Product launches: Why put on a circus when you could be like Disney World?

Do you remember when you were little, and the circus came to town?

It was spectacular.

The circus, for all its excitement — the animals, the trapeze artists, the clowns, the daredevil acts — came into town, did a few shows with some cool stunts, and then they left.

That was it. You might be left with a plastic inflatable monkey or some other cheap overpriced souvenir.

A couple weeks later, the circus was barely a memory in your mind — it went out of town just as fast as it came in.

Now think about Walt Disney World.

Those who have been fortunate enough to go to Disney World when they were younger (or older, as my case would be) know that no matter how long you stay at the park(s) — it could be a few days, a couple weeks — you are left with many, many memories for years to come.

Walt Disney World is no circus. You don’t go in and out and then forget about it. It is an experience, one whose vision is to ensure that “each and every guest has the best time of their life,” a place where “dreams come true” and memories are made. It sticks with you, and on your way home, you already can’t wait to go back.

Which would you prefer, the circus or Walt Disney World?

Disney World, of course.

Why is it, then, that when companies launch new products, almost all of them prefer the circus approach?

Here’s what I see all too often:

Company X has a new Thingamabob coming out. It could a new phone, a car, a gadget, a boat, it doesn’t matter. They’ve talked about it for a long time, gotten some press about the long-anticipated, brand new Thingamabob. So, when it comes for Thingamabob launch day, what does Company X do?

All the usual tactics. They go to certain cities, solicit high profile journalists and/or social media pseudo-celebs, spend an insane amount of money on treating them like kings for a day, tons of media buys, the whole shebang. Company X parades around like bulls in the china shop of their choosing, hoping, just HOPING, that they’ve done enough to generate some good press for the Thingamabob in traditional media, get the social media pseud-celebs to blog and tweet about it a lot, and hey, maybe even sell a few Thingamabobs!

And then Company X rides their china-shopped bull into the sunset and calls it a “product launch,” and talks about it ad nauseam, patting themselves on the backs until it’s time for the next Thingamabob circus to come to town. Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is old. This is tired. This is not memorable.

WHY in the world do companies insist on doing this?

Apple, on the other hand, takes a more Disney-esque approach.

Rumors of the new iWhatever start circulating all the top tech blogs for a long time. Because of the loyalty Apple has from its fans, they start chatting feverishly about even the possibility of a new product long before there’s any official word. (There may or may not be an accidental or purposeful iWhatever “leak,” but that’s a different story for a different time.)

Finally, the day comes for the iWhatever launch.

Apple holds a special keynote presentation, hosted by their CEO, Steve Jobs. Journalists and other important people are invited to attend. The same presentation is also put on the web so that anybody who wants to watch the presentation can. Apple builds up enough anticipation and excitement about the iWhatever that people come to them. Much like Disney World. Jobs does his thing, reveals the iWhatever and all the cool stuff it can do, does a few live demos of it, then tells you how much it costs and when it will be officially available for purchase.

When that day comes, people flock to their nearest Apple store, some camping out overnight outside just because they HAVE TO HAVE THE iWHATEVER. After the initial fervent fans have their iWhatevers, more people flock to the stores if not to buy one, but to at least play with one so they can tell their friends, “Yeah, I was at the Apple store the other day and got to try out an iWhatever, it’s amazing.”

The entire process of an Apple product launch is an experience. It resonates. It sticks with people. Apple doesn’t have to bring a dog and pony show to town, people come to Apple, and people tell all their friends about it.

Much like people come to Disney World.

Now, ask yourself, which would you prefer your product to be more like, a circus or Walt Disney World?

Which do you think sells more product, makes more money, generates the most loyal fans, creates the most memories?

Circus photo via David Shankbone at Wikimedia Commons.

This is why fireworks outside of Orlando do nothing for me.

When you live and work at Walt Disney World for nearly a year, you get used to seeing these every night, and then nothing else ever compares. I know video isn’t the same as being there, but it’s the closest thing I’ll come for a while. Use your imagination — that’s what Disney’s all about.

Wishes – Magic Kingdom

These are what I saw every night while I worked at the Magic Kingdom:

. . . when I wasn’t at the Magic Kingdom, I was at Epcot, watching my favorites:

Illuminations: Reflections of Earth

For good measure, I’ll include Fantasmic, at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Many people like these the best, but my heart will always be at Epcot.

(Yes, I know I’m acting like a total spoiled Disney princess. Kiss my tiara.)

New podcast “Conversate” by Portage Digital Media has intelligent discussion + shenanigans (and oh yeah, me!)

Real quick shameless self-plug:

There is a new weekly podcast entitled “Conversate” from Portage Digital Media (disclosure: I consult with them), which is essentially your opportunity to be a fly on the wall of the PDM office whilst a conversation takes place. Said conversation can (and usually does) go anywhere, and is chock full of intelligent discussion sprinkled with a healthy dosage of shenanigans for good measure.

This past Friday I was at the office and participated in the conversation, which evolved into a podcast-in-gestation when the “record” button was pushed. Our conversation included everything from authenticity in marketing, to what a seminar on social media won’t get you, to what makes good (and bad) business copywriting, to cats awesome enough to have Facebook pages.

I can only stand to listen to myself talk so much (believe it or not) but if you, for whatever reason, want to hear my recorded voice along with two handsome gentlemen, head on over to the PDM blog and take a listen. If you like what you hear, subscribe to the podcast, why don’tcha?

I probably won’t be a regular weekly voice on Conversate, as my schedule will be picking up in upcoming weeks, but I’ll definitely be back as an occasional contributor. Don’t let that stop you from subscribing, however — these guys are hilarious and definitely worth a listen.

So what are you waiting for? Head on over to PDM and take a listen — who knows? You might learn something! At the very worst, we’ll tickle your funny bone and make your neurons dance a little jig.

Idol needs Simon, Dancing needs Len, and we need people like them.

[OK, yes, I know I just put up a post saying I was going into an official "blogging hiatus," but this just came out last night and you SAID you wanted to read "whatever was on my mind." So here ya go. /tdr]

As a rule, I generally don’t watch TV, and when I do, it’s usually not a reality show. The only season of American Idol I’ve ever watched was Season 6 and that was only because LaKisha Jones is my homegirl – we both hail from the same town of Flint, Michigan, originally. On and off for the past few years I’ve watched Dancing with the Stars, but this is the only year I’ve actually made it a point to follow the series with weekly devotion.

If you’re not familiar with them, the formula for these shows is rather simple:  the contestants do their thing, then three judges (only recently four on AI) give their critique, but ultimately it’s the viewers’ votes that determine who stays and who goes.

I was watching Dancing with the Stars last night and got thinking about the dynamic of the judges on these shows. There are three typical personalities, and from what I’ve noticed, these three personae aren’t just a formula they use for televised talent shows — they are prevalent in all of our lives.

Let’s take a look at them, in a nutshell:

• The Nice One – This is the Paula, Ellen, the Carrie Ann. Though on the shows this is usually a woman, it need not be in real life. They’re the ones who, even when they think the contestant was crappy, can’t quite just bluntly say it was crappy. They tend to sugarcoat everything, and know how to soften the blow of even the harshest criticism. Words commonly coming from their mouths include, “I know you can do better and I think you know it, too” and “That just didn’t do it for me, but I’m just one person, and you look really great in that outfit!”
• The Unpredictable One – This would be the Randys and the Brunos. You never know what they’re going to say. When you think you’ve pleased them, you haven’t, and when you think they hate whatever it is that you just did, they love it. These people generally have some kind of a catch phrase (“dawg”), or something about them that makes them very memorable, like being extremely animated, if not the human equivalent of a Muppet.
• The Harsh One – This would be Simon and Len. This is the judge whose comments are feared the most, because they’re usually brutal — brutally honest. “Blunt” is a common word used to describe them, and oftentimes their comments are met with boos from the audience. They sugarcoat nothing, they tell it like they see it, and often they are perceived as “negative.”

(Note: I know there’s that chick who is now the fourth judge on Idol but because I haven’t watched it since she’s been on there, I can’t say much about her.)

At varying times in varying situations, I’ve heard people say they were going to “cut out the negative people” in their life, or I’ve heard people say “only surround yourself with positive people and you’ll be much happier.” But I have to ask, really?

I hear that this is Simon’s last year on Idol. Who will replace him? Will they replace him? Regardless — American Idol without Simon just won’t be the same. Imagine if Dancing with the Stars suddenly decided they were going to take Len out of the picture — oh sure, the show would still go on, but would the dancers still get the honest feedback that he gives them? Would it still be the same?

Last night Evan Lysacek, the Olympic gold medalist in figure skating and crowd favorite, did what many thought was a great samba with his partner, Anna. I enjoyed watching it, and Carrie Ann and Bruno both loved it. Len, on the other hand, pointed out that technically Evan’s hips weren’t right for that particular dance, he expected better than that from him, and therefore he had to mark Evan down.

The crowd booed and hissed at Len’s remarks, but you know what? He was right. This happens with Simon all the time.

The world needs people like Len and Simon. And likewise, we need people like Len and Simon in our lives, too. Simon and Len don’t care about the boos and the hisses, because even when people don’t like what they hear, let’s face it — they’re usually right.

Without the eye and ear for detail that these two have, and even the bluntness of their delivery, it’s hard to imagine if the contestants on these two shows would work as hard to improve every week. Would Evan know that his hips weren’t right for the samba, and would he learn what not to do? Carrie Ann and Bruno didn’t mention anything about it. Would the singers on Idol know what to concentrate on for their vocals and stage presence, other than to not be “too pitchy, dawg”? Probably not.

Simon and Len aren’t actually “negative,” they’re honest. And people, as a rule, are neither entirely “negative” or “positive” — people are more complex than that. Like a Duracell battery, we have a positive end, a negative end, and a whole lot of mixed energy in between the two. It’s hard to win the approval of Simon and Len, but when they do praise a contestant for a job well done, it’s always sincere, the contestant knows they did well, and it means that much more.

When people claim they’re going to “eliminate the negative people” from their life, I can’t help but wonder if people aren’t purposely omitting the ones that actually challenge them to do better, and to think about things a little harder. And if so, where’s the happiness in that?

Ignorance is not bliss, and as nice looking as Evan Lysacek is, gold medal skater or not, his hips weren’t right for the samba. If Len hadn’t pointed that out, and if Evan didn’t know that now, he wouldn’t know to work on them for next week’s dance, and the problem would manifest again and again until he REALLY blows a dance where hips are crucial.

The shows need Simon and Len, and we need people like them. We also need the nicer ones with that soften the blow, and the unpredictable ones with catchphrases and Muppet-like energy to keep us on our toes. But eliminate any one of those types of people and you’re left without a complete talent show, and without a well-rounded worldview.

I know personally I keep certain people around not because they constantly pat me on the back and give me attaboys, but because they’re not afraid to tell me that I did something dumb if I really did do something dumb, they’re not afraid to tell me they expected more from me, and they’re not afraid to question and challenge me. They play Devil’s Advocate, either intentionally or not, and they’ll even tell me if my butt looks big in that. Without these people, I don’t think I’d grow, and my butt would look a lot bigger than it actually is.

What do you think? Am I way off the mark here? Am I missing something? Who are the Simons and Lens in your life, and if you omitted them, would you really be the same? Would you be challenged to do better?

Photos were swiped from ABC.com, though I’m not sure if that was legal.

The Best of the Red: Dust Bunny Edition

While doing some recent housekeeping in the back end of this site I uncovered some posts in my archives that many (read: most) of you missed, and I thought they were worthy of having the dust bunnies brushed off them.

I realize that the majority of you are newer readers and/or haven’t known me as long, so here are a few of that damn redhead you’ve likely never read:

• What my small town dentist can teach us about social media
• The internet is one big expo – what is your booth like?
• The high school notebook – social media casualty?
• How I accidentally started #ThankYouThursday
• Social media lessons from water skiing (and vice versa)
• Social media is like plastic baggies
• Facebook, LinkedIN, and Twitter are NOT the Holy Trinity

You can’t see it yet but I’ll be doing some restructuring of the direction of this blog in the near future. Everybody’s blog evolves over time, and this one is no exception. For details, visit my new “About” page.

Enjoy and thanks for reading. Stay tuned.

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