Keynote speaker, Tracy Myers, started off ConvergeSouth 2012 with a bang.
New York Times Best-Selling Author, Brian Tracy, said, “Tracy Myers is a visionary… a Walt Disney for a new generation.” How did he gain such a reputation?
In a nutshell, Tracy is:
- An award-winning small business marketing & branding solutions specialist: Known as “The Nation’s Premier Automotive Solutions Provider.”
- Car Dealership Owner: You probably know Tracy from Tracy Automotive, a car dealership spread all over the nation.
- Best-selling Author: Most commonly known for “YOU Are the Brand, STUPID!” among six other books.
- Business Coach: Founder of his own program.
- Entrepreneur: See above
- Speaker: Yes, he was a fantastic public speaker. He engaged the audience at 8:30 am, which is not an easy task.
The list of accomplishments and recognition goes on and on… and on (summarized to 500 words on his website).
The man is incredibly impressive. He has accomplished more than an average American at his young age. During the presentation, Tracy focused on promoting your business using “you” as your resource. In summary, he stressed the importance of marketing yourself as your brand. He believes that the company should be promoted using your face rather than a logo.
I do agree that he has a point.
A simple face breaks down barriers between the company and consumer. Consumers are able to connect the company to a person rather than a money hungry non-human machine. A face implies a friendly company that cares about consumers as individuals rather than a data spreadsheet. A face gives off a sense of transparency: the owner is proud to represent his company and he has nothing to hide.
This reasoning is all implied of course, whether or not the consumer buys any of it depends on the service and how the company is run. The face is the first impression.
I don’t agree with his design techniques.
I think his promotional and brand design are “kitschy.” Listening to his presentation, all I could focus on was how many things I wanted to change in his design. I don’t necessarily like the photo angle looking down on him. It reminds me of advertisements that use paid clip art, which amused me because he stressed avoiding clip art images of people doing activities to promote your brand. At first, I wasn’t sold on the Uncle Sam hat, but I see what he is doing. Every promotional piece, he is wearing the hat. As a result, the hat has become a part of his brand. He has run advertisements using a cartoon image of himself with the hat on and they kind of work. Even though the cartoon doesn’t accurately scream “Tracy Myers,” the addition of the Uncle Sam hat does. But I don’t like the hat. I understand he is trying to promote the American car dealership, and it works. But I don’t like the hat.
It is all very kitschy, but sometimes that works. Andy Warhol is extremely kitschy but he was a famous, successful artist. He created art that all intelligence levels can enjoy it for what it is without a significant amount of effort to understand it. Andy Warhol appeals to the masses, and so does Tracy Myers. He promotes himself as a neighborhood car dealership that takes the time to build the relationship. He takes the focus off the quality of the car and focuses on the quality of the purchasing experience. They are fun, friendly, loyal, small, etc. and that gives him the competitive advantage over thousands of other dealerships in the area.
So, it works. There is evidence of strategy and thought into the design process. But it is kitschy and not for me.