’ve burnt a quite a few of CDs for friends. And I realize The Get-Going groove of the day has touched more than my own personal brand.  Heck, I get emails and direct messages if I’ve forgotten, or the groovy tweet has been delayed even a half hour, so someone has been affected…

So here you go.  The first volume of The Brand Chef’s Get-going groove of the day is listed below. (Tracks/links and Tweets!)

ENJOY!

Piggies - The Beatles:
My Get-Going groove of the day (Saturday Edition): LINK - I’m not sure what’s more disturbing… the song or the video… WOW.

Brick House - The Commodores:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - Lionel before he went to the dark side… WHAT A GROOVE FOR FRIDAY! Have a GREAT DAY!

It Hurts Me Too - Eric Clapton:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - Great attitude tune for the gloomy day! Grrrrrrrr!

Jump Jive An’ Wail - Brian Setzer Orchestra:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — came up on the iPod on the treadmill Sunday… So, I cranked the pace to 9! (dumb)

Carry on Wayward Son - Kansas:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — great 70’s “rock your soul” motivation —> ’nuff said…

Soul Vaccination - Tower of Power:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK Since my arm STILL hurts from yesterday’s flu shot… Time to get FUNKY!

Here I Am - Lyle Lovett:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - only album I’ve ever purchased that is remotely close to country… The guy has STYLE!

Life is Wonderful - Jason Mraz:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - One of my new favorite songs… Something to remember EVERY DAY!

Battle of Who Could Care Less - Ben Folds Five:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — Okay Monday, take that…

Pump It Up - Elvis Costello:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - the week is almost over… Maybe Elvis can help us get there?

Rock and Roll is Dead - Lenny Kravitz:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — A little gritty groove for the Monday blues… Get up and get moving!

Basket Case - Green Day:
My Get-Going groove of the day : LINK A little pop-punk in the hope that this will clear the gloom from the morning. And GO!

Working Man - Rush:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK … kind of appropriate on a day like today?

Bicycle Race - Queen:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — so much innuendo for so early on a Monday morning… ?

Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m yours - Stevie Wonder:
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK — Classic Stevie…

Something - Paul McCartney (Concert for George):
My Get-Going groove of the day: LINK - From the Concert for George … Watch the whole video… Heartbreaking & inspiring.

I’ll continue to post the Get-going groove of the day - every day possible - to my Twitter and Facebook accounts.  Why?  ‘Cause every day needs a little groove… So stay tuned (every day around 8am) for more!

Until next time…

Keep Cooking! (tasty tunes to tickle your tail lights…)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

For those of you that know me, locally, you’ve all probably heard (or even witnessed) the troubles I’ve been having with my 2004 Jeep Liberty. It seems like the winter of ‘09-’10 has taken a pretty good toll on my little SUV. And for the past 14 to 16 months, I have been in one auto service center or another for everything from new tires, new break pads and rotors - all ’round, dead battery, cracked windshield (not yet fixed), various alignment issues (I need to stop plowing through snow drifts), and, of course, the routine oil changes and maintenance.

For a while there, I’d become accustomed to sitting in small, cold, white rooms and drinking stale coffee out of 8 oz Styrofoam cups. Hell, I used so many of those little things; I think I’m partially to blame for this global warming crap. We’ll need to talk to Al Gore about that one.  And what’s up with those 19″ RCA TVs mounted in the corner, flickering the local PBS station. Is that a service department prerequisite?

Anyway, yesterday, I’d finally had enough. For about three weeks now, I’d been driving my little Jeep 40 to 60 miles a day with a heater that would only blow hot air if it was going 45 miles per hour or faster.  Yes,  I live above the Mason-Dixon line and I have a shoddy heater in my car…  Brilliant!

It wasn’t such a huge deal for the trips into the office and back; I take the bypass in where 75 MPH is the median speed.  But once I got off the bypass or was driving through town, the frigid bite really set its teeth in.  Yesterday, it was -12˚F on my way into the office, and 30 seconds off the bypass, my car went from cozy warm to cold enough to freeze snot (trust me). By the time I got to the office parking lot, I was worried about frostbite on exposed extremities (thank GOD for seat warmers)!

So, I called my local Jeep dealer (yes, the dealer…).

When I called, of course I expected this:

Mechanic: “Hey…  huh?  Oh, man…  I s’pose we can work you in some time early next week.  Oh, by the way, we have an $80 inspection fee.”

Me: “sigh…  oooohkaaaay…  lemme bend over…”

What I got:

Mechanic: “Sure, Mr. Clark…  we close at six tonight, but we’d be more than happy to come get it for you.  A heater, in this weather, is nothing to mess with.”

Me: “uh… no, I’ll drive it down after work, thanks.”

Mechanic: “Will you need a ride home?”

Me: giddy like a school girl, “Hee hee… no, my wife can pick me up.”

Mechanic: “Great, Mr. Clark. Robert will expect you around 5:30.  Is there anything else I can do for you?”

Me: “No… I love you…“

Okay, I didn’t say that last part, but I was very attracted to the concept of good customer service, for once.  I hadn’t even gotten my car to the garage door yet and it was already a pleasant experience.  What a breath of fresh air!

So, upon arrival, I looked at my watch and realized it was about ten ’til six.  When I drove in, I fully expected half of the lights in the work bays to be off and a single, growly dude, in greasy coveralls, standing at the counter looking at his watch.

Not the case at all…

When I drove in, there were three employees working diligently at their respective check-in desks.  I parked and turned off my car (with numb fingers) and before I could get out, a friendly, clean-cut gentleman was standing at my door, clipboard in hand, ready to gather my information.

We quickly went over my needs and as soon as I gave him my name he said,

“Yes, Mr. Clark, I’m Robert.  Why don’t you go have a seat and I’ll be in to talk to you once we get ‘er looked at.”

Ah…  the dreaded waiting room…

I poured myself a MUG of coffee and went through a pair of hinged doors to …wait for it… the cleanest, most comfortably lit, cushy waiting room I’d ever seen!

There were two love seats and a couch flanked by oak end tables with every (auto, political and society) magazine one could imagine.  And on the other side of the room was a 60″ plasma television streaming ESPN via satellite. And the coffee tasted like Dunkin Donuts breakfast blend, but I couldn’t be positive…  Color me impressed.

I plopped down on the couch, pulled out my BlackBerry to check in on FourSquare and to do some Tweeting when I was shocked back to reality by the sound of my car’s horn honking.  I looked up and there was Robert, sitting in my driver’s seat honking the horn and waving toward a sign on the window…

“We have FREE WiFi!” He yelled through the glass.

I began to weep…

I’ve since moved in with Robert and the crew down at the Jeep dealership.  Although the beds are a little firm for my bad back, I’ve become accustomed to the warmth and comfort their waiting room provides.  Sure, I need to call-in for food, but the cleaning crew and back rubs make it all worth it.  I’ll miss my wife.

***

Why not make working with your company a positive experience?

What extra steps has your company taken to make your customer feel “at home” - or at least comfortable with your services? Next time you have a customer call on you, will you be like my Jeep dealer or will you be leaving your customers out in the cold?

Food for thought.

Keep Cooking! (Customer service that’s second-to-none!)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

(or…  lighten up already)

Tell me, just who does your brand relate to?

Good branding is subjective.  “A good brand” is completely based on the perspective of its target audience.

One group of people can stand in a room and rip a brand from head-to-toe for everything from disconnected positioning, to poor logo design to poor packaging design.  While, at the same time, another group standing the room next door, can praise the brand for touching some place in their hearts - moving them to tears, changing their lives for ever.

Understanding that, shouldn’t we really be focusing on those that the brand is trying to target? Who really cares about the nay-sayers in the first room?  The brand is obviously positioning itself for those in the second room.  It RELATES to them.  The strategy was crafted for them…

Some of you are saying, yeah…  well, duh! Well, I’m thinking that some others out there aren’t listening so much to the subjective aspect.

There’s a lot of brand hate going on out there.  And for what reason?  Because it doesn’t relate to you?  Well my question is, “Who are you?”

Honestly, if I didn’t like the husband of my wife’s best friend, would it be smart to go through the trouble to write a post or tweet about it?  Would I run down the street yelling, “So-n-so’s husband is a pock-faced, ignorant, toothpick of a man and has no right to be married to her!”

I think not.  Not only would it be unwarranted, but it would reflect VERY poorly on my personal brand as to be labeled a shallow “hater.”

Humph…

Why do you think “Relevant” is the second required criteria of the TRUE Branding process (besides the fact it helped spell “True”…)? TRUE Branding is simply a framework for brand discovery.  It’s a list of conceptual criteria that we should judge every brand against.  If a particular brand isn’t TRUE to you, it may not mean that it’s not TRUE to others.

So, lighten up already.

Before you start criticizing a brand for “missing the point,” maybe you need to check to see if YOU were actually the target.

Also, as so appropriately Tweeted by our friend @RendaInDSM this morning:

“Tigger is all right, really,” said Pooh lazily. “Of course he is,” said Christopher Robin. “Everybody is really.” -A.A. Milne

Food for thought.

Keep Cooking (TRUE, objective perspectives)!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

This post is for my fellow Midwesterners that have, over the last 60 hours, braved the cold, wind and driving snow from one of the worst blizzards seen in this area in almost a decade.

Last time Iowa had snow like Tuesday and Wednesday’s storm was 1992. I was still cuddled warm in my dorm room at Coe College and didn’t see the need to venture out in the gale winds.  We had plenty of TopRamen,  plenty of Keystone Light, and cable television to keep up safe, warm and entertained for the two days we were snowed into our dorms.  Heck, I didn’t even need to shower if I didn’t feel the urge (although roommates made it evidently clear that one was needed.)

This time, circumstances were different. I’m now a “bonafied” grown-up with responsibilities like a family, home, and a real job.  I have a mortgage to pay, I have children to protect and keep warm and fed.  I even have a dog that needs to be cared for – a long leap from the last blizzard that crippled the area.

So, how did I get through it this time?

Winter-time brands, baby…

Here are 16 brands I’d like to thank for getting me through “Death Storm 2009:”

• Jeep - My trusty Liberty was sideways a few times, but that was probably operator error … probably?
• Toro - Without my trusty snow blower, I would STILL be shoveling through the 4′ drifts.  I *heart* Toro!
  
• Old Navy - “Economical” Winter coat…  ’nuff said.
  
• Thinsulate - mmmm…  toasty warm snow pants for the kids (and dad).
• Encore Movie Channels - what a great way to decompress from 4 hours of pushing snow…  some mindless classics (Die Hard, Step Brothers, and soooo many more…)
  
• Cartoon Network & Nickelodeon - although the kids spent most of the time outside (crazy!)
  
• Apple Computers - without = SOCIAL MEDIA PANIC…  No blog Posts!  No Twitter? No Facebook? The end of civilization as we know it!  Cats and Dogs living together…  complete, mass-hysteria!
  
• Pillsbury - two words: Christmas Cookies!
  
• Pork - The Other White Meat - The kids and I made “home-made” pizza… Between you and me, nothing goes better on pizza than oodles of Italian pork sausage!
  
• Skittles - Can you say “Taste The Rainbow?” and, no they didn’t go on the pizza… dessert…  ?
  
• TownHouse Crackers - a perfect part of a late-night snack… (kickn’ Web site as well!)
  
• Shullsburg Cheese - and what else to top those crackers?  Say Cheese!  And they’re a Midwestern brand to boot!
• KCCI TV8 - my favorite weather tracking team…
  
• Iowa DOT - the folks in those big, yellow trucks that kept burying the end of my driveway… but I’m DARN glad they’re there to get the city moving again!
• Aspercream - ’cause I’m not 18 any more… (OR: go out strong and don’t let them see you limp back in.)
  
• Serta - the best way to end the day…
  

So, by the list, you can pretty much tell what I did over the last 60+ hours.  Brands defined my day…

What brands did you depend on to make it through the storm?  Were there some that you counted on more during the storm than any other day (Toro, Aspercream)?

Here’s hoping you all are happy, safe and warm. Just think…  this Winter just started.

Keep Cooking (warm thoughts)!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

Can you say your brand is unique?  Can you say you’re a pioneer?

It seems like a simple concept, but when it comes down to it, it takes a commitment to a TRUE brand.  Often times people ask what it takes to become “viral.”

My answer:

“You can’t  Being “viral” is entirely based on the community you’ve created…”

Here’s a great example:

(Facebookers and feed readers need to click here to see this great video.)

Okay, maybe they’re all stoned.  But they all seem to be “drinking the same Kool-Aid” - tainted or not.

This guy’s belief in his unique value inspired others to engage.  Can you say your brand is this infectious?  How can you make it so?

Keep Cooking (unique ways to engage your audience)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef