CrapHammer

The end of craphammer

A little over a year ago I set out to launch a project.  For months I would do everything in my power to work on anything else under the sun. The project scared me. There was no client. There was no one else to blame if things went wrong. And frankly, it was too close to my heart and my purpose.

Friends and associates stepped forward on every front. Without them I never would have been able to make this project see the light of day. Some designed logos for me. Others built the back end. Some stepped forward to help me on my first mini doc for the new site.

I wanted to document, speak with and understand the most passionate people I could find, whether they be artists, parents, circus performers or gardeners. I wanted to find and understand these people. I wanted to know what it was like to be them and share their motivations, tools and outlook with the rest of us.

Craphammer was a fun and key part of my professional life that has been dormant for far too long. So now it is time for me to let go and turn my attentions to the mostpassionate.ca.

I hope you will take a minute to stop by and check it out. I'll save a place for you there.

 

The Retail Crap-Off

Two stories.  Many votes.  One "winner."

But first, anyone interested in marketing in the retail space, I highly recommend you read the (evil) Northern Planner's diatribe on retail.  It's long but full of wonderful insight and actionable recommendations.

VW
This one comes from Matt at the Digital Perm.

Matt was in love with the VW Touareg.  He drooled on his popcorn when seeing it in the latest Bourne movie and was following every campaign, commercial and announcement about the car with bated breath.  We even have reports that he was considering making it the background image for his blog.

Guy and his dream car.  No big deal.  But get this.  He'd even managed to get his wife to love the car.  And they had just bought their last car less than a year ago.  Jealous yet?  I know I am.

I'd say VW was sitting pretty sweet. They have engaged Matt and likely many others as well.

And then Matt saw the offer.  "Sign up for a joyride in the Touareg 2 and receive two free tickets to the Bourne Ultimatum."

Dream Car.  Guy movie with a dream car in it.  Driving said dream car.  Matt didn't even blink.  He signed up.  The site let him choose the type of car to drive, when would be a good time to take a test ride and even when and how to contact him.

Within 15 minutes he had a car salesman calling him on his cell phone leaving messages.  But hadn't he just said he wanted to be contacted via email?  But hey, it's the Touareg 2.  Better listen to the man, Matt.  Turns out they have a hot offer until the end of the month and that he couldn't pass it by.  No mention of his joy ride.  Just a hard sales pitch.

But the best part is the email follow-up.

Way to blow it VW.

The hardest part of retail is that you can't sell your idea to corporate and be done with it.  You gotta take it all the way down through a channel you may or may not control.  But not fighting this fight is bad news.

P.S.  I love that the fist image on Matt's blog of the car was "vwjoy.jpg" and the last one was "vwsux.jpg".

LCBO Drops the Plan-o-bomb
Here in Ontario, we have to buy most of our alcohol from the Government (LCBO) or The Beer Store.  Likely explains why Canadians are more involved in politics.  We have to be or they may mess with our beer.

And until recently, my local LCBO (Danforth and Broadview) was a classy little place.  I'd grown accustomed to going there to get all my alcoholic needs.  Their selection of beers ran to the higher end and allowed me to get all my Montreal micro-brews, peruse some wines and even pick up some random other tidbits.  But a few weeks ago, this all changed.

I arrived to find that the beer area was a disaster.  There were now cases of cheap beer stacked everywhere.  And all the micro-brews were pretty much relegated to a single warm shelf.  All the refrigerated shelves now brimming with cases of Molson, Labatts and other domestic, mass-produced weasel-piss.

After a few visits, I came to realize this state of affairs was "planned."  I approached one of the cashiers and asked, "What happened to the beer area?"  They shared my frustration but informed me that someone in corporate had sent a new "plannergram" and they had no choice but to implement it.  They went on to say something along the lines of "You would think one of them might actually come and visit the store, before or after, eh?" 

I stopped by again just the other day and it was the same.  And this time, when I asked the cashier, they let me know that "someone at corporate is very smart and so it must be a good thing." 

And while I'm sure these changes look great on a balance sheet and on the neat little plannergram someone in corporate designed, it shows that retail is more than planning and oversight.  It requires visiting stores.  But fine.  So the store is a mess, just give me my beer.  But nope.  Turns out they haven't received a beer shipment in some time which is why all the micro-brews are depleted.

I have since had to return to the Beer Store for all my beer needs.  I am happy to report they have my micro brew in stock.  And it's almost worth having to wait in line with the wino's returning empties and breathing the fumes of many an open beer bottle.  Sigh.

Tally the votes!

So.  Send in your votes.  Who has a larger craphammer?

- LCBO - store relations gone astray, store dis-empowerment, warm beer
- VW - car-salesman-itis, bad campaign management, blowing it

Photos: LexnGer