I’m in Chicago this week attending a conference called “Voice of The Brand: Music.” It’s an intense two-day confab of companies looking to brand themselves by using music, giving music content providers (like Sony, Warner Brothers, Universal Music Group), music disseminators (like Pandora, Spotify, IHeartRadio, Slacker) and actual consumer brands (FedEx, Tito’s Vodka) the ability to meet, come up with innovative ideas and solutions, and potentially connect and to do some business.
I’ve met a lot of interesting folks, and heard some really innovative ways that companies use music to connect with their audiences.
Being kind of a market research geek, I was fascinated to hear about the depth of the information that a company like Pandora can provide. For example, they can track demographics of the listeners of all types of music and see how certain bands are “trending.” Because they can gather info on what listeners like before there’s really even a buzz on the street, companies like Pandora can provide a wealth of information to a company who wants to affiliate their brand with music to reach a certain, very specific audience.
Of course, this started me thinking about OffBeat’s brand, and I know for sure that it’s a lot more than just music: OffBeat is sort of the bible for the “church of New Orleans.” Of course, music is our stepping-off point because we’ve always felt that without our music, New Orleans (and Louisiana) wouldn’t be unique and attractive as a place to live and work, and surely, as place to visit.
Our culture is the most precious and valuable commodity that we have, especially now that we are so dependent on the hospitality industry as an economic driver.
How should we brand New Orleans in the years to come? What’s the voice of our brand? Should we amp up our already-rampant image as a party city? Or should we perhaps try to rebrand ourselves as a cultural mecca? Las Vegas or New York? Me, I’m tending towards New York. Would love to hear your thoughts.