Have you ever wondered how I became The Brand Chef? It’s not a story I tell often, but in a recent interview with Johnny Wright (Twitter: @unsecretshopper), better known as The UnSecret Shopper the TRUTH was revealed.
The request came out of the blue (proof of building a good personal brand), but after a few Twitter direct messages and a phone call-or-two, I decided Johnny had some great things to talk about and was very interested in learning more about The Brand Chef, marketing strategies and generally what I do… (go figure).
In 19 short minutes, we covered everything from marketing strategies, social media marketing, customer service (which Johnny is brilliant at, by the way), and we even talked a little about how I became The Brand Chef!
Here’s a link to his post of his full 1-hour show. Or you can listen to just my interview below.
Again, I’d like to thank Johnny Wright for taking the time and giving me the honor of being on his show. It was a great conversation and I look forward to hearing / seeing more from him in the future!
Keep Cooking!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef
Johnny Wright can also be heard on 1350 AM, KRNT radio in Des Moines Iowa. Every Saturday at 8 AM. Check it out!
This morning, one of my Des Moines social media cohorts wrote a post about the recent onslaught of social media companies, consultants and “Superstars” that have recently dotted our fine city. Troy Rutter hasn’t hidden his distaste for the trend of social media consultants popping up out of nowhere (here,here, and here). But in this morning’s post, he created a correlation to other markets and specifically to the hotbed of social media action that is Boston – calling names like Chris Brogan, CC Chapman andChris Penn as the benchmark to which all social media “Superstars” would be measured.
While Troy opens his post with a slight “hat tip” to the growth of Des Moines’ social media industry, he quickly jumps into a bit of a “back-handed” compliment:
“What is it about Des Moines that is a breeding ground for so-called Social Media Experts? Is it the corn? Can the city support three social media firms, and countless wannabes who think they have all the answers?
“The Des Moines social media scene is concerned more with being local leaders than global. They fight with/over each other to be the definitive “expert” while simultaneously patting each other on the back to make themselves feel good.”
And in comparison to the Bostonians:
“Maybe that’s the biggest difference. The Bostonians give back to the social media community, not really looking for their own accolades. While Des Moines experts seem bent on making a name for themselves any way they can.”
Okay, Troy, let’s talk this out objectively…
While I can’t comment on the national scene, personally, I’ve felt nothing but camaraderie and compassion from the other local social media citizens. As a matter of fact, in March of 2006, I wrote my first blog post and was immediately welcomed by Drew McLellan – a national Superstar in his own right. I’d say that was pretty encouraging.
I’m also thrilled with the growth of social media in the Des Moines area. And while I agree that Des Moines is “Saturated” with “Social Media Stars,”to compare Des Moines’ social media community to Boston’s is a bit shortsighted.
The “Stars” in Boston certainly have “street cred.”They’ve built the foundation that others all over the country (and the world) are hoping to stand on. And while people like Penn and Brogan can pull crowds and garner attention better than E.F. Hutton, setting the “Social Media Star” standard by their reputations alone is unfair to the efforts being made here in Des Moines.
A simple marketing lesson I learned years ago states (and I’m paraphrasing):
“The first to the market will define and own that market until, 1) They are knocked out of the top position by a competitor
or (and this is the bigger point), 2) Another “segment” of the market is designed for the competitors to shine.”
Brogan and the rest of the Bostonians established the “Social Media Superstar” market. So, for now, it’s theirs as defined to own and defend. And it’s entirely what they’ve built their personal and business brands on.
I say, “Genius!”
What I see Des Moines social media practitioners doing is taking a loose model of what our East Coast brethren designed and creating a niche segment within the social media marketplace that better fits our community and the Midwestern economy. We (the Midwest) don’t need superstars to swoop in and save the day. On certain levels, I think the conservative nature of our neighbors would reject that model, anyway. The business model Des Moines companies gravitate to do not tolerate “Ego,” whether it’s intentionally inflated self-worth or not. Companies like LavaRow, Catchfire and One Social Media are capitalizing on that fact and creating a new “Relational Social Media” niche to fill that need.
So, to your point, Des Moines DOES deserve recognition for the social media acumen it possesses and encourages. Definitely! Should the social media practitioners strive to be some kind of hero or super star to warrant that credibility? Hell no.
To appease your hunger for national recognition, we could cite the recent feature CNN did on regional social media and the noise being made here. Many of the people you point at in your post were linchpins in many aspects to those events.
It’s just a matter of time before this model of “Relational Social Media” to break through to a bigger, more national level. But for now these companies are providing astounding insight, customer service, education and pride for Des Moines, central Iowa and the Midwest as a whole!
With that, I ask plead with my readers. Let’s keep the conversation going.
Does Des Moines (and the Midwest in general)have the social media chutzpa that will bring us to a national and / or international light? Or do you think that we have too many “wanna-be” practitioners muddying the waters?
Back to you…
Until next time,
Keep Cooking! (’cause social media is yummy for EVERYONE!)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef
Myopic Manager:“Something that will get us noticed.”
Worker Wendy:“For what, sir?”
Myopic Manager:“You know. Something catchy and, what’s the word? VIRAL!”
Worker Wendy:“Viral, sir?”
Myopic Manager: “Yeah! Put it on FaceTube! That’ll do it!”
***
There are so many things wrong with that conversation, I can’t begin to list them. But this was a summarized dialogue a friend of mine recently had with her employer. It seems as though, after 25 years in business, “said employer”finally purchased a ticket to the 21st century and realized he was wearing a suit made in 1989 – you know, padded shoulders, thin, cotton tie… the whole enchilada!
The inspiration for this time-traveling adventure came from a growing collection of customers asking why they couldn’t find their favorite “widget” on the Internet. They couldn’t find their website. They couldn’t “Like” their FaceBook page. Heck, if they didn’t get up off their butts and walk through the door, they couldn’t tell the company was actually still in business!
“So, where do you start?” she asked me. And that’s where my “Mr. Marketing and Branding” persona jumped out – somewhat abruptly…
“Are you kidding?” I shot back at her. “Your company is nowhere near ready for Facebook, YouTube or social media marketing. Why don’t reign in Michael J. Fox over there and start with basic TRUE Branding?”
I explained to her that TRUE Branding was the road-map to where her boss wanted to go. They needed to discover the truth about their company – the who, what, when, where and why of their brand and brand community (‘cause they obviously have one). Then they needed to do some deep research to find out what made their company / brand relevant to their brand community. After that they needed to focus on what made them unique in that community. If there was ten other “widget” makers in the vicinity, what were unique propositions to going to their shop? And finally the needed to figure out where that community spent it’s time engaging their brand. Obviously they needed a stronger Web presence, but were FaceBook and YouTube really going to be where the best engagement would take place?
I’m sure, by the end of our conversation, my face was red and the veins in my forehead resembled what that road-map may look like. But the takeaway was put perfectly when she called up her employer and said, “Sir, we really can’t skip steps when it comes to TRUE Branding and marketing. Let’s take a strategic look at what where we want to go and then my friend Andy can come by and work with us to get there”
I know this comes off as a bit of a rant, but there are a lot of companies out there that are still behind the curve when it comes to social media marketing. It isn’t so much using the tools of social media like FacebookYouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn, but the brand and marketing strategy that powers these tools. And it’s going to take time and a lot of thought to get that road-map to the future figured out.
Contrary to what Michel J. Fox and Steven Spielberg told us in 1985, time travel is NOT possible; the flux capacitor hasn’t been built yet; Delorians won’t withstand the pressure of time travel; and Doc Brown is just another wild-eyed pedophile in an Einstein wig and lab coat.
But I digress.
Could I have taken my friend’s company (and their money) and thrown together a FaceBook page and a few videos for YouTube? Sure. But I wouldn’t have been doing my job as The Brand Chef if I did it without TRUE branding and a strategic road-map. And they wouldn’t have seen results from any of it – making us all look stupid.
Just to sum up… You can’t jump from 1989 to 2010 with the simple activation of a Twitter account. Research, plan, integrate and engage with social media AFTER you’ve figured out where your brand should be going within the marketplace. Then make a commitment to staying up-to-date with your brand, your industry and your community.
Until Next Time (within the next 25 years)…
Keep Cooking (timely, relevant branding decisions.)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef
A lot of people tease me because I’m “Always On.” If I’m not in the office, I can usually be found through any number of social media channels. Whether it’s my Twitter page, my check-ins on Foursquare or my Facebook page; it’s not very hard to find me – for good or bad.
This last week, though, I decided I’d take a vacation. You know, the “relaxing, kick-back-n-nap by the pool kind of week” that many of us need to recharge the branding battery and focus. Well, this is what I did…
I cleaned. Boy did I clean. My house looks like we just moved in.
I gardened. It finally stopped raining in central Iowa, so I pulled about 100 lbs of weeds and found that my garden still survived underneath it all…
I played with the kids. I have three great kids that are on Summer vacation, so after I made them help me weed and clean, we had some quality family time. Movies. Fireworks. Carnivals. Dinners out…
It really was a great week!
But I couldn’t stay away from social media, work and talking about branding. I tweeted and used social media to coordinate projects for work. I scheduled meetings. I went to business and sales improvement seminars… (relaxing?) My coworkers tease me, but maybe this will show them that I should get MORE vacation days. I seem to be pretty darn productive when I’m not sitting at my desk.
One of the activities I’m VERY proud of accomplishing this week was going on-air for the first time in 20 years with Michael Libbie and his Insight On Business webcast that airs daily at http://www.webcastliveone.com We talked branding, business, social media, banking, cause marketing and general current events. I had a blast!
Below is the stream. You may need to jump forward a minute-or-so to get through the set up, but it’s well worth the watch. Maybe I’ll do more of these in the future! (click here for the video in FaceBook and Feed readers)
So, today I decided to expound on the social media world’s fascination with BACON.
Yep, Bacon! It’s the American blogger’s food-porn aphrodisiac. If it came between naked pictures of Kaley Cuoco(Penny on “Big Bang Theory”) and bacon, I truly worry that the bacon would get more views. Maybe Kaley’s photos would have a lower bounce rate, but that’s a whole different blog (and innuendo)…
Anyway! I honestly can’t go a single day without seeing a tweet or a post or a photo(notice the bacon bra?) of something to do with bacon. It’s everywhere!
So, why bacon? Why? WHY!?!
1. Bacon Emotes True Passion - Starting out with the obvious, bacon is… FREAKIN’ bacon!
You can whisper “I have bacon” in a crowded room and it’s pretty certain that you get a glorious, harmonizing response of “yummmmmmm…” similar to those Tibetan Deep Throat Chants. (video)
that aside, the draw to bacon is so powerful, some retailers and hotels have been branded JUST by the bacon they serve! I’ve read of entire restaurant menus dedicated to bacon, but to have an endorsement like this,
“if Bacon had a God he would live at The Roger Smith Hotel!” – Chris Brogan
makes an impact for bacon’s case that knocks you off your feet.
2. Bacon Has Spanning Relevance - While I really don’t need to go into the origins of bacon, I would assume that it took some grunting relative of ours about 10 seconds to figure out the salting and curing of the fatty back parts of pigs turned a generally disgusting part of the animal into one of the most succulent slices of meat human kind would ever stumble upon. It can be fried, diced, baked, grilled and even made into ice cream. So how can bacon NOT be relevant to every social and economical demographic under the sun?
3. Bacon Is Ultimately Unique – It has a taste like no other meat product. It’s kind of a cross between glazed ham and beef jerky. The sheer individuality of bacon makes it the most utilitarian meat source on the planet. And just try to search for “Bacon Recipes.” You’ll be reading (and drooling) for days…
4. And Bacon Is Soooo Engaging – How can one food, one simple, solitary slice of meat become the biggest meme of the 21st century? How can bacon, a fat, salty slice of cholesterol become more consistently popular than Justin Bieber or Britney Spears put together?
Let’s just put it this way, have you ever been unhappy eating bacon?
UH OH… look what I just did…
Can you hear it? Sizzling like fat on a 400˚ griddle… my branding brain did it again.
Even when it comes to writing a silly post about the popularity of bacon, I pull in the TRUE Branding formula. It’s inevitable. When it comes to branding, like bacon, there has to be truth, relevance, uniqueness and engagement.
I haven’t asked pork producers but this could all be a big conspiracy to sell more pork product, but I’m sure they’re not complaining.
How would YOU like your brand to have the fan base bacon has? Imagine having your brand, your product, your name associated with everything personally rewarding and ultimately sinfully satisfying as bacon.
Try it.
Keep Cooking (until it’s crisp and satisfying.)
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef
And with a hat tip to my blogging buddy @AdMavericks(Josh Fleming) I give you another tribute to BACON!
