Having spent a decade or so in the Austin area, I was privy to some pretty special events. For one, the SXSW festival setup offered a wide range of things to keep a spring break active. It was more than just a bunch of musical groups living in vans (though THAT is always cool). The film festival rivals the best in the world. The interactive festival gives a person a glimpse into the future. In 2011 we encountered our first "printer" that made things out of plastic (!). This week, the young man that accompanied me sent me to Indianapolis this little gem:
If you live in the Austin area (or know someone who lets you crash for a week), you can catch a wealth of ancillary activities and insights. This may be the
key reason to experience events like SXSW, Comic Con, and even major sporting event (even without tickets to
actual events). These kinds of events and opportunities don't come to McAllen, but this post comes from Indianapolis--the Oklahoma City of the Midwest (
TM Paul Henley 2015). Right now, Indy is in the throes of hosting the
Final Four (and
related things), which they seem to do about as often as the Olympics take place (2006, 2010, 2015...). Great minds are present, throughout. I've been especially amazed by the masterful marketing approaches--nothing amazingly new, just impeccable execution of standard approaches. This work comes from the masters: Coke, AT&T, GM, etc.
Case in point: the
March Madness Music Festival.
Three nights of concerts by impressive lineups. It's a gift from the NCAA to its host city each year. Tonight, we missed Cold War Kids, caught the end of Weezer's set, and ignored Imagine Dragons. It was an incredible mix of college students, locals, and die-hard fans. After Weezer had finished, we headed to the Coke Zero section. We were greeted by this:
The wording is a made from a hose full of Coke Zero that flows to a fountain:
I'd bumped into this little gem online. Here it was: the first "drinkable billboard" in my personal history. If you want to see the story behind this idea, click
here. If I post anything about this, I'm supposed to add "#opentotry." I asked if that was
legal to use words like "open" in Indiana these days. I was told, "
Coca-Cola supports an inclusive environment." Message. Discipline.
At this point, you need to realize that this area becomes "holy ground" to a diet cola junkie. My youngest daughter just informed me of
the issues that diet sodas bring to your life. Yep. Understood. Meanwhile, the holy ground was lush, but a little muddy.
Didn't matter. There was no reason to look down, literally or figuratively.
The rest of the exhibit didn't disappoint, either. The Coca-Cola folks knew exactly how to strike a balance between fun and memorable. We walked past a set of live games (like a 4' x 4' version of a"Connect Four" board, with the game being announced live through loudspeakers). After all, gotta walk past that. Why? Because that's how you get to the
actual trophy to be awarded to Monday night's NCAA champion. After a 2-minute wait, our photo was taken and I was texted a link to get to this photo:
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| (Yeah, yeah...you are what you "drink") |
It was a pretty amazing little setup--like a non-alcoholic version of the Bud Light "
Up for Whatever" commercials. As we left, we passed by a monstrous Ferris Wheel--also free to anyone interested. You could photograph the concert and use a
different hashtag. The line was long, and we were done for the day.
As I fall asleep in this
fine hotel (nestled quietly in North-North Oklahoma's "Meth Land"), I want to make two things clear:
1. I'm being manipulated by commercial interests.
2. I'm totally fine with that.
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| Good bands end with a drum circle |
