“I went to school on Tom’s ideas!”
Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com
A Clear Eye.
On customers, brands and marketplace success
by Tom Asacker
“I went to school on Tom’s ideas!”
Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com
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"We're moving on."
I received the image to the left in an email this morning (click to enlarge). It was meant to be funny, and it is. But it's also a slap in the Patriots brand face. If you don't follow pro football, here's the brief backstory:
The New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick have been fined by the NFL after the team was caught videotaping New York Jets defensive coaches giving signals during Sunday's 38-14 victory. Belichick spent seven minutes yesterday, warding off a barrage of questions about the illegal videotaping that will cost him $500,000 and the Patriots $250,000 and, possibly, a first-round draft pick.
"I know there is a lot of interest here on the situation and decision last night, but as I stated, it's over and we're moving on," Belichick said to begin his news conference in Foxborough, Mass. "All my energy and focus and attention is on the San Diego Chargers game Sunday night. That's where we’re at."
That may be where he's at, but the Patriots brand is somewhere else.
What is a brand?
This morning, I pulled out of my driveway under rainy skies on my way to a high school football game. Unfortunately, I had left my baseball cap at my office. So I made a quick stop to fill up with gas, grab a hot cup of coffee, and find something to cover my head. Even though they were on sale, and despite being an avid fan, I simple could not purchase a Patriots cap. Not today.
I've written this countless times before: A brand is an expectation of someone or something delivering a certain feeling by way of an experience. And that feeling is always self-reflective. It's always about the identity of the chooser. Today, the feeling of being a Patriots fan is a conflicted one, at best. And make no mistake about it, it was Belichick's smug response that tarnished that feeling. As Jennifer Wielgus of phillyBurbs.com so aptly summed it up:
"When somebody acts like they're smarter than us, or better than us, or above dealing with us, or don't have to follow the same rules as the rest of us, we relish any opportunity to knock them down a peg or three. We want to see them walking in our shoes - the ugly, ill-fitting loafers of the admittedly imperfect."
The current leaders of the Patriots have proven that they know how to win. Now let's see if they truly understand what makes a brand great; and that's being something to aspire to, something that makes us feel good about our imperfect selves in their bigger than life presence. Because we can't all be winners in life, but we can play the game with passion, integrity, humility, and humanity.
Until then, and when the rains fall from the sky, I'll be reaching for my brand new Red Sox cap.
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» Your brand isnt about you from The Voiceover Boblog
As Ive mentioned before, Tom Asacker is a very bright man with some profound insights about branding. He offers some thoughts about branding in light of the controversy in the NFL over the New England Patriots and their coach Bill Belichick.
The... [Read More]
"Tom is timely, thought provoking and all about the new brand vision packaged as a Seinfeld stand up. I went to school on his ideas."
- Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com and CEO, Eons.
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Tom, I really appreciate your perspective here.
Two weeks ago I finished reading "Education of a Coach", the story of Bill Belichick and his father Steve.
It filled me with an admiration for coach Belichick and a desire to live with the same sort of discipline and work ethic he has exhibited in his career.
You're right; the Patriots brand is somewhere other than where it was before this story broke.
Keep creating,
Mike
Posted by: Michael Wagner | September 17, 2007 at 10:36 PM
Tom - I've been in a brand groove lately, reading The Brand Gap, ZAG, Blue Ocean Strategy, The Origin of Brands, and (perhaps a tangent), Citizen Marketers, as well (of course) as a solid handful of Seth Godin.
Have not (yet) read your tome (happy to review it, and I've interviewed a good near half-dozen authors on BizTechTalk - hint hint) - but definitely hear you on the Patriots front.
For me, I gave up on Football and Baseball after living outside of Pittsburgh in the 80s. Nothing quite said honesty and hard-work (and the fantastic branding around Mean Joe Greene, Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, etc.) like the Pittsburgh teams at that time. The Patriots and The Red Sox in recent years brought back some spark of interest for me, as they put the teamwork back into sports, rather than solo "heroes" - but this latest bit is definitely a low point to an otherwise exemplary bout of sportsmanship.
But then again, these guys are all human - and the quest to be perfect may have pushed them over the edge.
Still, have to admit that they have once heck of a franchise, and for the most part, while this incident has eroded the brand value a bit, if they get back to business, they should be in good shape.
Cheers,
Dan
Posted by: Dan Keldsen | September 22, 2007 at 07:08 PM
Winning is hard but what's even harder is staying at the top. It is the nature of ambition to make men liars and cheats and to drive them to hide the truth in their sleeves. The Pats may be back in business but their brand is out of business.
Posted by: Herman Najoli | September 29, 2007 at 06:37 AM