Meatball Sundae Mixup

I recently purchased Seth Godin's newest book, Meatball Sundae. His books are always a fast, interesting read and by the time I have gone through them a couple of times the pages are dog-eared, there are notes in the margins and yellow highlighter throughout.

So it was with great gusto that I began the book. Then a strange thing happened. At around page 42 (the end of a chapter) I began to feel some deja vu. Had I read an excerpt somewhere before and this was it? Did I read this in the introduction? I stopped. Went back. It wasn't my brain going off the deep end, I was indeed reading the same words again.

The book repeated pages 9-42. Then picked up again on page 79. How strange! Was this done purposely? Was Seth trying to make a point? After all, here he was using a "meatball" way of communicating his message (a book!) as he was talking about how marketing products, ideas and services has changed. Was he pushing me to go to his website? To read the book online?

I returned to the Tudor Book Shop (my favorite local bookstore, cafe, gallery in Kingston, PA) where I had purchased the book. They went to the shelf to replace my book and found the other copies of the book with the same repeated and missing pages! A conspiracy? A conundrum!

A few days later Tudor called to let me know a replacement copy of Meatball Sundae had arrived with all the pages in the right place. Mystery solved. It was simply a printers error.

But for a while it was fun to think something more interesting was afoot.

On to the next!
Catherine

Do Kneecaps Have Sweat Glands?

The 50 + conversation continues. Last evening I was out to dinner with women friends in the same age bracket and I mentioned my most recent thoughts about marketing to boomers. This quickly led to a discussion of the many faces of menopause.

Each of us had different experiences. Mood swings were the bane for one. One took an herbal remedy. We all had stories of hot flashes but the biggest question of the evening was -do knee caps have sweat glands? One of our group sweats profusely around her knees every time she gets a flash. Knees? Yup. Just goes to the point that each of us is unique - even when we're talking about something that we all experience.

Our discussions quickly moved to updates on our children and our careers. The New Hampshire primary brought politics to the table. We talked about taking care of our parents and getting ourselves back to the gym.

We marveled at how warm the weather had been and that led to a discussion about how much sunshine we need in our lives. A new study came out saying that sunshine is GOOD for us. Last week it was evil. One of our group actually prefers cloudy days - as she say - everyone expects you to be happy when the sun is shining. When it's cloudy they don't! That drew a laugh.

Each of the women sitting at that table were accomplished in their fields, intelligent, caring, funny and interesting people. We're travelers, readers, concert goers, etc. This is who marketers need to talk to - so perhaps they ought to join us for dinner.

Let me know your thoughts
Catherine

50+

Over the past few weeks I've encountered several instances where age was front and center - in particular, people my age. Yes, I'm the 50+ group. I've moved up on the survey boxes (you know, the ones that break down age by groups) and my doctor is now insisting that I get that colon check.

It began with a project for a client that is creating a "back to school" collaboration of the various colleges in our area aimed at boomers and seniors. There is a difference in these two groups and the client was looking for a way to reach both audiences. As we did some research on the subject we found marked differences in how these groups read, learn, react and perceive themselves as consumers. (We ended up creating a brand name for the collaboration and when it's launched in May I'll let you know if it strikes a chord.)

An article in yesterday's New York Times titled "Six Decades at the Center of Attention, and Counting" clarified the boomer buyer even further for me. According to Blaine Branchik, an associate professor of marketing at Quinnipiac University who has studied the history of selling to the elderly - "Seniors, particularly baby boomers, each believe they belong to a market segment made up of exactly one person. Many believe the only thing they have in common is that they are all so unique that they have nothing in common."

Wow. There it is in a nutshell. We also still believe we are invincible and why not? We are becoming bionic men and women. Knee replacement, hip replacement, face lifts and viagra. We're good to go for twenty more years. Don't you dare call us old!

So why are there so many ads talking about ailments that come with age? Bladder problems and constipation lead the lists (and often the ads run back to back). Arthritis and osteoporosis? We're not listening! If we have issues with these ailments we're more likely to check them out on WebMD or talk with friends. We will make our own decisions thank you.

Retirement planning? Hah! We're going to be working for a long time because we can and we like it. Born in an age of self-exploration, we will continue to look for new avenues of adventure. Retirement homes will never be the same - trust me. We'll be living in grand old homes, sharing communal areas and taking turns making dinner. Sounds like a bunch of hippies on a commune doesn't it -well think about it! We may enjoy some of the finer things in life (a good Merlot rather than Boone's Farm Apple wine) in our new digs, but we will still view ourselves as unique, counter-culture beings .

A final note. When the college collaboration I mentioned earlier told us about their launch event in May I had a hard time keeping my thoughts in check. You see, they are holding a event on a Friday from 9 -3 with presentations on the types of courses that will be offered. And the day kicks off with a speaker sponsored by AARP. I am their target market - but I am not going to take a day off from work to attend an orientation session. And I really don't want to be associated with AARP. I'm hoping this group will create a website will all the information I need to attend a class and an easy way to sign up on-line.

Let me know your thoughts
Catherine

Mexican Turkey

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Okay, the kids will tell you that I'm a little nuts when it comes to Christmas too, but Thanksgiving is four days of watching the Macy's parade, eating too much, watching tons of football and yes, starting the Christmas decorating. There are no pressures, no gifts to worry about, no over the river and through the woods. My biggest worry is trying to get all of the items on the dinner menu to be ready at the same time! (Don't get me started about the 50 year old stove)

This year is a little different. Our family and my brother's family (that's 8) plus two friends and a cousin (that's 3 more) are all going to Cabo San Lucas for Thanksgiving week. Sun, sand, snorkeling, ATVing, golf, suntanning - what could be better? No phone service, no grey Pennsylvania days, no daylight savings time darkness. As I said, what could be better?

Actually this isn't the first time we've all gone away together for Thanksgiving. We've had Talkin' Turkey in Tampa I and II. And Breakin' Bread in the Bahamas. All wonderful family gatherings with tons of laughs, silliness and storytelling.

But there has always been one constant. The turkey.

When my son Harry heard we were going to Mexico for the holiday the first question was - will we still have a regular Thanksgiving dinner. Turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, dressing, sweet potatoes, dressing (you getting the idea?) I assured him we'd be dining on drumsticks as always. And there'd be enough dressing for seconds.

We leave on Saturday. I can't wait.

Catherine

Writer's Strike

I've been watching and reading news reports about the potential writer's strike on the west coast. An article this morning in the New York Times, Writers Set to Strike, Threatening Hollywood, summed up the possible impact - not only on writers and studios, but on all of the ancillary businesses that feed the movie machine.

A cleaners who processes 2,000 costumes a day. A nursery that supplies the plants needed for those jungle scenes. Caterers. The only company that doesn't seem to be dismayed at the thought of a strike is Starbucks - since all of the unemployed actors, productions assistants, props people, etc will need some place to hang out.

The issues surrounding the strike are important. Like the music industry where artists and studios have seen changes to the way their art is delivered, downloaded and shared, the movie and television industry is facing the same challenges. Should writers be compensated when their words appear online or on a cell phone?

I fall squarely in the writer's camp. Writing is what I do. It's my job and I deserve to be paid for my creativity and ability. It is my choice to give my words away or sell them. It has always driven me crazy when I hear people say they copied a movie DVD or downloaded songs from a share site. Someone wrote that, created that. You have just taken food out of their mouths.

I have another reason to be watching this strike. Our son Harry graduated from Syracuse's Newhouse School in May, moved to Burbank, and is trying to make his way as a film writer. He knows full well that it is a competitive business and it won't happen overnight. He has taken non-writing jobs to pay the bills as he pursues his dream. A possible strike directly impacts his choices. It also affects his roommate Dennis who is a production assistant on Two and a Half Men. Once they run out of already written scripts, he will be probably be layed off.

Does the industry need to look at new ways to structure compensation. Yes. Will the conglomerates that own the studios look beyond bottom line to the backbone of the industry - the people who create what's on the screen - and protect that asset. It remains to be seen.

One final note. The writers may have to go on strike, but that will not keep them from writing. It's in our blood. It's how we think and understand the world. If writers stopped writing - the world would be a very sad place.