The famous Pirelli Calendar is out, and our own Erin Wasson makes an appearance. An alert FBvian points us to her nipples.
Walking to the parking garage yesterday I saw this message drawn in chalk on the sidewalk in front of the DMA. I thought, “Huh. Why would the cucumbers in Texas have lower self-esteem than cucumbers in any other state?” So I did some journalism-style web browsing and checked out that site. Turns out the former Central Dallas Ministries has, with some help from the folks at the Richards Group, rebranded itself. CEO Larry James explains here why the nonprofit poverty-busting outfit changed its name to CitySquare. And apparently the chalk marketing is all over downtown. I’m not the only one who has stumbled across such a message.
Essentially — and yes, I’m quoting from the press release, but they’ve sort of backed me into a corner by coming up with something it’s hard to describe in another way, so blame them not me — it’s “Groupon for golfers.” Intrigued? I hope so, because I’ve cut-and-pasted the full release after the jump. Aren’t you excited! I’m sure Tim will use this and have something to say about it. Right now he’s off getting a new hip.
I don’t know who does Reliant’s advertising. I talked to the internet, and it wouldn’t tell me. Whoever it is, the agency needs to rethink Reliant’s outdoor campaign for the new “cap and save” program. I’ve heard the radio spots. They’re good. Straightforward and simple: you lock in your price at a cap. If the price of energy goes down, so does your price; if it goes up, your price remains unchanged. So far, so good.
But now take a look at the huge billboard that went up recently on a building two blocks down Ross from D HQ. I saw it for the first time today and remarked to one of our art directors that I thought it was bad. “Can you explain it?” asked the art director. “I don’t get it.” Which is precisely my point. Unless you’re already familiar with the “cap and save” concept, this billboard is confusing. Why would you be all “Oh yeah” if prices went up? Beyond the confusing words, the double image of the woman is dull. I give it a “D-,” and it scores that high only because all the words on the billboard are spelled correctly.
(Note: for a brief time, I worked in an ad agency and created outdoor ads. The people at Nestle, no doubt, still talk about the sweet stuff I did on their behalf while employed by Publicis. What I’m getting at is, I’m an expert in this field.)
Last night, we threw a party in the Fairmont’s Venetian Room for the 2010 Best Real Estate Agents and Best Mortgage Brokers. It fell to me to congratulate the couple hundred people gathered and thank the sponsors who helped us throw the shindig. This is always a dodgy situation, because I have a tendency to ad lib in a way that sometimes produces bad results (I still feel bad about referring one time to a pregnant woman in the audience who, I later learned, was not pregnant). Our marketing department, which produces these affairs, is always on edge until I put down the mic. Last night I kept it straightforward and simple, and I thought I got off the stage without any goofs — until I shook hands with one of our sponsors, Bob Johns, president of the Kitchen Source, and he informed me that I’d not once but twice referred to his outfit as the Kitchen Store. I think Bob asked me, “So how did you like having worked at D Magazine?” Then he reached into his coat pocket, I thought perhaps to retrieve a well-made Grohe faucet with which to bludgeon me. Turns out he was just searching for a business card.
Today, I still have my job and access to this blog. While I do, I’d like to state for the record that when you go to the Kitchen Source, every remodel or new construction project becomes an exceptional experience. That’s what their website says, and I have no reason to disbelieve it.
It was a close call. A year and a half ago, I wondered aloud whether the company would survive: its cash condition was perilous. Since then, management has done everything right, as evidenced by the latest 10-K filing. Circulation is down, and circulation revenue is up. Lower circulation means substantionally lower printing and delivery costs. Net operating profit — derived by removing non-cash items like impairment costs, depreciation, and amortization – looks to be about $33 million on revenue of $518 million, for a net margin of 6.4%. From studying the figures, it appears to me Belo has nowhere to go but up. The only risk factor is higher newsprint costs, but even that would not be a big deal. If it starts to regain some of the 30% it has lost in advertising over the past two years, things could be rosy indeed. (I don’t expect it all to come back; lower circulation means lower ad rates.)
Here’s the thing: I think the News is a better paper than it was before the offal hit the fan. Judging from the signifcantly increased prices it is getting from subscribers, a lot of people in Dallas agree with me.
UPDATE: Once again, the DBJ gets the story completely wrong. Don’t they teach these business reporters how to read a financial statement? Wouldn’t the market’s reaction give them a hint?
Following the model of let’s-create-a-national-network-for-rich-people magazines Modern Luxury and Luxe, we now have 944, which “focuses on lifestyle news and features, as well as celebrity interviews and editorials.” As far as I can tell, it is either named for an area code or an IRS form.
Founder Marc Lotenberg says:
“As we work to highlight the brightest names and places in the city, the Dallas edition will afford the invaluable opportunity to explore new avenues, fresh partnerships and creative visions for our brand.”
New! Fresh! Creative! Hey, we need that here! Thanks, Marc!
Even though it may seem like we’re closing in on the mall scene from Minority Report, I’m completely in favor of those huge ads on the sides of buildings downtown. If Palm and Choctaw and movie companies want to hawk their products here, I’m glad they think enough people are downtown to do it there. I’m also a fan of this idea, turning dilapidated downtown storefronts into prime advertising space. It makes the area look more desirable, and makes the owners some scratch. I know Wick likes it. He’s been trying to sell space on the side of our building since we moved in.
On my customary afternoon trip to the local convenience store to purchase a beverage, I pass this marquee for First Baptist Church on Ervay Street. The teases they throw up there each week (see another, from a few weeks back, below) are almost enough to interest me to drop in on one of their services.
But then I read Nehemiah 3 and discover that they’re really talking about re-building the wall around Jerusalem. And the answer to the riddle — “How do you eat an elephant?”: “One bite at a time” — is a little disappointing. Still, it’s good marketing.
1. I was going to comment on Dallas ISD’s proposed fix for four high schools that face possible closure by the state. They’ll create magnet programs at each of the campuses to attract students that could boost the test scores and graduation rates (the DISD board seems to know it’s about “the inputs.”) I was going to say that this solution sounds like a trick to beat the system. Then I read the final paragraph of the DMN piece: “In addition, state records show that all four schools would not have passed Texas’ academic standards if they did not get statistical help from the state. Various formulas allow for schools to pass the standards even if too many students flunk state tests.” So, since districts apparently have access to a magic calculator, is there really a state accountability system left to trick?
2. Would this middle school student have been arrested any place other than in the Park Cities? Without knowing exactly what the threat was, it’s hard to say. But can we all agree that Fox 4 needn’t have required poor Sophia Reza to stand in the rain last night, outside a closed school, to report on an incident that occurred last week? Let’s free TV reporters from the tyranny of the wholly unnecessary live shot.
3. I was a little amused by the billboard. I find the commercial a little icky. But it’s all pretty sophomoric.
We received at the office yesterday an invitation from a Florida-based PR firm to take a press trip to Dallas to visit the recently renovated Sheraton Dallas (the largest hotel in Texas, for those keeping score at home). Besides the fact that we were invited to take a press trip to our own city, there are a number of things about this invitation that I found entertaining. Jump for the itinerary that journalists from across the country will enjoy — along with my comments.
What’s sad about the lack of info on the USA Film Festival’s website is that this weekend’s KidFilm fest is actually packed with some really great stuff (they kind of bury the schedule, but you can find it here). The people at KidFest were kind enough to forward along some screeners, which I took in with my four- and two-year-olds. Their thoughts – as well as my own – will be found on this blog tomorrow. So stay tuned, as they say. Sneak peak: if you have kiddos – especially in the two to four range – make room on your weekend calendar for the Mo Willems tribute, which is on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The press release from the mayor’s office announcing Dallas as a finalist city for the U.S. 2018/2022 World Cup bid couldn’t have come at a worse time: this kind of self-promotion isn’t going to cut it, to say the least. Today, I’d say we don’t even get selected to be a U.S. host city, putting aside the long-shot that the U.S. actually lands the World Cup. Next time there is any conversation about Dallas and the World Cup, I want news to come from these guys. Let’s just say when it comes to city promotion, Leppert and company are officially in the doghouse. We needs some ‘splaining. (BTW: There’s no way U.S. gets 2018 – that’s going to Spain. Maybe 2022, but we’ll have to fight for it with Mexico if it doesn’t stay in Europe, which is likely, since the next two Cups will not be in Europe. The 2014 cup, if you weren’t keeping score, will be in Brazil).
Last month the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association named Up in the Air the best film of 2009. This weekend the North Texas Film Critics Association followed suit. Having now seen the movie myself, my response is “eh.” It’s pleasant enough to watch, but it ends up telling a story of rather conventional ideas. Why can’t George Clooney just happily go on and on with his empty backpack?
As others have noted, American Airlines is like another character in the movie. I figured they paid a pretty penny for that privilege, but apparently the Fort Worth-based carrier provided access rather than money.