Bret Bernhoft » Portland

Portland Bartending Academy

Bret Bernhoft — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 08:44:53 +0000

This is a quick post.

I was walking down near PSU earlier this week and I ran across the old location for the Portland Bartending Academy. As I walked past the building, with my headphones on, I noticed that there was something awfully destructive happening. Here is what I saw.

It is just weird to watch a building be destroyed that you have walked past every day for three years. Oh well, they seem to be doing just fine in their new location.

KBOO Sponsorship Expands; Communities

Bret Bernhoft — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 08:26:19 +0000

KBOO, 90.7 FM in Portland Oregon, is where I first got my start in audio and specifically in radio. You have to remember that this was back when I was thirteen years old, very curious about the world. I had no idea what producing audio content was even about.

After having met with Anni, the Volunteer Director, for a couple of hours one day and being given a whirl wind tour of the place, I was at the mic and behind the control panel; this truly was Community Radio. I was blessed at that age to be learning of my interest in media and communications. I will always be thankful for KBOO.

Since then I have been actively following the content and outreach that they have continued to do. I have begun to notice that KBOO is really ramping up their sponsorship of local events. For instance, I interviewed Rahmiel from EcoPalooza on PDX Gen-Y during which he mentioned that his media sponsor was KBOO. That was just the beginning of what seems to be a regular occurrence in my life; attending event around the community that are sponsored by KBOO. For me, this is evidence of something different at KBOO.

I am going to assume that there is a new staff member or volunteer behind these sponsorships.

After looking through the KBOO Staff List I noticed that the Development Director (the position typically associated with Sponsorships at a radio station) was currently being filled by a “Interim” Staff Member; Sun Lee. I am intrigued by this finding, as it means two things.

There is, in fact, a new Development Director.
Being that Sun Lee is only temporary, will they be replaced with someone with a lesser interest in community outreach?

This story has turned into quite a bit of a Matlock tale.Regardless of what happens to the continuation of KBOO’s sponsorship of events here in Portland, I am proud to have come from here.

Stumptown Stash and Beard Collective

Bret Bernhoft — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 05:04:42 +0000

Once a month a group of intrepid Social Media Marketers get together to discuss the new, innovative and otherwise interesting developments in Social Media platforms. The group is known as the “Social Media Club of Portland” and is led by Carri Bugbee. As a Board Member for this particular group, I find myself helping to set up events on a regular basis, not that I am complaining. This event, however was being held at Lola’s Room at the Crystall Ballroom off West Burnside in Portland Oregon. As part of renting Lola’s Room the SMC was given access to a Security Guard in the case of a bunch of nerds got out of hand.

As part of arriving early I was given the opportunity to meet the different staff members at the Crystal Ball Roo m for the evening. One of them happened to be a security guard named Justin Cate. There was something about him that stood out, something obvious. It turns out Justin has a huge beard. So, as the curious inquirer I am, I asked him about his facial hair.

Justin told me that there was a new group in town. A group he referred to as the “Stumptown Stash and Beard Collective“. From what I gathered, Justin was completely serious about what he was telling me, “My friend is world famous for his mustache.” I knew I had to learn more about these hardy hairy hipsters.

The first thing I did was check out their website and was sad to find “Our site is currently under construction. Please check back shortly!” blazed across the top of it. However, I did find a bit of Social Media, how appropriate, that did reveal a bit more about the group.

According to their “Facebook Info Tab” the group describes itself as,

We are those who choose to promote growing of all things… such as beards, mustaches, oats, barley, hops, corn, hemp… and the list goes on. We enjoy congregating with our fellow beardos to share in drink and dance as often as possible. We have two goals: to dominate the National and World Beard & Mustache Championships, and to rage til we drop!

This self-description is something to be proud of. It becomes clear that these “dangering” young men are interested in creating a community around a chosen identity. It is within this brotherhood that they find solidarity. Despite the potential to seem like a closed group to outsiders, these bearded men are holding their first event on March 15th at Mt. Tabor Theater at 5:30 and if you are curious than I suggest that you arrive early, it might get crowded.

The Stumptown Stash and Beard Collective seems like something that Portland will really dig. If you would like to contact the Stumptown SBC you can email them at stumptownsbc@gmail.com. Groovy stuff.

Portland Beard and Mustache Links

Brand Mascots Suck

Bret Bernhoft — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 20:41:51 +0000

Every Thursday and Friday I have the privledge of enjoying my lunch on the steps of Pioneer Square in downtown Portland Oregon. And with regular frequency, especially during the summer, there seems to always be something to watch . Whether this be street performers or petitioners, the life of Portland Streets is experienced as a unique kind of poetry. Today, however, there was something that I hadn’t ever seen before; Sand in the City. Yet, despite the amazing sand sculptures something more, well, intriguing caught my attention.

Subman!

At first I was shocked to see a walking sandwich, something I thought was left To Jared, but I stand corrected. As I continued to gaze on in amusement I began to observe more of the context surrounding why this personified deli Happy Meal was even present at this event. This walking delicatessen was trying to take advantage of the spirit of civics surrounding Sand in the City. This brings me to the question at hand, “What is the real value of a brand mascot?” But before we dive too deep into this discussion, lets establish a core metric that will help us clarify any ambiguities, what is a brand mascot?

For the purposes of this post a brand mascot will be anyone wearing a branded costume excluding Sports Teams. These costumes can be any intentional representation of a brand from a logo to an archetype. Most importantly, a brand mascot is a person in a suit. Now, let us dig a little deeper into why I personally think “Brand Mascots Suck”.

It could be easily said that, “Mascots provide an opportunity for our actual and potential customers to interact with our brand personified.” On the flip side it could also be mentioned that, “Brand Mascots appeal to children. Enough said.” It doesn’t really matter which strategy or approach you take to brand mascots, they are essentially clowns in Superman capes. This being said, the greatest difference between the Superheros and brand mascots is message and time period.

Brand mascots are attempting to provide two core messages to the public (primarily children). These would be as follows:

Our brand is real, really.
Come play with us!

During the “Fast Food Renaissance” of the 50′s, the brand mascot was truly invented, at least in the context that we know it today. Here is an example of that.

But there has developed a disconnect between the origin of brand mascots and the present purpose they serve. There is an important point to be made here, “It isn’t the fault of the costumed sandwiches but their puppet masters for this falling from glory.” Subman isn’t to blame for being a poor brand representation, it is the marketers that designed and dispatched him. This is the point. Brand mascots fail to deliver any meaningful message to the public because marketers, in general, have failed to educate themselves on the changes occurring in the outside world.

Here are a couple of lessons that I have learned about brand mascots, having been reinforced in the past month (thank you Old Spice Guy).

Brands don’t need clowns, they need Circus Masters. Instead of relying on a one act performer to sway an audience, put your faith in a conductor of sorts. Brands, if they are to continue using live spectacles, need to be able to summon and fluidly integrate the environment into their efforts. This can take the form of a staged event or the crowd itself.
Children are off limits, period. From the time I was a child to this very day, I have always loathed advertising geared towards any age demo under 14 years old, especially with parental consent. Brands must begin to give children the freedom from coercive messaging. Focus on decision makers directly and stay out of school.

There is little that can be done to salvage the typical brand mascot, that ship has sailed. Let us understand very clearly, marketers need to be more creative than dancing sandwiches.

Matt Davis Leaves the Portland Mercury

Bret Bernhoft — Fri, 07 May 2010 21:39:46 +0000

This is perplexing news; Matt Davis is leaving the Portland Mercury for good and moving to New Orleans! According to his first post about the move, “I’m taking the next step in my career after four fantastic years with the Mercury. I’m sorry to say that I’m moving on.” As would be expected, his fans immediate wished him well and good luck in New Orleans.

Comments such as:

With little evidence supporting the notion that Matt is joking or just being cynical, as per his usual, I believe I can take him at his word. The impact of this decision, I believe, will not be felt for quite some time into the future. But, what is the real impact of Matt Davis leaving?

It is in my estimation that the genuine impact of Matt Davis leaving will be the loss of the staple voice for the Portland Mercury. The voice that has been able to generate enough controversy to make the Mercury a relevant weekly here in Portland to so many pessimists. So, if the Portland Mercury loses it’s connection between the city of Portland and it’s owners, what’s next for the paper?

I am going to assume that one of two things happens.

The Portland Mercury begins an exhaustive search for a replacement. Someone who is uniquely qualified to keep up the integrity that the Portland Mercury is known for.
The Portland Mercury transcends this bump in the road and transforms its relationship to both journalism and its readers. It finds a new niche to conquer.

Whatever happens, Matt Davis will certainly be missed.

Another Portland Conference Season

Bret Bernhoft — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 00:14:02 +0000

Just as the literal cherry blossoms are beginning to bloom, so too is the romance of another Portland Conference Season, its Spring! To the casual observer, many of the conferences, un-conferences and day long learning excursions that many like myself will attend will go unnoticed and uncelebrated. For my ilk and I, however, this is a time of year (the next 6 months) that brings a certain ambiance to the marketing world that can only be described as “blogging/tweeting fodder.” I say this as many of us will be paying, in some cases, a total sum of several thousand dollars to attend these many conferences, with some individual events costing $500 or more! It is there for no mistake that those in attendance would want to remember the event as best as possible, so we blog and tweet until we cannot anymore.

From blog posts that try to predict the new insights that the traveling industry spokesperson will try to sell us, like so much cheap oil. Or perhaps the incessant tweets during the actual speech, where it seems more information of value is shared behind the scenes. Either platform that is used, there is one commonality – getting a grip on the ever changing reality of marketing and media!

I am no different. I will be blogging and tweeting until my thumbs fall off, however, this year I do it all with a purpose. A mission different that previous years. This year, I am planning on attending 75% of all Portland based conferences. By doing so, I will enable myself to create a picture of a picture, so to speak. I will creating links between different frames of mind, from SEO to Social Media to Digital Futurism, I will be creating a modern image of how Portland views journalism, at least from the pulpit of PowerPoint.

While there are many conferences that I am looking forward to attending, the one that I am most excited about is Digital Journalism 2010, which is the brain candy of Abraham Hyatt. I am excited fro this conference for many reasons, but two in particular.

I will be leading a session or two, making this conference an opportunity to demonstrate my “research” and experience.
I will witness a sort of culmination of elements that I hope will bring about the grand conclusion to my many theories.

All in all, I am excited about this year. I feel like I have a different goal than to just be herded through the roundup of different panels and presentations. This year, I will write about writing. Woot!

SearchFest 2010 – Pre Game

Bret Bernhoft — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 07:13:23 +0000

This Tuesday, March 9th 2010, SearchFest is going to be happening at the Governor Hotel in Portland Oregon. I am especially excited about this year’s event as the main speaker is going to be Stefan Weitz from Bing. His presentation is expected to blow the socks off of anyone who is in the audience as well as those who will be hearing the aftermath of the whole thing. But beyond the actual presentations themselves I am anticipating interviewing several of the presenters themselves for the podcast.

I will be giving each presenter their opportunity to tell you, the listener and reader, about their varying perspectives on the future of both journalism and media. I think that this is going to be one of the better episodes as I am expecting to interview each presenter while they are still “in the zone.” I think that conferences have a unique way of allowing people to truly put on their thinking caps, especially presenters, and to give their newest and brightest ideas wings. So stay tuned and be ready for some awesome insights from our fellow SEO thought leaders.

Oregon Media Central

Bret Bernhoft — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:02:42 +0000

Oregon Media Central is a website geared towards the coverage of the Oregon media world and is maintained by Mitch Nolan. The website has been active since the demise of Oregon Media Insiders, a blog formerly covering the different worlds within Oregon media and journalism. Oregon Media Central (OMC) seems to cover a variety of topics but stays primarily on the subject of the “news about the news.”

According to their website, “Founded in June 2009 by Mitch Nolan, Oregon Media Central is dedicated to fair coverage of the media in Oregon and Southwest Washington.” Essentially, OMC wants to act as the link between the happenings of the Oregon media scene and the public. With a mission such as that it is important for OMC to have insider relations with varying new agencies. As was posted by Mitch Nolan himself on the Portland Mercury’s website, “Gmail wanted to automatically show everybody who my anonymous sources are. Fortunately, I caught it.”

It is therefore not much of a stretch to assume that Mitch Nolan has worked very hard at either building valuable relationships with people inside of the media world here in Portland or he is being passed a lot of information via anonymous tipsters. Either way, it seems to me, that OMC could be used in a number of ways that could be financially or personally damaging to people who need to be seen as seamless, the media. I would personally hope that the operators of OMC understand this.

Being that the subject of the blog is in fact the actual media and their product, information, it is important to address the significance of this relationship. From an information consumption perspective, having a resource such as OMC is valuable, yes. I imagine that the real value in having OMC will be in their allowing for commentary and providing an opportunity for backroom media operations to be exposed. Other than that it will be a game of whether or not OMC can provide original content consistently over time.

So similar to the issues of most media, we must wait until we are told.