I pay attention to marketing throughout the year, and to things that catch or maintain my attention. Here are the top 10 marketing brands, people or events that caught my attention in 2016. It is also important to note, I didn’t say these were all successful, but they certainly made me look and either refer, recommend or suggest to someone. I brainstormed these 10 in one brief session as quickly as I could, just the top names and brands as they came to my mind. They weren’t based on research, just my impression – and I also steered clear of the fruit industry as I didn’t want to be influenced by my varied relationships in the industry.
10. Cinch. One of my associates occasionally wears Cinch branded shirts, and I had no idea what it was. Then, my wife and I went to Las Vegas in December and happened to be there when the National Final’s Rodeo happened to be in town. I then saw Cinch everywhere! Shirts, hats and the logo with a wide variety of cowboys in town for the rodeo. I then asked for a Cinch shirt for Christmas. I wanted to be part of it – although my wife warned me I won’t look like one of the cowboys!
I had never heard of this brand, I'm not a rodeo person at all, and then all of a sudden I started seeing it everywhere and now I want a shirt or two.
9. Hoka (and Brooks) running shoes. I’m a semi-avid runner, and on average run 3-4 times a week and do a handful of 5k’s and other races throughout the year. Including my first ever ½ marathon this past October! During one of the races, I noticed a couple of runners wearing Hoka running shoes, and then all of a sudden they seemed to be everywhere. One of the local running shops, Vaux Shoes has been carrying them, and I was on a Twitter live event and running shoes came up and someone mentioned they loved their Hoka’s. Now, I’ve been wearing Brooks for the last few years, and even made it to their great showroom over in Seattle a few times. I love their shoes, and even their packaging and shoe boxes with their innovative map art. And, I did my first half marathon in forever in Brooks this past September. So, it’ll be tough to get me to switch, but, my curiosity has been caught.
I love my Brooks Running Shoes, and am committed to them. But all of a sudden I'm seeing Hoka shoes everywhere.
8. Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches – This one is a bit odd. It isn’t for the sandwiches, which I do enjoy, but it is for their restrooms. If you’ve been into a Jimmy’s Johns you know what I’m talking about. They have these witty tiles showcasing the different style of bathroom users. It cracks me up. Especially if you have a teenage son and have someone to share this lowbrow humor with.
These bathroom signs in Jimmy John's crack me up!
7. Snobikes – I love snowmobiling, and during the winter it’s one of my favorite activities. Early in 2016, when snowmobiling near Wenatchee, WA, I noticed an abundance of snobikes. I’d maybe seen 1 or 2 a year for the past several years, but this year I saw a group of at least a dozen riders, and then another time out saw a large group. Then, during a meeting today with a friend who is a great snowmobiler I was shocked to hear that he’d sold his sleds and purchased two snobikes. So, I imagine I’ll test them out myself for the first time this year.
I went from seeing one of these a year while snowmobiling to seeing large groups of riders this winter.
6. Shark Tank – I love this popular show on ABC. I love seeing the incredible inventiveness of people and the ideas they come up with. One day, I’d love to have a product and appear on the show. I have one random idea I’m kicking around, we’ll see if I develop it. But in the meantime, “I’m a fan” and faithfully DVR each episode. I like the personalities of the Sharks, how they interact, and enjoy seeing the success stories. It’s also a great place to go for ideas and to inspire brainstorming. I like seeing the new products that are released, and then watch how their branding and digital presence changes. To me, it is almost like attending a marketing class. If I ever make it on the show, I’m hoping for a deal with Robert! He’s feeling a bit like the underdog to me lately. I love when I see one of the products that have made it on the tank in real life also.
I have my DVR set up to tape all the new episodes. It's a must for me.
5. Golden State Warriors – I’m an avid sports fan and for the most part my favorite teams are the New England teams from my hometown and the Northwest teams from me calling Washington State home for over 20 years now. The Warriors team was so exciting to me though, and I found myself watching several regular season games for the first time in years. My first love is the Celtics, in particular the Bird, Parrish, McHale, D.J. era. And, before you call me a Warriors homer, they aren’t my favorite team, I just enjoy watching them, especially Klay Thompson, which is why I started watching them in the first place. I’m a Washington State Cougar alumnus and fan and got to see Klay in a handful of games. My son and I were glued to this year’s finals, with him pulling for the Lebron James Cavs and me pulling for Warriors, it was the most fun I’d had watching basketball in a long time.
I was a big time basketball fan, then fell away, but Klay Thompson and the Warriors brought me back. I love watching them play, and I'm a WSU Cougar alumnus and started watching their games and then bam! Non stop excitement.
4. Jack Threads – I’m not a big clothing guy, but my son is, and he LOVES this site and has for a few years. Gets the coolest t-shirts from them all the time. Whenever he wears his 'Squints' shirt from the movie 'Sandlot' he gets a ton of complements. And his Kramer shirt in the Technicolor Dreamcoat outfit made his teachers laugh. I thought it was primarily for younger kids, but then I started hearing ads for them on a couple of the podcasts I listen to. Now I find myself glancing at their site. They’ve made an impression.
I thought it was a site for teenage boys, and then I started hearing about Jack Threads in my circle of influence.
3. Gary Vaynerchuk – Love this guy. Love his energy. I actively listen to his podcasts primarily and outside of my family he’s about the only person I look at on Snapchat currently. I need to change that. I love when his podcasts line up with my longer runs, the miles just melt away while I’m listening. I’ve read the books and drank the Koolaid, and most importantly, he’s helped to push me to new challenges. We’ve pitched a lot of new business this year and are seeing the results. He’s inspiring and gets me fired up. If you haven’t listed to him, and you love marketing, definitely check him out.
I had the great privilege of meeting Gary Vaynerchuk a couple of years ago. Listen/watch the podcasts, read the books, check him out on social media, I promise you'll feel an impact!
2. Matthew Berry (and Fantasy Sports). I’m a Fantasy Sports guy, love my Fantasy Baseball and Fantasy Football. I regularly listen to ESPN’s Fantasy Focus Football and have for years. I like the entire gang, Stephania Bell, Field Yates, Secret Squirrel and of course Matthew himself. Once every blue moon I’ve even had a retweet from Matthew and it puts a smile on my face for a few days. And the advice, I do what he says, listen to him and then try to make my own decision – most of the time. However Mr. Berry, I bought into your John Brown numbers for the Cardinals this year, instead of picking Fitzgerald and it hurt me a bit. Oh well. Fantasy Baseball is my other addiction. I play in a competitive league and love my daily dose of Eric and Tristan. So many little things that are now part of my daily nomenclature and I can't say without thinking of these two such as; 'chicken parmesan,' '#hashbrowns,' 'hey, it's a combo meal!' 'geekystatoftheday,' and many more! I’m excited that the new season is just around the corner.
I’m also hoping the football group does their road show in Seattle sometime next year and I can make a trip over and check it out. Keep up the great work everyone, you have a FAN! Final note, my son and I love to speak loudly and ‘Put it on the Board’ much to the dismay of my wife. LOL.
Fantasy Focus Football and Baseball are must listen to podcasts for me!
1. Pokemon Go! – Wow, what a trend that was. Our family got caught up in this for a few weeks and it was great fun while it was at its peak. What a cultural phenomena. We will always remember a weekend we spent in Bellevue/Seattle and all five of us went to the downtown Bellevue Park and were amazed by the hundreds and hundreds of Pokemon hunters in the evening. It felt like we were part of something larger and it was both fun and weird at the same time. Two of my kids were making mad dashes throughout the park to capture a new monster, I was a bit more subdued but nonetheless excited. We also enjoyed a road trip to Bend, OR from Yakima, WA and my wife drove and the three of us would all hunt as we passed through each town. I wonder what the next craze will be that captures the imagination of so many so quickly.
Thanks for reading along. I wonder what will jump out to me in 2017. I’m always on the lookout for something that’s new and captures my attention.
I haven't played in months, but man, was it fun for a few weeks! And, one of the biggest cultural phenomenons I've ever seen.