In the first post, “I want to be KISSED“, I performed a quick social media presence assessment.  The results of the assessment showed a few places where the existing social media strategy utilized by KISS, could be improved.  The second post, “Oshawa – KISSed, Not Missed!” explored the media backlash toward KISS for not including Oshawa, Canada on the North American Tour even though the city won the KISS fan-routing tour contest.  Oshawa is getting a concert and Gene Simmons was a little outraged at the media for spoiling a surprise.

Anyway, I received this e-mail from KISSonline about the pre-sale.  This e-mail had a different look to it from previous ones.  Hmm, need to go investigate further.  Sure enough – at least from a social media site perspective (Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, iLike, and Twitter), the sights have a more cohesive appearance.  I’d like to think someone over at the KISS organization read my first post (since I did send a copy to them) and take action.  At least someone there realized they had a disconnect and addressed it.   Kudos to KISS.

In April, KISS ran a contest asking fans to vote for their hometown to be included in the band’s upcoming tour, with the top vote getter getting a concert in their town. Oshawa Canada topped the list, but when the list of the “KISS Alive 35″ concert dates was released this week, Oshawa was not on the list.

Asked why Oshawa was not included,  KISS responded that the town was skipped for “logistical reasons“, and a rep added that they would still “get something special”.  Of course, major media coverage and angry fans ensued, which forced KISS to announce that they are in fact playing in Oshawa on October 7th – the release date for the new KISS album “Sonic Boom”.

Gene Simmons has voiced his anger at the media since the “surprise”  KISS was leaked prematurely.

My opinion is that the band should have stated the concert was going to happen in Oshawa and then revealed that it would be a live premiere of the new album.   You can’t dangle a carrot like they did and then not appear to follow through on it.  That’s the quickest way to ruin your reputation – not that the members of KISS really need to worry about that.  It might not work for your brand however.

What do you think?   Is the media to blame?  Was the backlash appropriate considering the band did use social media to promote the tour and then appeared to not honor the outcome?

Side view of the U2 360° Stage known as "the Claw". This photo is from the July 17, 2009 Croke Park show in Dublin. Note the stage, outside circular walkway, and floating bridges.

This year, I repeated a favorite experience – that of seeing U2 live in concert, in their homeland city of Dublin no less.  This tour follows what I consider a lackluster album release.  The tour however has a complex stage (which reminds me of the Pop Mart tour with the huge lemon) providing the audience with what is billed as an unobstructed 360 degree view of the band.  The stage is also designed to allow the band to interact with the audience.  The stage layout is an extension of the previous Elevation and Vertigo tours where walkways allow the band to venture out from the core stage.  The core stage for this tour is a large disc surrounded by a circular walkway connected to the main stage by two floating bridges.  The whole complex is topped by an four post umbrella to which the speakers and video system are suspended.

Photo provided by my friend Mark Coffey in Ireland of the U2 360° Stage with the spire lit. This photo is from the July 17, 2009 Croke Park show in Dublin.

A vertical spike adds visual depth as well as the strobe and moving light systems.  The full effect of the lighting system is best seen from a distance as the sheer scale of the structure prevents one from seeing the tower from  close-up.  This structure is visually stunning.  As the night draws darker, the stage begins to reflect the color of the lights used, much like a chameleon matches its surroundings.  For the show in Croke, it changed between its natural light green and orange through dark green, yellow, orange, light and dark blues and red.

The video unit is rather unique.  At first look, it appears as a smooth screen for all sides of the stadium.  This whole structure can also move vertically as needed.

Notice the topmost position of the video screen in this photo by Mark Coffey.

Notice the screen lowered in this photo by Mark Coffey.

The most intriguing aspect of this display is that it can change shape (see photos).

Note the geometrical pattern the screen is comprised of. Photo by Mark Coffey.

The geometrical pattern in the screen expands, effectively doubling the size. You can see the expanded screen in the top portion of this photo by Mark Coffey.

Notice the screen expanded to its maximum size in this photo by Mark Coffey.

Enough about the stage – let’s move on to the band.

I titled this post U270°.  It’s sort of a joke, as Croke Park required modifications to the stage which eliminated the far section of the stadium as usable seating.  So much for 360 degrees.  I wish that was the only reason for the post title.  The band hardly moved from their positions on the main stage.  There was very little interaction with the audience in a manner provided for by the stage design.  The set list provided a nice balance from the catalog of songs and the band as usual performed at a top level.  The newer songs worked well with the stage design and the 2 hour concert seemed to pass by very quickly.  I look forward to comparing this European show to the upcoming Atlanta show in the US.

360° Tour 1st leg: Europe
2009-07-27: Croke Park – Dublin, Ireland
Support Acts: Bell X1, The Script

Setlist:
1. Breathe
2. No Line On The Horizon
3. Get On Your Boots
4. Magnificent
5. Beautiful Day
6. New Year’s Day
7. I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For / Movin’ On Up (snippet)
8. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)
9. Unknown Caller
10. The Unforgettable Fire
11. City Of Blinding Lights
12. Vertigo
13. I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight / Relax (snippet) / Two Tribes (snippet)
14. Sunday Bloody Sunday / Rock The Casbah (snippet)
15. Pride (In The Name Of Love)
16. MLK
17. Walk On / You’ll Never Walk Alone (snippet)
18. Where The Streets Have No Name / All You Need Is Love (snippet)
19. One
20. 40 (snippet) / Bad / Fool To Cry (snippet)

Encore(s):
21. Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
22. With Or Without You / Shine Like Stars (snippet)
23. Moment of Surrender

Were you at the show?  What did you think?

Mark attends a KISS concert in Hartford, CT (1996)

To be fair, let me explain my expectations.  I consider Gene Simmons to be an insightful marketing minds.  I mean love him or hate him, this guy has been selling himself and KISS for decades.  Even if you don’t like his stuff, you can observe that he gets it done.  So my expectations were pretty high.  I expected that a social media campaign such as a fan routed tour would have a very strong online presence.  I expected that Gene Simmons would have his folks working with the cutting edge technology that is pervasive in social media today.

So, what did I find?  I was surprised.  Keep in mind, I only did a bird’s eye assessment – nothing more than 45 minutes total.  In this assessment, I look at the major social media and bookmarking sites.  This is not enough evidence to build a plan around, but it is enough to give you a sense of the social media presence of an entity. Here are my findings:

Websites: I was dismayed to find that KISS.com is not owned by KISS.  They needed to go with KISSonline.com.  Given the productions that KISS usually generates and the financial capital they hold – I would have expected a more polished website.  Same with GeneSimmons.com.  The visual feel is very similar and echos the presence on Facebook and MySpace.  Consistency s good,  I just expected more.

LinkedIn: I was not surprised here.  I did not find evidence of any band members – even using their real names.  This doesn’t mean they aren’t there – it just means I did not find any I could certifiably state were legitimate.  I did find several impostors.  I also found one LinkedIn group which uses the band logo.  I am surprised here at least from the standpoint of Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley.  Being the business mogul he is, I expected to find Gene with a presence on LinkedIn.   I was hoping that Paul Stanley was promoting himself as an artist here as well.   I guess when you’re famous you don’t need a LinkedIn profile, but I disagree with that notion.

Facebook: There is a legitimate KISS fan page on Facebook with over 100,00 fans.  Figuring 2 million Facebook users, that’s 5% of the population.  There are some other fan pages, but they are either tribute bands or user generated fan pages.  The presence here is very similar to the KISS website.  So kudos for consistency.  There are even Facebook applications dedicated to KISS.  So on initial appearance (remember bird’s eye view), we have a uniform brand so far.   Gene Simmons also has his own Facebook page set up, so we are starting to see him carry his personal brand over to the online world.  Way to go Gene!

MySpace: As expected, there is a MySpace page for KISS.  I would have been shocked if there wasn’t.  When I think music and social media, I think of MySpace first as a place a band would be.

Twitter: Initially I was expecting a ton of impostors on Twitter.  The #Kiss hashtag is active with activity and shows related tweets.  I was able to find 5 accounts on Twitter which appear to be legitimate KISS representation, Gene Simmons was one.  Gene does not tweet very often and has only been on since March 2009.  Definitely a presence, but it could be tightened up a bit.  I also see how Twitter could become an integral part of the KISS machine – read on after the assessment notes.

YouTube: I was not surprised here.  There is a large KISS presence on YouTube – mostly fan generated though.  Who cares, its a large number of videos blaring KISS music.  This would be a great place to connect with the audience.  Heck, consider doing something official on Pandora as well.

Groups on Google and Yahoo: There are a large number of groups on Yahoo and Google talking about KISS – the band.   This is good because this is where the fan base is hanging out.   Knowing where your customers/clients/fans hang out is important – it lets you craft and target your message.  Mr. Simmons excels at that.

Delicious / Digg: As expected, there weren’t many (in comparison to everything else) bookmarks on Delicious or Digg related to KISS.   There were about 300 total between the two sites (yes there will be some overlap).  For a band, I’m not sure how important this area is to build a presence on.

SlideShare: I was just curious and went here to see.  There were 3 presentations involving KISS.  I expected none or for them to be related to Gene Simmons only.

So in a nutshell, I feel that Gene Simmons has a more cohesive social media presence than his band.  I also feel that there are some things that could be done to tighten up the messaging and branding on both fronts.  There is absolutely a role that social media could play in elevating the KISS brand and like many corporations – they are struggling with it a bit.  The good things are that the presence is strong where expected – those places just need to be connected together with a strategic purpose.  I see evidence that Gene is doing that for his personal brand.   There are plenty of places to engage the community as well.  This is where I would focus the Eventful Tour Demand.  As for the other places such as LinkedIn?  They may not matter nor may Gene care – I think a presence there would reinforce him as a maven of marketing and detract from the impostors.

That said, I still love the idea of using social media to have fans vote on what cities and in what order KISS will play it’s North American tour.  That’s an awesome idea and one that should be capitalized on.  And here’s the final idea for using Twitter.  Listen carefully Gene…  Set it up so that your set list on the tour is fan generated by Twitter.  My vote will be for “God of Thunder”.

For those wanting to do their own Bird’s Eye assessments, here’s the table I use to capture the data in.  Again it’s simple and shouldn’t take a lot of time.  Add columns to do a comparison between entities.  Again, this exercise is not enough to build a plan or strategy around.  The purpose of this exercise is to determine online presence from a social media perspective;  show were potential conversations regarding your brand, product, or service occur; and at a high level capture the sentiment of the conversations that are occurring.

One practice I have always applauded dining establishments for is a BYO policy.  That said, such a policy permits you the patron to bring your own wine to the establishment for consumption.  You will usually pay a fee per bottle called a “corking fee”.  Even with the fee, BYO has several advantages:

1. You know what you will be drinking – no guessing off the wine list (that’s a different post altogether);
2. You won’t be overpaying – even with the corking fee;
3. The wines you bring will often be conversation starters.  What’s a better way to start a relationship with a dining establishment than to allow them to understand what you, the customer – likes?

That said, don’t go bringing your $5.00 bargain bin wine to the establishment unless they don’t serve wine at all.  I’d consider this rude.  I’d also consider bringing a wine you know they establishment has on its wine list as rude.  If it’s a common bottle AND you know what it’s price point is AND you are going to drink a bottle – then ask to speak with the wine steward or manager and work out a deal.

If it’s an uncommon bottle and they have a wine steward on staff – offer a taste.  This just builds a relationship and that relationship will benefit you in the long run – especially if you are a frequent patron.

So how do I find a BYO establishment in my area?  You may find them in various reviews on Yelp, OpenTable or Zagat.  You are better off calling and asking if they have a BYO policy.  Or you can use this handy website that someone recently pointed me to…. GoBYO.com.

Try it out. Post your thoughts or better yet – tell me your best BYO story.

http://www.winetastingsandiego.com/

Jim Barry 1999 The McRae Wood

It’s been a while since I went to the cellar for a bottle of wine.  I’ve been drinking less of late and when I have indulged it has either been out on the town or tasting a new South American or Spanish wine.  It’s also that time of the year when I start to drink more refreshing whites than the old sultry reds.  Hearing the call, I went to the cellar to find probably one of the first bottles of wine I ever bought after discovering and falling in love with a real red.  This wine changed my life – well OK, my outlook on wine.  The year was 2001 and the bottle is a Jim Barry 1999 McRae Wood.  I loved the wine in 2001.  I appreciate the wine now in 2009.

The vineyard was planted in 1964 with Shiraz on land Jim Barry purchased from Duncan McRae Wood.  The vines that produce this wine surround the ones that make my absolute favorite Shiraz in the entire world – Jim Barry’s Armagh.  The alcohol content is a bit high at 14.5%, but one does not notice as this wine begs lingering attention.

For those not familiar with this wine, it’s a true Australian Shiraz from Clare Valley.  Mark Barry is the second generation winemaker and very proud of his creation.  He should be.  The wine still had fabulous color and a lot of fruit.  The aromas of blackberry, licorice, and mocha are still very prominent in comparison to the hints of American and French oak.  The tannin structure is still there as well and the wine still produces a long smooth finish.   While this redhead’s kiss has softened – her legs are still long.  Date night was thoroughly enjoyable.   I only wish I had taken time to make a meal deserving of this nice trip down memory lane.  I’d give it a rating of 92 points.

I’m going to say this once. Reading the book does not do Dan Roam’s work justice. You may say, “OK – it’s a visual design book. That’s what I read Edward R. Tufte for.” You are correct – that is what I read Tufte for as well. In order to maximize the message from Dan Roam’s book, you must see him speak. Here are two opportunities for you to do so (for FREE).

Dan’s first presentation “The Back of the Napkin” is available at The Commonwealth Club of California’s site. The recording of this presentation does not show the whiteboard as it is used during the talk. For that reason, I recommend you read the book prior to viewing this presentation.

Microsoft invited him to speak at Mix09 and they recorded his presentation with the whiteboard. Dan’s second and evolved presentation, “The Way of the Whiteboard: Persuading with Pictures” may be found here…

Play Video

Side note: If you like this approach to communicating, then you may choose to invest in a LiveScribe pen (www.livescribe.com). While I wish the pen supported multiple inks (or my preferred gel ink), it’s great for capturing digital ink. I like it much better than a Tablet PC as it fits my normal workflow by allowing me to use tools that I have used for years – a journal and a pen.

Papio 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon

Papio 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon

Varietal Blend:
Cabernet Sauvignon 75.5%;
Syrah 17.5%;
Grenache 3%;
Zinfandel 1.8%;
other red varieties 2.2%

To sum it up in 5 words: Great Wine Label – Bad wine.

This wine had no complexity at all beyond the catchy label.  But then again, you get what you pay for in a $5.00 bottle.  I found no special flavors bouncing out at me, nor did it have a nice aroma.  I did however like the jazz influenced monkeys on the label.  If only the wine reflected the artistic quality of the label or the website.

The back label says:  “It’s a jungle out there.  When you find delicious California wines that are good enough to share with your prime mates, you have discovered Papio.  Papio Cabernet Sauvignon has rich, ripe, fruit aromas, with just enough structure to go with more flavor-intense foods like burgers, burritos and barbecue.”

I might use it for cooking instead of my own wine or the reliable Yellowtail brand.  But as for drinking… this is one monkey that tried to get the fruit at the end of the branch one time too many.  Let’s give it a rating of 75 points.