Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

A brand with the fangs of a dragon and the sights of a Stinger Missile is back. It's one of my favorite brands of all time -- especially when its tough and unflinching. It's The News and Observer. And over the last three months, it's reminded everyone from the governor to the Joe & Jane Public just how it earned its reputation as one of the nation's best dailies. This even as it lays off staff. In fact, because of the challenges facing the N&O, its fire-breathing return to fighting form should be an inspiration to all businesses.

A newspaper -- like a lot of enterprises -- serves many audiences and often shifts its brand identity to meet different needs. The brand identity that's conspicuously roared back at the N&O isn't the USA Today-style shorts and tips. It's the investigative reporting, agitator-for-the-public-good brand that made the paper's bones under the leadership of its founders and legendary editors like Pulitzer-winner Claude Sitton. The firebrand brand, if you will.

This isn't to say the N&O ever lost that element of its character. It's just that recently the paper has become a must-read thanks to coverage of stumbles on mental health policy and other government goofs. Did you catch the phrase "must-read"? What print publication in America wouldn't kill for that description?

So what? Well, the big biz lesson here is the wisdom in tough times of identifying and seizing on your strongest value proposition, the one thing that makes you close to indispensable. The N&O is apparently betting its key value is uncovering and righting wrongs. Considering how much buzz I've heard about the paper's recent front page stories, I'd be hard pressed to disagree.

On another front, Starbucks is going through a similar process. As it closes stores, the kingdom of caffeine is re-evaluating what it does best -- is it the half-caff skinny mochas or classic rock CDs? Thousands of companies big and small across recession-wracked America face similar challenges. I'm impressed and thankful the N&O is answering the questions with an exclamation point.

(Full disclosure: I was a reporter at the N&O for two years under the aforementioned Claude Sitton and alongside some of the guys still running the paper's investigative operations. And yes, I still love them, the paper and the whole notion of daily journalism.)

Yesterday was a monumental day in caffeine addict history. Every Starbucks in the nation (yes, all of them) closed for exactly three hours. Three whole caffeine free hours. Why? Well, if you've been in tune with the news lately I'm sure you've seen the memo: Starbucks isn't doing so hot. Sales are down, and the store closing was an effort to re-educate employees on the the ins and outs of being a superstar barista. Too bad that even after the crash course in barista superstardom, the company also plans to layoff 600 employees nationwide.
Is this really happening? Are we really hating on Starbucks? In a nutshell, yes. Don't get me wrong, I'm just as caffeine addicted as the rest of America. But the Starbucks "experience" does leave something to be desired. The long lines, the high prices, the confusion of the menu and the 30 different ways to order a drink can leave a person exhausted before they even get to work.

Remember Austin Powers 2? Even Dr. Evil's people knew that investing in Starbucks would yield big profits. This is one of the most recognizable brands in the world, an undoubtedly one of the biggest examples of what good PR can accomplish. But now with strong competition from Dunkin Donuts and McDonald's, Starbucks better find some extra hot espresso to scorch the competitors. A world without Mocha Light Frapps isn't one that I desire to live in.