Resolutions

The promo I've been talking about is still in limbo but it looks like it could make it up online sometime soon. In the meantime, I'd like thoughs on this one. The idea hit me right before the Christmas holiday. I wrote it down and had script approval in a day. I shot it two days later and edited it the next day. It's pretty simply done. It was the message we wanted to convey at the end of a year that saw huge property tax protests and a severe rise in crime. Basically, it's a call to action for viewers to watch the news. Like I said... nothing fancy and flashy here. It ran till a week or two past January 1st.

Still holding!

There has been progress on the spot I mentioned in my last post but the promo has yet to make air. That's what happens when your consultant is traveling and your GM is off for a week of hitting the slopes.

The wheels slowly began to turn again yesterday. Our consultant is actually in town and stopped by my boss' office to weigh in. He liked it! He actually liked it! Now it's a matter of convincing the GM to let us move forward. We'll see. It's certainly not the greatest spot ever (and not something I'd enter for an Emmy - although I loved the suggestion to run it overnight and do just that), but it is different. When so many of our spots have looked exactly alike lately, different is good. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) in today's Internet age if a promo campaign isn't resonating well with the public you're likely going to hear about it very quickly.

In the meanwhile I'm producing run of the mill sweeps promos. Is it just me or is this February just lame? I'm not seeing any really good ideas out there anywhere. It's as if everyone has decided not to expend the energy since the networks are offering us so few new episodes of anything.

Speaking of that... Thanks a lot CBS for burning through all those CSI shows out of book. It's not like we wanted a decent lead-in or anything. Jeez. At least we've got Dexter. I've curious to see how the network will make that presentable on broadcast television.

On standby...

So the promo I mentioned in my last blog entry is now in approval limbo. The promotion manager wanted to step outside the box a little and had a song created for a spot to start running in the AFC Championship game. I edited it and got some help from one of our DS editors to put a few finishing touches on it. The spot looks nice and everyone who has watched it has caught themselves humming the lyrics half an hour later. Yet the spot did not air in the game today. We're waiting on the consultant's okay.

Eyah.

I certainly don't blame the GM for wanting multiple opinions. It's his job first and foremost to protect the brand and if he has concerns then they should certainly be addressed. I'm totally cool with the knowledge the promo might never make air. That's how it goes sometimes. We've all been there... investing hours and days into a promo only to have it go to tape and nowhere else. What can you do?

After all the trouble and effort my boss put into getting the song, though, I hope it airs. One way or the other I'll see what I can do about posting it here. They might put the kibosh on that, too. It is their brand after all. They just let me play with it. :-)

Curses!

Argh! No Super Bowl repeat for Peyton and company. Watching that ball slip through Dallas Clark's hands was painful. I felt for the guy. All the more because we work with him a lot at the station. In fact, he and Bob Sanders are expected in the studio tonight. I wonder if they'll call in sick. Freaking Chargers... At least our voice guy should be happy. You reading this Erik???

So now I'm rooting for the Packers. Truthfully I don't care who goes to the big game - so long as it isn't the Patriots. Hating Tom Brady is pretty much required in order to live in Indy. I'm just saying.

So I've spent several hours this weekend at the office working on a spot to air in the AFC Championship game. Even though it will be Colts-less we should still see nice numbers. We're tossing the spot together pretty quickly with plans to dress it up even after it's initial airing. Hopefully we'll pull yet another rabbit out of our hat and have something really cool and kind of fun for the game. I'll endeavor to put the spot online once it's completed. It won't be anything ground breaking... but it has a nice beat. :-)

Sweeps and Super Bowls

Well it's been awhile since I wrote. Almost a month, in fact. The holidays always seem to tie me up and have their way with me. Then I need a week or two just to recover (and lose weight). I'm finally getting back in the groove at work but it's been tough. I need a good campaign or spot to give me a push in the right direction. It looks like I'll have to deal with sweeps first, however... ***sighs***

Hopefully we'll have some good stories for the Feb. book. I say hopefully because I have no idea what we're doing. Throw in the possibility of the Colts going to the Super Bowl again and the ever present threat of a whopping snowstorm and you've got the potential for an ugly February month, indeed.

Last January and February was an interesting time to work in our promotion office. Three stations originate out of the building where I work and we hub several more. One of those stations happens to be the CBS affiliate which, you guessed it, carried the Colts vs. Bears Super Bowl matchup. I can honestly say I never clocked more overtime in my life. There was one day where I was in at 3:00 AM! We handed out posters at numerous events. To this day our competition still winds up with our posters in their live shots because so many people in the city kept them and put them up in their businesses. Gotta love it.

So if the Colts do the unimaginable and beat the Patriots (unlikely but wouldn't that kick ass?) and go to Phoenix, we'll pull out all the stops again. The only down side is that Fox gets the big game this year. Still, there is nothing like working at a station when the hometown team is in the Super Bowl. It's pretty amazing.

I'll try to be better about posting here this year. I also resolve to upload more of my own work. Hopefully those will be two resolutions I can actually pull off...